Aptus - Enzym+

A sterile-produced blend of enzyme complexes with cellulase, beta-glucanase and manganese. At 1 in 4000, the leanest-dosed enzyme addition in this range.

There is a factor of ten between brands in dosing

Enzyme products get compared on the price of the bottle, and that is exactly the wrong comparison. What counts is how much you need per litre of feed water, and there is a gap there that most growers never see.

At every watering this product asks for 2.5 ml per 10 litres, which is 1 in 4000. Other bottles on this shelf ask for 1 ml per litre and the heaviest asks 2.5 ml per litre. So you use ten times as much of one bottle as of another to treat the same reservoir.

That says nothing about which works better, and it is fair to say so: nobody publishes enzyme activity in the same units, so you cannot line the strengths up. What it does say is that comparing prices per bottle is pointless. Work out what a hundred-litre reservoir costs you, and compare that.

Aptus give three rhythms: 2.5 ml per 10 litres at every watering, 5 ml per 10 litres if you dose once a week, and 10 ml per 10 litres when flushing the medium.

There is manganese in it, not just enzymes

The enzyme complexes include cellulase, which breaks down the cellulose around the roots, and beta-glucanase, which turns precipitated nutrient salts back into something the plant can take up.

There is also manganese. Aptus list it as an ingredient in its own right: it stimulates microlife and stabilises the solution. Manganese is also simply a trace element the plant needs, so you are adding something here that goes beyond clearing up. The stabilisers in the formula keep the enzymes effective and double as plant food.

The enzymes are produced in a sterile environment, so no other microbes come in the bottle.

Do not let the reservoir stand

Aptus are more concrete here than the rest: do not leave a reservoir with nutrients and Enzym+ in it for more than two days, because the quality of the feed degrades.

So add it last to the reservoir, ideally just before you water. Anyone mixing a reservoir for the whole week is better off adding it only as the tank is being used up. The enzymes start working immediately, and faster the warmer it is: above 20 degrees you notice it clearly.

Available sizes

Technical Specifications:

• Type: blend of enzyme complexes with stabilisers, sterile-produced
• Manufacturer: Aptus
• Enzymes: cellulase and beta-glucanase among others
• Additional: manganese (Mn), for microlife and the stability of the solution
• Dose at every watering: 2.5 ml per 10 litres (1 in 4000)
• Dose weekly: 5 ml per 10 litres (1 in 2000)
• Dose when flushing: 10 ml per 10 litres (1 in 1000)
• Adding: last into the reservoir, just before watering
• Standing time in the reservoir: 2 days maximum
• Action: immediate, and faster above 20 °C
• Substrate: soil, coco, rockwool and all irrigation and drip systems

Frequently asked questions

Why do I need so little of this?
At 1 in 4000 it is the most concentrated product on this shelf. That means the bottle lasts longer, not that it necessarily works harder.

Can my reservoir stand for a week?
Better not. Aptus give two days maximum, after which the quality of the feed degrades. Add it only as the tank is being used up.

When do I add it?
Last, after your nutrients are mixed and just before you water.

Does it work at lower temperatures?
Yes, but more slowly. Above 20 degrees the enzymes get going noticeably faster.

Why is there manganese in an enzyme product?
Aptus add it to stimulate microlife and stabilise the solution. It is also a trace element the plant needs.