As I've recently learned, there are many fallacies and wive's tales alive and well within the realm of gardening. I've followed many of them for most of my years gardening... although, I haven't a clue why I never questioned them!

Here are just a few of the fallacies I've blindly gone along with...

A drainage layer is necessary within a pot.
Charcoal sweetens the soil.
Potting soil is potting soil.
Gardening is gardening, whether pot or ground.
Some plants need to be rootbound to bloom.
Watering on a set schedule.

And I know there are many more... those are just the ones that immediately come to mind.

So, why do we just blindly follow advice without knowing why? Well... I suppose it was easier to just take other gardeners at their word... before the advent of computers and the internet, which give us instant access to information. Most gardening books that explain the science do so in overly technical terms... not the easiest or most interesting way to gain that necessary knowledge.

I, for one, am very glad to have learned the HOW and WHY of serious container gardening... I'm glad to have the information to put all those fallacies to rest. And it shows in the wonderful growing success I'm now experiencing!

There's no such thing as a green thumb... it's all knowledge! Knowledge does breed success!

While I am sure I will think of a whole bunch of words of wisdom after I finish this post....

The one I used still follow faithfully is to place a rock/boulder/chunk of cement in the bottom of a hole when I plant my wood posts in the ground. This facilitated drainage for the bottom of the post... i.e. less rot. I did that with all the posts at the ranch to extend the life span of the posts just a little bit longer. We have mostly clay (slick mud in the winter time & hardpan.)
Just my nickel's worth...

bgrow_gardens

about a foot of 3/4" gravel at the bottom of the post actually will allow enough drainage to prolong the life of the post. makes for a deep hole though.

Repeated fallacies:

When using bloom-booster fertilizers rather than fertilizers with more appropriate ratios you should expect a positive effect on blooming.

Using a "drainage layer" at the container bottom promotes drainage.

Roots grow toward water and nutrients.

If it works in the garden, it'll work in a container.

"It works for me" (or someone the person knows), so the debate is ended.

Peat moss is in short supply and we should feel guilty for using it.

My mother has a _______ (fill in the name of the tree) that's 15 years old, in perfect health, and it's never been root-pruned or repotted.

Hyponex rocks.

If it's published in a book - it must be true.

You shouldn't disturb the roots when planting.

On sunny days, water on leaves can burn the foliage.

Never feed (fertilize) a sick plant.

Organic fertilizers are better for plants than synthetic fertilizers. ..... or the variation: Plants prefer organic sources of nutrition.

Poinsettias are poisonous!

Make sure to put wound sealer over the pruning scars.

Dig the planting hole twice as wide and deep as the rootball & backfill with rich, organic soil.

Prune back the top when transplanting or root-pruning to "balance" the root:shoot ratio.

Your tomatoes are tastier than mine because of the fertilizer you use.

Superthrive is magic - just read what it does on the label.

Eleanor's VF-11 is good stuff - like Superthrive.

There's no such thing as a stupid question. HUH?
How about: Can I compost really really coarse material if I chop it up into small pieces first?

Al

Wow, Al... some of those things I actually fell for! Not the most obvious ones, of course, but there are a few fallacies that I've heard over and over... which just goes to show ya... if you repeat something enough, it can begin to sound believable.

You wouldn't want to take a crack at explaining why some of those fallacies are fallacies, would you? Exempting the ones that you've already put to rest, that is... like the Superthrive tale.

It's very interesting how certain wives tales get started, and why we just accept them without explanation.

WOW Al!!! That list needs to be printed and glued to every plant's pot lol.

Also, I'd like to know more about this when you have the time, please? :)

"Prune back the top when transplanting or root-pruning to "balance" the root:shoot ratio."

The "drainage layer" is literally everywhere, gardening books, tv gardening and the internet.
One of those ones that seems to make perfect sense... until you take a closer look at the physics that is involved.

OK, now the hard part....these are fallacies, but why? Some of them we know, like the drainage layer. But, as Jodi said, some of us are still falling for some of these. And, as good disciples (written with a wry giggle), we must have the science behind them!

Pick your favorite or you'll need to wait for someone willing to debate. ;o)

Al

Well... the charcoal, for example, can only absorb so much... after that, it becomes nothing more than another ingredient in the medium. I'm not sure if can actually leach out what it absorbed to begin with, but it doesn't make sense to use it for "sweetening" soil, unless you're going to change it often... like a fish tank filter.

We already know that soil is not just soil... different mediums behave differently.

And, we already know that there's a vast difference between container growing and growing in a garden outdoors. The microscopic living things that create and maintain aeration and a balance of good and bad that exist in a garden setting are not present in a container environment.

We recently talked about genetic survival and procreation, and how that pertains to root bound plants. The threat of the roots being confined so tightly can cause the onset of blooming or offsetting in the name of survival.

And, I would hope that we already know to check several sources to gain an accurate view of information! Just because it's written somewhere doesn't mean it's gospel!

Overall, though... I think it's very enlightening to read about the actual physics and science behind some of these ideas... it can really broaden your gardening experiences, and help make it all that much more enjoyable and successful!

Companion planting!

Many fuzzy feeling sites claim that certain plants will "heal sick plants" or "make them taste better"... Until now I have yet to find any study or botanist showing that  for example, Borage  "heals" tomatoes, or "improves their flavor".

On the other hand, there are plenty of studies showing that it attracts beneficial insects, and I'll buy that the beneficial insects help with population control of herbivores which in turn reduces plant stress which might explain this old-timey lore... but the companion planting "field" reeks of quackery.

I agree, ruet. I kind of buy the companion planting idea, but only as it pertains to insects... and not to making fruits or veggies taste better.

In fact, I recently read an article about planting certain annuals and perennials along with roses to attract the harmful insects... they take the brunt of an insect attack, thus leaving the rose shrub to bloom uninhibited.

Although... what happens to the roses when the insects finish attacking the annual or perennial that was planted to help?

Some years ago I read that planting chives alongside a rose will keep the pests away. I tried this with a rose that I planted in a 12 gallon container. The rose fared very badly complete with aphids - but I did have an enoromous clump of chives in a couple of months. When I repotted the rose I found the container was jammed full of chive roots with absolutely no room left for the rose. Needless-to-say I didn't try that again in a container.

"On sunny days, water on leaves can burn the foliage."
Please folks talk about this one. I have been approached/intimidated by people who warn me about this-(it can even be when I'm doing the watering.) and all I'm trying to do is give the poor things water because I see they are stressed NOW. I'd love it to be 5 a.m. but I wasn't here then-where were they(?) guess you can tell its a condo complex. But sorry, right now I'm seeing them suffering and dang it-its now when I'm going to water them. Rather than wait until early tomorrow isn't it more helpful to water the plants NOW?

Daisy, doesn't rain sit on outdoor plants all the time? Of course, it usually isn't sunny immediately after it rains (though it can be). I'd be surprised if for most full sun plants this was true. Then again, for a rain forest plant that rarely sees sun, it might be. I'll be interested in the science behind it, too.

Per the charcoal, I'm particularly interested in several aspects.

As Jodi said, it can take out impurities, but how often do you have to change it? I don't know. For some plants that you repot frequently, maybe it's not an issue.

Some people say that it draws the roots toward it. How in the world can that happen? I'm not saying it can't, but I want to know how. I've asked a couple of people who've said it and they haven't answered me.

Others have said they add charcoal because is adds air spaces for gas exchange. Well, it does, but how much? Unless you're using a significant percentage, it can't add that much. In addition, most of these people are using largish pieces with peat - so you have the whole pudding issue.

It's known that sunlight transmitted through water droplets on foliage can generate only 0.2 calories per minute. It is, therefore, incapable of burning leaves.......... In addition, 1/4 oz of water absorbs approximately 540 calories of heat as it evaporates, so it is very clear that instead of scorching leaves, water helps lower temperature of the leaf surfaces.

The notion that sunlight is "magnified by the water drop on the leaf to cause a leaf burn also won't hold up to scrutiny. In order for light to be concentrated enough to burn foliage, the focal distance between the drop of water would be such that the droplet could not be in contact with the leaf. It would have to be suspended a distance (focal distance) from the leaf in order to concentrate the sun's rays on a single point.

In short, the energy absorbed as water evaporates far outweighs that generated by sunlight.

Charcoal should be thought of as performing the same duties in container media as perlite. Neither 'activated' charcoal or horticultural grade charcoal do anything for container soils that perlite doesn't do. All manner of bacteria and fungi live side by side in harmonic bliss with various forms of charcoal in container media. The 'activated' type of charcoal is more porous & would retain more water but less oxygen. Even if you were to use 'activated' charcoal and could somehow cycle soil solution through it repeatedly, it would absorb some soluble salts, pesticides, or alkalinizing (is that a word?) minerals for a very short time, but it would not have this effect if simply mixed into the medium. If anything, it would have the undesirable effect of keeping the salts from being flushed from the soil with normal watering.

Al

Interesting discussion! If one persons "fallacy" is another persons "standard practice", and it does no harm; does it really matter? I've gardened for quite a few years with reasonable success. I've experimented with a lot of different practices and found some worked, some didn't work for me. If I didn't plan on trying a few things next year I've never tried before, gardening would be pretty boring.

Soil

Where I live we have a very good water supply. The sort of water that you can make a total water change to a fish tank or pond without the inhabitants suddenly going belly up. I have always watered plants - even in full sunshine - foliage and all - and never seen any burning. From this I have always assumed that the widespread idea that water will burn foliage in sunlight is more to do with what is added to the water in that area - rather than actual water itself.

Soil, you bring up an interesting point - why does it matter if someone thinks charcoal helps when it doesn't (or whatever it is)? If they aren't being harmed, then who cares?

I care because they might tell me and I might waste my time and effort trying it, only to get nothing out of it. I want to spend my time and effort doing things that are proven to have an effect that can be measured as positive. But, I'm a knowledge junkie, admittedly, and am extraordinarily practical. I do not like wasting my time at all! Or my money.

So much misinformation fuels books, the Internet, newspaper columns, magazines....I just want to know if there is something proven or not. I only care a teensy bit if other people "get it" - I mostly want to know for myself. If other people benefit, too, that's excellent. But, I know that many won't even read it, let alone believe it or try it.

Al, I completely believe your science, but what then causes water spots on African Violet leaves? I know from experience that they like water - I give them "showers" each time they are repotted and clean leaves sometimes in between repotting. But, they will get brown marks on the leaves if you leave water on them and place them back under the lights or in the window. I've seen it happen with unfertilized and fertilized water.

It could be from the salts in the water that are left behind after water evaporates, which can draw water from plant cells in the same fashion as curing salt draws water from meat; or perhaps the water on the foliage allows sufficient time for fungal spores to incubate. Most fungi require a certain minimum time in moist conditions in order to multiply. The lack of O2 may also kill trichomes on leaf surfaces (a guess).

You'll find dozens of refutations of the 'water drops = burned leaves' theory if you use the search words myth water drops burn leaves. It's just one of those things that gets repeated over & over again and refuses to die.

Al

Professionally misused plant nomenclature makes me just as nuts as many of the repeated fallacies of gardening. Take the poor Hippeastrum bulb, for instance... it's not an Amaryllis, at all... but the public and the bulb industry perpetuate this mistake in name! The only true Amaryllis is Amaryllis Belladonna, a South African bulb, and the only bulb in its classification. The Hippeastrum is the bulb we all see sold for forcing at Christmas, and it originated in South America.

I suppose it's too late to change the public's perception when it comes to this particular name... and maybe I'm just a stickler for knowing proper plant names... but it always strikes me as odd that the common names win out over the real ones in the retail and wholesale business of plants.

When it comes to soils and aeration, adding large chunks of anything to a fine-particled, organic, peat based soil does nothing to improve aeration... the fine particles just fill in around the large particles, thus defeating the whole purpose. It makes more sense to build a medium using particles that are all somewhere around the same size. This actually gives, and keeps, a well aerated medium.

Up until recently, I bought into the water/leaf burn issue... but last summer, it occurred to me that rain doesn't only happen in early morning, and it doesn't only rain under plants! It rains from above, right onto the leaves, flowers and stems! And sometimes, the sun comes out right after a good rain shower! And, rain water is oftentimes rather chilly!

Rain washes the leaves and stems and trunks and branches so a plant can photosynthesize and aspirate better... it's nature's "plant wash"!

If anything, I think early morning watering may help a plant by giving it the moisture it will need to help it through the heat of midday and early afternoon, when the sun is at its hottest.

What I want to know is... why are they called "old wive's tales"? I'm an old wife, and I don't go around spreading rumors that aren't truth! ;-)

"If one persons "fallacy" is another persons "standard practice", and it does no harm; does it really matter?"

I can think of several instances where it does matter, and in many cases they lead only to wasted effort or unnecessary concern; but, that employing certain misleading notions or mistaken beliefs leads to no harm doesn't change the fact that they are fallacies. If someone wants to believe that toads cause warts, they shouldn't be surprised if the fallacy is pointed out, or at least a wink and a nod is exchanged by those in the know.

From I Timothy 4:7 "But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness". So you can see the phrase has been around a long, long time. The term's meaning has changed over the years, however.

Throughout history, it was common practice to pass important information from generation to generation in the form of stories, or 'tales'. The information was easier to remember and believe if the lesson was offered in tale-form, and if the lesson had some logical outcome. In most civilizations, because the men were out hunting, at war, carousing at the bar ..... the messages were passed by women of the group. The more matriarchal (older) the woman the greater was her status and recognition for the value of her accumulated wisdom which she willingly shared with the young, which is how the original meaning of the term " Old Wives's Tale" came into being. Now though, it's meaning is: a story of questionable truth or a myth akin to urban legend.

Al

I don't blame the inexperienced gardener for being frequently perplexed by conflicting advice.

In rose growing you are almost always told never to wet the foliage as it will a create ideal conditions for fungus germination (with the exception of powdery mildew) and/or you will burn the foliage in bright sunlight.
However, some growers say that they regularly blast their roses with water - sunshine or not - to dislodge pests and state that their roses always seem to benefit from the wash by being more fresh and vigorous looking.

Take your pick.

What's to choose? Your first choice contains a myth, so that part shouldn't be weighed in your decision, and both choices could potentially be harmful. With the myth dispelled the results of either action are essentially the same, and if you employ them only on days when the foliage is sure to dry quickly, there is much reduced risk of complications.

Al

With a memory like mine, I'm glad I'm not in charge of passing down accumulated knowledge and stories to the "tribe"! I'm lucky to remember the things I do!

What makes it worse, is that I don't have a file system in my brain, so to speak, like many people do... everything just free floats around inside my head, and when something interesting or necessary passes by, I have to grab it and talk about it... or else wait for it to float by again! ;-)

Ok... I'm joking... just a little, though! I do have a terrible memory!

I think by "take your pick", Kevin means either believe the fallacies, or believe the truth... and act on it accordingly. Either believe that you'll burn your rose leaves and don't water them... or believe in the truth of the matter, that the leaves won't suffer for a good hosing in nice weather, and actually may benefit from it.

We live on a corner out in the middle of farm country. It's very dusty. Dust is caused by the cars and trucks stirring up the road dust, farmers stirring up field dirt and dust, and 9 sets of dog feet bringing dirt and dust in through a doggie door and a front door. Needless to say, the leaves of my plants get a little bit dusty over the warmer months... and even more so if the windows are open.

With all this dust floating around, it makes sense to give my plants a shower every once in a while. I take them to the kitchen sink occasionally and run tepid water over the leaves to dislodge the dust particles that can clog up the pores, and make photosynthesis and transpiration more difficult.

I don't worry too much about fungal issues... there's enough of a breeze created by the ceiling fans to adequately dry the leaves by the time the lights go off in the evening. And the perennial beds get sprinkled quite often, especially the ones near the roads!

So... a warm, breezy day would be perfect for hosing off the gardens... and it would be especially nice for plants that live near a road and traffic.

Ah... the old "toads cause warts" fable! My Grandmother used to say that when we were kids! She would tell us not to play with the toads and salamanders we'd find in the basement window wells... because we'd end up with warts! We'd laugh... and keep playing with the little creatures. Never had a wart in my life!

Unless you consider the actual science behind some of these gardening fallacies, some of them make a modicum of sense... the gravel drainage layer inside a pot, for example... until I learned about Perched Water Tables, I actually thought I was doing my plants a favor! I didn't even consider that the differences in particle size within the pot would cause moisture to get hung up! Now that I know, however, it makes perfect sense... and I now always use one layer of medium only, from top to bottom in every pot!

You are quite right, Jodik, that is precisely what I meant by 'take your pick'.

Unfortunately the inexperienced gardener, without the benefit of trial and error, has no way of knowing which advice contains myth and which does not.

Almost the first thing that the newcomer to container gardening is told is to put a drainage layer in the bottom of the pot, without the experience of knowing that this apparently sensible bit of advice is, in fact, complete nonsense.

Kevin

I think the reason these gardening fallacies seem to have a life of their own and live through generations, is they seem to make sense. Like taking parts of a politicians speech out of context you can make him say what ever your agenda requires. There is nothing wrong with pruning a plant at the same time you repot it and root prune it. But the reason for the pruning is because it NEEDS it. Not because you are trying to balance the foliage to the roots. If it does not need pruning there is no reason for doing it. Al

If I could go back and start at the beginning of my gardening education, I'd immediately want to learn about the differences between container gardening and gardening in the ground. I think that's an important starting point, and a good jumping off point to learn about the rest of gardening know-how.

But, just like children, the beginnings of gardening don't usually come complete with an operating manual! Usually, someone gifts you with a potted plant, or you follow your parents out to the vegetable patch and begin learning by watching and listening to them.

In essence, I learned gardening backwards! And here I am... a grandmother... and I'm in the process of re-teaching myself how to properly garden in a container environment.

It would also be easier if we could all see that the giants of wholesale and retail gardening do not necessarily have our best interests at heart... but are motivated to do what they do, sell what they sell, and say what they say, by money... by profit margin. They are no different than any other industry.

I have never read "Gardening For Dummies", but I'm fairly positive the book does exist... there seems to be one written for every avenue in life... but if I were to read it, I would now expect the beginning chapters to deal with the vast differences between gardening in a pot, and gardening in the ground... and the following chapters to go from there.

I don't think there's any real way that all the fallacies we hear will ever be put to rest... but through our want to learn more and better ways to garden, perhaps some of them will not keep being repeated to the next generation of gardeners.

When I started gardening, my primary misconception was the idea that I needed to re-create the habitat - the soil - of the plant in the container.

The second most prominent misconception I had was the idea that I needed to add pot-shards and rocks to the bottom of the container for drainage.

Most lately, I had been using charcoal in my mixes. I'm out of charcoal now, so I guess I won't buy any more...unless I'm trying to make a dark potting mix for a particular presentation.

I've always avoided watering plant leaves from directly overhead, too. I thought that the bleached spots that appeared on plants were from the sunlight, but it probably came from something else in the water...which stands to reason, since I always utilize rainshowers (above 55°F) to rinse my plants, and never have a problem with that water on the leaves.

This has been a great Thread. I've been letting all of my plant buddies know that I was wrong about water droplets burning leaves.

Josh

I've had to take back several things I've told others about gardening... container gardening in particular. I'm of the opinion that gardening and all it encompasses should be shared... but if I'm not sharing the proper information, who am I helping?

I was wr... wr... wrong! Yes, I was wrong! ;-)

I'd like to think that I've encouraged others to garden along the way... but if I'm giving them the wrong ideas to use, I may be actually discouraging them!

That's why I'm so thankful for people like Al, and our other very knowledgeable members here... they've really made me think... and they've given me the ideas, and the reasoning behind those ideas, so I can achieve a greater level of success... and I can share that success!

Yes... this is a great thread! And I think the more we discuss things like this, the more widespread the gardening success will be... not only do we have a good number of posters who come here, there are also a good number of readers who just never post.

Dispelling the myths and talking about the best ways to garden... and actually learning about the science, the "how" and "why" of the things we do... this is what makes it all work... and makes it all enjoyable!

I have also learned many things wrong. And, I also tried to apply inground techniques to containers. Didn't work well.

I wonder how many other things I "think" are correct that are not? I do know that sometimes in other forums, people will indicate that I'm on the wrong track when I suggest that peat-based soils may not be the best to use or fertilizing with 10-50-6 (or whatever) isn't helping the plant; I know they are missing critical information. Yet, they do not often appear to want it if I offer it. I just hope I am also not being closed to critical information that might set me straight about something I've yet to discover I'm doing incorrectly.

Like Josh, I hope that this thread continues and people continue to ask if what they do is fallacy or fact so we can continue to find out more things about what we are doing that may harm - or just be a waste of time/resources.

Yes, I would also like to express my thankyou to many of the wonderful gardeners here on GW, ones like Al, jodik, etc.. In fact, I'd browsed through all 67 pages in Container Garden and have picked up many useful advices for newbies such as myself. So thanks all for sharing your knowledge with everyone here! :)

I was pleased to note that Tapla, Al included VF-11 in his list of gardening fallacies. A local radio gardening guru, who was once a nursery owner, continually suggests its ability to cure any plant deficiencies. I have tested it on many different plants through two gallons of the stuff and it might as well have been water. When I met the gentleman at a garden show and mentioned my experiences, he suggested I was not using it often enough or perhaps I was using some other fertilizer at the same time which is not recommended. I am now very suspicious of products whose ingredients are a "secret". Al

The main reason my husband and I remain "dirt poor" is because we cannot, in all good conscience, sell any product that does not live up to its claims. We won't sell it if we can't honestly stand behind it. If I wouldn't use it, myself, I wouldn't sell it.

And that's one of the biggest problems in the world today... so many people are selling snake oil, and they don't care whether it works or not, or who gets hurt... they just want that profit. Greed... it's the reason for more than half of our country's problems, and will probably be one of the main reasons for the downfall of mankind.

Part of being a good salesman is learning to control the truth and the lies... learning how to manipulate people, and make them think that you're doing them a favor by offering the product(s)! And the lies are perpetuated...

How many people actually test a product? Not very many. Most buy into the hype, buy the product, and then stuff it in a cabinet if it doesn't work. Very seldom does anyone actually complain... and the few complaints that are lodged get lost in the corporate rush for more profit.

If honesty and integrity were brought back into the world of business, this would be a much better world. But we know all this...

Corporate greed, however, plays a big role in gardening today... the soils and chemicals, tools and accessories, and even the plants sold today are manufactured with the intention of being disposable or short lived so the consumer will spend more money buying another.

Plant tags are misleading, plant breeding is geared toward flower color, shape and size, and not toward longevity, immunity, or strength... soils are meant to break down fast...

As you can probably tell, I'm not really thrilled with corporate America and the direction it has brought everything, including gardening.

Remember when Mums were perennials? When Geraniums survived for years if you brought them in for winter? When every pot sold had a drainage hole? When tools lasted for more than one season?

I'm rambling now... but I think you get my point.

It's up to us to find the better ways to grow... because we know that the industry isn't going to steer us right. They just want our money. And while it's one thing to make a decent living, it's quite another to do so by duping the public.

End of rant... but another fallacy put to rest; the gardening industry is not the best go-to person for gardening advice... and if the ingredients are secret, chances are, the secret is... it doesn't work.

Jodi, unfortunately this requires that the world's inhabitants actually pay attention, learn, open their mouths, etc. People only do what they are internally motivated and externally incented to do. Corporations are incented by US! We bring on the demand by not being more discriminating, asking questions, and asking for things the actually meet our needs. We allow them to define our needs for us.

You are internally motivated not to hurt anyone. Other people have not such motivation. My husband, whom I love dearly, feels absolutely that it's not his responsibility if others act stupidly. Now, he wouldn't sell snake oil, but if someone bought a product he sold and it wasn't in that person's best interest, he assumes THEY should have figured that out, not he.

Caveat emptor! I wrote this a while back about Eleanor's VF-11:
Hmmmm. The guaranteed analysis of the primary macro-nutrients (NPK) in Eleanor's is Analysis: 0.15 - 0.85 - 0.55 This is less than 1% of ANY of the majors. 1/8 of 1% N, 7/8 of 1% P, 1/2 of 1% K. This is EXTREMELY low in fertility. Since I cannot find the rest of the analysis, I'm going to guess the rest of the nutrients are probably nonexistent or nearly so.

I haven't used this magic potion (VF-11), but then it's not necessary to ride the bus to know what makes the wheels go round & round. Forgive me for being somewhat skeptical or even cynical, but when vague claims are made like: "... and mildew is eliminated because VF-11 changes the pH and creates a condition where mildew can not grow. Once again, isn't it amazing?" I wonder why there isn't something specific in the claim. Changes the pH of what? Soil? Cellular pH? Leaf surface pH - for how long? Hmmm I also wonder at: "VF-11 builds so much strength and health that plant cells 'harden' and 'seal in' the amino acids which aphids feed on. You have merely eliminated their food supply. And you have done it without the use of poisonous systemic or pesticides. Pretty nice...huh?" Don't aphids feed on sap. How does this product make the sap unavailable to aphids? Does it somehow make cells so hard that they cannot be penetrated and dry up all the intra-cellular plant water/sap? Should I/we be saying GMAB here? There's more, but you get the drift.

I wouldn't say that this product has no benefit, as it may very well have some, but I am of the general feeling there is almost surely no panacean value to products like Superthrive or this elixir; and it's a good bet it's not the magic potion some may think it to be. I don't trust advertising that is known to be false and this alone is enough to fuel the skepticism in me.

One thing additional: The claim that "you cannot overdo", means there could only be extremely minute (almost immeasurable or nonexistent) amounts of any micro-nutrients in it because micro-nutrient overdose produces toxicity at even low levels and over-doing would reveal readily visible symptoms quickly.

Like I said, I wouldn't argue that it has no value, but I do know that I would invest in a good, known source of micro-nutrients and an appropriate fertilizer before I'd trust plant vitality to a product labeled with insubstantial claims.

Al

How about this one...?

1. Misting your plants makes them grow better?

I have some I never mist like gardenias and citrus, and then some I do, and they both grow just as well as the other..Who mists plants in Arizona at such hot dry temps, while my friends citrus grow superbaly there?

Here is another:

2. Misting your plants and addding humidity to a room via a humidifyer keeps mites away..False...
I have gotten in debates over this one...

3. An over head fan or breeze keeps insect at bay...False.

Why do all my local nurseries have constant pest problems with air ventaltion and fan anyways? It didn't do a thing for my plants last year..

Mike..;-)

Huh....I was looking for the info on how water cannot burn leaves when I found the article linked below. A new study shows that water and sunlight may indeed burn SOME leaves. Flat surface leaves didn't burn, but hairy leaves did! That may be why many AV growers swear that you shouldn't get water on your plants and put them in the sun.

Here is a link that might be useful: Live Science Article