mountain spring water and calcium/magnesium

[7munkee]

I am growing autoflowers in FF Ocean Forest in 5 gallon airpots and using Root Magic mycorrhiza and Blue Planet liquid seaweed with each water. Now the weather is nice and I can trek out n the woods, I am using spring water for my current grow. I am 22 days into an autoflower grow and I always needed to add cal/mag in the past when I used distilled water.

Does spring water straight from a mountain spring contain enough calcium, magnesium, and other trace minerals? This is my fourth indoor grow and and the first 3 suffered from some deficiency.

I plan on starting the Fox Farm Trio this week also. Do you think it is too soon?

 

[logdog]

With trace minerals probably, as for the rest really depends on the underlying geology, I am in upstate ny so my underlying bedrock is nearly all calcium rich shale/limestone so my calcium needs are met by my spring water I do supplement magnesium with epsom salt every other watering. If your in an area with say granite as your underlying bedrock the water chem would be different.

 

[Homesteader]

People assume because their water contains high amounts of calcium that they should be fine....Perhaps this works out for some but calcium or magnesium carbonate for that matter is not plant available and needs an acid to neutralize the carbon which unleashes the calcium. If your soil is already buffered then you wont get any of the calcium to free up and the additional carbonates will just keep raising the pH. Your best bet for calcium supplement is gypsum in soil on most occasions because it doesn't require you to add peat to drive the acid down. Cal mag for hydro systems because of their solubility. Some good info in here.

Carbonateceous Soils and Gypsum
https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=24750

 

[mysticepipedon]

You would need to have your spring water analyzed. Some is full of iron, some is full of calcium, some is full of sulfur, some actually comes out of the ground carbonated. There is a lot of variability.