I am having some Cal-Mag deficiencies (forgot to add dolomite lime to my soilmix) and I was wondering if Cal-Mag by Botanicare will hurt the microbiology in my compost teas/soil. Has anyone used this product before? Thanks in advance, below is a picture of the stuff.
It probably will hurt your soil biology with that stuff. Lots of ways to get cal and mag besides lime. Gypsum (cal)and Epsom salt (mag) are two that will work very quick. Longer term crab meal, oyster shells will serve you well.......MIW
I think Wolverine nailed it pretty good. Here's something else to thing about perhaps. This product contains N in the form of nitrate and the Ca and Mg are both of the nitrate forms. You must take into consideration the addition of the N (N03) and what else that might mean to your overall nutrient regimen. Consider the above along with the Fe being of the EDTA chelated form (and other micronutrients), and this MSDS sheet American Agritech Cal-Mag MSDS and that should give you a clearer picture of why it would be harmful to your living organic soil. There's better ways. Somebody take him through some other non-synthetic options. Cheers!
topdressing with quality EWCs and applying a comfrey based botanical ferment will solve your issues. i wouldnt use that stuff. will it harm your soil microbes? in the short term not too much but using it long term will give you issues. theres better routes to take out there. -OSUB
It sounds like you got some good answers. Most of us try and stay away from bottled additives for these obvious reasons. The crab meal, gypsum, oyster shell, earthworm castings et al should take care of your "Cal/Mag" issues - if that is in fact what your issues are. Planning ahead and having diversity in a well made soil mix would and will take care of your issues before they ever arise.Botanical teas on top of a well made soil mix and it just doesn't get any healthier than that... Good luck man. The answer isn't in a bottle. Always search for a natural organic solution. Jerry.
Here's the deal. If you have a well made soil, you don't need bottled gunk. Also, most folks misdiagnose their issues. Most folks have lock out, not deficiencies in their soils. If that is your case, adding more isn't going to help and may make matters worse. If you are going organic, you want to ensure that the soil life is doing well in order for the nutrients/elements in the soil to be utilized by your plants.
Instead of a picture of a bottle we all walk right past (if were even in the store that sells it) you should post a pick of you plants in the problem section. Botanicare pretty much makes a mockery of the term "organic" IMHO