Help please. Plants are getting worse. (5 weeks into flower)

I bought 4.0/7.0 calibration solution today and it seems my pH pen wasn't off by that much (at least by my standards which are pretty low).

same picture as above(just on imgur):
On the left is what it read when I dipped it into the 7.0 solution.
Off by .13. It could have been more accurate @ that range rather than the 5-6 range.
The 4.01 reading was what I got after I clicked "CAL" on the pen while it was in the 7.0 solution, but I still calibrated it again while in the 4.0 solution.
I probably should have tested what it read in the 4.0 solution without any calibration, but I was ready as all hell to get this thing calibrated asap. I now regret this.

So I'm kind of worried by this as it may have not been off by that much to cause a pH problem.
So it may be other factors as to why the pH is off within the medium.

I have never kept this pen in any type of solution at all to keep it moist and I've been doing this for about a year and a half (this is my second grow).
So it seems I've had some good luck with this pen in regards to that. I have always cleaned it and babied it though, for what it's worth. Only used tap water on it as I heard distilled can leech ions from within the electrode, but I did test the pH of distilled water in this thread (only time it has touched distilled water).

I bought their(ketotek) humidity controller and it didn't go so well: https://www.rollitup.org/t/will-my-humidifier-work-with-this-humidity-controller-voltage-question.1005546/
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Bukvičák said:

I would do this: quit adding vitamine C, take your tap (if you are aware of chlorine let it sit for a day but it wont help anyway) mix your base nutrients in it (K:Ca:Mg 4:2:1) around 1,1EC, be carefull of too much nitrogen and measure its pH by drops. I did it like this, fill your cap till 2cm, add drops, shake and put it on the white paper. Look at it from the top and the colour of the bottom is your pH. Colour 5,5-6,5 range your are fine do not mess with it and feed untill you get same EC runoff. You may need a lot of water. Than buy a legit pH pen and start to treat it like coco. GL!

Click to expand...

I will stop with the calcium ascorbate in next feedings. I'm aware of others using this to dechlorinate their water with no ill experiences(from what I can recall). In my first grow I used regular ascorbic acid(pure vitamin c), but it dropped my pH very low (in my nutrient solution) to the point where it was a pain to deal with. Never had an issue like this in that grow. If it's indeed the culprit, then it's causing some type of reaction with the bud explosion as this was the only new thing being used (but I have been using it(BE) for a few weeks now (may have took a while to build up a deficiency/lockout of some sort)). I've already dropped BE (since last feeding). I'm just trying to salvage what I can and not maximize anything @ this point.
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oill said:

Your ph is too high.... a bet your run off is way higher than 6.2. You need to feed at exactly 5.9 and you need to feed til run off every day otherwise you'll get this issue

Edit.... didn't read the whole post lol... bit late... but I was right!....

Keep feeding every day til run off to keep that ph down....

Click to expand...

I'm now feeding 5.8ish. Not 5.9. Any specific reasoning behind the +.1 pH and not the 5.8 that is recommended by some?

I'll give it everyday feedings to run off. If I'm exacerbating some type of root issue by doing this, then this is a good learning lesson. I will still have something to show for it unless something develops on the bud sites.
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Tuda51 said:

How dry is your medium when you feed on the second day?

Click to expand...

I haven't been paying much attention. I did lift the pot like 3 feedings ago and it felt light. Other than that I only poked my finger down twice during veg and it was slightly damp on both occasions. I still watered it because it was 3-4 days before the last feeding. I only amped up watering during the last week or so of veg and throughout flowering (to every 2nd day). I've only had a few issues here and there during veg (as shown below).



same pictures as above(just on imgur):
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ComputerSaysNo said:

I think the 5.8 is too high on the meter, going by the color of the fluid (at most 5.5 would be my guess).
All the pictures you've posted show a fluid that is going into the orange, and that would be below 6.0 already according to the chart.

There's no way around it, you'll have to get calibration solution and use that to get your meter back on track.

Also, this reference with photos of actual vials is great. It also shows you really do not need 2 drops per vial, it only makes the color slighly more intense.

For me, the "6.0 yellow" has always been very obvious to recognize.


"Piss green" is actually a very good reference for 6.5

At the end of the day, how accurate do you have to be? If, say, 5.8-6.2 is good enough, that means you will have to get a clear "yellow" with not much orange or green in it. It's possible for me to recognize that, but for somebody with some form of color blindness it might be a problem. These people should not use test kits or test strips in any case, though.

Click to expand...

The 5.8 reading in my last post looks slightly darker than the calibrated 5.8 one below.
More on par with the 6.0 color pic that I took. Leads me to believe the pen might have been off around .3-5ish?
Probably not enough to cause what I'm going through.
I'm still a noob so I don't really know how far I can be off, but I do also figure 5.8-6.2 is easy to hit and a good range to be within.
Hopefully all is good now. I figure off by 1 won't screw me like what I'm currently dealing with.

Beginning to think this might be root related. Not sure what all can cause lockouts.
If the pH is fine then the only other thing I can think of is salt build up or something in the roots like algae/mold/rot to the point where nutrient transfer is being disrupted.


same picture as above(just on imgur):

I'm going to daily watering, so hopefully that won't make the situation worse. Just doing hail mary shit now.
My first time growing in a 1 gal pot. Issues come on really fast it seems.

Pawtz said:

I bought 4.0/7.0 calibration solution today and it seems my pH pen wasn't off by that much (at least by my standards which are pretty low).
View attachment 5003536
same picture as above(just on imgur):

http://imgur.com/a/Xk9VMJK

On the left is what it read when I dipped it into the 7.0 solution.
Off by .13. It could have been more accurate @ that range rather than the 5-6 range.
The 4.01 reading was what I got after I clicked "CAL" on the pen while it was in the 7.0 solution, but I still calibrated it again while in the 4.0 solution.
I probably should have tested what it read in the 4.0 solution without any calibration, but I was ready as all hell to get this thing calibrated asap. I now regret this.

So I'm kind of worried by this as it may have not been off by that much to cause a pH problem.
So it may be other factors as to why the pH is off within the medium.

I have never kept this pen in any type of solution at all to keep it moist and I've been doing this for about a year and a half (this is my second grow).
So it seems I've had some good luck with this pen in regards to that. I have always cleaned it and babied it though, for what it's worth. Only used tap water on it as I heard distilled can leech ions from within the electrode, but I did test the pH of distilled water in this thread (only time it has touched distilled water).

I bought their(ketotek) humidity controller and it didn't go so well: https://www.rollitup.org/t/will-my-humidifier-work-with-this-humidity-controller-voltage-question.1005546/
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I will stop with the calcium ascorbate in next feedings. I'm aware of others using this to dechlorinate their water with no ill experiences(from what I can recall). In my first grow I used regular ascorbic acid(pure vitamin c), but it dropped my pH very low (in my nutrient solution) to the point where it was a pain to deal with. Never had an issue like this in that grow. If it's indeed the culprit, then it's causing some type of reaction with the bud explosion as this was the only new thing being used (but I have been using it(BE) for a few weeks now (may have took a while to build up a deficiency/lockout of some sort)). I've already dropped BE (since last feeding). I'm just trying to salvage what I can and not maximize anything @ this point.
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I'm now feeding 5.8ish. Not 5.9. Any specific reasoning behind the +.1 pH and not the 5.8 that is recommended by some?

I'll give it everyday feedings to run off. If I'm exacerbating some type of root issue by doing this, then this is a good learning lesson. I will still have something to show for it unless something develops on the bud sites.
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I haven't been paying much attention. I did lift the pot like 3 feedings ago and it felt light. Other than that I only poked my finger down twice during veg and it was slightly damp on both occasions. I still watered it because it was 3-4 days before the last feeding. I only amped up watering during the last week or so of veg and throughout flowering (to every 2nd day). I've only had a few issues here and there during veg (as shown below).

View attachment 5003571
View attachment 5003572
same pictures as above(just on imgur):

http://imgur.com/a/JhSf8wn

http://imgur.com/a/uThoYJm

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The 5.8 reading in my last post looks slightly darker than the calibrated 5.8 one below.
More on par with the 6.0 color pic that I took. Leads me to believe the pen might have been off around .3-5ish?
Probably not enough to cause what I'm going through.
I'm still a noob so I don't really know how far I can be off, but I do also figure 5.8-6.2 is easy to hit and a good range to be within.
Hopefully all is good now. I figure off by 1 won't screw me like what I'm currently dealing with.

Beginning to think this might be root related. Not sure what all can cause lockouts.
If the pH is fine then the only other thing I can think of is salt build up or something in the roots like algae/mold/rot to the point where nutrient transfer is being disrupted.

View attachment 5003573
same picture as above(just on imgur):

http://imgur.com/a/Wx2Uam4

I'm going to daily watering, so hopefully that won't make the situation worse. Just doing hail mary shit now.
My first time growing in a 1 gal pot. Issues come on really fast it seems.

Click to expand...

Once I have used citric acid to lower pH in my res, next day it was like a milk. You can use those things when running organics, but in coco you should follow the “rules” and keep it as clean as possible. I believe with Bud Explosion you should also use the 2nd part of your fert line I guess it is Megacrop to get ballanced food, otherwise you may face nutrient antagonisms or lockout even your pH is in range. I was not using those nutrients so might be wrong, maybe @twentyeight.threefive can tell you more about that I think he was running them also. And again, you should feed them daily to runoff which you dispose immediatelly, without any soaking it back. One simple rule saves a lot of headache… GL!

I dont think citric acid is a good PH-downer and I have a good reason. The citric acid is a source of carbon and feed to anaerobic bacteria. They dismantle it, grow, then you have again higher PH, but you have more anaerobic bacteria it in. These are microbes right... yup, but are they the right ones?

Bukvičák said:

next day it was like a milk

Click to expand...

Exactly, just add some to tap water and wait a few days... it grows the shiznit fast and furious!

I dont know why there is such anti-anorganic acids "stance". People always state anorganic acids are against organic feed and would kill the microbes. Pfft, thats entirely not true.... in fact it is just "simple minded assumption" that might "sound logic".

Organic and anorganic are not incompatible. Anorganic just means, the stuff was/is not alive itself, that does not mean it kills.... dolomite for example is anorganic lime.... it's "mineral-stone".... yet it promotes life ON IT! And it's "natural". You want a "natural" grow... "organic" is just a buzz word!

In fact "anorganic" means just "made from stone/not made from beeings"

Lets take a deeper look into my argues:
Anorganic Nitric-acid (PH- for Veg), what is it actually and what happens: HNO3 + H2O goes to H+ and NO3-
Anorganic Phosphoric-acid (PH- for Flo), what is it actually and what happens: H3PO4 + H2O goes to H3+ and and PO4-
Anorganic Potassium-hydroxide (PH+), what is it actually and what happens: KOH + H2O goes to OH- and K+

Those liquids are made from natural minerals too, they are already diluted into water that way, you dont add them pure and have that reactions, but have them deconcentrated in water into deluting then in more water... it is already split-ions in your anorganic PHadjuster bottle... there is lots of water in it

H+ is decreasing the PH and the OH- is increasing the PH... the minerals add up in the solution, but the ppms are just tiny. It's not reasonable feed.
The H+ and OH- make the PH... they are ALWAYS there and organic acids don't differ acting that way. The limes in the water buffer it still, react and decrease the amount of H+ OH- no matter what... except rain water/RO, that spikes easy and kills the microbes with too high or too low PH.... the microbes have no problems withstanding it "in general".. they have cell-walls meant to protect that ions at the PH they like, the dose matters and the dose of them IS the PH.... so with in the tuning the desired range, stiring it... nothing happens to the microbes, no matter if citric or nitric or phosphoric acid.

Dont believe me just like that, check for yourself, look what the organics DO, they do exactly the SAME:
Citric acid (organic PH-), what is it actually and what happens: C6H8O7 + H2O goes to H+ and Carbohydrates

It adds up H+ ions same than the anorganics, they have diluted Carbohydrates in the bottle... but the anorganics minerals are far more usefull than the organic acids Carbohydrates, they are only food to the "grinch", lol.... microbes are not microbes.... they DIFFER... anaerobic or aerobic, thats here the question.

The story that anorganics harm your microbes is just a busted myth and the fertilizer manufacturer just don't care... the people want organic PH-, promoting the anaerobics, they can have it. The "demand" drives the "supply". If they don't provide citric acid to their programms, they don't sell. Because the people DONT get their head around this matter! They cant change it... they wanna just sell, so they provide and sell BOTH and make profits! Nothing special. Thats economy! It's not their fault, when people demand and pick the wrong stuff!

I think you're better off with the anorganics for your organic grow And for carbohydrates try molasses that promotes aerobic bacteria better, this is usually already inside organic grow fertilizers.

The amounts of these "mineral-feed" of the anorganic-acids added is neglible, you pick them only to keep the salinity with the best ions low tuning the PH. They are not meant to "feed". Its just having N with the acid in the veg is better than adding P (or Carbohydrytes at all) and vice versa in the flowering, thats why you pick the best one that situation. I see no situation were citric acid is benefitting... it is not even STABLE, only short term adjusting... and that makes it bad adjuster! I bought a bottle too, tried it, and let it be. Still I have it... and a use for it, nice for cleaning the bath, limescale and biofilms have no chances. Only a few drops plus some tensides are enough for your cleaning water to make it a cillit bang (a powerful surface cleaner, latin)

Bukvičák said:

Once I have used citric acid to lower pH in my res, next day it was like a milk. You can use those things when running organics, but in coco you should follow the “rules” and keep it as clean as possible. I believe with Bud Explosion you should also use the 2nd part of your fert line I guess it is Megacrop to get ballanced food, otherwise you may face nutrient antagonisms or lockout even your pH is in range. I was not using those nutrients so might be wrong, maybe @twentyeight.threefive can tell you more about that I think he was running them also. And again, you should feed them daily to runoff which you dispose immediatelly, without any soaking it back. One simple rule saves a lot of headache… GL!

Click to expand...

I didn't have good results adding Bud Explosion. Kept getting what looked like a potassium toxicity. This in addition to veg nitrogen toxicity issues lead me to switch from MegaCrop to Jack's 3-2-1 a while ago and haven't looked back.

twentyeight.threefive said:

I didn't have good results adding Bud Explosion. Kept getting what looked like a potassium toxicity. This in addition to veg nitrogen toxicity issues lead me to switch from MegaCrop to Jack's 3-2-1 a while ago and haven't looked back.

Click to expand...

Despite all of that is BE one-part fertilizer?

Bukvičák said:

Despite all of that is BE one-part fertilizer?

Click to expand...

Sorry no, BE is just a PK booster. 0-19-39

CheGueVapo said:

I dont think citric acid is a good PH-downer and I have a good reason. The citric acid is a source of carbon and feed to anaerobic bacteria. They dismantle it, grow, then you have again higher PH, but you have more anaerobic bacteria it in.

Exactly, just add some to tap water and wait a few days... it grows the shiznit fast and furious!

I dont know why there is such anti-anorganic acids "stance". People always state anorganic acids are against organic feed and would kill the microbes. Pfft, thats entirely not true.... in fact it is just "simple minded assumption" that might "sound logic".

Organic and anorganic are not incompatible. Anorganic just means, the stuff was/is not alive itself, that does not mean it kills.... dolomite for example is anorganic lime.... it's "mineral-stone".... yet it promotes life ON IT! And it's "natural". You want a "natural" grow... "organic" is just a buzz word!

Lets take a deeper look into my argues:
Anorganic Nitric-acid (PH- for Veg), what is it actually and what happens: HNO3 + H2O goes to H+ and NO3-
Anorganic Phosphoric-acid (PH- for Flo), what is it actually and what happens: H3PO4 + H2O goes to H3+ and and PO4-
Anorganic Potassium-hydroxide (PH+), what is it actually and what happens: KOH + H2O goes to OH- and K+

Those liquids are made from natural minerals too, they are already diluted into water that way, you dont add them pure and have that reactions, but have them deconcentrated in water into deluting then in more water... it is already split-ions in your anorganic PHadjuster bottle... there is lots of water in it

H+ is decreasing the PH and the OH- is increasing the PH... the minerals add up in the solution, but the ppms are just tiny. It's not reasonable feed.
The H+ and OH- make the PH... they are ALWAYS there and organic acids don't differ acting that way. The limes in the water buffer it still, react and decrease the amount of H+ OH- no matter what... except rain water/RO, that spikes easy and kills the microbes with too high or too low PH.... the microbes have no problems withstanding it "in general".. they have cell-walls meant to protect that ions at the PH they like, the dose matters and the dose of them IS the PH.... so with in the tuning the desired range, stiring it... nothing happens to the microbes, no matter if citric or nitric or phosphoric acid.

Dont believe me just like that, check for yourself, look what the organics DO, they do exactly the SAME:
Citric acid (organic PH-), what is it actually and what happens: C6H8O7 + H2O goes to H+ and Carbohydrates

It adds up H+ ions same than the anorganics, they have diluted Carbohydrates in the bottle... but the anorganics minerals are far more usefull than the organic acids Carbohydrates, they are only food to the "grinch", lol.... microbes are not microbes.... they DIFFER... anaerobic or aerobic, thats here the question.

The story that anorganics harm your microbes is just a busted myth and the fertilizer manufacturer just don't care... the people want organic PH-, they can have it. The "demand" drives the "supply". If they don't provide citric acid to their programms, they don't sell. Because the people DONT get their head around this matter! They cant change it... they wanna just sell, so they provide and sell and make profits! Nothing special. Thats economy!

I think you're better off with the anorganics for your organic grow And for carbohydrates try molasses that promotes aerobic bacteria better, this is usually already inside organic grow fertilizers.

The amounts of these "mineral-feed" of the anorganic-acids added is neglible, you pick them only to keep the salinity with the best ions low tuning the PH. They are not meant to "feed". Its just having N with the acid in the veg is better than adding P (or Carbohydrytes at all) and vice versa in the flowering, thats why you pick the best one that situation. I see no situation were citric acid is benefitting... it is not even STABLE, only short term adjusting... and that makes it bad adjuster! I bought a bottle too, tried it, and let it be. Still I have it... and a use for it, nice for cleaning the bath, limescale and biofilms have no chances. Only a few drops plus some tensides are enough for your cleaning water to make it a cillit bang (a powerful surface cleaner, latin)

Click to expand...

Thanks for chem lesson. I had them also and they forget to say that in practice it is not so easy as on paper. With hard tap water you will most likely need pH down and you will still observe huge drift back thanks to “buffer”. With rain or RO you may need pH up and you can observe slight drift down thanks to no buffer or whatever chemical reaction. If you mix your nutrient solution everyday than it is “simple”. BTW I was not suggesting using citric or any other organic acid in coco. Anyway Thank you it was a good read out of topic…

Bukvičák said:

With rain or RO you may need pH up and you can observe slight drift down thanks to no buffer or whatever chemical reaction.

Click to expand...

It's the OH- reacting with the Cations that dilute from your other ingredients like Mg2+, Ca2+ hydrating into quicklimes MgO/CaO and H2O. That increases the limebuffer taking out the OH-... therefore the PH drifts down again. Normal process, adds up buffer. Thats why you want to add some little LIME in first place to RO, not only OH-, to balance it easier with less OH-.... or the PH goes spingly high with the OH- when there is no Cations to react with.

When you mix those quicklimes MgO or CaO or dolomite/lime CaMg(CO3) with Nitric or Phosphoric acid (citric works too of cause)...... you add up these: Mg2+, Ca2+ (and P- or N- or carbohydrates)..... and the H+ of the acids form H2O (water) with the O of the limes/carbs.... thats why they dilute and your PH keeps increasing, because the H+ reacts away with O- into "water" not beeing acidic anymore.

Then you have your 100ppms Ca and Mg (very soft water still).... now when you add up OH- to that... they form the lime buffer and balance the PH desiredly! Thats what you want... at least ME DOES, because that way i can control my water influencing the soil exactly the way i want it to be! It FOLLOWs!

CheGueVapo said:

It's the OH- reacting with the Cations that dilute from your other ingredients like Mg2+, Ca2+ hydrating into quicklimes MgO/CaO and H2O. That increases the limebuffer taking out the OH-... therefore the PH drifts down again. Normal process, adds up buffer. Thats why you want to add some little LIME in first place to RO, not only OH-, to balance it easier with less OH-.... or the PH goes spingly high with the OH- when there is no Cations to react with.

When you mix those quicklimes MgO or CaO or dolomite/lime CaMg(CO3) with Nitric or Phosphoric acid (citric works too of cause)...... you add up these: Mg2+, Ca2+ (and P- or N- or carbohydrates)..... and the H+ of the acids form H2O (water) with the O of the limes/carbs.... thats why they dilute and your PH keeps increasing, because the H+ reacts away with O- into "water" not beeing acidic anymore.

Then you have your 100ppms Ca and Mg (very soft water still).... now when you add up OH- to that... they form the lime buffer and balance the PH desiredly! Thats what you want... at least ME DOES, because that way i can control my water influencing the soil exactly the way i want it to be! It FOLLOWs!

Click to expand...

CaO and MgO are water soluble salts in plant available form. Dolomitic lime you buy in shop is NOT water soluble and it is not just simple as it sounds. You can adjust pH of you peat based mix, but it wont provide instant source of Ca and Mg. In needs to break down and it takes time. You add too much end up with concreted mix full of carbonates locking out Magnesium and potassium. Coco is way different, it holds pH of your solution you giving in, thats why it is considered inert, at least thats how I understand this term. Might be wrong thou…

twentyeight.threefive said:

I didn't have good results adding Bud Explosion. Kept getting what looked like a potassium toxicity. This in addition to veg nitrogen toxicity issues lead me to switch from MegaCrop to Jack's 3-2-1 a while ago and haven't looked back.

Click to expand...

I'm still using MegaCrops 500g sample. Was planning on trying Jack's 5-12-26 in the future as there's a place locally that has it for $24 (lucky, because shipping on most places is $16ish).

Thats just the difference between lime and quicklime.

Yes quicklime is water soluble without adding acids. You then have Mg+/Ca+ and O- in the H²O.
The O- and the 2x H+ form water again... or it gasses out without H+ ions when theres is only OH- forming O2...

With adding enough quicklime to your acid water you raise the PH, neutralizing the H+.... adding OH- does the same but reacts to just water!

When you just add OH- and H+ on and on... they just react to WATER... you cannot balance your PH by adding H+ or OH- without taking the PH buffering substances into account... the LIMES!

See... it does NOT add up PH buffer... it just reacts to water... so first adding acid... then adding hydroxide... gives you: WATER... not controll of the PH in the pots/soil!
You cant have both... H+ and OH- the same time.... if you higher 7 there is no H+... if you are lower, there is no OH-... exactly 7 btw means you have none of both a perfect equilibrium.... :=)

You want it to BUFFER it's own PH stronger, holding and mantaining it's acidity, not just to show some number of how acidic it is, to have an impact on the soil!

Without the PH buffer capacity and considering the LIMES in the POTS/SOIL its pointless to adjust it.... it doesn't make a difference. It does not bring you to where you want to go to! The acids or alkalines without considering the limes else just make up water or oxygene in the pots stating "nope, not this way".... the way it works is influence the limes in the pots... reduce (let them feed) or increase (additionally feed them).

You cant bring it down when you constantly feed to much CalMag... it refuses your H+ and keeps going up! 'Coz the limes build up high PH-buffer in the soil!

It's easy once you stop thinking in acid/alkalines.... and start considering the Cal/mag of your feed.... that's impacting the PH-buffer capacity of the soil!

Bukvičák said:

In needs to break down and it takes time.

Click to expand...

Thats why gentle amounts of it is perfect for bringing the soil PH up.

Bukvičák said:

is NOT water soluble

Click to expand...

In case you think i meant you should lay mineral stones on your soil... thats not the way.

1. You use gentle amounts of Dolomite-fine-powder.
2. You stir it well (constantly) and you water that solution BEFORE it fall down to the ground.
3. Your porous soil then sucks the Dolomite-powder evenly, it sinks into your soil
4. Check the drain, whats the actual impact increase in PH for the gramms that you've added.
5. adjust the amount next time watering precisely if neccessary again to reach the desired PH.

The strong bond CaMg now sucking out all H+, slowly releasing some Ca+/Mg+... perfect for increase of PH!

Bukvičák said:

In needs to break down and it takes time.

Click to expand...

Thats why you now have a stable PH over long time, doing so! You didn't needed any alkalines at all... straight effect! Alrighty now!
Thats why you take care not adding too much of it, to not knock yourself out, not easy to undo (lots of flush). Coz it's stable now, buffering what you DID!


Tablespoon of it? Locks 7 forever Good luck flushing it out of the porous soil again or make the plants eat that mass up.... It takes time or flush exactly.... acid doesnt work that good undoing that, because they get buffered like if they were nothing!

Im only stating the obvious....

Check this good source: https://www.dinafem.org/en/blog/how-to-use-dolomite-organic-fertiliser-cannabis-plants/
Dinafem is legitly a highly reputable "expert" breeder.

• Dolomite is a calcium and magnesium source for marijuana plants when nutrient deficiencies happen. It’s a slow-release fertiliser to be mixed with the soil that gradually provides plants with nutrients over a few months without any risk of overfertilisation.
• It has a neutral pH of around 7.0 that helps stabilise pH levels. This way, keeping the pH at optimal levels is possible even in acidic soils.
• Thanks to its properties, dolomite lime is becoming increasingly common in cannabis cultivation. Here’s why.

But dolomite has recently found a new niche in the market, more specifically in the field of agriculture, as a source of organic fertiliser that slowly provides plants with nutrients, mostly calcium (in a 20-30%) and magnesium (in a 10-20%, accounting for a calcium to magnesium ratio of 2:1), while helping increase pH levels to meet the plants' nutritional requirements.
(...)
One gram of dolomite lime per litre of substrate (approximately 1 tbsp of dolomite limestone/5 L of soil) should suffice for raising pH levels 1 point. Dolomite has a neutral pH of approximately 7.0, meaning it cannot raise pH levels beyond 7.0. Therefore, it's the best and safest way to make sure your soil remains pH-stable for a few months, and plants grow optimally.

Click to expand...

There is one misinformation in that statements..... it is ANorganic matter! (sry my german i mean INorganic)
Sry Dinafem, thats wrong or "misleading" ... it's OK for organic, sure, but it's inorganic matter/fertilzer
The hole blog "title" is wrong... but it's ok, because the subject is right, haha.

Organic: adjective
1. noting or pertaining to a class of chemical compounds that formerly comprised only those existing in or derived from plants or animals, but that now includes all other compounds of carbon.
2. characteristic of, pertaining to, or derived from living organismsrganic remains found in rocks.
3. of or relating to an organ or the organs of an animal, plant, or fungus.

(Anorganic)Inorganic: adjective
1.not having the structure or organization characteristic of living bodies.
2. not characterized by vital processes.
3. Chemistry. noting or pertaining to compounds that are not hydrocarbons or their derivatives.Compare organic (def. 1).

Dolomite is only just a stone.... it never was alive! It is not organic fertilizer.... it is not an organic remain in the rocks... it IS the actual rock! Not beeing organic! lol

I mean to say to the beginners to please stop thinking so narrow-minded that inorganic in general ruins organic grow. Inorganic matter is part of the organic processes in nature. Stones and rocks everywhere in the soil

I use this to mix with water. It dissolves and makes a fine slurry but as said you need to keep it agitated as you pour unless you just pour the whole thing in. I use it for the initial watering of the new soil.

Just dont add too much so that it locks in 7 badly when you want to recycle the soil for another vegetation and good iron availability.
Adding this dolomite dry to soils that are too low (say 5.5) when preparing them for vegetation on the other hand to increase it at least to 5.9 can be usefull.

When you use only enough for 6.4.... in the high late flowering... then in the end feed only 2 weeks RO or "flush tap with drain"..... it goes down.

That way you can bring it down easier for recycling. 7 locked-in isn't the best for good vegetation! But it works, though. Just spray some iron or feed some iron, avoid calmag, and they get through the vegetation nicely on 7 whatever

CheGueVapo said:

Im only stating the obvious....

Check this good source: https://www.dinafem.org/en/blog/how-to-use-dolomite-organic-fertiliser-cannabis-plants/
Dinafem is legitly a highly reputable "expert" breeder.


There is one misinformation in that statements..... it is ANorganic matter! (sry my german i mean INorganic)
Sry Dinafem, thats wrong or "misleading" ... it's OK for organic, sure, but it's inorganic matter/fertilzer
The hole blog "title" is wrong... but it's ok, because the subject is right, haha.

Organic: adjective
1. noting or pertaining to a class of chemical compounds that formerly comprised only those existing in or derived from plants or animals, but that now includes all other compounds of carbon.
2. characteristic of, pertaining to, or derived from living organismsrganic remains found in rocks.
3. of or relating to an organ or the organs of an animal, plant, or fungus.

(Anorganic)Inorganic: adjective
1.not having the structure or organization characteristic of living bodies.
2. not characterized by vital processes.
3. Chemistry. noting or pertaining to compounds that are not hydrocarbons or their derivatives.Compare organic (def. 1).

Dolomite is only just a stone.... it never was alive! It is not organic fertilizer.... it is not an organic remain in the rocks... it IS the actual rock! Not beeing organic! lol

I mean to say to the beginners to please stop thinking so narrow-minded that inorganic in general ruins organic grow. Inorganic matter is part of the organic processes in nature. Stones and rocks everywhere in the soil

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This is true when you grow in field in real soil or in organic mix where the microbes do the job for ya, nothing in common with that in coco or potting mix. Dolomite lime used for our purposes is just pH adjuster of the peat which is strongly acidic. I was doing the same shit liming already limed potting mix to those reccomended pH for soil ended up crying. Also measuring runoff and than pouring there shit to get “better” numbers. soil pH pen and you will understand instantly what is going on there in real not in theory on the paper. I was just trying to help OP not to discuss with you so I am gone…

Thats the reason to avoid 7 when you want to recycle the soil.

If you suspect your growing cannabis plant has a iron deficiency due to too-high pH, flush your system with clean, pH’d water. This will remove any nutrient salts that may be affecting the uptake of iron and help restore pH to the proper levels..

• In soil, iron is best absorbed by the roots in the 6.0 – 6.5 pH range (although it’s generally recommended for soil growers to keep pH in the 6.0-7.0 range, iron tends to get locked out when the pH is higher, especially above 7.0)
• In coco coir or hydro, iron is best absorbed by the roots in the 5.5 – 6.5 pH range

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... and:

Learn how to manage your pH for growing cannabis.

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now it's gettin' interesting... c'mon teach me some....
That links goes to: https://www.growweedeasy.com/ph#common-pH-problems

How Easy is it to Use Liquid Nutrients and Maintain pH?

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Theres a note:

Note: Some soil growers will add a handful of dolomite lime as they’re mixing their soil. Dolomite lime can help buffer pH and keep it from getting too low, while also adding a source of calcium and magnesium. But lime should be added before you start your grow so it has enough time to break down, so this method is not recommended unless you’re mixing up your own soil. Learn how to mix up your own soil for growing cannabis.

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Yeah HANDFUL is not recommended in the middle of the grow.... thats overkill, lol!

I note from my evident experience: "Some soil growers will add a gentle amount of dolomite lime powder during the grow, to simply adjust the PH if it dropped too low. This method is recommend in favor of adding Hydroxides of any kind, wether it be organic or inorganic."

They go on:

Is it Hard to Maintain pH?

No way, maintaining pH for your cannabis grow can be easy and intuitive!

Learn all about how to check and adjust your pH for cannabis

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but how now, whats your solution, teeeeeeach me finally.....following the link.
That link then states:

• A bottle of “PH Up” and a bottle of “PH Down”

A bottle of PH Up & PH Down gives you one of the best ways to adjust pH in soil or hydro. They each come in a bottle that lets you easily measure how much to add to your water. General Hydroponics makes the most common version of products like this, but there are other brands such as Mad Farmer which make similar products that are just as good.

There are other methods of adjusting pH, but using pH Up and pH Down is the best method I’ve tried

Click to expand...

So H+ and OH- is your solution, teacher?.... There you have it again... a "noob" posting for growweeedeasy, leading other noobs, having no clue, just tryin' what everybody keeps trying, while the soil-pH does not obey, haha.

Man "I = groweedeasy"... who are you? "NO WAY you did learn "ALL"! The best method i've tried is what i noted above, adding gentle amounts of lime.

Try it! It just works with instant gratification. Soil obeys!

Gimme the bible, i bring an oath!
"I swear by Almighty God that the evidence I shall give will be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth".

This has been a good read. I grow in coco, so none of this really pertains to my situation, but it's still interesting.

The yellow ph pens are pretty bad. I tested a half dozen, bought an Apera, and will never use a yellow one again.

The Apera came calibrated and has never been off calibration once.

Just saying...the yellow ones can work at times, but imo it is not worth the hassle and worry that comes with them.

Buy a bluelab or apera and never worry again. I need it to check ph once in a while but it is priceless to know it is right. Soil ph meter is nice too, and worthwhile for soil growers.

I recently checked ph and when I used the yellow one (the best of the 6 I tested), it was off by 0.5.

Ok .. I’ll bite .

To ChooChootaco , I find most ( if not all ) “paper gardening practices “ by means of charts / equations and other NON garden growing a moot point for those ACTUALLY wanting an answer to their grow issue. Since you apparently think arrogance wins minds , they do not with those running homegrown setups … let’s cut to the chase.

Show us your “ scientific “ approach to growing - your grow , your lights , your nutes and regiments.
I am a firm believer that “ paper gardeners “ do not have the expertise in actual ground work …..

Display your plants …… and not the same 2 tired photos with lame beer bottle. You are obviously running something indoors and I think all of the “ BLOATWARE “ research you spew brings nothing. Let’s see the end results too , you must have after harvest pics ( right ? ) ……. I am surprised you haven’t been called out on your “ actual “ grow based on your egghead assumptions.

You muddied the topic at hand and tried to dazzle members ….. I am not one of them.