Calcium For Newbies

hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
"Calcium is not mobile within the plant. So the plant relies on the process of transpiration in which the plant roots take up the soil solution (which contains the needed calcium), transports it to new growth where the calcium is used and the excess water vapor escapes out through holes in the leaves called stomata. Anything that slows transpiration, such as high humidity or cold temperatures, can induce calcium deficiency even if the calcium levels are normal in the growing medium."

"Most calcium-containing fertilizers are formulated with calcium nitrate. Keep in mind that calcium nitrate is potentially basic, meaning it will cause the pH of the growing medium to rise unless acid is injected or potentially acidic fertilizers are used in rotation."

Read the full story. Outside of coco and cheap LED issues calcium is a leading issue. Short plants or weak roots. Brittle hollow stems. Etc.

https://www.pthorticulture.com/en/training-center/role-of-calcium-in-plant-culture/
 
Dr.J20

Dr.J20

Well-Known Member
WinterSoldier89 said:
I always load the plant up with calcium when there in veg and stretch.
I use calcium nitrate, i read study s that say allot of calcium can prevent bug problems.
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I'm pretty interested in this--can you say more? I know there's a gypsum product that incorporates calcium nitrate, but its used by larger corporate agriculture outfits. do you use calcium nitrate in containers or what?
 
hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
Important here is tap water. The water I haul has 125 PPM of solids. 45 PPM is calcium carbonate. Obviously this water doesn't meet minimum calcium requirements for basic plant needs.

It's very important to get the report for the water you use. Most of them are online. Most are done regularly and reported by quarter.

Note this article addresses calcium toxicity in a few words telling you it's almost unseen.

I set up a grow for a MMJ patient in New Mexico. He was hooked up to the local water system. He was a physical wreck and hauling water was out of the question. I tested the tap water.

EC was 1.6! I let it run for 10 minutes. Same result. Could not be right. The meter got screwed in all the travel. I calibrate it. 1.6! pH was 8+. Basically 800 PPM out of the tap. I grew him a half pound and gave him a seller's name before I moved on.
 
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hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
Dr.J20 said:
I'm pretty interested in this--can you say more? I know there's a gypsum product that incorporates calcium nitrate, but its used by larger corporate agriculture outfits. do you use calcium nitrate in containers or what?
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Gypsum is calcium sulfate dihydrate. A calcium and sulphur source.
 
Billy25

Billy25

Member
hotrodharley said:
Important here is tap water. The water I haul has 125 PPM of solids. 45 PPM is calcium carbonate. Obviously this water doesn't meet minimum calcium requirements for basic plant needs.......... Basically 800 PPM out of the tap. I grew him a half pound and gave him a seller's name before I moved on.
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Not specifically calcium relate, but if you can forgive a "dumb" newbie question:
My tap water is 480 ppm or 970 ms/cm
When following manufacture instructions to mix nutrients, do I simply subtract out the ppm that I started with to get the desired concentration? Or is the math more complicated than that?

In other words, if the nute company says to mix up a batch of nute-water to 1000 ppm concentration, do I aim for 1480?
 
hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
Billy25 said:
Not specifically calcium relate, but if you can forgive a "dumb" newbie question:
My tap water is 480 ppm or 970 ms/cm
When following manufacture instructions to mix nutrients, do I simply subtract out the ppm that I started with to get the desired concentration? Or is the math more complicated than that?

In other words, if the nute company says to mix up a batch of nute-water to 1000 ppm concentration, do I aim for 1480?
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No you still aim for 1000.
 
Budzbuddha

Budzbuddha

Well-Known Member
@hotrodharley hit it on the head about calcium.... and why some LED grows NEED supplemental CALMAG during grow since ( example blurple ) plants do not transpire like with other light systems.
 
ILoveYouSweetLeaf

ILoveYouSweetLeaf

Well-Known Member
oh forget it. I looked it up, saltpeter is potassium nitrate. but calcium nitrate is also known as saltpeter.
from wiki

Potassium nitrate is one of several nitrogen-containing compounds collectively referred to as saltpeter or saltpetre.
and
Calciumnitrate, also called Norgessalpeter (Norwegian saltpeter)
 
hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
Dr.J20 said:
that's because it is.

ok hotrod, thought you wanted to talk about some of the cutting edge on calcium, but looks like you just want to point out different sources of calcium.

be easy,

:peace:
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If you have something please put it up. I'm just posting this because so many issues could be calcium related.
 
hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
"Tap water with an EC range of 0.3-0.4 is perfect, since this EC level is suitable to make the mix with fertilisers and ensure right amounts of Ca and Mg in the nutrient solution. It should be noted that, depending on the grown strain, it may be necessary to add extra calcium and magnesium during the flowering stage to prevent deficiencies from the 4th – 5th week, when plants are in full bloom."

People claiming cannabis cannot use calcium from tap water are wrong. Again get the water report.

https://www.alchimiaweb.com/blogen/deficiency-excess-calcium-in-cannabis-plants/
 
hotrodharley

hotrodharley

Well-Known Member
If tap PPM is 250 then start to consider just cutting it with distilled or RO. Just enough to get to 200 PPM or 0.4 EC. Basically the same thing.
 
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