Ph question for soil grow.....3rd grow

[bred]

So my question is how or what is the proper way to test my soil for ph or do i even need to?? I have been through the school of hard knocks on growing and just started using this site. I use a cheap 2 probe light, wet, and ph meter. when i put it in the soil it reads high 7 maybe 8 so i have been adjusting my water mixed with nuts with ph down to attempt to correct this, So i add 10 mils ph down per 2 gallons to get the mixture way down to around 5. I'm one week into flowering and plants overall look good except minor things that look like ph problems. is there a better way to test my soil and should i just adjust my water/nutrient mixture to the proper ph and let the soil do the rest?? any help would be greatly appreciated!!

 

[personal lux]

So my question is how or what is the proper way to test my soil for ph or do i even need to?? I have been through the school of hard knocks on growing and just started using this site. I use a cheap 2 probe light, wet, and ph meter. when i put it in the soil it reads high 7 maybe 8 so i have been adjusting my water mixed with nuts with ph down to attempt to correct this, So i add 10 mils ph down per 2 gallons to get the mixture way down to around 5. I'm one week into flowering and plants overall look good except minor things that look like ph problems. is there a better way to test my soil and should i just adjust my water/nutrient mixture to the proper ph and let the soil do the rest?? any help would be greatly appreciated!!

http://www.hightimes.com/read/grow-hack-checking-soil-ph

 

[Bugeye]

First, don't trust your cheap ph meter. It might work okay but those cheap ones are notorious for being off and ph measured by them will be different depending on how wet the soil is.

Get a ph drop kit. Put a handful of dirt in a bowl and mix it with water. Let it settle until the water on top becomes kinda clear, like maybe a half hour or so. Then skim off some of the cleaner top water and do a drop test on it.

It's a bitch to adjust soil ph with just water (the soil ph will overpower the water ph) so I would recommend just making it easy and getting some new dirt for next grow if it really is way off.

I don't have any experience with lowering soil ph during a grow so maybe someone else can help you there if needed.

 

[bred]

First, don't trust your cheap ph meter. It might work okay but those cheap ones are notorious for being off and ph measured by them will be different depending on how wet the soil is.

Get a ph drop kit. Put a handful of dirt in a bowl and mix it with water. Let it settle until the water on top becomes kinda clear, like maybe a half hour or so. Then skim off some of the cleaner top water and do a drop test on it.

It's a bitch to adjust soil ph with just water (the soil ph will overpower the water ph) so I would recommend just making it easy and getting some new dirt for next grow if it really is way off.

I don't have any experience with lowering soil ph during a grow so maybe someone else can help you there if needed.

Thanks man, using fox farm ocean soil

First, don't trust your cheap ph meter. It might work okay but those cheap ones are notorious for being off and ph measured by them will be different depending on how wet the soil is.

Get a ph drop kit. Put a handful of dirt in a bowl and mix it with water. Let it settle until the water on top becomes kinda clear, like maybe a half hour or so. Then skim off some of the cleaner top water and do a drop test on it.

It's a bitch to adjust soil ph with just water (the soil ph will overpower the water ph) so I would recommend just making it easy and getting some new dirt for next grow if it really is way off.

I don't have any experience with lowering soil ph during a grow so maybe someone else can help you there if needed.

Thanks man, really helpful! Im using foxfarm ocean forest soil. I will do that test today!

 

[Bugeye]

Thanks man, using fox farm ocean soil

Thanks man, really helpful! Im using foxfarm ocean forest soil. I will do that test today!

Probably not a ph issue if you are in FFOF. That's a pretty good mix loaded with nutes so no feeding is generally needed for a solid month after each transplant. Post a pic if you can.

 

[bred]

Probably not a ph issue if you are in FFOF. That's a pretty good mix loaded with nutes so no feeding is generally needed for a solid month after each transplant. Post a pic if you can.

Ok will get some pics a little later today. No major problems it's just that I have been lowering my nut solution way down to 5 ish to try and compensate. So pretty sure if I quit doing this things will get even better. Researching ph pens now, looking like blue lab ph pen is the way to go.?

 

[az2000]

So my question is how or what is the proper way to test my soil for ph or do i even need to??

Once you have your nutrients and soil dialed in you don't need to, but until then I think it's wise to monitor runoff ph and ppm. The trend of these numbers will help you see if you get soil ph.

The most "official" way I've seen to measure runoff is the NCSU Pour Through Method. (Google for it.). But, that's tedious. I just feed as normal and measure the runoff. It may not be accurate, but I'm concerned with the trend over time.

I bought a $60 Control Wizard Accurate 8 soil probe to measure soil ph. It's more accurate than the cheap two-prong probes. I like it because it's helpful to see the initial ph of the soil. Sometimes it can vary from bag to bag. It also confirms the runoff. And, unlike runoff, you can see how the ph rises as the soil dries. It's a nice tool to have, but not essential.

The "pour through method" mentioned above should be equivalent to using a soil probe except you only see the wet ph, not the ph as it dries.

 

[bred]

Once you have your nutrients and soil dialed in you don't need to, but until then I think it's wise to monitor runoff ph and ppm. The trend of these numbers will help you see if you get soil ph.

The most "official" way I've seen to measure runoff is the NCSU Pour Through Method. But, that's tedious. I just feed as normal and measure the runoff. It may not be accurate, but I'm concerned with the trend over time.

I bought a $60 Control Wizard Accurate 8 soil probe to measure soil ph. It's more accurate than the cheap two-prong probes. I like it because it's helpful to see the initial ph of the soil. Sometimes it can vary from bag to bag. It also confirms the runoff. And, unlike runoff, you can see how the ph rises as the soil dries. It's a nice tool to have, but not essential.

Great info! Loving all the great advise! I have been researching and growing for over a year now and I'm constantly learning and adapting...very addictive!!

 

[bred]

Probably not a ph issue if you are in FFOF. That's a pretty good mix loaded with nutes so no feeding is generally needed for a solid month after each transplant. Post a pic if you can.

Sorry for the delay. thanks for any help!

 

[Bugeye]

Maybe a magnesium deficiency? Looks pretty nice up top.

 

[bred]

Maybe a magnesium deficiency? Looks pretty nice up top.

Exactly what i was thinking...ordered cal/mg thursday, will be here tuesday! Right on man! The leave curling up is a dead giveaway right? Will give that a shot and go from there....that and not dropping my ph so much. Just going to get it where it needs to be in the nut solution and/or water and things should level out I hope. OM

Maybe a magnesium deficiency? Looks pretty nice up top.

Right on man! Just what I was hoping to hear! I ordered cal/mg Thursday and it will be here Tuesday! The leave curling up is a dead giveaway right? One more quick question....I'm concerned I might get too tall,I'm 6 days into flowering. Is it too late to top? I'm trying to avoid this by manipulating the plant a tad but its going to be close! Thanks again

 

[bred]

sorry the site messed up in the middle of the last reply so started over again to finish