Native Plants
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
rate this answer
Tuesday - December 04, 2007
From: Phoenix, AZ
Region: Southwest
Topic: General Botany, Watering
Title: Effect of epsom salts and gray water on plants
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
We live in Phoenix where water is a precious commodity. We have decided to use as much of the gray water as we can for watering our garden, shrubs and trees. One of the suggestions we heard about was to use the water from the bathtub. We were wondering if the Epsom Salts(magnesium sulfate-MgSO4.7H2O) that we use in the bath water is harmful to the plants and/or trees?ANSWER:
Well, unless the concentration of epsom salts in your bath water is very high, it will probably be beneficial to your plants. Both magnesium and sulfur are necessary plant nutrients. Plants need magnesium for the production of chlorophyll and, therefore, it is necessary for photosynthesis. Magnesium is also important in activating many enzymes. Sulfur is a component of some amino acids and is also a component of some enzymes. You can read more about the effect of epsom salts on plants in:
What is the effect of epsom salt on a plant? and How does epsom salt affect plant growth?
Generally, the level of each of these nutrients in soils is high enough for the plants' health. However, sometimes soil has low levels of Mg and/or S and, in that case, epsom salts are recommended as a fertilizer.
You can see recommendations from basic-info-4-organic-fertilizers.com for proportions for the application of epsom salts as a plant supplement. You can compare these proportions with the concentration of epsom salts in your bath water. If your bath water isn't more concentrated, then your plants will probably benefit from its application—not only for the moisture but for the added nutrients as well.
More Watering Questions
Removing water from local rivers to water garden from San Marcos TX
February 14, 2013 - I live in San Marcos Central Texas and my household experiments with a lot of organic gardening in our back yard, and I was wondering how using the surrounding rivers such as the Blanco or San Marcos ...
view the full question and answer
Is sulfurous well water affecting leaves on trees in Belton TX
November 07, 2011 - We installed an irrigation system for our buffalo grass lawn last spring. The grass is fine but the leaves on the trees are burned where the water hits them. I suspect that the well we are using fo...
view the full question and answer
Transplant shock
July 27, 2006 - Today I dug up a new natchez variety crape myrtle that had only been planted about 3 months ago. It is fairly young. It was very difficult to dig up as it's root were pretty settled in the spot it ...
view the full question and answer
Trumpet Vine Dropping Buds
July 25, 2013 - My trumpet vine is dropping its buds before flowering. This happened last year as well. Do you know what is causing this and what I can do to prevent it?
view the full question and answer
Limp leaves on Texas purple sage in Magnolia TX
July 22, 2010 - Recently planted Texas purple sage, some of it looks healthy and has new blooms, but a few of the plants have limp leaves and are thin at the bottom. I read the article on cotton root rot, but am not ...
view the full question and answer
| Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |