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Re: cables and organic tomatoes

> I have the thermostat set to come on when the water column temperature falls
> to 79F. With an enclosed hood containing 6x55W compact fluorescent (ballasts
> are mounted remotely so they don't add their heat to the tank), at this time
> of year the substrate cables just don't come on because the water temp. is
> generally over 80F (right now, its 89F). Maybe in October..........

Yea, you got your money's worth there huh?<GGG> Well if you can only use it
in the winter it is STILL good. No need for a winter slow down and winter
cold related problems.
One member that closely watches his tanks notices some winter cold feet in
his basement. 

> By the way, the substrate cables are the _only_ heater in the tank. I have
> several Ebo Jager's sitting in the closet that I was expecting to have to
> use, but the cable is more than capable of keeping my tank at 80F during the
> winter, when it can get pretty cool (this _is_ Canada, after all).

I have not used a heater for what? 6 years or so?
 
> "One last musing:  If convection over the roots isn't beneficial, then
> why do hydoponic tomatos look so good. :-)"
> 
> Ewwwwwww! Give me sun ripened, field grown (organic please!) or give me
> nothing!

Ahhh, you can BTW, use organic hydroponic fertilizers.........and use
sunlight with hydroponics as many commerical grower using hydroponics
do........... What do you assume they out into the organic farmlands to
enrich the soils? Organic or not, they add some type of fertilizer. Can't
get something for nothing.  Additionally, pest can be fully controlled via
predator bugs so pesticides are not needed. This treatment can be much more
effective in a hydroponic set up. Water losses are kept to a minimum.
Additions of fertilizers to a soil media also loses around 1/2 of all the
Nitrogen to bacteria(-> N2 gas) before it makes it to the plant. This is
greatly reduced when using an inert media so you get more out of your
fertilizer.
Organic is the way to go. Taste better and is better.
You can fully optimize a fruit/crop using this method. The tomato will taste
even better. I recently tried some Organic strawberries. Excellent, great
taste and flavor and they got 2 times the yeilds, hydroponically.
> 
> Don't get me wrong - I'm not saying that heating cables don't work - I just
> don't how they work and I find it odd that a group which is so skeptical
> about fertilizer manufacturer's claims (which can be verified by a few
> simple tests) can jump up and down so energetically when reading the mantra
> of a few companies who _may_ have done some experiments but who have never
> shared their data with anyone else to have the tests duplicated and verified
> independently. 

Good point:)

>But maybe, just maybe....since their fertilizers work so
> well, and I like a lot of their other equipment, maybe they are bang on the
> money. At least they work for George....<g>.

They worked for me also. I'm not going to spend the $ though. Flourite works
and so does the Flourish etc. They have the iron like Dupla. Much cheaper
and better IMO too. We know what's in there and Greg is willing to let us in
on much of their info.
Regards, 
Tom Barr