New Grower Hugo's Backyard!

[GoAuto6]

Thanks for the reply, GA. I understand that 9.6 is off the charts for the medium (soil in pot), but that's how high my liquid going in is at, in order to raise the medium's (level 4) PH. I'm simply trying to get the 6 point range. I'm even thinking of raising my water a little more than the 9.6, no..??

what i menat was your soil will catch up with your water i would't jack up my water to get my soil to go up ....... after two or three watering i bet your soil evens out to your phd water........and a good thing to do is moisten your soil well with phd and airated water real well, im not sure but i think coffee grounds might bring your ph up also.....

 

[Hugo]

I've flushed with pH'd water at 8ish with good results increasing my soil pH. I mainly do this because as I can't get my hands on limestone where I'm at.

How much time does the pH of intake water hold in the soil? Not much is my guess. It's known that it's more easier to lower than to increase the pH, but that's an opinion I take seriously cres so no more than 9... That sounds good to me.

Ghabi, there's another method to increase the pH quickly: with wood ash. You gotta use it sparingly because a little too much is toxic to the roots, but just enough will increase the soil pH.

Applying small amounts of wood ash to most soils will not adversely affect your garden crops, and the ash does help replenish some nutrients. But because wood ash increases soil pH, adding large amounts can do more harm than good. Keep in mind that wood ash that has been exposed to the weather, particularly rainfall, has lost a lot of its potency, including nutrients.

Specific recommendations for the use of wood ash in the garden are difficult to make because soil composition and reaction varies from garden to garden. Acidic soils (pH less than 5.5) will likely be improved by wood ash addition. Soils that are slightly acidic (pH 6.0 to 6.5) should not be harmed by the application of 20 pounds per 100 square feet annually, if the ash is worked into the soil about 6 inches or so. However, if your soil is neutral or alkaline (pH 7.0 or greater), find another way to dispose of wood ash. If you don't know your soil's acidity or alkalinity level, have it tested for pH.

 

[Ghabi]

I wouldn't go above 10 my friend. Higher than those ranges the water starts to be too strong for roots. Mind that the pH doesn't stay at those levels for much longer then just a few seconds after it contacts with lower pH soil, but the first impact could hurt the roots.

Thanks for that piece of info, I will not raise PH that high anymore.

What happened when you flushed her? Didn't change even when you were flushing?

Unless I didn't flush her enough, PH remained low after flush. Maybe I should flush again, more aggressively..?

I'd grind down some egg shells and feed it to the soil. It will take a while to rise the soil pH but it will work. How much time do you have left? 1 month?

One month to go, all are in flowering..

 

[Ghabi]

why are you ph up-ing from 6.2? Thats just about ideal... if your watering with 9+ ph you will turn your plants hermi for sure...

Thank you for that info, I was afraid to raise PH more than that, and now I know not to!

what is your soil mix? I think your PH probe is not at all working.. Do you have a simple water ph kit? they sell them everywhere for pools? a quality Ph meter is required to measure reliably... but watering with 9+ ph is a NO NO...

My soil mix is Von Ergmond potting soil, balanced out of the bag at 6.5. It occurred to me that the probe maybe off, it's the standard one most people on this site recommended so I ordered it off e-Bay. It's the combo PH/ Moisture meter stick.









View attachment 120721
BTW, Prior to getting my hands on the PH meter for liquids with which I measured the intake and runoff, I got one of those acquarium/pool kits where you mix in tube and match color against chart. I got same readings..!?

 

[Hugo]

I wouldn't flush more than 1 per month, because it depletes the soil from the beneficial bacteria aswell. I would try the wood ash. There's a lot of info on the net regarding wood ash that will help you out.

 

[astronomy420a]

let me start off by saying, i dont own or use a ph meter after reading on this site for a quite a while, the number one problem, and when someone asks for help about a problem the first response is "whats your ph?" if ph is availble, it is given, and the response is a flood of suggetions on where that number should be. if the grower says i dont have a ph pen, the response is you had better buy one. then the flood of ways to raise and lower the ph show up on the thread! the poor new grower is in info. now he is so worried about ph, that he forgets about other aspects of his grow!
study your plants everyday and if you see signs, take action immediatley, there are enough leaf charts out here to diagnose any problem, unless it is something very rare, and deal with the problem without a ph meter. someday i might eat my words? but for now i am not going down the ph path!

 

[Ghabi]

let me start off by saying, i dont own or use a ph meter after reading on this site for a quite a while, the number one problem, and when someone asks for help about a problem the first response is "whats your ph?" if ph is availble, it is given, and the response is a flood of suggetions on where that number should be. if the grower says i dont have a ph pen, the response is you had better buy one. then the flood of ways to raise and lower the ph show up on the thread! the poor new grower is in info. now he is so worried about ph, that he forgets about other aspects of his grow!
study your plants everyday and if you see signs, take action immediatley, there are enough leaf charts out here to diagnose any problem, unless it is something very rare, and deal with the problem without a ph meter. someday i might eat my words? but for now i am not going down the ph path!

I hear you Astronomy, and I had no intention of going down the PH path, that's what I meant by going for a fun exercise in growing. The semi-guerilla provided that for this season..

I don't know, though, if I could go without PH management on the patio grow, as it seems a real issue. I'm in total agreement with you on reading and listening to each plant. My JF5 and WW seem not too much bothered by the low PH, so I'm letting them be. On the other hand, the NLH and the BB are suffering. I'm not sweating it too much, even if I lose the two, so long as I learn something out of it for next grow and others' benefit.

Cheers, and thank you for sharing your knowledge.

 

[Ghabi]

I wouldn't flush more than 1 per month, because it depletes the soil from the beneficial bacteria aswell. I would try the wood ash. There's a lot of info on the net regarding wood ash that will help you out.

Noted sir, thank you. I will go the egg shell and wood ash route for now..

 

[astronomy420a]

i think it's more opinion than knowledge!

 

[Hugo]

Noted sir, thank you. I will go the egg shell and wood ash route for now..

Egg shell will def take longer to act. Can't wait to read your notes on the wood ash.