FF Ocean Floor Soil

Hi guys. Been taking notes with everyone’s growing expertise! I am using the FF ocean floor soil. If anyone has experience with this particular soil, when do you want to start adding nutrients to your plant? I haven’t added any during its current seedling stage as I read that with the ocean floor soil it’s already packed with the Ph it needs and nutrients with the soil as well. It’s growing great, just making taking notes and preparations for when it’s time to add nutrients yoursel.

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Hello! :v:

I believe Fox farms ocean forest has enough to carry you through about 5-6weeks before you need to start looking at PPMs to see if nutes are necessary :v:

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This is good to know. Thank you!

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@An-Cap1776 like @GoingGreen said that soils preloaded with nutes but all plants eat at their own pace and the best way to tell when to start adding supplements and the rate/amount of those nutes is to purchase a ec/ppm pen. Your ingoing and outgoing numbers will tell you all of her subtle hints.

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I actually bought a cm/ppm pen! I believe it tests Ph as well. Just making sure I have everything I need when it comes time to add nutes.

@An-Cap1776 when you water and you start to get to the point where you have runoff you can collect get readings. When the numbers come down you’ll start building those numbers back up to satisfy her appetite.

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The runoff thing is a new term I am trying to understand. How would you collect this run off?

I put a screen over a drip tray like so

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I use a fabric pot would this method also apply?

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As soon as the runoff reaches about 1000- 800ppm
Usually about week 3 or 4. You could start giving Big Bloom after 2 weeks. Its not very strong nute wise, its for the soil more then for the plant.

Nothing should be given during germ or seedling weeks.

If using distilled or RO be sure to add calmag at EVERY watering

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So do I, also use airpots same way.

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You got two much more experienced grow pros in @Docnraq and @Fieldofdreams to keep you covered here! Good luck my friend :v:

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I’ve been using tap water for watering her. So far has seemed to respond well to the water it receives. I read to avoid using filtered water? I have a filter on my sink wasn’t sure if it would make a difference in using that vs tap.

Nothing wrong with good ol tap as long as you know whats in it. Chlorine and chloramine are often used to treat water. Chlorine easy to remove chloramine isnt. Call your water company and ask about water audit. County website might have info also. Filtered water is good too, you want to have water that is about 300ppm on its own. 500ppm is unsafe for drinking, my water (AZ) is about 450ppms and smells like a swimming pool so I use RO.

Not sure why someone would say that, using water with a tds of under 200 isnt ph stable. It will not hold the ph you pour it in with, when the tds is that low it takes on the ph of the medium (your soil). Maybe thats what they were referring to. Also filtering out the water on non feed days would leave you shy on cal and mag found natuarally in theory.

If it was me, id do half filtered and half unfiltered. Make sure your filter handles chlorine and chloramine and you be golden that way.

@An-Cap1776 so I use round plastic oil drip pans I picked up from Advanced Auto with ‘risers’ places in them to lift them up out of the waste water. My runoff accumulates there and I clean them out before waterings.

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I start feeding mine after they have been in FFOF for 3 full weeks. So start of week 4.

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As said above and be aware subsequent top dressing with soil wil keep those numbers higher, longer.
My Blue PH pen crashed and I messsed up. Apera 20 confirms blue pen reads 4.0 and 9.2 but not correct in-between. Calibration attempt fired instrument (reads only 00.0, now).

This is the easiest way that works for me. I like the heavy green trays because they are strong enough to pick them up with a little runoff in them.

I have pieces of 2x4 set on edge to lift the rack high enough to slide the trays in and out.

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