A ONE-TWO PUNCH FOR PLANTS
C
alcium and magnesium are two of the
three secondary nutrients required
by plants, the third being sulfur. They
are secondary in as far as quantities
required for growth, not importance
of function. Simply put, calcium and
magnesium are necessary for plant
growth and development and are easy
to fix in the case of a deficiency. While
nitrogen stands as requiring the highest
levels in a nutrient feed, secondary
nutrients calcium and magnesium only
require about eight to 10 per cent of that
amount. While their required levels are
much lower, their importance can’t be
understated.
Calcium
Calcium is important for strengthening a plant’s cell walls and maintaining
its structure. The importance of calcium
becomes evident when you see degradation of the leaves, which eventually
shows up as discoloration and cankerlike sores. When calcium is absent, the
integrity of the cell wall falls apart.
Calcium is not mobile inside the plant,
so the plant cannot borrow from nearby
areas to make up for local deficiencies.
Instead, calcium depends on transpiration to reach its destination.
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Maximum Yield USA | December 2016
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Calcium is not mobile
inside the plant, so the
plant cannot borrow from
nearby areas to make up
for local deficiencies.