Question
I live in maine and had a cold, rainy early season. Planted all my plants in newly raised beds with all-in-one soil. Use Sea-plus (3-2-2) for all my plants every two weeks. water when soil is dry at 3" down. Out of all of my squash, have winter and summer, only my butternuts leaves are turning pale green to yellow. all are in one bed, except one other that is in a summer squash bed, but it is also doing the same thing. Don't notice pests. Happened with my best and biggest plant first (of coarse). I tried adding bonemeal along with miracle grow organic liquid. hasn't changed. could it be iron or zinc? and if so, how do I supply either of those.
Also, several (not all) of my tomato plants are turning yellow from the bottom up. I have beefsteak, better boy, and cherries. They seemed to get worst after I added the bonemeal and miracle grow. They look like the pictures of salt damage. Thats how yellow some branches are.they are caged and kept well aired. could this be from the salt from the sea-plus? am I over fertilizing? Thankyou for your time.

Answer
Debbie, it sounds like you did all of the right things. Based on your description, I would normally diagnose that the problem is with your soil. Either the soil is deplete of certain minerals or it has a soilborne disease affecting the plants. But based on the description of your remedial actions, I have to agree that you probably over-fertilized the plants between the organic solution, the bone meal, and the Miracle-Gro.

It took me many years to realize that sometimes the less you do the better, I used to react to every condition immediately rather than letting nature take its course. When people ask me what is the most important thing to successful gardening, I always tell them that besides rich soil, the most important thing is patience.

I would definitely hold back on any additional fertilizer until the plants begin to recover. Make sure they receive at least 1" of water per week, and mulch the plants with shredded leaves, straw, or dried grass clippings to retain moisture, cool the soil, and reduce stress. They should recover, but it may take a couple of weeks.

Next spring, be sure to amend the soil with as much organic material as you can. Aged manure is excellent, but compost and peat are also very effective. Enriching your soil every year will help prevent disease and practically eliminate the need for fertilizing.

I hope this answered your question. Good luck, and enjoy the rest of the weekend.

Regards,

Mike