Feeding in coco with w.can..

Hey up everybody.. About to start my third grow and this time its a few cheeky autoflowing white russians. Ive succesfully grown in rockwool and then soil but have decided to invest in some Canna coco and feeds for this one. I have the pre buffered pro coco and all nutes except the boost. I've always watered with a can and want to do the same with the coco but can't find any info re. this. Are there any draw backs to using a watering can with coco? If anybody has any tips it would be appreciated. Cheers for reading this and happy smoking!

Welcome to RIU

Watering with a can? I am not understanding something?

nah man you can water it like that, don't know what canna's coco texture is like, but even with the bricks you'll have to water it more often than soil, probably similar to rockwool never tried it and don't really know much about it though. with coco i feed it with nutes like every day or every 2 days, and only flush if they need it as i water and let a decent amount of it come out the bottom since coco is really hard to over water so that kind of stops any salts building, but some people like to just water it normal and flush like once a week.

smokeberry said:

Canna coco and feeds for this one. I have the pre buffered pro coco and all nutes except the boost. I've always watered with a can and want to do the same with the coco but can't find any info re. this. Are there any draw backs to using a watering can with coco? If anybody has any tips it would be appreciated. Cheers for reading this and happy smoking!

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a watering can, that's a new one for me. i always use something plastic, LOL. you're not talking about having a metal rez are you? i've used the canna line before, with great results. i rinse the pre-rinsed coco. i use 5 gallon containers, and give em a 5 gallon flush. i like their pk 13/14 too. here's some coco info. cut and pasted from g. low's book, "integral hydroponics."

COCO COIR
is a product derived from the husks of the coconut.
Visually it looks like peat.
It's air capacity is about 30%.
Coir is most suited as a run to waste medium.
Coir can become saturated and it is not truly inert medium.
This means that the nutrient will change over a short period (due to the nutrient collecting micro and macro elements as it passes through the coir.
Coir tends to release potassium and to withold calcium.
For this reason it is desirable to use a nutrient that is blended specifically for coir.
Coir has a remarkable capacity to protect the plants root system in times of heat.
It also tends to promote vigorous and healthy root development.
Plant growth tends to be very consistant with coir.
Coir is very tolerant of over and under watering, which makes it a very forgiving growing medium.
Coir has a very strong cation exchange ability, which means it can hold and release nutrient elements based on the plants needs.
Coir tends to retain nutrient salts. because of this, less nutrient (lower ec) is required.
On a less positive note, coir can also contain high levels of sodium (salt)....
If your growing in coir be aware that this can be a potential problem.
Either purchase a pre-flushed coir product or flush ph (5.5-6.0) stabilised water through the coir prior to use.
Measure the ec of the water and then measure the ec of the run off.
When they are the same, it is ready for use.
Large amounts of potassium are naturally present in coir.
Potassium competes with calcium and magnesium... buffering and plant nutrition needs to compensate for this!!
For this reason there are several nutrients that are specifically formulated with the coco coir's unique characteristics in mind.
By using a nutrient specifically formulated for the coir based system, you are ensuring that your plants are receiving the best possible nutritient package.

i don't know about making loads of it i've only made like 5 litres at a time, but think it says somewhere on that chart not to leave it for too long so i guess i depends on how long you leave it.... i really don't know though. yeah if you do flush i think people do it just water for a day and the back again as long as you are flushing to prevent problems, if you do have probs then maybe leave it a few days to sort itself out before giving nutes. you probably already know this but don't necessarily do as much as it says on the chart, some plants can take it but i think most wouldn't but its still useful to check proportions if you are using other things on top of the nutes

smokeberry said:

The Canna charts work by giving the amount of nutes per 10L. I can make this amount and keep it in a drum and dip my can in the drum daily but will the feed spoil if left in the drum for a while? Also, I've never flushed a crop during a grow, only at the end. If I were to flush once a week would it literaly just be a case of watering with only water one day a week?

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10 liters isn't much. what's that, about 2.5 gallons? it depends on the size/amount of containers you're using. i keep my rez for about a week before it's empty, no problems, especially with chemical ferts. in coco, there's no need to flush until the end. that's why you want the 10-15% run-off "every" time you feed. this acts as a mini-flush. you actually don't want to flush in coco weekly. you're gonna like coco!!!

Wow, thats some brilliant info. I was feeling a bit anxious cause' I'm new to coco but not anymore, doesn't sound too different to the Pot Ponics (Rock Wool).
LOL at watering can! I take it your none of you are from the UK? My watering can is plastic but that's what we call them in the north! If you see any old style watering cans over here they were tin so maybe thats where the name stems from?? Or maybe I'm just stuck in the 50's!

nah man i'm english and know what you mean didn't realise watering can was only used in uk, i'm up north as well for uni. yeah coco is good shit and pretty simple really, never grown in soil but i reckon, despite being more work, its probably easier to control

i'd like to visit the u.k. someday. we have lots of slang in the u.s. too.

Silky Shagsalot said:

i'd like to visit the u.k. someday. we have lots of slang in the u.s. too.

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haha not really slang just what its called

Out of interest, what do you call a watering can in the states? The UK's pretty cool I suppose but if you were to come all this way Silky you've got to get to Amsterdam. I went for a long weekend in December. Spent 4 days smoking Northern Lights and Crystal and walking round museums. Our lass loves em' and spliffs make everything entertaining so I don't mind!

smokeberry said:

Out of interest, what do you call a watering can in the states? The UK's pretty cool I suppose but if you were to come all this way Silky you've got to get to Amsterdam. I went for a long weekend in December. Spent 4 days smoking Northern Lights and Crystal and walking round museums. Our lass loves em' and spliffs make everything entertaining so I don't mind!

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let me think, a bucket, pale, cup..... anything i water with is a watering can. actually, i use an old "simply orange," orange juice container. i use the lines in it to measure. i've been to the dam a few times, i was stationed in ramstein, flugplatz long ago. it's a great place! great people and sites, oh, and some fair smokin materials too!!!

coco is the shit. I think you'll like it. As for your questions, you can let your nutes sit for quite a while, and itll be fine. 10l is only 2 and a half gallons though, so how long could that possibly take you to use, how many plants have you got? YOu dont have to flush your coco every week, just get a decent amount of runoff every watering, you can throw in one day a week where you only use water if you want to. Watch out for Mg/Ca deficiencies, as they are common with coco. Water often, everyday would be ideal. And I personally find you you will get a better end product if you use chem ferts in conjunction with organic teas. Some mychorizae bacteria would be helpful too.