Crowellli I tried the milk and water thing too. The roses were very happy about that.:) Maybe I'll just add ES to it. I used a pump sprayer which only holds a gallon, so how much ES do I add? I tried that link, btw and if I understand it right, if your soil is alkaline you shouldn't add it to the soil. Did I misunderstand it?
Epsom Salts
that there is perfect.
Im not answering your question, I was referring to the post above.
Thanks much MaVie. I'll study that thread.:)
Silverfluter, I think it's the dolomite limestone that neutralizes acidic soil and shouldn't be used on alkaline soil. Azelias, camelias and magnolias all like acidic soil and I use the ES on them, so I think it's only the limestone that shouldn't be used. I could be wrong, but I haven't had problems with plants that like acidic soil conditions when I've used it. Heck, live dangerously, try it on one and see what happens!
u're very welcome Mary Lee :D, am sure u'll pick up some pointers in those threads and links.
personally, i like to spread the Epsom salt in the soil, work it in and water thoroughly. am sure ur plants will love that. Epsom salt guarantees to green up most of ur plants. do not use ironite cuz it was proven to be toxic and not environmentally friendly. http://www.envirolaw.org/poison.html
Texas greensand--good stuff.
I've had really good experience using MirAcid on any plants in soil here in Austin. Because I labor against clay (which is alkaline) any plants I have in ground immediately perk up when I add MirAcid fertilizer. Of course I dilute it more than the label recommends but use it twice as often.
Edited to read that you should not put dolomite limestone in already alkaline soil because it only makes the soil more basic. Remember that much of applied knowledge from my biochem degree.
This message was edited May 23, 2007 3:51 AM
If I use ES do I still need greensand? I wish I could absorb this chemistry stuff. I really need to understand it better. Somehow it just doesn't stick to my brain cells.:) BTW somebody asked me where I got it from I think. I bought it from Gardenville in SA probably. Some small nurseries sell it too, but they (Gardenville) won't sell it to chain stores like Home Depot. They want to support the local nurseries.
ES is available @ Walmart, 99 cents stores @ a very reasonable price.
green sand http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_sand
bentonite http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bentonite
make green sand http://www.gizmology.net/greensand.htm
since the soil here in the upper desert is harsh sand, i never use green sand. maybe someone will chime in and explain for u.
ES http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnesium_sulfate
i do research to 'know/learn' things i am not familar with. hth
I have a master's in Geology--the link above is not what Texas greensand is (the one that says you can make it). Here is a commercial source for it:
http://www.spray-n-growgardening.com/prodinfo.asp?number=TXGREENSAND&top=10
I buy wholesale because I grow commercially--but my sources require a tax ID# and and nursery license #; so no need to give you a link there. The above company is a Texas family owned business--good people, I know them.
Texas greensand is mined as a drilling mud used to keep the drill tip cool when drilling for oil (a rather simplistic way to explain it).
Debbie
Wow, that was a bit more info than I had expected. But I still don't know how much ES to use. I read it somewhere, but can't remember where.
Debbie, Malcolm Beck ( of Gardenville fame) is supposed to come to Fredericksburg sometime soon. He said he would call me because he wants to look at my pecan tree. I sent him a picture of it because it is stressed. He said he always likes to check out stressed trees that look different. Can't wait to hear what he has to say about this tree. He's always fun to talk to anyway.:)
I`m not getting the use of green sand and I have never seen it and people here do not know about it either. I have clay and alkaline soil here, what would this do for me? What would it do for someone else?
Quote from link:
The naturally occurring glauconite in Texas Greensand has been used for more than a century to amend iron-deficient, high alkaline soils.
This pretty much sums up 95% of Texas soils...
We have clay, didn`t you say not with clay soil though? I have iron deficiency in parts of my land, it was a river bed so it has different make up in different parts, even different ph in spots right near eachother.
clay yes--I got it, I'm in Houston. That's all we got unless its been played with by mulch, compost, etc.
Texas green sand...good stuff. I use it in my commercial mixes. That's all I'll say about it.
=)
silverflutter,
Go back to my very first post. It has a link to Epsom Salts Council and they tell you how much to use. Never in my wildest dreams did I think this thread would go this long. Have learned a lot from all of the various posts. Keep it up.....I am in heaven with this much knowledge all in one place.
LouC
dmj1218, Are you mad, I`m not sure by your post?
Mary Lee look @ my post on May 22, 2007 3:34 PM for the answer to ur question on ES.
---------------------------
Debbie/dmj1218/ , i am no expert by any means, i do research on line to understand what i am missing/ or anything i do not understand, since u have master in Geology, can u pls. explain to Dawn/Hellnzn11 what she does not understand in ur post pls.
Ma VieRose, where in the High Desert are you? Near me? I`m guessing Victorvalley or Kern/Antelope valley. DMJ It`s ok never mind answering, it seems to be some sort of contentious point that I`m not getting. Not worth a hard feelin, onward and upward.
u have d-mail Dawn.
wonder what the difference is in zone 8a and 8b. I`m guessing you get more rain, because you do get the thunder storms and rain that we don`t usually get.
maybe there's a lot of difference Dawn, i could be wrong ... where i am winter temp goes down to 10 degs. F, sometimes lower. summer time temp is hot... 115 degs. F, sometimes higher.
i practically live near the foot of Cajon Pass [I-15] on the north, Apple Valley on the east Victor Valley is south of where i live, and Phelan on the west side.
no, we do not get lots of rain. we are practically rainless here where i am. the soil is harsh sand. rains in block by the surrounding mountains.
i hardly go anywhere, and i do not have any idea where Rosamond, Ca. is.
i have a phobia in long driving due to near death accidents when i was young, the main cause why i seldom go on trip. what is ironic is... i love to fly, but scared of long drives.
how funny. You are very close to me, I live right next to Lancaster which is by Palmdale, directly accross from you just west. When ever we are on 138 and the I-15 we always get rain or snow, which is funny because you get those storms blocked by the mountains.
In my town we have a stream of air too that pushes the storms right past us on both sides of our town but hardly ever through it, like your area. Our temps are very similar to yours but we usually only get 115 in a heat wave, it is normally about 103 to 110 except heat waves. This winter we had those freezes that dropped to 5 degrees but that was a record.
well that is the great difference then cuz we have sunshine almost 363 days in a year. if we get any rain, that is some kind of miracle for this area.
least be accuse of hijacking this thread, i think we should just exchange email.
back to ES and plants, basing from what i read and re-read, it seems u water ur plants a lot. plant do prefer to dry out between watering. besides too much watering is not really good at all.
personally, i only water once a week, twice if it is extra windy most of the time. strong winds and dirt devils is an everyday occurence in my area.
what kind of plants do u have, and what kind of problems are u encountering? are ur plants on the ground or in pots?
welcome to gardening world that is not for planting anymore, gardening is also a learning process. like it or not, the only way we can grow successfully is to learn this cumbersom info to some, but vital to those who enjoy plant and planting. as i have said before, plants are like people - they have to have nutrition to survive; to provide food on the table, provide beautiful flowers to suit our eyes and senses.
check this link and learn more http://retirees.uwaterloo.ca/~jerry/orchids/nutri.html
http://www.greenair.com/plantlnk.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fertilizer
http://www.mastergardenproducts.com/gardenerscorner/plant_nutrients.htm
be sure to follow the links on the above url provided. searching and research help me understand more about the plant and it's personality. similar to meeting a stranger: if i want to be in friendly terms, i try to get to know them well so in the long ran we get to know one another better. therefore gaining a new friend. in the case of plants, i get to achieve a very healthy plant.
years ago, when i first move in the Upper Desert, i was told nothing will grow. since then it has been a challenge for me to prove people around me to be wrong. in the process of learning, i am able to grow and prove to non believers that plants can grow, provided we provide the right conditions, nutrition and soil for the plants grown. also considering the temperature, environment, and atmosphere.
Bettydee, in the link you posted for Thriftyfun near the top of this thread there was another link I found that talked about burying a banana peel near roses instead of ES, but it didn't explain why or what it does. Do you know? It was very interesting. I'm just blown away by this rain. I want to get out and use some ES, but it's still pouring down rain. DH checked the rain gage this morning and poured out about 5 1/2 inches! I don't know if anybody has seen the story about the truck that washed away off a bridge. That happened about a half a block from our house. It'sa very dangerous spot even in dry weather.
Silverflutter,
Don't know which thread you asked about Glen Rose, Texas. It is about 180 or so miles from Fredericksburg and 65 miles from Dallas. From my place in DeSoto we go HWY67. It is the first town west of Cleburne. From 67 just past Glen Rose we intersect with 281 and head to the Hill Country.
Glen Rose is the first real taste of the Edward's Escarpment. Between Cleburne and Glen Rose the topography changes dramatically and when you cross the Brazos River you have entered the beautiful world of "Texas Hill Country". Spent a great deal of my young days in Glen Rose with my Great-grandparents. You are very fortunate to live in Fredericksburg. We have stayed at Lady Bird Johnson several times in our RV. We have had almost an inch of rain today and I thought that was a lot. Everything I have has either mildew, mold, or fungus. Doesn't dry out long enough to doctor it.
Not complaining about the rain. The country needs all we can get to fill the reservoirs and aquifers.
LouC
Be very careful silverfluter. We have some places like that in inner Houston, there is one underpass that comes to mind in particular off of I-45. Very dangerous.
I have seen a couple of threads in the Rose forum talking about banana peels I will look tonight and see if I can't find them for you and look through my diary; I may have copied it in there. Also, MaVie may have that answer for you. She seems to be very good at chiming in at the perfect time with just the information someone is looking for. :-)
LouC, I knew I had seen the Glen Rose sign somewhere and couldn't remember where. You're right about being lucky to live in Fredericksburg. No place is perfect, but this is about as close as I can imagine being.:) Don't know if DH checked the gage today yet, but I heard somebody here had 9 inches in 24 hours. One of these days the county is going to be sued because of that bridge that guy was swept off of. It is in the middle of a very big dip in the road and the bridge is very narrow. If you don't know the road and you're going too fast you can be in serious trouble real quick. Fortunately I have no low water crossings to get to work.
I am going however to Walmart to get more ES.:) I think with all this rain, now is the time to use it. It should just soak in if I get it broadcast.
I fond this one which has a lot of good advice for roses. It looks like the banana peel helps provide potassium. I have also read to put the banana in whole. And an egg. I have yet to try this though.
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/677064/
My DDH gets so angry w/me for throwing "trash" in the flower beds - banana peels, coffee grounds, egg shells. I just told him that if he hadn't seen me throw the stuff out there he wouldn't even know I had. Stopped him........
Ann
Thanks for the link Shortstuff. I have to get to work, so I'll read it later. DH doesn't like the smell of coffee grounds in the car (I had some in there from Starbucks once for awhile), but he sure likes the results when they start working in the flower beds.
My 3.5yo daughter asks why I put our fruit scraps and peelings outside.
I tell her that I am feeding the plants. She used to look for the fruit/vegetables outside to see if they were "eaten" by the plants.
LOL Collincounty. Kids are so funny sometimes.
BTW I put 1/2 cup ES on all my roses today, about 2 tablespoons on daylilies and irises and crinums, 1 Tbls in the potted stuff and a light dusting on everything else. I watered it in just in case we don't have another downpoor tonight. Can't wait to see what happens. My coreopsis and oregano are in really sad shape. They were looking great a few days ago. They don't seem too happy with the rain.:(
Good Afternoon, Texas!! Two kind DGers pointed me in ya'lls direction for some guidance on epsom salt. Most definately going to watch here for more helpful hints. Does anyone know what plants benefit most from it...or maybe a better question would be any plants that I should avoid putting this on? Also I've heard of it being used as a foliar spray - any of you have luck with that or do you generally use it on the soil? Thanks for any and ALL help!!
Hi chantell, if you go back you`l see we barely just covered all that in this thread otherwise anyone who knows more than I can say it again. You got your hands off that baby and decided to garden again Ha? lol
My bad...need to read a tad more carefully...truth be known I was trying to put her down for a nap while I was reading it...LOL
The link to the Epsom salts council is here; Post #3365299 at the beginning of this tread.
Josephine.
Sorry wrong link
http://www.epsomsaltcouncil.org/garden_usage_tips.htm
This message was edited May 26, 2007 4:58 PM