Never water with just RO?

[brown_thumb]

And what is rain? Other than pollution, it's distilled water.

I would not listen to black dog led all that much. All their flowers look cheap for such an expensive light.

Growing is so simple that the world made it complicated.

Quoted for truth (regarding rain water). If there's appropriate nutrients in the soil, pure rain water is nature's perfect hydration.

 

[Easy7]

I'd be curious to know what ph microbes dissolve nutrient rich material the best. I've never had issues using tap water with natural lime content and a ph of 8 in soil. The whole issue with ro water came about from hydro, hydro nutrients already having mineral content for pure water, not mineral lime aquifer water.

 

[tejashidrow]

my understanding of flushing is exactly that, you are flushing the plant, not the soil.

When one flushes
They are removeing the nutriants from the soil (medium)
Thus forceing the plant to use its stores of food to stay alive.
One cannot flush a plant

They can only flush the medium.
Personally think flushing is a stupid term
But what ever.
Ya don’t flush a plant
You flush a toilet.

 

[brown_thumb]

My understanding is, flushing becomes necessary when the soil/media is somehow too rich or out of balance and/or when synthetic nutrients cause salts buildup in the media.

 

[Switcher56]

When one flushes
They are removeing the nutriants from the soil (medium)
Thus forceing the plant to use its stores of food to stay alive.
One cannot flush a plant

They can only flush the medium.
Personally think flushing is a stupid term
But what ever.
Ya don’t flush a plant
You flush a toilet.

Yup! sorry I didn't explain myself as eloquently as I could. Yes by flushing the soil, rinsing might be a better word... the plant is indeed forced to use reserves from their tissue, ridding the plant of unwanted nutrients

 

[Switcher56]

My understanding is, flushing becomes necessary when the soil/media is somehow too rich or out of balance and/or when synthetic nutrients cause salts buildup in the media.

Absolutely

 

[BerrySeal]

Been drinking RO for years. The plastic might be turning my frogs gay but it doesn't make me sick like distilled. Obviously different from distilled.

Pure water is a corrosive solvent. Rain is not pure water. And flushing is for poop.. Who cares how stupid or generalized the term is. You flush shit that doesn't belong. We all agree on that. It's why we poop.

 

[Douglas.Curtis]

My understanding is, flushing becomes necessary when the soil/media is somehow too rich or out of balance and/or when synthetic nutrients cause salts buildup in the media.

Indeed, flushing is for (hopefully) fixing an overfert or pH imbalance issue.


"Fading" is the process of slowly lowering the amount of nutrients available to the plant, as it's nutritional needs decline toward the harvest date. Feeding 'almost' enough during this time does indeed help pull out excess un-converted nutrient from the plant. As long as they haven't been bound to new growth yet.


Once the plant stops growing rapidly in size, nutrient needs begin to decline rather rapidly. Keeping the starting nutrient strength during this time will reduce the end quality of the cannabis.


Unlike a lot of plants, cannabis and other hyper/dynamic accumulator plants are capable of permanently attaching un-converted elements directly to plant tissue. They do this with un-needed elements and contaminates (look up "Phytoremediation") and they do it with elements in excess in the root zone.



These elements do not flush or fade out, no matter how long or how pure the water you use. Iiiiit's in there!

 

[highcountrygrow]

...not really. Although correct in principal, at the correct osmotic pressure, you may in fact be sucking the minerals from the plant.

Concentration gradient!

If the concentration of ions are lower outside root cell then inside root cell, then the the flow of ions will be towards area of lower concentration (i.e. outside of cell). Therefore, essential minerals and nutrients CAN be stripped by excessive use of "pure" RO/distilled water.

 

[Douglas.Curtis]

Concentration gradient!

If the concentration of ions are lower outside root cell then inside root cell, then the the flow of ions will be towards area of lower concentration (i.e. outside of cell). Therefore, essential minerals and nutrients CAN be stripped by excessive use of "pure" RO/distilled water.

Distilled water is pure.


R/O still has a residual mineral load, it simply isn't enough to affect pH. Your soil would have to be depleted of minerals and nutrients, for r/o to create the conditions you're concerned about.

 

[Lost in a SOG]

nutrients can get bound up and become unable to dissolve or be usable and plenty people stress the plant in a way that leads to an imbalance in the ratios in the soil which leeching will only partly help with..

Also without much buffering ability in RO water as it contains next to no minerals if you dont have sufficient dolomite or whatever in your mix and even worse you start adding nutes which tank the pH I think its really bad for the soil biome.. Id only ever use it in full organic grows like many have said.

 

[Douglas.Curtis]

Also without much buffering ability in RO water as it contains next to no minerals if you dont have sufficient dolomite or whatever in your mix and even worse you start adding nutes which tank the pH

Yes, traditional methods rely on non-pure water. Cannabis requires thinking differently, where you're providing everything which also includes what used to come with your water. Relying on buffers, to keep pH from tanking over in-appropriate use of nutrients is not an r/o issue.

Why be inaccurate with a plant which really responds to precision? Is it so difficult to build your soil appropriately? The biggest drawbacks I see are all 'products' off the shelf, along with most 'recipes' for soil are designed for tap water, a HUGE variable across the globe. IF cannabis was not a hyper/dynamic accumulator plant, this entire discussion would be pointless.


Think different, BE different, grow exceptional quality cannabis.