What is Best Water for Plants? Distilled, Tap, Purified?

[GardenGeek]

Hey Friends!
What kind of water you are using for your plants?
Like Destilled?
Tap?
Purified??


I have been using destilled for actual watering, but "degassed" for the vaporizer that is close by my plant to provide humidity.
Correct me if i am doing wrong please

[rainbowgardener]

I use tap water that has sat out over night so the chlorine evaporates out of it -- is that what you mean by "degassed"? This is for my seedlings under the lights (and currently the water has cinnamon and chamomile added to help prevent fungus).

Later on for outdoors, I use rain water when I can (we have a rain barrel). If I run out of that, back up is a 50 gallon pond that I can steal from. As a last resort, I use tap water straight from the hose. I'm hoping we get a second rain barrel this year. Then I would rarely have to use hose water.

[a0c8c]

I'd be using rain barrels for my seedlings and such, but I don't have any barrels Right now I buy gallons of spring water, as they have micronutrients distilled water doesn't have. At 78 cents a gallon, it's not too bad.

[gixxerific]

I'd be using rain barrels for my seedlings and such, but I don't have any barrels Right now I buy gallons of spring water, as they have micronutrients distilled water doesn't have. At 78 cents a gallon, it's not too bad.

Good idea on the spring water.

I use "degassed" water for my indoor plants but sadly hose water for outside. I don't have a rain barrel though I do put out 5 gallon buckets to catch rain when it is raining and that is the only water I will use for compost tea.

If I had it my way it would be rain barrel water only. But alas I'm in a money pinch, I do however have a small allowance to spend on gardening due to taxes but, again sadly, a rain barrel does not fit into that budget. I will see what I can do though I am pretty resourceful.

[Sage Hermit]

melted snow and tap water.

[GeorgiaGirl]

I try not to use tap water, although sometimes (in the heat of a drought-y summer when there's no other water source) you do what you have to.

I try to use when possible:

- filtered water for my seedlings (triple-filtered with a Berkey water system)
- captured rainwater (no big barrels yet, but I have several 13-15-gallon containers I just leave out and use as needed)
- water from the basement dehumidifier when it gets full
- tap water that I let sit out for 24 hours if I'm out of the other kinds

We'd love to have a well on the property too, specifically for the gardens and occasionally the fescue back yard (if we have another drought), but that's an expense that's not in the works anytime soon.

[applestar]

For the most part, I use filtered water or de-chlorinated water.

GardenGeek, I'm pretty sure you don't want to water with distilled water. Rainwater contains far more nutrients than distilled. I have to find the ref. but I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that distilled water is NOT beneficial for another reason besides lack of nutrients, maybe it has to do with positive and negative charge/ions? Anyone know?

If you have a home distiller you might want to use that pure water for the vaporizer. It will prevent mineral build-up in the unit, as well other stuff (I can't remember what) that can get condensed and blown out (this might've been with cool-mist humidifiers). Anyway, distilled is better for the unit.

[GardenGeek]

Thanks so much for such a variety of ideas and experiences
Apple star i will search on what you said and will post here if i get some appropriate reason
If any other know that why distilled water is not good for plants? please tell

Thankyou buddies

[Sage Hermit]

I pump water out of our River and we have a well on the farm. Tap water is fine.
I forgot to metion back in the day I got a 300 gal fishtank )))) I hauled that up to the farm and we put fish in it and it collects rain water. : O )

[katylaide]

It's likely to be different in the USA, but I know that in the Adelaide Hills in South Australia, leaving tap water overnight wouldn't do much for the chlorine because there's a fair bit of it in there, you'd probably need a week. Also, chloraminated water would take weeks to be free of chloramine. If you don't know yet and want to be really sure, you could probably find out what they put in your tap water. I use rainwater and dirty aquarium water, which is the waste water from a reverse osmosis machine, containing no chlorine or chloramine (or else it would kill the fish), but I'm told this water can be a bit high in salts. Occasionally my parents water my vegies with the hose and they don't seem to have suffered, they probably appreciate someone who knows how to water plants better than me.

[applestar]

In the instructions that came with a mushroom growing kit from Fungi Perfecti, they said to use (1) Spring, well, or rainwater or (2) boiled and cooled tap water, but "BE SURE NOT TO USE CHLORINATED OR DISTILLED WATER!" -- their caps and exclamation point.

[gracejax]

I have an outdoor filter that is on one of my faucets...as well as, collected rainwater. I would never use distilled water either for myself or for my plants. Frankly, I save that for my iron. Since distilling takes out EVERYTHING from the water, I don't feel that it is beneficial. I, too, have found that chlorinated water seems to need to be left more than just overnight. At least 3 days seems to be better and more effective.

I collect water from my kitchen sink while waiting for it to heat up (I have a wonderful instantaneous water heater) and then leave it for a few days before using it. I must admit to sometimes using water straight from the tap...I too can be swayed by the convenience.

[soil]

rainwater is the best

[GardenGeek]

You are absolutely right
I got to know that rain water has natural vitamins,miners,and others good nutrients thats why plants grow so well..

[GeorgiaGirl]

Just a side musing: It's amazing, having grown up in the 80's being told how terrible and poisonous rain water is (the whole "acid rain" thing) is, to think how much more contaminated regular tap water is (not just chlorine, but fluoride is horrible for humans to ingest -- I imagine it can't be great for plants, plus traces of pharmaceuticals, female hormones, and who-knows-what-all-else). Just a weird shift of thinking. But, yeah, I've noticed that everything watered with rain water fares better than water straight from the hose.