I have to agree. I would like to know what you use as “mulch’ on top of pots. Thanks for talking about things that are basic and so many people assume you know. So many great tips.
Thank you so much for highlighting our Beat Your Neighbor fertilizer! We appreciate you showing it and supporting us as small businesses owners and fellow growers. (Oh…And we do add the extra iron to our BYN fertilizer.)
Corey, you sir, are my hero! Every one of your videos teaches me something new. And I have been a gardener for over 50 years. Your content is so honest and spot on. You definitely know what thoughts go through our minds. 😂 Amazing video!
Corey, you are an absolute joy to watch. Your channel gets better and better with every episode. I get just as messy when I’m repotting my annuals. It’s just dirt, and washes away. Have a great week!
Thank you for mentioning the frustration of measuring Miracle Grow! I quit fussing over it and use 1 scoop per gallon. I use a 5 gal bucket then fill a half gallon pitcher to fertilize my annuals. Yes, it takes time but I like the control I have with the amount of fertilizer. I follow your fertilizer and watering regime faithfully and am thrilled with results. This was challenging but I used less plants per pot and by golly you were right!! Thank you for your videos and enthusiasm! Your up north, almost in the UP follower
Thanks for the five gallon bucket watering tip. I love it! So much easier using the measuring cup than trying to refill and continuously lift a watering can. You are so smart, Corey!
Corey after watching your videos I'm going to give petunias another go. Normally where I am we plant bedding petunias in mid autumn so they're ready to flower in Spring. I am amazed at the choice of super vista petunias and petchoas. I have limited choice and if it's not bought with a flower, well it's pot luck. I've potted up some supervista petunias to grow over winter, so am looking forward to see what I end up with in Spring. Thanks for the inspiration. 🌏
We have fifty two containers of perennials and six containers of annuals. We feed all the containers with tomato food once a week. When we started gardening with containers we used to use Miracle-Gro but the plants would be covered with aphids who are attracted to plants with high nitrogen levels. Tomato food has a 6-3-9 NPK and we don't get as many aphids.
Corey, we really need saucers that snaps to our hanging containers. They will catch the overflow, well, you know what I mean. Would it be a good, or bad thing?
There’s a risk of overwatering, but that would be handy in the hot summer. Designing one that doesn’t spill when blown in the wind would be the challenge.
Hi Corey this video came just in time! So I have the middle split and leggy issue I( waves) and I trimmed along pot edge and I still have spkit couldn't remember how you were fertilizing so now I have the info, also you did it 20 days ago i did mine 6 days ago 😂 Time!!!I did repot everything into the bigger pots as well.I used to use miracle grow but two yrs ago my sister in-law told me about Jack's I have great success.So i learned to have more patience for results and fertilizer and water properly.As always you have taught me well and your information is so easy to understand.Thabk you Corey my go to garden channel!!
I’m glad I added the number of days… I had people asking for updates on those one days after the first video. I’ve found that I can savor the experience of watching them come back.
I bought an Ortho hose sprayer for fertilizing in the recommendation of the Beat Your Neighbor people. I like it because you can deliver a calibrated dose of fertilizer. I just figured out how much of the powder to add to the jar and set the dial for the correct dilution. I use a 1/4 dose for begonias. This sprayer has made my life so much easier! It's way better than the miracle gro sprayer which does not give a calibrated dose.
I bought one this year too. I like it but mine (and the one I bought my dad) underdoses. The 1 tbsp setting was too weak. I upped it to 2 oz setting. That delivered the same blue hue compared to what I would mix in a watering can. Have you experienced the same issue?
This was an awesome tutorial! I learned quite a bit today about fertilizing AND watering!! I certainly had my fingers crossed with that large petunia! Tx so much for sharing your knowledge and experiences with us. 🥰
I purchased the Beat Your Neighbor Fertilizer over a month ago after you recommended it in a video, and I'm following Sharkey's Greenhouse *Fertilizer Fridays* Thanks for a long video--great way to end the day 👋
I love seeing how the plants are coming along. They all look great. I love the white pots as it lets the flowers be the star of the show. I admit I rarely fertilize my containers and they do fine.
I usually consider the weather conditions the plant will experience over the next 24 hours. Hot, dry, or windy means I will likely water. However, if the top two inches are dry, I usually add water unless it’s a geranium or begonia or some other plant that doesn’t mind being dry for 24 hours.
I’ve used the espoma bloom one it’s quite nice though you do need to put some iron tone in the beginning of the summer! I like it cause it doesn’t burn the roots :)
It's was good to hear about the miracle gro spoons. Drives me crazy. Also I was debating between the two miracle gros also and think they perform similarly
Enjoy all of your videos. Would like to see one on how to use various products for pests. I am having a difficult year with earwigs/slugs/etc and have tried many options like traps, DE, Sluggo...help!
Sluggo Plus or Captain Jack’s Bug and Slug for slugs, snails, and earwigs. Just a few granules per plant every 10 days unless they disappear, then add more because they’re eating it.
Love this video. Got a few tips that I never do especially the 5 gallon bucket… fill it up and then just put it in a wagon and take it around. I usually carry 2 gallons at a time. Plus, didn’t realize how often I should be using a water soluble fertilizer. I always use the granule fertilizer when I’m preparing my beds and when I’m doing my pots, but I will do the water soluble more often now.
Thanks for clearing up the annual/perennial fertilizer issue! Question…we’ve had a tremendous amount of rain and no real heat here in zone 3 Manitoba. My pots need fertilizer but due to no heat the slow release that I added when planting isn’t active either. As the plants don’t need water…any suggestions? 💦😢🇨🇦
That’s a tough one. Too much time in all that water can cause root damage. FYI - Most time-release is activated at about 10 degrees Celsius (50• F). I suspect your plants are stunted by the extra water and cold temps more than lack of fertilizer. They might not start actively growing until those conditions change. I’ve heard people say that if the soil is heavily saturated in shrub containers and the pots have decent drainage, you can still water with fertilizer if absolutely necessary. I haven’t had to test this myself though.
Great information, Corey I have a perennial question for you, I have Primrose around a fountain. They bloom exponentially at first Should I be removing the sea pods to make them bloom again? Also have Russian sage, but I would like to start in another location, do I dig that up by the Root & transplant or is that something that I can trim the existing plant & place it in water to grow roots and transplant. Peace & Everything Good!
I usually cut off the spent blooms and sometimes get a bit of rebloom. I’ve never propagated Russian sage from cuttings, so I’m not sure - I’ve dug them up and moved them with success.
I used to be worried about hurting my garden plants at home with fertilizer so I was careful not to get the fertilizer on the leaves and to measure properly. For the past couple of months I’ve been working at my local greenhouse nursery and they fertilize every single watering with 20-8-20 and chelated iron. We were told to basically keep the plant roots wet, it didn’t matter if fertilizer going on any leaves, every single plant got the same treatment, whether it was a perennial, herb, vegetable or annual. The soil in the pots became green and looked like it had a thin layer of algae, but I think it was the fertilizer. This goes against anything I’ve learned on RU-vid. I didn’t witness any of the plants hurting from the fertilizer overuse. These plants were getting watered every single day in the greenhouses. The owner never allowed any plants to have any dry soil ever. I certainly don’t practice this at home with my plants. I do the once a week thing, but because of what I witnessed at the greenhouse, I no longer fear over fertilizing my plants. I didn’t agree with how they did it there, but it also wasn’t my business so I just did as I was told.
Most plants are pretty resilient - especially once they reach a certain size. Sometimes in a nursery setting, time input is the priority… so strategic shortcuts save a lot of money… and if the plants are selling reasonably fast it makes sense to focus on getting them abundant water and fertilizer rather than preserving leaves and checking moisture levels with each watering.
❤ Good Afternoon Love your videos and your honesty! Most channels just say what they feel they need to say...but not you. I appreciate that. My question is: Are you going to be planting up fall planters planters this year? Do you have a video on fall planters with bulbs and winter plants?❤❤❤
Hi Corey 😊 I have followed your advice with success and I thank you for sharing your knowledge. In the past, at my local plant center, I noticed the water guy flooding the plants. I asked him why he was drowning them and he said they always water their plants that way. This confuses me because they have ridiculously amazing plants. I wonder if that is why the fertilizer I used seemed to work so incredibly well because they were no longer drowning and actually had a chance to utilize what I was feeding them? I did a new container yesterday and I cannot wait for it to fill in. I used 3 different colored petunias and one color verbena~ I have Bees Knees in the center and two each of white and light purple surrounding it and then in between the whites and purples I have a dark purple verbena. I hope it looks good with they fill up the container. It's an old tire turned inside out so it's plenty big. Hopefully not too big LOL I am also getting pots ready for some ladies at the manor where my mom lives. Bless their heart they think I have a greenhouse so I'm going for it. Most of my requests were for purple and yellow petunias (so I had a surplus for my own container) and one wanted a yellow begonia. It's been fun and thanks to you the plants are looking fabulous in spite of being drowned before I got them home lol Thanks again 😊🇨🇦😊
Chances are they have fertilizer in their water all the time. I have a feeling it’s easier to train new employees to overwater than train them to properly water. If they sell baskets pretty quickly and they’re fertilizing, the plants well do okay. It wastes water and fertilizer (I don’t even want to think of the fertilizer runoff), but it must be getting the job done for them.
Bravo with the giant petunia!! I bought some hanging baskets with a coir bottom and when I try to water, it just runs off. These are impatiens and they're doing okay but I hate to water them. Should I have put a pit of plastic sheeting on part of the bottom?
I have been using the hose attachment that comes with the miracle grow and not measuring out at all in cups. Mine are getting way more than you give. 🤦🏽♀️🤦🏽♀️🤦🏽♀️🤦🏽♀️🤦🏽♀️ well they aren’t dead so there’s that 😅😅😅
Hi Corey, Love your videos! Maybe you have addressed this but, I’ll ask anyway. I’m in southeast Mi and this heatwave coming has me wondering how to care for my hydrangeas. They are wilting in the heat of the day but are perked back up in early evening. Should I be watering when they droop? Also, should I fertilize in this heat? A video on hydrangea care in extreme heat would be appreciated.
Only water them if they’re dry. Drooping is how they cope with the heat… it’s hard not to just keep giving them water, but if the soil is still wet, just hang tight.
I just bought some super tunia bubblegum they were on sale and leggy thought ii would save them how far back should I cut them or should I give them a small trim only? I am going to give them a good nesting in good soil.
If you’re going aggressive - I’d leave at least two sets of leaves. Or you could just do a light trim for shape and let them produce new growth by making sure they’re getting extra fertilizer.
Your number one priority is keeping them from dying out - especially watch out if there’s wind. I’d keep to the fertilizing schedule, but if you skip one week, they’ll be fine.
Thank you I also wanted to ask I have been getting a bit of " wilt" with a bunch of my petunias I have put in my wheelbarrow the petunias have looked lovely but one by one they are wilting ..all the petunias will be fine but one plant will wilt...no bug poo...or bugs I have seen. This is not bud worm no actual little worms...help what could this be. None of my petunias in my hanging are doing this.. .thank u😊
thank you for a great video - i do this as well with great success - However i never heard or read Not to feed perennials - i am confused as mine do very well - isn’t it just a little boost for them as long as it is very diluted ??
You still need to feed them, but weekly MiracleGro is more than they need. I stick to compost in the spring and since time release during the season for perennials and shrubs.
Is there any benefit to using cocoa liner baskets versus plastic hanging baskets? Anytime I buy a hanging plant I transfer it from the plastic basket to a cocoa liner basket…is this necessary?
It’s more about the volume of soil that the vessel. That said, a cocoa lined basket that doesn’t have plastic lining it will dry out faster as the air is able to pass through it.
We buy ours in bulk, so I don’t have a specific brand. Epic Gardening just did a video comparing 14 different soils. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-o-iIvfD47Aw.htmlsi=CZNoFKP5-Ui1GIaZ
In most of my container planting videos I try to mention the size of container. I’d suggest starting with your local nursery, they usually carry a line of basic containers OR they can direct you to some local sources.
Can someone help me with a rain question? I never know if I should fertilize after it rains or not. today’s the day I had planned to fertilize, but it rained really good last night. Cori, this was an excellent video on fertilization and how to use it. I think I’ve been using miracle grow wrong. 😳 what the heck! I thought that little scoop was for 2 gallons. That explains a lot.! And I don’t think I’m fertilizing often enough. 😬
If the pots are really wet/heavy, I wait a day or two before I water/fertilize… you can either skip a week of fertilizing or just go back to your regular weekly schedule.
Wondering why you didn't use an empty pot to form the soil well? I usually have several pots the same size and use an empty pot to keep from damaging the plant.
Next time put an empty pot into the pot you are transplanting into( same size of the one your are transplanting) much easier,and less broken branches..
Corey, very, very good video, very informative. That is really the only plant I have a little trouble with keeping it looking good and making it last all summer. I planted 5 bubble gum this year. I'll already lost 1 another 1 maybe on its way out. I hope they will survive. I try to do what you say. Minor all in Corey, very, very good video, very informative. That is really the only plant. I have a little trouble with keeping it looking good and making it last all summer. I planned it 5 bubble gum this year. I already lost 1 another 1 maybe on its way out. I hope they will survive. I try to do what you say. Minr are all in ground. I could not find any PWS in town. So I replaced one with a wave and I like it. I think that's what I will do if i louse anymore. My first time to try bubble. Wish me luck you have such marvelous taste. Thank you for your videos have a blessed day the oklahoma gardener
We need a support group - but every week or would turn into a session of everyone comparing plant photos on our phones… “Can’t you believe the size of this petunia.” 😝
Having spent over a decade splitting my time between the US and Europe, I have seen some of those truly incredible containers... but I've also seen plenty of mediocre ones there as well. Those lush containers, no matter where they are, are getting plenty of fertilizer and special care. I recall a woman near Bath, England, who claimed her secret was that she only used rainwater. However, she conveniently didn't mention the wagon full of fertilizers she kept around the corner that were clearly part of her regimen.
