My inquiring mind wants to know...

[swamp]

Poly means many. Whether or not you should be wary of it depends on what is a many of.

[Deleted]

I would not use it for edible plants. For house plants I would not have a problem using it.

[swamp]

Jun 1, 2012 13:29:34 GMT -5 @lonewolf said:

Jun 1, 2012 13:19:19 GMT -5 swamp said:

Poly means many. Whether or not you should be wary of it depends on what is a many of.

My concern has to do with the dangers of polyethylene plastic.

polyethylene and whatever poly you're talking about aren't the same substance.

[swamp]

Jun 1, 2012 13:41:19 GMT -5 @lonewolf said:

Jun 1, 2012 13:29:56 GMT -5 ArchietheDragon said:

I would not use it for edible plants. For house plants I would not have a problem using it.

It said something about it decomposing in the air causing a problem?
I also worry about polluting the soil/ground water?
I would like to use it in the flower pots. It worked great.
I wish I could find something natural that would work the same way. Sea sponges? Pieces of MU's brain?

cow crap.

[swamp]

Jun 1, 2012 13:52:55 GMT -5 @lonewolf said:

Jun 1, 2012 13:44:16 GMT -5 swamp said:

polyethylene and whatever poly you're talking about aren't the same substance.

That's what I was wondering about. So, the "Poly" in polyacrylamide is not the same as the "Poly" in polyethylene? This is so confusing.

Poly is the prefix for "many" sort of like Bi is the prefix for 2. Poly isn't a chemical.

[Deleted]

compost holds many times its weight in water.

[swamp]

Yes, and I have no idea what an acrylamide is either, but it's not an ethylene.

[Deleted]

Jun 1, 2012 14:00:30 GMT -5 @lonewolf said:

Jun 1, 2012 13:57:20 GMT -5 ArchietheDragon said:

compost holds many times its weight in water.

True, but still not anywhere need as efficient as this product.

Natural products are almost never as efficient as manmade chemical products.

[Sum Dum Gai]

Just use the dang things. You're already kind of old and don't have cancer right? You can exercise all you want, and eat the cleanest diet in the universe, sooner or later something is going to kill you. It more than likely won't be whatever minute amounts of acrylamide you may or may not build up in your system from using these things over the remaining time you have left. That's like the beauty of getting older. You no longer have to worry about stuff that may or may not kill you in several decades, since you'll be dying around then anyway.

[Deleted]

Jun 1, 2012 14:05:18 GMT -5 @lonewolf said:

Jun 1, 2012 14:03:14 GMT -5 ArchietheDragon said:

Natural products are almost never as efficient as manmade chemical products.

That's too bad.

For who or what?

[Sum Dum Gai]

Our home, with gardens, will get handed down to the next generation and I worry about what may get leached into the soil and ground water. I know, I worry a lot.

Then go totally chemical free just to be on the safe side. Spread all natural animal shit all over the place, like god intended. You'll have to water more frequently though, which means you'll lose more to evaporation, so you're still "wasting" a natural resource and all that.

If you go with the cow manure suggestion from above, make sure you're getting it from a source that doesn't inundate their cows with growth hormone and feed them crap, or you'll probably leach more bad stuff into the soil than the chemicals will.

[Deleted]

Jun 1, 2012 14:10:26 GMT -5 @lonewolf said:

Jun 1, 2012 14:06:14 GMT -5 ArchietheDragon said:

For who or what?

It's too bad that we can't find natural effective alternatives and feel we must depend on chemicals.

We have effective natural alternatives. Not everyone likes to use them.

[Deleted]

Jun 1, 2012 14:17:50 GMT -5 @lonewolf said:

Jun 1, 2012 14:11:40 GMT -5 ArchietheDragon said:

We have effective natural alternatives. Not everyone likes to use them.

I've found nothing natural that is as effective in retaining water as this product and I've been looking for 40 years.

So you are included in the number of people who do not like to use natural products. nothing wrong with that.

[Sum Dum Gai]

Natural alternatives may not be as effective, but it's effective enough to grow healthy plants.

[weltschmerz]

These work well, lone. I even found some at the Dollarama.

[weltschmerz]

Aqua Globes are an attractive solution for automatic houseplant watering. Fill he hand blown stained glass globes as the plant needs it. Aqua Globes are a great alternative to the daily chore of watering plants and an excellent choice for automatic watering while on vacation. How Aqua Globes Work As soil becomes dry, it releases oxygen into the Aqua Globe, which in turn releases the exact amount of water your plant needs. Automatically waters houseplants for up to 2 weeks. For indoor and outdoor potted plants. Hand-blown glass designs adds beauty to your plants. Includes gift boxes for sharing with friends & family Assorted Colors

[weltschmerz]

I use them in my hanging baskets. Those puppies need watering every day, and sometimes I just like to take off to the country for a few days.

[weltschmerz]

Aqua Globes are an attractive solution for automatic houseplant watering. Fill he hand blown stained glass globes as the plant needs it. Aqua Globes are a great alternative to the daily chore of watering plants and an excellent choice for automatic watering while on vacation. How Aqua Globes Work As soil becomes dry, it releases oxygen into the Aqua Globe, which in turn releases the exact amount of water your plant needs. Automatically waters houseplants for up to 2 weeks. For indoor and outdoor potted plants. Hand-blown glass designs adds beauty to your plants. Includes gift boxes for sharing with friends & family Assorted Colors
-------------------------

It says up to two weeks. I guess it depends if the plants are inside or out, and how dry it is. When it's really hot and dry outside, I can take off and the plants will still be OK three or four days later. If I stayed in town, I'd have to water every day.
The globes also come in different sizes.