Seaweed with iron and chelated iron

[badatusernames]

Second thread for the day.... I guess I have bonsai on the brain.

I've seen that during certain times of the year (May / July) it's good to feed them with 1tbps fish emulsion, 1tbps seaweed with iron, and 1tbsp with chelated iron. To be fully transparent, I don't even really know what "chelated iron" is, though I did get some.

That said, I don't have a ton of azaleas. Seems a waste to mix up a whole batch for a couple small trees. Is there any reason this shouldn't be used on other species?

Can anyone speak to the value of iron / chelated iron in general for horticulture?

 

[JackHammer]

I have heard of people putting nails in soil but I can't speak to it. I think chelation is referring to the uptake of minerals but you might be best to Google it. Fulvic acid helps with the uptake of minerals.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Chelated iron is iron that's being held by a chelating agent like EDTA. It holds the (Fe2+) iron in solution and it prevents it from turning into iron that plants don't take up (Fe3+).
Chelation is heavily influenced by pH; a low pH usually releases the iron.
Most plants like a little iron, but too much can cause toxicity symptoms.

 

[Potawatomi13]

Much ado about nothing! Wasted time spent may make you feel good about efforts just as easily achieved with commercial easy to use fertilizer.

 

[badatusernames]

Chelated iron is iron that's being held by a chelating agent like EDTA. It holds the (Fe2+) iron in solution and it prevents it from turning into iron that plants don't take up (Fe3+).
Chelation is heavily influenced by pH; a low pH usually releases the iron.
Most plants like a little iron, but too much can cause toxicity symptoms.

That’s super helpful!

Much ado about nothing! Wasted time spent may make you feel good about efforts just as easily achieved with commercial easy to use fertilizer.

I think there’s validity to this. My strategy in a lot of this has been to start with the strict “right” way, but then to pull back to the minimum viable. I figure that way I’m most likely to keep things alive and thriving as I learn. Definitely doesn’t mean it’s permanent.

I’ve kept azaleas in pots since before I got “serious” so I know it’s not strictly necessary, but I’m curious what impact all this will have. Maybe none!