Green Algae in my soil

Supernaut

New Member
So last night I noticed that the soil in some of my pots had a greenish tint to it. Today I could see it a little better and it seems to be algae.

What causes this?

How do I kill it? Preferably naturally, no chemical algaecide ect.

I thought I might cover the soil with a piece of panda poly and cut out the light to it, but that would cut airflow into my soil, which I would prefer to avoid.

Any ideas or suggestions?
 
you could also look at puting H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide) in with your nute mix. I use 32% h2o2 at 10mil per gallon and I have no issues with algea plus it works great in adding oxygen to the root structure.

:smokin:
 
Algae is special... Its a single celled plant that can grow from just parts of its self. The only way I have been able to control (I'm in hydro) is to starve it of light. You don;t wanna use an algicide... cause that's just basically an herbicide. Get some thick black plastic... like the husky contractor trash bags and use them to cover the pots and dirt when your not watering.
 
@SSNUGS - I had read about using h2o2, I may try that to initially kill the algae. By "10mil per gallon", is that 10ml as in milliliters per gallon?

@HeadMed - I had thought of doing something like that but wouldn't it make it difficult for the soil to breath? If I could leave about a 1/2-1" gap between the top of the pot and the plastic, would that cut out enough light on the algae or would it need to be completely dark? My thought process is that way it would still leave room for aeration.

Another tidbit of info about the situation. I ONLY have this algae growing in 2 out of 5 of my darkish green colored pots. That's why it was almost difficult to notice last night. There's all the green from the plants and the sides of the pots it kind of just looked like a greenish reflection on the soil or something. The black pots (9 of them) that I'm using show no signs of algae at all. Could the green pots somehow reflect a spectrum of light that is beneficial to the algae?
 
Ive had conditions which make the top of the soil prone to collecting algae before, i found that it could be easily overcome by replacing the top 1/2 inch of soil every month or so, this stops the algae forming a hard crust on the top of the soil and preventing water absorbtion... probs good for a bit of fresh soil on top every now and again.
 
yes that is 10 milliliters per gallon your using 32% if your using 29% jump it to 12.5 to 15 mils per gallon. Try on one plant first to see how it reacts then if you like the result go at it with the rest of your ladies.
 
@SSNUGS - I had read about using h2o2, I may try that to initially kill the algae. By "10mil per gallon", is that 10ml as in milliliters per gallon?

@HeadMed - I had thought of doing something like that but wouldn't it make it difficult for the soil to breath? If I could leave about a 1/2-1" gap between the top of the pot and the plastic, would that cut out enough light on the algae or would it need to be completely dark? My thought process is that way it would still leave room for aeration.

Another tidbit of info about the situation. I ONLY have this algae growing in 2 out of 5 of my darkish green colored pots. That's why it was almost difficult to notice last night. There's all the green from the plants and the sides of the pots it kind of just looked like a greenish reflection on the soil or something. The black pots (9 of them) that I'm using show no signs of algae at all. Could the green pots somehow reflect a spectrum of light that is beneficial to the algae?
Funny you say that, I have a grow going and only the 4 green pots have algae,not the blue or the black, very strange.
 
Algae is not bad for the plant unless it is allowed to grow way out of control. Think about all the algae that is allowed to continue to grow in those large gardens that people are invited to walk through to see what other gardeners are able to do.

If algae is growing on the soil surface the most common cause is that the soil surface stays moist. Adjust the watering schedule so more water is given at one time and then allow the soil to dry down for the first couple of inches. Also this is an optional addition to try and that is to turn over or scratch up the top half inch to inch of soil. Algae is a plant and turning soil like this seems to break up the algae root system without going deep enough to harm the top root for the plant in the pot. Also allow more air to flow over the surface of the soil.

Putting a cover over the soil will work because it keeps light from getting to the algae and will slow down and possibly kill it. Only problem I see with that is that the grower still has to do something about the wet soil surface. The cover might kill the algae but it can allow other soil molds to start to grow. The cover could reduce the amount of oxygen that is able to get to the soil and oxygen in the soil is needed for good root growth.
 
Back
Top Bottom