Epsom salt is a natural product comprised of the minerals magnesium and sulfate, and it is technically known as magnesium sulfate. It has been used for centuries as a health and beauty aid, but it’s just as useful in the home garden for plant health and beauty.
Using Epsom salt in the garden is not a new concept. This inexpensive, organic product helps improve the blooming cycle of flowers, and enhances the green shade of plants as well as helping them to grow bushier. The magnesium and sulfate content is vital for overall healthy plants.
Why Use Epsom Salt?
Magnesium enables plants to uptake valuable nutrients, like nitrogen and phosphorus, much more easily. It promotes the creation of chlorophyll which is needful for photosynthesis. It has been proven that plants will produce more and bigger vegetables and flowers when Epsom salt is used.
How To Use
Add one cup of Epsom salt to five gallon of water. Stir to dissolve. Use to water garden plants every two weeks. This amount can be tweaked to suit your own garden needs without worry of over-use. Since Epsom salt is an organic product, it won’t burn plants or build up in soil.
Foliar Spray
Create a foliar spray by mixing two tablespoons of Epsom salt in one gallon of water. Mist plants once a month with this mixture. If plants need a more frequent foliar spray, only use one tablespoon of Epsom salt per gallon of water.
In-Soil Application
Epsom salt can be broadcast on top of garden soil and worked in as part of the soil preparation process in spring. Add a generous sprinkle of the organic product along with whatever other soil amendments you work into soil in the spring. Garden seeds will germinate faster if Epsom salt is in the soil. It will also help seedlings overcome transplant shock quicker.
A side dressing of Epsom salt can also be used during the growing season to provide plants with a boost of energy. Apply one teaspoon of Epsom salt per one foot height of plant (a two feet tall plant=two teaspoons of Epsom salt, etc.) around plant base and work it into garden soil.
Plants That Love Epsom Salt
Roses, squash, tomatoes and peppers require lots of magnesium and love to have Epsom salt under their feet (in-soil) and sprayed on their heads (foliar feeding). Corn and beans are not as greedy for magnesium, but still produce better with a little Epsom salt under their feet.
