Does ph down kill beneficials in soil?

[calstar]

[FONT=&quot]New grower. Looked around for the answer to this but couldn't find it on the various forums. Question: Does using a no-organic ph down kill beneficial bacterium and microbeasties? If so, what can I do to get some new going and what product of the organics is a good one(or are they all the same)? Thanks . If I already posted this in another forum I'm sorry, sort of maze in here.[/FONT]

 

[skotty]

ph down is made up of phosphorus which a plant needs in flower and can be made up of nitric acid which a plant uses in veg

so its more benefical to a plant depending which stage of the grow you are at

i can only advise you on the properties of ph down and not the effect it has on soil due to the fact i dont grow this way

but im sure some 1 will be along shortly to put you right

my guess is that it wouldnt effect anything in the soil the same as hydro

hope this helps for now

peace

 

[fishing time]

I don't know about specific microbes, but in nature bacterial diversity is highest in soil around 6 or 6.5 (slightly acidic) which is the range you would use pH down to achieve.

So it's probably ok as long as you stick to normal pH. As Skotty said pH down is commonly phosphoric/nitric acid - meaning that the conjugate base of these chemicals is the same as found in fertilizer which is present anyways - so the chemical itself does not pose a risk, only the potential acidity from adding way to much.

EDIT: reviewing this I suppose that if (god forbid) you had tap water at pH=11 or something outrageous the amount of N/P added (as the conjugate base of the acid in pH down) MIGHT pose some problem from high electrolytic content as a result of all the solutes added.

 

[s00thsayer]

i wouldn't mess with the pH if you're getting readings between 5.8 and 7 --- optimal range for soil grows. plants are very tolerant to a range of pH but very sensitive to pH changes. unless your potting mix or tap water pH is way off ... don't fiddle with it. if the pH drastically changes over time with the addition of fertilizer, flushing the soil will keep the pH in check

 

[VerdantGreen]

flushing is pointless in organics and will just serve to make your soil too wet.

use citric acid to reduce the pH of your water if you need to, this is what organic pH down is made of but you can buy powder very cheep off ebay and make your own bottles of pH down.

dont use phosphoric acid as pH down in an organic grow. it wont help the beneficials.