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Questions about watering garden,,, with high alkalinity water. aka,, Rain water.

1K views 19 replies 6 participants last post by  jim_bee 
#1 ·
I have a neighbor who has a fantastic dark green garden,,, every year!
His tomato plants are 4' x 8',,, now!?

I had to ask him how much fertilizer he puts on it every year.
He said that he spent over $100, by buying an expensive PH tester kit, & a gallon of 'General Hydroponics pH Down Liquid Premium Buffering' liquid. It's an
'
Acid formulation that uses food grade phosphoric acid. &
Add, when your nutrient pH is too high in order to lower the pH to the proper level'.

lol,,, These chemicals changed dark blue rain water, to a lime green,,,,,, supposedly to a perfect PH irrigate!

Now I have a lot to learn.
Is His 'SYSTEM' RIGHT!?
Is this 'perfect PH water' totally safe to use, without a garden soil PH test?
Would these (CHEAP) test strips tell me the same thing?
Universal pH Test Paper Strips pH Test Strips Roll, pH Measure Full Range 0-14, 16.4 ft/Roll (2 Rolls): Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

THANKS,,, for any input! ;>)
 
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#2 · (Edited)
Coffee grounds work, too. Or ground coffee, depending on how much you want to spend.
No, you would need to check your own pH.
It depends on your soil and the plants you want to grow, as well as your water.

It's Nitrogen that produces greener leaves.
Phosphorus promotes fruit and good roots.
Potash or Potassium promotes flower color and size.

You should do your own reading on what is needed in your soil, imo. It isn't just a buffering liquid that is causing beautiful plants.

 
#3 ·
If you have sufficient rain in your area, God knew what to do longer than man did. Using well water or municipal water can cause problems. Check with your local County Extension Service and take soil samples to them for analysis. They can recommend amendments to the soil for the condition of the soil as well as the plants you plan on using.
 
#4 ·
"Well water".

Our well water tests out exactly the same as rain water. (same color)
We have deep wells, & water is pulled up off a limestone aquifer.
When tested by 'Culligan' ,,, the reading was VERY SOFT. No treatment needed. (lol,, they said that I should bottle it & sell!)
Now,,,, I have no idea how that 'soft' reading reacts to a garden,,, or how to deal with it if need be.
My neighbor says, that's why it needs his treatment!?
Sound right?



NIK333; "Coffee grounds work, too. Or ground coffee, depending on how much you want to spend".

????????? I'll have to try some of that,, take a test,, see what happens. Say a cup full in 5 gal water?
I have a gallon of coffee grounds out there,,,, I use it to feed my worms.
Anything left over goes into my compost bins.

THANKS
 
#5 ·
I even eviscerate the coffee grounds from my Kpods for wife to use in her azaleas and blueberries.

Soft well water won't carry the nutrients that rain water has. It may test the same, but they are testing for bad stuff like e coli and other boogers.
 
#7 ·
Nik,,,
Neighbor & I have just completed an indepth survey,,,,,,, rain water, well water & soil testing.
5 gal rain water & 1/4 cup of used coffee, = 7ph in the test vile. (yellow green color)
5 gal well water & 3/4 cup of used coffee, = SAME,, 7ph in the test vile. extra coffee made no difference.?
All of my raised beds have composted manure on the bottom 1/3, & the rest is 2/3 potting soil. (Ace)
No matter what percentage we tried,,,,, +- a hair around 7 for everything tested..
(I'm beginning to think that his soil tester probe is junk! ;>)

I have 6 raised bed gardens way out back. (used truck tires) 3 have pumpkins in them, the other 3 have watermelons.
I'm gonna water 1/2 of them with the coffee mixture,,, we'll just have to wait & see what happens!

THANKS GUYS

Plant Plant community Terrestrial plant Grass Groundcover


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Everything else is doing just fine.

Plant Plant community Tree Shrub Groundcover


BTW,,, Rabbits love watermelon leaves,,, but won't touch pumpkin! :<(
 
#15 · (Edited)
Nik,,,
Neighbor & I have just completed an indepth survey,,,,,,, rain water, well water & soil testing.
5 gal rain water & 1/4 cup of used coffee, = 7ph in the test vile. (yellow green color)
5 gal well water & 3/4 cup of used coffee, = SAME,, 7ph in the test vile. extra coffee made no difference.?
Sorry, I didn't see this. If you want to call someone just try @jim_bee for example, and they will get a message.

The acidity depends on the type of coffee, if it has been brewed ( washed out) and the rainwater pH. The large container of coffee I used that the tomatoes loved, was fresh because I was using it for the smell. It was just an added benefit that the plants loved it.

"Both roasting duration and temperature have been correlated with acidity. One study showed that the longer and hotter coffee beans were roasted, the lower their chlorogenic acid levels ( 4 ). This suggests that lighter roasts tend to be higher in acidity, while darker roasts are lower." Nov 6, 2019
Is Coffee Acidic? - Healthline

I thought tires contain toxins, but, will have to check. . . .

According to the EPA, benzene, mercury, styrene-butadiene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and arsenic, among several other chemicals, heavy metals and carcinogens, have been found in tires. Studies have found that crumb rubber can emit gases that can be inhaled.Dec 3, 2014
Is Rubber Mulch a Safe Surface for Your Child's Playground?

I realize my links aren't gardening links, but, that shouldn't matter.
 
#8 ·
Rabbits hate marigold, too, so if you were to plant low growing marigolds you won't have much of problem.

From what I see in your garden, you are jousting at windmills worrying about the water. That is a superb looking garden.
 
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#9 ·
Y Thank You!
I was trimming male branches & suckers off of my tomatoes, till the skeeters chased me in last eve.
Nothing 'red' in sight, yet. :<(

Ya,,, It's my first try with the tire raised beds,,, & since my neighbor is kicking my butt,, I gotta turn things around,,,
somehow. ;>)
 
#10 ·
@Doboy where are you?

And what are you worried about? I concur with @chandler48 noisily in saying your garden looks great. I half expect to round the corner and find Adam and Eve.

That said, I appreciate your concerns to keep it that way.

Rain water is normally at least ph neutral or 7, though it can be quite acid, especially in the northeastern U.S. or any other place with lots of coal burning plants, in which case you might get "acid rain" which was a big deal a while back, and still matters.

I'm in California now, but I'm originally from Cleveland, and the drinking water in Ohio was relatively acid or at least neutral, though sometimes it was piped through concrete with make it more alkaline. Here in California it's alkaline, to the point where the kitty water dishes get "scale" or alkaline deposits on them that have to be cleaned off with acid.
 
#11 ·
@Doboy where are you?

And what are you worried about? I concur with @chandler48 noisily in saying your garden looks great. I half expect to round the corner and find Adam and Eve.

That said, I appreciate your concerns to keep it that way.

Rain water is normally at least ph neutral or 7, though it can be quite acid, especially in the northeastern U.S. or any other place with lots of coal burning plants, in which case you might get "acid rain" which was a big deal a while back, and still matters.
I'm in California now, but I'm originally from Cleveland, and the drinking water in Ohio was relatively acid or at least neutral, though sometimes it was piped through concrete with make it more alkaline. Here in California it's alkaline, to the point where the kitty water dishes get "scale" or alkaline deposits on them that have to be cleaned off with acid.

Hi Dave! Yep, I'm still around,, just very very busy! (Just finished painting my 2 story barn, & now I'm building trusses, to put a pitch roof on top of my Erie camper. Damn airconditioner sunk in & won't drain!,,,, plus Trying to get a day of ERIE EYES IN,,, & i'm out just about every night, walking in the woods,,,, I'm starting to pick some shrooms. AND I still have about 50 nut tree starters to plant!
How's that for a list!? ;>)
Now, I'm waiting for the NEXT Rain storm to pass,, then I'll go out & take some updated pics of the watermelon & pumpkin patch for you guys to review!. I never planted watermelons before,,,, & I have about a dozen fingerlings growing fast, so I'm REALLY EXCITED!
I bought some test strips & PH down,,,, I'll get back to you on that one too.
Later,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
 
#12 ·
I'm a little late to the discussion, but I'll toss out that brewed coffee has a typical pH of 6.5-6.8, so you'd have to use a lot of coffee to acidify neutral water. And then soil, in most cases, has a lot of buffering potential to maintain pH in equilibrium.

Used coffee grounds are less acidic, but they do add a bit of nitrogen, support the growth of beneficial soil organisms and improve the soil tilth. Mine mostly go in the compost pile, but I've used them around plants as well.

I've got to give a shout out to @chandler48 for using the k-pods. That's the only way we're allowed to brew coffee at work and I hate the waste of those things going in the trash.
 
#19 ·
I've got to give a shout out to @chandler48 for using the k-pods. That's the only way we're allowed to brew coffee at work and I hate the waste of those things going in the trash.
That's why I use one of these:

Tool Cylinder Camera accessory Bicycle part Rim


My county does not accept pods, even those that are marked as compostable. Apparently their composting program is a managed process and the pods don't break down fast enough.
 
#13 ·
Coffee grounds and that funky filter paper can only benefit your soil.

I've had some people say that they'll scare off insect pests like scale, though I'm a bit skeptical.

Still, soil needs to be fed too, as it were, with constant additions of organic material. Keep doing that, and you'll keep the yields up and fertilizer bills down.
 
#17 · (Edited)
Here's the update on the 'pumpkin & watermelon patch'. As you can see, the pumpkin plants are still very yellow in color,,,
I don't know what to throw on to change that,, at this point,,, or if it really matters.?
The lack of color just makes me think that they are just not all that healthy,,,,,, & may 'pass' all too soon. :<(

FYI,,,, I can't remember if I mentioned this before, but I just learned that NO WAY do you want to disturb a baby watermelon,,,,, but you can do just about anything to a tough pumpkin plant.
I altered the direction of the watermelon shoots, & 3 of the 1" melons dropped off! Bummer.

Plant Terrestrial plant Twig Groundcover Flowering plant


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HELLO NIK,,,, I recently went through a huge discussion about 'TIRES' on the OGF hunting & fishing website.

One of the major lakes in our area had thousands of tires cabled together. The 'marina' used them for (floating) breakwalls. When I seen how well they worked, & how many fish & marine life they attracted, I wanted to drill holes in a couple of hundred, tie them together & drop them down for structure. WOW,,, was I shot down!
Evidently, The 'tested' PPMs, dictated that tires can NOT be used in or near a fresh water source!?
I say,,,, With the billions of tires that are ground up every year on our highways,, & all of that residue washing into our rivers, lakes & aquifers,,,, ALL marine life should be dead!?? :sneaky:(n)
 
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