are B1 from the farmacy as good as SUPERThrive?

[Erce]

i know SUPERThrive have something like 50+ other things in it to.
But can B1 vitamins in water do the trick as a rootinghormone to?

if yes - do i then add it like i ad SUPERThrive? and how much?

[John D.]

Some folks have suggested that it will help stimulate rooting at 100mg per gallon. You can crush a tablet and add it to your water or fertilizer solution. The tablet coating makes it a little slow to dissolve.

[Ray]

Vitamin B1 is a root growth stimulant, but it's not nearly as effective as the synthetic rooting hormones.

[briancorll]

Back in the days when I was growing bonsai, I read a chemical analysis of SuperThrive which found that it was primarily B1, and the amount of hormones present was negligible, certainly not enough to stimulate root growth.

[Ray]

That's not really true, Brian.

More specifically, K-L-N contains both indole butyric acid and naphthalene acetic acid (about 0.1% each) and B1 (0.025%). SuperThrive - among a concoction of other things like kelp extracts, humic acid, etc. - contains B1 (0.09%) and NAA (0.04%).

The hormones are powerful chemicals, which is why they are typically in concentrations below 0.1% in the bottle, and are recommended at a drop or two per gallon in application (0.000002%).

[Erce]

i have the ST - but i cant get the amount to use right - the say one drop for every 1 liter - but it sems so so stron for my chids - so am i doing it wrong or am the b1 just a bad thing?

[Ray]

One drop of SuperThrive per liter is absolutely not too strong.

If you are seeing negative effects in your plants, it's probably not from the ST.

[Erce]

Originally Posted by Ray

One drop of SuperThrive per liter is absolutely not too strong.

If you are seeing negative effects in your plants, it's probably not from the ST.

ok, then i will go over my water - i use rainwater only, maybee i started use it to erly i dont know.
but i have a spiking mini mark, and when i put it on ST the spike stop growing - soory im a noob, but we all have to learn

[Ray]

I have never heard of a rooting hormone additive having that effect.

Have you checked the pH of your fertilizer solution? Using an "off the shelf" fertilizer in rain water can be entirely too acidic, and that might be the issue.

[briancorll]

Ray,
To stimulate root growth, I used to add Dip 'n Grow to my water when watering my bonsai. I've never tried it on orchids though. We also sometimes dusted the roots with powdered hormones.