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Name: Carol Noel Hawaii (near Hilo) It's all about choices.
I couldn't find the information about qty. of baking soda etc so I wrote to the folks at Growstones, and here is their reply.
Hello Carol,
I have heard of people using baking soda to raise the pH even though I would not recommend it. There are far greater pH adjusters available. In your situation you mentioned you want to lower the pH. This is common in hydroponic gardening. I would recommend using phosphoric acid. There are many products available at hydroponic stores for lowering pH. Most with pH down in their title.
Thank you & happy gardening!
Nathan Ferverda | Growstone | C: 831.704.6261
National Hydroponic Sales Director
1961 Main St. Suite 227
Watsonville, CA 95076
PLEASE NOTE: Baking Soda is exactly the wrong thing to use to adjust Ph down... IDK what I was thinking when I decided to do this.
PHOSPHORUS will lower Ph -- and many Orchid fertilizers contain phosphorus. Check with your fert manufacturer I guess to find out how much you would use to adjust Growstone Ph from around 7 to around 5 for, say, a gallon of premixed soaking solution (if Ph of 5 is what you are aiming for)
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I also talked to the guy at Growstones - it was he who reminded me of this.
I have some cuttings, in half grow stones and half repti bark.its been a little over two weeks and they are slowly rooting!I had Hoys archboldiana that got root rot,the leaves were green but soft and leathery.When unpotted, most of the foots were dead,and the healthy roots did not have enough energy to maintain the whole plant.I cut it up into eight peices and planted half in my reg mix and half in the growstone mix.i didnt use root tone this time...just soaked the cutting in water with some aquaguard and some super thrive for about eight hours.In the reg mix,two cutting rotted and two rooted up nicely. the leaves are hard and firm now! none of the ones in the grow stones died, but are taking longer to root,but are showing roots!Here are some pics. dehydrated leaves growstone mix growstone bag growstones potted up in mini greenhouses made from pretzel containers with holes drilled on top and bottom.
root poking through,a little over two weeks(lower right in photo) descriptions are a bit out of order,but easy to figure out!lol
Name: Carol Noel Hawaii (near Hilo) It's all about choices.
Jimmy....great tutorial! All cuttings from the same vine/plant will not root with the same speed...it is amazing the differences. I root in the growstones and am very very happy with the results.
Diane... my husband tested the pH on Growstones that I had soaking for 2 days. He rinsed them and they tested 6.5. That is good enough for me. Now...the phosphorus in fertilizers can be in many different forms....so I wouldn't count on that element to affect the Growstone. IMHO, I am not going to fuss about this pH difference at all...use it as it comes out at 6.5...The watering of the plant should provide ample rinsing of the stones...
Have you tested your water? Do you decant it to flash off the chemicals?
I started my experiment today....I am using GrowStones. I used 2 cuttings: Amoena and Samoensis.
I soaked the stones in water with fertilizer for 24 hours, filled the containers with cuttings in them and put bags over each plant.
I put the plants under the lights for rooting.
What do I do now? Do I water the stones (every day)?
Name: Carol Noel Hawaii (near Hilo) It's all about choices.
Olesya...The cuttings will not pay any attention to the fertilizer until it puts out roots...but at that time...the roots will be attracted to the stones with the (VERY VERY mild form of fertilizer like 1-.5-1...NO middle number to speak of because you want root growth and plant photosynthesis/growth). I use the weak formulation to soak them....and then water it in maybe every 2 or4 days....the stones will stay damp.
Carol, what do you do with the cuts after they have a lot of roots? Do you pot them up with mix or just leave them to grow s/h? I have just ordered some of the stones &thought I'd give a try at rooting a few of them.
I made a small cut in the bag this morning and watered stones a little...just to give a little bit of fresh water.... I soaked the stones only for 24 hours...should of soaked them for more.... Thank you Carol!!!
Name: Carol Noel Hawaii (near Hilo) It's all about choices.
If the cuts are going to be for me, I will pot UP in Growstones if I think it will do well (better than soil) in them...like subcalva, callistophylla etc. They will also make for lighter large pots!!!!
Make sure they can drain well.
I also find the long I soak them, the longer I pour off a milky residue coming off the stones themselves as part of the dust making them.
Ok...then my next question is , if you are growing them in large pots with the stones and good drainage, how often should you water to keep the roots happy.
Name: Carol Noel Hawaii (near Hilo) It's all about choices.
I would do a test first: Fill a pot with Stones that have been soaking in water. After 3 days, tip them out until you see damp stones. Do that every day and you should see how long the stone retain the moisture...in the actual spot it will be standing in. I have done this in the HOTTEST part and the shadiest part of my greenhouse (...no difference, by the way). Then figure the requirements of the plant...and...VOILA...the answer.....
Great...will do just that. This sounds very promising, especially for those ones that get water logged easily. I have not tried the S/H method yet. I have used the hydroponic balls, but usually just in the bottom third of the pots, or to rest the pots on inside another pot.
I agree....I rooted 2 cuttings of H. Amoena in no time in GrowStones. The roots seems to be much healthier and thicker in size. I took pictures. I will upload them closer to the evening time. I am very happy with GrowStones.
I finally got mine. I think I need to find a local source with big bags as what I ordered doesn't look like it will be near enough if I get to rooting a bunch of things in it. The bag of hydroton I last went through was the size of a large bag of dog food and i only used it root a few, to put in the bottom 3rd of pots, and to add to my mix. Ha
How often are you folks in dryer climates than Carol having to water the plants in pure stones? That is my biggest hesitation in using pure stones as I am in a really dry zone and I tend to be a forgetfull waterer. If it becomes a daily chore, it will get to be too much.
Name: Carol Noel Hawaii (near Hilo) It's all about choices.
You might try setting the pot in a saucer of water to allow the 'Stones to wick the moisture up. Why don't you try an experiment before you use it: fill a pot with GrowStones that you have soaked in water and set it out...after 3 days tip it out until you see moisture. The next day do the same... You will see how many days a good soaking will last.
dehydrated leaves
growstone mix
growstone bag
growstones
potted up in mini greenhouses made from pretzel containers with holes drilled on top and bottom.
I soaked the stones only for 24 hours...should of soaked them for more.... Thank you Carol!!!
