In your opinion which is better, cheaper and should I change over from soil? Thanks in advance.Sent to you from my drug phone.
I prefer soil. It's more work in so areas and less in others. I don't like hydro I think it's messy and to big of a hassle. I get pretty big yields out of soil and there good bud so I do feel the extra money and work is really worth it. Personally it is a weed so it grows like one it grows fine in soil that's it's natural medium I don't see any reason to switch over to hydro. So I'd say go with soil I stead of hydro but you already have the stuff and prolly paid a lot so stick with what your comfy with growing in and what works for you. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
Yeah hydro is a pain in the ass... If the power goes out, The ph is wrong, humidity, cost of nutrients,,etc.... That's why organic soils are the best IMO just add water
Hydro. If you can mix nutes for dirt you can do it for hydro. If you mess up dirt it is a pain to flush. Hydro you just start over with new water. Hydro is noticeably faster. Insects are brought in with dirt and It is hard to find a place to dump dirt on a regular basis. It looks funny dragging buckets of dirt out to the car every few weeks. Water goes down the drain. Hydro is a bit more up front but easy enough to make your own for under 100 easy. Finish in soil no need to stress plant. You will never get all the dirt out with out doing bad root damage. Take cuttings for hydro.
DWC... all day. 2x growth rate, and while it may require more effort (when first starting) it is easier to maintain. you res is ur medium. no overwatering, you know exactly what your plants are doing just by dipping a pen in the res.
Best yields were hydro and hempy but i also like soil for its ph buffering abilities and no power required (also love hempy for no power so im torn lol) as long as it grows me nice buds then whatever..doing rdwc next so well see how that is
Whether soil, soilless or hydro they all have their ups and downs, its what works for you in your environment/situation. Soil can be set and forget, hydro gives fast growth and soilless gives you benefits from both ends.
I mean that by trying to switch a plant from dirt to hydro will stress it by cleaning the dirt from the roots. Better option would be to take cloans from it to use in hydro.
Dirt lover here, organics is just so easy. No flushing, no checking ph/ppm. Self-irrigating pots... I check on my plants daily but I don't HAVE to, could go a week if needed. I have an ebb and flow system but I don't use it (dismantled and re-purposed) because I hate schedules and responsibility, and I don't want to turn my favorite hobby into a chore. LOL, wasted about $400 on that hydro setup. Bugs aren't a problem in a healthy organic soil and I re-use my dirt in my outdoor veggie garden, nothing goes to waste. I only need 2 dates on my schedule, sprout and expected harvest day. Fuck all that "week 6/week 7" bullshit, I'm too high to deal with that. If I was a commercial grower then of course I'd want a fully automated hydro setup, but for small-time closet grows I'd say it depends on you and your particular situation. There are ups and downs to each method.
[quote name="Frank_S" post="18965437" timestamp="1384124659"]should I change over from soil?[/quote]No.. do what the rest of these guys say.finish the soil run get clones ready then do a hydro run.
I prefer hydro for sure... Its easy to give the plants the exact nutrient strength and ph they want every day. Giving soil encrusted roots a descent amount of oxygen is impossible. When the soil starts to dry up PH and EC can change drastically. You never have to worry about hydro roots drying out. Watering is automated so you only need to mix up new nutrient solution once every few weeks. Soil pests are obviously non existent. The only time soil has the edge is when growing outside
I prefer my own hand crafted soil, for sure... I don't have to worry about the exact nutrients and pH that I "think" the plant wants. The plant and microorganisms in my living soil have that all figured out for themselves. SIP systems keep "soil encrusted roots(?)" properly hydrated. Cation Exchange Capacity of the soil controls proper pH levels. Watering is semi-automated. I fill a reservoir every 4-5 days. Just plain water, no nute solutions to mix up and then pour down the drain. Other than mixing the soil, keeping the reservoirs filled is the most work I do until harvest. I make my own outdoor compost that I use in my soil mix. Never had ANY issues with soil pests. Organic soils work JUST fine indoors. It really all depends on your personal need and desired effect. Not bashing your style, GG. Just offering my own perspective.
I dont concern myself with thinking what the plant wants. I measure it so no mistakes. No matter what you do with soil you will never get the nutrient strength perfect because you have to read the plants, and growth rates are much harder to judge, plus when you see signs of over or under dosing the damage has already been done. Getting enough oxygen to the roots while still keeping them damp enough for them to thrive like a hydro plant is simply not possible with soil. Hydro is much easier and more straightforward to give better conditions. That's why growth rates are way faster, and when your against the clock such as flowering you really don't want anything slowing growth down like soil does Growing in dirt will indeed grow your plants JUST fine. But why settle for just fine when you can have them thriving like crazy