3 proven ways to use alfalfa meal with roses
While there isn’t conclusive scientific evidence to definitively claim show-stopping blooms solely from alfalfa meal, there have been promising indications for decades that it can contribute to healthier roses and larger blooms.
Let’s understand, however, that alfalfa meal is a supplement, not a miracle cure. For best results, use alfalfa meal in addition to a balanced fertilization program that included micronutrients.
Alfalfa meal is rich in nitrogen, calcium, and magnesium, so it nourishes the soil and feeds beneficial microbes, which leads to improved root development and better fertilizer nutrient uptake. In addition it can help reduce plant stresses like we see after transplanting.
1. Early Spring: Adding alfalfa when planting new roses
Because of its chemistry, alfalfa has been suggested for decades when planting new roses.
Alfalfa in all its forms releases Triaconatol, which is a growth stimulant that benefits all roses. It has been shown to encourage stronger stems and more vigorous foliage. University studies suggest alfalfa meal often increases biomass and chlorophyll content in the whole plant, which leads to larger blooms – and more blooms. Those two words: larger & more – are magical for most of us who enjoy rose gardening.
Here are the additives that are most often placed below the roots of each bush in the hole.
- One cup each of:
- Super phosphate 0-45-0
- Dolomite lime
- Three cups of alfalfa meal or pellets
One cup of some of these additional additives makes an even richer growing medium; blood meal, bone meal, fish meal, cottonseed meal, kelp meal, gypsum. My best luck has been with the liquid fish 5.1.1.
2. Using it as an early spring additive
For a spring boost for existing roses, add 1 cup of alfalfa meal to large bushes. For miniatures & minifloras add a 1⁄4 cup. Rosarians usually do this as a 2nd step when spring fertilizing. A light mixing of it into the soil & a soft watering will make sure the alfalfa meal doesn’t wash away in the hard spring rains. Another term you may hear about adding any fertilizer like this is “sidedressing”.
3. Making Alfalfa Tea
Many rosarians make up a batch of alfalfa tea for use in mid-May to prepare for the summere rose shows.
- A popular method is to add 10 to 12 cups of alfalfa meal or pellets into an old pillowcase with a rock for weight & tie it off. That’s your heavy tea bag . . .
- Set that into a 32-gallon plastic garbage can with a firm lid, add water, stir and steep for a week to ten days, stirring occasionally. The tea will start to smell pretty ripe in about three days. so it’s best to keep the lid on . . .
- For a smaller batch, fractionally scale down the amounts.
- If it helps, the use of a submersible sump pump attached to a hose with a water wand makes
delivering the tea to the roses much easier on your back. And as always, be very careful when using
electric cords around water. - After the brew has finished steeping, and just before watering in this magic potion to the plants, many show rosarians add 1⁄2 cup chelated iron, and a water-soluble fertilizer, such as Miracle Gro (at 1/3 strength), maybe some Norwegian kelp concentrate, and 2 cups of Epson salts. Adding all these ingredients leads to a potent mix for sure. I’ve just used the Miracle-Gro & Epsom Salts so far.
- Use about a gallon of the mix on large rose bushes, 1/3 of a gallon on miniatures.
- The alfalfa meal or pellets can be used to brew two 30 gallon batches of tea but be sure to add more fortifiers for the second batch.
- A second round of alfalfa tea after the first flush of blooms will lead to stronger stems for the second flush, precisely what show roses need.
