MicroNutrients?

[R.K. Castillo]

I had someone ask me a question the other day about AP and I figured I would ask the experts here.  

I know Ammonia attracts Nitrites that get converted to Nitrates which is what the plants eat.  

What else do plants need to grow strong and big?  Aren't there other nutrients a plant needs other than Nitrates?  Or are Nitrates and Water all they need?

Let me know, or point me to the blog posts or articles...

Thanks!

[Safwat Zaki]

Plants in Ap get the nutrients they need to grow from the macro and micronutrients dissolved in the water from fish poo through mortification processes,from fish food and from the water itself,plus the oxygen,carbon dioxide and sometimes nitrogen from air. Extra potassium should be added to grow beds to meet plants requirement.Seaweed extracts is helpful too to add micronutrients.

[Hank Paloci]

Ammonia doesn't *attract nitrites. One kind of bacteria consumer ammonia and turn it to nitrites, and another kind consumes nitrites and turn them into nitrates.

Someone will chime in with a more detailed answer, but there are like 13 elements plants need to grow. I have found that if I focus on one thing you need that ends up missing a lot it's IRON. Invest in a bottle of liquid iron that contains lots of trace elements too. Once your system matures, you won't need to add so much iron. But for me, it was when I added liquid iron that my tomatoes and cukes started to fruit.

The more obvious chemicals you need are NPK. I use a K salt to fix my tap water, and I add a bit of Epsom salt or aquarium salt to make the fish happy -- both of which contain Mg.

I'm new to AP this year and have had decent success with these minimal additions to the water. If only I could get rid of the aphids now...