Ramping up after 20+ years

[Flower]

This has been a very interesting read, as I also switched to Jacks a few months ago.
A member on another site turned me on to Jacks.
He was adamant, that if you use the Jacks Professional 20-20-20, throughout the whole grow, and use Sunshine Mix #4, it wouldn’t matter if you used the water from Flint, Michigan, you will have nothing but beautiful plants, and you won’t have to PH nothing.
Well, the Professional only comes in 25 lb. bags, and it’s about $80.00 a bag, but, that is all he used, with no extra additives.
Of course, I didn’t want to spend $80.00 because my grow is so small I would hate to think how long it would take to use 25 lbs., so I went with the Classic 20-20-20, and the Blossom Booster 10-30-20, same as you.
I also can’t find Sunshine #4 in my area, so I used Premier peat and added the perlite, myself.
I have had pretty consistent results.
1/2 teaspoon per gallon every feeding.
20-20-20 in veg, until about the 3rd week of flower, like previously mentioned, and 10-30-20 until a couple weeks before finish, and then straight water until chop, and I don’t PH anything, and I ain’t got no idea what my PPM of anything is.

I know there are some things I could improve on, but my plants all look healthy, and I never run out of weed, which is my #1 priority,
I run a continuous grow, and usually have 4 or 5 different strains going at all times.
I feed them all the same thing.
I will say, I do feel like plants lack things here and there, and am planning to start incorporating Epsom salt, and calcium nitrate, in the near future.
Maybe peat would be a better option than coco?
Could be your missing link.

[JOHN1234]

Thanks for stopping by @Flower.

I am using peat perlite mix everywhere. Some pots have added compost.

I’ve been very happy with Jacks and will continue using.

No coco anywhere here.

Your plants are looking good.

[Flower]

Sorry about the coco thing, after skimming back through this thread, I see that you do indeed use peat and perlite, same as me.
I am new here, and have been bouncing all over the place trying to take it all in. Must have gotten the coco thing from a different thread, lol.

[JOHN1234]

No worries!

Just for further detail. The fabric pots are all sitting on top of auto fed micro octopots.

Best of luck growing

[stiffy]

You will need calcium and magnesium to be added on coco. I think…and don’t fell stepped on your toes…you probably jumped into coco without enough preparation.
But since you have everything you need I’d give it another shot. It’s really not difficult once you understand what you need.
Feeding with salts it’s quite cheap too.
I say it again…scrutinise what’s in your tab water and add the rest according to that. What bottles and bag are saying is just a rough guide…but no company in the world knows your water better than you.

Calculate it once even if its painful and then keep looking out for changes of the tabwater. Because that changes every now and then too and you will have to react to it.

Good luck

[JOHN1234]

Hey @stiffy!

I don’t use coco. Using 100% tap water now. Plants seem to be happy with it.

Thanks for stopping in

[stiffy]

Damn…how could I get it mixed up like that? I could have sworn u grew in coco

[Indicana_Jones]

I’m outta likes in true OG fashion but those are some good looking plants bro.

[JOHN1234]

Thanks @Indicana_Jones. That’s a huge compliment coming from you!

[Indicana_Jones]

Aww shucks. Haha. Really though, everything is looking nice and green and uniform. Can’t ask for much more than that.

[JOHN1234]

Not at all.

[Jim]

Those are getting big! Have any of them started flowering yet?

[JOHN1234]

Yes. I have 7 photos all flowering and one Drunken Cherry fog dog. It is lights out on photo so will update pics tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by

Best of luck on your grow

[JOHN1234]

Some pics of the ladies.

Looks like it’s time for another defoliation.

!

First Sour Fro-Yo drying.

[shag]

@JOHN1234

The more I read the more confused I get due to the wealth of information but sometimes lacking consensus among the experts.

This is soo true.
But we need to consider what works in a given situation.
What works well in one situation may not work at all in another.

That is why it is best to have all the facts and be able to think on the fly.
With that said my man @Papalag is a good dude and what he says must work well for him or he would not say what he said.
Again I do not mean to take anything away from him or try to say he is wrong.

Some things to consider when using dolomite lime.
It has a poor Calcium to magnesium ratio.
And too much mag in your soil can cause compaction and other issues.
Like what if you have too much mag already?

From the web:
The main problem with dolomitic lime is that it contains too much magnesium … An additional drawback of dolomite limestone is that it is often contaminated with lead.”

So the problem is not that dolomite lime won’t raise the pH, but that our pH test did not tell us if we actually needed calcium and magnesium. Perhaps we already have too much magnesium. It’s almost certain we don’t need both in the ratio that dolomite lime gives us. Adding more of the wrong nutrient is just going to make things worse. For example, too much magnesium can cause compaction.

Please Stop Liming your Soil Based on the pH! - GardenRant

This is also why I do not recommend a Cal/Mag product.
**It’s almost certain we don’t need both in the ratio that cal/mag gives us.

To be clear I think dolomite lime and cal/mag are fine for those who like to keep things simple.
But it is safe to say it is not the best option.

This is a good example of lack of a consensus among the experts.
But here is kinda why.

Say you are growing in mostly perlite…
You will never worry about compaction.
But your friend, who is growing outside in mostly clay will most certainly have compaction issues, especially in a no-till situation.

So all things should be considered when giving recommendations like dolomite lime.

I hope I did not offend anyone, that was not my intention.

This may be a better choice.
I just bought calcium carbonate but if you want something more natural.
The main “ingredient” in calcitic lime is calcium carbonate,

From the link:
Most soils only need calcitic lime as their magnesium levels are already optimal. For most applications, calcitic lime is best. But you should always double-check the mineral content in your soil just to be sure.

Calcitic Lime vs. Dolomite Lime

[Papalag]

@shag ty brother

@JOHN1234

It’s been a while since I worked with living soil
Or mixes
I’ve used way too many

I firmly believe in using something like pro mix a substrate with no fertilizer built in

I feed just what it needs by observing the plant
And growing forward ( thinking ahead of the issue ) according to the stage the plant is in
So much easier keeping a plant healthy then repairing issues
There’s no quick fix once you feed to correct it takes weeks to see the benefits

If something happened as a result of mine suggesting I do apologize

Paps

[JOHN1234]

Thanks stopping and the great info @shag!

Since I’m growing in promix BX w added 25% perlite, I opted out of anything additional. I do have about 30% compost in the photo pots. (Newb mistake).

All the nutrients come from the micro octopots so I can add what they need at the res. I am currently using CalMagic. ~4ml/gal. I started w RO water but the PH kept climbing. Also saw some Mag deficiency early on.
After switch to tap water and slowly increasing CalMagic, everyone seems happier, PH stabilized.

I am looking for an alternative for when the bottle of calmag runs out.

[shag]

@Papalag

If something happened as a result of mine suggesting I do apologize

To be fair dolomite lime is recommended by just about everybody for probably centuries, so it should not be considered bad advice.

[JOHN1234]

No worries @Papalag. No issues from any of your great advice

I started w budget peat from the big box store but am a firm believer in Promix. Worth the money IME.

[Papalag]

@shag

e fair dolomite lime is recommended by just

It sure is good stuff and very recommended

The jacks RO formula I’m not familiar with

It should work well I do use Jacks products

Best wishes on your journey

Paps