Question
QUESTION: Hi,  read your article on mulch and nitrogen.  3 years ago I established new beds, and was advised ?and was too ignorant to know otherwise, to till hardwood mulch into soil, which I did with much effort and abandon!  Now still suffering the effects. Have put hundreds of pounds of 26-0-0 to 32-0-0 fertilizer on it and still not to normal.  Started out putting typical 10-10-10 fertilizer, but nitrogen remained nonxistant and others are excessively high now, so moved to high level straight nitrogen placed between garden veg., perennials, and annuals.  Loose a few plants, but if I am very careful, they seem to respond Fairly well (not really growing, but not dying now) ?but nitrogen treatment has to occur weekly throughout the growing season.  It is quite cumbersome and time consuming.  Things seem to be a little better than 3 years ago, but garden is still nitrogen sick.  Not working nitrogen in usually, as it is all I can do to keep up with the topical applications, as have at least 2000 square feet of 揺stablished?beds now.  How long do you think it will take before some reasonable balance achieved, and do you have any other suggestions?  Or do you have someone else or another source to which you could refer me?  thanks so much, and peace.  Sarah in WV  p.s. in a few smaller areas, after becoming fatigued with days of turning and tilling, i layered leaves in between layers of soil, but the plants in these areas appear to be not doing much differently than the plants in the others.  also, i have had soil tests done and know elevated in many nutrients - just deficient in nitrogen, and p.h. is between 7.5-7.8, but I have been adding elemental sulfur this summer/spring, and i think it has come down some.  thanks


ANSWER: Hi Sara, decomposition is complete now.  You'll need to add nitrogen in a well balanced fertilizer every year.  Your pH is too high.  Get it down to 6 to 6.5 and your plants will respond better. Plants get most of their nitrogen from water.  Either from rain or what you apply. Supplement it with a slow release or organic nitrogen to give your plants a constant source.
Avoid layers in the soil. Your soil should be the same consistency throughout the root zone.  You may want to till the area again to blend it all together.
Watch your watering.  Be careful not to over water which inhibits good root development.  Plant high to insure good drainage and you should be able to grow beautiful plants.  Jim

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QUESTION: is there any chance that the mulch below the soil surface is still causing nitrogen deficiency.  i have added gads of slow release nitrogen beginning in march, and still am experiencing significant stunting of growth, both seedlings and transplants, and interveinal chlorosis (no iron deficiency) ph about a 6.5. when i add the nitrogen, i get a quick (within a day or two) noticable greening and growth spurt, but it quickly dissapates.  does it ever take more than three years for subsurface, tilled in mulch to decompose?  thanks so much for everything.

Answer
Hi again, the mulch should be done. The chlorosis could be from the soil staying too wet.  Water locks up iron and calcium in forms unavailable to the plant until the soil dries, so it mimics an iron deficiency.  A test will always show your nitrogen low. Ammoniac nitrogen only lasts a couple of days.  The plant and soil microbes have used it by then.  Slow release nitrogen gives you micro-doses of nitrogen of an extended period, depending on the type.
I am assuming this was bagged mulch you used.  I have more than once seen free mulch from cities that had black walnut ground up in it and the plants suffered from juglone toxicity for several years.
Everything you've told me points to water and pH as your culprits. Jim