Aptus - Startbooster

A fully organic root and growth stimulator based on humic and fulvic acids, enriched with L-amino acids. Dosed at 1 in 4000, which is 2.5 ml per 10 litres.

What humic and fulvic acids actually do

These two terms appear on many bottles and are rarely explained. Both are end products of decomposed organic matter, and they work not as food but as transport.

Both are large molecules with many negatively charged sites. Positively charged nutrient ions, meaning calcium, magnesium, potassium, iron and the other metals, attach to them. That has two consequences, both in your favour.

The first is retention. Ions hanging off such a molecule do not immediately wash through the pot at the next watering, and they do not precipitate as insoluble compounds either. They stay within reach of the root instead of leaving in the run-off.

The second is availability. This is the same chelation an iron chelate relies on: the metal ion is wrapped up and cannot oxidise or lock out at an unfavourable pH. Fulvic acids are the smaller of the two and stay in solution at almost any pH; humic acids are larger and do their work mainly in the medium itself.

So what you are adding is not extra feed but better use of the feed already there.

And the amino acids

There are also pure L-amino acids in it. Left-handed is the form in which plants build their proteins, so that is material directly usable rather than needing conversion first.

In the first weeks, when a cutting or seedling is barely photosynthesising and still has to build tissue, that saves energy. It is a modest contribution and no replacement for your base feed.

Dosing

The ratio is 1 in 4000: 2.5 ml per 10 litres of water, or 25 ml per 100 litres. For use from the cutting or seedling stage, right through the vegetative period and into the first week of flowering.

That is a long window for a starter product, and it fits what it does: as long as there is feed in the tank that could be used better, a chelator has work.

Available sizes

Technical Specifications:

• Type: 100% organic root and growth stimulator
• Manufacturer: Aptus
• Base: humic and fulvic acids
• Additional: pure left-handed L-amino acids
• Action: binds nutrient ions and keeps them available, rather than supplying nutrients itself
• Dose: 1 in 4000, which is 2.5 ml per 10 litres or 25 ml per 100 litres
• Period: from the cutting or seedling stage through to the first week of flowering

Frequently asked questions

Is this a fertiliser?
No. It supplies no nutrient elements but keeps the elements already present available and less prone to leaching.

What is the difference between humic and fulvic acids?
Fulvic acids are smaller and stay in solution at almost any pH. Humic acids are larger and work mainly in the medium itself.

Why L-amino acids rather than ordinary ones?
Plants build their proteins from the left-handed form, so it is directly usable without conversion.

Why can I feed it into flowering if it is a starter product?
Because the action is not tied to a phase. As long as there is feed in the tank that could be used better, a chelator has a job.

Does this replace my base feed?
No. It improves how well that feed is used and supplies almost no elements itself.