Smokers?

[shovelhead91701]

I have a greenhouse that I sell plants out of at my retail store and I have certain varieties of plants that when I am transplanting them I have to really clean my hands good as a smoker or I can actually retard the growth of the plants.
This got me to wondering about putting my hands in the tank and if there are certain corals etc. that could be affected. Anyone seen any research into this subject online? I haven't been able to find any yet.
BTW before I get flooded with messages about it........... YES I WASH MY HANDS BEFORE REACHING INTO THE TANK! and YES, I KNOW SMOKING IS BAD FOR ME!

[rmalone]

What kind of plants are you talking about. I own a greenhouse and have grown commercially for 15 years and I've never come across a plant that sensitive to tobacco. In the past many insecticides contained nicotine, most are off the market because they are pretty dangerous to humans. 4-5mg of nicotine would make a non tobacco user very ill. I chew so 4mg is just a nice dose, lol. Just curious what plants you feel are getting a growth regulator effect from your hands. Overall Nicotine is a VERY toxic substance, it takes less mg of nicotine to have an acute toxic effect (again assuming a non tobacco user) than it would arsenic. Overall plants are far less sensitive than inverts (including coral), birds, fish, reptiles, mammals, amphibeons [sp].(very sensitive to nicotine).

As to your tank, yes, you absolutely should wash your hands before they go in the tank. Nicotine or worse yet a tiny amount of gasoline on your hands can screw up a tank fast.

[cg5071]

Other than the basic wash your hands and keep them out of the tank if you can, I havnt seen.heard of any specific studdies on aquariums.

When I tried electronic ciggs I had a bottle of 100mg per ml strength of nic juice as it was called. It had pictures of trees and fish and different things crossed out on it telling you to use smart disposal techniques. The juice was to mix flavors ect. with so it was cheaper than the premade capsuls/cartridges for the e ciggs.

I too have a nursery,lol. Mine is rather small, focusing on wild and native plants.

[rmalone]

There is a product called Plantfume 101, I think it's still available. Can full of tobacco and various other nasties that you put a lit sparkler into and the tobacco base burns releasing smoke. They work great but stink to high heaven (for days), can't say I have ever seen them ruin plants, I used to use them late in the crop on colored up poinsettias when most sprays would burn the "bracts" of the plants. I know if a human were to stay in the greenhouse they would be DOA, I'm sure a tank would be the same.

Sorry this post really isn't to the point, I just find it interesting that the OP is seeing problems on plants handled with a "smokers hands".

[shovelhead91701]

I have no scientific data to support it but I feel as if a lot of my pepper plants that I transplant do not grow as well as those that I have done when my hands are completely clean. Sometimes when I am taking starts out of the propagation chamber and transplanting them into 6 packs (sometimes 10-15 thousand starts at a time) I smoke during the work and other times I have a lighter load to do maybe 1500 to 2000 starts and I do not smoke during the transplant( shorter period of time working) and it seems that the small batches grow better(faster). I see no difference in any other vegetable or ornamentals that I grow. No affect on hanging baskets etc.

[dakar]

Shawn, does you mother know you are still smoking??? LOL

[shovelhead91701]

Shawn, does you mother know you are still smoking??? LOL

Don't need her to worry now that you showed back up! Long time no see..... now if we can get repto and graffix back we can have a good ole time again!

[dakar]

ROFL, okay guess I earned that one. Sorry no tanks down here, it'd cost a small fortune in chillers.. but I'm still checking in every now and again and willing to pitch in any electronic / electrical knowledge.

[cg5071]

There is something about tomatoes being able to catch tobacco mosaic from tobacco but that is all I have heard of.

[rmalone]

Yeah tomatoes, petunia (closely related to tobacco), torenia and many others can and have gotten TMV from peoples hands but it's really rare and requires the sap to come into contact with the TMV coated hands. Again very rare, your far more likely to transmit TMV via aphids feeding on a postive TMV plant then moving onto an uninfected plant. Now if your cutting plants with some type of blade you can vector TMV real quick, along with numerous other viral and bacterial diseases.