Yes, from what i heave heard PH should be in that range. Thank you for the wish, hope things get along better, otherwise i say goodbye to some seeds and i am saying goodbye to the timeline i had set too. Maybe i will order some Autos, that way i could do something after my current grow finishes. I don't know where exactly i fucked up, the only sure thing is i FUCKED UP somewhere along the way.
Thank you for the encouragement bro, i am very pessimistic about this and it sets things way back. I have heard that i shoud not give basis to runoff when we are talking about PH, i thought runoff is a good indicator when we want to talk about EC. I hope its just me overreacting and being impatient. I fed only Acapulco Gold, i have not decided what to do with the other two that have not been fed yet.
I consider (some of) this to be misinformation/confusing. You should relax. True. We should all relax. The EC and the pH may or may not be related, but the runoff is definitely a different makeup after being filtered by the coco. It is impossible for us to say which element is responsible. Maybe it's sulfur. Maybe it's phosphate built up from all the pH down you've been adding to your water. Runoff does rinse out buildup, but this is new coco, and it should have no buildup present. It does matter what the runoff reading are, especially the deviance from what goes in to what comes out. Optimal pH going into the coco is 5.8, but in my experience, the runoff shouldn't ever dip much under 6.0pH. You're at 5.0pH which indicates a serious issue with the pH of the coco. There is some truth here, don't get me wrong. I can see how this could lead a new coco grower to think that having a 5.0pH, or a 5.8pH, in the runoff might be "fine." Or they might think that the runoff EC is inconsequential. Not so much...
Could you please elaborate a bit on what of this is misinformation? Thank you very much. Oh, i have 4 more seeds, do you think i should prepare them for germination? Vegging them from now until 10-15 May and having a harvest at about 15-30 July could be considered unrealistic?
Stick to the tried and true methods. The basics. Botanicare cocogro 3:1 with perlite in 12oz party cups filled about 3/4 of the way. Rinse the media after it has filled the cups and plant the seeds. Keep them warm and wet until they hatch, then apply a soil watering schedule until the roots have had time to fill the cup some and can handle regular saturation. Use a good nutrient line, and start your nutrients when the 2nd leaf set appears. Transplant to a larger container and repeat the root building process before regular feedings. Wait until it is large enough, transplant to the final container, wait for the roots to fill out some, then flip to flowering. Everything after that point depends on choosing a proper nutrient system and following all the basic tenants of growing (heat, humidity, clean water, proper pH etc). I know enough growers (people I talk to on a regular basis) who employ these starting methods with tremendous success. I think the problems you are having started with the planter and the media pre-charge but that the watering schedule and extended period of seed wearing didn't help either. It is a learning experience.
Thank you for the info, this time i will try to follow it to the letter. I will give a couple of days more to the ones i am growing right now, if i don't see any growth, they are gone. Its such a pity, especially that White Russian, i have heard the best about it damnit. I will definitely use 12oz cups this time, this is a mistake i am not gonna do again.
i "always" rinse new coco until the water comes out clear. i've never seen the water come out clear, and with no ppm value, even with so called pre-rinsed coco, and i've been growing in coco for 10 yrs. i never bother with checking run-off numbers. i mean, what difference does it make what the numbers are if the plants are looking good? sometimes the plants feed, and sometimes they drink. this will always change the numbers in the run-off. as long as you properly ph "everything" you put in/on the plants, ph should never be an issue. my thoughts are he's feeding, when the plants should be utilizing the cotyledons for what they need. i don't even ph seedlings until i start adding food....
My friend i did not give them any food for a week, they broke the ground and that's all. From that time up until now there has been almost zero growth. I did give some food to the AG that has a lighter green color compared to the others and looks hungry. Its cotyledons have turned to a pale green. I don't see how it can be any worse from what it is right now, where i see no growth at all. Prior to planting the seeds to the coco, i poured 2 gallons of water in the pots until i saw lots of runoff. I did not water again for a week and that's when i started giving them little amounts of water everyday. The last few days i returned back to fully saturating the pot and waiting for it to be half-dry to water again. This is what i have done until now.
My take on runoff is that it is only a vague starting point to help determine the condition of the medium. The best way to determine accurate medium conditions is with a slurry test at the root level.... At this point I would suggest just keeping the medium moist and misting for faster uptake. I would say that it is much easier and safer to always start seedling in smaller containers and transplant when roots are more established into their final container.
you using a 250 watt cfl? that's not much of a light. move it closer, any stretching? if they keep giving you problems., chuck em and start new ones.
Might be better with even lower watt cfl's to encourage root development for awhile...Once the roots develop and the plant start looking healthy and growing, use the HID etc...
True, i have heard the same thing about the slurry test, it is said to be much more effective at presenting the real situation in comparison to the runoff test. I use a mister, i plan on watering the rest of them after about 2 days from now. Yes, i am using a 250 watt cfl. I have tried all the ways to set it up, whether vertical or horizontal, with reflector or not. I had to remove the reflector once more, temps reached easily 85F with it. Now they are sitting at 76F without it. I have the lamp in a distance of 4", should i move it closer? I am in a dilemma on whether is should start the rest of the seeds i currently have or order some Autoflowering seeds. I want to have harvested by the end of July at the worst case, on August temps can reach 100F here and i don't have an air conditioner. I don't know if i would be able to harvest normal seeds by the end of July if i started now. 4 23w Cfls would be just fine for the beginning i believe. Unfortunately i don't have them, i am planning on buying a 250 HID with an exhaust fan for this tent when i will have some money.
This is even better, some cfls at that size is another future purchase for proper seedlings growth, that's for sure!! If conditions are good they grow just fine with the 250w cfl, this is what i used the previous time for my seedlings and they had gone growing like crazy!! I promised myself not to use an HID for the first stages of growth ever again. I learn one thing at a time,but the bad thing is that i learn it after i have fucked up despite the knowledge being in front of my eyes.
Another photo of the Acapulco Gold. The tips of the tiny second set of leaves have turned to a strange color, something like pale red. I don't know wtf is this but it does not seem good. It can't be seen in the pic, crappy camera
Can't tell from that cell phone photo.....Keep an eye on em and just give em some TLC without over doing things and you should be ok....
TLC = Tender Loving Care... I know it worked with the 250 watt the last time but, most growers will use 1 or, two 27 watters 2' above the plant till they see growth and then lower the light 2-4" above the plant. Seedlings need to develop roots before foliage and some growers keep seedling in the dark the first few days of planting. Even Ask Ed talks about lighting in his coco guide... On a second note you started your seeds in a lot of soil and one thing needed for seedlings is to use a heat mat under the seedling tray to help keep warm. One more reason to use solo cups....
I should have figured out what TLC means, my bad . Look, the last time i grew seedlings (the ones you can see in my journal under my sig), not only did i have them under the 250w, but they had also been planted in their final pots (3 gal pots). They were thriving in there. I believe my mistake was that i believed the same would happen with coco. There has been some growth, the White Russian has started its second set of leaves, its not twisted like the first one, that's a good sign. The Acapulco Gold has become worse, i think the tips of the first set of leaves are grey, and not red like i initially told you. Pineapple Chunk has remained the same and Red Dragon has also started its tiny second set of leaves. Maybe there is hope after all!! I have a question, you think this fan Budget Fan 150 - 150mm (6) 320m3/hr with 2m cable & UK Plug - £32.00 : Root-2-Success Ltd is sufficient for ventilation? I have this and two oscilating fans in the Homebox tent. Its dimensions are 2x2x4. I don't have temperature problems but i do not know if its considered adequate ventilation or if it would be better to buy something like this 150mmA1 RVK Extractor Fan - 420m3/hr - Hydrohobby Hydroponics Shop UK
Sorry for bumping the thread once more, i have got a silly question. Should i try and transfer the Acapulco Gold which has shown zero growth in a 12 oz cup? I had done it in the past before with soil and i had success.