kratos015
Well-Known Member
Same here friend. You been growing tomatoes for long? I only just started growing produce, so I'd very much like to have someone's brain to pick concerning that. In an outside setting of course, don't want to hijack OPs thread.
As you and others have pointed out, red/purple petioles are sometimes genetic, and by themselves aren't sufficient enough to claim P deficiencies/lockout. If one's leaves have the bluish/purplish hues to them, then you can know for certain there's a problem with P. It is crucial at this point to ensure the lack of P is not from a lockout, as people tend to feed with more P instead of finding out why there is a lockout in the first place.
I never experienced End Rot, but the bulk of my struggles have been with fruits not setting. When I apply Langbeinite, fruits set and produce just fine, problem solved. Apparently, a combination of the intense irrigation required to grow in Arizona, as well as the dry-arid climate of my region, native dirt high in Clay/Sand, and excess Ca in my water, tends to result in both K and Mg being leeched from my soil into literal thin air.
I've been experimenting quite a bit with Langbeinite as a result of what I described above, and observing how it reacts with the large amounts of CaCO3 in my water.
Calcium, Magnesium, and Potassium make up a "trinity" so to speak, as some of you have seen me reference before, right? So my theory was, if the three are intertwined with one another, and I have loads of Calcium in my water (and soil, by proxy) then the excess Ca will work in tandem with the high levels of Mg and K found in Langbeinite. My thinking is that the Ca:Mg:K ratios should be 1:1:1, but if we look at the majority of soil recipes, we see this 1:1:1 ratio is not being adhered to. Furthermore, we see a discrepancy with what people believe the "proper" Ca:Mg ratios should be (while they ignore K). Some say Ca:Mg ratios should be 5:1, others will tell you 20:1, and lastly others will tell you that Ca:Mg ratios are bullshit (I fall into this category).
I apply Langbeinite every 2-4 weeks, depending on the size of the plant. I always apply it when I see the light green leaves synonymous with Mg deficiencies (that are often confused with N deficiency). Problem gets corrected immediately. Top dressing with Langbeinite has allowed me to forgo my Epsom Salt foliar entirely!
This is going to be a book; however, this book is the result of research I've been doing on CaCO3, Langbeinite, and Ca/Mg/K levels. Also please note, this is for MY environment, and MY soil, and MY genetics. Anyone reading this? Your variables will be different from mine. Please take that into account, and react accordingly!
As I said above, my hypothesis was that the high levels of Mg and K found in Langbeinite would work in tandem with the high levels of Ca/CaCO3 found in my water, creating a 1:1:1 ratio of Ca, Mg, and K. The experiment has been quite successful. No more fruit set failures, no more Mg deficiencies, no more issues.
Furthermore, we often see that elemental sulfur dissolves CaCO3, once the Sulfur (S) is oxidized and converted to sulfates (SO4). The advice is to use elemental sulfur, and wait for it to decompose into sulfate (SO4). But Langbeinite and even epsom salts are made with SO4 specifically.
So, why are we waiting months for Elemental Sulfur to turn into SO4 when its already found in Langbeinite and even Epsom Salts?
Epsom Salts = MgSO4
Langbeinite = K2Mg2(SO4)3
As you can see, both of the above have Sulfate (SO4) in it, so why are we told to wait for Elemental Sulfur to oxidize into SO4 when SO4 is readily available in both of the above?
Check out "this article" here. Here are some quotes and excerpts.
"The oxidation of S° to SO4 in soil is a biological process and is carried out by several kinds of micro-organisms."
As I've said and emphasized on many instances, my water is a buffer, and my water has a pH of 8.0-8.5 pH.
Problem I have is, I have fucktons of mushrooms growing in my raised beds. Mushrooms do best in 5.5-6.5 pH, so how is it that I have mushrooms growing if my water is making my water's pH alkaline?
Shrooms grow in 5.5-6.5 pH, yet I see them despite my water now. How is this possible?
The langbeinite; more specifically, the SO4 content of the Langbeinite is reacting with the CaCO3, and dissolving the CaCO3 into its separate molecules. CaCO3 is a salt, right? As we all know, salts can be dissolved in the right circumstances.
As I said above, my hypothesis was that the high levels of Mg and K found in Langbeinite would work in tandem with the high levels of Ca/CaCO3 found in my water. The experiment has been quite successful. No more fruit set failures, no more Mg deficiencies, no more issues.
But as we can clearly see above, sulfur is available in oxidized form (SO4) in both Langbeinite and Epsom salts!
As for why Coots didn't emphasize Langbeinite? Simple! He's from Oregon! His native dirt is drastically different from my native dirt that consists of sand and clay. Native dirt located in Oregon is more likely to be heavy in compost and low in clay/sand (correct me if I'm wrong), where as in the desert where I'm at, my soil is high in clay/sand but low in compost.
His water source also isn't from a well like mine is (as far as I know, I could be wrong), so of course I need to omit Ca inputs from my soil! Coots water doesn't have the Ca content that mine does, so I need to account for it! I have high levels of both Ca and CaCO3 specifically in my water, if it is in my water, it will be in my soil!
What have I found from my "experiment"? Well, as pointed out earlier, my pH is now acidic enough to facilitate mushroom growth. This mushroom growth only happened after I applied Langbeinite as a top dress. So, the only thing that explains this for me is that the SO4 in the Langbeinite dissolved some of the CaCO3 in my water and/or soil. As a result of this, the pH of my soil lowered from the standard 7.0 pH to 6.0-6.5 pH.
A pH below 7.0 should not be possible with the amount of CaCO3 I have in my water, yet the Langbeinite (More specifically, the SO4 content in it) is dissolving enough of the CaCO3 in my water to result in my soil having a 6.0-.7.0 pH!
Astonishing!
Now? I don't have as many fruits failing to set! Pretty much all of my flowers turn into fruits now. In fact, when flowers start falling off, that is the same as seeing light green leaves on my cannabis plants! Light green leaves on weed plants, just like the inability for flowers to "set", is directly related to Mg and K.
Thing about my soil? Plenty of Mg and K. My environment, and watering habits (due to Arizona weather) is literally sucking and leeching Mg and K from my soil! I need to account for that.
Again, and I heavily emphasize, I'm not posting this because it will help everyone. But I know for a fact it will help someone.
