Viewing post #484487 by bitbit

You are viewing a single post made by bitbit in the thread called Well water is not well received.
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Sep 16, 2013 10:30 PM CST
Baltimore County, MD (Zone 7a)
A bit of this and a bit of that
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A lot of organic matter breaks down into acidic compounds. Around here, pine needles are abundant, and mulching with them will make for acidic soil over time. I'm not sure if you have a source of pine needles or similar organics, but no price beats free, and mulching has a lot of other benefits as well. I don't think regular leaves are quite as effective as pine, but given that you're in Florida, it makes me wonder if palm fronds would have a similar effect.

If you need a stronger, faster acidity boost, you can work a bit of aluminum sulfate into the soil surface. I find it pretty inexpensive at my local garden center, but I could see the cost adding up if you are farming large-scale. Since my soil is naturally acidic due to the decades (centuries?) of pine needles that have fed it, I only use it on acid-loving plants (blueberries), rather than the whole garden. Be careful with it - too much can easily burn plants, especially those that prefer a slightly alkaline soil, so I'd limit it to plants that you know suffer from the well water.

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