Can you have too much ca

[Bio boy]

I read you have to have a balance ? Then a guide here for brix says you must add ca in 3 forms and basically top feed it ca limestone etc ?
making a new soil mix based of sheep wool compost bracken and comfrey with ewc and wondering if I need to add any ca or any meals atall

 

[Three Berries]

Adding limestone to the soil from the start is the major way of balancing pH overtime. Top feeding limestone is not all that effective though will work. There are other ways of adding free Ca++ directly to the soil or leaves.

I added 1 cup to 3 gallon of soil of limestone to my FF Ocean Forest and have had no pH issues through the whole grow this last time.

 

[goingrey]

Yes, you can have too much calcium.

 

[Bio boy]

Adding limestone to the soil from the start is the major way of balancing pH overtime. Top feeding limestone is not all that effective though will work. There are other ways of adding free Ca++ directly to the soil or leaves.

I added 1 cup to 3 gallon of soil of limestone to my FF Ocean Forest and have had no pH issues through the whole grow this last time.

Based off peat though right ? I am a comfrey bracken base so it doesn’t drop like peat ? It seems to stay around 6.5 so if I add lime it will go up to 7 and be too high ?

 

[X15]

If it’s your first run in the soil and you plan to re use the soil id shoot for leaner Rather than rich. I’ve never used sheep’s wool compost though.
You can always keep an eye out and spoon feed more.

 

[Bio boy]

If it’s your first run in the soil and you plan to re use the soil id shoot for leaner Rather than rich. I’ve never used sheep’s wool compost though.
You can always keep an eye out and spoon feed more.

Used it before it’s made for tomatoes I plant in from seedling
I did a grow of canna in it pure got the best tasting weed ever nice yields too
I’m going to sweeten it up with some cow shit well composted too n few other bits
its a nice soil doesn’t burn plants and worms breed crazy in it
i top mulched a bag on my salty bed and I sware it’s what’s keeping it alive

 

[X15]

That’s awesome bud. I’ve never seen it available in my area, but will keep an eye for it. I am all for alternatives to the norm. What kind of worms did you put in there?

 

[Bio boy]

That’s awesome bud. I’ve never seen it available in my area, but will keep an eye for it. I am all for alternatives to the norm. What kind of worms did you put in there?

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[St. Phatty]

I have bricks of Calcium Sulfate (similar to Plaster of Paris) laying around the "outdoor" part of the workshop.

They get covered with moss or some green plant.

I think they just tolerate the Calcium Overdose, and mostly get their plant food from the rain and air.

Anyway, yes a plant can have too much Calcium.

 

[KIS]

You don't need 3 forms of calcium, that's just silly. And brix is not a useful metric in cannabis. If you need to raise pH then you could consider ag lime or oyster shell flour (calcium carbonate). If your pH is already within range or high then you can use garden gypsum (calcium sulfate).

And as others have stated, you can have too much Ca. It will limit other cations like Mg and K, but in general you want the vast majority of your TCEC to be Ca.

 

[Bio boy]

You don't need 3 forms of calcium, that's just silly. And brix is not a useful metric in cannabis. If you need to raise pH then you could consider ag lime or oyster shell flour (calcium carbonate). If your pH is already within range or high then you can use garden gypsum (calcium sulfate).

And as others have stated, you can have too much Ca. It will limit other cations like Mg and K, but in general you want the vast majority of your TCEC to be Ca.

How do I gauge how much is too much then my ph is 6.5 on soil so I feel that’s influenced somewhat by ca ?
my base is bracken compost not peat ewc etc which is made from sheeps wool so o know it has some ca But not sure how much without guessing at it
or sending soil samples off

 

[X15]

I like what @KIS had to say and would recommend some oyster shell flour. I like gypsum too for its sulfur properties.

 

[KIS]

How do I gauge how much is too much then my ph is 6.5 on soil so I feel that’s influenced somewhat by ca ?
my base is bracken compost not peat ewc etc which is made from sheeps wool so o know it has some ca But not sure how much without guessing at it
or sending soil samples off

This is where testing comes in handy. That would tell you if you need to add Ca (in the form of gypsum) or if other cations like Mg, K, or Na pushing up your pH. Keep in mind that anions will push your pH down (nitrates, phosphorus, sulfur, etc....) so pH does not tell you what the balance of nutrients are in the soil, just if you're within a range that the plant can optimally take up available nutrients.

 

[Bio boy]

This is where testing comes in handy. That would tell you if you need to add Ca (in the form of gypsum) or if other cations like Mg, K, or Na pushing up your pH. Keep in mind that anions will push your pH down (nitrates, phosphorus, sulfur, etc....) so pH does not tell you what the balance of nutrients are in the soil, just if you're within a range that the plant can optimally take up available nutrients.

Well I took the plunge and pulled them up there is no roots in 3 weeks same shape as the pot and root are brown burnt not rot

only centre plant is rooted so defo needed to rebuild it the mg collapsed it


I’m rebuilding the soil for sure now
I’m waiting for my compost company to get back in shop as they are getting me their soils npk profile

 

[40degsouth]

Hey everyone, I hope you’re all well.
Bio boy, l think there’s a bit of the puzzle you’ve overlooked which is salt build up, might be worth checking, if you can, or flushing the soil as an experiment.
I remember Tom Hill saying that he’d take calcium over magnesium any day, in his soil mixes and pushed calcium hard. He did however, foliar feed other nutrients for the plant to balance out. All this information’s in the “Growing Large Plants Outdoors” thread, if you’re keen for a read.
I personally like to put as many different sources of calcium into the soil, not only because it gives the plant a choice but also because calcium is really transient within the soil horizons and it binds easily to salts.
Cheers,
40

 

[Bio boy]

Hey everyone, I hope you’re all well.
Bio boy, l think there’s a bit of the puzzle you’ve overlooked which is salt build up, might be worth checking, if you can, or flushing the soil as an experiment.
I remember Tom Hill saying that he’d take calcium over magnesium any day, in his soil mixes and pushed calcium hard. He did however, foliar feed other nutrients for the plant to balance out. All this information’s in the “Growing Large Plants Outdoors” thread, if you’re keen for a read.
I personally like to put as many different sources of calcium into the soil, not only because it gives the plant a choice but also because calcium is really transient within the soil horizons and it binds easily to salts.
Cheers,
40

Hey bro Thankyou somuch happy new year .
i wil check that thread it’s right up my street although I am indoors in a bed I gues wee practicing copying that eh

I came to the same conclusion last ight in slow nickels thread
I have a salt build up so I checked and gues what my kelp supplier u like many others doesn’t wash it she dries it straight from the sea and crumples it up

I k ow sea water can be good like knf has a ferment but it’s at tiny ammounts and when I had problems I was told to do kelp and ewc and slurry it on
which ofc has made the problem worse god damnit lol
I can see slow said if you add mg to soil your fighting a loosing battle straight away

if needed you foilar it lol
everyone told me as I am led my sodium burns was mg and I needed 70ppm in water every time which did seem to kinda help but not in long run

so I added 20litre water and 20g epsom every feed for 2 years
and fed my kelp as often as I saw problem and on water schedule every 7days salty kelp ffs I am crying

I feel so depressed it’s unreal bloody broke ass Xmas and I need to spend £250 on soil again I’m not going to try fix it the soil is in bags and is rock solid you can’t even separate it it’s like clay it’s off on the garden

so I am now stuck making new soil and what to do I think I am scarred by what’s happened and it’s clouding my judjement lol wish some one would mentor me and tell me where to go haha tryed the mrs n got told I was confusing her lol

mouth of curiosity how do you add ca like you do I am interested as slow also says push ca in veg but I’m lost how as crab is salty gypsum could wash me shit out and lime has mg and alters ph lol
what mix you in . sorry tell me to shut up if ya want Or ignore me haha

I am thinking to replace peat with this

Tomato Compost UK | Best compost for tomatoes

GROW ORGANIC TOMATOES using our peat free & perfectly blended Wool Compost for Tomatoes to grow healthy, strong, tasty tomatoes without additional feed! Soil Association approved for organic growing. Bulk buy discount available.

www.dalefootcomposts.co.uk

then me worm cast and lava rock amendments I thaught to wait n get a Logan as the ewc should carry the grow right ?
im off to read your thread ya linked
and thank you again somuch for your time bro 420

ps why does Tom advise not using chicken poo indoors on page 2

and how does https://www.icmag.com/threads/slownickel-lounge-pull-up-a-chair-cec-interpretation.330463/page-3
slowbicle etc use ca foilar lh I can’t seem to find how they apply it

 

[Rico Swazi]

I read you have to have a balance ? Then a guide here for brix says you must add ca in 3 forms and basically top feed it ca limestone etc ?
making a new soil mix based of sheep wool compost bracken and comfrey with ewc and wondering if I need to add any ca or any meals atall

More reading if you haven't already

The persistence of soil balancing practitioners in the face of scientific skepticism provides an
example of a gap between knowledge derived from rigorous scientific experiments and expertise drawn
from practical experience.

https://offer.osu.edu/sites/offer/files/imce/Files/SB%20Practices%20Report_FINAL.pdf

 

[Chunkypigs]

Hey bro Thankyou somuch happy new year .
i wil check that thread it’s right up my street although I am indoors in a bed I gues wee practicing copying that eh

I came to the same conclusion last ight in slow nickels thread
I have a salt build up so I checked and gues what my kelp supplier u like many others doesn’t wash it she dries it straight from the sea and crumples it up

I k ow sea water can be good like knf has a ferment but it’s at tiny ammounts and when I had problems I was told to do kelp and ewc and slurry it on
which ofc has made the problem worse god damnit lol
I can see slow said if you add mg to soil your fighting a loosing battle straight away

if needed you foilar it lol
everyone told me as I am led my sodium burns was mg and I needed 70ppm in water every time which did seem to kinda help but not in long run

so I added 20litre water and 20g epsom every feed for 2 years
and fed my kelp as often as I saw problem and on water schedule every 7days salty kelp ffs I am crying

I feel so depressed it’s unreal bloody broke ass Xmas and I need to spend £250 on soil again I’m not going to try fix it the soil is in bags and is rock solid you can’t even separate it it’s like clay it’s off on the garden

so I am now stuck making new soil and what to do I think I am scarred by what’s happened and it’s clouding my judjement lol wish some one would mentor me and tell me where to go haha tryed the mrs n got told I was confusing her lol

mouth of curiosity how do you add ca like you do I am interested as slow also says push ca in veg but I’m lost how as crab is salty gypsum could wash me shit out and lime has mg and alters ph lol
what mix you in . sorry tell me to shut up if ya want Or ignore me haha

I am thinking to replace peat with this

Tomato Compost UK | Best compost for tomatoes

GROW ORGANIC TOMATOES using our peat free & perfectly blended Wool Compost for Tomatoes to grow healthy, strong, tasty tomatoes without additional feed! Soil Association approved for organic growing. Bulk buy discount available.

www.dalefootcomposts.co.uk

then me worm cast and lava rock amendments I thaught to wait n get a Logan as the ewc should carry the grow right ?
im off to read your thread ya linked
and thank you again somuch for your time bro 420

ps why does Tom advise not using chicken poo indoors on page 2

dude it's painful seeing you stumble around here looking for help but not finding much.

I'd suggest you find someone who is growing nice weed using indoor soil beds and ask them to mentor you if that's really the way you want to grow. I'd look on IG before ICmag honestly. check out @burt_lurdsman, he used to be active here and is managing many indoor beds and producing quality year after year and documenting it week after week.

if you can afford it the Crescive soil private group is filled with newbies running living soil beds indoors and they teach you how to interpret soil, water, and feed tests as well as making a functional mix for your bed.

the best indoor herb I see in my area is grown in promix with organic bottled nutes from the hydro store. it's pretty bulletproof and cheap compared to what you will spend trying to make indoor no till work and you won't strain your brain trying to learn chemistry from stoners.

8 years ago when I won the ICmag cup it was with bagged soil and General Organic nutes.

I've spent the last 8 years figuring out how to get similar results outside in water only beds with my own compost and simple inexpensive organic farming inputs and biology. there are no simple recipes online for making indoor organic soil for beds. the recipes don't cross the street or the Atlantic. the inputs vary too much, primarily the compost and worm castings. they have wildly different quantities of micro and macro nutrients and the testing gets very expensive and every lab uses different protocols based on the chemistry of the local NATIVE soil, not the stuff that weed growers are mixing up.

figuring out how to make cupfuls of organic inputs equal proper nutrition for cannabis in a home made soil mixture in your cellar will require a long learning curve and it's an expensive way to grow.

you are making it another level of difficulty by using bespoke inputs like sheeps wool and bracken and unwashed local kelp that would probably perform well outside in that garden that gets rain rinsing it but indoor soil beds are never watered to run off and none of the other million weed growers out there are going to be able to advise you properly how to make them work.

I suspect you could find something like biobizz locally that has a good reputation for producing indoor organic cannabis and once you have more study and funds switch to soil beds and a custom mix.

good luck whatever you choose

​

 

[Rico Swazi]

Used it before it’s made for tomatoes I plant in from seedling
I did a grow of canna in it pure got the best tasting weed ever nice yields too
I’m going to sweeten it up with some cow shit well composted too n few other bits
its a nice soil doesn’t burn plants and worms breed crazy in it
i top mulched a bag on my salty bed and I sware it’s what’s keeping it alive

if it ain't broke? I believe you found "best tasting weed and nice yields" can be had with minimal amendments
'less is more' was a term used often in the organic section along with keep it simple
Go back to what worked before is what I suggest and go easy on any and all those amendments

 

[Bio boy]

Hey bro Thankyou somuch happy new year .
i wil check that thread it’s right up my street although I am indoors in a bed I gues wee practicing copying that eh

I came to the same conclusion last ight in slow nickels thread
I have a salt build up so I checked and gues what my kelp supplier u like many others doesn’t wash it she dries it straight from the sea and crumples it up

I k ow sea water can be good like knf has a ferment but it’s at tiny ammounts and when I had problems I was told to do kelp and ewc and slurry it on
which ofc has made the problem worse god damnit lol
I can see slow said if you add mg to soil your fighting a loosing battle straight away

if needed you foilar it lol
everyone told me as I am led my sodium burns was mg and I needed 70ppm in water every time which did seem to kinda help but not in long run

so I added 20litre water and 20g epsom every feed for 2 years
and fed my kelp as often as I saw problem and on water schedule every 7days salty kelp ffs I am crying

I feel so depressed it’s unreal bloody broke ass Xmas and I need to spend £250 on soil again I’m not going to try fix it the soil is in bags and is rock solid you can’t even separate it it’s like clay it’s off on the garden

so I am now stuck making new soil and what to do I think I am scarred by what’s happened and it’s clouding my judjement lol wish some one would mentor me and tell me where to go haha tryed the mrs n got told I was confusing her lol

mouth of curiosity how do you add ca like you do I am interested as slow also says push ca in veg but I’m lost how as crab is salty gypsum could wash me shit out and lime has mg and alters ph lol
what mix you in . sorry tell me to shut up if ya want Or ignore me haha

I am thinking to replace peat with this

Tomato Compost UK | Best compost for tomatoes

GROW ORGANIC TOMATOES using our peat free & perfectly blended Wool Compost for Tomatoes to grow healthy, strong, tasty tomatoes without additional feed! Soil Association approved for organic growing. Bulk buy discount available.

www.dalefootcomposts.co.uk

then me worm cast and lava rock amendments I thaught to wait n get a Logan as the ewc should carry the grow right ?
im off to read your thread ya linked
and thank you again somuch for your time bro 420

ps why does Tom advise not using chicken poo indoors on

if it ain't broke? I believe you found "best tasting weed and nice yields" can be had with minimal amendments
'less is more' was a term used often in the organic section along with keep it simple
Go back to what worked before is what I suggest and go easy on any and all those amendments

Yup I just wanted to confirm this would be good as the peat to My worm cast and thinking to get soil test before adding anything except extra calcium which I am puzzling over atm

gypsum yes but lime /oyster apparently And there different to dolomite which i confused me

@Chunkypigs thanks man yeah I know I’ve been a head fuck my grow notill was fine for 2 years but yes I only learnt the kelp n crab wasn’t washed as I learnt it was a na tox on here

I found that out guessing at salt amendments I had and checked them I admit I totaly freaked out

I mean my soil and a friggin lot was fucked I’ve been going mental and reading thing allover that throw me off
i started on grasscity who totaly take a different approach to here it’s like that’s the soil that’s what we do don’t change it do the water guide so I did but wot the hell kelpng every 7days means a lot of k
now I’m not gona do that as slow said here

when the mix is made it has all the mg it needs in veg push ca and into flower Topdress ewc to keep p level at start of stretch when that ends week 3ish you wanna push some sop so do that 2 week before to get it digested but stop ca before k boosts job done ish lol

my main problem is this google “less and mg” every page says if you have led water 70ppm every feed so I did as I had what looked like mg everyone advised me
slow said add mg to soil and it will die fast
2 years I did that ffs
the problem was k tox and na causing lockout


im just working out ca now and how to boost that safely without mg