Q: What is the absolute best fertilizer I can use on my vegetable garden this year for better plant?

• Joe from Cornersburg

A: There are many types of fertilizer on the market that will work in your vegetable garden. There is no best food as far as a product on the market. There are many right types of fertilizer that will work for your garden site and your preferred methods of application.

Most products you purchase at the local garden center are simply a water-soluble product. There are many brands like this on the market. These are easy to use by either dissolving the product in a watering can or using an attachment on your hose to disperse the product. Some of these come as concentrated solutions these days.

There are other granular products that work just as well as water soluble products. These tend to be larger bags with larger granules that need spread evenly over the ground and watered in after application. As a home gardener, a little fertilizer goes a long way. More is not better.

The key is to purchase the right product with the right amount of fertilizer based on your garden’s needs. Every fertilizer product is required to have a guaranteed analysis on the package. This will be listed as nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium (i.e., 10-10-10). This 10-10-10 product has 10 percent nitrogen, 10 percent phosphorus and 10 percent potassium (potash).

The other 70 percent of the package is fillers that serve roles for ease of application and more. Many products for the vegetable garden range from 12-4-8 to 9-4-12, with “micronutrients and added calcium.”

Nitrogen is most important for sweet corn production, but in excessive amounts can promote extra vining and no fruit on tomatoes and squash. Too much phosphorus can cause other issues, and impact water quality if it runs off the garden and gets into the ground water.

The most important thing you can do is test your soil to determine if you need the fertilizer and how much you need. If the pH is too high or too low, most of the nutrients (fertilizer) you apply will not even be able to be taken up by the plants’ roots. A lab-based soil test will tell you what to apply to get your soil into the best shape for growing vegetables.

Finally, make sure you read the label on the fertilizer you purchase.

Use the following links:

• Taking a soil test — http://go.osu.edu/soiltesting

• How to fertilizer vegetables — http://go.osu.edu/veggiefertilizer

• Specific vegetables; a guide to growing each one — http://go.osu.edu/veggrowingguide