Never used it, but read that's it's too hot for seedlings. Did a hole and fill withI will use the paper towel method to start my seeds.OF wont kill that seedling will it?
OF mixed with something milder like compost.
First timer wanting advise.
- Thread starter mrpipster
- Start date
OF mixed with something milder like compost.Or start those puppies straight in a solo cup full of Coco Coir, Royal Gold really does me better good. Dunk then in a shot glass of distilled water!! for 12-24 hours, then straight into the solo cup of Coco. Keep that coco solo cup damp, but nowhere near wet. Since you said you'd spring for whatever is best, this has been my favorite for years. Buy those blue lab TDS, or a truncheon if you're really foing for the gusto. Make sure you have storage solution and at least #7 calibration liquid for your PH meter. You a will want to check both your PH and PPM of your water before you feed. I know it sounds like allot, but it gets easier. The rewards of growing your own medicine... Priceless.Never used it, but read that's it's too hot for seedlings. Did a hole and fill with
GeorgeCloney
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I own 3 ph meters.
A $10 Chinesium which like most is junk.
A $50 Dr.Meter I bought on Amazon ( my fave).
And a $275 Blulabs soil PH probe.
Like all things in life.
Get the best you can afford.
A serious grower could consider an Apogee or Bluelabs PH meter for about $100.
It will be accurate and need little calibration.
Of the 10,000 people writing in the help section on this site.
1/2 are about calcium/magnesium def'c.
And about 20% of the rest are about a ph related issue.
BTW, this includes calmag def'c!!!
So,
A word from the wise and experienced as @manalicream. Said, dont cheap out on this.
A couple of hundred dollars of setup and months of work can be ruined because of a menial cost saving.
Is your time or investment worth it?
Your call.
A $10 Chinesium which like most is junk.
A $50 Dr.Meter I bought on Amazon ( my fave).
And a $275 Blulabs soil PH probe.
Like all things in life.
Get the best you can afford.
A serious grower could consider an Apogee or Bluelabs PH meter for about $100.
It will be accurate and need little calibration.
Of the 10,000 people writing in the help section on this site.
1/2 are about calcium/magnesium def'c.
And about 20% of the rest are about a ph related issue.
BTW, this includes calmag def'c!!!
So,
A word from the wise and experienced as @manalicream. Said, dont cheap out on this.
A couple of hundred dollars of setup and months of work can be ruined because of a menial cost saving.
Is your time or investment worth it?
Your call.
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- Dabs of Rosin.
Lets just cover some basics. Both meters do the same thing but the quality in how it is done makes the difference.
TDS meter = total dissolved solids and is useful for drinking water. Inexpensive ones are fine. For my crops worth so much sweat and effort I go for an EC. EC meter = electrical conductivity measures dissolved salts in water and can be displayed as EC or PPM. There are 3 scales commonly used in meters for PPM Hanna, Eutech and Truncheon see the chart. These meters are more laboratory grade and more reliable to measure the PPM of your nutrient mix. The EC tells you the strength of the solution but not what is in it.
What to do with an EC meter. Test your source water if the EC>.4 or PPM >200 on the Hanna scale then you need to use a nutrient blended for hard water up to .6 / 300 then you need a alternate plan for water.
EC meters test the strength of your nutrients before you apply them to the plant. Gardeners for many generations did not do any of this and they grew crops just fine. If you are an accomplished gardener with years of experience you probably don't need these tools or at least you do not think so. The rest of us need all the help we can get because failure means no weed
. I mentioned before EC/PPMs does not tell you if you have too much nitrogen and not enough manganese. The balance of nutrients in your mixture determines the availability of each individual component. This is why you never add just cal-mag you always just increase the cal-mag in the regular blend. This is explained by Liebig's Law of the minimum.
Example: If selinium is too low in your nutrient mix then all of the other nutrients above the selenium level are not available to the plant even though they are in the barrel. These other nutrients are said to be locked-out. Different imbalances cause different lock-out combinations.
So how to keep your nutrients in balance? Choose a vendor with a nutrient line designed for cannabis from the ground up. Use their entire line following their charts with one exception the strength. Many growers including myself find that many vendors charts are too strong for autos. I start at seeds at 25% seedlings at 50% and then add 10% per week until a little tip burn then back off 10%.
I know that a lot of growers swear by it and their proof is the fact that many plants survive the technique but unless seeds are old or have been stored poorly soaking seeds is not needed and can drown them. Then because they need the instant gratification of seeing the tap root they germinate them in paper towels. If you look at a tap root under 200x magnification you will see the “root hairs” that grow laterally out from the tap root. These become the plant’s uptake roots. They will grow into the fibers of the paper towels and are ripped off every time the seedling is move or the towel is opened – ouch. Then when transplanting it is very easy to bump the tap root tip and damage it or kill the seedling – Why?
Put the fresh or properly stored seed ½” deep in a Rapid Rooter, Root Riot, rock wool cube or similar or right in the soil. Don’t use Jiffy peat pots the PH is too low. Keep moist – not wet, and ~78°F, 60% humidity with your blue (veg) lights on and they will germinate if viable. Most strains will germinate in 5 to 7 days. Some strains take longer than others. The African sativas can take 21+ days so be patient. If your seeds are not fresh or have been stored poorly an 8 hour soak in a weak kelp solution can encourage germination. Kelp has natural Gibberellic acid GA3 which is a growth stimulator. I use 25% strength week one nutrients with a little kelp to moisten my starter cubes.
TDS meter = total dissolved solids and is useful for drinking water. Inexpensive ones are fine. For my crops worth so much sweat and effort I go for an EC. EC meter = electrical conductivity measures dissolved salts in water and can be displayed as EC or PPM. There are 3 scales commonly used in meters for PPM Hanna, Eutech and Truncheon see the chart. These meters are more laboratory grade and more reliable to measure the PPM of your nutrient mix. The EC tells you the strength of the solution but not what is in it.
What to do with an EC meter. Test your source water if the EC>.4 or PPM >200 on the Hanna scale then you need to use a nutrient blended for hard water up to .6 / 300 then you need a alternate plan for water.
EC meters test the strength of your nutrients before you apply them to the plant. Gardeners for many generations did not do any of this and they grew crops just fine. If you are an accomplished gardener with years of experience you probably don't need these tools or at least you do not think so. The rest of us need all the help we can get because failure means no weed
. I mentioned before EC/PPMs does not tell you if you have too much nitrogen and not enough manganese. The balance of nutrients in your mixture determines the availability of each individual component. This is why you never add just cal-mag you always just increase the cal-mag in the regular blend. This is explained by Liebig's Law of the minimum.Example: If selinium is too low in your nutrient mix then all of the other nutrients above the selenium level are not available to the plant even though they are in the barrel. These other nutrients are said to be locked-out. Different imbalances cause different lock-out combinations.
So how to keep your nutrients in balance? Choose a vendor with a nutrient line designed for cannabis from the ground up. Use their entire line following their charts with one exception the strength. Many growers including myself find that many vendors charts are too strong for autos. I start at seeds at 25% seedlings at 50% and then add 10% per week until a little tip burn then back off 10%.
I know that a lot of growers swear by it and their proof is the fact that many plants survive the technique but unless seeds are old or have been stored poorly soaking seeds is not needed and can drown them. Then because they need the instant gratification of seeing the tap root they germinate them in paper towels. If you look at a tap root under 200x magnification you will see the “root hairs” that grow laterally out from the tap root. These become the plant’s uptake roots. They will grow into the fibers of the paper towels and are ripped off every time the seedling is move or the towel is opened – ouch. Then when transplanting it is very easy to bump the tap root tip and damage it or kill the seedling – Why?
Put the fresh or properly stored seed ½” deep in a Rapid Rooter, Root Riot, rock wool cube or similar or right in the soil. Don’t use Jiffy peat pots the PH is too low. Keep moist – not wet, and ~78°F, 60% humidity with your blue (veg) lights on and they will germinate if viable. Most strains will germinate in 5 to 7 days. Some strains take longer than others. The African sativas can take 21+ days so be patient. If your seeds are not fresh or have been stored poorly an 8 hour soak in a weak kelp solution can encourage germination. Kelp has natural Gibberellic acid GA3 which is a growth stimulator. I use 25% strength week one nutrients with a little kelp to moisten my starter cubes.
Nope be just fine just get the tap root set right and will usually sprout out after two - four days for me usually. Ive never dealt withI will use the paper towel method to start my seeds.
OF burning any of my plants just lack of magnesium into 4th week for two of my plants now using ffof so keep an eye out.OF will be loaded with nutes and will do most of the guessing work for you. You can eithwr top dress with more OF at week 6 or add in nutes. This being your first grow id would opt for top dressing. Just keep ph right, and dont over water. Ive had successful grows with just OF and top dressing.
