I'm at the tail end of my first grow. I used Ocean Forest and Happy Frog mixed. I have reason to suspect I have a less than thoroughly nourished plant. I fed lightly throughout maybe too lightly and that may be the issue. But I'm keen to find out if the soil ph contributed to less than optimal nutrient uptake.
Having said that I'm less suspicious of Fox Farm quality than the method of measuring the soil ph. I've used a couple of soil probes and I'm underwhelmed. I just went through a series of ph tests of container soils and soil in my yard comparing the 2 meters and it smacks of inconsistency.
Try to follow the bouncing ball:
The ph of the runoff water in my grow is 5.5. I'm told this implies a 4.5 ph if watering with 6.5 AND that the runoff ph is not valid.
With a Lusterleaf soil meter the grow pot reads 7.0 but everything I try with it reads 7.0.
I get an Accurate 8 and get a reading in the pot of 6.4 right after watering with 6.6 ph.
This morning I take Muddy's guidance and fill 4 inch pots with Ocean Forest and Happy Frog and water. The runoff of the HF=5.8, the OF=5.2 pretty much the same as my container ph after weeks of waterings and feedings. For grins I then did the same with Black Gold soil and got 5.7.
Then I stick the Accurate 8 in the maybe too wet(?) Fox Farm soils in the 4 inch pots and the needle doesn't budge, 7.0. I try the stubborn Lusterleaf that never says anything but 7.0 and lo and behold it shows sign of life, reads north of 6.0.
Putting the probes through paces I take them outside where it's been showering. The Accurate 8 registers 6.0 in the ground, the Lusterleaf the default 7.0 again.
Inconsistency runs rampant. I don't trust my method. One thing I got is the OF runoff water in the same test came in .6 lower than the other 2 soils. Would that not be 5 times more acidic? I will retest the soils with the A8 tonight when they've had a chance to drain as per Muddy's instructions. Maybe the soil was too wet or too shallow for the A8 to get a good reading. I don't know.
Having said that I'm less suspicious of Fox Farm quality than the method of measuring the soil ph. I've used a couple of soil probes and I'm underwhelmed. I just went through a series of ph tests of container soils and soil in my yard comparing the 2 meters and it smacks of inconsistency.
Try to follow the bouncing ball:
The ph of the runoff water in my grow is 5.5. I'm told this implies a 4.5 ph if watering with 6.5 AND that the runoff ph is not valid.
With a Lusterleaf soil meter the grow pot reads 7.0 but everything I try with it reads 7.0.
I get an Accurate 8 and get a reading in the pot of 6.4 right after watering with 6.6 ph.
This morning I take Muddy's guidance and fill 4 inch pots with Ocean Forest and Happy Frog and water. The runoff of the HF=5.8, the OF=5.2 pretty much the same as my container ph after weeks of waterings and feedings. For grins I then did the same with Black Gold soil and got 5.7.
Then I stick the Accurate 8 in the maybe too wet(?) Fox Farm soils in the 4 inch pots and the needle doesn't budge, 7.0. I try the stubborn Lusterleaf that never says anything but 7.0 and lo and behold it shows sign of life, reads north of 6.0.
Putting the probes through paces I take them outside where it's been showering. The Accurate 8 registers 6.0 in the ground, the Lusterleaf the default 7.0 again.
Inconsistency runs rampant. I don't trust my method. One thing I got is the OF runoff water in the same test came in .6 lower than the other 2 soils. Would that not be 5 times more acidic? I will retest the soils with the A8 tonight when they've had a chance to drain as per Muddy's instructions. Maybe the soil was too wet or too shallow for the A8 to get a good reading. I don't know.
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