What do the three numbers on fertilizers mean?
Top Most plants feed primarily on three nutrients – nitrogen (N), phosphorous (K) and potassium (P). Three numbers represent these nutrients on fertilizer bags. You might see the numbers 24-6-12, meaning the bag contains 24% nitrogen, 6% phosphorous and 12% potassium. Many of the fertilizers we recommend are listed as 3-1-2 or 4-1-2 and are considered all purpose fertilizers. But you will see rates on various bags of fertilizers such as 15-30-15, 29-3-4, 20-20-20, etc. Some plants require special rates and perform better if given the correct fertilizer. There are even fertilizers that are pure nitrogen (24-0-0) for lawns and landscapes that have tested high in phosphorus. Nitrogen is important because it helps with vigorous growth and produces lots of leafy foliage. It is ideal for grass, but not for tomatoes, because this would cause the plant to produce lots of leaves and not much fruit. The middle number is phosphorus, and it’s important in the production of blooms and fruit. This i
