| Fertilizer Group | Pounds per Cup | Pounds per 2-Liter Container |
|---|---|---|
| Organic meals, blends and wood ash | 1 cup = 1/3 lb | 2 liters = 3 lbs |
| Ground Rock Dusts (Limestone, Rock Phosphate, Greensand) | 1 cup = 3/4 lb | 2 liters = 6 lbs |
| Coarse & Medium Granulated Synthetic Blends (e.g., 5-10-10 garden fertilizer) | 1 cup = 1/2 lb | 2 liters = 4.5 lbs |
| Fine Granulated & Flaked Synthetic Blends (common turf fertilizers) | 1 cup = 1/3 lb | 2 liters = 3 lbs |
| Composts | 1 cup = 1/6 lb | 2 liters = 1.5 lbs |
| Powdered Sulfur | 1 cup = 1/2 lb | 2 liters = 4.5 lbs |
| Urea and Other High Nitrogen Fertilizers | 1 cup = 1/3 lb | 2 liters = 3.5 lbs |
Common household containers to use for measuring
- 12 oz coffee can = 1 liter
- cut off top of 2 liter soda bottle = 2 liters
- cut off top of 1/2 gallon milk bottle = 1/2 gallon
Common measurements
- 1 lb = 16 ounce
- 1 acre = 43,560 square feet
- 12 inches= 1 foot
- 1 pint= 2 cups
- 4 cups = 1 quart
- 4 quarts = 1 gallon
How do I figure out how many square feet my garden or lawn is?
Length in feet X width in feet = square feet
What if my garden is not square?
Estimate the length and the width. As this approach overestimates the square footage, apply a little less of the recommended amount of fertilizer so as not to over fertilize.
My garden is only 100 square feet and your recommendation is for 50 pounds per 1000 sq feet of limestone. How do I figure how much limestone to use?
100 is 1/10 of 1000, so you will need 1/10 the amount of limestone or 50 divided by 10 which equals 5 lbs of limestone.
How do I know how much 5 lbs of limestone is? (See table above for lists of conversions)
- 1 cup of limestone weighs about ¾ lb (.75 lbs).
- 0.75 lbs goes in to 5 about 6.6 times. 6.6 times 1 cup equals 6.6 cups
- So 5 lbs of limestone would be a little over 6 ½ cups.
How much fertilizer should I use if the recommendation is for 20 pounds of 10-10-10 per 1000 sq feet and I have 100 sq feet?
- 100 is 1/10 of 1000 so…
- 1/10 of 20 lbs equals 2 lbs. So I need 2lbs of fertilizer per 100 sq feet.
1 cup of garden fertilizer weighs about ½ pound. So for 2 lbs you would need 4 cups of 10-10-10 fertilizer.
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