What did you do in the garden today?

[BigBlueHen53]

Careful what you wish for... I prayed for rain. We've had probably 4" since Thursday and this is looking forward.

View attachment 3814802

I'm going to DEFINITELY have to spray fruit trees on Tuesday for fungus....

Time to do a backward rain dance ...

 

[Minanora]

Instead of having the water drain directly from the bottom, I put a 90 elbow on the bottom drain hole and let the water drain from the top to bottom out, and instead of having the water pumped in on top, I have the water circling on the bottom up. I use bio balls that float and leave enough space for the water to circle on the bottom. The water moves the fish poop up off the bottom, so when I stuck my hand down to the bottom to check, I didn't feel any muck build up. Most of the poop gets broken down and accumulate around the floating bio balls. I clean and drain it once in a great while by pushing the floating balls up and down and opening the drain valve.
The return water from the filter goes into a plastic cement tub with a bell siphon that has a hole on top, so the water drains from the bottom up, but never empties. The nutrient in the water gets used up by the duck weed in the plastic cement tub. This prevents green algae from turning the water green and the duck weed is fed to the fish by lifting the bell siphon.

However, in this close system the KH in the water gets used up by the beneficial bacteria and when it goes to zero the nitrification or good bacteria goes dormant, and the water becomes toxic. I add baking soda to keep the nitrification bacteria active and do 10% water changes daily. If you see sick fish, this is the problem.

Ah, duckweed, the glitter of the aquatic hobby. You can buffer your KH with crushed coral. Aquarium Co-op has it for a good price. I have to use it because of the same thing in my 75G tank, I never need to do water changes, just add water, and add coral. The coral is nice because it's a slow release and only buffers so high. the higher the pH, the less it decays, if your pH and KH get too low, it buffers up without hurting any fish or plants. KH stabilizes pH; if you run out of KH, your water pH crashes.

 

[Minanora]

Mine is just a simple system that generally maintains the pond water so fish and frogs and dragonflies can thrive.

I learned about soft water and pH crashes the hard way, lost my fish. Our water here is so soft that it barely registers hardness. I add buffers to my aquariums with weekly water changes to prevent pH crashes, and to keep my snails alive. Without buffers my snails' shells disintegrate and they die.

crushed coral, as I mentioned prior. Its fantastic for buffering KH and stabilizing pH.

 

[Minanora]

Today, I noted that two of the three types of california poppy I seeded are sprouting! Both types of basil are coming up and both varieties of corn are coming up in force now. New pool is filling. yay!

 

[chickengr]

nights still cold here. I don't feel like wasting oaxaca green corn seeds. got some more tomato/pepper/cucumber seedlings to transplant.

 

[akroberts1085]

@fuzzi , thank you for the heads up about the barefoot you have mailed. That's supposed to say bareroot.

 

[Acre4Me]

One garden bed prepped and seeded! Cabbage, onion plants, spinach, and peas.

Onions, strawberries, garlic, all looking great and growing well. Flower buds developing on the raspberry plants. Lentils (pic) a growing well.

Fruit trees: looks like we might get some nice Asian Pears. I see some that are a little larger than others on the tree. If we get several per tree, I’ll be happy with that. There were a few flowers here and there among the peach and nectarine trees and an apricot tree, but I see nothing now, so I’ll guess no fruit on those.

Moved a bean tower to a new location, which was hard bc it was hard to move around due to height and weight, and it went to one of the farthest beds.

A neighbor gave me these awesome wagons! Dad made them to sell, but passed away 6-7 years ago. Neighbor bought home from his mom bc she moved to a smaller place. So he wanted the space for his stuff, and no one else in his family needed these wagons. Bc we are always out working on garden, he thought we could use them!

Cute goat pics! They are just over 3 weeks old. Little girl (born under 2 lbs) is nearing 7 lbs!!

 

[cj2024]

Ah, duckweed, the glitter of the aquatic hobby. You can buffer your KH with crushed coral. Aquarium Co-op has it for a good price. I have to use it because of the same thing in my 75G tank, I never need to do water changes, just add water, and add coral. The coral is nice because it's a slow release and only buffers so high. the higher the pH, the less it decays, if your pH and KH get too low, it buffers up without hurting any fish or plants. KH stabilizes pH; if you run out of KH, your water pH crashes.

My local Home Depot sells crush coral sand where they sell cement bags. I am pretty sure it's cheaper than a pet store bag.

Thanks for sharing, it gave me an idea. I'll run some test on it. I used it before, but I forgot why i stopped using it. I think it made the water milky and I was too lazy to rinse it.

Coral chips or coral sand can indeed contribute to the carbonate hardness (KH) of freshwater aquariums. Let’s explore how:

1. Buffering Effect:
   • Coral chips and sand contain calcium carbonate (CaCO₃), which is a primary component of their skeletal structures.
   • When placed in water, they slowly dissolve, releasing calcium and carbonate ions.
   • These ions act as a buffer, helping to stabilize the pH and maintain KH.
2. Natural KH Enhancement:
   • As the coral material dissolves, it increases the KH by providing a source of carbonates.
   • This is especially beneficial for soft water (low KH) aquariums, where maintaining stable KH levels can be challenging.
3. Considerations:
   • KH levels should be monitored regularly to ensure they remain within the desired range.
   • While coral chips/sand can contribute to KH, they might not be sufficient on their own.
   • Other factors, such as water changes, substrate, and additives, also impact KH.

Remember to test your water parameters periodically and adjust as needed to create a healthy environment for your aquatic inhabitants!

 

[jerryse]

My local Home Depot sells crush coral sand where they sell cement bags. I am pretty sure it's cheaper than a pet store bag.

Thanks for sharing, it gave me an idea. I'll run some test on it. I used it before, but I forgot why i stopped using it. I think it made the water milky and I was too lazy to rinse it.

Coral chips or coral sand can indeed contribute to the carbonate hardness (KH) of freshwater aquariums. Let’s explore how:

1. Buffering Effect:
   • Coral chips and sand contain calcium carbonate (CaCO₃), which is a primary component of their skeletal structures.
   • When placed in water, they slowly dissolve, releasing calcium and carbonate ions.
   • These ions act as a buffer, helping to stabilize the pH and maintain KH.
2. Natural KH Enhancement:
   • As the coral material dissolves, it increases the KH by providing a source of carbonates.
   • This is especially beneficial for soft water (low KH) aquariums, where maintaining stable KH levels can be challenging.
3. Considerations:
   • KH levels should be monitored regularly to ensure they remain within the desired range.
   • While coral chips/sand can contribute to KH, they might not be sufficient on their own.
   • Other factors, such as water changes, substrate, and additives, also impact KH.

Remember to test your water parameters periodically and adjust as needed to create a healthy environment for your aquatic inhabitants!

I am old enough to remember when crushed coral was all we had for a substrate in the aquarium. That was mid 60s.

 

[jerryse]

Rain overnight. I need to mow when the grass dries. So much yard and garden work this time of year. Plus I want to go fishing. All of it weather permitting.