FRANKIE1579
Member
Having some serious issues with a large amount of plants in coco. About 12 strains, Dosidos, Lemon Tree OG, Sour Diesel, White Fire Cookies, Sunset Sherbert and others.
Plants are all in 6 inch small pots which I always use for starters.
Medium is Botanicare Coco
I have used Mills Nutrients for the last 8 years and love it. However with recent problems I switched to CNS 17 for coco. Problems began with Mills and are persisting with CNS 17.
I have used tap water at this spot for 7 years, however recently switched to RO in an attempt to narrow down the problem.
Problems began when I installed DE Phantoms. I have used coco to start my plants before transplanting into 5 gallon smart pots with loose rockwool for a long time with 0 issues. Immediately upon light installation plants began to show deficiencies. I assumed light intensity was too much. It was, but problems persist. Lights are in one area 6 feet above canopy, in another 4 ft but those are set to 600.
Thinking the enhanced red spectrum coupled with the intensity might be the issue, I switched to 1000 Watt DE Metal Halides (Ps. They are awesome) Just be careful with them, not ANSI/O rated.
After chasing my tail with the lights for a week, i began to look at my nute regimen. I had always used the same amount from week 1 for plants in veg. In 1 month I would have 3-4 ft tall gorgeous ladies. Its been 3 weeks, my plants are about 16-20 inches tall and look like hell.
I incorrectly diagnosed an iron deficiency as a calmag deficiency, although saying that I do have rust spots in some places. What led me to iron was all interveinal chlorosis was at top of plant, not at middle/bottom which I believe would be magnesium.
I have learned more about Coco in the last 10 days then I ever planned to, it worked perfect for me in the past but obviously I had and have much much more to learn.
I did have a faulty PH meter. I have used Bluelab, Hanna, Oakton, honestly I go through 8-15 meters per year not counting probe replacements. I have not seen a consistently reliable meter yet. I always PH with two meters at the same time, to check for discrepancies. I got lazy and used one at a time for a week when one was reading incorrectly after calibration, and when I tested it alongside a new bluelab meter, the PH on the old HM Digital read 5.5 ph while the bluelab read 7.0. I am not sure, but I very may well have been throwing 7.3 water on my girls for 5 days.
I swore to myself this was the last ****ing time and went and purchased several Hach 138 EFSET meters. All I can say is I wish I had got them before. You can store them dry, there is no glass bulb to break and they can be cleaned so easy. I calibrated one, set it on the counter, came back 3 days later and put in calibration solution and it read 7.01, even the correct decimal point it was set at. I have never seen a meter not drift that slightly after hours, much less days. I know alot of people experience the issues with PH meters I have had, so all I can say is get a good EFSET meter, you wont regret it. This things pays for itself 10 times over saving just one PH screw up. Anyways I digress.
My specific question is regarding slurry tests. I water at 5.8 PH, 1.0-1.4 ec, yesterday I bumped it up to 1.5-1.8 EC. Yes I know that is high but I will explain why in the next paragraph.
My slurry tests tell me the coco is 6.7-6.9 PH and has a EC of 0.2-0.4 from over 6 tests of different strains! Canna recommends a coco medium PH of 5.8-6.2 and an ec of 0.8-1.2. I am so far outside these levels I'm thinking that has to be the reason for my numerous deficiencies.
To reiterate, this is not a run off test, this is whats actually in my coco medium. I did not precharge/condition the coco, I never had to in the past, seems like I should have.
I watered tonight with 5.4 PH 1.8 EC. According to the slurry test, my girls have no food in the medium and are at a PH where they cant process hardly anything. Am I on the right track here? I used to be one of the people on here who said coco was so easy, its why I used it for starting my girls after they rooted, but I am not saying so anymore. Rockwool I would have flushed and started over. Coco I have been told that is not an option.
Is it possible I have not filled the CEC and that coupled with my girls being with my girls being underfed thats why my medium's EC is so damn low?
Plants are all in 6 inch small pots which I always use for starters.
Medium is Botanicare Coco
I have used Mills Nutrients for the last 8 years and love it. However with recent problems I switched to CNS 17 for coco. Problems began with Mills and are persisting with CNS 17.
I have used tap water at this spot for 7 years, however recently switched to RO in an attempt to narrow down the problem.
Problems began when I installed DE Phantoms. I have used coco to start my plants before transplanting into 5 gallon smart pots with loose rockwool for a long time with 0 issues. Immediately upon light installation plants began to show deficiencies. I assumed light intensity was too much. It was, but problems persist. Lights are in one area 6 feet above canopy, in another 4 ft but those are set to 600.
Thinking the enhanced red spectrum coupled with the intensity might be the issue, I switched to 1000 Watt DE Metal Halides (Ps. They are awesome) Just be careful with them, not ANSI/O rated.
After chasing my tail with the lights for a week, i began to look at my nute regimen. I had always used the same amount from week 1 for plants in veg. In 1 month I would have 3-4 ft tall gorgeous ladies. Its been 3 weeks, my plants are about 16-20 inches tall and look like hell.
I incorrectly diagnosed an iron deficiency as a calmag deficiency, although saying that I do have rust spots in some places. What led me to iron was all interveinal chlorosis was at top of plant, not at middle/bottom which I believe would be magnesium.
I have learned more about Coco in the last 10 days then I ever planned to, it worked perfect for me in the past but obviously I had and have much much more to learn.
I did have a faulty PH meter. I have used Bluelab, Hanna, Oakton, honestly I go through 8-15 meters per year not counting probe replacements. I have not seen a consistently reliable meter yet. I always PH with two meters at the same time, to check for discrepancies. I got lazy and used one at a time for a week when one was reading incorrectly after calibration, and when I tested it alongside a new bluelab meter, the PH on the old HM Digital read 5.5 ph while the bluelab read 7.0. I am not sure, but I very may well have been throwing 7.3 water on my girls for 5 days.
I swore to myself this was the last ****ing time and went and purchased several Hach 138 EFSET meters. All I can say is I wish I had got them before. You can store them dry, there is no glass bulb to break and they can be cleaned so easy. I calibrated one, set it on the counter, came back 3 days later and put in calibration solution and it read 7.01, even the correct decimal point it was set at. I have never seen a meter not drift that slightly after hours, much less days. I know alot of people experience the issues with PH meters I have had, so all I can say is get a good EFSET meter, you wont regret it. This things pays for itself 10 times over saving just one PH screw up. Anyways I digress.
My specific question is regarding slurry tests. I water at 5.8 PH, 1.0-1.4 ec, yesterday I bumped it up to 1.5-1.8 EC. Yes I know that is high but I will explain why in the next paragraph.
My slurry tests tell me the coco is 6.7-6.9 PH and has a EC of 0.2-0.4 from over 6 tests of different strains! Canna recommends a coco medium PH of 5.8-6.2 and an ec of 0.8-1.2. I am so far outside these levels I'm thinking that has to be the reason for my numerous deficiencies.
To reiterate, this is not a run off test, this is whats actually in my coco medium. I did not precharge/condition the coco, I never had to in the past, seems like I should have.
I watered tonight with 5.4 PH 1.8 EC. According to the slurry test, my girls have no food in the medium and are at a PH where they cant process hardly anything. Am I on the right track here? I used to be one of the people on here who said coco was so easy, its why I used it for starting my girls after they rooted, but I am not saying so anymore. Rockwool I would have flushed and started over. Coco I have been told that is not an option.
Is it possible I have not filled the CEC and that coupled with my girls being with my girls being underfed thats why my medium's EC is so damn low?
....
please keep us updated I like that forest you have there
