Date: Wed, 27 Aug 1997 09:17:33 -0400 From: BREWER_CHARLES@ecomail.damneck.navy.mil To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg3263$foo@default> Subject: Re[2]: Sphagum
I don't consider myself an expert on growing CPs, but I have many years of
growing these plants. When I here things like adding oil and baking soda to the
soil mix, sends up a red flag for me. There may be something to using oil and
baking soda, but my experience with using oil is that it kills plants. Using
straight vinegar, out of the bottle, on weeds kills them, but a table spoon in a
gallon of water poured over CP soil helps to change the ph value of the soil,
therefore enhancing them somewhat. It's hard to say what will work and what will
not.
I have to support Tom Hayes and David Evens on their thoughts. I would be
careful in using additives like oil and baking soda until there is more solid
evidence supporting this treatment. What makes this scary is that cooking oil
is made from a variety of different things all over the world, such as Peanut
oil, sunflower oil, corn oil, safflower oil, Pig oil and the list goes
on. Nothing you buy today is considered 100% true or safe for that matter. I
would be a little concerned what byproducts are added to these oils today.
Nothing is safe anymore and where one type of oil may be safe for CPs, another
type will surely kill. Just be Very careful with what you pour on your
collection. Once your plants start to die...need I go on?.
Charles Brewer
Va. Beach, Va.
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>
> Sarr. with a little sand, along with your sphagum and if your plant start
> to turn orange, put one tablespoon of baking soda, two tablespoons of
> cooking oil in one gallon of pure water, in your pot and arround the plant
> roots.
Randall,
I am a little curious about this mail. I know most cp come from acid
bogs, apart from a few species of Pinguicula, one Drosera (?) and one
Sarracenia. I would have thought that baking soda, being a basic
substance would try to neutralize the acid in the CP's potting mix.
As far as I know, this would definitely not be beneficial to the
plant.
I was also curious about adding cooking oil to your soil.
I wouldn't think you would be able to keep oil in suspension, when
you were mixing it, as it has a density much lower than water.
Even if you did manage to mix it and pour it onto your plants, I'm
sure it would "clog" the plants roots, and form a film on the soil
surface preventing gas exchange between the soil and atmosphere.
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