Garden Of Eden

[GodOfPot]

The thing with Mg is so little is needed it should be there abundantly....so if it is an Mg issue, I would have to lean towards it being an environmental factor causing it

These high temps and low RH have always been bound to cause a problem, be it mites or other small issues....the top of my soil becomes like a salt flat after more then 24hrs without water, gets hard and cement like which could be the culprit, and is also why I’m looking into a mulch now

 

[ilikemsticky]

its always something ha,the top of my soil dries out on top and gets crusty but not concrete i take a little stick it have and just kind of break up the top a bit otherwise when i water it just sits there for quite some time,maybe if you fluffed it up a bit after you water might not be so bad!

 

[GodOfPot]

Trying to avoid letting it dry out like that at all.....some moisture is needed to sustain life to help break down all the kelp, ewc, malt barley etc. that accumulate on the surface from watering it in...getting temps under control should help out dramatically....hopefully a nice mulch will too!

 

[ilikemsticky]

i no what you mean I'm not a fan of that either where i live i can have fungus gnats so i tend to let them dry out considerably or the little fffs get in there rite now i don't have any which is unusual at my house but i no they'll be back,so if i mulched the top i think it would attract those buggers,it probably hurts my yield some but a fungus gnat infestation is way worse than a little less weed lol!

 

[GodOfPot]

For fungus gnats I've been advised to always have a small fan blowing air directly across the top rim of all my pots....a small wind will create a difficult environment for fungus gnats to survive

 

[ilikemsticky]

your rite i have that going on but if you over water or water to frequently the fan keeps them out of the soil but there flying around and there on the buds and the get stuck on them i see them on there when I'm looking at the trichomes little fffs!

 

[GodOfPot]

Yeah that’d suck I bet, never really had to deal with any pests yet...last grow I would always see 1 red thing flying around here and there but that was it...I know my day will come when I’ll be cursing some sort of pest

 

[ilikemsticky]

i can't have house plants because of them little bugs,my last grow i got thrips used some captain jack on them two sprayings and gone got lucky some growers have mites and they can't seem to get rid of them i feel for those guys,so far just the thrips and some gnats don't want any mites!

 

[GodOfPot]

Question on RO water since I've never used it before...I had filled up a 5 gal bucket yesterday and left it to sit for 24 hours, never checked it or anything....today was watering time but decided to check it before watering and PH was 10.5 range...is there a reason for this? PPM was 0, so not sure why PH was so high.

 

[ilikemsticky]

sounds out of wack to me when you set up your r/o system did you fill the tank and empty it before using any,maybe calibrate your meter just to be sure its accurate,if it tests out high like that again maybe run the tank empty again!

 

[GodOfPot]

I followed the installation instructions, ran it 5 min with no membrane then ran it 1 hour with membrane prior to using it....would’ve helped if I tested the PH right away instead of waiting 24 hours

 

[ilikemsticky]

I'm starting to wonder if there was some kind of residue inside that water jug,have you tested the water rite from the tap?

 

[Bonsaiweed]

Question on RO water since I've never used it before...I had filled up a 5 gal bucket yesterday and left it to sit for 24 hours, never checked it or anything....today was watering time but decided to check it before watering and PH was 10.5 range...is there a reason for this? PPM was 0, so not sure why PH was so high.

Wow...that is crazy. I've heard it should pH out to about 6.5. Did you save the right water???

I just reread your post, the ppm would be an indication you did. Very interesting...... I have no clue. I know about RO, but never have I seen this. But most RO systems I've researched were for boat use in salt water.

 

[Bonsaiweed]

I watched a video and there are two water streams, one RO, one discard. See above.

 

[Bonsaiweed]

edited out

 

[GodOfPot]

It wasn't the waste water lol, ppm was 0

I just filled it in a bucket then left the bucket there for a day, tested it the following day and PH was 10.5, possible it's my meter, will have to confirm tomorrow

 

[Bonsaiweed]

It wasn't the waste water lol, ppm was 0

I just filled it in a bucket then left the bucket there for a day, tested it the following day and PH was 10.5, possible it's my meter, will have to confirm tomorrow

Yeah... I realized it after I typed it. I knew you wouldn't make that mistake..... I was editing while you were reading.

Hope it's not your meter......

 

[bobrown14]

I hope it works out well...that plus my RO Buddie I'll be grabbing this week should almost have me set

Just having a hard time getting spinosad up here....aside from spinosad, think all I need to order to start getting my next batch of soil ready is the hop compost

And more seeds of course....never stop looking, every single day

It's on the way!! Spinosad FTW!

Rock dust plays hand in hand with the microbes. They will break it down along with a slightly acidic soil (you likely have it already).

The rock dust is part of the CEC (cation exchange capacity) in the soil. Think of it like this, there's clay in the ground. Clay is particles of rock dust layered on top of each other. What is also part of that is the negative and positive ions from the minerals that make up the clay which is made up of rock dusts. These are important for soil make up and the CEC. Yes they take a long time to break down. It's the positive and negative IONS, minerals and also a place for the micro-organisms to live.

You'd be surprised how quickly even metals break down if left in soil with a high CEC ratio. I've left stainless scoops in my soil box in the soil... in a few months the SS is pitted and any solder is totally broken down and I'm left with a handle and a scoop - not connected.

For CAL/MAG - The Coots mix will have plenty of Ca. Can supplement with EWC and amendment mix at flip to flower. Will be good to go... no need for an Mg supplement. There's more than enough in this soil and most all soils. Mg deficiency will be your last issue .... I'd even bet my last gold dollar you wont ever have an Mg deficit.

Using high P fertilizer like Bone Meal is going to mess with the mirco-herd. Suggest Kelp meal and EWC slurry then mix with water.

Yes most of the Cal Mag stuff is organic. The problem is the Mg... it's not in a proper ratio for overall health of soil and plants long term. What happens is the Ca gets used up WAY faster than the Mg. Then there's an Mg toxicity that actually looks very similar to a Ca deficiency and we end up adding even more Mg and the problems get worse. The the soil is toast for next run.

I look at it from a no-til perspective. If everyone is mixing new soil every 2 months - or dumping old soil in compost and running new soil every run... then Cal/Mag will have no or very little impact other than the usual Ca boost. Again can get the same and more from a EWC/Kelp meal + water... even a kelp tea foiler without the exta Mg that the plant wont use.

Plants look fine to me... Grape OG... looks like she's going to be purple and its the first signs of the color change. That Grape gear actually looks pretty good ... no deficiency.

Whats the high and low temp average every day??

RO water is 6.5 ph every time.... slightly acidic which is perfect.

Anytime I feel I'm having a deficiency my go to is:

1 cup EWC
1/2 cup Kelp Meal
3-5 gal water
Mix and stir... can aerate if that's your thing.

Water in 1x then water the rest of the week and see how things go.

Coconut water with Silica - foiler on and/or water in.

GoP your plants look great... purple is the new green!

 

[GodOfPot]

Awesome info & thank you Bob!

Temps have been staying around 80-82 lights on and 70 lights off, RH about 35-40 now...much better then it was, I will get it nailed down though next week....kids are home on March break this week so during the day I'm busy with them now...but next week I'll have it working 100%, temps will maintain in the 77-80 range.

RO still haven't had a chance to check on it......here's the full story....I'd filled 2 5 gal buckets, one left in the tent with air stone in it to help the RH, one left outside the tent with a lid on it, no air....I did not check the PH on either bucket when they got filled.....next day(24 hours later) I got around to PH checking them, the one in the tent had a PH of 8.5, the one outside 10.5.......it's VERY possible my PH pen isn't calibrated right now as it hasn't been used in a few months.......but for them to be different ph's made me question whether RO water just sitting alone will naturally change its ph

Never really thought about the possibility of Grape OG color being from genetics ....so will let that ride out a bit and watch it lol!

Thanks again Bob!

 

[ilikemsticky]

hey gop isn't nice to have people around like bob to help out give us ideas its great,thats strange with the buckets my r/o ph is about 6.7or8 but I've had mine set up for 4 yrs. so I'm sure that makes a difference when i first put it in it was 7.0 !