It is of paramount importance for you to fertilize your trees. Doing fertilizing can considerably bolster the health of your tree, feed the soil and give a plant the tools to ward off disease, pests, and environmental stresses.
Of course, a fertilizer isn´t a miracle worker; however, it will go a long way in ensuring the protection and favorable growth of a tree. Anyway, without straying away from the topic any further, let´s discuss how you can fertilize trees.
First step:
Pick the right fertilizer
If you aren´t keen on going through the complications of picking the ideal fertilizer from the plethora of tree fertilizer products, you can opt for granular fertilizers as a safe choice; it definitely helps that they, just like liquid tree fertilizers, are easy to apply as well. While choosing a granular fertilizer, we would recommend you to purchase one that has been specifically formulated for the type of tree you wish to fertilize, such as evergreen or fruit tree. You can also go for an all-purpose formula such as 10-10-10. We would also advise you to get a root fertilizer for trees.
Second step:
Calculate and identify the root zone size
You should know that tree roots grow quite far away from the trunk. In fact, they grow further than the branches. If you want to calculate the root radius, you can measure in feet the distance from the trunk to the end of the longest branch. For the measurement of the root zone, you would simply need to apply this formula: (root radius x root radius x 3.14). The formula will give you the measurements in square feet.
Third step:
How much fertilizer will your tree need?
The general rule of thumb implies that you are safe to apply up to a pound of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet in a year. A 20-pound bag of 10-10-10 fertilizer contains around 10 percent or 2 pounds each of phosphorus, potassium, and nitrogen.
Fourth step:
The application of the fertilizer
First, you will need to mark the outside boundary of the root zone. You will also need to mark a circle 3 to 4 feet from the trunk. Then, you can proceed to uniformly spread the fertilizer between the two circles. While doing so, you should ensure that you avoid applying the fertilizer close to the trunk. If the tree is positioned in a lawn, you should only attempt to apply the fertilizer when the grass is dry.
Growing a tree is hard work. There are numerous guides on how to plant a tree, but we highly recommend you read our manual How to plant a tree in 10 easy steps, so you can understand clearly how and when to grow, water and fertilize a new cherry/maple/citrus and whatever new tree.
