How can I lower PH in my indoor garden. I am at around 7.0 and I want to get to about 5.9 for my tomatoes. I have used aquarium product before but found it to be expensive. I am not sure what product to use that will not harm my plants as they are for human consumption...
mon
If you add compost to your garden, the decaying matter will produce acids. If you work the compost into the soil using a tiller, the soil will become increasingly sour and chemicals will leach out. Acidic materials you can add include peat moss, sulfur, or aluminum sulfate. For your desired pH of 5.9, use 5 pounds of peat moss, 2.5 pounds of sulfur, or 15 pounds of aluminum sulfate per 100 sq foot of garden space. It is better to till in the additive than just spread it over the ground. You'll need less of the additives for sandy soil and somewhat more for heavy clay soil. Changes in pH do not happen overnight. Test pH again in 6 months.
I've grown tomatoes for many years and never had concern about pH. Temperature seems to be more of a problem.
I have this information related to lowering pH in a fish pond.
Muriatic acid (31% HCl) a doses of approximately 2 fluid ounces per
1000 gallons per day until you reach the desired pH. The acid consumes the KH (alkalinity or carbonate hardness, the thing that stabilizes pH in a fish pond.).Muriatic acid is used for cleaning concrete and you can buy it in the building supply section of Lowe's or other hardware type stores for a few dollars a gallon and that will last you a long time.
Always pour acid into the water. Never pour water into the acid!
Regards,
Hal
The common method is with agricultural sulfur or with aluminum sulphate. A decent soil rich in organic materials such as leaf mold will probably do fine with no ammendment.
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