June Hughes wrote:

Can someone please explain the difference between de-mineralised water
and de-ionised water?

IIRC, The crystals are called "ion exchange," substituting sodium for
calcium; not good for many things including people watching their sodium
intake.
Are you sure you can't get distilled water there? It's a common grocery
store item in the U.S. Of course, a lot of people here buy bottled water
which is often inferior to the municipal water from their tap. Don't get
me started on that one...

I hadn't thought of using melted freezer ice for watering sensitive plants;
I have a huge chest type freezer, and it's due for defrosting; winter is a
good time, because I can just stack the contents on the floor of an
unheated garage while I do the deed. One of those little electric "cube"
heaters with fan stuck inside on an upended plastic milk crate does the
trick in short order.

Just so as to not veer too far off-topic, I'm testing a bunch of stored
seeds for germination, in an electric oven with just the inside light bulb
turned on. Holds nicely at 80F/25C or so.

Cheers!


Gary Woods AKA K2AHC- PGP key on request, or at home.earthlink.net/~garygarlic
Zone 5/6 in upstate New York, 1420' elevation. NY WO G