VitaSilica – Is it in Your Mix?

Imagine the fossilized skeletons of trillions of microscopic, single-celled aquatic plants – compacted and preserved over millions of years. It’s called diatomatic earth – ‘ VitaSilica’

But this stuff is not just of interest to geologist. It’s also a lightweight, porous, sterile, non-toxic, and safe horticultural growth medium. Savvy gardeners who grow in soil, coco, clay pebbles, or other ‘loose’ media are experiencing far more vigorous growth by throwing some VitaSilica into their mix. So exactly how do they do it?

VitaSilica is compromised of approximately 87-94% silicon dioxide, plus small amounts of various other oxides including iron, calcium, potassium, titanium, manganese and phosphorous. The slow, continuous release of silica ensures increased resistance to pests and disease, bigger root systems and ultimately a higher yield.

VitaSilica is also a safe, organic treatment for eradicating crawling insects on the surface of your media. When you look at VitaSilica under a microscope it resembles a random pile of tiny razors. These ultra-sharp edges cut through an insect’s protective covering, sucking all the moisture out of them until they die. If an insect is stupid enough to try to eat VitaSilica this delightful process occurs from the inside out. VitaSilica is effective against fungus gnats, aphids, nematodes, slugs and snails. Our friendly earthworm is safe from VitaSilica’s wrath, which is good news all round.

How to use VitaSilica
• Before using, thoroughly saturate VitaSilica in clean water for about an hour.
• VitaSilica can be used to replace perlite, clay pebbles, as well as other growing mediums. VitaSilica can be used in both pots and re-circulating systems.
• Simply place VitaSilica in pots in the same way as you have used other growing medias.
• Place roots or seeds in a safe and stable position.
• We advise that the granules are always rinsed through with water prior to use.
• When using VitaSilica in a recirculating system, there may be some dust which runs down into the nutrient solution. There is no need for concern. VitaSilica is made from a high quality diatomaceous earth which is a highly efficient filtration aid, so this means there will be no clogging or loss of flow caused by residual dust. In order to stabilize the pH, try running some neutral water through the media and measure the output of pH in the water.
The pH should be somewhere around 6-7. Once this pH measure has been established you should adjust the nutrient solution accordingly. A nutrient solution between 5.5-6.2 should be perfect. For example, if the pH of the water run off the growth media is around 7 {extreme case), the solution should be brought down to around 5.5-5.6. Likewise, if the growth
media is lower {e.g. 6.2) then the solution can be brought up to about 5.6-5.8. Desired pH should be around 6 in most cases.
• If this product is wet or very damp, its effectiveness as a natural insect control will be compromised. Users are advised to keep a small amount of dry, crushed (powder) VitaSilica and apply as a top layer.