Fertilization Schedule
 

Since planting our backyard bananas last year, I've watered with a 24-8-16 all purpose plant food weekly without giving it much thought. My bananas seem to be healthy enough so far, but reading through the forums inspired me to run some quick math to see how far off I've been from the recommended 1# N and 1.5# K per plant per year. Here's what I came up with:

N-P-K
24-8-16

Application: 4 tbsp/week with 2 gallons water
Bulk Density (per MSDS): 800 g/L or ~.026 lb/tbsp
Avg Growing Season in Houston: 39 weeks from March 1 to Nov 30

Total N: .97 #/year
Total P: .32 #/year
Total K: .65 #/year

So - it looks like Nitrogen is on target, but I'm underfeeding Potassium by ~.85#/year. This could lead to smaller and fewer bananas down the road.

Looking at what's readily available on Amazon Prime, I'm thinking of supplementing with 0-0-60 Muriate of Potash since its widely available, cheap, and can be here tomorrow. How much?

N-P-K
0-0-60
Bulk Density (per MSDS) = 65 lb/cu ft or .033 lb/tbsp

For the same 39 week growing season, I should add ~ 1 tbsp/week to my existing feeding schedule to reach 1.5# K/year.

Any thoughts from the community? I'm familiar with Richard's Banana Fuel for sale through these forums. Definitely a turn-key solution, but I'm trying to stick with what's readily available for purchase in my area.

Re: Fertilization Schedule
 

You could get potassium nitrate (aks: Stump Remover) at Lowes, Home Depot, or Walmart. A 5 lb bag is about $10 to $12 & no shipping ... The NPK is 13-0-44.


You need to apply 1.9 lb during the growing season to the fertilizer you are using. that is 1.5 lb (target application) -.65 (applied) = .85 lb (additional needed) .85 / .44 = 1.9 lbs .... This will also give additional 1.9 lb x 13% = .25 lbs nitrogen. .... Added to your number above (.97+.25=1.23) lb N and (.65+.85= 1.5 lb) K .... perfect !...