# 2026 Fertilization Schedule (rev 2 — post first pass) *Revised 2026-04-18 after the first spring application. Tracks what's actually been done and adjusts the remaining list. Previous "preliminary" version superseded.* ## What's on hand | Supply | On hand | Notes | |---|---|---| | Jobes Organics Fruit & Nut | ~0.6 kg | Used ~1.2 kg in the April round | | 10-15-9 Vegetable | 2 kg | Untouched; reserved for vegetables + flowering support | | 6-8-6 All Purpose | ~1.8 kg | ~200 g used on haskap/jostaberry/gooseberry | | Blood Meal | ~1.2 kg | Used ~150 g (blueberries + lingonberry + accidental jostaberry/gooseberry dose) | | Bone Meal | 0.5 kg | Untouched this round; reserve for planting holes | | Compost | ~1/4 yard | Raspberries got a layer 2026-03-28 | | Garden Mix Soil | ~1/4 yard | Untouched | | **Sulfur-90** | ~1 kg | Leftover; used ~1 tbsp total on blueberries 2026-04-18 | **Note:** no additional purchases recommended. The Sulfur-90 covers the acidifier gap that was the one suggested buy in rev 1. --- ## What was done 2026-04-18 - ✅ **All 9 grapes** — 1 cup Jobes at each post - ✅ **Blueberry path (11 bushes)** — 1 tbsp blood meal + ~1/2 tbsp Sulfur-90 + continued coffee grounds per bush. (Reasoning: coffee grounds routine + naturally acidic BC soil means heavy acid food risks overshoot — sulfur is a gentler knob.) - ✅ **Shady Side stone fruit** (Italian Plum, Stella) — 1 cup Jobes each - ✅ **Stone Fruit Salad Tree** (Brooks Plum, Puget Gold, Branchberry) — 1 cup Jobes each on the live branches. Harcot apricot + Frost peach branches skipped (dead). - ✅ **Pawpaw** — 1 cup Jobes - ✅ **Mixed Cherry at Rae's Window** — 1 cup Jobes - ✅ **Haskap (2)** — 1/2 cup 6-8-6 each - ✅ **Jostaberry (1) + Gooseberries (2)** — 1/2 cup 6-8-6 each, **plus an accidental 1/2 cup of blood meal per bush before catching the mistake.** See "follow-up actions" below. - ✅ **Lingonberry (1)** — 1 tbsp blood meal Total usage for the round: ~1.2 kg Jobes, ~200 g 6-8-6, ~150 g blood meal, ~15 g Sulfur-90. ## Skipped in the April round - **Woodenson trees** (original apples ×4, peach, pear) — big, mature, never been fertilized, and landscape fabric at the base makes it tough to get granular into the root zone without tearing things up. **Not urgent.** They've produced fine for decades untouched. Schedule them for a one-time deep feed when the fabric gets addressed — or skip indefinitely if you're happy with production. - **Romeo/Juliet dwarf cherries** (Back Gate Planters) — slipped through. **Still should get a feed.** Kept on the remaining list below. - **Blackberries + Marionberries + Tayberry/Loganberry on the NW fence** — deliberately skipping this round. They got bone meal in the planting hole and leftover berry fertilizer top-dressed on 2026-04-01 (~17 days ago), which is more than enough for newly-moved plants. **A second dose this close in time would risk fertilizer burn on unestablished roots.** Next feed not until mid-summer side-dress, and only if growth looks lagging. - **Strawberries** — all rows. See "Strawberry deferral" below. --- ## Follow-up actions (this week) ### Jostaberry + Gooseberry — blood meal mishap - [ ] **Water deeply** every 2–3 days for the next ~10 days (to the ~1 ft root depth) to dilute and leach excess nitrogen. - [ ] **Watch for leaf burn** on the tips of new growth — crinkled or scorched edges. If you see it, water extra and mulch heavier. - [ ] **Skip ALL further nitrogen** on these bushes the rest of 2026. If anything, a bone-meal-only top dress at flowering is fine, but no more blood meal or balanced fertilizer. - **Not a disaster.** ~100 g of blood meal per bush is roughly 12 g of N — on the high side of a single dose but not a burn-risk crisis, and they're established plants. Expect extra leafy growth and maybe slightly fewer berries this season. They'll recover. ### Romeo + Juliet dwarf cherries (Back Gate Planters) - [ ] 1/2 cup Jobes Fruit & Nut per planter, scratched into the top inch of potting mix, watered in. They're in planters so light is the right touch. --- ## Strawberry deferral Gutters are all on the ground for renovation (took them down fall 2025). Current rebuild: plastic on the bottom for drainage, black strapping to reinforce the frame, and the back-screw trick to make the treated-wood inner supports removable later from outside. See the Gutters area timeline for the full write-up. - [ ] Once the gutters are rehung and the plants have had ~1–2 weeks to settle, do the strawberry spring feed: **1/2 cup 6-8-6 per row section**, scratched in gently between plants. - [ ] Then in mid/late May when flowering is in full swing, switch to **1/2 cup 10-15-9 per row section** for the phosphorus boost. ## Raspberries — the "want a good harvest" question **Short answer: don't add more granular fertilizer right now.** Your existing setup (compost layer + possible all-purpose sprinkle underneath) likely already has the nitrogen covered. Adding more N risks soft, leafy cane growth at the expense of fruit. **What's limiting your harvest is probably NOT nitrogen.** To push harvest: - [ ] **Now (bud break / next week or two)** — sprinkle 1 tbsp bone meal per crown in a ring 6" out from the cane base, scratch in, water. Bone meal is 3-15-0 — nearly pure phosphorus, which directly feeds flower/fruit development. Safe even if you already over-fertilized with N earlier. - [ ] **Early June (flowering)** — top up compost around the base of any canes that look weak. Skip more granular. - [ ] **Watering matters more than fertilizing from here.** Raspberries need ~1" per week consistently once fruit starts setting, more during hot weeks. Inconsistent watering → small, seedy fruit. Set the drip schedule accordingly. - [ ] **Cane management** — for the 2023 and 2024 raspberry plantings in particular, thin out weak floricanes now so the strong ones have less competition. Rule of thumb: 4–6 healthy canes per square foot. If by early June growth looks vigorously tall and leafy but flowers are sparse, that's the confirmation that N was high and the fix is to skip all feeding. If growth looks moderate and flowers are setting well, you're dialed in. ## Remaining April items All items complete as of 2026-04-18. - ✅ **Raspberries** — 1 tbsp bone meal per crown topdressed, scratched in, watered. - ✅ **Romeo + Juliet dwarf cherries** — received 1/2 cup 6-8-6 All Purpose instead of the intended Jobes Fruit & Nut. Net nutrients delivered are slightly higher than Jobes would have been (6-8-6 vs ~3-5-5), so the Jobes pass is dropped to avoid over-fertilizing in-planter. **Real lever for this planting is pollination, not fertility** — last year's zero-fruit result with tons of flowers suggests bee activity is the bottleneck. Monitor pollinator traffic over the next 2 weeks; hand-pollinate with a small paintbrush on sunny afternoons if bee traffic looks thin. ## Mid-May (2026-05-15 window) - [ ] **Strawberries** spring feed (once gutters are back up and plants settled) — 1/2 cup 6-8-6 per row section. - [ ] **2022 Kiwis** at Gazebo (3 plants) — 1 cup Jobes each. Deferred from April. - [ ] **2025 Kiwis** at Grape Pergola NW side — 1/2 cup Jobes each. Lighter because they're young. - [ ] **2026 Fenced Garden vegetables as you plant them** — 1 tbsp bone meal in each transplant hole for tomato/pepper/squash/cucumber/cantaloupe. ## Early June (2026-06-05 window) - [ ] **Strawberries at flowering** — 1/2 cup 10-15-9 per row section for phosphorus. - [ ] **Tomatoes** — 2 tbsp 10-15-9 side dress per plant at first fruit set. - [ ] **Peppers / squash / cucumber / cantaloupe** — 1–2 tbsp 10-15-9 per plant. - [ ] **Corn (24)** — 1 tbsp blood meal per plant at knee-high (heavy N feeder, one of the few places you actually want to push nitrogen). - [ ] **Grapes** post-flowering — 1/2 cup 6-8-6 per post if canes look pale; otherwise skip. - [ ] **Blueberries** — no granular during fruit set. Continue coffee grounds only. - [ ] **Skip all feeding on**: jostaberry, gooseberries (mishap cooldown), blackberries/marion/tay/logan on NW fence (still establishing). ## Mid-July (2026-07-15 window) - [ ] **Everbearing/day-neutral strawberries** (Albion, Montana, Audry, Flamingo Pink, Inova Rose, Eclair) — light 1 tbsp 6-8-6 per row section for the second flush. - [ ] **Tomatoes** — another 10-15-9 side dress at peak fruit. - [ ] **Corn** — second blood meal side-dress at tasseling if pale. - [ ] **Fruit trees with heavy fruit load** — 1/2 cup Jobes each if any remains. Otherwise skip. - [ ] **Blackberries / Marion / Tay / Logan on NW fence** — if growth looks established and canes are extending, 1/2 cup Jobes per plant. If still looking tentative, keep skipping. ## Mid-August (2026-08-15 window) - [ ] **Stop granular fertilizer.** Late feeding pushes soft growth that won't harden before winter. - **Exception:** strawberry runners in their own row can have one light 6-8-6 (1 tbsp per section) at the very end of August for runner establishment. ## Fall (October / November) - [ ] **Compost top-dress** around every fruit tree and berry bush — 1–2" layer, kept an inch off trunks. Use whatever compost + garden mix is left. - [ ] **Blueberry path** — heavy pine needle mulch (acidifies + insulates). - [ ] **Bone meal reserve** — save remaining 200 g for fall transplant holes. ## Winter (December / early March) - [ ] No fertilizer. Pruning pass during December–February. --- ## Patterns and running notes - **Raspberry harvest strategy:** bone meal + consistent watering + cane thinning > more granular N. - **Acidifier routine for blueberries:** coffee grounds + pine needles + occasional Sulfur-90 dusting. No need to buy Holly-Tone unless a future season disappoints. - **New plantings:** always bone meal in the hole + leftover fertilizer topdress + water in. Any follow-up feed waits at least 4–6 weeks. - **Woodenson trees:** tabled indefinitely. Revisit when the landscape fabric gets addressed. - **Bushes on the NW fence (moved April 2026):** handle with kid gloves this season — they're in transplant shock. Light fertilization at most until mid-summer.