Desert Organics

As I am starting up for this year, and I must admit I am running late.   I have started almost 200 seedlings indoors.   Like years before I am having a problem with fungus.   Fungus being one of the biggest hurdles and delays in getting started up every year.  This month I thought I would try a Veggie Pharms product, but it clearly states that using on seedlings is not a good idea.   I should have followed the warning, but I was not sure what else to do at the time.  It killed off at least 9 different species.   Luckily it seems that the chemicals broke down so I was able to plant something else back their spot.  But I have lost atleast a months worth of growth.

Last year was worse, as I followed the advice of a friend to use peroxide to sterilize the seed beds.  Days after soaking them in peroxide the seed beds were covered in green mold.   It seemed as if that made them the perfect environment for mold.  So clearly it was not something I was going to attempt again this year.

Two weeks ago I had a fish with a wounded fin.   I figured out my own treatment for fish wounds in the mid 90’s, after buying any and all applicable store products to help cure a rather nasty disease.  Unfortunately the store bought medicine was not good for the highly valuable bacteria and my plants in my aquarium, nor did it show any progress in holding back the disease thankfully a year before I was introduced to alternative medicine when I started Dr. Andrew Weil’s 8 week.   I had become a regular at local health food store, and after a nasty bike accident was introduced to tea tree oil.  I was leery of using on my fish because it does smell a lot like gasoline, and I was afraid I would wake up to a tank full of dead fish.  But I was left with little other option as this disease was wiping my fish out anyway.   I used a q-tip to wipe the oil on to effected areas (a method I still use).  Amazingly my fish recovered within 2 weeks.  Not to mention my aquarium plants were recovered from the store bought medication.

After treating my fish two weeks ago it occurred to me that I should try tea tree oil to solve my mold problem, as it is an anti-fungal.  I bought a 1 fluid ounce blue glass spray bottle from the aromatherapy section at Sprouts.   I filled it with filter water, and have added 3 drops of tea tree oil (Which seems pretty potent as I can smell it every time I spray).   So far this has done the trick in killing the mold without killing my seedlings.

In early 2000 Aquarium Pharmaceuticals, released a product called MelaFix.   Which has tea tree oil.   I was rather happy to see something that I use for treating my fish was actually being used in a fish treatment product.  I use their product in my tanks from time to time if I ever have an out break.  I still do use the method of treating my fish with regular old tea tree oil when a single fish is hurt.

One of the things I have learned about tea tree oil from Melafix is that tea tree oil will break down in light.  So if you decide to use this solution you may need to treat later if the problem persists.