Get It Just Right

Emerald Harvest’s premium pH adjusters, pH Up and pH Down, let you fine-tune the pH of the growing medium. This enables you to regulate the pH for optimal nutrient uptake and stable conditions for beneficial microbes living in the root zone. When the pH of the nutrient solution stays in the “sweet spot” (pH 5.8– 6.3), sufficient essential nutrients remain available to the plant roots for heavy yields and bountiful harvests.

Benefits

All Emerald Harvest premium base nutrients and supplements are pH buffered, so if you’re using the full EH product line, you probably won‘t need to adjust the pH of the nutrient solution. However, when growing in certain mediums, such as rockwool, or coco coir, you may want to fine-tune the pH.

The Importance of pH The abbreviation pH stands for potential hydrogen: the measure of how acidic or basic (alkaline) a substance is. A scale from 1 to 14 is used to describe the amount of hydrogen ions in a liquid solution: pH 7 is defined as neutral; below 7 is acidic; above 7 is alkaline. Pure water is pH 7.

Each of the essential nutrients required for plant growth (i.e., nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, etc.) has its own ideal pH range for absorption by the plant roots. When the pH of the nutrient solution is too high, certain nutrients (e.g., iron or manganese) could be wholly or partially “locked out,” while too low a pH could cause other nutrients (e.g., phosphorus) to have trouble absorbing. Therefore, at too high or too low a pH, your crop could suffer from nutrient deficiencies.

The ideal pH range for hydroponic gardens is 5.8–6.3. Although a slightly higher or lower pH is fine for short periods (i.e., a few hours), the general rule is to stay in the recommended pH range. We cannot stress enough that continued exposure to a pH that is too high or too low can damage the health of—or even kill—your plants.

pH Buffered

A liquid solution is pH buffered if it is capable of resisting small changes in its pH. All  Emerald Harvest professional base nutrients and supplements are pH buffered, so gardens that use only the Emerald Harvest product line should already have balanced pH.

Ideally, your garden’s pH should stay reasonably stable, plus or minus a few decimal points. However, water supplies, additional supplements from other brands and your choice of growing medium can also affect the pH of the nutrient solution.

Check Your pH Levels

You should always check the pH of the nutrient solution before feeding as well as before and after watering. If you use an automated hydroponic system, check the pH daily and track it throughout the grow. Very good pH tri-meters are available at hydroponic stores that give you a constant pH, PPM and temperature reading of your reservoir.

Product Characteristics

• Appearance: a slightly viscous liquid that looks cloudy or milky.
• Aroma: no real aroma.
• Texture: like water (but do not touch).
• Shelf Life: shelf life of 3 years or more if stored under normal conditions.

Tips & Tricks

• Add to your nutrient solution just a little at a time. Test the pH periodically until the readings are in the desired range.
• Your plants may only need a small quantity of this product. The amount necessary will depend on the water quality and the strength of other nutrients and supplements present in the solution.
• The ideal pH range after mixing nutrients is 5.8–6.3.
• Do not mix pH Up with pH Down.
• Users of this product are responsible for applying, storing and disposing for it responsibly.
• This product is used to raise or lower the pH of a nutrient solution to which plant fertilizers have been added. Do not use for other purposes.
• pH Up will raise the pH of the nutrient solution; pH Down will lower it.
• Use in place of any alkalizer or acidifier products.

Take special care: Can burn skin. Do NOT touch. Wash off immediately with vinegar if it contacts skin.

Steps for Mixing Success:

Mixing instructions for pH Up and pH Down when using Emerald Harvest premium base nutrients and supplements:

1. Add Emerald Harvest premium base nutrients and supplements to the water in the amounts indicated by the EH feeding chart. This creates your nutrient solution.
2. Mix the nutrient solution thoroughly, until base nutrients and supplements have entirely dissolved and the solution appears uniform.
3. Let the nutrient solution sit for a few minutes.
4. Calibrate your pH meter.
5. Measure the pH of the nutrient solution. The ideal pH range for hydroponic gardens is 5.8–6.3. If necessary, apply pH Up to raise the pH or pH Down to lower it.

Downloads