New grower, new to forums seeking advice

[Wrangler556]

I thought I read somewhere the optimal PH for soil was 6.5 -7.0?

 

My soil would be on the low end scale going off that, do you think I could raise the PH a tad by perhaps adding a touch of dolomite lime next watering?

 

Or will just watering with the right PH water bring it up at all?

 

Cheers,

 

Wrangler.

[brick]

The ph is 6.5 I can't see any problem with that myself. What ph would others aim for in soil out of interest? Personaly I aim for around 6.5 to7 and dont get ph issues.

 

Peace MongyMan

 

Our tap water has a ph of seven. I read that soil ph should ideally be 6.8. My new grow is just under seven 6.9.

[MongyMan]

I thought I read somewhere the optimal PH for soil was 6.5 -7.0?

 

My soil would be on the low end scale going off that, do you think I could raise the PH a tad by perhaps adding a touch of dolomite lime next watering?

 

Or will just watering with the right PH water bring it up at all?

 

Cheers,

 

Wrangler.

 

Hi mate, I wouldn't panic about it. Your water has a high ph which will help to bring the soil ph up a bit. How are they looking by the way, any better?

 

Peace MongyMan

[loylty gets u nothing]

i found feeding at 6.2 ph beneficial wen i grew in soil..

gday and welcome dude

u are in great hands with MM

hes a soil warrior from way back

all the ebst

bil

[Wrangler556]

Heya,

 

Ive trimmed off all the sickly looking leaves, and haven't watered yet, at 5 days no water so far, still says its low end of wet bout halfway down pot, so letting them use it at this stage. Id say they look no better or worse, hopefully in a few days they'll pick back up.

 

btw> anyone know where I can buy a decent thermostat in Australia to use for my fans/heater to regulate temps a bit easier? ie: kick fans on once a certain temps are reached, and also crank a heater when it gets to low.. edit: the kind that are plug and play too... i'd have no idea how to wire up anything...

 

Cheers,

 

Wrangler.

Edited August 23, 2008 by Wrangler556

[samboo]

aussieponics have thermostats for about $70 or they might be on special. also you could try Jaycar, i remember someone saying they got one from Jaycar. I'm also sure Jaycar would be cheaper. Hope that helps

[Wrangler556]

Cheers for the info on thermostats Samboo.

 

Update: Well, its 7days now since last water, and the pots are still "Wet"in the bottom half.

 

Im thinking of biting the bullet and transplanting them into a coco/Perlite mix, 50/50 or there abouts..

 

Currently I believe the pots are to big, and the soil is crap, its holding a lot of water, and not draining despite having a fair amount of perlite in it.

 

My hopes are to transfer them to a lighter, much faster draining mix, enabling me to water more often, and give them fresh air/water, as opposed to sitting in week old water/air as they are now.

 

Foreseeable Problems:

 

PH of soil and coco are quite different aren't they? 6.5 -7.0 for soil, 5.5-6.5 for coco? So im probably going to stress the plant.

 

The pots im using right now are quite large, so im thinking I will have to wash the roots maybe to get as much soil off as possible to prevent PH flucuations between the two mediums? Will it matter if I lose a few roots in the process? Any tips?

 

Im not worried about how fast these plants grow, or if I set them back a few weeks by transplanting, I just want to try and get these plants growing nice, lush and healthy... and learn as much along the way as I can so I can make a decent crop next time

 

Cheers,

 

Wrangler.

[freddie]

I grow indoor organically and a while ago I had a similar problem when I had to change my soil mix. I ended up re potting into a different mix and using a foliar feed for a few weeks. I have looked at your pics and the actual growing tips don't look too unhealthy which makes me think it may just be a simple nitrogen deficiency.

 

 

Update: Well, its 7days now since last water, and the pots are still "Wet"in the bottom half.

At the stage those plants are at they should have roots coming out the bottom of the pots. They should also be growing fast enough that they are using up all the water by now. That suggest problems underground. Mix too compact maybe?

 

PH effects nutrient take up. Did you use a soil testing kit?

 

If you are going to transplant you have to decide if you are going to persist with organics or go hydro. The 50/50 coco perlite mix should be fine for hydro. If you want to keep it organic then you can simply use a third worm castings (if you can get them; i can't) third coco and a third perlite or something similar. I actually used to use half worm castings and half coco. Worked brilliantly. You then just use plain water when needed and a good liquid organic fertiliser about once a month.

 

Currently I believe the pots are to big,

Pots can be too small not too big.

PH of soil and coco are quite different aren't they? 6.5 -7.0 for soil, 5.5-6.5 for coco?

That shouldn't be a problem IMO. Still within acceptable range.

The pots im using right now are quite large, so im thinking I will have to wash the roots maybe to get as much soil off as possible to prevent PH flucuations between the two mediums? Will it matter if I lose a few roots in the process? Any tips?

I've never tried to transplant from organic to a hydro system but losing a few roots wont matter. You probably should prune the top though.

 

Sorry for the disjointed reply. You got a few issues ther and good luck with it.

[Wrangler556]

Well fellas,

 

I think I found the root of my problem so to speak.

 

Been doing heaps of reading on here and elsewhere, came across a post about calibration of PH meters and the like...

 

Well, being a absolute noob, I never thought about calibrating the PH meter I use for the water.

 

Rushed off the the local hydro shop and bought some PH 7 buffer/calibration solution and hurried home.

 

Followed the instructions on how to calibrate, My meter was reading 1.2 over

 

Its now back to normal.

 

So, ive been adjusting the PH of my water down thinking its high, when in reality, im adjusting it way to low. ie: been feeding 5.5ish water to soil, and now that they are in coco - under 5

 

So... ill just go and get some fresh water, PH adjust it correctly, and we'll see how it goes...

 

Plants dont look too flash at the moment, understandable.

 

Something so simple aye..

 

"Hangs head in shame"

 

Wrangler

Edited September 1, 2008 by Wrangler556

[Cyclone]

The seeds came from bagseed, so mystery origin. I'd hope to buy some decent seeds from somewhere and get a decent strain going once ive learnt a thing or 2

 

Hey man, sorry to hear that your plants got scortched, but look on the bright side, now you have found a solid solution to your problem, and the next time you grow, you should grow well

 

But look, the way I see it, if your going to spend a bit of money on good equiptment to grow 'good bud'. perhaps you should look online at some seed bank's. Find a strain that suits your growing methods, tastes and highs. Order them, use your adress, fake name. Or to a mates adress or somewhere random. Neighbours letter box if your desperate.

Some good sites are

www.planetskunk.com

www.highgrade-seeds.com

www.seedboutique.com

 

You should also think about poping into the Seed banks Q&A sub forum, or go into the narcotic cannabis genetics sub forum.

https://cannabis.community.forums.ozstoners...hp?showforum=22

 

I really think a good strain in a good system would be a much better idea than making clones of a female with hindered growth and has been burned by low PH.

 

Any ways, good luck.

 

- Cyclone