As summer winds down, gardeners and farmers are harvesting their crops. The dry weather has reduced yields but crops have a higher sugar content due to the concentration of plant sugars from less water. Drought has had a negative effect on both vegetative and reproductive growth. There are certain nutrients which promote mainly vegetative growth and others that promote reproductive growth. A basic understanding of these nutrient relationships can help homeowners, gardeners, and farmers maximize their harvest. Plants utilize nitrates (NO3 - ), potassium (K + ) and chloride (Cl - ) to promote vegetative growth. The plant growth hormone auxin is stimulated by these nutrients and is produced in the growing tips of plants and regulates cell growth and promotes cell elongation. Overfertilizing with these nutrients can lead to excess vegetative growth but no reproductive growth with no flowers or fruit. For example, to much nitrate in tomatoes cause lots of vegetative growth, but no or few to...