Hi All,
not all nutrients are the same, this is why some work and some work great.
i design nutrient solutions for commercial operations.
and water quality is a important, some town water supplies will upset soft crops like lettuce.
cyco grow like most 2 part nutrients will work great. however the secret if you can call it is the changing of the nutrient.
dumping the nutrient solution once a week will maintain good growth. this is the truth of it, the formulation might not be correct for the crop.
however it has all the elements required, and this is what the plant is after.
correct EC and pH in the green zone. element available in soluble form we have growth.
powdered nutrients work
liquid single part work
liquid 2 part work better
liquid 3 part work best (if you get the right amount of each part)
why?
powdered nutrient has the same elements as all the rest.
why?
my answer i will break it down so it can be explained easily.
nutrient when made are mixed together in a concentrate. they dissolve and create bonds with each other.
this has different affects temperature, concentrations of what other elements were dissolved before it. all come into play.
so buying 2 powder packs and poring them into a bucket filling it up with a hose your creating lots of bonds some good some bad.
this is a reason why it is the case that powders are at the work part of the list.
single part,
this is a challenge
you have elements that really like each other. calcium and sulphate.
just to name one set, have the sulphate level too high and BAM you have white powder on the bottom.
(experiment: add some A and B together in concentrate you have Calcium sulphate)
so you can add binders to inhibit the reaction. or reduce the sulphate in the formulation.
this is why it is also in the works part of the list.
2 part
having the calcium and sulphate in different bottles allows you to keep them apart.
this gives you more room so to speak. some manufactures use this room to create more of the good bonds.
by adding certain elements together and allowing the good joining before adding the next elements.
while others just dump it in an add water. this is why there is differences in brands and how some seem to work better then others.
3 part
i put this in the best category as it allows the designer the most room to move.
as it can allow the creation of some really cool bonds. if they use this room i do not know.
however on a whole from what a majority have said it works good. each have some advice on how much of each you add.
and all seem to say it works good.
have fun and keep growing.
Joe