Muse thas a killer find. That dude LawrenceLee has good shit to say throughout the whole conversation. Im fixing to apply this in my garden.
I was reading Dr. A Beddoe's book "Nourishment Home Grown". He was taught by Carey Reams that Magnesium (Mg) is something that's over emphasized by conventional thinking just because Mg is the main component of chlorophyll. Instead, he had found that plants can take up all the Mg they need from the air, and just a small amount of Mg in the soil is sufficient for strong healthy growth if the soil is biologically healthy.
He found that often, it was actually Nitrogen deficiency together with low Calcium and Phosphate levels that fooled the farmer into thinking it is an Mg deficiency. Then upon adding Mg, the farmer thinks he had addressed the deficiency because the plant seem to pick up in growth and colour. But soon however, he finds that other problems occur (mainly bugs due to anionic, leafy growth), and now, he thinks he's hit another deficiency, then another, and another... This proves Mg was not the deficiency in the first place, because the plant took the added Mg in replacement of needed Ca and N, explaining why the temporary (false) improvement. This is the gist of how biological ionization works - since everything lives on the energy released from our foods, our bodies (and plants too) will temporarily substitute an element for another just to tide over a deficiency in order to gain that needed energy. This explanation also most satisfactorily explains how a black cow can eat green grass and produce white milk from which yellow butter is made.
So the small amount of Mg for the soil can be gained from using Rock Phosphate, or like Kelmund says, from Ag Lime.
What is more important is to ensure the amount of Colloidal Phosphate (RP or SRP); Calcium and Soil bacteria are in good levels, and Mg will not be missed again.
Tin, I used to belong to the conventional school of thinking, and had been using Epsom Salt (MgSo4) on the soil and later in foliar feeding, before I learned this Reams method. Now I don't use Epsom Salts anymore and find I have better quality growth. (better quality does not mean bigger leaf or larger blooms, but instead, it means no pests, no weeds, no fungi, sweet fruits, less tending, greater consistency)
Kelmund, if you are following the discussion currently on BrixTalk about using Gypsum and Calcium Carbonate even on a high pH soil, you will have read that Dan Skow recommends Calcium Carbonate + Gypsum, even though soil pH is above 6.4. That is because the soil this recommendation was made for, had high biological activity and sufficient Phosphates. With sufficient P and beneficial bacteria, the 2 types of calcium will become converted to plant-usable energy and the soil pH will still stay stable at the ideal 6.4 as a result of this activity.
And for those who like it in plain language without the technical jargon, add Rock Phosphate or Soft Rock Phosphate. Then add Lime and gypsum, and Chix poo. Finally, inoculate with a beneficial bacteria mix like BioVAM.
HTH
LL
