The Dr Forest blog · Est. Stockport · England · 2020
Evidence-led guides to organic fertiliser, feeding and soil science for UK growers. Deficiencies, ingredients, biostimulants and crop-by-crop feeding, with every claim checked against the original paper.
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Featured guide · Crop guides
Three choices decide your tomato crop before you pick up a bag: organic or mineral, dry or liquid, tomato-specific or all-purpose. A science-led, honest guide to each, from the founder of Dr Forest.
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Plate 01
Ascophyllum nodosum · Guide
Seaweed's benefits come from its bioactive fraction, not its NPK: faster rooting, heat and drought tolerance, chlorophyll retention and yield. What the better trials show, including...
alfalfa for roses · Guide
Rose growers have used alfalfa since the 1970s. I went looking for the trial behind it and found one small rhododendron experiment and a gap nobody...
biostimulants · Guide
Humic acid is the dark, alkali-soluble fraction of humus. What it is, where it comes from, what it does in soil and at the root, and...
dry patch · Guide
There's a kind of brown patch that rain doesn't fix. You water it, it pours for a week, and the grass stays crisp while everything around...
biostimulants · Guide
Humic and fulvic acid come from the same soil humus but do different jobs. The one-sentence difference, what each does with the evidence behind it, and...
Fertiliser comparison · Guide
Five UK tomato feeds fully compared: Tomorite classic, Tomorite Organic, RocketGro, Envii Maximato and Dr Forest 3-4-6. Honest NPK breakdown, cost per gram of nutrient, and...
blossom end rot · Guide
Blossom end rot is a calcium-delivery problem inside the fruit, driven by uneven watering, not a disease. Here is what causes it on tomatoes and how...
high nitrogen fertiliser for grass · Guide
A high nitrogen lawn feed drives the dense, deep-green growth a lawn is judged on. Here is when grass actually needs one, the UK feeding calendar,...
bokashi bran · Guide
Bokashi bran earns its keep beyond the kitchen bin. Worked into a soil mix or used as a top dressing, it adds organic matter and soil...
The garden journal
One letter a month on what to feed, when to feed it, and why it works. Written by Joe, for growers who want to understand their soil.
