Anyone using Growstones? - Aquaponic Gardening2024-03-28T09:16:41Zhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/forum/topics/anyone-using-growstones?commentId=4778851%3AComment%3A505979&feed=yes&xn_auth=nothank you for the update
sinc…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2013-09-09:4778851:Comment:5148782013-09-09T20:36:40.848ZDave & Yvonne Storyhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/DaveStory
<p>thank you for the update</p>
<p>sincerely,</p>
<p>dave</p>
<p>thank you for the update</p>
<p>sincerely,</p>
<p>dave</p> Today, on day 9, the pH is 7.…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2013-09-09:4778851:Comment:5150782013-09-09T20:32:02.883ZJan Ankneyhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/JanAnkney
<p>Today, on day 9, the pH is 7.6. It started at 7 and has been climbing very slowly. The plants look pretty good now, since the addition of chelated iron.</p>
<p>Today, on day 9, the pH is 7.6. It started at 7 and has been climbing very slowly. The plants look pretty good now, since the addition of chelated iron.</p> So what is the pH after not a…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2013-09-03:4778851:Comment:5121152013-09-03T19:15:05.528ZTCLynxhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/TCLynx
<p>So what is the pH after not adding any pH down for a few days?</p>
<p>So what is the pH after not adding any pH down for a few days?</p> Thank you for your help. As m…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2013-09-03:4778851:Comment:5121102013-09-03T16:25:56.323ZJan Ankneyhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/JanAnkney
<p>Thank you for your help. As mentioned above, I have added chelated iron. The plants are more happy, although far from ecstatic.</p>
<p>As I also said, I am now doing nothing with the pH unless it goes to 7.7.</p>
<p>The pH has not bounced much. With daily addition of Botanicare pH Down, it has been ranging between 7.2 and 6.8, usually 7.0 or 7.2</p>
<p>Thank you for your help. As mentioned above, I have added chelated iron. The plants are more happy, although far from ecstatic.</p>
<p>As I also said, I am now doing nothing with the pH unless it goes to 7.7.</p>
<p>The pH has not bounced much. With daily addition of Botanicare pH Down, it has been ranging between 7.2 and 6.8, usually 7.0 or 7.2</p> What are the ingredients of y…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2013-09-02:4778851:Comment:5114882013-09-02T17:19:48.953ZTCLynxhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/TCLynx
<p>What are the ingredients of your pH down. Seeing as you have been using it regularly to keep your pH below 7 AND your plants have not been doing well ANYWAY, it makes me wonder that you feel it is the pH that is making your plants unhappy.</p>
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<p>Of course if the way you are using the pH down is causing the pH to bounce violently, that will make most everything in the system Unhappy.</p>
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<p>Or if the pH down is an aquarium type pH down, it could be elevating your salt levels…</p>
<p>What are the ingredients of your pH down. Seeing as you have been using it regularly to keep your pH below 7 AND your plants have not been doing well ANYWAY, it makes me wonder that you feel it is the pH that is making your plants unhappy.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Of course if the way you are using the pH down is causing the pH to bounce violently, that will make most everything in the system Unhappy.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Or if the pH down is an aquarium type pH down, it could be elevating your salt levels which could also make plants unhappy even if the pH is in what should be a good range for them.</p>
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<p>Remember that I am coming from having spent years with a system where the pH really could not come down below 7.4-7.6 and I still had lots of plants that produced well though not as well as they might have given other conditions.</p>
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<p>Treating an aquaponics system like a chemistry set or hydroponics system usually has more detrimental effect on production rather than what I expect most people are attempting to get to happen by adding this and that to "fix" what they think to be wrong and then not having much patience to wait long enough and see the effects before attempting to do another "fix" or doing too many things at once so it becomes impossible to know what it is that "fixed" the problem if anything.</p> Yes, it is a rather new syste…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2013-09-02:4778851:Comment:5116322013-09-02T16:58:37.980ZJan Ankneyhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/JanAnkney
<p>Yes, it is a rather new system. I will take your advice and not add pH down for a few days. If the pH gets to 7.7, though, I think I will do something for the plants are not doing well.</p>
<p>Thanks for your help.</p>
<p>Yes, it is a rather new system. I will take your advice and not add pH down for a few days. If the pH gets to 7.7, though, I think I will do something for the plants are not doing well.</p>
<p>Thanks for your help.</p> That seems like the best way…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2013-09-01:4778851:Comment:5113452013-09-01T12:30:00.657ZDave & Yvonne Storyhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/DaveStory
<p>That seems like the best way to go, sit back and relax. after your system finds a balance, you will wonder why did you go thru all the worry.</p>
<p>That seems like the best way to go, sit back and relax. after your system finds a balance, you will wonder why did you go thru all the worry.</p> So out of curiosity, if you d…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2013-09-01:4778851:Comment:5110902013-09-01T12:11:04.465ZTCLynxhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/TCLynx
<p>So out of curiosity, if you don't add pH down every day, what does the pH actually rise to? It sounds like it is a rather new system so the truth is you may simply need a little more patience.</p>
<p>So out of curiosity, if you don't add pH down every day, what does the pH actually rise to? It sounds like it is a rather new system so the truth is you may simply need a little more patience.</p> TCLynx,
Thank you for your su…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2013-09-01:4778851:Comment:5110812013-09-01T05:43:31.621ZJan Ankneyhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/JanAnkney
<p>TCLynx,</p>
<p>Thank you for your suggestions. About a week ago I added chelated iron and the newest leaves are coming in more green. I still have to add pH down almost every day. The nitrate levels have been 80 -160 ppm. I have few fish and they are small. They eat little, but I had trouble with too much nitrite, which has now all converted to nitrate. (The nitrite was left over from cycling. I had been adding another brand of pH down which was apparently killing the nitrate-forming…</p>
<p>TCLynx,</p>
<p>Thank you for your suggestions. About a week ago I added chelated iron and the newest leaves are coming in more green. I still have to add pH down almost every day. The nitrate levels have been 80 -160 ppm. I have few fish and they are small. They eat little, but I had trouble with too much nitrite, which has now all converted to nitrate. (The nitrite was left over from cycling. I had been adding another brand of pH down which was apparently killing the nitrate-forming bacteria.) The fish food is flakes made from fishery byproducts.</p> Jan,
Have you ever dosed y…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2013-08-31:4778851:Comment:5110412013-08-31T21:10:47.810ZTCLynxhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/TCLynx
<p>Jan,</p>
<p> Have you ever dosed your system with chelated iron? If you are keeping your pH below 7 using pH down, then I don't know that I would automatically assume that all yellowing of leaves is due to pH being too high and causing nutrient lock out. I ran a system for years with a pH that rarely got below 7.6 because the media was shells and simply dosing with DTPA chelated iron was able to fend off Iron deficiencies. Even at the new farm where I am collecting enough rain water to…</p>
<p>Jan,</p>
<p> Have you ever dosed your system with chelated iron? If you are keeping your pH below 7 using pH down, then I don't know that I would automatically assume that all yellowing of leaves is due to pH being too high and causing nutrient lock out. I ran a system for years with a pH that rarely got below 7.6 because the media was shells and simply dosing with DTPA chelated iron was able to fend off Iron deficiencies. Even at the new farm where I am collecting enough rain water to let my system pH settle down at 6.5, I still have to dose with some chelated iron on a regular basis since my fish food and source water don't seem to be providing enough (I have an iron test kit and if I don't dose for several weeks the Iron level will be almost unreadable so I have been dosing enough weekly to keep the Iron reading up at about 2 ppm.) I had far more trouble (and still do) with potassium deficiencies.</p>
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<p>Iron Deficiency shows as yellowing of the newest leaves first while the veins stay green. There are other deficiencies that can look a bit like it but usually starts on the older leaves first. I have mistaken potassium deficiency for magnesium deficiency before.</p>
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<p>Also, how much and what kind of food are you feeding the fish? It is the fish feed where the nutrients generally come from and if you have been changing out lots of water, you may be just short of nutrients in general. What are your nitrate levels like?</p>