In your experience how many times have you had to top dress your auto's in their lifecycle with only FFOF? I seen your post on growing in FFOF and the no-nonsense approach is refreshing. I haven't tried to grow in ffof but i am considering my next grow with it. Would dropping a seed directly in without germination the old fashioned way be alright or do you support transplanting from something milder like HF?There is zero need to hyperload different amendments when doing a “ top dress “ - by adding a couple cups of fresh FFOF it will recharge the host medium without the unnecessary add-ins.
Not only will the fresh soil aid in replenishing what the plant used - it will also recharge the buffering ( shocking i know) with fresh oyster shell . PLUS - plant will NOT be introduced to elements it wasn’t already acclimated too.
Throwing the kitchen sink at a plant is overkill.
Adding cal mag to water is unnecessary since it can buffer tap. Add kelp to the water instead.
Topdressing Fox Farm Ocean Forest?
- Thread starter Lilmink
- Start date
OneHitDone
Well-Known Member
Where did you get this information?
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
In what way does mgso4, kill microbes?
2WorldsFrog
Well-Known Member
Since this thread has been resurrected, here's how I use FFOF with 2 week old photo sprouts and clones:
2gal fabric pot, plain water for first week.
-Filtered/Ph'd water that sits for 24 hours to evaporate chlorine.
I add a small amount of silica to the water starting week 2 until flower.
-Huge improvement in stalk/branch thickness w/liquid silica additive.
Starting week 3 I top dress with FF Happy Frog All-Purpose 6-4-5 @ 3/4 dose once a week until flip.
-Really hard to overdo it with this amendment.
Top dress with FF Cultivation Nation Flower 4-35-26 @ 3/4 dose every other watering during flowering until flush.
-This amendment is super powerful, start 1/2 dose if you don't know your strain.
I like how 2gal pots limit the height and footprint of the plants, so I do a simple manifold to end up with 4 mains and still get about 2oz/per site. I feel like FFOF is a good enough soil that even small amounts have enough basic nutrients to get you through. Really hungry strains need help as the grow gets on a little, in my experience.
2gal fabric pot, plain water for first week.
-Filtered/Ph'd water that sits for 24 hours to evaporate chlorine.
I add a small amount of silica to the water starting week 2 until flower.
-Huge improvement in stalk/branch thickness w/liquid silica additive.
Starting week 3 I top dress with FF Happy Frog All-Purpose 6-4-5 @ 3/4 dose once a week until flip.
-Really hard to overdo it with this amendment.
Top dress with FF Cultivation Nation Flower 4-35-26 @ 3/4 dose every other watering during flowering until flush.
-This amendment is super powerful, start 1/2 dose if you don't know your strain.
I like how 2gal pots limit the height and footprint of the plants, so I do a simple manifold to end up with 4 mains and still get about 2oz/per site. I feel like FFOF is a good enough soil that even small amounts have enough basic nutrients to get you through. Really hungry strains need help as the grow gets on a little, in my experience.
Fox farms soils are such shit anymore...everyone around where I live that uses their soils, have big problems. There are so many better choices out there for premix soil... To be real, it's so easy to get a bale of inert promix and a few organic ingredients from Dr Earth to whip up your own soil mix much cheaper than buying that trash.
Then you just topdress as needed.
When I topdress I always put in a cup of ewc, a cup of compost or fresh soil and the dry organic amendments...mix them up and spread them evenly then water them in...when topdressing you need to be ahead of the curve on your plants needs because it has to become part of the biome to be used and that requires it to be broken down...that is why a good layer of soil to cover it is best...I also bury all the leaves that come off my plants in the top of the soil...you'd be surprised how fast they will break down.
Just my thoughts on the matter.
Post in thread 'Dr. Earth in Ocean Forest soil.' https://www.rollitup.org/t/dr-earth-in-ocean-forest-soil.1105706/post-17669909
Then you just topdress as needed.
When I topdress I always put in a cup of ewc, a cup of compost or fresh soil and the dry organic amendments...mix them up and spread them evenly then water them in...when topdressing you need to be ahead of the curve on your plants needs because it has to become part of the biome to be used and that requires it to be broken down...that is why a good layer of soil to cover it is best...I also bury all the leaves that come off my plants in the top of the soil...you'd be surprised how fast they will break down.
Just my thoughts on the matter.
Post in thread 'Dr. Earth in Ocean Forest soil.' https://www.rollitup.org/t/dr-earth-in-ocean-forest-soil.1105706/post-17669909
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
What about ffof is it, that doesn't work for you?
You stated that everyone around where you live, use it, and has big problems. What kind of problems?
Bugs...nutrient delivery problems etc...its just shit and I would not use it. I make my own and have 0 problems..if you like it and use it...good on you...for me...it's not an option.
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
Yea i get it. Lots of people have issues with it. For me, it works great, and when I open the bag and see this much fungus...
I have even less problems using it.
Awesome ...Perhaps it is the distribution area where I live...I live in NW Virginia..Shenandoah Valley...it seems all the local growers that had been using it have experienced problems out of it.
I have not bought a bag of soil in a long time. I recycle mine. I cook it after it's used, re amend it, cook it another 30+ days then set aside until it's needed.(Cook it)= I wet it completely then cover it tightly.
It is all promix, extra large pertilite, lava rock, bio char and then Dr. Earth amendments 4-6-3, 4-4-4, 3-9-4, some gypsum and some oyster shell calcium...I top dress this with 4-4-4 and 3-9-4 mixed with EWCs and compost in flower.
I don't even test ph...my ph is 6.6 - 6.7 from the hose...just water away until it's time to topdress and cruise to the finish
I hope your grows go the same way using soils.
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
Yea, soils can regionally vary.
it sounds like you got a good system going. I wish you all the luck.
I used to run no till in an earthbox, with bas 3.0, craft blend, cowoco ewc, build a flower, build a bloom, etc. After harvest i would grow a cover crop, like this....
Then chop and drop.
Then reamend, let sit for a couple weeks, then repeat.
My issue was, buying all the different amendments.
Nowadays, I'm using ffhf for a base. I top dress with ffof thru veg, then in flower i top dress with flower girl and ffof, and use recharge once a week. It's been working pretty well for me, it's been easier, and a lot cheaper. Lol
I've learned with fox farm soils, if you keep the microbial life thriving, it does pretty good.
Another guy on here does something similar, except he does a base layer of ffof and the rest ffhf. It seems to work pretty well for him also, but I'm not sure where his soil is sourced from.
That is pretty much what I do now just with my own mix...I buy 8lbs of each Dr Earth needed and it lasts me a long time.... My buddy on the other hand, uses FOOP...holy shit...400.00 for this 450.00 for that then another 350.00 for something else...100 00 for the biochar WTF???
I mean he has great results...but I feel there is a taste...in the final product....probably in my head...but yeah it's pretty cheap and effective to grow with soil and top dress.
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
You're doing no till then, or are you re mixing the soil when re amending?
Remix
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