I have run out of rainwater, is there anything I can do to make tap water more palatable?
:D I'm giving them tap water, I figure its better than them dying / shades x
how about a trip to sunny devon we are drowning in it at the mo lol on flood alert
:D
If you have to use tapwater give them some "Miracid" or other proprietary acidifier... :)
Quote from: saddad on July 02, 2009, 22:53:23
If you have to use tapwater give them some "Miracid" or other proprietary acidifier... :)
That's what I use, only they've changed the name to Miracle Grow camellia, azalea and rhodadendron compound... Which is why I spent 20 minutes looking and still couldn't find it.
I have five three year old plants - in the ground - and have never watered them. Have picked one kilo of luscious berries so far this year and the bushes still have loads to ripen; yesterday's rain did them a lot of good, I'm sure!
Tricia
Quote- in the ground
I do not think they would like my ground at all and our tap water is full of lime. Unfortunate since I like blueberries, Since I want to live forever ;D ;D ;D
I am trying gojis instead.
I was forced to water my blueberries with tap water, it was a mistake, they are now chlorotic. I'm going to repot them and use some acidifier. But take care with tap water, if you an hold out for rain, do.
Quote from: amphibian on July 03, 2009, 22:23:25
I was forced to water my blueberries with tap water, it was a mistake, they are now chlorotic. I'm going to repot them and use some acidifier. But take care with tap water, if you an hold out for rain, do.
Sadly I can't I have run out.
There must be a stream, pond or river somewhere nearby where you can dip in and fill a couple of plastic bottles.
Quote from: davholla on July 03, 2009, 22:26:25
Quote from: amphibian on July 03, 2009, 22:23:25
I was forced to water my blueberries with tap water, it was a mistake, they are now chlorotic. I'm going to repot them and use some acidifier. But take care with tap water, if you an hold out for rain, do.
Sadly I can't I have run out.
Is there no prospect of rain before the plants succumb to drought, is there not somewhere from which you can beg some rain water, for example my neighbours have a butt, but do not use the rainwater. How hard is your tap water, where do you live?
I use washing up or bath water for my plants in the garden
Quote from: bazzysbarn on July 04, 2009, 00:17:15
I use washing up or bath water for my plants in the garden
So do I, but not on blueberries, they hate lime.
saddad & plot 69 are right - give them some Miracle Grow camellia, azalea and rhodadendron compound and you're fine to use tap water. Still best to use rain, but ours would be dead if we had waited!
I really think it depends how hard your tap water is, mine is super hard and even with 'camellia, azalea and rhodadendron compound' the plants are still chlorotic.
Are you somewhere near Portsmouth then? That's the hardest water I've ever known. Up here it's still hard enough to leave calciferous marks on windows, but not as bad as down there...
Quote from: OllieC on July 04, 2009, 06:59:58
Are you somewhere near Portsmouth then? That's the hardest water I've ever known. Up here it's still hard enough to leave calciferous marks on windows, but not as bad as down there...
Kent, just south of the North Downs. Three miles down the road the water is as soft as a baby's bum. It's quite a geologically diverse area here, with rapid shifts from chalk, to clay, to sandstone, with equivalent shifts in soil type/pH and water hardness too.
I've heard coffee grounds are good for blueberries ???
Quote. Three miles down the road
Can't you drive down and get some? What about the Tunbrdge Wells?
'davholla' you started this post where are you? Can you find a soft area nearby?
Boiled water has most of the lime knocked out... you could always collect kettle juice that's gone cold... also, if you can measure pH properly, what about adding a splash or two of vinegar until it's at least neutral?
Quote from: Digeroo on July 04, 2009, 08:42:08
Can't you drive down and get some?
I don't need any, I've got rain water, it was last year I used tap water. The plants have only shown the chlorosis this year.
QuoteWhat about the Tunbrdge Wells?
The Wells are chalybeate springs, very rich in iron and soft, I suppose they'd be excellent water for blueberries which suffer from Iron deficiency very easily.
what about cheap stores own bottled water til you can get some rain/river water etc would that be any good???? i know some supermarkets charge around 13 fot 2 litres
dont know if its any good though
Quote from: debster on July 04, 2009, 13:11:44
what about cheap stores own bottled water til you can get some rain/river water etc would that be any good???? i know some supermarkets charge around 13 fot 2 litres
dont know if its any good though
My dad uses it for lots of his houseplants - living near Portsmouth in a flat, it's the easiest way to keep them alive.
Thank you everyone for the replies. I managed to persuade my parents to give me some (they are very anti fruit growing in small gardens like mine, so didn't want to).
I think I will buy a water filter for future use.
The only bad thing is that one of the bushes has got shrivelled fruit - are these a right off or might they survive?
Ha, good old parents! A normal filtering jug wouldn't change the pH... or do you mean a water softener?
Quote from: OllieC on July 06, 2009, 08:08:15
Ha, good old parents
Not really they only helped 'cos otherwise I would start using the condenser dryer again which is less environmentally friendly than the line. If I had a normal dryer they would not have helped.
Quote from: OllieC on July 06, 2009, 08:08:15
Ha, good old parents! A normal filtering jug wouldn't change the pH... or do you mean a water softener?
I mean one of these :-
http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/8422271/Trail/searchtext%3EWATER+FILTER.htm
That should remove the hardness, shouldn't it?
Only joking about the parents! I don't think that jug will alter the hardness, I think activated charcoal will remove chlorine and possibly nitrates, but that's about it...
Quote from: OllieC on July 06, 2009, 13:03:26
Only joking about the parents! I don't think that jug will alter the hardness, I think activated charcoal will remove chlorine and possibly nitrates, but that's about it...
I think it will according to :-
http://www.hardwater.org/water_treatment.html
Quote from: davholla on July 06, 2009, 13:27:25
Quote from: OllieC on July 06, 2009, 13:03:26
Only joking about the parents! I don't think that jug will alter the hardness, I think activated charcoal will remove chlorine and possibly nitrates, but that's about it...
I think it will according to :-
http://www.hardwater.org/water_treatment.html
Can't open it over here... Hmm, where's baccy man, he always knows these things... My logic is that I have activated charcoal in my fish tank & it doesn't alter the pH, just mops up the crud... delighted to be corrected though!