Liquid verses granular and the sprayer

Hello there!

i wast to use calcium carbonate, and liquid calcium for folier applications. I was going to pick liquid only but im told that this does not stay long in the soil. That if I want to primarily balance the soil then granular application is needed. Though im wondering if this is for larger areas and liquid is more expensive.

Looking online i can pick up a backpack pump sprayer for 10-20 punds. The granular applicators adversely are in the hundreds! I'm trying to find answers to whether one may dissolve granular fertilisers in water and spray them that way,

Who's had experience with this?

Granular Calcium Carbonate is not meant to be dissolved for creating a spraying solution, the binders are slow release designed so the CaO2 is released little by little.
If you try to dissolve it and use it through a manual pump sprayer it will probably gum up the spray tip at the least.

CaO2 is the mineral that creates those wonderful cave creations, It is slowly dissolved into water and as water evaporates it forms crystals.
What this means to gardeners is that spraying leaves with it invites rapid water evaporation thus creating a thin coating of crystalline CaO2 on the leaf, which will prevent respiration by the coated leaf, we all know what happens when we can't breathe, right?
CaO2 is best used in granular form, applied with a drop spreader, some of the best ones are sold by Ortho fertilizer company and Scotts, and not super expensive since they will last more than 20 years when taken care of.
To apply CaO2 I find best results come from two applications with a 4 week separation. This allows you to lay down at a lighter rate than usually recommended and also get longer lasting benefits.

Redhawk

I'm so grateful you are here and active on these forums Redhawk.

I thought as much about the sprayers. Was hoping that some granulars could be used with it.
I wasnt thinking of spraying the granulars on the leaves, but i also hadn't thought about what would happen if I did. Its a null prospect though at the sound of it.
Looks like I'll be spreading it by hand until I get really into this and pick up a large project worth the machine (that'll pay for it too

Yes I agree with the applications. I read some data from phil natua which said 2 applications 1/50 of the amount of a one off application, did better.

some of the best ones are sold by Ortho fertilizer company and Scotts

I checked these sites and only found wheely cart applicators. Also they boast lots of pesticides and miracle grow not sure I'd like to support them/

Adam Oaktree wrote:

some of the best ones are sold by Ortho fertilizer company and Scotts

I checked these sites and only found wheely cart applicators. Also they boast lots of pesticides and miracle grow not sure I'd like to support them/

Unfortunately almost all if not all "spreaders" are designed for applying fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides. We don't use them for any of that but if you need the machine, you need the machine.

I have a whirligig spreader that is used for pasture seeding and a drop spreader that is used for composted manure that has dried to dust like material.
Our farm has never (since 2007 at least) seen any chemicals, of any type, we use DE, Spent Coffee Grounds, soapy water and Borax powder for pest deterrents when we have to use something for control of nasty bug critters like ticks, and squash bugs.

Redhawk

Bryant RedHawk wrote:
Our farm has never (since 2007 at least) seen any chemicals, of any type, we use DE, Spent Coffee Grounds, soapy water and Borax powder for pest deterrents when we have to use something for control of nasty bug critters like ticks, and squash bugs.

Redhawk

Could you please share you recipe for mixture controlling ticks, outdoor?

Ticks are probably the one critter I have not found the  perfect solution to. DE can be spread on the soil and grass but this takes a while to make the cuts in their joints and ticks seem to still get around.
Soapy water mixed with alcohol will knock them down when it hits them, but you still have to see them and that is difficult at best.
What I do now is spray my Alcohol soap mix into the trees and on the tree trunks in areas I am going to be working in (this stuff goes away in the first rain after application).
The soap I use is biodegradable dawn (the original formula not any of the "new Improved" formulas), the alcohol starts life as 95% corn whisky.

If you have fire ants, dissolve a cup of Borax laundry soap powder into one gallon of water then dilute that to five gallons and pour into and all around a fire ant mound. This is the same solution I use to treat wood that will be in contact with the ground but in that situation I soak the wood and let it dry.

If you have a planted wood pole, you can pour a solution of one cup borax powder to two gallons water all around the pole and you won't have carpenter ants or termites bother it.  
One thing to remember about borax, it is a boron  compound so you will be raising the boron content of the soil treated and that is an antifungal so it's best not to use it anywhere you want fungi to thrive.

Redhawk