In Search of cheaper wetting agents

[Deadstill]

Hey fellow Farmers I was wondering if anyone has tried this as a wetting agent? I found it at Wally World for under 3 bucks a bottle and tried it out as a wetting agent for my foliar sprays tested it out on some extra plants that I can stand to lose - seems to work pretty good and I don't see any ingredients that would be harmful, what do you guys think? I'm tired of paying through the nose for Coco-Wet. That shit is ridiculous.

 

[Mudballs]

I can tell you it has some of the same stuff used in shampoos as a surfactant. Looks legit for what you want it to do

 

[Deadstill]

So far so good. First I tried 1/4 tsp per gal. of water for foliar spray and root drench (in coco), then 1/2 tsp per gal. Plants love it and it does the job. Doesn't leave any residue, doesn't remove the natural waxes from the leaves, so far I'm super satisfied! For the price ($2.73) for 25oz bottle- this beats Coco-Wet by a mile. Don't get me wrong I have used Coco-Wet for years, the whole Spray-n-Grow line is fantastic, but when you go through gallons of the stuff every season, the bill starts to rack up really fast. I've been searching for cheaper wetting agents for a while now and so far this has been the best option I have found that is easy to find and doesn't require making anything myself.

 

[Buzzzz]

So far so good. First I tried 1/4 tsp per gal. of water for foliar spray and root drench (in coco), then 1/2 tsp per gal. Plants love it and it does the job. Doesn't leave any residue, doesn't remove the natural waxes from the leaves, so far I'm super satisfied! For the price ($2.73) for 25oz bottle- this beats Coco-Wet by a mile. Don't get me wrong I have used Coco-Wet for years, the whole Spray-n-Grow line is fantastic, but when you go through gallons of the stuff every season, the bill starts to rack up really fast. I've been searching for cheaper wetting agents for a while now and so far this has been the best option I have found that is easy to find and doesn't require making anything myself.

Safers soap may fit the bill. You can buy it by the gallon.

 

[Stonemason7767]

Check out recipe for jadam wetting agent on you tube. Just need water oil of your choice and potassium hydroxide.and don't get potassium hydroxide on ya remember the scene from fight club.

 

[Observationist]

So far so good. First I tried 1/4 tsp per gal. of water for foliar spray and root drench (in coco), then 1/2 tsp per gal. Plants love it and it does the job. Doesn't leave any residue, doesn't remove the natural waxes from the leaves, so far I'm super satisfied! For the price ($2.73) for 25oz bottle- this beats Coco-Wet by a mile. Don't get me wrong I have used Coco-Wet for years, the whole Spray-n-Grow line is fantastic, but when you go through gallons of the stuff every season, the bill starts to rack up really fast. I've been searching for cheaper wetting agents for a while now and so far this has been the best option I have found that is easy to find and doesn't require making anything myself.

Why do you use it ?

 

[Deadstill]

Why do you use it ?

Farming on a scale as large as I do, foliar feeding nutrients is more economical and viable especially with my limited help. Wetting agents help make the water stick to the leaves better, slow down evaporation, and thus helps better absorption of nutrients.

 

[Observationist]

Farming on a scale as large as I do, foliar feeding nutrients is more economical and viable especially with my limited help. Wetting agents help make the water stick to the leaves better, slow down evaporation, and thus helps better absorption of nutrients.

Thanks!

 

[Mudballs]

So far so good. First I tried 1/4 tsp per gal. of water for foliar spray and root drench (in coco), then 1/2 tsp per gal. Plants love it and it does the job. Doesn't leave any residue, doesn't remove the natural waxes from the leaves, so far I'm super satisfied! For the price ($2.73) for 25oz bottle- this beats Coco-Wet by a mile. Don't get me wrong I have used Coco-Wet for years, the whole Spray-n-Grow line is fantastic, but when you go through gallons of the stuff every season, the bill starts to rack up really fast. I've been searching for cheaper wetting agents for a while now and so far this has been the best option I have found that is easy to find and doesn't require making anything myself.

That's way cheaper than the Dr.Bonners i use and was gonna recommend. Yeah go with that one you got my dude.

 

[sambapati]

Thanks!
OBSO Just trying this buckwheat grow soaking water as a sufficant, it is sticky and slimey but smells good.Soil grow as you van see the plants are trying to escape their enclosure and I keep ushing 'em down.

 

[Observationist]

Farming on a scale as large as I do, foliar feeding nutrients is more economical and viable especially with my limited help. Wetting agents help make the water stick to the leaves better, slow down evaporation, and thus helps better absorption of nutrients.

Any absolute DOs and DONTs about foliar feeding?

Also, do you mainly only foliar feed?

 

[RootsRuler]

What ever happened to Nutrilifes SM-90? I heard they were having some issues with labeling and the EPA made them pull it from the shelves a few years back.

That stuff worked great as a wetting agent.

 

[Deadstill]

Any absolute DOs and DONTs about foliar feeding?

Also, do you mainly only foliar feed?

1) Yes, and no. It's just a different method to give your plants nutrients. Almost all commercial farmers primarily foliar fertilize their crops, you may see some pre-planting ground fertilization but 99.9% of it is foliar. You can do this for pretty much anything you would normally give at the roots, but strengths will be less because foliar feeding is like shooting up directly into the plant's "vein" lmao (sorry, bad analogy) and also mostly foliar feed outdoor crops, indoor might give you bud rot issues if you don't use potassium silicate

2) Yes. I give some nutrients at the roots when plants get transplanted to the ground, but after that they just get water, and any nutrients they need I foliar feed. This can be done all the way up to just before harvest but I wouldn't recommend foliar feeding for a week or two before chop - and rinsing is a good idea before chop as well (In my case I just wait for the rain)

 

[Observationist]

1) Yes, and no. It's just a different method to give your plants nutrients. Almost all commercial farmers primarily foliar fertilize their crops, you may see some pre-planting ground fertilization but 99.9% of it is foliar. You can do this for pretty much anything you would normally give at the roots, but strengths will be less because foliar feeding is like shooting up directly into the plant's "vein" lmao (sorry, bad analogy) and also mostly foliar feed outdoor crops, indoor might give you bud rot issues if you don't use potassium silicate

2) Yes. I give some nutrients at the roots when plants get transplanted to the ground, but after that they just get water, and any nutrients they need I foliar feed. This can be done all the way up to just before harvest but I wouldn't recommend foliar feeding for a week or two before chop - and rinsing is a good idea before chop as well (In my case I just wait for the rain)

Awesome

Thanks for the information!

Answers my questions.

 

[Observationist]

1) Yes, and no. It's just a different method to give your plants nutrients. Almost all commercial farmers primarily foliar fertilize their crops, you may see some pre-planting ground fertilization but 99.9% of it is foliar. You can do this for pretty much anything you would normally give at the roots, but strengths will be less because foliar feeding is like shooting up directly into the plant's "vein" lmao (sorry, bad analogy) and also mostly foliar feed outdoor crops, indoor might give you bud rot issues if you don't use potassium silicate

2) Yes. I give some nutrients at the roots when plants get transplanted to the ground, but after that they just get water, and any nutrients they need I foliar feed. This can be done all the way up to just before harvest but I wouldn't recommend foliar feeding for a week or two before chop - and rinsing is a good idea before chop as well (In my case I just wait for the rain)

Sorry, do you PH you’re foliar spray?

 

[Deadstill]

Sorry, do you PH you’re foliar spray?

Usually no unless it's something I know for sure will raise the pH a lot like epsom salt because some of the foliar spray does make it to the roots eventually so in the case of epsom salt primarily, I will adjust pH back down to 6-7 ish depending on media. Closer to 6 for coco. Other than that most of my sprays tend to be a little on the acidic side, anyway.

You can foliar feed just about any nutrients you would normally feed in root drench, too. I just mix them a little lower (usually half) of what the product calls for in normal application.

 

[Derduhder]

Hey fellow Farmers I was wondering if anyone has tried this as a wetting agent? I found it at Wally World for under 3 bucks a bottle and tried it out as a wetting agent for my foliar sprays tested it out on some extra plants that I can stand to lose - seems to work pretty good and I don't see any ingredients that would be harmful, what do you guys think? I'm tired of paying through the nose for Coco-Wet. That shit is ridiculous.View attachment 1268232View attachment 1268231

Very cool, wife picked up some today for me. How much of this do you use per gallon of foliar spray?

 

[mancorn]

Edit: Didn’t notice the date . Well maybe someone else can test.

Castile soap is made from 100% plant oils - which is basically what your bottle is. But unless you know the % of water in your bottle it’s hard to judge if it’s actually cheaper than another brand. Never tried it myself, but if you’re using a lot of agent you might experiment with using a bar as it’s much cheaper then the bottles