Should We Give Up Peat For Coir

Peat has always been one of my personal favorites but I recently tried some new coco coir products and I am seriously impressed. To add to that I am going to educate you a little bit about peat and coir and allow you to make your own decision.

1. We are running out of peat. It is considered a non-renewable resource because it takes 220 years for peat to replenish itself. Peat used to come from europe, but we used up all the peat in europe and now all the peat comes from canada. Coconut is an awesome replacement for peat it is a renewable resource and coir is a waste product that would normally be thrown away.

2. Coconut retains more water then peat and does not blow away when the wind blows.

3. Coconut holds more water then peat and does not break down as fast. If you are like me and you like being able to water more often then you can add perlite to the coco. adding perlite allows for more oxygen in the root system. Some gardeners prefer a larger coconut chunk.

4. If the coco is not flushed enough it will hold a lot of salt which is bad for the plants. The higher quality the coconut the more it has been flushed. New products like Canna coir are pre-soaked for 14 months and have calcium added to them. coconut is known for calcium deficiencies, the easy fix is to add calcium to the nutrients you are watering with.

5. I am running experiments at the north store compairing perlite to a canna coir/ perlite mixture. The plants in the coir are growing at twic ethe rate as the plants in straight perlite. I will post picturs of the plants as they grow so yo can see for your self.

http://www.simplyhydroponics.com/canna_coco.htm
http://www.simplyhydroponics.com/canna.htm
http://www.simplyhydroponics.com/cocnut%20coir.htm
http://www.simplyhydroponics.com/coco_gro.htm
http://www.simplyhydroponics.com/crop_circles.htm
These are just some of the links to coconut products simply carries

QUICK TIPS EVERY GARDENER SHOULD KNOW

1. To promote ripening in flowers and fruits apply nutrients containing little to no nitrogen with good levels of phosphorous and high levels of potassium.

2. Some farmers have found when applying a good 100% organic nutrient there crops improve hardiness to mildews, rots, and frost during the cold weather.

3. over fertilization can delay the maturity in plants. It can also create a bitter taste in produce and increase the plants chances in mildews and molds.

4. Bloom booster should be applied around 1 month before harvest. they have a high level of phosphorous & potassium which can damage plants if used to soon.

5. Over fertilization makes plants branches soft and unable to hold there own weight. Applying silica will help strengthen the plants by improving the cellular structure of the plants also making it more heat and drought tolerate.

6. Make sure the leaves and fruit of the plants never touch the ground that is like building a bridge for bugs and diseases to come right onto the plants.

7. When adding worm castings to the soil or soilless medium do not exceed 20% castings or the soil or soilless medium will hold to much water creating a lack of oxygen causing root rot. Worm castings have some nitrogen no phosphorus or potash. Worm castings contain gibberellic acid which regulate plant growth. The beneficial bacteria present in worm castings breaks down organic nutrients making the nutrients ready for immediate absorption.

http://www.simplyhydroponics.com/worm_castings.htm

Water Purification & Do I Need It

There are many water purifying machines out there. Reverse Osmosis is one of the best ways to purify water. Using a water filtration system remove harmful contaminants from the water. Also having a water filtration system will make the water's ppm level 0. Most if not all feeding schedules start at a 0 ppm level. You might not have to use a water filtration system but it is the best water for your plants because you have no way on knowing what make up the start ppm in your water. Example: If your water out of the tap is 400 ppm you have no way of knowing how much calcium is in the water. If you have city water & you use beneficial bacteria or fungi you HAVE TO USE a water filtration/purification system or the chlorine/chloramines will destroy beneficial bacteria or fungi.

Now here are some important tips you need to know about reverse osmosis machines:

1.There is nothing better for your plants health and your health then RO water.

2.If you have city water or you have just bleached your well to kill harmful bacteria then you have to check for chlorine coming out of the filter lines. as soon as you see there is chlorine comig out of the line you need to change you carbon and sediment filter OR you will distroy the membrane.

3.You need to replace your membrane every 1 to 1 1/2 years or bacteria will start growing and living in it.

4.They can be VERY wasteful they on average use 3-8 gallons of water to make 1 gallon of PURE water.

5. RO machines can be ran in line with you sink and refrigerator allowing you to have fresh purified water at you finger tips. RO machine can also be run to a storage tank so you have a back-up supply of water.

http://www.simplyhydroponics.com/crystal_clear.htm

http://www.simplyhydroponics.com/eliminator.htm

On these pages, we strive to get you all the gardening information you could ever possibly need. At Hydro-U you can take a "Mini-Class" (don't worry there isn't any homework or tests) to learn about various aspects of gardening in general and hydroponics in particular. What is Hydroponics gives a basic explanation of hydroponics and diagrams the basic types of hydroponic systems. We have a Hydroponic F.A.Q. section called Destroying the Myths. We also offer a Tip Of The Week and a section entitled: Ask The Professor where you can view questions asked by others or pose your unique question to the Professor. We also offer several FREE SYSTEM PLANS that you can use to build simple yet effective hydroponic systems out of easy to find inexpensive materials. "NEW" Simply's Most Commonly Asked Questions & Answers. "NEW" Simply Glossary gives definitions to gardening lingo/language.

The family at Simply Hydroponics and Organics wanted to be able to chat with the customer so we decided to start this blog. We will be adding to it as we go so please visit often.

Things to look forward to are gardening tips. Question and Answers from the pro's who know here at Simply Hydroponics and Orgnics. Product info and knowlege you can count on.

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