The choice between Yoshida solution and Hoagland solution for growing rice (or other plants) largely depends on the specific needs of the experiment and the growth conditions. Here’s a brief comparison of both:

### Yoshida Solution

- **Composition**: Yoshida solution is specifically designed for rice and contains a balanced mix of macro and micronutrients.

- **Focus**: It is tailored to meet the nutritional requirements of rice, making it particularly effective for studying rice physiology and nutrient uptake.

- **Usage**: Commonly used in research settings to investigate various aspects of rice growth, development, and responses to nutrients.

### Hoagland Solution

- **Composition**: Hoagland solution is a more general nutrient solution that can support a wide range of plants, including rice.

- **Focus**: It provides a broad mix of nutrients and is adaptable for different plant types and growth conditions.

- **Usage**: Commonly used in hydroponics and plant physiology studies. It can be modified to suit specific plants or experimental conditions.

### Conclusion

If you are specifically studying rice and its unique nutrient requirements, the **Yoshida solution** may be the better choice as it is formulated specifically for that purpose. However, if you need a more general solution that can be adapted to various plants or conditions, the **Hoagland solution** might be more suitable.

Ultimately, the best choice depends on your specific experimental goals and the context in which you are growing the rice.

Hoagland's solution as commonly prepared is quite concentrated relative to plant needs, especially for seedlings. Diluted 1in4 or so will be fine.

Use an up-to-date recipe as well: Some earlier recipes also included non-essential plant elements which have been excluded from later versions. Don't add potentially confounding elements that just make things harder to explain to your thesis reviewers.

Iron and some of the other micro-nutrients can become unavailable to roots if not suitably pH-balanced. Check the pH of your potting mix and the solution to make sure they are within the suitable range for your rice variety (ph 6.0-7.5 is one range I found on the internet). Buffers and chelates might be necessary to keep everything in solution and plant-bio-available.

What is the purpose of the experiment:1) to generate nutrient imbalances, or 2) simply grow plants to maturity? Adjusting the mix will help with 1) while over-fertilizing does not help with 2).

I prepared the solutions at the right pH, but it caused leaf tips to burn and leaves to turn completely yellow. Of course, I changed some of the ingredients in Yoshida's solution because they were not available. If you have a good protocol for Yoshida's solution, please send it to me.

Now you r question has changed somewhat and we are trying to answer why your plants aren't growing well.

Sounds like an excess of an element typically associated with transpiration and low mobility.

• Could you have too much sodium, chloride or boron in your solution?
• What is in the vermiculite/perlite/cocopeat? Have you tested that for elemental content?
• Have you tested the water for boron? A lot of boron passes through ion-exchange columns by being non-ionic.