Lighting LED and CalMag discussion.

[Power.P]

Great read, cres.
What comes to mind for me living in a low rh area is to just get an automatic air humidifier and I'm all set? Or did I miss the whole point?

 

[evol]

Just a word of warning guys high RH can kill LED lights,most LED failures are down to high RH and temps,at the very least you will get condensation on the lenses/optics.

Exactly! They are made to provide lower temps/rh. One of the main reasons I bought my LED was to have lower temps and humidity so if you have to raise temps and rh with LED it kind of defeats the purpose.

 

[GCase]

I notice what looks more like Cal issues.

Not so much Mag.

I have supplemented at 1 teaspoon per gallon with cal/mag and my PPM with nutes is still a bit on the low side. I just don't want to over do it with the first coco grow.

Cal has some mobility (I think) when it becomes absent from the soil or mix. Also, it works closely with K and K is important during flowering.

I wonder if low Cal during flowering dramatically affects the K uptake. Of course, K is mobile.

**In regard to heat. Is it a soil temp. issue.

Soil, in particular is denser than coco/and some soilless mediums. So soil has a more difficult time adjusting to variations of all kinds. LEDs do not produce intense heat directly to the medium. K uptake has a problem with really low soil temps.
Soil temp. relates to root environment and its up take. Pure hydro is probably easier to correct but shows the deficiency dramatically. In soil cal behaves differently.

Cal and mag often go hand in hand. However, the Cal and mag do not work synergistically as much as K does.

Also, I think the cal and mag issues can be far worse with an LED and real organic soil. Correcting is easier with hydro in any form, water immersed plants and coco etc.

So, any thoughts on soil temp. as a cause.

I am not a science type of guy. We have some experienced growers with general agricultural expertise, maybe, they can give some insight.

 

[dildano]

Hmm I do have a bottle of cal do you guys reckon I should add a few drops of cal to the nutrients to prevent it or should I just wait for problems to appear? I grow hydro with coco.. so far I haven't notice any problems..

 

[GCase]

Hmm I do have a bottle of cal do you guys reckon I should add a few drops of cal to the nutrients to prevent it or should I just wait for problems to appear? I grow hydro with coco.. so far I haven't notice any problems..

Yes and no. If you use RO or pure water--it is a must. Cal and mag are abundant in many areas (hard water). Even some areas have low PPM/EC levels in the tap water and you ought to supplement. Normally it is about 5 ml or a teaspoon.

The guys using well water seem to have the best sources. Check out Astro's grows/big thread with over 100 pages. Uses well water. I have never heard him mention supplementing.

 

[dildano]

I use tap water with the ec 0.3

 

[GCase]

I use tap water with the ec 0.3

That is 160 PPM. Just right--the sweet spot--to add nutes and provides a good buffer. I would monitor the plants for deficiency.

 

[Duck Commander]

Ok i have been told another theory as to why we are seeing Cal/mag def under Led... The theory goes like this, because LED's don't give out the same radiant heat as HPS the plants don't transpire as they normally would, this in turn changes how the plant uptakes nutrients. i have been adviced that a way around this, is to increase the temps and the RH in the grow room. this is what i am doing at the moment..running temps between 82-86F and an RH of 70-80%, so far no problems. Will keep you all updated on how this theory works out.

Through my last 3 flowering girls i have had temps of 34c and a max of 35 and a constant 75% RH( other than opeing tent for 5 min every few hours) and the CalMag issuse was there on all 3 :

Ive also had 3-4 times where my timer's messed up and the extractor fan was off for hours it was pissing off the tent roof with buds soaked i just aired out the tent fans blowing 10 to the dozen and all was well luckiley.. I think it would be a great idea to do it all in a controled way bro. Si

 

[Mr ganjamoto]

I notice what looks more like Cal issues.


Cal has some mobility (I think) when it becomes absent from the soil or mix. Also, it works closely with K and K is important during flowering.

I wonder if low Cal during flowering dramatically affects the K uptake. Of course, K is mobile.

**In regard to heat. Is it a soil temp. issue.

Hi Alan

I posted an info sheet from Canna on Potassium deficiences...

https://www.autoflower.org/f90/potassium-deficiency-info-sheet-24072.html

And one sentence stands out...

"Too much potassium will cause soil damage, calcium and magnesium deficiencies and acidification of the root environment"

May be we should be looking at high potassium levels as a possible contributory factor..

All for now

Mr Jorilla ganjamoto.

 

[TaNg]

Muddy just reminded me of this video from Pro-Source LED http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=xJIjJ5nZUZw they recommend 80-85f for temp and 40% RH.