plant fert. pref.

[Mr Burns]

i'm trying to decided on which fertilizer to go with, and i've narrowed it down to three: kent freshwater plant supplement, seachem flourish, or tropica master grow. do you have any experience/preference with any of these? prices, quantity, and listed benefits all seem the same, so i'd like to get some non-marketing reviews of these products. is there any benefit to PMDD? btw, the tank will be ~85gal, 3.75wpg, co2 injected, eco-complete substrate. TIA!

 

[medge00]

i know very little about kent, but i've heard that flourish and tropica are about the same (per rex, i believe). how do you plan on tackling nitrate phosphate iron and potassium? you've got a good size tank there with high light, pmdd may be cheaper in the long run, i read a lot of planted tank forums, many people seem to like it. i've been happy with flourish, flourish iron and nu-salt. flourish can be pricey, there's no denying that

 

[Guest]

Either Flourish or TMG for traces. And bulk chems for macros. And I use Plantex CSM for additional traces. If you need iron the Seachem iron product is very hard to beat.

The advantage to bulk chems is they are MUCH cheaper than commercial products.

 

[betowess]

Hey Burnsie,

IMO, Greg Watson's PMDD store is a great resource for dosing your main macros such as potassium sulphate, potassium nitrate and mono potassium phosphate, as well as trace elements found in Plantex CSM for such a big tank.
http://www.gregwatson.com/products.asp

Its quite simple once you figure it out with Chuck's nutrient calculator which is also on Rex's FAQ.

Also, you can get the Boric Acid Powder (its the Boron which Rex adds to Plantex CSM) and Epsom salts (for your tank's GH) at any decent drugstore... you can add both the Epsom salts and the potassium sulphate dry to change water for easiest dosing... If you need to add Nitrates, you can dry dose that too to a gallon or so of tank water and pour it back in... The only wet dose I use is the CSM every other day and if I ever (rarely) dose for extra phosphate (KPO4).

I am dosing everything from these resources even though I have such a small 26 gallon tank for practice... to get it down before I move up to a 75 gallon or larger tank. It really is a ton cheaper and allows precise control. Oh, and occasionally I'll add a lttle Seachem Iron and Flourish, just in case things seem lacking. But those two seem to herald an Algae boost. If you have questions don't hesitate to private message.

 

[Guest]

Betowess, Thanks for that link, dude! If it's been posted before, I missed it. Finally, one place to get all the hard to find (locally anyway) individual ferts!

 

[betowess]

Yeah, Greg Watson does us all a big favor, who want to dose this way, and it works well. I couldn't begin to find this stuff locally and Rex turned me on to this site. Greg started it for that reason, because it is so hard to find. He is not in it for the money. Glad you checked it out CC. And thanks for all your help this last year!

 

[Mr Burns]

i may skip on the flourish and just stick with the plantex and macros, according to betowess's regiment. i like the ability to be adjust the nutrients according to the tank's needs... the fact that it's stupid cheap helps too.

 

[malkore]

in a high light tank, normal flourish seems to be a decent 'trace' for my needs...but going with bulk, dry ferts is the way to go. off-ice@plantgeek.net also sells dry ferts at low prices (read as: buy a bunch at once cuz the USPS shipping cost is more than 2 lb's of KNO3)

 

[betowess]

Burnsie, In all honesty, its totally Rex's regimen. I'm a newbie/PMDD convert. But I'll second the "stupid cheap"!

Oh yeah, here is a ratio for adding Boric Acid powder... (from Rex) Boron is supplied in the form of Boric Acid. And you mix it on a 10.5 parts Plantex to 1 part Boric Acid. Or 2 Tablespoons of Plantex to 1/2 teaspoon plus shade over 1/16 teaspoon Boric Acid.

 

[Mr Burns]

they already have plantex csm+b...do i need to add more boron than is already in that mix?

 

[betowess]

Its not that big of deal, but Rex adds boron (boric acid powder) to the Plantex. The Plantex CSM doesn't have any boron in it. But Boron is a trace ele. that the plants need/use. Rex being the expert he really is, adds it. So just get some Boric Acid Powder for a couple of bucks for 4 Oz. from Wally World (I hate to trade there) or any pharmacy and add it per the dosing suggested in last post to the Plantex CSM... you'll mix it with the Plantex to 500ml water if memory serves me. You'll have enough Boron to last till 2050, assuming we are all still around which may be doubtful. Well, lets not go there... Anyhow, 8)

I think people use boric acid to clean their contact lenses or something. Pharmacies carry it so it must be used by others than aquaria plant nerds. PM if you've any questions. HTH

 

[Guest]

Nope. The Plantex CSM +Boron contains all the Boron you need.

 

[betowess]

I don't see any Boron in the Plantex I got from Greg and I believe you told me to add the Boron...

This is from your FAQ: "and Plantex CSM+boron (Plantex is a great trace mineral mix, and we add the boron to it)".

Could you explain as I got the dosing info etc. straight from you. Thanks, Bob

 

[Mr Burns]

the CSM+b is probably a new product greg is offering. it says on his site that CSM without boron is also available.