Author Topic: Will dragon fruit air roots climb on to PVC?  (Read 2285 times)

NaturalGreenthumb

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Will dragon fruit air roots climb on to PVC?
« on: November 01, 2013, 05:03:49 PM »
Trying to find a lighter alternative to center support for dragon fruit.

Does anyone have any information on PVC piping as a center support?


Will dragon fruit air roots climb on to PVC??

Is there any negative implication if the roots are able to climb onto the PVC piping?


Does anyone have picture they can share?

RodneyS

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Re: Will dragon fruit air roots climb on to PVC?
« Reply #1 on: November 01, 2013, 05:10:36 PM »
You can wrap burlap around the PVC to help the epiphytic roots cling on

nullzero

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Re: Will dragon fruit air roots climb on to PVC?
« Reply #2 on: November 01, 2013, 05:23:09 PM »
Trying to find a lighter alternative to center support for dragon fruit.

Does anyone have any information on PVC piping as a center support?


Will dragon fruit air roots climb on to PVC??

Is there any negative implication if the roots are able to climb onto the PVC piping?


Does anyone have picture they can share?

I have heard that the chemicals in PVC start to deteriorate with exposure to the sun and the breakdown from UV rays. So I would think about using something else. Perhaps some rot resistant wood like Redwood, Cedar, Black Locust, etc.
Grow mainly fruits, vegetables, and herbs.

bangkok

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Re: Will dragon fruit air roots climb on to PVC?
« Reply #3 on: November 01, 2013, 09:58:58 PM »
My dragonfruit is like 12 feet (3 metre) high now and still has no air roots, it grows against a live tree.

Also somewhere i read about plastic as fertilisers. Decomposing plastic used as fertilizer so maybe they can "eat" the pvc-pipes?

plantlover13

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Re: Will dragon fruit air roots climb on to PVC?
« Reply #4 on: November 02, 2013, 08:12:39 AM »
My dragonfruit is like 12 feet (3 metre) high now and still has no air roots, it grows against a live tree.

Also somewhere i read about plastic as fertilisers. Decomposing plastic used as fertilizer so maybe they can "eat" the pvc-pipes?

Sure. Want to wait a few million years? it could world. Also, some of the stuff in there you don't want getting out. That's why you should buy food grade.

bangkok

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Re: Will dragon fruit air roots climb on to PVC?
« Reply #5 on: November 02, 2013, 09:47:13 AM »
My dragonfruit is like 12 feet (3 metre) high now and still has no air roots, it grows against a live tree.

Also somewhere i read about plastic as fertilisers. Decomposing plastic used as fertilizer so maybe they can "eat" the pvc-pipes?

Sure. Want to wait a few million years? it could world. Also, some of the stuff in there you don't want getting out. That's why you should buy food grade.

Food grade plastic? I have never heard of that.

Here in Thailand if you have plastic bags or buckets and let them be in the sun then after a few months they are totally decomposed. You can't even lift the bucket no more. (cheap buckets). also plastic bags totally disappear in the sun. I won't say they are good fertilizers though but i really read some sites where they talk about plastic fertilizer.

http://turf.arizona.edu/tips1094.html
 Plastic coated fertilizers have been developed in the last 5 years. The break down of the plastic film determines the rate of fertilizer availability. Although all slow release nitrogen fertilizers have the same goal of limiting the speed of nitrogen to turf, the way they become available differs

Here a site about plastic mulch, (whatever that might be)
http://www.ehow.com/how_5789797_fertilize-onions-under-plastic-mulch.html

The plastic bags here in Thailand are used for really everything (to sell coca-cola in for example) , you get them for free and they don't last long. I guess biodegradable plastic is to expensive for the Thai and also they don't care at all about environment. My wife just trew old battery's in the binbag, they don't even have collecting points for them.

But i guess you are right, i got confused by terms like plastic mulch and plastic fertilizers.....
« Last Edit: November 02, 2013, 10:01:28 AM by bangkok »