Phyto fertilizer & Guillard F/2 formula

[Chumpo]

Hi
Does anyone know the Guillard F/2 formula for making Phyto fertilizer??

Can this be bought as a ready mix (or ready mixed) formula??

Any info on the formula, or places to buy appreciated.

Thanks

[graveyardworm]

You can buy F/2 here, Florida Aqua Farms

[jmanrow]

I am currently using some f/2 for my phytoplankton cultures. I know people that are using Scott's Miracle-Gro as suggested at Melev's Reef
http://www.melevsreef.com/phytoplankton.html They tell me it makes their phyto grow vey fast and dark in color. This is hardly reason to believe that it is totally safe.
I know some do not use it because it supposedly contains copper. Does anyone know if the copper is in high enough concentrations to be harmful? Artificial seawater mixes contain trace amounts of copper for that matter. I would also be concerned about the amounts of phosphate it may contain. I don't have any Miracle-Gro to check the ingredients, and not feeling up to making a trip to the garden center right now. Does anyone have any insight on this?

[piercho]

Melev switched to Miracle Gro because his Nanochloropsus culture kept failing with FAF-branded f/2. Many other people have no problems with FAF-branded f/2.

Graveyardworm found this CCMP website with the ingrediants for f/2. Unless you are planning to use a metric butt-ton of f/2, you will probably find the small bottles from FAF the best bet, IMO.

Miracle Gro:
• 5.8% Ammoniacal Nitrogen
• 9.2% Urea Nitrogen
• 30% Available Phosphate
• 15% Soluble Potash
• 0.02% Boron
• 0.07% Copper
• 0.15% Iron
• 0.05% Manganese
• 0.005% Molybdenum
• 0.06% Zinc

Both contain copper. So does every living thing and seawater and synthetic seawater, often in higher concentrations than what is found in f/2, so I don't have any clue what they are fussing about. Now top-of-the-food-chain fish like tuna they might want to avoid if they have concerns about copper content.

[graveyardworm]

Thanks Piercho, I looked for the thread that link was in but for the life of me couldnt find it.

[jmanrow]

Great info, thanks. I couldn't find much on the web about it.

[zuzecawi]

Part of the reasons most fertilizers have copper is to kill the fungus. I don't know, I'd feel a little odd using miracle gro in my phyto cultures too, but I feel better about it when I think of the incredible amount of toxins in the ocean. Most of us forget that nutrient poor and pristine are hardly the same thing.... marine life can be more forgiving than we think. I mean, look at all the flame retardent levels in our Oregon salmon and steelhead? Who needs to worry about spontaneous ignition after eating that?!!

[zuzecawi]

Hmmm... thinking this over more, a good test would be rotifers. If the phyto kills the rotifers after being fed miracle gro, you know there is too much copper. If it doesn't, it's golden.

[nrbelk]

I grow my rotifers with phyto grown from Miracle Gro. I also does my tank with the extra rotifers and haven't seen any negative consequences yet.

But I am wondering if I want to sell my produce, if I should switch to f/2.

[billsreef]

At best Miracle Gro will make a nutritionally poor phtyo, and therefore nutritionally poor rots. It's also not any cheaper than f/2. So IMO, yes, switch the proper Guillards f/2 and grow some quality stuff.

[jazzybio13]

Originally Posted by billsreef

At best Miracle Gro will make a nutritionally poor phtyo, and therefore nutritionally poor rots. It's also not any cheaper than f/2. So IMO, yes, switch the proper Guillards f/2 and grow some quality stuff.

I would say to this I absolutely agree. I have grown phyto via the mg+ee way for many years in our labs, and now have switched to f2 for my cultures.... if you have nutrient poor phyto, you have nutrient poor rotifers, which in turn, is nutrient poor for the prey species... in my case its fry, and those fry always seem to die off with phyto with miracle grow....formula, not because it doesn't grow the algae but because it is so nutritionally deficient!

Hope that helps the great debate!

[dlplunkett44]

F/2 is actually cheaper than MG, especially if you buy the mass packs. No reason not to use it.

[bigbear4x43]

do you need to refidge the f2 and how nuch do you use for 2 litter

Originally Posted by Chumpo

Hi
Does anyone know the Guillard F/2 formula for making Phyto fertilizer??

Can this be bought as a ready mix (or ready mixed) formula??

Any info on the formula, or places to buy appreciated.

Thanks

[billsreef]

Originally Posted by bigbear4x43

do you need to refidge the f2 and how nuch do you use for 2 litter

It will have a longer shelf life if kept in the fridge. As for how much to dose, it depends on the concentration of your stock solution. I use the Mass Packs from Florida Aqua Farms mixed to their directions, which gives a stock solution for which you use 1ml/2L.

[Invertebrated]

F2 fertilizer

Sent from my LGMS550 using Tapatalk

[Barry109]

Originally Posted by Chumpo

Hi
Does anyone know the Guillard F/2 formula for making Phyto fertilizer??

Can this be bought as a ready mix (or ready mixed) formula??

Any info on the formula, or places to buy appreciated.

Thanks

[Barry109]

Originally Posted by Chumpo

Hi
Does anyone know the Guillard F/2 formula for making Phyto fertilizer??

Can this be bought as a ready mix (or ready mixed) formula??

Any info on the formula, or places to buy appreciated.

Thanks

[Barry109]

Sorry first time on this site hope this helps

[Subsea]

Barry,
The link did not work for me. Do you have knowledge of phyto and macro algae fertilizer.
I planned on growing ediable Gracilaria Tikvahiae.

[Subsea]

I considered using F2 to grow macro. Just this week, I spoke with Frank Hoff, who wrote the book on phyto culture. Florida Aqua Farms has two products for macro algae.

http://floridaaquafarms.com/shop/pla...lant-fuel-too/

[taricha]

Subsea, That's a cool formula. Everything a macro needs except N and P. You and the fish provide that part.