“ CALCIUM improves the absorption of other essential nutrients by the root system , as well as facilitating their translocation within the plant .”
growers know
“ CALCIUM improves the absorption of other essential nutrients by the root system , as well as facilitating their translocation within the plant .”
When researching nutrient requirements , one will find many sources that have documented the primary macronutrients , but then the available information drops off for the others . Most soils supply some of these “ lesser ” nutrients , but very often some are missing . With other grow media , these nutrients will likely be missing completely , which is no problem if the grower provides nutrients that make up for this . Be sure to read the label of your preferred nutrient products to make sure your plants are receiving what they need . Since there is no shortage of information on primary macronutrients , let ’ s look at secondary macronutrients and what they do for a plant . These are sulfur , calcium , and magnesium .
SULFUR
Sulfur is integral to every living plant cell . It is required for synthesis of various amino proteins and acids as it is required during the process in which nitrate nitrogen is converted to amino acids . Sulfur is a key nutrient for photosynthesis and crop winter hardiness . Obviously , sulfur is vital to plant health and yield . Sulfur is supplied to plants from the soil by organic matter and minerals , but it is often present in insufficient quantities . Most of it is tied up in the soil itself and not available to the plants until converted by bacteria to sulfate . During this mineralization process , acids are created in the soil and help bring down soil pH . This pH adjustment is very helpful in soils that typically face high pH issues . High pH will cause many nutrients to become bound to soil particles and remain unavailable for plant uptake . After this process , as a sulfate , it is mobile and is often leached through the soil and away from the plant . When diagnosing malnutrition , sulfur deficiency and nitrogen deficiency are often confused . Symptoms of both deficiencies may appear as plants with poor growth , and often as a general yellowing of leaves . Sulfur , then , is not mobile within the plant . With sulfur deficiency , yellowing symptoms often first appear in younger leaves , whereas with nitrogen deficiency , the yellowing appears on the older leaves first . In less severe situations , visual symptoms may not even be noticeable .
CALCIUM
Calcium is often an overlooked essential nutrient , though it carries a very important load in plant growth . Soil fertility programs are developed for many high-yield and high-quality crops . When calcium takes a back seat , not only does yield suffer , but plant health and many other factors are influenced . Peanut and tomato growers are probably the most likely exceptions to this problem as they generally emphasize good calcium nutrition for their crops . Calcium improves the absorption of other essential nutrients by the root system , as well as facilitating their translocation within the plant . It can activate a number of plant growth enzymes and helps to convert nitrate taken up by the plant into forms needed to produce proteins . Calcium is vital for cell wall formation and healthy cell division as well as improving disease resistance . In the soil , calcium can replace hydrogen ions on the soil surface when it is added during fertilization , and it can increase the soil water-holding capacity . Microorganisms need calcium to perform the process of converting crop residue into organic matter . At the same time , calcium aids in releasing nutrients and helps enable nitrogenfixing bacteria on the roots of legumes to capture atmospheric nitrogen and convert it into a form that the plant can utilize .
110 grow cycle