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Egg shells and vingar for calcium

Barley-pop57

Barley-pop57

Might be wrong forum but it is the closest to my question.  I read on another thread where egg shells & vinegar breaks down the shells quicker to get the calcium from it and the vinegar & shells end up being a neutral ph.
 
I have this project going on but here are my question (s)-----Does one just pour this straight on plants or do I need to dilute it with water??  I forget which thread I seen this in but it wasn't very specific except someone said to dolomite lime with it and you got your magnesium also.
 
Just don't want to mess with something and kill off my plants and also this method sounds cheaper to make than to buy something commercially.  Thanks !!!
 
You should dilute it. I forget by how much though perhaps start with 1 part solution 10 parts water or more; in any case this is meant to be supplemental so if you are having bad calcium issues then figuring out the cause and fixing that would be best.
 
Also I believe I commented in that other thread and need to make a correction. The end result is calcium acetate, which you could also get from garden lime + vinegar (tipped off by another forum member, harry).
 
Barley-pop57 said:
Might be wrong forum but it is the closest to my question.  I read on another thread where egg shells & vinegar breaks down the shells quicker to get the calcium from it and the vinegar & shells end up being a neutral ph.
 
I have this project going on but here are my question (s)-----Does one just pour this straight on plants or do I need to dilute it with water??  I forget which thread I seen this in but it wasn't very specific except someone said to dolomite lime with it and you got your magnesium also.
 
Just don't want to mess with something and kill off my plants and also this method sounds cheaper to make than to buy something commercially.  Thanks !!!
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The thread you're thinking of was Egg Shells and it was smokemaster that mentioned the option of dolomite lime in this post. How much you need to dilute the end product would depend on how concentrated it is.
 
birdfather said:
i dont think you want to dump vinegar directly on your plants. sounds like a bad idea.
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The acetic acid in the vinegar is neutralised in the process of creating the desired acetate. It may though be worth considering the other components of the vinegar such as sugar.
 
catherinew said:
I"m with Bob_B in composting crushed eggshells, though it may take over a year for them to completely compost.
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I think if you want a quick turn over for egg shell composting then feeding it to a worm bin would be best.  Otherwise, yeah, takes forever!
 
Thanks eveyone !!!!!!  I just read the thread and I figured I had eggs and some vinegar...so what the heck.  I had always planned on using it as a supplement but wasn't sure whether to dilute or how often to use and when to use or not--like when pepper plants are blooming or before / after.
 
I am no rocket sciencetist (LOL) nor a chemist....this is just my 3rd season in growing superhots (actually my 2nd as Patrick had to bail me out my 1st year).
 
Anyway I knew it was a supplement but outside of that....well I think you know...lol.  Thanks again...Mike
 
Bones provide calcium too.  You can bake/roast those and egg shells until nicely browned to break them down.  Just don't want to burn them as that will likely destroy the calcium (but plants like carbon too. So... not entirely a loss).
Not sure it is worth the bother though.  But if grilling some burgers.  Toss some of that wrapped up in foil in a corner of the grill.  What do you think of that idea?
I'm thinking more of chicken bones as they are softer to start with.  It would take a bit more heat to really break down any pork or beef bones.
 
I never would have thought of that.  It makes sense though.  Composting is probably the best way to go but I live in an apartment so that wouldn't work for me.  I read the thread and it sounded like a simple project & interesting.
 
I started that other thread, and have just decided that crushing up calcium tablets, and adding a teaspoonful at plant out is much simpler than screwing with egg shells. I've collected a ton, but they're on their way to the trash.
 
Crush the egg shells up - if the compost pile is properly activated they decompose - works for me. My finished compost after about a year is mostly humus.
 
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