Why spend money on special soil

[First Church]

So I am cheap and have been growing tomatoes forever. So I filled two seven gallon cloth pots with a mix that I use in my garden. 3/4 manure compost the rest cannabis potting soil. I did mix in a lot of pearlite.

I have Pineapple Express from G13 seeds going.

These bags are so heavy. I am concerned about my ability to work them when the plants get big.

Since we feed the plants with nuts during the entire grow I would like to find an inexpensive lightweight medium.

 

[Elvin]

I personally use Iowa topsoil with perlite.
That only costs the price of the perlite and my girls have no complaints.

 

[First Church]

I personally use Iowa topsoil with perlite.
That only costs the price of the perlite and my girls have no complaints.

I am in a tent, one gallon of dirt weighs 12 pounds so if I have 6 gallons in I have 72lbs, Plus water. OMG, I fucked myself.

 

[Elvin]

I am in a tent, one gallon of dirt weighs 12 pounds so if I have 6 gallons in I have 72lbs, Plus water. OMG, I fucked myself.

I just filled a 30-gallon+ box (cardboard box with a bunch of holes poked into it wrapped in landscape fabric; I needed a rectangle to fit a 4x2 tent, hence the box) with soil/perlite. The soil that it took to do that was over 200 lbs and it had a flight of really steep stairs to go up. Maybe I should have made several trips.

 

[multiVortex]

I am in a tent, one gallon of dirt weighs 12 pounds so if I have 6 gallons in I have 72lbs, Plus water. OMG, I fucked myself.

Promix HP is the way to go in a situation like yours.

You also need to think about access for watering. It may be beneficial to think about either a little pump watering thing, a stick extension, or something. If you want to keep it stupid cheap, you can make a little watering contraption out of 3/4" pvc. Would be a tick of a pain since it would always be there, but it would work and serve the purpose.

 

[BeanTownFan420]

You can grow cannabis in just about any native soil well but there is the soil born bugs and infections that may come with that after all your hard work.So some prefer to buy quality soil when growing indoors to prevent any issues do to contamination.

 

[Elvin]

Promix HP is the way to go in a situation like yours.

You also need to think about access for watering. It may be beneficial to think about either a little pump watering thing, a stick extension, or something. If you want to keep it stupid cheap, you can make a little watering contraption out of 3/4" pvc. Would be a tick of a pain since it would always be there, but it would work and serve the purpose.

I have found a short hose on a one-gallon watering can works well. It's easy to mix in being one gallon and a couple of feet of hose makes watering easy.
For straight water, I just use a garden sprayer wand that I have attached to a 50 foot 1/4 inch hose that is then attached to an old dishwasher adapter.
Makes it really easy to water in my attic. For some reason, houses do not have running water in attics.

 

[multiVortex]

I have found a short hose on a one-gallon watering can works well. It's easy to mix in being one gallon and a couple of feet of hose makes watering easy.
For straight water, I just use a garden sprayer wand that I have attached to a 50 foot 1/4 inch hose that is then attached to an old dishwasher adapter.
Makes it really easy to water in my attic. For some reason, houses do not have running water in attics.

I use a funnel on a stick for the tree during the holidays. Works a treat.

I don’t miss hand watering at all though.

 

[Elvin]

You can grow cannabis in just about any native soil well but there is the soil born bugs and infections that may come with that after all your hard work.So some prefer to buy quality soil when growing indoors to prevent any issues do to contamination.

I've had no issues but then this is farming country so the soil great around here.
Given just how light manufactured growing medium is (FFOF for instance) there is not really much more than spanish moss in it plus the wood chips.
You get 2 whole weeks before the leaves turn yellow; that's not much in the way of nutrients despite their long list.

 

[BeanTownFan420]

Happy frog has quite a bit of high quality ingredients you are mistaken about that but i agree with good old top soil its fine.

 

[BeanTownFan420]

Any media of yours i can look at?Feel free to view mine.All grown in Happy frog.

 

[Elvin]

Happy frog has quite a bit of high quality ingredients you are mistaken about that but i agree with good old top soil its fine.

I have bought hundreds of dollars of FFOF and it is no better than topsoil. In fact, I can go over twice as long before there is a hint of yellow and it has no additions other than perlite.
Manufactured growing medium works well but I have 9 plants in 7-8 gallon bags and just transferred 6 pots of clones into a 30+ gallon box to do a scrog and I am not going to spend the money to buy FF (or cheaper Promix) when all those great additions only last a few weeks at most.
I can take Iowa topsoil, let it sit through a few showers of rain so the clumps from digging disappear, then add 1/3 perlite and just "that" has longer-lasting nutrients than anything FF makes.

 

[CADBOY]

Promix HP is the way to go in a situation like yours.

You also need to think about access for watering. It may be beneficial to think about either a little pump watering thing, a stick extension, or something. If you want to keep it stupid cheap, you can make a little watering contraption out of 3/4" pvc. Would be a tick of a pain since it would always be there, but it would work and serve the purpose.

Great idea. It's cheap and light.

 

[multiVortex]

Great idea. It's cheap and light.

Thank you. All things considered, I’d say that’s the direction to go. Could be sunshine #4, or whatever. Same type of stuff, just diff brand. If feeding anyway, might as well make the best of it and go promix. Feed every time, 10%-20% run off, and that’s that.

Coco “could” be an option, but it’s way more involved. Promix, mix nutes (at half the bottle/feed chart directed strength of course), water, wait.

 

[Pepperhead]

Being using sunshine mix #4 and works fine
Light weight when u let the plant dry out and then water
I use 7 gallons grow bags and no problems lifting in and out of grow area even when wet

 

[Stunned]

If feeding anyway, might as well make the best of it and go promix. Feed every time, 10%-20% run off, and that’s that.

Is this typically done on a daily or multiple per day basis?
Can it be, or does Promix require a wet/dry cycle?

 

[CanadianJim]

I can only speak to the weight of Promix soil, the organic vegetable & herb stuff, but 28 litres of that (so about 7 and a bit gallons) weighs 5 kilograms (about 11 pounds). Things like Fox Farm should be about the same. One litre of water weighs one kilogram, so one gallon should be about 8 pounds.
So, one 7 gallon pot with a gallon of water in it without the plant would be about 19 pounds.
Hope that helps.

 

[multiVortex]

Is this typically done on a daily or multiple per day basis?
Can it be, or does Promix require a wet/dry cycle?

For watering purposes, treat it like soil. You can pH the water/nutes or not. Promix is a buffered medium, so as long as you’re not way out of the park on pH, no need to fiddle with it.


The difference between watering promix and soil is that with promix you put nutes in the water every time. Soil it’s an every other (usually), so nutes one time, plain water the next. Nutes, water; nutes, water; etc