Lime In Water

buzzy

how do i get the lime out of water i have a few plants that dont like it. if i put a bucket out in the rain is there anything i have to put over it to stop it going stagnet??

Thanks Buzzy.

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TreeBay

You put the lime in the coconut and drink it all up

I hope we will hear from Soildoc on this subject, but here are some comments to get started.

Commercial water softeners won't be too helpful because they tend to make the water too salty for bonsai use. Reverse osmosis is effective, but can be expensive to purchase and operate.

http://www.cahe.nmsu.edu/ces/yard/1999/051799.html

There are a couple things to look at - pH, which is a measure of acidity/alkalinity and water hardness. Most plants like the pH just a little bit acid because that frees up a lot of the nutrients and minerals that can get chemically bound up at higher pH.

Hard water tends to be alkaline. There are some different options for acidifying the water and thereby, the soil:

1) Use an acidic fertilizer like Miracid when you water. A dilute concentration can be very effective at maintaining proper soil pH and also providing necessary nitrogen.

2) Organic fertilizer will tend to acidify the soil as the microorganisms break down the compost. This is a slower acting process, but it can be effective over the long term.

3) You can (carefully) add some industrial strength vinegar (available at janitorial supplies) or muriatic acid (swimming pool acidifier) to your water to acidify it. In the process of doing that, I think it might help to soften the water by precipitating out some of the calcium.

How to know how much vinegar or acid to add? You need a pH test kit. Just like the kind they sell for pools. They should be pretty cheap if it is pH alone, maybe $5 or so. Fill a plastic garbage can about 1/4 full with water and make a pH measurement. Add a tablespoon or two of vinegar or acid to the water (not the other way around) and make another measurement. When the pH just gets into the acidic range - maybe 6.9 or 6.8 you can stop with the acid, and you can expect to add about 4x as much to a fresh can to get in the zone.

Wear old clothes, rubber gloves and eye protection when you use swimming pool acid. Keep a hose running nearby in case of emergencies to flush skin or eyes. And store hazardous materials like these away from children and pets.

Regards,

Matt

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