New Grower Franco From GreenHouseSeedsCo - pH Tips

[Kaiju]

I feel really sorry for alot of new growers who prepare themself with an abundant amount of information to jump head first into growing their favourite plant to not only find once they run into issues that the information that they followed is sometimes greatly variated from person to person.

Ive just been reading Francos article on StrainHunters.com very good website love the expeditions Franco your a legend nothing against you! Its against the inconsistancy of growing information on the internet.

Franco states with Guerilla Growing Outdoors to start with a pH of 5.5 in veg , 6.5 in flowering and to 7.0 to the end of harvest

Franco states Indica grown with regular soil indoors start with pH of 5.8, move to 6.2 when flowering and 6.8 towards end of flower

For sativa in reg soil he states to start with pH of 5.8 move to 6.4 during flowering and to be at 7.0 towards end of flowering

Obviously this is Franco and i am not doubting his information at all he is the second breeder next to Arjan at GHSC but what frustrates me is that by following the most common pH chart on the internet any lower than 6.0 and you would be locking out NPK, Cal/Mag and sulfur by going with these numbers.

So there are 2 huge factors which play a part in whether the information we are following as soil growers is correct or not.

1. The information we are told on soil pH is incorrect or

2. If it is correct have growers like franco who suggest this low of a ph in soil only ever grown in an extremely buffered soil which would of eventually brought it in range that is 'recommended' via nutrient charts for example.

As if it is only based on extremely buffered soil its kind of giving false information, otherwise i think we have the pH scale of Soil incorrect as ive heard a few other people going as low as 5.8 and it just blows my mind how that works for some but others get extreme pH issues

 

[JM]

the truth of the matter is.. ph is a result of soil biology in organic systems... and in chem systems... varying ph in accordance with where you are in the grow makes SOME sense..as far as nutrient availability..

 

[dingo]

This is a very interesting subject to me right now. I am growing some Dragon Mix and the soli PH is around 5.5(much too low I would think).
I am top dressing with generous amounts of dolomite before each watering to raise PH.

What is interesting...the plants look very healthy and are growing very well. Now genetics plays an important part in this but if the soil PH is way out, then the plants would be stunted by now at day 28.
The PH has been down for almost 2 weeks and the plants should signs of neglect by now.
Now I say the PH is around 5.5 is not quite the entire picture. The top soil is PH 7 but going down into the soil the PH drops.

 

[Kaiju]

Fuck sake i keep writing a post and doing something with my trackpad which goes back and i lose all my shit !

-How much colder is it beneath the soil?

There are probably a few factors that affect pH of soil including temperature, moisture level, time & the nutrients which have already been uptaken.

I wonder if at 5.5 a chemical reaction takes place where the roots take up the nutrients at the optimum pH via gradually raising the soils pH.

I also wonder if the plants roots are changing pH maybe its strain determined.

Seymour said that if pH goes up in medium it means the plant is eating and if it goes down there is excess food in the medium - i would be telling you to flush your pH had you been having problems - this is the frustrating thing

What soil are you in mate?

 

[peacebrother]

Guerilla Growing Outdoors and you able to control the ph and water? is that really a guerilla grow or a back yard grow. If I visited my plants more than once a month or two months good chance they would be found. I also do not amend the soil it is a natural soil grow.

 

[Kaiju]

Yah for sure - forest soil should have amazing amounts of microorganism activity and should stabilize pH quite well - your right he probably means backyard or greenhouse growns

 

[Kaiju]

Some food for thought

Although the pH scale may seem straightforward, determining the pH of “normal” rain is much more complex. When distilled water is exposed to air, an interaction with carbon dioxide increases acidity through the formation of carbonic acid, H2CO3, and the pH level falls. Many scientists agree that the normal pH of rain is a slightly acidic 5.6 because of perpetual chemical interactions in the air.
What’s more, rain pH levels can vary significantly over short distances and in a short amount of time, even during the same rainfall. Seasons, climate, and a host of other factors can also influence the acidity of rain.

Full Article: Acid Rain

 

[dingo]

It is a small grow in 2x 5 gallon pots. Garden potting mix(where I am, special mix is illegal or very hard to get, they all use coco here).
Not sure what is causing the sudden drops, perhaps my ph down catches up. My water PH is 8 so I add ph down to make it 6.5.
It could be the potting mix that break downs releasing extra acid.

Getting off topic....my ph on top is 7 but 6 inches down is around 5. Yet the plants are booming. I have given some thought today.
The roots are getting PH 7 at the top for nitrogen, calcium & magnesium afurther down the root are getting other nutes from lower PH region.
So I assume my plants are getting the full spectrum and therefore happy.

It is not planned but seems to work. I do add generous amouts of dolomite on the topsoil before watering.
So plants can cope with low PH as long as the high PH is also available. Not a proven fact but is logical to me.
Not recommended for beginners except if you have the same problem as me.

I could flush but they are big pots that would soak the plants for a few weeks until next watering. They are currently in preflower with fish nutes.
If I flushed heavily I might get the timing out of whack for flower nutes(maybe).
Anyway this post is not about needing help but responding to PH needs of our hobby plant.

 

[Mossy]

What is interesting...the plants look very healthy and are growing very well. Now genetics plays an important part in this but if the soil PH is way out, then the plants would be stunted by now at day 28.
The PH has been down for almost 2 weeks and the plants should signs of neglect by now.

Because the Dragons have around 15-20 generations of Outdoor growing behind them..they are Used to temp and PH Extremes.
My tap water PH varies a full PH point between summer and winter seasons...they have withstood temps down as low as -2 C and up to around 50 C...and their natural light patterns can go as low as 9/15.

Resistance has been Bred into them..they are Hardy.

What you should probably get is a Lot of leaf colour..it is a kush dom phosphorus deficiency when your soil PH drops.....

 

[Epic Genetics]

speaking of off topic , when did the businessman Arjan become a breeder ?

news to me

back on topic , maybe a super auto sativa from stich crossed with a dp blueberry auto ? or visa versa depending on results as they can be completely different depending on which is mom and which is dad

peace :Cool:

edit, need to back away from the bong, i responded to 2 threads in one

think your confused , hit this