zinc deficiency

[Jerry Del Rio]

I just got my soil report back and have (as suspected and suggested) Zinc difficiency

How have growers done replacement in the past?

Jerry Del Rio

[Gerard van Steyn]

Most soils have a deficiency of major minerals, such as sulfur, phosphorus, potassium (also calcium and magnesium, but these two are typically on a teetertotter so one may be excess while the other is deficit) and/or minor minerals such as zinc, boron, manganese, iron, sodium and copper. What’s interesting to me, at least, is that a different subset of soil microbes feeds on each of these minerals, and makes them plant available.

For a zinc deficiency, you could spray a foliar zinc/mineral compound on the leaves prior to bloom.. its a direct solution, and something you may want to do this year. Longer term, if you add zinc to your soils you will get the greater advantage of zinc converted by soil bacteria into a much more plant usable form. Recommended application rate for low zinc is 14 pounds per acre. Zinc sulfate is 35% zinc, so that works out to 40 lbs of zinc sulfate per acre. (I’m no till, so I broadcast minerals on top of the soils and wait for fungal tubes to pull them into the soil.. if you till, just till it into the top soil)

[Jerry Del Rio]

thanks for the advice

Jerry Del Rio