I must say I have enjoyed reading all of the comments on this topic. I especially keyed in on the comment of how some of you enjoy learning and science. I too am an avid fan of scientific research. Therefore, may I suggest that some of you who have some of this sea salt stuff set up an experiment. Take three plots of land, water them all the same, and then spray each with the same amount of water. On one plot add the sea salt to the water you spray, to another add an equivalent amount of sodium chloride from table salt (if help is needed with this calculation just ask), and leave the last as your blank control. After growing season please share your SCIENTIFIC DATA that you collected from these three plots. Then and only then will I believe that there is an advantage to this sea salt. Besides it is all for the sake of good gardening and science.

http://www.remineralize.org/

Here is some good reading on soil remineralization and Sea 90(sea salts) You can also do research on DR. Murrary and read about his results using sea water and sea salts. He used these hydroponic and regular methods.

OK, here is the misconception. When you are talking about SALT in gardening we are not talking about sodium chloride. That is the type of salt that is in Sea Salt and Table Salt. The Salt you should use is Epsom Salt. It is Magnesium Sulphate. Soil most definately needs some sodium chloride, but by rotating your crops, you can keep from depleting your soil of Salt. Just as legumes are a nitrogen fixating plant, some plants have the same effect with Salt. The other problem with using sodium chloride is it will burn your plants, expecially if you live in a hotter climate. Secondly, the reason people from Inda put sea salt on their coconut trees is because they are closer to the sea and have a high rate in the soil naturally, so the tree has acclimated to having that much sea salt.

My garden is 500 feet from saltwater, so proximity to the ocean probably doesn't necessarily have much to do with needing such amendments or not.

organic-marcie,
Sea 90 is a lot more than mag sulphate. Sea Solids contains the 90 elements found in seawater. Dr. Murrays studies show that adding sea solids to the soil, increased the nutritional quality of plants.

This product is OMRI listed.

Though I never tried it myself, I don't feel it is necessarly bad for the soil. I would like to hear from more growers that have used it, how it effected the quality and quantity of their produce. Animals forage more on soils that were treated with this product.

I have applied this product to some of my soil for the upcoming year. Know some farmers have used it and claim good results. You add it for four years and then skip five they say. I would like to know how those who tried it last spring came out. What the results were and if they could tell a difference. I have found you never learn anything new if you don't try. Going to do some comparison treatments this year and take pictures of each so I can document the results. Looking forward to hearing from those who have tried it and their results good or bad. Those who haven't and just want to bad mouth Sea-90 I would prefer not to hear from. JMO. Jay

I wonder how the stuff in Sea-90 compares to a Marine salt sold for salt water aquariums both in terms of content and price.

I do a 5 gallon water change per week in my reef tank and normally just dump the water down the drain. Wouldn't mind using it in a small area or for a few container plants just to see what happens. If nothing else, all the good stuff in sea salt mixes is soluble and balanced. Not sure about the pH shifting properties though, most mixes are buffered at 7.8-8.4, but that may not have any appreciable affect on soils.

I do know that the salt water from my tank makes a good ice melt! ;-)

One of the biggest problems worldwide with our agricultural land is salinization from salt building up from irrigation water. I cannot imagine intentionally adding salt to my soil. Do what you want. It is a free country as of yet. Plantnfool.

Actually sodium chloride is a functional element not a essential element in the soil. I have found studies on the internet about this subject last year. Seems it does have benefits.Salt buildup in waters is mainly due to chemical fertilizers. I too would like to hear what results others had. So far, any posts that I have read from users on different forums has been positive.

It is my understanding that vast areas of Russia are not fit for any farming of any kind due to over use of river water for irrigation that has increased the salt in the soil to the point of devastation.

When Rome defeated Carthage sometime before Christ they salted the soil to destroy the areas ability to support itself by farming. Carthage ceased to be an entity in the politics of the mediterranean.

Again do as you please. I am not salting my soil.

What about seaweed extract as a foliar spray?

I think it's important to keep dosage in mind. Natural seawater is about 1/2cup of salt per gallon. To apply this for every watering would probably kill anything growing.

When we give our plants nitrogen, it will also kill them, in doses smaller than 1/2 cup per gallon of water.

I can't say whether an occasional watering with salt has any benefits or not, but I don't see the occasional use of a weak dilution being inherently harmful.

When in doubt, test in containers ;-)

It would be helpful to see a side by side comparison of the minerals and other constituents in diluted Sea Agri, and those in urine. They sound similar, but urine is free and plentiful.

See anothr link in favor of sea salt. Mike Adams is a reputed naturalist and I have found his recommendations work.

http://www.naturalnews.com/SpecialReports/Ocean_Grown.pdf

Seaweed grows in salt water but is not salty. Kelp does contain a lot of minerals, and frankly, I cannot understand why anyone would want to use sea salt instead of kelp. Liquid kelp has been shown to provide minerals in many, many situations without toxifying the soil. Sea salt is most well known for precisely toxifying the soil.

It is not meaningful that the distribution of minerals in sea salt is the same as in our body. Just for starters, salt water is a proven emetic. Drink it long enough and it will kill you. So that analogy is totally busted.

So what exactly are the advantages of sea salt over kelp, asides from being extraordinarily cheap (you get what you pay for)? No one has addressed that at all.

urine is fine if diluted 20 parts water to 1 part urine. and as far as your theory on the salt and WAY back when plantnfool, 1, that WAS way back then 2, they didn't have all the air pollutants we have now 3, if ya go biblical, well , our bodies NEED so much sodium or we'd die,( trust me on this, i had a low sodium count because of the meds i take and had to rush to the docs and get a rush on an iv or i'd been in serious trouble!! i was very sick for a while,) so that being said it only makes sense that the earth also needs a certain amount of sodium, not to mention the fact that sodium is a natrual resource and GOD did make it, therefore you would figure it needs it, just in WHAT quantities, GOD did give us a brain to use, its up to us to use it and figure out stuff like this, what works where and how much to use. IMO i'm not trying to be mean, :'))
BLU: while i do enjoy your reading all of your stuff, you are a very informative person!! man, you can really get into this with people about their not using something or not being "up to knowledge" on something. (i'm NEVER good with words!!! LOL) i notice this is a serious forum, i love this forum for all the knowledge it has, i want to organic garden, but some of you really are sorda harsh!! maybe ya don't mean to come off that way, but you sure do!!!
i am so very interested in this charcoal and putting it on the garden, i read that on the other topic. VERY INTERESTING!! i love reading all of your idea's though!! :')) **big grinn**

Have tried Sea Agri and had tremendous results. But also try Ocean Solution. Won't leave a dead spot and there is plenty of Science and official testimonials. Most of the individuals posting should google 'White Paper' on Sea Salts. Here is some food for thought for the uneducated,use the resources that are aviable on the Net. You will get an education surrounding the use of NPK based fertilizers vs Sea salt supplements.

Soln. Doc., please supply some links to the research you refer to, not interested in testimonials.

Plantfool and soil_lover: do not confuse the term salt, sodium chloride, with salts, accumulated minerals in water and soil. A buildup of salts in surface waters is not caused primarily by "chemical fertilizers" but rather by the accumulation of soluble minerals dissolving into the waters from waters passing over and/or through soil. The effect of an over accumulation of sodium in soils is very different than that of salts, look up "saline soils", "sodic soils" and "saline sodic soils".

In my alkaline clay loam soil, it would be insane to add salt, absolutely nothing good could come from it.

What about the great flood and Noah? Was god remineralizing the earth?
I think so!

Cranky, seaweed is salty. Where do you think seaweed got all of those minerals anyway? From the ocean water. Seafood has long been considered to be very healthy, but the question is why? It has constant access to the minerals in the water. Do you have a better explanation?

I too have used SEA-90, and no, I have no association with the company. I used it on my lawn, my herbs, fruit trees, vegetables, etc. The results have been very impressive and the leaves get this beautiful, dark green color.

I'd recommend reading "Sea Energy Agriculture", by Dr. Maynard Murray, or at least read some of his articles and/or excerpts from his book on the web. See if what he wrote doesn't make perfect sense to you. Just because he was first and foremost a medical doctor doesn't mean he wasn't an expert on agriculture too. Just about anyone is capable of educating themselves by reading books and doing their own research/experiments. You don't need a professor to hold your hand and tell you what to read and what not to read in order to do it. Especially if that professor was taught to automatically disregard anything that he/she wasn't taught in school or anything that contradicts what was taught, which is common.

Well, reviewing my comments on this thread I see that I have learned a lot since then about soil science. This year I used salts of five or six different minerals in the garden, and increased health and vigor is pretty clear. I also got ahold of a small amount of granite dust and am using that as well. I will assert that it is much less costly to mine and transport the elements than it is to transport concentrated OM. One 50lb bag of sul-po-mag will create a huge amount of well-mineralized OM over time, and presumably 50 lbs of very fine granite dust far more. Shipping around heavy liquid seaweed is a refined example of stupidity, because it is largely N. A well-managed system doesn't need N-input. The trace elements in liquid seaweed can be more easily and cheaply obtained from other sources.

Borax is a salt of Boron and an easily available way to add B, which is low in most soils and is a very critical complex plant element. I found the easiest way to add it is to mix it into limestone when one adds lime.

Blu, are you still out there? i was wrong about the charcoal, it is very stable and persistent. I find it in the soil constantly now. I have read that charcoal is a magnet for minerals, so it is an excellent thing to add with the mineral salts.

Nice to see someone educated themselves. Yes they are called trace elements because plants only need them in trace amounts.
Most soils contain all the trace elements needed by plants but in some areas one or more can be lacking. Plant symptoms can give you a clue, but only a soil test can tell you for sure. In the uncommon case that a soil is lacing in some trace element it can usually be corrected without throwing an expensive miracle cure all's at it.

According to a least one paradigm, the one for the lab I am getting tests from, most of the macro and micro nutrients are lower than optimum in most soils. So it would be a very rare soil that did not need mineral supplements to produce disease-free and insect-resistant crops.

You can add all the mineral material possible and still not see worhtwhile results if yiour soil does not contain enough organic matter to allow your soil to have an actgive Soil Food Web which will convert those minerals into nutrietns your plants can use.
Most often adding sufficient amounts of organic matter to your soil will supply enough of those trace nutrients so spending money on supplements will not be necessary.

Kimm, give it a break.

This thread is about minerals, not a debate about whether minerals inputs are bad and whether the only acceptable input is OM grown on some other land of unknown mineral quality.

I have only ever read this one sentiment from you; it is on a limited basis good advice, for beginners or for impoverished soil it can hardly go wrong. As an advanced way of operating it makes no sense and a whole generation of unthinking organic gardeners with their endless problems have proved it.

Organic matter, PH, and a host of other things effect the minerals and nutrients available to a plant. Many times soils contain all the needed minerals but sometimes they are not available to the plants. This is why the first step is to determine what the soil is made up of so you don't waste your money on garbage. Sometimes all that is needed is organic matter, sometimes not. All situations are different; for example there are plants that really hate organic matter and mulch, and some that thrive if this is all they get. Am I confusing anyone yet?

"all situations are different"

Maybe, but I'd call that statement exaggeration or splitting hairs. Many situations are quite similar in a given geographic/climatic region is a more useful way to look at it.

I know this is an old thread, and I haven't read the whole thing, but I wanted to make one comment. In the first third of the thread, it was repeated several times that sea-mineral amendments have many more minerals, etc., than plants need. Hazarding a comment that could be spun to sound like Bill Clinton, that depends on your definition of "need".

Plants can grow in poor soil with just synthetic NPK fertilizers. That's been proven over my lifetime on commercial farms all over the place, with soils tottering on the knife-edge of dead (hovering at about 3% organic matter). The plants grow, they don't usually die in large numbers, and produce crops that can be sold. "Needs" satisfied.

Plants also grow in hydroponic medium, on a liquid diet, whether synthetic or naturally-derived, resulting in edible produce that many consider high quality. "Needs" satisfied.

Plants grow in rich, deep, vital soil made up of innumerable flora and fauna and an intricate life web providing everything the plants "need".

The main difference between the finished products (well, some would quibble with me, but this is my post, and my opinion ;o) is nutritional content. The more varied and intense the mineral content of the soil, the more nutritious the produce grown in it. Taste alone tells us this . . . but there have been studies (including one done by Nate Skow from FDA crop nutritional content records). The more mineral-rich in the soil, the better the plants do. The better the plants do, the better WE do, because we get what we need without eating 2,500 calories a day and still being hungry. ;o)

That said, I'm going to try some sea-schtuff on my garden this year. I've used kelp before, and LOVED it.

There are about so many macro and micro minerals needed for optimum plant growth. There are even more minerals needed for optimum human growth. Elements like Yttrium, Scandium, Vanadium, Strontium, and more are vital yet needed in minute amounts. I believe that is where remineralizing on soils with good synergy to make these elements available is important.

Blutranes, are you living?

Lets see, where to start.
If one looks at the originator of this, then one can see that the good doctor ( not a research scientist, not a biochemist or anyone with a doctorate in a field that studies plants...nope a MD like the one you go to if you have a sore throat) filed a patent in 1958 that was granted in 1963... for the use of sea solids (unrefined sea salt from any ocean in this world...his words)in hydroponic gardening.
In the patent he also claims results by testing it on tomatoes..the only soil based test mentioned in the patent.
He claims that about a ton/acre of that material is the right amount to grow tomatoes. Looking at the actual growth results ...well, frankly I have seen better results by simply using compost.
But, here is the zinger.... in order to get this result the sea solids described in the patent where mixed with ~900lbs of nitrogen /ton.So the good doctor did not use only sea salt, he mixed it with nitrogen pellets a chemical.

So what you have is about a 50/50 mix of nitrogen to unrefined sea salt.
Nowhere on the website of that product do I see any mentioning that they add nitrogen to their sea salt.
This tells me that we have an outfit that is claiming to work according to a patent, but they are not. They use unrefined sea salt ( look at the claims of elements in this and compare it with every day unrefined sea salt from S-America)and they sell it to the gullible for a huge markup.
Moreover, the final patent was NOT for the use as a soil conditioner but to use as a nourishment in hydroponic production (but including the added nitrogen).
Moreover, some plants don't like salt at all, some tolerate it and some like it. tomatoes, coconut, eggplants are all plants that actually like to have a trace amount of salt to prosper (and thus having basil between tomatoes is causing tomatoes to produce about 20% more fruit.) To sell this as a wide use soil supplement and as a way to re-mineralization for your soil is i.m.h.o irresponsible.Some people will use more then the prescribed trace and actually poison their gardens, some people will use it and have plants that will be stunned in growth and some will have plants that can use the salt. The results will vary wildly and people would probably get far better result to just use nitrogen either in form of compost/plant recycling or in form of a chemical additive then the use of this product. If anyone takes the time and look at the actual trace elements in this and then look at the recommended dosage I think that your natural rain water traversing through the pollution in our atmosphere will have close to the same values. But hey, don't take my word for it, I strongly believe that P.T.Barnum was right. So you all make up your own mind.

fertilizersalesman,

"You are mistaken, I know exactly what it is. The numbers I posted above came right off the Sea Agri web site. If you are convinced that this is a beneficial product, go ahead and use it. But you should not be offended if I point out that it is snake oil, which is exactly what it is. I never would have dreamed that people would pay $2.50 a pound for sea salt to put on their gardens because it is so utterly ridiculous. But then again I never dreamed people would pay good money to put coal dust in their garden either. But hey, if you are having fun pretending it is a miracle product knock yourself out I am not going argue with you about it"

Agree 100%

nutritionally speeking- your not getting much, thats just science.

I see that this thread began some years back, but I believe it is still worthy of my support. In 2006 I was on my death bed because my immune system was that badly compromised. I had already been to numerous specialists and major hospitals, all in effort to stop a strange disease that "developed" by my early 30's. So it was a last ditch effort to become an experimental patient at an out of state clinic that typically treated cancer patients - which I did not have. The obvious is that I'm still alive today to place this comment.

There was a well established scientist at that clinic, who specialized in his knowledge of the human immune system - and invented some allergy treatments as a result of his understandings. Lets just say that he had a down to earth approach in treating me (and others at the clinic) that began with efforts to reinstate as much health as possible back to the immune system. That, because as he taught me, the immune system is the human body's first line of defense.

What does that have to do with sea salt gardening? Well, six days a week I would receive an IV bag (over hours) that contained the vitamins and minerals / trace elements, ect., that my body had apparently been long lacking. In addition, I was instructed to do away with processed foods and meats, except for baked fish twice weekly. In place of the undesired foods I was to eat foods in their naturally grown form - especially those that were organically grown. The reason was to help assure that I was consuming, daily, the array of vitamins, minerals / trace elements that most people do not seem to be aware that they do not adequately get from processed foods.

I want to share that I did not count calories, ate plates full of variously colored fruits and vegetables, nuts in their raw form, the required fish, gluten free grains, and so on. I didn't limit the amount I ate. Yet, I dropped 20 pounds a week until my weight simply leveled off, and I felt better than I had in years - like I was a teen again, energy wise.

From (patient) group conversations that were held at the clinic, and with that scientist answering our questions, it seemed to me, that he did not especially favor artificial types of fertilizing, but organic fertilizing, and for one reason, because the first method did not replenish soil with most, if not all, of those necessary nutrients humans should be obtaining from vegetation. Sea foods do have those trace elements, if also a concern for mercury - why he limited twice weekly, I believe.

My understanding was that minute amounts of those trace elements are all the human body requires - but that it most certainly does need them for optimal health. Just as a person can survive without all the needed nutrients, and apparently for some years (again, I reached my early 30s) I would imagine that vegetation also can. But there is a difference between merely surviving - feeling sickly and low of energy all the while - and THRIVING.

In my case, my immune system had become so screwed up that it began attacking my own flesh. I'd had huge wounds on my lower legs that had not healed in years. Following the above diet changes they finally healed and I am alive - case in point.

Science tells us that the entire world was once covered in ocean water, and that the plant and animal life that sprung from it was huge and robust after the waters receded. Common sense might suggest that it had to do with the nutrients left behind. I could further relate that to what trace elements are, and the fact that the human body has a degree of electrical functioning to it when it comes to cell-to-cell communication. So, yes, I can see where adding sea salt to growing food would be beneficial.

Mary,

An interesting story. It's lucky that you encountered someone who understood the importance of diet. Would you mind describing in some detail what your diet was like before going to the clinic?

I'm going to add my two cents. I buy about $40 to $50 of seaweed (Nori, Wakame, Hijike, etc) I soak it in a large garbage can for 2-days and broad spread and work it into my soil. I've been doing it for at least 5-years. It's a great soil conditioner and the worms love it! Snake oil or wives-tale, I believe in seaweed. The plants love it too! It's a matter of preference.
PS: I've had earth worms the size of small garter snakes, I was so scared. I thought the soil was radioactive. (I grew up watching The Blob and Tarantula! So I took them to the agricultural office, they tested them and they came back as healthy earthworms. The gentleman that worked there told me to bring him some more worm for his fishing (lol)!

Yes, it is pretty well established beyond a doubt that plants that grow in seawater make the very best additions to garden soil. That is somewhat different thing from the topic of this thread, which is whether various extracts of seawater itself makes a good fertilizer.

I think cost is what makes any amendment a good idea or not. If you live by the shore you may get free seaweed or kelp. If you live in-land you may find cheap chicken manure ect...

No you dont need kelp or salt at all. The midwest grows quite a bit of food. ;)

Quantity of production is not the only concern, indeed, for any individual eater in normal circumstances it is of zero concern.

It does when you produce all of your own root crops to have all winter! :)

No way in Hades would I put a high Na source material on my soil, can you say."sodic soil", or "flocculation"? No thank you very much, keep your sodium away from my garden! I'm trying to create pore space and improve my soil's structure, not ruin it.

A wee bit'o educational material from my alma mater in the link.

I do take a couple kelp tablets a day for iodine supplementation. Using sea salt on your table instead of the regular may give a tiny bit of good minerals , but it has a lot less iodine than regular salt that is iodine fortified.

I believe that people and crops may grow and endure without some of the more micro minerals, but optimum health needs them. SO.... I mineralize my soil moderately with dust that has assayed micro minerals.

1.YES, SEA SALT ESP SEA 90 DOES WORK...BUT YOU HAVE TO APPLY MANY TIMES....
THE BEST IS ROCK MINERALS LIKE AZOMITE ETC...BROAD SPECTRUM..
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3.MANY BENEFITS TO ROCK MINERALS AND BIOCHAR LIKE...LESS WATER, MORE WORMS, LESS INSECTS, LESS WEEDS, LESS DISEASES OF PLANTS...MOSTLY, A HEALTHIER YOU IF YOU EAT WHAT YOU GROW, DONT TAKE ANY VIT OR MIN PILLS, NOT NEEDED...GET WELL...butchfomby@yahoo.com

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Whatever is in the soil is wash off ( goes) to sea. In fact the mineral composition of sea water is the same as the mineral composition of human blood. This is logical because whatever is in the soil is absorbed by different kinds of plants which is consumed by us. Speaking of minerals soil is sea water, plants and animals. Bio char,,, yes it is very good and the only proof I need is the plant that grow at the place where we use to burn our garbage. I can tell you the plants on the burned spot is super healthy every time. Nature is my teacher it is the best there is. "comprehend and copy nature". As to the fertilizer saleman better find another job.

Blutranes, where are ya?

Do I need to pour the Sea Agri onto the ground or is it okay if I get it on the leaves?

Biochar, sea minerals, magnesium, azomite, livestock manure, organic materials like leaves and grasses, kitchen garbage compost etc are all good soil ammenents. Soil tests are a good idea because they give you an idea of your npk levels. I know It's possible to apply to much of anything so I do everything in moderation. I compost wood chips for my fruit trees. Wood chips are great compost but they are the wrong type for a garden. Soil organisms such as earthworms, Fungi , bacteria etc play a primary role in improving soil so organic materials in the soil need to be high so they have something to feed on. Nitrogen breaks down organic matter such as wood chips but the nitrogen is bound up in the process and unavailable to plants. The point is even when micro and macro nutrients are high it does not mean those nutrients are available unless they are balanced in the correct quantities. I would recommend a good book like " soul of the soil" - by gershuny, acres USA etc.. The original study many years ago on sea minerals bear in mind the entire crop was killed. He applied to much to his corn. The next year he scaled back and had significant yield improvements.