Unofficial Coco Coir Growers Thread

[Bongojaz]

i use earth nectar/ambrosia. i pulled out all the roots i could see and put my coco in trash bags until i use it again. i don't see any reason to add any more. when i use new coco i put it in my 5 gal. containers and run 15 gallons of not ph'd r/o water through it. when i transplant into the 5 gal. containers, i feed thoroughly with ph'd feed. i haven't seen any adverse affects. i'm just to lazy to ph that much water. i mean shit that's almost 100 gallons! looks like my laziness paid off.

 

[Legit_User]

Alrighty.....
I cut the coco with 50% perlite and flushed with 5.8 one time through.
Got a 5.9 runoff............................................
This must be because the perlite allows such a fast drain. Probably lets the water flow right past the coco that is already saturated??
I imagine that the coco fibers are still 6.3, but I'll take what I got and run with it.
I may bump up the mixture to 70coco/30perlite. It just seems way to "loose" to me.
Thanks for the help guys.
I'll post pics of Jack the Ripper and Somatooth 2 when I get them setup in the pots.
Stay peacefull

 

[gaiusmarius]

once your coco coir is ready for use, ie, return ph of some where between 5.2 to 6.4 and an ec of around 1.0 then you don't have to do anything else. just grow your plants giving them a nice flush in the last 3 to 5 days, then they will be in perfect condition to use again next grow. there is no need to keep them specially wet or anything. when i need to store my used slabs i put them in to bin bags until i need them again. good quality coco coir is incredibly easy going. i have used my coco slabs up to 5 times with no loss on quality or quantity of the end product. in fact i have often done better the second or third time than the first. it seems like the coco gets really well buffered by my constant waterings with correct ph and ec.

Legit User, if you like, you can use the coco in it's pure form. in fact i think it works better hydroponically speaking then coir mixed with perlit. coco coir on its own is perfect. what is a good idea, is a layer of hydro balls under the coco coir, so it can drain off even better. speaking of which to use coco hydroponically it needs to be able to drain freely. if you treat it like earth it's not so bad if it sits in a plate of water for a few hours specially if you only water once a day or every other day.

peace

 

[Bramski]

I just want to say... Coco, I'm sorry baby, I should never have left you for that Bitch NFT, but were back together now and that's all that matters. I love you.

 

[-VT-]

Wow Bramksi....nice recovery!!! Nice root porn also!! Lol...doesn't get greener and healthier than that...nice

 

[The Budfather]

ok well i have a situation here im doing a very very lowkey grow 250 watt wardrobe and another small cab for veg. i dont like the idea of transporting soil in and outta my house because of a situation with a neighbor who is lets say an instrument of the "law" and it is in his best interests to find what i have in my cab. ok so sofar i have done everything with smell and what not and improving on it as we speak. but the idea of soil just gives me unwanted attention, so im thinking why not coco coir, a brick that can be transported in an unoticeable bag. okay well i talked to my hydro guy who is knowledgable but to me not too sincere on the stuff hes trying to sell me. so i thought i would go thru a neutral source IC okay. so i got the whole Fox Farm lineup of nutes. im gonna purchase some botanicare and perilite will this be enough to put some clones in or do i need anything else? i was told by the hydro guy to get earth juice catalyst to help create a micro bacterial enviorment or something like that. i wanna hand water in 3 gallon grow bags. also do i need a ph pen my ph always reads a neutral seven as im ina neutral high limestone area sooo yea.....
im also not sure which coco to go with? i mentioned botanicare but is there anything else thats bvetter?

 

[gaiusmarius]

the botanicare coco is great.

i would have advised coco specific nutrients.

ph 7 is a bit too high for a hydro grow. you want the nutrient solution at ph 6.0 or close.

i don't know earth juice, but it is a good idea to do something positive for the micro life in the coco. using a enzyme product is good if you plan to reuse the coco. there is a good product called rhizotonic by canna, which is great for root and micro life in the root zone. it's normally used to help newly rooted clones get a good root system established. but it's been discovered that adding a half a ml per liter of water is superb for the roots all the way in to the 4 or 5 week of 12/12.

but actually for a first grow it's best to stick to the basics, to give one a proper understanding of how it works. start with the basic nutes and an enzyme product and maybe a root complex. with just those products given at the correct doses with the correct ph, you can achieve superb results.

 

[the cult]

Does anyone of you guys use Rhizotonic with eg Hesi products? I got Rhizotonic and its awesome for soil, and its in Cannas nute regime for Coco too. Would you advise I use the same amount Rhizotonic prescribed by Canna along with my Hesi nutes?

I figure its the same, does anyone else mix it with Hesi?

 

[Guest]

Hi Guys

I have to say first off, awesome thread! I have been curious about Coco for awhile now and this was a great read, you guys really deserve a little forum of your own!

I am currently growing in promix w/ worm castings, perlite and Dolomite lime, using foxfarm nutrients. This is a departure from how I had been growing for years and it's really not working out for me. I used to use a 100% organic soil mix (Ticks Dustless Organic Mix for those of you who were on OG) watering with just straight tap water. I am going to be switching over to Coco after what I am currently growing finishes up and I had some questions for you guys to make sure that I start off on the right foot.

I'm picking up the Canna brand Coco and will be mixing it with some perlite and a little bit of hydroton in the bottoms. Is it necessary to add Dolomite lime to the mix? I saw someone in this thread who had, but they also had EWC in their mix and I will not.

I will be hand watering daily as my garden is kind of perpetual and I usually have plants in 3-4 different stages. The Coco specific nutes that are most readily availible to me are the AN Monkey Juice. What kind of supplemental nutes should I pick up to go with this? I can get the Cannazym and Rhizotonic if need be, I was curious how the AN Sensi Zym does as an enzyme though? It's a little cheaper and I am striclty limited by budget (Switching to Coco is going to almost clean me out, I need to be frugal!)

I have some nutruents around still that I would like to use up, in Coco, can i continue using Liquid karma and Thrivealive red for foilar feeding? I also have a bunch of leftover grozyme/hygrozyme, would this function well in coco (I usually water the grozyme in as opposed to foilar feeding it).

I have been using CalMag periodiclay with my soil grows, I see that some of you are using it in your Coco. Would it be a good idea to use it at a 1/2-2/3 strength level once a week like I am in my soil grows?

My last question is regarding flowering supplements. I know alot of you use the pk13/14, I have seen the AN version wich they hype up to be superior, is it really all that different? I have alot of leftover FoxFarm 3 part soluble flowering nutes left (The open sesame, beastie blooms and cha-ching) would these do alright in Coco? Ideally I would like to be able to find a use for my remaining nutes as I cannot afford to trash them or just leave them stored and unused.

I am really looking forward to making the switch. I am the first one to admit that some of my troubles with my current soil grows are my fault, I do overwater at times. I like how the Coco seems to be a little more forgiving in this aspect.

Thanks guys, keep up the great work in this thread!

 

[Kenny Lingus]

Hi Man ^^^

Hi Man ^^^

I think the AN-series for coco should be very fine in your plans. They even have a separate veg/grow A+B nute and bloom/flower A+B nute. Makes it possible to keep mothers adn whatnot....-at least I would think so.


-I'm new to this as well, and have just switched a few slabs into bloom. (I do run 6 pots of coco/potting-peat/perlite/vermiculite ammended w/Pre-Mix, kelp, b/b-meals, and inoculated with ewc/trichoderma/nitrifying bacteria/molasses-tea.) Hehehe, insane howe many ingrediendts is in there

The slabs are fed with straight Canna A+B, Cannazym, Rhizotonic. (PK-13/14, and maybe a booster will go in there later. (Possibly some molasses and nitrifying bacteria aswell.) And these are drip fed in 3minutes, 3-times during light-hrs so I get a little run-off each watering...-hope the schedule is ok.)
-The clones have been vegging into the slabs for over a week at 18/6, but they were quite weak and needed time to start growing. (The Sour Bubbles aren't the fastest growers anyway, so I guess it's gonna be ok.)

The pots are kinda experimantal stuff. They will be grown soil style, as in dry-wet-cycle and every other or third watering is nutrient solution.
-4 of the plants will receive Canna a+b nutes (and canna additives), but the last 2 of them is gonna have an organic approach. I feed mainly bio-bizz, but some local brands are used, and so are BioCanna. (At about 12 days in this mix the organic ones look healthier)

I know this post is very loooooong now, but I do have a question for the experienced Coco-nuts out there:

-I have a few week-old seedlings in a 30/20/20/30-mix of potting soil/perlite/vermiculite/coco. They show a few signals I don't like; crinkled leaves on Great White Sharks, pale leaves on Hawaiian Snow, and last Pale leaves and rusty spots on the Warlocks...
-So I wonder if I should go ahead give them coco-nutes @ EC 0.5-8 or something... (Could it be a pH problem?)

Thx for all help this far. I hope to bring you guys some pics in near future...

Maybe following the Sour Bubble clones, along with 3 Phoenix Haze x Sour Bubble in slabs could be a funny and educational thread. (I'm gonna try using a net for correct cola spacing... The SB's usually don't need any support)

 

[gaiusmarius]

Hi Guys

I have to say first off, awesome thread! I have been curious about Coco for awhile now and this was a great read, you guys really deserve a little forum of your own!

I am currently growing in promix w/ worm castings, perlite and Dolomite lime, using foxfarm nutrients. This is a departure from how I had been growing for years and it's really not working out for me. I used to use a 100% organic soil mix (Ticks Dustless Organic Mix for those of you who were on OG) watering with just straight tap water. I am going to be switching over to Coco after what I am currently growing finishes up and I had some questions for you guys to make sure that I start off on the right foot.

I'm picking up the Canna brand Coco and will be mixing it with some perlite and a little bit of hydroton in the bottoms. Is it necessary to add Dolomite lime to the mix? I saw someone in this thread who had, but they also had EWC in their mix and I will not.

if you want to add perlit to the coco go ahead, but i wouldn't add dolomite lime. it's not necessary as long as you water with a ph adjusted nutrient solution.

I will be hand watering daily as my garden is kind of perpetual and I usually have plants in 3-4 different stages. The Coco specific nutes that are most readily availible to me are the AN Monkey Juice. What kind of supplemental nutes should I pick up to go with this? I can get the Cannazym and Rhizotonic if need be, I was curious how the AN Sensi Zym does as an enzyme though? It's a little cheaper and I am striclty limited by budget (Switching to Coco is going to almost clean me out, I need to be frugal!)

i am sure the an coco nutes will work great, you can use any enzyme product. i am using hessi powerzym with canna coco A+B. but any enzyme product will do to keep the coco healthy.

I have some nutruents around still that I would like to use up, in Coco, can i continue using Liquid karma and Thrivealive red for foilar feeding? I also have a bunch of leftover grozyme/hygrozyme, would this function well in coco (I usually water the grozyme in as opposed to foilar feeding it).

foilar feeding can be done with any foilar feed, as for the grozyme i don't know it but the hydrozyme is just a good enzyme product as far as i understand it and can be used as such no problem.

I have been using CalMag periodiclay with my soil grows, I see that some of you are using it in your Coco. Would it be a good idea to use it at a 1/2-2/3 strength level once a week like I am in my soil grows?

i never have to add cal mag. my coco a+b does the job as long as i keep to the right ph and ec. i have seen people get in trouble with the cal mag in coco. would put it aside for future earth grows.

My last question is regarding flowering supplements. I know alot of you use the pk13/14, I have seen the AN version wich they hype up to be superior, is it really all that different? I have alot of leftover FoxFarm 3 part soluble flowering nutes left (The open sesame, beastie blooms and cha-ching) would these do alright in Coco? Ideally I would like to be able to find a use for my remaining nutes as I cannot afford to trash them or just leave them stored and unused.

well my answer would have to be no, stick to the coco specific nutes. but i know that some folks see it differently. i think if your mix has earth and perlit in it as well as the coco you might get away with no specific nutes. but in a pure coco grow it is highly advisable to get coco nutes. i would have no problem using the an version of pk 13/14 as a flowering complex, but i wouldn't use fox farm as my main flowering nutes on coco.

I am really looking forward to making the switch. I am the first one to admit that some of my troubles with my current soil grows are my fault, I do over water at times. I like how the Coco seems to be a little more forgiving in this aspect.

Thanks guys, keep up the great work in this thread!

coco is very forgiving, to get the best out of coco it needs a dripper set up with automated watering, as the coco loves getting watered 3 to 5 times per light phase/day. but hand watering once a day works incredibly well too from what i see in some grows. you will find it's very easy going, i have grown in very dry coco with a minimum of water and i have also done the opposite and flooded the coco slabs 7 times daily, both systems work equally well as long as the watering rhythm is regular.

have fun discovering the delight of growing in coco

-I have a few week-old seedlings in a 30/20/20/30-mix of potting soil/perlite/vermiculite/coco. They show a few signals I don't like; crinkled leaves on Great White Sharks, pale leaves on Hawaiian Snow, and last Pale leaves and rusty spots on the Warlocks...
-So I wonder if I should go ahead give them coco-nutes @ EC 0.5-8 or something... (Could it be a pH problem?)

yes indeed it could very well be a ph problem. ph is very important when growing in coco. you want to aim for ph 6.0 a bit lower early on and a tinny bit higher towards the end. also if the seedlings are weeks old and have never been fed then they will be hungry and will love getting watered with ec 0.8 and rhizotonic at ph 5.8 altogether. rhizo works best at a low ec anyway to strengthen young and sick plants.

best of luck

 

[Bongojaz]

hey supernuck- as far as using the an monkey juice. i spend a great deal of time at the an forum. i hear there, that there are problems with monkey juice. you might want to pick up some cal mag and use it once a week. i read that a couple weeks into veg, plants start displaying signs of mag defeciencies. it seems to be easily solved with a dose of cal-mag. i don't think it's necessary to spend the extra buckage for the advanced cal-mag though.

 

[southpaw]

Wow, what a terrific thread. I'd like to say thanks first to everyone who has contributed.

I am just about sold on trying this stuff for my spring grow, but here's my situation. I have hard water that comes out of the tap with a pH close to 8 and an EC of 1 to 1.2. Now given water this highly buffered, I know from experience with my fish tank that dosing with products like pH down is a joke, because a day later the pH will be right back where it was. Does this kind of water pretty much force me to cut coir with soil? Earlier I saw someone post that coir buffers to about a pH of 6, but I figure watering with this hard of water, even with nutes bringing things down to around 7, would throw things out of whack fairly quickly?

Secondly, can I really get decent yields out of only 2 gallons of medium? This stuff about people flowering in 1 gal pots and bags has me dreaming of actually giving my plants a fuller veg cycle. As it stands I really only have the space to start a max of 8 plants in 1 gallon squares, but after four weeks of veg and a week to sex, growth slows considerably because the roots are doing laps at the bottom of the pot. I love the idea that with coir a six week veg in one gallon wouldn't stunt growth. Is this a misunderstanding? What is a good container transplant schedule for coir?

Thanks again!

 

[Guest]

I'm thinking this is the most advanced thread/info available about coco horticulture.hats off gaius.

hand watering : yes it gives great results, as long as you have a way to handle the runoff.It's a hel llot of work...

 

[HYDROJUNKIE]

southpaw,...I have been doing quite a few grows now using coco in the 8'' coco baskets and when I pull the coco out of the pot the roots are more concentrated in the center of the coco....im yet to find one that is rootbound...I think as long as its requirments are met,..the roots will be happy and not go ''seeking.''

perhaps if I had my trays filled with diced rockwool or lined with a coco mat I would then see my roots growing out of the coco pots into the mat or rockwool as my friends do,...but I like moving my plants around

I have grown in about 4 different pot sizes with coco and so far my yield is increasing as the pot size increases.


this pic is of 2 4x4 trays side by side,..the plants on the left are in half gallon pots,......the table on the right has plants in 1.75 gallon pots and almost all the colas like this one were falling over from weight,....this table using 1.75 gallon pots yielded the same with half as many plants....left table=25 plants,....right table=12 plants.....both yielded 1.3-1.4 lbs with trainwreck.

the cola falling over in this pic recieved the same light as the small container plants did and yielded almost twice as much..

hope that answers your question

 

[the cult]

Secondly, can I really get decent yields out of only 2 gallons of medium? This stuff about people flowering in 1 gal pots and bags has me dreaming of actually giving my plants a fuller veg cycle.

there are of course many factors that influence the final yield, light and genetics being the most important but we should not forget a good medium, a steady ph, steady ec and so forth. when it comes to container sizes you must remember that a big rootmass is quite important to get a good yield as well, but this doesnt mean its enough filling up your container during a long veg and throw it into 12/12. when you observe the plant during its first days (or week) of flower all growth seem to have come to a standstill, but what is happening is that there is a root explosion. this is hidden from our eyes and so we dont really think about it. its however very important that the plant has room for this explosion that comes especially these first weeks of flower.
myself i prefer 2 gallon pots and then i transplant to 3.5 gal pots 2-3 days before i switch them to 12/12, this way the plant will be pretty grand from its veg and will have additional space for the vigorous growth.
rootbound or nearly rootbound isnt a good condition when you enter flower, and such condition will inhibit yield. if you think about it like this, 2 gall containers with a rootbound plant compared to a plant coming from a 1gal which is repotted some days before flowering, and the one coming from 1gal pot will yield more.

 

[-VT-]

I have hard water that comes out of the tap with a pH close to 8 and an EC of 1 to 1.2.

So do I ....I use this hard water with my Botanicare "hydro-organic" nutes....with great results....... The experts will advise that you use specific coco-nutes...

I cut my coco with perlite...again...I've read from the experts that this is not good...well someone better tell my plants...

good luck

 

[Guest]

So do I ....I use this hard water with my Botanicare "hydro-organic" nutes....with great results....... The experts will advise that you use specific coco-nutes...

I cut my coco with perlite...again...I've read from the experts that this is not good...well someone better tell my plants...

good luck

The experts want you to buy their nutes...and buy more coco, cause you use less when you cut it with perlite and hydroton.

I just got my order of coco pucks or discs or whatever they're being called now(not bricks)....and holy shit is this stuff chunky. I bought it cause I read that it is much coarser than regular coco...they wern't kidding. I think I'm gonna try a few plants with only the coco pucks. Really airy and fluffy. I may need to water more than oncce a day.

Cheers,
SC

 

[HYDROJUNKIE]

suburbanhomeboy,....those profit disks have really course coco and needs to be watered more frequently than regular coco,...its nice stuff but takes like 5 minutes to break up using warm water,...not good if your going to use it for alot of plants...
took me almost 3 hours to transplant 25 plants into this coco,...I wont be using it again because of this.
but it is really nice stuff and growth is very fast with this coco compared to all others...
The people that make the EZ cloner are coming out with EZ COCO soon and they will have 2 phases,...phase 1 for cuttings,..and phase 2 for developing plants....the phase 2 coco has the same courseness as the profit disk pucks but they want $40 for 4 Cu. ft.
if its 80-100L its well worth it otherwise its overpriced just like their cloners...lol

 

[southpaw]

Thanks -VT-, Hydrojunkie, and the cult for the answers. Lmao Hydro, that pic speaks for itself.

One more question (and I know this has been answered earlier somewhere)... do you guys put seedlings into coir directly, or start them in rockwool?