Hello everyone!!!
Sorry, it's been so long since my last post. A lot has happened. First, I'm in finals week with A's in all of my classes. I still haven't decided which university to go to, but I still have some time to think about that. If I play my cards right, I might be able to get into an internship with one of the professors at my current college and work in the greenhouse to get some extra lab hours! I legitimately can't think of a better way to spend my day. It would be like working in the herbology classroom! When I started this path, I had no idea I would like plants this much, and now I'm considering majoring in botany!
Exciting news!!!!!!
In my Biology class, we were allowed to send in our own samples to test for antibiotic-producing bacteria. I sent in a water sample from my tank, and to my astonishment, we cultivated not one but TWO antibiotic-producing bacteria!!! It'll be a little while before we know much more about what kind of bacteria and what kind of antibiotic. But it's still super exciting!
On to the tomato plants!
As you can see, our roots are looking rather healthy, but I'm still struggling with those little white bugs. The periodic root rinses seem to be helping, but I've ordered "Root Cleaner" to combat the problem. It's supposed to kill the egg, larval and adult stages of these terrible little bugs. I'd like to also get "Systematic Pest Control Concentrate," which should help the plants continue to repel undesirable insects. Speaking of repelling things, the marigolds are doing fantastic! With the strength of the solution the adult tomatoes need, I wasn't sure if it would be too strong for them. I've been using an eyedropper to give them fresh water, hoping it will dilute my solution enough around their roots. Our starting pH for the old solution was 5.2, and the ppm was 1659.
Enough about that. On to the purge!!!
Today I completely purged the tanks. I'm sure I added some things periodically since my last post, but mostly it was to balance the pH and keep the roots stocked up on CalMag. I installed a filter that should clean out macro debris without affecting the nutrient level, but it's hard to tell if it's working without taking it apart completely. I rinsed the roots twice and sterilized the main tank. For the fresh tank, I added:
4 Gallons of water
40mL of Tigerbloom
34mL of pH Booster
40mL of CalMag (Hopefully, it's enough!)
5mL of Rapid Start
40mL of Hygrozyme
The final pH was 6.5 and the final ppm was 1015, so I would consider that blend a resounding success! I have no doubt that the levels will rise and fall as the plants take in all the nutrients they can, but I'll be ready!
I've got a lot going on in my life, so if anyone else has a particular topic they'd like to ask about, I'm more than happy to answer questions.
I'll talk to you soon <3
Quinn Hiboux