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Tomatoes and Calcium question

Steve973

Steve973

What is a good calcium additive, and how much, for growing tomatoes in Pro-Mix BX? I will be adding organic fertilizer to the Pro-Mix, but I do not yet know what I should do about the calcium.
 
I've also read that adding gypsum and lime can add calcium to the soil. Anyone verify that.

Steve I hope you don't mind me tagging along on your thread.
 
The more, the merrier! I am just trying to make sure that I start things out right so I don't have to take any sort of corrective action later. The more input, the more knowledgeable I (and others) will become.
 
I did the crushed Tums in water foliar feeding last year after I found some blossom end rot on a couple of tomatoes. I didn't have a problem after that.

I've got a five gallon bucket half full of coffee/tea grounds, banana peels, egg shells and other goodies that I'll be using this year.

This site freaking rocks doesn't it? The ideas and knowledge a person can pick up here is never ending. Thanks to all.
 
I use garden lime in my soil containers to prevent BER in peppers or tomatoes.

Just don't use too much since lime is basic and will raise the pH of soil. I follow directions on the box.
 
Lime is great for neutralize acidity while adding calcium, and if its dolomitic lime then it already has lot of magnesium too

I also add wood ash to my garden for extra calcium and to neutralize acidity
 
POTAWIE said:
Lime is great for neutralize acidity while adding calcium, and if its dolomitic lime then it already has lot of magnesium too

I also add wood ash to my garden for extra calcium and to neutralize acidity
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Er, yeah, dolomitic lime is what i meant, not garden lime. I don't really have much use for it anymore now that I use cal-mag plus.
 
Steve973 said:
how much bone meal in a seven gallon pot?
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Be careful with bone meal. Even though it is a natural product you can still burn your plants with it bcause it is fairly high in phosphorus. According wiki, the average n-p-k ratio is 4-12-0.a friend learned this lesson the hard way when hewas growing another kind of plant lol
 
TX,

Back on the farm, we always spread ferts about 2-3 weeks before planting, added a tiny bit when we stuck the plants in the ground, and side-dressed with a medium amount of ammonia nitrate once the plants were about 3-4 weeks old. That was it for the year.

Mike
 
As you read already. Egg shells are the way to go.

As far as blossom end rot... that is caused by a calcium defeciancy but is usually triggered by a water defeciancy. Simply put, if they aint got water it dont matter what nutrients you got waitin for em cause they cant get to em.

Bone meal will add more phos than calc. And I never heard of bone meal hurting plants of any kind. However too much of any nutrient will block other nutrients form being available. Its a balancing act...
 
Ciao all-

The experts tell me that tomato plants can't uptake calcium easily, so if blossom end rot is something you're concerned about, it's best to work on the consistent watering aspect to resolve it. Paste tomatoes are particularly prone to this, but it's not usually something that is going to knock out the bulk of your harvest. I've noticed that in my garden, if I see it, it's usually the very first fruits of the season, before the roots get really established and then it goes away all on its own.
 
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