Bioavailable potassium silicate

Master Jedi

Member
I'm new to this so forgive if it's been asked, but how long does it take for potassium silicate to become bioavailable, and is there a way to speed up the process. At the moment I'm using Armour si and realized that it has to break down before being useful.
 

Richard Drysift

Well-Known Member
Hard to say because it depends upon how active the soil mix is w/microbes. For a very healthy soil rich in active compost it takes about 30 days for most organic compounds to begin decomposition. That doesn’t mean it is fully available. Some things like soft rock phosphate can take years to fully break down.
Btw GH Armor SI is not organic; it is a soluble liquid nutrient. There are better sources of silica if maintaining a living soil is the goal here. If you are using Armor SI as a liquid nutrient in a soilless medium then it is soluble and should be immediately available for absorption.
If you were using something like an organic potassium silicate powder then you would have to wait awhile for it to break down. In that case to answer your Q it can be sped up by hydrating the powder. Having a highly active soil teeming with microbes would also speed up decomposition. A better choice imo for adding silica to organic soil is to use diatomaceous earth as a top dressing which will also control gnat larvae among other bugs.
 

rkymtnman

Well-Known Member
Hard to say because it depends upon how active the soil mix is w/microbes. For a very healthy soil rich in active compost it takes about 30 days for most organic compounds to begin decomposition. That doesn’t mean it is fully available. Some things like soft rock phosphate can take years to fully break down.
Btw GH Armor SI is not organic; it is a soluble liquid nutrient. There are better sources of silica if maintaining a living soil is the goal here. If you are using Armor SI as a liquid nutrient in a soilless medium then it is soluble and should be immediately available for absorption.
If you were using something like an organic potassium silicate powder then you would have to wait awhile for it to break down. In that case to answer your Q it can be sped up by hydrating the powder. Having a highly active soil teeming with microbes would also speed up decomposition.
what do you know about mono silicic acid? in hydro and or soil? it's expensive as hell and never tried it
 

Master Jedi

Member
I just bought stout msa.
I wanted to get grow genius but I didn't have any spare arms and legs. I've used Armour si for a while but not getting the results I wanted. And to answer the question I've done a lot of research on silicic acid. Just can't afford the good stuff and don't want to waste the Armour si.
 

rkymtnman

Well-Known Member
Very little… I am intimately familiar with another form of acid but it has nothing to do with plants
i just read this cool article in Westword about an associate/mentor of Owsley. Next time I'm up there I'm gonna drive past the house. lol

 

Budzbuddha

Well-Known Member
Welcome New Member ….

Your avatar reminded me of another member missing in action - Padawan.

Wonder what happened to that guy bongsmilie
 
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