You can make your own ferrous oxide. Just get an old steel drum, like a 55 or 30gal.
Like a burning barrel. Burn the paint off so it gets rusty. Throw some old grade 2 bolts and nuts in to make more rust. Put some water in it. Stir it and dip some out when you want some iron.

Blackstrap molasses is iron rich, I don't know about cost effectiveness and ease of using that (I am no gardening expert) but just thought I'd toss that out there.

Hi riverrat,

The problem which you are having is all about the Acid Alkaline pH Balancing!

Iron is alkalizing and thus for it to become available to plants and release it's energy to plants, the soil must have acids to do this!

Where do you get acids for your soil which is Alkaline in nature, unlike some other soils which have the reverse problem which you have, and have soils which are too acidic?

There are several ways to do this!

You may buy acid fertilizers and apply them and they may provide a reaction with your alkaline soil and then when the acids are all neutralized from your Alkaline soil, then you are out of luck again!

You may buy high priced iron and add it to the soil and you will have the same problem as when using acid fertilizers!

You may add different acid soil amendments!

You may keep adding compost, but this will not solve the long term problem either!

Or you may learn what to do to feed the soil life, and they may then create the needed soil Acids on a continous basis, so your plants may have the Iron they need!

Bacteria create Acids!

And it is bacteria which you need in the living form in your soil so they may create a steady supply of free acids for your soil so you do not need to buy any fertilizer!

But you need to feed these bacteria and provide them with a home to live in or they will not live and work for you!

Bacteria require food, water and a place to live of the correct temperature!

By applying compost, this has already been digested by bacteria and thus there is no food for the bacteria to live in your soil!

Bacteria need fresh green leafy food to live on!

So it is better to work in green manure crops each year to feed your soil bacteria so they may work for you! And there is a proper way to do this and an incorrect way to do this!

But to help you solve this problem in another way til you consider to follow the longer term method and best method of learning to work in green manure crops properly, may I suggest a few things for you to do?

One thing you may do to help make iron available, is to add some Gypsum ( Calcium Sulfate)to your garden each year, not more than 500#-1000# to the acre each year!

With the problem you are having , it may help you to do split applications of the gypsum, some before planting and some between the rows later on!

But the main problem is not having enough life in the soil!

You may help solve this problem by getting some fish emulsion and some Blackstrap molasses and add one part of fish emulsion to three parts of Blackstrap molasses!

Now take and use from 2 to 5 gallon of this per acre and dilute into plenty of water!

You probabaly irrigate, so you may run this thru the irrigation system in very small amounts with lots of water!

This may feed the bacteria and they may then produce many acids in the soil and your plants may grow very good and the soil may loosen up and become much better!

If I were you, I would use both the gypsum and the fish and molasses!

The reason your plants are showing iron problems is because there is too much Nitrogen going into the plants in the isotope form which is anionic!

The gypsum and the fish and molasses may help correct this if done properly!

When the soil has enough acids, then your plants may not take in too much Nitrogen and you may not have the problem of not enough iron!

Smile Tis your choice.

riverat if your soil is alkaline you can acidify it with peat moss or manures and fish emulsions etc. Even if you add iron to the soil if you are alkaline the plants will still not be able to absorb the added iron {ferrous sulphite) Ive never had this problem myself but have been using natural fertilizers like magnesium sulphate and barn lime for years also with as much compost as I can produce! I also have layer hens so my soil is well balanced, of course with out realizing exactly why, until moreless explained it to me! Knowledge is powerful ingredient in the garden!