What is the best soil mix for a beginner?

Discussion in 'First Time Marijuana Growers' started by BluntCruisin, Apr 29, 2010.

  1. I have never grown before and have about 20 seeds. I have a basic understanding of growing, but I'm just curious what the best, most beneficial soil mix would be?
     
  2. an organic compost or potting soil wit hperlite and/or vermiculite...
    i buy a bag or two of seedling soil(all peat and perlite)
    musroom compost, mines black cow composted cow shit..lol 40lb bag like 6-7 buck's
    i get a 40lb bag of el cheapo potting soil..a non fert one with perlite in it...about 3$
    then 1 bag of worm casting's and about 2-3 cup's of dolomite lime and a bag of vermiculite...
    this is my soil mix it's cheap, great, and mixes about 100-120lbs of soil for under 50$
     
  3. If you are just staring out you should maybe just go with some commercial to begin with. Marijuana plants grow best with higher nitrogen rich soil with lower levels of phosphorus and potassium. A good ratio would be 20:10:10(nitrogen : phosphorus : potassium or N : P : K). It should have the ratio somewhere on the bag. If you still dont know just ask :p. Of course tell the guy at your gardening center you are growing tomatoes and not marijuana, they thrive in the same soil environments
     
  4. nooooo! dont do it...those soil's are garbage, damn time release nutes suck..just like some MG soil...it sux...
    ask any good grower here..
     
  5. #5 akula, Apr 29, 2010
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 29, 2010
    As opposed to buying 100bs of soil mixture(that he will most likely end up mixing incorrectly) for 20 seeds? Why would he do that for his "out-of-the-gate" grow?
     
  6. Akula is right, the proper N:p:K ratio is very good to have in order for plants to grow in their prime conditions.
     
  7. 280z right - id get seedling mix for seedlings, then move up to the other stuff. no mg for me, im a slow learner-but ive learned!:D
     
  8. plagron light mix with biobiz organic nutes perfect ph balance as they both contain buffers so no need to worry to much about your ph which is the most vital element for mj growing
     
  9. ya anyone can mix a decent soil like this for cheap...100lb's of great soil for less than 50$ is a steal and a learning proccess...
    you will never learn jack buying mg soil or fert based soil's....plus they suck!
    any grower(real) know's that there is plenty of nitro in compost...so both newb's in this one are in left field...get a bigger glove guy's!
    besides..
    got to start somewere...just like anything else,...
    i mean...how hard could it be to fuck up..i gave an exact mix...(very simple)
    are you baggin on the guy's ability to read and write?
    sayin there going to f'k it up?
    how?
    soil is hard to f'k up unless your a little slow...
     
  10. Fox Farms Ocean Forest.

    It has everything you need to start.. couldnt hurt to add some more perlite to it though.
     

  11. that's a givin...buying mg or time release based potting soil's for mg is a bad idea, now i'm going to tell you why...
    time release nutes build nutrient salt's in the soil surrounding the root's...this causes ph flux and nutrient lockout...everytime you water your releasing nutes...every time...try to fush the soil and end up releasing twice as much...
    those soil's suck...bottom line..a non fert potting soil has nutes in it that are organic..the npk are still there ! even if it's not dummy proofed and wrote on the bag for you to see...
    you guy's obviously lack a lot of knowledge about mixing soil's or you both would not be saying buy time released based soil's...you can administer nutes in water soluble form anyway...this is how us grower's do it...water soluble nutes are taken in the instant they hit the root's and easy to flush out of your soil's giving you a better product and microbic life...
    i bet you guy's don't even realize that fert does not really feed your plant either...
    it feed's the microbic life in your soil, they inturn feed your plant...so your goofy store bought cheap shit is garbage...bottom line
     
  12. plagron light mix only has enough nutes in the soil for the first 14 days after that you must use nutes so this is not a time release soil on for 14 days thats it!
     

  13. ummmm.ya you think those plant's are just going to spring root's in thin air when they get older? i guess your weed only get's 3" tall then? ya mix a buch of good soil now, for dirt cheap, have it on hand for the next week's that follow, it makes perfect sense ...20 plant's is a ton of soil, indoor or outdoor's..even outdoor's you need to dig proper planting holes or bed's and ummm...fill them with good soil mix..
    100lb's or 120lb's is not that much..it's two dog food sized bag's of soil..and a few small bag's of stuff to add in it(about the size of your mg bag's)
    it will fit in a rubber made container 30 gal..i use one for indoor composting and soil container...
    and if you mix all those bag's together and add 3 cup's of dolomite lime like i said...the mix is done..you cant f'k it up..lol


    you will have to transplant in ...oh about 3 week's anyway..i guess that soil mix will just fall from the sky magicly right in the pot...hmmm. or you could buy your guy's mg soil at what 5-8$ a small tiny 5 lb bag? with all that garbage in it? and time release nutes?
    your talkin npk like you actually understand nutrient uptake or something..how the heck do you think plant's and trees grow outside??? geez npk is already present in soil, water, everything...you should do more research on soil mixes, organic compound's and microbiology in soil's then come tell me i'm wrong ok?:hello::smoking:
     
  14. I didnt say you are doing anything wrong, you have highly optimized your soil for your grows. I am sure this came about with much practice and research trial and error.

    But we are not talking about you, we are talking about someone that is about to do their first grow. What they should be concentrating on is not fucking up and over watering etc. With a few grows he may be ready to worry about getting to the nats ass of optimizing things like the perfect soil and the like.

    Lets face it, people have gone and dug some shit clay filled crap dirt from their back yard and had a relativly successful harvest. Sure it is not optimal, but it is possible with dedicated care. Now you are giving a beginner grower advanced advice. Let him grow into optimizing his soil and correctly balancing his levels through daily care and careful soil mixing. You start out learning carpentry by using a hammer and hand saw and then gradually move to bigger and better power tools for the job.

    I wasnt really talking about MG either (even though I think it is one option for a beginner). I can go down to my local wood products recycle and get perfectly suitable nitrogen rich soil for a grow. Cheap as hell and perfect for the job. Ask them what to grow tomatoes in and they will point you right to the correct N : P : K ratio. Some people dont have that luxury and have to buy it in bag format.

    Again I am not saying that you are in anyway incorrect, I just think you are showing him how to jump off the high dive when we need to ease him into the water first. :smoking:
     
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  15. Fox Farms, Light Warrior for seeds or clones and a 50/50 mix of Happyfrog & Oceanforest, should give enough nutrition for 30 days or so maybe add
    blackstrap to water for watering or just plain water.
    Simple.
    S.S.
     



  16. ok bro..i get ya, it really sounded an awfull lot like you were suggesting mg or other time release base soil..i was not the only one thinking this i swear..lol my bad for jumpin the gun..:rolleyes:
    i believe, when it comes to anything your putting any effort into, do the best and learn the most you can..with growing..it will only help that advance into lot's of other techniques...
    this goes hand in hand with anything...sepertates the good from the great..
    when i started growing way back when..i was raised on a family horticulture nursery of 5.5 acre's...
    so i was lucky in this life time and had a head start from birth...but that's not everyone i uderstand this...
    i just want every grower i talk to to be the best, take a shit load of pride in there grow's and help with the reform of marijuana laws here in the states as well as across the world..
    sorry if i come off like a prick sometimes...i do..lol ...but it's just my passion for growing and knowledge that makes me sound this way..lol
    i was alway's tought that even though it work's, does not make it optimal..
    my soil mix would be way more indepth with spare $$ the stuff i listed is cheap for a lot of it and will feed organicly without burn for the first month or so...it really work's well for being such a basic mix...i used to mix the same amount or close to it for a little over twice the money using FFOF and light warrior soil's then cutting it with a cheap soil and perlite..., but found my oldskool mixes were more of a" just right soil" rather than so rich for seedling's and it cost me way less..
    all the thing's i listed can be found almost anywere at any garden center or lowes, homedepot etc..except the worm casting's, i order those...(vital earth)
    i also make bat and seabird guano teas for most of my nutes givin there 100% organic..(also vital earth) they come in very wide range of npk ratio's... right now for flowering i make tea out of there OG bloom 0-10-1..(i'm only a week before final flush) but i use 7-7-4 for the beggining stages of flower...and there all pupose mix for veg..6-4-2 i believe..
    soon to be using root's organic's, gh organic line, and dnf...also running h&G dutch, DNF, and flairform in my hydro setup's since there more synthetic and really help control shit better...these are all made water soluble and are a direct feed to the micro life and root's...
    even great with a soiless medium like all perlite or vermaculite, rockwool hydrodon etc.....
    i have to say though about the learning carpentry thing though, this only count's for 80% of population, there are naturaly gifted mind's that would amaze you..
    i got stoned and was a great drummer after 20 min of never playing before...now i'm 3 band's, 6 grand, and 7-8 years deep in it now...i was alway's a guitar player and grower, some folk's pick shit up in an instant...i give everyone that same benifet..lol never dought a grower! lol
    ok i left my 10 cent's..lol:smoking:
    i'll leave it to you guy's..cheer's and no bad vibes were all here for the same reason's right?
     
  17. Most of my growing is done in hydroponic systems, but I still keep my mothers in a soilless mixture. A soilless mixture will let you have complete control over what goes into your plants, and in doing so you will gain a basic understanding on how to use nutrients/fertilizers.

    This is my tried and true recipe (many people swear by the same recipe, I actually picked it up on a forum somewhere, just cant remember where)

    40% Sphagnum Peat Moss
    10% Earth Worm Casings
    25% Perlite
    25% Vermiculite

    Making your own soilless mixture lets you insure that its tailored to your needs. You can also inspect the ingredients beforehand for bugs or mold. Also, making your own insures theres no hiddin time released fertilizers (or charges) that are in some commercial soilless mixes.

    Thats just my two cents though, do whatever works best for you.
     

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