Although watering plants is the most important thing you can do, it’s also essential to give them the nutrients they need to thrive. One popular brand of fertilizer and plant food many people use is Miracle-Gro. But can you just sprinkle it around plants?
You can just sprinkle Miracle-Gro around plants if the product is all-purpose and water-soluble. You should add the plant food to water and use a watering can to sprinkle it over your plants and soil. An excellent Miracle-Gro product you can add to your plants is Shake ‘n Feed.
The rest of this article will discuss how to sprinkle Miracle-Gro around your plants in greater detail. So be sure to read on if you want to learn more!
How To Sprinkle Miracle-Gro to Around Plants
As you may already know, there’s a wide range of Miracle-Gro products you can choose from. Some of them include:
- All-Purpose Plant Food
- Shake ‘n Feed
- Bloom Booster Flower Food
- Indoor Plant Food
- Tomato Plant Food
- Fruit & Citrus Plant Food Spikes
The exact way you apply the fertilizer will depend on the product you’re using. If you’re looking to use a product for many plants around your garden, you’re likely going to choose the all-purpose plant food.
Below, I’ll discuss how to apply this product and several others.
Applying All-Purpose Plant Food
When applying this Miracle-Gro fertilizer, you’ll need a watering can and water. You need to measure out your desired amount of plant food (the size will depend on how many plants you want to fertilize) and place it into a watering can with water.
Then, you can sprinkle the product across the soil, covering every part. If your watering can is small, you may need to measure the plant food a few times to cover your entire garden.
Luckily, there’s no need to mix this plant food with the soil. Once you’ve sprinkled it over, you can leave it be. Apply this all-purpose plant food every 1-2 weeks for the best results.
Applying Shake’ n Feed
Just like the All-Purpose Plant Food, this one is also suitable to use on a wide range of plants. To apply Shake’ n Feed, you need to sprinkle the product directly from the container onto the soil. Make sure not to use too much, as doing so can damage your plants.
Once you’ve sprinkled the product evenly over the soil, you’ll need to incorporate it. But don’t worry—it won’t take long. All you need to do is mix the Shake ‘n Feed into the first few inches of the soil.
If you want to avoid mixing anything into the soil and just want to sprinkle the product and leave it be, you’d be better off using the Miracle-Gro All-Purpose Plant Food.
Applying Bloom Booster Flower Food
If you want your flowers to grow strong, bright, and virant, this plant food is your best option. Thankfully, it’s yet another Miracle-Gro product that’s extremely easy to use and apply, so it won’t take too long.
This flower food works in the same way as the all-purpose one. Mix the desired amount with water and use a watering can to sprinkle it over the soil. There’s no need to mix it into the soil afterward, so it’s a quick and easy process.
Applying Indoor Plant Food
Miracle-Gro also offers a liquid indoor plant food product, perfect for all kinds of household plants. If you’re using this one, there are two ways to apply it:
- Spray directly into the soil. If you want it to be highly concentrated, you can spray the product from the bottle into the potting soil. Once that’s done, you can leave the product to sit on the soil—there’s no need to mix it in.
- Mix with water. To make the product less concentrated, you can use a watering can to mix it with water. Then, you can sprinkle it over the potting soil and leave it be.
Whichever method you use, you should apply this product once a week.
Applying Tomato Plant Food
Although tomato is in the name, this fertilizer is perfect for many vegetable plants. If you want to grow the juiciest and tastiest vegetables possible, this fertilizer could seriously help.
What’s more, applying it is a walk in the park. Like most of the other Miracle-Gro products, all you need to do is mix this one with water in a watering can and sprinkle it over the soil. As long as you follow the instructions on the packet, you don’t have to worry about causing any damage to your vegetables.
Applying Fruit & Citrus Spikes
Fertilizer spikes are different from other fertilizers, so it’s essential to know how to apply them correctly. Since these are solid, you can’t just sprinkle them over the soil.
Instead, you need to hammer them into the soil next to your fruit.
You can also use tree and shrub spikes, and those need to be applied along the tree’s dripline. When applying them, avoid using too many or putting them too close to the center of the plant. Doing so can cause irreversible damage, which you certainly want to avoid!
To learn more about the dangers of misusing fertilizer spikes, you should check out this article.
When installing fertilizer spikes, you need to place a cap on each one. Then, place them over the spots you want to hammer them into and begin hammering the cap. Once the spikes are fully hammered into the soil and not visible anymore, you can leave them be.
If you’re looking for a more straightforward approach, you could break up the spikes and sprinkle them over the soil. However, it would make more sense to go with another product if this is what you want to do.
Should You Mix Fertilizer Into the Soil?
You should mix fertilizer into the soil for the best results. When you mix the product in, it gives the roots of the plants easier access to the nutrients. On the other hand, if you just sprinkle the fertilizer over the soil, the roots are unlikely to receive as many nutrients as you’d like.
Of course, there are some exceptions to this. As you know from reading this article, many of the Miracle-Gro products don’t need to be mixed into the soil. For the most part, this is because they’re water-soluble.
Any fertilizer that’s applied dry (i.e., not mixed with water) should be integrated into the first few inches of soil. In most cases, combining the fertilizer into the first four inches (10 cm) should get the job done.
Should You Water After Fertilizing?
You should water after fertilizing if you’ve used granular fertilizer. If you’ve used water-soluble fertilizer, you won’t need to water the soil after. Watering granular fertilizer after applying it helps incorporate it into the ground and allows the plants to absorb the nutrients better.
Watering also helps prevent fertilizer burn, which can kill your plants if you’re not careful. By watering after fertilizing, you’re ensuring the product doesn’t get stuck in one place. Instead, the water helps it spread around the soil, making it more evenly distributed.
If too much fertilizer is concentrated in one area, the chances of fertilizer burn and other damages are much more significant. So, it’s undoubtedly a great idea to water the soil directly after fertilizing. Once watered, you shouldn’t need to water the ground again for at least 2-3 days.
Can You Just Sprinkle Scotts Plant Food Around Plants?
You can just sprinkle Scotts Plant Food around plants, but it’s best to mix it into the soil once applied. You should mix it into the first few inches of soil for the best results.
This is concerning the Scotts all-purpose plant food. If you’re wondering about the Scotts lawn fertilizer, you’ll need a spreader to apply it across your yard.
Can You Apply Fertilizer To Plant Leaves?
You can apply fertilizer to plant leaves, mainly if it’s a liquid fertilizer. Since leaves can absorb nutrients, it’s an excellent way to help your plant thrive and grow. However, it’s more common to fertilize the soil around the roots.
The process of fertilizing plant leaves is known as foliar feeding. According to the University of Missouri, it’s not the most cost-effective way to feed plants, but it does help to treat nutrient deficiencies.
So if you’re looking for an easy way to feed your plants without having to do any mixing, it might be a good idea to apply a liquid fertilizer directly to your plant’s leaves. However, you shouldn’t count on it alone.
It’s always best to fertilize the soil near the roots. Therefore, you want to rely on fertilizing the leaves as a secondary resource.
You can also use leaf shine products to give them a glossy, vibrant look. An example of such a product would be this bottle of Miracle-Gro Leaf Shine, available on Amazon.com.
Although it’s not a fertilizer, it helps to keep the leaves glossy and free from dust and dirt.
Conclusion
You can just sprinkle Miracle-Gro around plants in most cases. However, you should mix the fertilizer with the soil if you’re using a dry product, such as the Shake’ n Feed.
For most Miracle-Gro fertilizers, you just need to add water and use a watering can to spread them across the soil. They’re easy to use and should be applied every 1-2 weeks in most cases.
Mixing granular fertilizers into the soil gives the roots easier access to the nutrients, allowing them to grow stronger and thrive.
