Edit:
Rock Phosphate in Tea
- Thread starter Metatron
- Start date
When I used to use SFP I'd mix it in at 1 1/2 cups per cubic ft. of soil mix...That was over 1/2 cup the common application rate.
Hard or soft,rock phosphate takes a very long time to break down...the softer being quicker.
HTH CC1
I
Iron_Lion
so that would be 12 tbs per 7.5 gallons of soil, so thats 1.6 per gallon. Sounds good, thanks for the answer.
Great thread glad this came back up.
SRF is available in Australia but nowhere to be found where i am. Ditto fish bone meal but there are plenty fish farms and processers around here... they are raised with hormones etc but... safe to use?
Slightly off topic but is there an advantage to air bubbling a nutrient soak?
SRF is available in Australia but nowhere to be found where i am. Ditto fish bone meal but there are plenty fish farms and processers around here... they are raised with hormones etc but... safe to use?
Slightly off topic but is there an advantage to air bubbling a nutrient soak?
I aerate most all my teas now...why not. If I have no intention of making ACT,then I don't have to go the 24-36 hr brew time...because I'm not making ACT. Just aerating a nute tea for use a couple hours or so later. The additional oxygen can't hurt anything. So we may end up with a pre-mature ACT..so what. There should be plenty of available nutes and some added microbial life.?.?.?
Fluoride and radiation from polonium - the same stuff that made tobacco deadly.. you guys should know rock phosphate is garbage - well now you do!
Don't use this stuff, people!
http://www.organicconsumers.org/organic/phosphate.cfm
"The NPWA has a long-standing concern about the phosphate fertiliser industry. Fluorosilicic acid (H2SiF6), used to fluoridate drinking water, is derived from the pollution scrubbing operations at those facilities. We have built up a considerable understanding of phosphate rock (PR).
The raw rock (which during phosphate fertiliser production is extensively processed) is contaminated with heavy metals, radionuclides, other toxic metals and fluorides. It is recommended for use as an organic fertiliser in its raw state."
Don't use this stuff, people!
http://www.organicconsumers.org/organic/phosphate.cfm
"The NPWA has a long-standing concern about the phosphate fertiliser industry. Fluorosilicic acid (H2SiF6), used to fluoridate drinking water, is derived from the pollution scrubbing operations at those facilities. We have built up a considerable understanding of phosphate rock (PR).
The raw rock (which during phosphate fertiliser production is extensively processed) is contaminated with heavy metals, radionuclides, other toxic metals and fluorides. It is recommended for use as an organic fertiliser in its raw state."
organicterra
Member
Sorry Capt. I was reading through this thread on my iphone and hit the "no" button on accident.
Interesting thread.
N
Nondual
Some sources are not good especially what comes out of Florida from what I understand. I think that's where a lot of this information comes from. Basically though SRP is a waste byproduct of HRP mining.
Whaddya mean? Everybody knows there ain’t no heavy metal in soft rock. Sorry could not resist the joke to begin.
Certainly you have given food for thought and motivation for growers to check for themselves analysis of products. There is some confusion around the information you have provided, as there is quite a difference between hard rock phosphate and soft rock phosphate and processed phosphate fertilizer products. Soft rock phosphate has a colloidal (clay) base and exists between layers of hard rock. To the best of my knowledge this would mean that the substance would be negatively charged and release elements/nutrients very slowly. I always use very small amounts of soft rock phosphate in soil and tea (0.063% max). When I mix it into soil, it is usually a one time thing. e.g. it will last for years.
True that the mining industry is mostly gross and a good reason to seek out local and/or responsibly harvested sources. [better yet gather your own rock/clay powders] Anyway, depending on what area the soft rock phosphate comes from, the potential for toxins varies. Of course we do need some metals in our soils.
My use of soft rock phosphate in ACT is as a microbial feedstock as well as binding spot for fungal hyphae. I have observed microbial population increases (of certain trypes) when using this. However it is entirely possible that some other substance(s) may produce equivalent results.
Here is the kind of soft rock phosphate we use;
Pacific Calcium Inc. – mined in Washington State
http://www.naturesintent.com/ground-products-page
and here is the partial analysis for heavy metals
Washington analysis http://agr.wa.gov/PestFert/Fertilizers/FertDB/prodinfo.aspx?pname=1873
and here are the Washington State standards
http://agr.wa.gov/PestFert/Fertilizers/Metals.aspx#Laws
I had the full analysis but cannot seem to locate it. I will produce it if I find it. As I recall, it passed muster with me when I first bought the stuff.
N
Nondual
That's what I've been told it's best for in a tea application.
Nondual; This is not really a big deal because the hyphae can cling to anything. A much better addition for fungal hyphae is sphagnum peat moss as it often provides the spores and is a great binding surface. The soft rock phosphate has much greater importance as a feedstock for bacteria/archaea. (as evidenced by direct microscopy)
Montana
Member
Pshaw.......propaganda always starts blowing around when farmers realize they can fertilize their farmland for next to nothing with pulverized rocks and have it STAY fertile for years and years......all the while strengthening the fertility of the land, strengthening the immunity of the crops grown there, strengthening the wallets of the farmers because they are not buying chemical or organic fertilizers and pesticides...........try all you want to spread this garbage information around, people will eventually catch on..........
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Iron_Lion
Thought this was worth a post, I hope Im not poisoning myself using Espoma brand Rock Phosphate.
N
Nondual
The person that taught me about using SRP in teas never mentioned the bacteria feedstock thing so thx for the info. I'm not debating it's value for that with you. He's been growing 30+ years, does writing, has a scope and a bit surprised he never mentioned that. He only mentioned the fungal thing but hear what you're saying about the moss.
Nice to meet you microbeman, been reading a lot of your posts going through the pages of this section.
Hopefully your source of rp is safe... I use the glacial rock dust myself and guanos.
I guess no one is dying from smoking cannabis - the plant does have it's own anti-cancer properties.
Here's another paragraph from my link above.
"The tailings from phosphoric acid production (phosphate fertiliser), phosphorgypsum, are so radioactive that they are not allowed to be used for wall-board or road beds in the US and Canada - because it is considered a radiation hazard. However, organic growers are allowed to treat their fields with the raw, unprocessed product once every six years, with none of the contaminants processed out.
http://www.epa.gov/radiation/neshaps/subpartr/more.htm
http://www.efma.org/Publications/BAT 2000/Bat04/section04.asp
Taking a closer look at this 'natural' PR mix, we find for example polonium-210:
One particle of polonium-210 gives off 5,000 times more alpha radiation than the same amount of radium. Damage occurs in the body from complete tissue absorption of the energy of the alpha particle. Polonium-210 can be carcinogenic to people exposed to more than 0.03 microcuries (6.8 trillionths of a gram). Polonium-210 has a half-life of about 138 days.(There are also high levels of Radium and Polonium- 210 in granite dust, which is used by organic farmers is some parts of the world as a soil conditioner)."
Hopefully your source of rp is safe... I use the glacial rock dust myself and guanos.
I guess no one is dying from smoking cannabis - the plant does have it's own anti-cancer properties.
Here's another paragraph from my link above.
"The tailings from phosphoric acid production (phosphate fertiliser), phosphorgypsum, are so radioactive that they are not allowed to be used for wall-board or road beds in the US and Canada - because it is considered a radiation hazard. However, organic growers are allowed to treat their fields with the raw, unprocessed product once every six years, with none of the contaminants processed out.
http://www.epa.gov/radiation/neshaps/subpartr/more.htm
http://www.efma.org/Publications/BAT 2000/Bat04/section04.asp
Taking a closer look at this 'natural' PR mix, we find for example polonium-210:
One particle of polonium-210 gives off 5,000 times more alpha radiation than the same amount of radium. Damage occurs in the body from complete tissue absorption of the energy of the alpha particle. Polonium-210 can be carcinogenic to people exposed to more than 0.03 microcuries (6.8 trillionths of a gram). Polonium-210 has a half-life of about 138 days.(There are also high levels of Radium and Polonium- 210 in granite dust, which is used by organic farmers is some parts of the world as a soil conditioner)."
No surprise, Unless he is into research he probably does not have the grade of equipment I have and therefore may not tune into the subtle changes I am able to observe.
And good to meet you as well. I could not get either of those links to function but I wonder if it is talking about soft rock phosphate.
I have always counselled against using phosphorous fertilizers. I'm amazed that there is cannabis sold through dispensaries which has been loaded up on phosphorous during flower (organic or non) and is put up as healthy organic medicine. There is a very high liklihood that cancer caused by smoking cigarettes is primarily from phosphorous fertilizers.
tribalsoja
New member
Be careful with P if you use good fungi. It pisses them off.
