Ph decreasing on coco ?
- Thread starter laldibap
- Start date
forgetiwashere
Well-Known Member
bump .
Started using Coco a few months ago to hold my moms. I agree with pinto that Coco is unique and you will want to research its special properties and the way it handles nutriments like Potassium and Calcium. However I dont agree that you should use Advanced Nutrients, they are just too expensive when you can get the same results with many cheaper products. Canna makes some coco specific nutes but I have not tested them. I currently use Dyna-Gro Foliage Pro and the growth rate is amazing. I don't have a direct link but there are some posts floating around with quoted emails from Dyna-Gro reps that their drain to waste feeding schedule was designed for Coco. I just cant recommend an company that deliberately leaves essential nutrients out of their main nutrients and then markets you a special additives at insane prices to treat the problems that you are bound to get for not using a complete nutrient line
To answer your questions the PH in coco will usually rise as the medium dries ( Do not let coco dry!) your watering frequency will depend on how established your roots are. Fresh clones or seedling may only need water every 3 days or so, the best way to tell is to use plastic pots and check the weight once it gets light you need to water. as the plant grows you will water more requently. my moms currently are fed twice a day but I believe that is because i mixed in perlite which causes the medium to drain better. I do not recommend perlite because coco naturally has a great ability to hold just the right amount of water and once fully rooted in the pot the perlite causes the water to drain to quickly which is why I water twice a day.
I recommend Drain to waste systems with coco and either watering everyday with 20% runoff or watering right up until runoff with a good flushing every two weeks or so. If you do not flush you will get salt buildup in the medium which will cause the PH to rise and cause nute lockout.
Also dont forget to flush your coco before using it! even high quality coco should be flushed just in case. Quality Control is not very good but the top brands seem to be B'Cuzz, Canna, Botanicare, Black Gold, Cyco (Peat) there are others but these seem to be mentions frequently.
I am by no means an expert and this is only my opinion after many many hours of researching and 3 months of experience with coco (isnt much but I ran into every problem first hand trying to get use to coco before getting it right and seeing what all the fuss was about.)
To answer your questions the PH in coco will usually rise as the medium dries ( Do not let coco dry!) your watering frequency will depend on how established your roots are. Fresh clones or seedling may only need water every 3 days or so, the best way to tell is to use plastic pots and check the weight once it gets light you need to water. as the plant grows you will water more requently. my moms currently are fed twice a day but I believe that is because i mixed in perlite which causes the medium to drain better. I do not recommend perlite because coco naturally has a great ability to hold just the right amount of water and once fully rooted in the pot the perlite causes the water to drain to quickly which is why I water twice a day.
I recommend Drain to waste systems with coco and either watering everyday with 20% runoff or watering right up until runoff with a good flushing every two weeks or so. If you do not flush you will get salt buildup in the medium which will cause the PH to rise and cause nute lockout.
Also dont forget to flush your coco before using it! even high quality coco should be flushed just in case. Quality Control is not very good but the top brands seem to be B'Cuzz, Canna, Botanicare, Black Gold, Cyco (Peat) there are others but these seem to be mentions frequently.
I am by no means an expert and this is only my opinion after many many hours of researching and 3 months of experience with coco (isnt much but I ran into every problem first hand trying to get use to coco before getting it right and seeing what all the fuss was about.)
ANC is correct. But if you are doing a BIG flush you can use plain PH'd water then do a light flush again with a weak nute solution. the reason for this is to cut the cost of having to run a few gallons or more of nute solution through a pot which can be an unnecessary cost. You should only have to do a large flush like that if you are seeing some visual problems in the plants and not as routine maintenance.