Content
What kind of water to use for watering seedlings: experienced gardeners swear - just not regular tap water
28.01.2024 16:14
As everyone, including beginners, should know, only soft water can be used for watering seedlings.
How to get that very soft water at home, was told by the expert of the online publication "BelNovosti", scientist-agronomist, landscape designer Anastasia Kovrizhnykh .
So, there are many ways that help make water softer.
Boiling
When boiling, hard water softens because most of the harmful salts settle as scale. However, boiled water is deprived of oxygen and nutrients that plants need. It can be said that it is "dead", so it is not the best option for seedlings.
Adding special preparations
To soften hard water (to bind calcium and magnesium), you can add a special water structuring substance, for example, the "Waterfall" preparation. Usually, about 300 ml of such a preparation is required for 20-30 liters of water.
Freezing
When exposed to negative temperatures, salts in water crystallize last - knowing this feature of water, you can act as follows. Ordinary tap water should be poured into a plastic container (glass can crack) and put in the cold or in the freezer.
Don't wait until all the water turns into ice - the unfrozen part needs to be drained, because it contains all the harmful salts.
Defending
Hard tap water can simply be left to stand at home for a few days. The chlorine will evaporate on the first day, but the salts will remain, so if the water is very hard, this softening method will not work.
Wood ash
To improve the water, you can add wood ash at a rate of 3 grams of ash per liter of water or wood peat, 10 grams per liter, and leave the water to settle for at least a day. You cannot use this method constantly, because if you regularly water the plants with ash infusion, the soil will become alkaline, and if you water with peat infusion, it will become acidic.
Filters
Water for irrigation can be filtered using household water filters (jug, magnetic or ion exchange). But, as in the case of boiling, filtered or distilled water is deprived of both harmful and useful substances.
Previously, the expert listed 5 popular varieties of hanging tomatoes.
