Silica
Why your plants need Silica
Silicon gets laid down in the cell wall and stiffens it. That is what lets a heavy plant hold itself up, and what makes it shrug off heat and pests.
Eleven on the shelf, but only two kinds that matter. This is the one we put growers on.
Pathway 40% Mono Silicic Acid
- 40% mono-silicic acid, high analysis
- 1 mL per 10 L of water
- Goes in before any other nutrient or additive
- Grow and bloom, stop 7 days before harvest
- Foliar at 2 mL per 10 L
| 100mL | $420/L | $42 |
| 250mL | $316/L | $79 |
| 500mL | $300/L | $150 |
| 1LBEST VALUE | $275/L | $275 |
It goes into the cell wall
Silicon is deposited in the wall and stiffens it. You are building the frame, not feeding the plant.
Strong stems carry heavy flower
Thicker, more rigid walls hold a top-heavy plant up. That is where the weight talk comes from.
There are two different products here
Potassium silicate is the traditional one: cheap, alkaline, bigger dose. Mono-silicic acid is the newer form: tiny dose, absorbed directly, no pH swing.
Silica goes in first, on its own, or it will cost you
Potassium silicate is alkaline. Drop it into a mixed reservoir and it meets calcium and phosphorus at full strength, and you get sludge in the bottom of the res and a lockout instead of a benefit. Into plain water first, mix it fully, then everything else. It will also lift your pH, so check pH after it is in, not before. Mono-silicic acid products do not have this problem, which is most of what you are paying for.
You are not feeding the plant. You are building the frame.
Same form, different concentration and use. The cheaper potassium silicates are in the full range below.
- 100% mono-silicic acid
- Ortho-silicic acid, highly soluble
- Shorter internodal spacing
- Resistance to heat, cold and drought
| 250mL | out of stock | $78 |
| 1L | $260/L | $260 |
- 16% mono-silicic and meta-silicic acid
- Both fully soluble in nutrient solution
- Shelf life over 20 years
- Stiffens stems and leaves, resists heat wilt
| 250mL | $136/L | $34 |
| 1L | $98/L | $98 |
| 5L | $77/L | $385 |
| 20LBEST VALUE | $56/L | $1,120 |
- Highly concentrated stabilised silicic acid
- Used as a foliar fertiliser
- Improves root structure and water management
- Resilience against insects and abiotic stress
| 100ml | $450/L | $45 |
| 250ml | $460/L | $115 |
| 500ml | $380/L | $190 |
| 1L | $335/L | $335 |
| 5LBEST VALUE | $288/L | $1,440 |
All in stock. Price shown is the smallest size.
| Product | Key ingredient | Best for | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pathway 40% Mono Silicic Acid | 40% mono-silicic acid, high analysis | Growers sick of silica pushing their pH around and clouding the res. | $42 |
| Advanced Nutrients Rhino Skin | Silicon that thickens and stiffens cell walls | Growers already running the Advanced Nutrients line. | $27 |
| FloraMax Silica | 16% mono-silicic and meta-silicic acid | Growers who want the highest concentration and the longest shelf life. | $34 |
| Emerald Harvest Sturdy Stalk | Soluble silicon from potassium silicate | Top-heavy plants that need the stem to hold the flower up. | $49.50 |
| Flairform Silika Majic | 15% potassium silicate (NPK 0-0-10) | Veg and flower, and growers who prune hard. | $35 |
| Green Planet Plant Guard | Liquid potassium silicate | Bigger rooms buying by the drum. | $50 |
| Hy-Gen Budlink | Soluble silica | All stages, soil or hydro, on a budget. | $26 |
| Mills Vitalize | Highly concentrated stabilised silicic acid | Foliar programmes and growers fighting heat stress. | $45 |
| Super Si | 100% mono-silicic acid | Growers who want the purest form and nothing else in the bottle. | $260 |
| Athena Balance | Potassium silicate compound | RO growers whose pH will not sit still. | $32 |
| GT Silica 1L | Soluble silicon for hydroponic solutions | First time running silica. | $15 |
Potassium silicate or mono-silicic acid?
When do I add it?
Will it raise my pH?
Microbes
Silica builds the frame. A microbe extends the root system that has to supply it.
See the microbe rangeCal-Mag
Silica and calcium both build cell walls, and coco under LED runs short of calcium first.
See the cal-mag rangeRoot stimulants
A bigger root system is what feeds the frame you just built.
See root stimulantsBuild the frame before you load it
Silica has to be in the plant before the weight arrives. Every one of these is in stock and ships today.
Happy Hydroponics, 1/35 Gwen Road, Cranbourne West VIC 3977 · Mon to Sat 9:30am to 5:30pm