Advanced Nutrients in promix

[Speedypete]

Hey Im new and have a question about salt buildup in promix looking for some advice. I just flipped to flower after a 4 week veg. If it looks like my plants are a bit on the lighter side of green doesnt that mean that there isnt a risk of buildup so far? After reading post after post on other sites i dont know what to think. Some say water/feed to runoff… some say not to water/feed to runoff as it washes the buffer out of the medium, some say feed/feed/water will help the plants use up unused nutes in the medium that causes buildup is sufficient. Some say theres no need to flush or water through unless they have been over fed. Im thinking if they look slightly underfed there shouldn’t be any need for runoff. Any input would be appreciated on how people here make salt based nutes work in promix Thanks

 

[Speedypete]

As i've said, AN is all chemicals so you should have some runoff when you water...........if anything, i think your a cal mag rates are a bit low.

Funny thing about pot growing, ask a 100 people a question, you'll get 90 different answers.

Thank you man I thought the same at times based on center back row showing crinkled new growth I have implemented your use of calmag sshz and thanks for showing me that btw. Last feeding i shoulda went to 10ml/gal I can spray them at lights out

 

[Speedypete]

650-700ppfd seems a lot for this stage without co2 but i also monitor absolutely nothing in my grows aside from environment.

You can not water them on a schedule, you have to wait until they are dry and then water.
The front left one really seems like its been overwatered.

I agree and thats how she acted at first i think but she Was dry and light when i watered to runoff?

 

[Speedypete]

650-700ppfd seems a lot for this stage without co2 but i also monitor absolutely nothing in my grows aside from environment.

You can not water them on a schedule, you have to wait until they are dry and then water.
The front left one really seems like its been overwatered.

Im dropping the light an inch a day coming from 500-550 par

 

[Speedypete]

Im dropping the light an inch a day coming from 500-550 par

I could surely back them off a bit and see if she improves

 

[SSHZ]

But the 10ml is only if you are using reverse osmosis water, which strips out all the cal mag before hand. If you are using regular water, i'd be around 5 ml per gallon.

 

[Speedypete]

But the 10ml is only if you are using reverse osmosis water, which strips out all the cal mag before hand. If you are using regular water, i'd be around 5 ml per gallon.

You betcha man In ro water 0 ppm Thanks Gonna try it

 

[CannaGranny]

I agree and thats how she acted at first i think but she Was dry and light when i watered to runoff?

Means you have pockets in your soil. One way you can avoid this in the future is to tamp down the dirt when you fill the bag.
Having pockets in the soil creates a channel the water runs through and drips from the bag, kind of fooling you about how wet it really is.
Some of it looks overwatered and some of it under watered.
Learning to water those bags properly will take care of a lot of your problems.

 

[GoodShit97]

Means you have pockets in your soil. One way you can avoid this in the future is to tamp down the dirt when you fill the bag.
Having pockets in the soil creates a channel the water runs through and drips from the bag, kind of fooling you about how wet it really is.
Some of it looks overwatered and some of it under watered.
Learning to water those bags properly will take care of a lot of your problems.

100% agree. When i pot up to 5 gallons from 1 gallons i run 2 gallons of water through the 5 gallon pots to make sure they are 100% saturated, then from there they get a gallon every watering and i havent had any issues doing it that way yet.

 

[Rootsruler]

Means you have pockets in your soil. One way you can avoid this in the future is to tamp down the dirt when you fill the bag.
Having pockets in the soil creates a channel the water runs through and drips from the bag, kind of fooling you about how wet it really is.
Some of it looks overwatered and some of it under watered.
Learning to water those bags properly will take care of a lot of your problems.

Agreed. I've read posts where people say don't compact the soil but the soil is already airy as it has perlite so even if you firm up the soil once you get water running through it it'll loosen up. I pack my soil for the exact reason CG mentioned. To eliminate air pockets.

 

[Rootsruler]

@CannaGranny

Do you ever repack your soil? Sometimes, usually towards the end of veg, it seems like the soil has loosened up quite a bit and I'll pack it down lightly.

 

[Speedypete]

Means you have pockets in your soil. One way you can avoid this in the future is to tamp down the dirt when you fill the bag.
Having pockets in the soil creates a channel the water runs through and drips from the bag, kind of fooling you about how wet it really is.
Some of it looks overwatered and some of it under watered.
Learning to water those bags properly will take care of a lot of your problems.

I started them from seed in those pots. I watered sparingly until they got established a bit. I had calmag def from early on i think that i might be just about caught up to I mixed probly 15 percent more perlite Thanks eh i got lotsa shit to learn about

 

[Speedypete]

100% agree. When i pot up to 5 gallons from 1 gallons i run 2 gallons of water through the 5 gallon pots to make sure they are 100% saturated, then from there they get a gallon every watering and i havent had any issues doing it that way yet.

Duly noted thank you

 

[SSHZ]

I've been growing in Promix for 30+ years and never compacted the soil in the pots once in all that time. I just fill them to the very top and with the first watering, the soil level reduces downward about 1 inch. Nor have I ever seen "pockets" form in the 4-5 gallon pots. What does happen is if the pots dry out too much, the soil tightens away from the sides, leaving gaps between the soil and the sides of the pots. When that happens, water just a little bit, let the soil rehydrate, and then water as normal. If you want a lighter soil with better drainage, add additional perlite which I always do. The courser it is, the better drainage you'll get. If I don't use additional perlite, I find the soil compacts too much by the end of the grow. The extra perlite helps that from happening.

 

[CannaGranny]

@CannaGranny

Do you ever repack your soil? Sometimes, usually towards the end of veg, it seems like the soil has loosened up quite a bit and I'll pack it down lightly.

No. Seems once it is packed down I don’t have the need. Growing organic I never let my soil reach a completely dry level. I’d say it gets about 90-95% dry. Trying to preserve my microbial life.
At the end of the grow the soil in my pot is always 5-6” lower than when I started.

 

[Speedypete]

Duly noted thank you

I started them from seed in those pots. I watered sparingly until they got established a bit. I had calmag def from early on i think that i might be just about caught up to I mixed probly 15 percent more perlite Thanks eh i got lotsa shit to learn about

I watered the back row this morning to about 20 percent runoff which came out at about 12-1300ppm 5.6ph. I drag them outta there to water train and defoliate while they are still easy to move. They got 2.5ml/lt calmag 1ml/lt silica 0.5 ml/lt b-52 1.0ml/lt bennies and 1.5ml/lt a&b. Front row ready for the same treatment tomorrow So far so good Thank you everyone for your help so far

 

[Speedypete]

I watered the back row this morning to about 20 percent runoff which came out at about 12-1300ppm 5.6ph. I drag them outta there to water train and defoliate while they are still easy to move. They got 2.5ml/lt calmag 1ml/lt silica 0.5 ml/lt b-52 1.0ml/lt bennies and 1.5ml/lt a&b. Front row ready for the same treatment tomorrow So far so good Thank you everyone for your help so far

First pic at lights on Last after watering. 850ppm 6.0ph 750-780par CO2 900-1000 in the basement 83 degrees around 55-60 rh

 

[Rootsruler]

5.6 pH seems low for soil. I shoot for as close to 6.5 pH as I can.

 

[Speedypete]

5.6 pH seems low for soil. I shoot for as close to 6.5 pH as I can.

I shoulda worded that differently Feed went in at 6.0 and the runnoff come out at 5.6. The front row are more sativa I have been feeding them at 6.3 trying to slow the nitrogen and hopefully some stretch

 

[GoodShit97]

I shoulda worded that differently Feed went in at 6.0 and the runnoff come out at 5.6. The front row are more sativa I have been feeding them at 6.3 trying to slow the nitrogen and hopefully some stretch

Bring ph to 6.5-6.8 for soil imo

 

[GoodShit97]

Bring ph to 6.5-6.8 for soil imo

That should also bring runoff ph up to like 6.2

 

[Rootsruler]

This last grow I experimented with running high pH in week 2 right after pistil pop, around 7.5, when I was upping the calcium and magnesium for better uptake. I'm sure the soil buffers brought it down some but it seemed like the girls liked it as I was able to grow a 17 oz plant.

 

[Speedypete]

This last grow I experimented with running high pH in week 2 right after pistil pop, around 7.5, when I was upping the calcium and magnesium for better uptake. I'm sure the soil buffers brought it down some but it seemed like the girls liked it as I was able to grow a 17 oz plant.

Everything goes in 6.0-6.3 Surprised to see runoff that low

 

[Speedypete]

10 days in flower today and things are looking alright. Doing a fair bit of training to get the space filled up. Seeing the first few pistols appear Cant wait

 

[GoodShit97]

10 days in flower today and things are looking alright. Doing a fair bit of training to get the space filled up. Seeing the first few pistols appear Cant wait

Once pistils start showing is usually when i stop adjusting things and just let them focus on vertical growth. Once stretch stops i readjust everything to its final position.

Looking really good tho @Speedypete!
Now is when the fun begins

 

[Speedypete]

Once pistils start showing is usually when i stop adjusting things and just let them focus on vertical growth. Once stretch stops i readjust everything to its final position.

Looking really good tho @Speedypete!
Now is when the fun begins

Thanks lots of good advice and reading on here has helped alot

 

[Anthem275]

This last grow I experimented with running high pH in week 2 right after pistil pop, around 7.5, when I was upping the calcium and magnesium for better uptake. I'm sure the soil buffers brought it down some but it seemed like the girls liked it as I was able to grow a 17 oz plant.

Just curious, how and when do you weight your plants?

 

[Rootsruler]

Just curious, how and when do you weight your plants?

I weigh after I get the girls in the jar and a few weeks of curing.

 

[Speedypete]

Day 17 of flower today. Seem to be off to kind of a slow start but they are coming along. Water and calmag this morning followed by a fairly heavy defoliation and got rid of some larf. Will see how they progress

 

[Rootsruler]

Day 17 of flower today. Seem to be off to kind of a slow start but they are coming along. Water and calmag this morning followed by a fairly heavy defoliation and got rid of some larf. Will see how they progress

How did you mount your heater and hygro on your corner poles?

 

[GrumpAzz]

How did you mount your heater and hygro on your corner poles?

I did something similar with my heater and just used zip-ties

 

[Speedypete]

How did you mount your heater and hygro on your corner poles?

I tightened a hose clamp on the pole for each For the heater the hose clamp holds a bracket for it to sit on the zip tied the top of heater to pole so it stays put

 

[Speedypete]

I saw a few of them nasty fungus gnats around again so i used mosquito dunks again yesterday. They first application near the beginning controlled the little bastards very well

 

[Rootsruler]

I tightened a hose clamp on the pole for each For the heater the hose clamp holds a bracket for it to sit on the zip tied the top of heater to pole so it stays put

Corner bracket? Like a shelf?

Amazon.com

 

[Speedypete]

Corner bracket? Like a shelf?

Amazon.com

I just found a piece of metal and bent it in a L shape. Like a bracket one would mount a shelf with and secured it with a hose clamp.

 

[Rootsruler]

I just found a piece of metal and bent it in a L shape. Like a bracket one would mount a shelf with and secured it with a hose clamp.

Ok...like an L bracket and you secured it with a hose clamp. Good idea.

Is there a reason you hung it above the canopy? I'm guessing so that you aren't cooking the plants or drying out the pots. Your fan can mix the heated air with your ambient air without directly hitting the plants themselves?

My little heater hangs off the plug so I need to rig up something to secure it permanently. Yours probably has a tip over shut off whereas mine does not so I can position it in any way I want. I liked how I can lay it on the floor and let it heat up the tent but once the canopy fills up I won't be able to do that so I need to figure out a way to secure the plug to a pole or mount surface I fabricate. I still have a piece of the wire shelf I hung on the roof of the tent to mount stuff too so I may use it to mount the heater. Still trying to figure out the best way to do that.

 

[Speedypete]

Ok...like an L bracket and you secured it with a hose clamp. Good idea.

Is there a reason you hung it above the canopy? I'm guessing so that you aren't cooking the plants or drying out the pots. Your fan can mix the heated air with your ambient air without directly hitting the plants themselves?

My little heater hangs off the plug so I need to rig up something to secure it permanently. Yours probably has a tip over shut off whereas mine does not so I can position it in any way I want. I liked how I can lay it on the floor and let it heat up the tent but once the canopy fills up I won't be able to do that so I need to figure out a way to secure the plug to a pole or mount surface I fabricate. I still have a piece of the wire shelf I hung on the roof of the tent to mount stuff too so I may use it to mount the heater. Still trying to figure out the best way to do that.

Yes My circulation fans are mounted on the roof blowing straight down so it mixes air as thats where the heat wants to go. The fans also cool the bars on the led hoping it might last a bit longer

 

[Speedypete]

Yes My circulation fans are mounted on the roof blowing straight down so it mixes air as thats where the heat wants to go. The fans also cool the bars on the led hoping it might last a bit longer

Its cold here now and snowing today so the woodstove is lit. Heater is just for backup and the fire is sure helping to not have to run the dehue so much

 

[steamroller]

Its cold here now and snowing today so the woodstove is lit. Heater is just for backup and the fire is sure helping to not have to run the dehue so much

Try to keep that snow up north if possible~!

 

[Speedypete]

Try to keep that snow up north if possible~!

I would gladly share it with everyone. The older i get the less i like it

 

[SSHZ]

A comment........plants generally do not like movement of the ppm or pH. For overall health and best results, it's best to lock in for a period and not fluctuate but that's just my suggestion........

One other thing with defoliation, the process definitely is stressful to the plant and it normally they take a few days to recover. i've found its best to defoliate before buds begin to form (do the heaviest defoliation here) and then lesser ones every two 2 after that. But, do not defoliate in the period of heaviest bud growth, maybe weeks 4-6, or their size will suffer.