Nutrients & Additives
Hydroponic Nutrients vs. Additives: Navigating Your Plant's Nutrition
Whether you're setting up a new hydroponic garden or tuning your current system, understanding the difference between hydroponic nutrients and additives is crucial for ensuring your plants thrive. Each type of "food" or supplement you provide can significantly impact your plants' health, growth rate, and yield. Here’s a straightforward guide to help you make informed decisions about which products will best meet your garden's needs.
Understanding Base Nutrients and Additives
1. Base Nutrients: The Foundation of Plant Nutrition
Base nutrients are the core of your plant's diet. They provide essential minerals and vitamins that are crucial throughout the life of your plants. Typically, these nutrients are divided into two main categories:
- Vegetative Formulas: These nutrients promote leaf and stem growth during the vegetative stage.
- Bloom Formulas: Used during the flowering stage, they support the development and maturation of fruits and flowers.
Base nutrients are vital whether you’re growing in soil, coco coir, or using hydroponic methods. They are specially formulated to support your plants from seedling to harvest, adapting to each phase of growth.
2. Additives: Enhancing Growth and Quality
Additives or supplements are used in conjunction with base nutrients to target specific growth factors or correct deficiencies. These can include:
- Flower Boosters: Enhance bloom size and quality.
- Mycorrhizae and Beneficial Bacteria: Improve root health and nutrient uptake.
- Enzymes and Vitamins: Aid in plant metabolism and stress reduction.
- Root Stimulants: Encourage robust root growth.
- Sweeteners and Sugars: Improve taste and aroma of the final product.
- Flushes and Leaches: Remove excess salts and chemicals before harvest.
Additives are not typically essential for basic plant survival but are used to maximize the health and output of your garden.
Matching Nutrients with Growing Media
The effectiveness of nutrients can depend greatly on the growing medium you use. Nutrients formulated for hydroponics are designed to be completely soluble, providing immediate nutrition to plants in water-based systems. In contrast, nutrients for soil-based media often release more slowly and may be part of a more complex soil ecosystem.
Organic vs. Synthetic Nutrients
- Organic Nutrients: Best suited for soil and coco-based media, organic nutrients are often more complex and can provide a slower, more natural nutrient release. However, they may clog systems if used in hydroponics due to larger particulate sizes.
- Synthetic Nutrients: Common in hydroponic systems, synthetic nutrients provide quick, controlled nutrient release and are clean enough not to disrupt water systems.
The Importance of pH Levels
Regardless of the nutrients or additives you choose, maintaining the correct pH level in your growing medium is crucial. Nutrient availability is heavily dependent on pH, which should ideally range from 5.5 to 6.5 in hydroponic systems and 6.2 to 7.2 in soil. Adjusting pH with solutions like pH Up and pH Down can help optimize nutrient uptake.
Balancing Your Plant's Diet
Choosing the right combination of hydroponic nutrients and additives can feel like fine-tuning a complex recipe. By understanding the roles and appropriate uses of base nutrients and additives, you can create a balanced diet that promotes vigorous growth and bountiful yields. Remember, the key to successful cultivation is not just feeding your plants but feeding them well.
For any grower looking to optimize their plant's health and productivity, a well-informed approach to nutrition can make all the difference. As you gain experience, you'll find that mastering the balance of nutrients and additives will become an invaluable skill in your gardening repertoire.
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Vendor:Plant Success / Great White
Great White 1oz
Great White is a premier mycorrhizal product. It contains carefully selected mycorrhizal fungi and bacteria well-suited to a variety of soils, climates and plants. The microbes in Great White enhance the availability or uptake of plant nutrients and water through the root system. In...- $13.95
- $13.95
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Vendor:Plant Success / Great White
Orca 1 Gal
Orca is a premier liquid mycorrhizal product. It contains carefully selected mycorrhizal fungi and bacteria well-suited to a variety of soils, climates and plants. The microbes in Orca enhance the availability or uptake of plant nutrients and water through the root system. In nature, fungi build...- $234.95
- $234.95
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Vendor:Primordial Solutions
Primordial Solutions Sea Green 2oz
Primordial Solutions Sea Green Sea Green Hydro is formulated especially for hydroponics. It foams less than the regular formula of Sea Green, yet still provides the same superb “compost-tea extract” that boosts plant nutrient uptake during all the stages of your plant’s life cycle. It...- $16.00
- $16.00
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Vendor:Primordial Solutions
Primordial Solutions Rootamentary 2oz
Primordial Solutions RootamentaryRootamentary can be used during all stages of plant development.It provides optimal nutrition for root growth, because without massive roots, you don’t get big crops. Used moderately during early flowering, Rootamentary will support flower and fruit development. The larger the roots, the...- $16.00
- $16.00
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Vendor:Optic Foliar
Optic Foliar TRANSPORT 500ml 17oz
Optic Foliar TRANSPORTNPK 0.008-0-0.003TRANSPORT provides superior spreading and wetting capabilities that allow you to spray in full sunlight with no damage or burning.Combine Optic Foliar TRANSPORT with any foliar solution to allow you to spray in full sunlight with no damage or burning, residuals...- $72.99
- $72.99
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Vendor:Optic Foliar
Optic Foliar TRANSPORT 250ml 8.5oz
Optic Foliar TRANSPORTNPK 0.008-0-0.003TRANSPORT provides superior spreading and wetting capabilities that allow you to spray in full sunlight with no damage or burning.Combine Optic Foliar TRANSPORT with any foliar solution to allow you to spray in full sunlight with no damage or burning, residuals...- $39.99
- $39.99
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Vendor:Optic Foliar
Optic Foliar TRANSPORT 10L 2.5gal
Optic Foliar TRANSPORTNPK 0.008-0-0.003TRANSPORT provides superior spreading and wetting capabilities that allow you to spray in full sunlight with no damage or burning.Combine Optic Foliar TRANSPORT with any foliar solution to allow you to spray in full sunlight with no damage or burning, residuals...- $749.99
- $749.99
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Vendor:Optic Foliar
Optic Foliar TRANSPORT 4L 1.05gal
Optic Foliar TRANSPORTNPK 0.008-0-0.003TRANSPORT provides superior spreading and wetting capabilities that allow you to spray in full sunlight with no damage or burning.Combine Optic Foliar TRANSPORT with any foliar solution to allow you to spray in full sunlight with no damage or burning, residuals...- $368.99
- $368.99
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Vendor:Optic Foliar
Optic Foliar TRANSPORT 1L 34oz
Optic Foliar TRANSPORTNPK 0.008-0-0.003TRANSPORT provides superior spreading and wetting capabilities that allow you to spray in full sunlight with no damage or burning.Combine Optic Foliar TRANSPORT with any foliar solution to allow you to spray in full sunlight with no damage or burning, residuals...- $116.99
- $116.99
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Vendor:Optic Foliar
Optic Foliar ATAK RTU 1L 34oz
Optic Foliar ATAK RTUNPK 0.06-0-0.15ATAK RTU (ready-to-use) is premixed with TRANSPORT for your convenience and ease of use. ATAK Ready to use will treat PM and boost the plants overall health. The dual action of ATAK immediately combats and eradicates PM on the leaves...- $15.95
- $15.95
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Vendor:Optic Foliar
Optic Foliar ATAK CONCENTRATE 250ml 8.5oz
Optic Foliar ATAK CONCENTRATENPK 0.06-0-0.15Maintain healthy plants throughout veg and into late flower with OPTIC FOLIAR ATAK, ATAK will ensure your plants receive all essential trace minerals to optimize plant health in all stages of growth including late bloom.- $18.99
- $18.99
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Vendor:Optic Foliar
Optic Foliar ATAK CONCENTRATE 10L 2.64gal
Optic Foliar ATAK CONCENTRATENPK 0.06-0-0.15Maintain healthy plants throughout veg and into late flower with OPTIC FOLIAR ATAK, ATAK will ensure your plants receive all essential trace minerals to optimize plant health in all stages of growth including late bloom.- $121.95
- $121.95
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Vendor:Optic Foliar
Optic Foliar ATAK CONCENTRATE 4L 1.05gal
Optic Foliar ATAK CONCENTRATENPK 0.06-0-0.15Maintain healthy plants throughout veg and into late flower with OPTIC FOLIAR ATAK, ATAK will ensure your plants receive all essential trace minerals to optimize plant health in all stages of growth including late bloom.- $94.99
- $94.99
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Vendor:Optic Foliar
Optic Foliar ATAK CONCENTRATE 1L 34oz
Optic Foliar ATAK CONCENTRATENPK 0.06-0-0.15Maintain healthy plants throughout veg and into late flower with OPTIC FOLIAR ATAK, ATAK will ensure your plants receive all essential trace minerals to optimize plant health in all stages of growth including late bloom.- $42.99
- $42.99
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Vendor:Nectar for the Gods
Olympus Up, 5 gal
Olympus Up is the Nectar for the Gods pH up product. Most gardeners know to adjust the pH of their nutrient solution before use. By using liquid calcium as a pH adjusting component, you will add more calcium to your plants' cell structure, promoting cell...- $156.99
- $156.99
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Vendor:Nectar for the Gods
Olympus Up, 2.5 gal
Olympus Up is the Nectar for the Gods pH up product. Most gardeners know to adjust the pH of their nutrient solution before use. By using liquid calcium as a pH adjusting component, you will add more calcium to your plants' cell structure, promoting cell...- $92.99
- $92.99
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Vendor:Nectar for the Gods
Olympus Up, 1 gal
Olympus Up is the Nectar for the Gods pH up product. Most gardeners know to adjust the pH of their nutrient solution before use. By using liquid calcium as a pH adjusting component, you will add more calcium to your plants' cell structure, promoting cell...- $46.49
- $46.49
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Vendor:Nectar for the Gods
Olympus Up, 1 qt
Olympus Up is the Nectar for the Gods pH up product. Most gardeners know to adjust the pH of their nutrient solution before use. By using liquid calcium as a pH adjusting component, you will add more calcium to your plants' cell structure, promoting cell...- $16.49
- $16.49
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Vendor:Nectar for the Gods
Nectar for the Gods One Shot Granules, 50 lb
Nectar for the Gods One Shot Granules Oregon’s Only’s answer to amending soils for super soil style gardening.One Shot is a blend of natural ingredients that are ground into fine powders and held together witha molasses binder in small pellets. The molasses activates and...- $117.99
- $117.99
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Vendor:Nectar for the Gods
Nectar for the Gods One Shot Granules, 25 lb
Nectar for the Gods One Shot Granules Oregon’s Only’s answer to amending soils for super soil style gardening.One Shot is a blend of natural ingredients that are ground into fine powders and held together witha molasses binder in small pellets. The molasses activates and...- $63.99
- $63.99
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