Log date: 12/7/2014
pH was very low again. Below 6.0. Added four teaspoons of lime to bring up the pH. Also added two teaspoons of kelp extract and one teaspoon of chelated iron.
Category: nutrient dosing
Results of dosing iron on grapefruit tree
Logdate: 11/8/2014
A couple of weeks ago, I dosed this grapefruit tree with chelated iron. The leaves look a bit darker now.
Dosed kelp extract on potted citrus and elderberry trees
Logdate: 11/8/2014
These trees are slightly darker green after the calcium dosing. But still not looking great. Adding one teaspoon of kelp extract with a gallon of water to the citrus and elderberry trees.
This is how the trees look today.
Added kelp extract to aquaponics
Logdate: 11/8/2014
Added two teaspoons of kelp extract to the water
Adding chelated iron to aquaponics
Logdate: 11/4/2014
The lettuces are growing very slowly. They have already been dosed kelp extract and now experimenting with chelated iron.
These are the before pictures to observe results.
The watercress are spreading out nicely though.
This mustard lettuce has been growing well too.
Adjusting aquaponics pH with more hydrated lime
Log date: 11/2/2014
The pH stabilized from yesterday’s calcium dosing at 6.4.
Today, I decided to add another tablespoon to bring it up a bit more. Five hours after dosing, the system reached pH of 6.8.
Adjusting aquaponics pH with hydrated lime
Log date: 11/1/2014
The aquaponic water has dropped down to pH 6.0 again.
This is a chance to add some calcium to the system via hydrated lime. Added one tablespoon to the water.
A preliminary test shows pH 7.2. But need to let the water stabilize before the test is accurate.
This will add some needed calcium to the plants since the water here is very soft containing no calcium. Last week, the system was dosed with kelp extract and the plants have had minor responses.
Anemic plants
Log date: 10/26/2014
Decided to try a foliar spray of kelp extract on a few plants. The light green trees look like they are lacking nitrogen. Will try that next after this experiment.
Kelp extract foliar application
Log date: 10/25/2014
This plant was transplanted a year ago. It has never grown well and finally got stabilized after drip irrigation was added six months ago. However, it is still very slow growing as in not at all. Decided to try a foliar application of kelp extract at one teaspoon per gallon solution. We will see if things change. From the looks of the leaves, there are no visible nutrient deficiencies.
More kelp extract for aquaponic
Log date: 10/25/2014
The kelp extract added yesterday totally cleared up from the tank.
It seems that maybe the kelp extract was attached the hoses in the system. These hoses were clear the day before.
Decided to add another teaspoon to the system. Once again, the water was the color of tea.
