raising seedlings in coco

Discussion in 'Coco Coir' started by brown1888, Aug 4, 2012.

  1. hey guys really new here and to coco but looking for some help :)
    i have found it hard to raise seedlings in coco as i have 0.0ec water which is basically ro water
    i seem to get mg def or general defencies really early almost too early for seedlings
    have u guys who use ro water got any tips or a guide to take me through to veg period?
    i have calmag and all sorts of diff products
    also when to start feeding? when the cotys go pale or ealrier?
    thanks guys:) any tips would be welcome as im from uk and barley anyone uses ro water here so tips are no plentyfull lol
     
  2. #2 colafarmer, Aug 4, 2012
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 4, 2012
    broony....Coco is a little different than starting in peat where you don't need to feed for at least 2 weeks.
    With coco you need to start feeding as soon as the seedling breaks ground and loses it's hard hat...;)
    You don't want to feed full strength, more like 2-300 ppm or less to start and up in small increments as the plant establishes roots. I prefer a bloom nutrient with less N an more P for starters and that would depend on the NPK ratios of the nute to start with. Always ph your water/solution to 5.8
    It also helps to mix some cal mag with your water when you hydrate your coco.
    There are some guides here on the board to guide you through the process.

    Good luck....
     
  3. cheers for reply:) have tested a few diff strats with feeding light from begining to no feeding for a week lol been having a true nightmare:p
    was thinkign it was my tap water as it contains nothing in it:(
    will search for a few guides mate:)
     
  4. If you're in the UK you can grab a bottle of formulex and follow the basic guide I've put up mate. It's very straightforward. If your tap water is 0.0 you could bring it to 0.2 using some cal mag first, then follow that guide. You should be alright.
     
  5. You can check the runoff of fresh coco and rinse until it is below 100ppm. Most better brands of coco are pre rinse now days to eliminate the salts. Been using botanicare coco bales and is usually good from the start. A lot of the loose bags of coco are pre charged from what I hear.
    I usually add cal/mag when I dehydrate and you could probably just use light dose of cal/mag with no nutes, )the cal mag has N) that helps for the first watering to bind to the medium.
    I think the first 21 days or so are the most important to establishing a healthy root system for the life of the plant. Never let it dry out and keep humidity a little higher than normal if you can.
     

  6. hey mate yup uk and check got the formulex a while back:)
    dont mean to be a pest but u got a link to ure guide as my search has been disabled:(
     

  7. yep seen that calmag has 1% nitrogen and thought of using it every other water with seedlings at first coupled with some formulex laters
    ph always 5.8
     
  8. got that guide watcher:)
    going to give it a right good read through
     
  9. You ok mate. I'd just follow it step by step meself. Take it in bit at a time and just learn as you go. What I would say, with regards to what you said about alternating between the cal mag each feed, is just make your feed up and give it to them every time. The strength guides are all there and if you've got formulex and an ec pen you're golden.
     

  10. yep got all those things,bought more products than i know wot to do with lol
    ok so i would be all good just mixing calmag upto say 0.2 ec everywater then add my formulex upto desired ec?
     
  11. Geez you lucky bastardz (joking of course), 0.0 tap?..Anyhow, my tap comes out ~0.2 EC(.5) so guess I'm somewhat of a lucky bastard meself, since my tap works from seed popping and all the way through....he he..:)

    Hope the attempted humor helps, ran out of cents..:D

    Good luck!..:cool:
     
  12. My tap comes out 0.07. Don't get deficiencies but i sure do find it hard starting seeds and clones in coco. They're always droopy and grow kinda slow. Hardest part of the whole cycle for me
     
  13. #13 cheecha, Aug 6, 2012
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 6, 2012
    Hey 967, what scale you using ?.Tap at ~0.7EC you're ~350ppm(.5) and ~490ppm(.7), seems a lil too hard for seed popping and cloning IMO..Not saying it doesn't/won't work, only that well, just too hard me thinks..IF it were me I'd prolly consider RO or at least 50/50..Im sure peeps(besides yourself) have grown with your tap just fine...
    With my tap ~0.2EC (.5) I have no problem....From start, whether from seed or via cloning, once I get roots, my babies start riding the wave, most if not all the time brutha..Only time they seem to halt some is when it gets a lil too crowded in my babie room with not enough lighting to go around..That will indeed slow down the grow..
    Been meaning to get some more light(s) in my mom/babe room, but right ATM, it's all good!..:smoke:
     
  14. .5 scale, 0.07EC so 35ppm. too soft if anything.. not that i see deficiencies early on, just slow growth and drooping. Can't blame that on my tap water though
     
  15. My bad!.. forgot the decimal place..0.07 not 0.7..
    Cheers!..:)
     
  16. Been meaning to get new veg lights also cheecha. I think thats most of my problem. Had my 250W a couple feet away to try and induce some stretching early on, they didn't like it. Moved it down to about a foot away yesterday and they already look better today. This light is OLD. And not my light or it would've had a 250W halide conversion bulb in it a long time ago. Not gonna upgrade a light that isn't mine, and my friend who it belongs to is a useless mofo
    Been thinking about getting 2x 125W 5500k cfl's as a replacement. Should shit all over the old and tired HPS..
     
  17. #17 Nullster, Aug 24, 2012
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 24, 2012
    Broony/967 did you get your problem sorted out?

    I'm having the same issue (posted it to the AskEd thread and Colafarmer replied). I was kind of wondering if the coco got too tightly packed when I watered and it's making it hard for the roots to grow. I am going to try a light feeding (their first) tonight based on Colafarmer's recommendation even though they are only six days old. They just seemed to have not done anything in like three days. My temps have been 72-78 since they sprouted and they have been under 24/0 light. They are not stretched or anything. They look really good, but they also look like they are two days old. Only the first set of leaves so far, but they had those at day two.
     

  18. yep mate all sorted found out my problems where under feeding big time
    i followed watchers thread for beginers and they havnt went a bit wrong
    easiest method i have done yet
     
  19. Great, thanks broony. I am feeding as soon as I get home. I had just read so much of the "they don't need nutes for the first two or three weeks" (even with plain coco).
     
  20. I had the same prob and then hit them with some cns17 and was good to go
     

Share This Page