Common Misconceptions

1. Drops of water will burn your leaves. It is possible for a drop of water to focus light and burn a leaf, but not when it is directly on it or when there is any movement. The drop would need to be suspended away from the leaf and be still to acquire such a burn. This is with the power of the sun, much more powerful than our 1000W HPS systems. If water drops could burn leaves, many crops would be devastated every year and it would likely cause many fires as well. A drop of water CAN "burn" a leaf if it is either too cold, too hot, or too rich in fertilizer.
2. You can pH your water with lemon juice, vinegar, sodium bicarbonate, etc. Yes, this will change the reading on your pH meter, but it will slowly revert back to or close to your original pH. The reason this happens is because they are not buffer solutions. Simply put, a buffer solution has a weak base/acid and it's conjugate acid/base. These home remedies only contain either an acid or a base.
3. You can't pH your water with lemon juice, vinegar, sodium bicarbonate, etc. Yes, I know I am contradicting myself, but it's a bit more complex than it seems. In a soil based medium, you can pH your water with home remedies for a quick fix until you can get to a hydro store. This is only the case if your soil is well-buffered, as the pH revert back if it's not. Do this too often and you can destroy your soils pH buffering capabilities. I would not recommend you use these with hydroponic systems.
4. Remove yellowing leaves. You should never remove a leave because it is yellowing! Your plant is doing this because either A) your plant needs something, or B) your plant needs something. In all cases, your plants leaf is yellowing because it is lacking something. Usually it is the lower, older leaves to yellow. This is typically because they do not get much light and it is more beneficial/efficient for your plant to "feed" on it. In other cases, you are low on a nutrient and your plant is getting it where it knows it can. Removing the yellowing leaf only perpetuates the issue and your plant will feed on another leaf. Let the leave naturally yellow and prune it when it is dead. Also, fix whatever nutrient problem you're having while your plants holds over with it's cannibalistic meal (unless you are in late flower, then leave it alone!)
5. Green light is not used in photosynthesis. I've seen some very knowledgeable people recommend green lights in flower rooms to work or see during the dark periods. In actuality, over 50% of green light is absorbed by plants and is efficiently used in photosynthesis. Using a green light during the dark periods in a flower room will just lead to stress and possibly hermaphrodites.
6. One light period is better than the other 100% of the time. For example, 24/0 vs 18/6. Yes plants will grow bushier and with tighter nodes in 24/0 lighting, but 18/6 does have it's saving grace! Dark periods do allow for accelerated root growth and can be helpful when needing to stimulate root growth such as newly transplanted cannabis or clones/seedlings. I recommend 20/4 lighting for this though as this allows the most efficient use of energy. Too much root growth (no such thing, really) can also lead to being pot-bound quicker, that is for you to decide if it is beneficial or not. I pot in oversized pots (in final transplant) to regulated temperature better, more stable environment, so additional root growth is always welcome to me.

You can pH your water with lemon juice, vinegar, sodium bicarbonate, etc. Yes, this will change the reading on your pH meter, but it will slowly revert back to or close to your original pH. The reason this happens is because they are not buffer solutions. Simply put, a buffer solution has a weak base/acid and it's conjugate acid/base. These home remedies only contain either an acid or a base.

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lax123 said:

doesnt that mean you could put vinegar in it, let it set for a day and then readjust, untill buffer capacity is exhausted?

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1. You can pH your water with lemon juice, vinegar, sodium bicarbonate, etc. Yes, this will change the reading on your pH meter, but it will slowly revert back to or close to your original pH. The reason this happens is because they are not buffer solutions. Simply put, a buffer solution has a weak base/acid and it's conjugate acid/base. These home remedies only contain either an acid or a base.

Mad Hamish said:

1. You can pH your water with lemon juice, vinegar, sodium bicarbonate, etc. Yes, this will change the reading on your pH meter, but it will slowly revert back to or close to your original pH. The reason this happens is because they are not buffer solutions. Simply put, a buffer solution has a weak base/acid and it's conjugate acid/base. These home remedies only contain either an acid or a base.

Soma from Soma Seeds uses this exact phenomenon to his advantage. As he states, the pH of tap water in Amsterdam is around 8.5 He grows organically only. So what he does is use ascorbic acid to pH down to a low 6.2 for his watering, knowing that by the next water the soil pH would have drifted up to around 6.8-ish. His reasoning behind it is this: Different elements are each best and most easily absorbed at it's own unique pH level. So allowing his pH to drift up from 6.2 to around 6.7 as far as I recall, it allows for maximum absorption of each element while still staying within a safe pH range. I found it interesting. You can read more about how he grows on his website... I have never tried it, but I have huge respect for Soma.

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Mad Hamish said:

1. You can pH your water with lemon juice, vinegar, sodium bicarbonate, etc. Yes, this will change the reading on your pH meter, but it will slowly revert back to or close to your original pH. The reason this happens is because they are not buffer solutions. Simply put, a buffer solution has a weak base/acid and it's conjugate acid/base. These home remedies only contain either an acid or a base.

Soma from Soma Seeds uses this exact phenomenon to his advantage. As he states, the pH of tap water in Amsterdam is around 8.5 He grows organically only. So what he does is use ascorbic acid to pH down to a low 6.2 for his watering, knowing that by the next water the soil pH would have drifted up to around 6.8-ish. His reasoning behind it is this: Different elements are each best and most easily absorbed at it's own unique pH level. So allowing his pH to drift up from 6.2 to around 6.7 as far as I recall, it allows for maximum absorption of each element while still staying within a safe pH range. I found it interesting. You can read more about how he grows on his website... I have never tried it, but I have huge respect for Soma.

Click to expand...

1. You can pH your water with lemon juice, vinegar, sodium bicarbonate, etc. Yes, this will change the reading on your pH meter, but it will slowly revert back to or close to your original pH. The reason this happens is because they are not buffer solutions. Simply put, a buffer solution has a weak base/acid and it's conjugate acid/base. These home remedies only contain either an acid or a base.
2. You can't pH your water with lemon juice, vinegar, sodium bicarbonate, etc. Yes, I know I am contradicting myself, but it's a bit more complex than it seems. In a soil based medium, you can pH your water with home remedies for a quick fix until you can get to a hydro store. This is only the case if your soil is well-buffered, as the pH revert back if it's not. Do this too often and you can destroy your soils pH buffering capabilities. I would not recommend you use these with hydroponic systems

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lax123 said:

Could we plz get to the bottom of this if stuff like Lemon Juice or vinegar works or not. Im Kind of understanding what you r saying there and Kind of not.
What I think: step one lower pH with vinegar, wait a day then readjust. This will destroy the buffer capabilities of the tap water.
So now you have ur pH 6,5 water and put it in your around 6,5 acidic soil. Why would this "destroy the buffer" of my soil???

Because like 90% pH minus producs i see usually just have some acid in it, no mentioning of any buffer...

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Ogracious said:

There is a specific amount of weak acid/base that a buffer can absorb before it reaches it's capacity and "destroys the buffer" as you put it. What I was saying is that if you grow in soil, you can use those remedies in a pinch, but if you do it too long you will ruin your soils buffer capacity. Apparently some people use this to their advantage (see above).

All pH up/down products are buffered.

Hope I don't sound short, eating dinner simultaneously...

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Mad Hamish said:

Adequate amounts of Agricultural lime and Gypsum OR Dolomite lime should make it a non-issue really. It will take a LONG time to use up the buffering capacity of the soil. Living Organic Soil growers use acidic compost teas all the time. A good soil mix = no problems.

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adower said:

Commo. Misconception- more is better

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