# Make shrubs grow faster?



## marcus118 (Dec 5, 2012)

This might be a silly question but is there some kind of fertilizer i can use on shrubs to make them grow faster? 

i planted all new shrubs in front of my house 2 years ago, and most look like they did the day i planted them. 

i bought them all small thinking they would grow a bit faster so needless to say, the front of my house looks kind of funny and my wife is wanting to rip everything out again and buy bigger shrubs. 

the main concern are the 2 dwarf alberta spruces i planted on either side of the door. 

i live in central NJ. 

thanks!


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## ZTMAN (Feb 19, 2015)

I assume you know the dwarf spruces grow very slow. If you want to increase growth, you can use miracle grow or plant spikes .
Some will be along to tell you to do soil analysis, ask how big a hole you dug, how you prepped the hole etc., which is kind of moot at this point, so get to a fertializing


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## chrisn (Dec 23, 2007)

dwarf alberta spruces are just that, they are never going to get big no matter how much you feed them


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## NorthernWinds (Mar 1, 2015)

Even if the dwarf Alberta Spruces weren't slow growers and small evergreens, there could be issues with the soil and root compaction. Oftentimes plants purchased from nurseries have very compacted root systems, which if not spread out when planted, bind the roots and can kill the plant. I lost a lot of mums from this problem. 

In addition, if your soil is hard clay with little enrichment, anything will have trouble growing. 

If you substitute other shrubs, you can add milk water to them. My roses and morning glories love it. Depending on what you might plant, fish emulsion fertilizer, or sea weed if you have access to it, will also enhance growth.


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## chrisn (Dec 23, 2007)

NorthernWinds said:


> Even if the dwarf Alberta Spruces weren't slow growers and small evergreens, there could be issues with the soil and root compaction. Oftentimes plants purchased from nurseries have very compacted root systems, which if not spread out when planted, bind the roots and can kill the plant. I lost a lot of mums from this problem.
> 
> In addition, if your soil is hard clay with little enrichment, anything will have trouble growing.
> 
> If you substitute other shrubs, you can add milk water to them. My roses and morning glories love it. Depending on what you might plant, fish emulsion fertilizer, or sea weed if you have access to it, will also enhance growth.


 
My mom who could and did grow anything loved this stuff, it stinks to high heaven through:laughing:


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