Drip fertigation and hydroponics

Blocked drippers after mixing are very often caused by two fertilizers reacting in the same tank, most commonly a calcium source mixed with a phosphate or sulphate, or by hard water reacting with the feed. Growers commonly keep these in separate tanks. Test your irrigation water too.

Calcium with phosphate or sulphate can form insoluble solids. Undissolved powder and iron or bicarbonate in the water can do the same. Keeping incompatible products apart, dissolving fully before injection and filtering all help. The balance for your water and crop is a question for your fertigation adviser. Taskon makes water-soluble salts including Calcium Nitrate, Mono Potassium Phosphate and Potassium Nitrate.

White residue in drip filters usually means something has come out of solution: a calcium or magnesium compound from hard water reacting with the feed, a reaction between two fertilizers mixed together, or powder that did not fully dissolve. A water test and a check of what goes into each tank will show which.

Growers commonly separate calcium sources from phosphates and sulphates, dissolve products fully before injecting, and use the water test to plan around hardness. Your fertigation adviser can set this for your water.

If filtering does not stop clogging, the solids are probably forming inside the tank after mixing, from nutrients reacting with each other or with the water, or from biological growth in the lines. Check what is mixed in each tank, the solution pH, and the lines for slime.

Hydroponic systems commonly use two stock tanks so that calcium is kept apart from phosphate and sulphate until they are diluted. Solution pH also affects what stays dissolved. A hydroponics specialist can review your recipe and tank setup.

White precipitate in a hydroponic tank most often forms when calcium meets phosphate or sulphate at high concentration, or when the solution pH is too high. Mixing concentrated stocks together before dilution is a common cause. Keeping calcium in a separate stock tank usually addresses it.

Water-soluble sources used in hydroponic recipes include Calcium Nitrate, Potassium Nitrate, Mono Potassium Phosphate and Magnesium Sulphate Heptahydrate. The recipe and pH for your crop should come from a hydroponics specialist.

A clogging sprayer usually means the powder has not fully dissolved, the water is hard, or two products in the tank have reacted. Dissolve the product fully in a separate container first, add products one at a time, and test the water if the problem continues.

Check the solubility of each product on its product page and its Material Safety Data Sheet, and do not mix products whose compatibility you have not confirmed. Taskon’s water-soluble products include NPK 100% Water Soluble Fertilizer.

Residue from a water-soluble fertilizer usually comes from hard water, cold water, too much product in too little water, or a reaction between two products mixed together, rather than from the fertilizer being insoluble. Test the water, dissolve products separately, and add them to the tank one at a time.

Some products dissolve more easily than others, and solubility falls in cold water. The solubility of each Taskon product is shown on its page and in its Material Safety Data Sheet. Your adviser can check whether your products are compatible with each other.

Brown roots and stunted growth in hydroponic lettuce are most often caused by root disease, low dissolved oxygen, or warm nutrient solution, rather than a feeding shortage. Check solution temperature, aeration and root health first, and have a sample checked for disease.

Healthy hydroponic roots are usually white. Warm solution holds less oxygen and favours root disease. A hydroponics specialist can inspect the system. Feeding changes will not correct an oxygen or disease problem.

Nitrate-based and phosphate-based fertilizers commonly supply nitrogen without adding chloride. Calcium nitrate, potassium nitrate and mono ammonium phosphate are examples of chloride-free nitrogen sources. Which suits your crop and feed depends on the other nutrients it needs.

Taskon makes Calcium Nitrate, Potassium Nitrate, Mono Ammonium Phosphate and Magnesium Nitrate. Your agronomist can fit them into the feed programme for your crop.

Storage guidance for each product is given in its Material Safety Data Sheet, and that sheet is the one to follow. In general, fertilizer powders are kept in closed bags, dry, and away from incompatible materials. Taskon sends the signed Material Safety Data Sheet with every quotation.

The EDTA chelates Taskon makes are listed on the EDTA chelated micronutrients page. Request the Material Safety Data Sheet for the product you buy and follow its storage section.

Taskon Industries manufactures nitrate fertilizers in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, including calcium nitrate, potassium nitrate and magnesium nitrate, supplied in 50 kg HDPE bags. Send the grade, quantity and delivery location for a quote.

See Calcium Nitrate, Potassium Nitrate and Magnesium Nitrate and the full nitrates range. Whether a grade suits a hydroponic recipe is a question for your hydroponics specialist.

The right NPK ratio depends on the crop, its growth stage, your water and your system, so it is best set by a hydroponics specialist or agronomist who has tested your water. Taskon’s technical team can tell you which of its products fit a recipe you have been given.

Taskon makes NPK 100% Water Soluble Fertilizer in various ratios and the individual salts used to build hydroponic recipes. Send your recipe with the enquiry.