Coco Growers Unite!

[Wolverine97]

Sounds like you are flushed.

The proper way to read your pH is by doing a slurry test.

Grab as much loose coco as you can from as low as you can and put it in a small cup. Add just the slightest amount of filtered water (distilled is ideal) to the coco so you can make a kind of slurry with it. Put your pH probe right down into the slurry and test that pH.

This is how Canna recommends testing the pH of Coco.

Personally I always notice the pH is a few points higher, no matter what, with coco. Usually my pH runs off at around 6.3ish when I use a 5.8pH solution. I don't see pH issues in coco very often unless the solution being used is WAY off.

I second this, though I would further stress the importance of using pure water for a slurry test. RO or distilled are the only accurate ways to do it, as any alkalinity at all will skew your results one way or the other.

 

[Snow Crash]

Aight I'll try n do that slurry test when I get home. So what should I do if my readings are still high after testing medium?

I'd weigh my options.

On one hand you can continue to flush your media, using a solution no lower than 5.5pH (I'd probably do more of a 5.8pH and just flush copious amounts). Given the recent flush I think this will stress the plants out some, but there isn't any other way to do it.

On the other hand you can simply decide that maybe you'll just run the coco as though it were soil. Ammend in some organics, get the microbes burning that midnight oil, and embrace the 6.5ish pH required for soil/organics.

Personally, I wouldn't worry about my pH until I was for sure having an issue with it, or if it was reasonably close at not higher than 6.0pH. I'd stay the course with my 5.8pH solution and always aim for >33% run off. The pH will balance out slowly-er, no no, more slowly-er.... than it might with a flushing. This could reduce the shock of flushing again but could prolong pH concerns. Sucks to have to deal with for sure, but don't go thinking you have a problem just because your instruments say you should. Listen to your plant. She's the best pH probe you could hope for.

 

[ChroniCDooM]

What up people. I'm on day 33 of veg in coco. 9 days since topped. My blue mystic Is doing great. The LSD is having an issue. Brown kinda rusty spots. Not sure the prob. Is it mag or cal defiency? What about manganese? I decided to flush them today. I used ro water with coco a&b at an ec of 0.6. Ph was 5.8. Hope it helps! I finally received my atmospheric controller today and was able to install my co2 system. Looking good in the medicine cab. Checked in on em a lil bit ago and the fan leaves were reaching for the sky. I hope it's from the co2 and not the flush. Here they are:

 

[Scroggsy]

They look yellow to me is this normal under HPS? Ive just gone up to 45ml each of A+B per 25 litre jerrycan. Also just started using the calmax at 1ml per litre although it says to use up to double that dose. Also use Cannazym and Rhizo. The roots in these airpots are crazy even after damaging them a few days ago.

Temps @ 24-27 celcius and R Humidity @ 50-60%. PH going in @ 5.8 with 5.8 - 6.0 runoff. Watering between 2-3 litres per 10 litre airpot per day. Here are some pics of the plants and some of my loft setup.

Scroggsy

 

[littlegrower2004]

scroggsy- any way you can spread those out? seems like your wasting some good light. is this the grow your shooting for a GPW? was wondering how much benefit air pots would be for coco since it already has a good air to soil ratio.

 

[Scroggsy]

scroggsy- any way you can spread those out? seems like your wasting some good light. is this the grow your shooting for a GPW? was wondering how much benefit air pots would be for coco since it already has a good air to soil ratio.

I can not spread them out due to a)the size of the pots b)plant numbers c) The size of the drainage trays. Yes I am shooting for a GPW, do you think this is possible?

This round is a big learning curve regards use of space and light etc. Some plants were germinated a week behind meaning uneven canopy, not sure which pot size and numbers work best yet either. Any suggestions? ive started supercropping but obviously cant do anything about numbers or space. Those drainage trays were the biggest size I could fit through the loft hatch. Scroggsy.

And I have found the Air Pots great. They do exactly what they claim to do.

 

[littlegrower2004]

i dont really see why the pot size and plant number is keeping you from spreading out when you already have that size pots and that number of plants but still have extra room. i understand that the drainage tray would be keeping you back since you cant make those bigger. GPW is something that i have always believed that some of the better growers can attain. people of theyre first grows i dont really see it possible even if they can get good help from other growers. i know of one the best growers under some 600s that was reaching like .95 GPW and that was some great grows. its good to haev the intention of a GPW but dont get too stuck on that number as its real hard to reach. i think you should keep what you have going and make changes next grow depending on your results here. i personally use pots under a gallon and have been thinking above moving up a bit. keep us posted though! or start a thread and ill make sure to tune in.

 

[nas2007]

I can not spread them out due to a)the size of the pots b)plant numbers c) The size of the drainage trays. Yes I am shooting for a GPW, do you think this is possible?

This round is a big learning curve regards use of space and light etc. Some plants were germinated a week behind meaning uneven canopy, not sure which pot size and numbers work best yet either. Any suggestions? ive started supercropping but obviously cant do anything about numbers or space. Those drainage trays were the biggest size I could fit through the loft hatch. Scroggsy.

And I have found the Air Pots great. They do exactly what they claim to do.

hey there can you give us some more info about your drainage tray, how does it work? where does the run of water go at end

 

[Scroggsy]

hey there can you give us some more info about your drainage tray, how does it work? where does the run of water go at end

Hey Nas, they are danish base trays x2, so basicly got 2 rows which link together to a 1" drain pipe which goes out of the eves and into the guttering down pipe. I just pour nutes in and they drain out.

I did this for ease, because it was becoming really time consuming to use trays that wern't plumbed into drain by themselves.Scroggsy.

 

[Scroggsy]

i dont really see why the pot size and plant number is keeping you from spreading out when you already have that size pots and that number of plants but still have extra room. i understand that the drainage tray would be keeping you back since you cant make those bigger. GPW is something that i have always believed that some of the better growers can attain. people of theyre first grows i dont really see it possible even if they can get good help from other growers. i know of one the best growers under some 600s that was reaching like .95 GPW and that was some great grows. its good to haev the intention of a GPW but dont get too stuck on that number as its real hard to reach. i think you should keep what you have going and make changes next grow depending on your results here. i personally use pots under a gallon and have been thinking above moving up a bit. keep us posted though! or start a thread and ill make sure to tune in.

Point taken. I just kind of thought 1 GPW was easily attainable given the right environment etc so had that in mind for a goal. TBH though, ease matters just as much to me and these drainage trays make my life easy. So even if a GPW aint doable like this ill still stick with it but try to tweak it as much as possible. Maybe a Scrog next round. Scroggsy. Most of these plants seems to be main colas, with some nice side shoots only being exposed due to supercropping.

Although a scrog does not seem easy with these strains because the side shoots etc are just not really long enough. These plants have stayed short and bushy like. There would not be much to stick through a scrog net.

 

[d6520]

My friend that grows aeroponics in them balls forgot what they call... They brown and small round....well my point is that he tried to say that I was growing in dirt... The medium that I chose is cocco coir... 60% cocco coir.... 30% perlite... And 10% rockwool cubes...... He tried to say that I was growing organic... To my knowledge... Cocco is a medium right... Therefore its automatically called hydroponic cause its gettin nutrients from the water and not the soil right?....well... Can somebody clear this up for me?

 

[Wolverine97]

My friend that grows aeroponics in them balls forgot what they call... They brown and small round....well my point is that he tried to say that I was growing in dirt... The medium that I chose is cocco coir... 60% cocco coir.... 30% perlite... And 10% rockwool cubes...... He tried to say that I was growing organic... To my knowledge... Cocco is a medium right... Therefore its automatically called hydroponic cause its gettin nutrients from wTer a

Um... anything you grow in is a "medium". In hydroponics water is the medium, or rockwool/coco/whatever. Soil is a medium also. The media/medium is just what you're growing in, whatever it may be. Learn some basics.

 

[hollysmoke]

ive been using coco and was wondering can you reuse this medium over and over again since im putting in my own nutrients i figure i can but was just wondering what others thought about it and if anyone else is doing it. really cuts down on me carrying bags into house, kinda looks funny im sure

 

[vdubb808]

ive been using coco and was wondering can you reuse this medium over and over again since im putting in my own nutrients i figure i can but was just wondering what others thought about it and if anyone else is doing it. really cuts down on me carrying bags into house, kinda looks funny im sure

Yup, you can reuse your coco. But you have to clean out all of the root mass and matter. I reuse my coco and what I do to reuse is to just pull my root mass out and lightly slap it around so that all of the loose coco falls out. What ever is bound into the roots and doesn't come out by shaking or slapping I just toss with the root mass. And obviously whatever is left in your pot and doesn't have roots is also reuseable. I put all of my recycled coco into Bus Boy trays I get from Sam's Club. And then I just take out any matter that doesn't look like it belongs in the coco. It should only have a small amount of root clumps, then I just let it dry out nice and even till their next use. You won't be able to save it all is you have a nice heathly root system. (well, I guess you could get more out of it by rinsing the coco from your root mass). I don't waste to much time trying to get everything out, I just take back what wants to come out.

Anyways, I hope that helps, it's just what I do. Someone may have a different method.

 

[Scroggsy]

hey u think soil better or h-dro

Depends on too many things. What do you consider to be better? in what way?

Also this thread needs to stay clean for Coco growers, because this is the only section of the forum that we have to share/find info. you question would be better in the main Indoor Forum.

 

[doser]

nice pics, i'm a believer gonna pick some up manana first time timing is perfect led;s and coco

 

[PUKKA BUD]

Hi peeps heres a few from my current grow Blue Cheese 14days in Canna coco!

 

[Scroggsy]

Hi peeps heres a few from my current grow Blue Cheese 14days in Canna coco!

View attachment 1537921View attachment 1537922

Mmmm tasty Pukka. Did you go for the 3ltr airpots or are those the 1ltr airpots?

 

[PUKKA BUD]

Mmmm tasty Pukka. Did you go for the 3ltr airpots or are those the 1ltr airpots?

There the 1L Scroggsy ive got the 10L 1's to pot up in mate!

 

[Scroggsy]

Quick question. When you use PK13/14 during a certain week in flowering, is that with just one feeding in that week or all of the feedings for the whole week? Im coming into second week of flowering and plan to feed PK13/14 in week two and week six.

Also do I reduce the amounts of Coco A+B to allow the PK13/14 or does the PK13/14 go into the nute mix as an extra? ie if I add say 10ml of PK13/14 do I reduce A by 5ml and B by 5ml?

Cheers.Scroggsy.