The Queen

[bombbudpuffa]

My Speed Queen, 8 days of veg. I've got her in a 3 gallon grow bag. The mix is 50% Sunshine Mix #1, 25% MG Organic soil and 25% worm castings. I crushed 3 500 mg calcium pills(derived from oyster shell) and added that to keep ph balanced. So far everything seems great. She has very large leaves and a beautiful color from top to bottom.

 

[SmokinMom]

Looking good BBP, looking real good.

 

[Bubby]

How did you figure out how much calcium to put in? Did you just estimate without knowing the soils original PH? :confused2:

Oh, and you need to tinker with your camera, the pictures are dated 2004.

Looking real healthy :cool2:

 

[bombbudpuffa]

How did you figure out how much calcium to put in? Did you just estimate without knowing the soils original PH? :confused2:

Oh, and you need to tinker with your camera, the pictures are dated 2004.

Looking real healthy :cool2:

Lol...I didn't know how much to add. Thats why i'd never recommend this. So far, so good though. Yeah, I might tinker with my cam and turn that off...kind of annoying anyway.

 

[kb3159]

Those are some fat leaves for a little plant! Looks good

 

[Mr.Wakenbake]

lol calcium doesn't do anything for the PH well not 3 little pills worth anyways. The reason why oyster shell's work (crushed or pulverized) is the fact that they have lime in them. The key ingredient to a balanced and stable PH.

Those calcium pills don't have lime in them.

IF your plants are healthy the pH is fine. However you still want to keep it in the 6.3-6.8 range. Get yourself a pH meter if you are that worried about it.

There is a process to adding lime to a grow or adjusting the pH and adding a few crushed calcium pills ain't the way..BUT definitely isn't going to hurt anything as calcium is readily used by the plants throughout their lifecycle.

Anyways they are healthy.. just keep doing what ya doin. nice plants man

I love the SQ an A+ smoke, easy to grow, easy to clone just a great strain. Not to mention the flowering time is 56-60 days which is uber fast.

You are going to thoroughly enjoy the smoke you get off these plants(if u get fems of course)

 

[bombbudpuffa]

The calcium pills raises the ph of my feeding water. I also saw oyster shell flour for replacing lime-http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=001&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=110071703443&rd=1&rd=1. The reason I only put 3 pills in is because 50% of my mix has lime already(Sunshine Potting Mix #1). I'm not worried about ph just still trying to find what works for me the best. One thing that we should always remember is there are various ways to grow plants. I do the things I do just to see what happens really, not because I think i'm a know it all, just the opposite. The calcium is derived from oyster shells, which can be used as a lime supplement, so I figured i'd try it. Thanks for the input MWB and I hope I like the smoke.

 

[bombbudpuffa]

Most people will use oyster shells to add Calcium either to correct a
chlorosis problem or thinking that the oyster shells will help improve
drainage or to improve soil pH. For usage on potted plants it depends
entirely on what plant and where is it grown such as indoors or outdoors
and the relative size of the shell, either large and coarse or ground almost
into a powder. There are plants that respond well to oyster shells such
as Azaleas but it seems best to use the oyster shells for Azaleas in the
ground. I believe right off hand that Blueberry growers use oyster shells
as well. On the other side of the spectrum are plants that do not like the
oyster shells at all such as Quercus palustris that tends to have a strong
aversion to Calcium. Oyster shells can contain as much as 36% Calcium
which is quite high a percentage. Some plants do well and some will be
killed off due to the plants sensitivity to mega doses of Calcium. I would
prefer to use oyster shells on select "acid loving" plants grown outdoors
rather than on alkaline tolerating plants. I would not use oyster shells
on ornamental plants at any time as the microbial breakdown of the
shells will take too long and the release of so much Calcium cannot be
adequately countered by the indoor growing plant. What happens when
we give a plant too much Nitrogen? We kill off root systems. Well,
the concentration of Nitrogen is generally much less than the amount
of Calcium from the oyster shells and perhaps other shells as well
applied to the roots. The root systems in many cases will not be able
to handle so much Calcium, either all at once or even at timely intervals.

Found on another site.

 

[bombbudpuffa]

High Calcium Hydrated Lime

High calcium hydrated lime Ca(OH)2 is a dry powder produced by reacting quicklime with a sufficient amount of water to satisfy the quicklime's natural affinity for moisture. The process converts CaO to Ca(OH)2. The amount of water required depends on both the subtle characteristics of the quicklime and the type of hydrating equipment available. Hydrated lime easily forms as a suspension or slurry and is often pumped to various process locations within industrial plants. The resulting solution is strongly alkaline, having a pH of 12.4. Most hydrated limes contain approximately 75 percent CaO and 25 percent H2O.

Hydrated lime is used in a variety of industrial applications including water treatment, as an anti-stripping agent in asphalt, and in soil stabilization. Some hydrated limes are sold into the food grade market as well. The product is commonly sold in 50 lb. bags or as a bulk material shipped in pneumatic truck trailers or rail car tanks.

So all lime does is provide calcium to buffer ph.

 

[bombbudpuffa]

Is a he:cry:!!!

 

[SmokinMom]

Oh no BBB. I agree with samuel. LOL.

 

[bombbudpuffa]

I hacked him to pieces:evil:.