One reader sent some information about Epsom salt, which I remembered as one of those all around gardening helps - and it is very low in cost, like many effective but basic chemicals. Borax is the best mold killer, for instance, but people use chlorine bleach, which is potent on the nose, harsh on the hands, and ineffective against the entire mold thingy growing there.
I am not sure what the official definition of "salt" is, since there are many salts. Epsom salt was discovered in Epsom, England. It is widely used in agriculture and easy to apply. The beauty of Epsom salt is its affinity for water. It dissolves easily in water and can be applied to plants by spraying it on the leaves.
Wikipedia:
In gardening and other agriculture, magnesium sulfate is used to correct a magnesium or sulfur deficiency in soil; magnesium is an essential element in the chlorophyll molecule, and sulfur is another important Macronutrient.[13] It is most commonly applied to potted plants, or to magnesium-hungry crops, such as potatoes, roses, tomatoes, lemon trees, carrots and peppers. The advantage of magnesium sulfate over other magnesium soil amendments(such as dolomitic lime) is its high solubility, which also allows the option offoliar feeding.
Garden.org:
Roses
Many rosarians agree that Epsom salts-treated planats (sic) produce more new canes at the bottom of the plant (bottom breaks) and darker green foliage. Recommendations on how much to use vary, but generally you can apply 1/2 cup of granules in spring before buds first begin to open and 1/2 cup in fall before leaves drop. Apply a foliar spray (1 tablespoon per gallon of water per foot of shrub height) after the leaves open in spring and again at flowering.
Tomato and Peppers
Magnesium deficiency in the soil may be one reason your tomato leaves yellow between the leaf veins late in the season and fruit production slows down. Test your soil every 3 years or so to check on nutrient levels. Epsom salts can keep plants greener and bushier, enhance production of healthier fruit later in the season, and potentially help reduce blossom-end rot. Apply 1 tablespoon of granules around each transplant, or spray a solution of 1 tablespoon Epsom salts per gallon of water at transplanting, first flowering, and fruit set.
Epsom salts is available in drug and grocery stores.
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I am definitely going to get Epsom salt at the store.
Our soil has plenty of clay, and clay has the most active ion exchange of all soils. The problems encountered with clay are the difficulty in digging and the way clay holds onto its ions, which is where the soil chemicals release their minerals to the plants.
Organic matters helps with both. Soil creatures dig, tunnel, and sweeten the soil, and the right pH allows more ion exchange.
One of the benefits of Epsom salt is the sulfur in the compound, magnesium suphate. Sulphur has many benefits for our health and for plant health, and so does magnesium.
Most herbs have one given compound with health benefits. Some, like garlic, have many benefits.
Herbs tend to favor poor soil, an additional bonus. Until recently, almost all of pharmacy consisted of using herbal remedies, from feverfew to digitalis.
Since God has managed all this so well and provided dozens of remedies for us at our doorstep, we might rely on Him for spiritual matters as well.
