A question was asked in yesterday’s Live QA about xan you dissolve Biogold in water and use it as a liquid fertilizer.
I emailed the Biogold company in Japan. Here is what they replied.
" Dear Bob McCarlie,
Thank you for the inquiry.
You can use it as liquid fertilizer.
Please, dissolve 2 to 3 of “Biogold Orijinal” in 1 liter of water.
It is even more effective if it is aged for about 7 days.
Please finish using the liquid fertilizer you made each time.
Peter Warren showed us this some years back in the UK. It is on the packaging. It works well here as some feel that our lower humidity than Japan causes the pellets to break down at a slower pace.
The disconnect is…
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Biogold has NO soluble NPK available. It is composed of organic material; that MUST be digested by fungus and bacteria to be made available to the plant as available NPK. Soft organic fertilizer.
You also get many other micronutrients that make the tree happy. ALSO, the multitude of bacteria and fungus that grows (hopefully) is the right types needed as required biological symbiotic companions for the tree to be healthy in the container environment.
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Not rocket science.
Bonsai will grow using inorganic fertilizer. Raw HARD NPK.
They will SING with the organic fertilizer and symbiotic companions. Put it on the soil. Let it do its thing!
If your biogold tends to dry out, tuck each pellit UNDER the soil sirface. I live in a desert environment. The pellits stay moist and digest in short order. Yes it is a lot of work.
Bonsai is not easy. I DO have 100+ trees… its a labour of love, too.
I just acquired a awsome 5 foot Blue Spruce… Looking foreward to spring repotting!
Bonsai On!
So you’re saying that the BioGold company and a number of respected professionals are wrong? May be best to tell some of the top European trees that then!
My current understanding is that Biogold Original can work both as a top dressing and a liquid fertiliser. Its liquid form (3 pellet per litre of water), matured for a week, can be used to water the bonsais. Some people recommend the liquid form for succulents which cannot be kept moist and the top dressing turns to be useless to them.
The best use of the pellets is dug under the soil surface but it can also be used as top dressing especially if covered by a layer of Sphagnum Moss which keeps them humid. The sphagnum moss can be raised when it is the moment to renew the pellets, and then laid back over the new pellets when done.
Because the pellets leave residuals on the surface, and because I like to promote the growth of moss on the surface, I do as Ryan does and I put the pellets in tea bags. If cost and time are not an issue for you, you can add some sphagnum in the tea bag to increase the humidity around the pellets and accelerate the decomposition.
Biogold Classic, instead, is not recommended in liquid form. To tell the truth, it is not even recommended by Biogold as a top dressing. I have searched for confirmation about its use as a top dressing but I could not find any official information about it. The Biogold Japanese web site recommends that Biogold Classic is used mixed with soil during transplants. They do not mention any different use.
There is some mistery also about the NPK values of Biogold Original and Classic.
The official Biogold Japanese website says that Biogold Original is NPK 3.5 - 3.7 - 3.3 and I am tempted to believe them but most frequently the internet refers to it as NPK 5.5 – 6.5 – 3.5 or 4-5-4… very weird… does anyone know why?
Biogold Classic instead is declared to be NPK 2.8 - 4.0 - 3.6 but several other websites say that it is NPK 2-8-4… why is this conflicting information so widespread? Has Biogold changed the formulas recently?
Just my opinion… Just trying to be helpful.
I did not say don’t use it that way. I did not say it would not work. Use it any way that makes you happy…
Selling more of a good product. Keep them in buisness!
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I was just pointing out best use; and suggesting better soil contact to keep it moister for digestion. Basic organic information. Get your full $120 per 5 kg. out of the fertilizer. The microbiom growing IN the pot involved is just as important for the trees health!
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If you need more Geeking Out on the nuances of the water digestion subject… I suggest listening to Ryan’s Compost Tea Brewing podcast, outcome, and follow-ups… wonderfull nightmare example of aerobic versus anaerobic (in water, without airation) digestion of organic material for fertilizing… The difference in putting organic matter IN water vs on the soil… and NOT killing trees… Pretty eye opening…
I have been aware of these concepts for years; however, I was greatly surprised at the depth of Ryan’s negative outcome… Enjoy!
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One question, what do you do with the solids at the bottom of the jug? Throw it away? It takes 3-6 weeks for it to fully digest properly for absorption by the tree. Just wasted money. Why not just use inorganics with a liquid organic micronutrient suppliment.
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One other interesting point, NOT complaining, I have also noted the (about) 5-10% 1 mm white chunks of INSOLUBLE calcium carbonate in Original Biogold. (Tested with acid / fizz test…). Microscopicly, looks like it could be ground up sea shell or coral. They have been accumulating on my soil for four years… Not a bad thing, just odd looking little white piles. The trees do need calcium…
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I love Biogold. I use it on all of my trees. Ordered another years supply last night!
My desert summer environment here does dry out my pots fast. Hence, I approach things differently. Cant grow moss easly here either.
I also use inorganics, micronutrients, pesticides, and fungicides … judiciously.
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(Full disclosure-- BS Chemistry, BS Biochemistry, 40 years doing bonsai, pious Mirai student since before its inception… No, not a professed bonsai expert. )
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BTW, the NPK is measured on the bulk final product., and then printed. The material is dissolved compleately in strong acids and analysed by atomic absorption spectroscopy.
The year to year raw organic material source changes and the formulation differences acount for the differences in NPK. I wouldnt stress over the miner differences. Its all good.The material is probanly NOT digested 100% on the bonsai soil. The micronutrients, bacteria and fungi are the real key to making bonsai sing…
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Bonsai On!
I agree completely on the concept of keeping good soil. To me it’s a lot like fish keeping, keep good water and your fish will thrive. A number of us here also use the products of Dr Karen O’Hanlon at ProBio Carbon as a result of such thinking and always looking for soil health. Our results so far are positive. I use BioGold in both solid and liquid form depending upon tree and have found the white solids as you have. My residue gets thrown onto a collection of larger maples that I have in pots.
but most frequently the internet refers to it as NPK 5.5 – 6.5 – 3.5 or 4-5-4… very weird… does anyone know why?