AtmozFear
Well-Known Member
Most nonmetallic minerals (nitrogen, potassium, calcium, sulfur, magnesium... calcium is a metal with a weird electrical charge) are absorbed best at higher ph, 7.0 and up (except for phosphorus, which I suspect is why bloom formulas are proposed to be closer to 5.5 ph) And virtually every saline source of metallic minerals, or micronutrients, are absorbed best at lower ph, 6.0 and lower ALONE... People don't take advantage of the man-made chelates that they are securely attached to, including (from ph-solubility lowest to highest) DTPA, EDTA, EDDHA... These man-made chelates form a stronger bond than organic humic acids and do not destruct as easily from UV rays that may be hitting the res from a MH bulb, for example. These man-made chelates allow all these metallic, micronutrients to be highly soluble in 7.0 ph and up... These micronutrients would otherwise only be soluble in much lower ph. Maybe then, this is a good strategy for the veg stage. All of this, of course, is my own theory and I would love to hear what you all think so we can have a discussion.
