steveoi812 Posted August 11, 2016 Hey guys! So heres the scoop, I have some amazing crosses that I acquired from a good friend, most of which are around a year old. psy x yowie.....tpqc x hauraz, peru x peru, Mac x lumberjack in particular. They are all around 6 inches or so and are all seed grown. The bases are not buried down into the soil much and as a result seem like they could be blown over pretty easily. I was wondering if its okay to build up the soil around the base of the lil guys of anything adverse could result from doing so? Thanks! BTW love the forum, hope to start being more active as my collection grows and grows! Long term member of thenook.org....much love and respect! 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
steveoi812 Posted August 11, 2016 I went ahead and made an executive decision on these and decided that I would avoid possible mold by just using some limestone chunks around their bases to stabilize them instead of using soil... btw here are the babies. No idea who bred them but would love some help with figuring that out....... this is the mac x lumberjack 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
steveoi812 Posted August 11, 2016 this is the tpqc x hauraz 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
steveoi812 Posted August 11, 2016 here is the psycho0 x yowie 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theuserformallyknownasd00d Posted August 11, 2016 You did the right thing with the rocks! Nice plants, I think nitrogen and zelly bred most of those. Or zelly did with some of nitrogens plants? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Conv3rgence Posted August 12, 2016 does the limestone make the watering ph alkaline? If so maybe use another kind of rock and save the limestone for your slow growers. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zed240 Posted August 12, 2016 The Psycho0 X Yowie seeds might have come from me. I sent out lots of that seed and the reverse cross early in 2015. Lots of Aussies have those clones though so maybe not...... They're looking real good for 1 year olds. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
2XB Posted August 12, 2016 20 minutes ago, Conv3rgence said: does the limestone make the watering ph alkaline? If so maybe use another kind of rock and save the limestone for your slow growers. I've never tested the soil PH, but limestone in my trich mixes has (in my opinion) been detrimental, my water supply is slighty alkaline already though, if the water supply is < neutral i'm sure it would be fine 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Conv3rgence Posted August 12, 2016 Vinegar to pH adjust Australia's alkaline water, I do this for the smaller pots and grafts but I admit I don't bother for Trichos in summer since they drink so much anyways. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
2XB Posted August 12, 2016 Just now, Conv3rgence said: Vinegar to pH adjust Australia's alkaline water, I do this for the smaller pots and grafts but I admit I don't bother for Trichos in summer since they drink so much anyways. I use apple cider vinegar periodically on certain plants but have just started using phosphoric acid, def better for lowering the PH than apple cider vinegar has been :-) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theuserformallyknownasd00d Posted August 12, 2016 (edited) Shit, this is an actual issue for you guys? I just soil ph'd 4 random pots. All 6.8 neat and I regularly liquid cal/lime. Water here comes out about 6.8-7.2. I'll def look into a few of my struggling plants ph soon. out of interest do you guys use chemical fertilisers? All my plants have been on a purely organic home made nute program for about 6 mths, I'm not sure if this could effect or even help balance the ph. My soil should be highly active with microbes, how about yours? edit; DB you say it's been detrimental, could you elaborate on your observations bro? Edited August 12, 2016 by theuserformallyknownasd00d 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
2XB Posted August 12, 2016 My observations are not scientific by any means Dood, but I have noted that most plants that I repot because they are stunted, yellow and just generally looking poorly, all have lime stone rocks in the medium. I did a few soil batches with lime stone a few years ago, I'm not sure why, but probably because I had it and was trying to bulk out a potting mix... Anyways I know linking the lime to poor health is not a certainty but there are enough clues for me not to do it anymore.. Other plants that get the same attention with different soils do great... The limestoned plants always bounce back quickly after repotting... Also I have tried to love some of the fucked plants back to good health, but nothing I can do helps until I change out that medium.... Our tap water is 7.8. I use organic ferts, but not often home brewed. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theuserformallyknownasd00d Posted August 12, 2016 Thanks DB, reason I was asking is cos me and a mate were gonna buy limestone and top dress... There are better options for what we're trying to do so I think with what you've said I'll skip over the limestone... Maybe if I find some I can harvest myself I'll use it on a plant or two and see. Cheers mate!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Quixote Posted August 13, 2016 My tap water is full of limestone, and I really want to lower the pH, but I don't know how. I could chuck in some strong acid, the type used for cleaning the coffee machine, but I really don't how much to use. Any good suggestions? Would a tablespoon of acid for a litre of water do the trick? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bigred Posted August 13, 2016 Depending on the acid phosphoric acid is used in the hydroponic industry as a soil buffer Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
2XB Posted August 13, 2016 For what its worth I put some lime stone in a glass of water over night, pH 7.8 out of the tap, before stones went in, tested at 8.3 this morning 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Conv3rgence Posted August 13, 2016 6 hours ago, Quixote said: My tap water is full of limestone, and I really want to lower the pH, but I don't know how. I could chuck in some strong acid, the type used for cleaning the coffee machine, but I really don't how much to use. Any good suggestions? Would a tablespoon of acid for a litre of water do the trick? Mate just use white vinegar lol. A teaspoon per 4 litres for me, but everyone's water is different and you have to pH test yourself. From my experience you can have a neutral to slightly alkaline substrate with acidic watering and cacti seem to love it. (Water adjusted to between 5-6pH) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Quixote Posted August 21, 2016 On 13/8/2016 at 1:59 AM, Conv3rgence said: Mate just use white vinegar lol. A teaspoon per 4 litres for me, but everyone's water is different and you have to pH test yourself. From my experience you can have a neutral to slightly alkaline substrate with acidic watering and cacti seem to love it. (Water adjusted to between 5-6pH) I just read the data about the water we have here, and I think I misunderstood something, because it's not that alkaline - only 7,2 - 7,8. But it's extremely hard water (dH30+). I thought hard water was always alkaline, because of all the linestone? I wonder if I should add some acid anyway to make the water a bit acidic, because as far as I know, rainwater is around 5 pH. Also I worry about limestone buildup in the pots, and wonder if acidic water would take care of that... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Distracted Posted August 22, 2016 My experience with putting rocks like that to cover the soil is if there are too many rocks then sunlight won't hit the soil and the soil will remain damp for extended periods of time which can encourage rot. I would've just left them as is or put two or three rocks around it. They're only 6 inches tall, it's not as if they have far to fall if they do fall. :D In short, i'd recommend only a few stabilizing rocks among the base of the cactus, not covering the whole top-layer of soil with them. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
steveoi812 Posted September 16, 2016 Thanks so much for the info folks, I am removing the top layer of limestone today = ) I have another question for you guys and gals, when spring arrives in 2017 do you guys think that I should make cuts of all of these around the area where they start to fatten up and root those as opposed to keeping them in their current, not so stable condition? Would it provide more stability by doing this? Are there any benefits to keeping them in their natural state as opposed to doing this? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Master B Posted September 16, 2016 Mate definitely dont cut them they will sort themselves out in time. The same thing will happen with the base after new offsets anyway and top will more than likely Etiolate while rooting. All you are going to achieve with cutting is slow the hole process down. If your really worried mate stake them. I agree with Distracted the rocks cause the soil to stay wet for longer. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites