
Dizzy Weasel
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How much do you guys typically put for cal mag supplement? .3ml per gallon seems like it would be around 80ppm... Thanks guys
You know that Epsom is MgSO4, which means there's not a single atom of calcium in it, right? Start with 1/4tsp, or about 1g per gallon, go from there.How much do you guys typically put for cal mag supplement? .3ml per gallon seems like it would be around 80ppm... Thanks guys
Sounds more like a P- than anything else. See my sig line?Thanks got these candylands keep lookin like they need more mg. purple stalks and stringy.... Then others look better I think the others are stealing it right out of the water since there is not much... I don't have a scale but that is roughly .5ml correct? I used to use it for flush and was told 1g per gal and I thought it ended up being close to 1ml.... Do you use CS nutes? Was told they had more cal mg then most...
I found a good article, almost started a new thread... but i decided to use SEARCH BOX:couchpotato:
http://www.saltworks.us/gardening-with-epsom-salt.asp
The Four Bases of Mineralized Soil
Soil is a marvelous and complex part of creation. Soil has been meticulously studied and written about from many perspectives. Beginning in the 1850’s Russian scientists began to classify soils based on their various properties including geological origins. By 1900 American scientists were significantly adding to the knowledge of soil science. From the 1920’s-1950’s Russian research on soil microbiology was at its pinnacle.
Soil Energy
Soil energy refers to a soils ability to grow a crop and bring it to maturity. It also takes energy to digest limestone and other rock powders. Soil energy comes from the synchronization that occurs when various fertilizers come in contact with soil and/or other fertilizers.
Foundational Minerals
Foundational minerals refer primarily to adequate available calcium and phosphorous. While both calcium and phosphorous can be obtained in the form of commercial fertilizers, these fertilizers do not build a proper foundation to construct a mineralized soil. Very few soils are naturally endowed with adequate levels of foundational minerals. If the levels are insufficient then they must be supplied in the form of insoluble rock powders. These powders require both soil energy and soil biology to break down into an available form.
Specific soil amendments used to build the foundational minerals include limestone, soft rock phosphate, and gypsum. Sadly, conventional agriculture almost entirely misses the need for foundational minerals. Instead they are content with a pH over 6.5 and a minimal amount of available phosphorous. Due to their strong focus on humus, organic matter, and biology most organic farmers are woefully short of calcium and many times short of phosphorous. The exception to this is on small areas with extreme application rates of compost or manure.
Foundational minerals are the backbone of establishing a mineralized soil. Available calcium plays a decisive role in determining the quantity of yield produced. It also plays a tremendous role in the health and quantity of plant roots. When soil has at least 2,000 lbs. of available calcium roots, rootlets, and fine root hairs abound. These fine root hairs are continually growing and sloughing off into the soil. This base exchange of root hairs stimulates soil bacteria and builds humus in the soil.
Humus and Biology
Humus and biology refers to the living, breathing aspect of soil. As soil biology proliferates they leave behind organic residues or metabolites. These residues increase the humus content of soil. As they decompose these organic compounds give off carbon dioxide which plants use to produce carbohydrates and the cycle starts all over. While conventional agriculture has all but ignored this most important aspect of mineralized soil, many organic farmers have hailed it as the ultimate panacea with nothing else needed – thank you. Both of these approaches are incomplete.
Products used to increase humus in soil include: cover crops, green manures, compost, fresh or aged manures, dry humates and many more. Products used to stimulate soil biology include: microbial inoculants, liquid humates, compost tea, molasses, sugar, bio stimulants, enzymes, and many other proprietary products. There are a myriad of approaches on how to stimulate soil biology and increase humus. Many people become so enamored with increasing soil humus and biology that they neglect 1st and 2nd base. This leads to a soil with a fabulous “feel-good factor” but completely unable to produce high-brix foods.
The approach taken by the early pioneers was to apply some organic material mostly in the form of manures and then inoculate and stimulate the biology from that point on. As humus and biology increase in a mineralized soil they impact soil energy. Soil biology will create some energy and the humus will regulate that energy and generally even out the extremes. This explains why fully mineralized soils need less energy inputs i.e. soluble fertilizers.
Trace Elements
The final aspect of a mineralized soil is the addition of a plentiful supply of trace elements. These include the more commonly recognized elements such as boron, copper, iron, manganese, and zinc and the rarer elements such as chromium, molybdenum, nickel, iodine, vanadium, lithium, selenium, cobalt and many others. Products used to supply these minerals include the sulfates and chelates of the more common elements, seaweed, sea minerals, and various rock powders for broad spectrum trace elements.
I ran out of my calmag and since im using GH flora nutes, i reduced the gro, added more micro (which has 5% Ca) and then added epsom salt (which is Mg2SO4, btw. you forgot the 2, epsom salt has 2 Mg ions) to make up the difference in Mg.It's confusing to me when people talk about replacing 'cal mag' with Epsom salts. You're only replacing Mg. What are you going to do about Ca, and how are you going to get it up to the correct ratio?