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Re: Adzsum Plus
James wrote:
> Adzsum Plus is merely montmorillonite clay (pretty much the same thing that
> Profile Clay Soil Conditioner, as well as some Kitty Litters), so it
> certainly won't hurt your plants. Don't believe the stuff of their web site
> about it being "paramagnetically-charged" - that sounds like they have been
> growing something to smoke rather than something to eat.
I laughed when I read this :). Oddly enough, paramagnetism is a pretty
common mineral property. Many smectite clay minerals including
montmorillonite are paramagnetic. That just means that they have a
slight tendency to be drawn into a magnetic field. It's the opposite of
being diamagnetic. Paramagnetism might be an important property if
you're studying past changes in the earth's magnetic field, or trying to
separate different minerals out of a crushed powder with a magnetic
separator, but otherwise there isn't much reason to care.
What does it mean for growing plants? It means the mineral has a little
bit of iron or manganese locked up inside. Aside from that, some
salesman decided that being paramagnetic must do some unspecified,
mysteriously wonderful thing for plants. I think that was just because
the name sounds kind of magically cool and they needed a good word to
sell the product.
It's paramagnetic! It might even be piezoelectric!
Roger Miller
on a sparkling-clear fall night in Albuquerque.