Gh 3 part question

[medicated4]

Do I still need to supply calmag with general hydroponics 3 part?I was also wondering how using bottles per instructions runs against lucas formula yield/potency wise?

 

[Budgrower4life]

Hi I am doing my first grow in ebb & flow using gh flora series

I have made a few mistakes with light cycle 14/10

But they look not too bad

I am using gh chart 15ml grow 10ml micro 5ml bloom in veg & reverse it for bloom

But would like to hear more on the Lucas formula

 

[ThaMagnificent]

yes

 

[tjo]

Do I still need to supply calmag with general hydroponics 3 part?I was also wondering how using bottles per instructions runs against lucas formula yield/potency wise?

no you dont need calmag with the 3 part.thats my opinion because after a couple years that im doing hydro i ve never had problems.
of course my water is from RO filter and i use 1/10 tap water.
maybe thats helps

 

[Tynehead Tom]

from what i understand and have experienced , the lucas ratios target the growing of cannabis, while other mixture ratios are general. Both work well obviously but the 3 part series needs some tweaks to really make plants perform. I've seen this first hand and many growers back 20+ years ago would guard thier general hydro 3 part formulas closely. I've seen guys just kill it with the 3 part, tweaked to thier "secret recipe" so if you have it dialed, no reason to change.

Lucas's ratios target the needs of the cannabis plant and if PH and other requirements are met, give you that "secret recipe" result..... at a cost savings and without all the dicking around.
I don't run a hydro set up and am still dragging my heels in soiless mix. I dunno, I see no reason to change. I don't sell my weed and like the results so it is what it is.
but here's what i do
to my sunshine mix 4 (or promix HP) I add dolopril as per the bags directions. It's a dolomite lime product that breaks down in the soil very readily but hangs around long enough to be very useful.
I use RO water @ 1.00 per 5gallons at the refill depot mixed 4parts RO/1part well water.
I use the 4ml micro, 8ml bloom in veg , PH 6.5 to 6.8
8ml micro, 16bloom per gallon for flowering, again PH 6.5 to 6.8
I add epsom salts if/when needed
and in the boost stage of flowering I add 1/4 teaspoon powdered (not liquid) koolbloom with each feeding.
then it's a nutrient schedule of feed, feed flush.... and set that PH at 6.8 post flush.
for feeding i handwater 1/6th the volume of the pot of media , so 1/3gallon solution to a 3 gallon pot of media
for flushing , i flush to a runoff of 6.8PH and confirm that ppm's are below 600
Last 2 weeks, plants get nothing but water PH to "6.3" about every 5days they get 3gallons flushed thru.
i dunno, works for me and i'm just a humble grower who grows for stash
check out my albums, everything indoor grown was fed as i described above.

 

[Zen Medz]

Medicated,

GH Flora is a great nutrient line but I wouldn't suggest following the chart on the bottle. Use the GH flora chart on their website. I think the nutrient ratio's on the chart are good but if you want to feed your plants with the Lucas formula you don't need a cal mag product or a bloom booster IMO. The ppm of 8 ml's per gallon of micro and 16 ml's bloom is 130N 106P 183K 130Ca 73Mg. The P is about 4 times the recommended level for veg IMO. I would recommend this ratio for veg: 8 ml's micro and 10 ml's bloom. For bloom I would use the veg ratio until week 3 and then transition over a 2 week period to 5 ml's micro and 16 ml's bloom. Don't forget a weekly flush if you're in promix/ss and a flush at the end of bloom. Keep it green!

 

[medicated4]

Thanks for all the info all. I really appreciate it.

@ zen medz 1) How much water are you flushing through your system per gallon of media? 2) Is that veg nutrient ratio for well established plants only or would it be alright on seedlings/young rooted clones as well without burning? 3) Would you go with this formula over lucas formula then? I'm a newbie to hydro so any advice appreciated.

 

[Zen Medz]

medicated,
If you're growing in a peat based soil I would suggest a weekly flush, I typically just water a little more than normal and that works for me. You can also do a 1 day feed, 1 day water schedule and then there's no need for flushing. The veg nutrient ratio I posted is for plants that are more than 3 weeks old and over 6 inches tall I would say. You can cut that amount in half and work up from there to 8/10. 8/10 will burn seedlings and very young clones. Honestly if you're just getting your feet wet with gardening I would recommend that you follow GH's feeding schedule on their website. You'll need to purchase a calmag product and liquid kool bloom but that might be a better game plan. Totally up to you though. Once I learned how to understand the ppm's of nutrients and how to calculate them it made things much easier. I use a simple excel calculator that is available on custom hydro nutes website. Cannabis is a hearty plant but needs a dialed environment just as much as good nutrients. Research vapor pressure deficit, game changer for me. Cheers.

 

[sourpuss]

Id say depends on the plant. Dont most people start from zero and bring it up to .4 ec cal mag?

 

[Tynehead Tom]

I'll stick to the ratios and feed methods I detailed above.... 2 decades of repeated top shelf results with a simple tried and true "recipe"
If done right and not messed with or altered, the lucas formula with GH flora and powdered koolbloom is for me, the perfect recipe.
I've tried altering those ratios and that is when things start to go out of balance and one finds themselves reaching for cal/mag or other remedies to cure perceived nutrient issues.
1/4 stength for established clones up to end of week 1 and seedlings starting at beginning of week 4 veg , 2ml micro/4ml bloom, PH 6.4
1/2 strength for main veg 4ml micro/8ml bloom PH 6.8
full strength, starting week before flipping to flower 8ml micro/ 16ml bloom
I haven't bought a bottle of calmag since i tossed out all my flood and drain tables years ago. LOLZ.

 

[Zen Medz]

I'll stick to the ratios and feed methods I detailed above.... 2 decades of repeated top shelf results with a simple tried and true "recipe"
If done right and not messed with or altered, the lucas formula with GH flora and powdered koolbloom is for me, the perfect recipe.
I've tried altering those ratios and that is when things start to go out of balance and one finds themselves reaching for cal/mag or other remedies to cure perceived nutrient issues.
1/4 stength for established clones up to end of week 1 and seedlings starting at beginning of week 4 veg , 2ml micro/4ml bloom, PH 6.4
1/2 strength for main veg 4ml micro/8ml bloom PH 6.8
full strength, starting week before flipping to flower 8ml micro/ 16ml bloom
I haven't bought a bottle of calmag since i tossed out all my flood and drain tables years ago. LOLZ.

Tom,

100 ways to skin a cat and it's interesting to hear that 4/8 in veg and 8/16 in bloom is working for you. Cannabis is a an awesome plant and seems to do well with lots of different nutrient ratios. I think it would be a good idea for the OP to know that the Lucas formula was designed originally for bubble buckets/pure hydro where the nutes are in solution for 1-2 weeks. The Head formula was geared towards coco. Your suggestion of using 4 mls micro and 8 mls bloom for veg seems pretty far off an ideal nute ratio for veg. Those numbers break down to:

65N 53P 91K 65Ca

IMO an ideal veg nute ration for a plant that is 3+ weeks old in a peat/coco soiless medium is:

125N 25P 120K 115Ca

The 8/16 ratio is overboard on the N past week 4-5 in flowering. The KISS Maxi recipe along with Lucas might work for people but I don't think either are the best nutrient ratios. I think pHing promix and sunshine to 6.2 is also a better idea and is recommended by both companies. Keep it green.

 

[Tynehead Tom]

I hear ya Zen Medz and respect the opinion and will agree that a lot of folks scratch thier head and say.... yer feeding them how?
But the results are what they are and I seem to get a lot of compliments. One can clearly see excellent plant health and vigor as well as excellent floral development and yields from my rudimentary grows. I'm no weed guru but when it works it works.
My only ingredients in my grow stuff cabinet...... gh flora bloom, micro, epsom, koolbloom powder and dolopril for premixing in the media (sunshine 4)

now, if i run the ratios I'm using at a PH around 6.2 to 6.3...... plant health suffers. Run that ratio at 6.8 going in and this is where the magic happens.

all that said, i would never suggest that all the growers out there switch to my method because i agree, there's many recipes for success.