Fertility in the Japanese Garden by Jacob Deaver Photo by Don Olson

Background Designed 1985 o Landscape architect Koichi Kawana 24 varieties of shrubs 20 varieties of trees 3 ground covers Waterfall, Japanese Lanterns, Garden House, etc.

Problem & Possible Causes Austrian pines o Chlorotic o Iron deficiency o Relatively high soil pH o Lab tests show soil pH of  Results likely skewed by mulch  Ideal pH according to Bartlett o Soil compaction o Samples sent to UMN for testing B1_re_jv9sw/TqXLErBCfoI/AAAAAAAAQmA/pb mfvwb7IBE/s320/pine.jpg

Research Foliar feeding? o Short-term, “quick fix” solution o Potential negative impact on water quality o “Sprint” used by Dan Miller on Korean pines Chelated Iron supplement? o Suggested by Carl Rosen at UMN  Professor & Department Head - Soil, Water, & Climate  Not permanent but provides big nutrient boost Lower soil pH? o Amend soil with sulfur or iron sulfate o Makes iron more accessible to plants o Long-term solution

Recommendations Short term: o -Use chelated iron in soil around pines to give nutrient boost  Gempler’s Chelated Iron Supplement o Avoid foliar sprays  Generally considered ineffective for nutrient deficiencies  Potential negative impact on koi pond from drift Long term: o -Amend soil with sulfur or iron sulfate  lower pH and make iron in soil more accessible to plants o Address soil compaction

Resources Expertise o Jewel Engstrom & Mary Bigelow o Dan Miller o Carl Rosen o Sadafumi Uchiyama o Mary Meyer Other resources o ources/Plant-Health-Care- Recommendations-for- Austrian-Pine.pdf 0SANCTUARY/BOK%20TOWER-BC /Bok-BC- Japanese%20lantern.JPG