Will be using FF Ocean Forest soil and their 3 pk liquid nutes. When using a moisture meter (indoor tent) to test soil moisture, is it ok just to leave the meter in the soil? Don’t want to disturb the root system if avoidable.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077ZK8GYX/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1_1_2?smid=AF7ERVVKLDA4G&psc=1
I suppose you could leave it in except that the end should be polished before use. Also, those things are not very accurate, so don’t think it’s giving you gospel. Pick up the pot and if it feels light, it needs water.
I do think there’s some utility initially to using a soil meter but it won’t be long before you just go by feel.
FYI soil PH meters are worthless. You will need a decent PH meter though. It is the most used tool I have.
Agree, and since indoor is all new to me, I haven’t developed a “feel” for the correct moisture level. I’ll get the hang of it soon enough and can probably develop a pattern for knowing when to water…of course that need will be based on my system, environmental factors…etc. Point I see being made on ILGM is that noobs tend to smother their plants with too much attention which primarily leads to over-watering. I’m aware.
Yeah I have a real nice Hach Ph meter that’s a glass bulb type I use for home brewing/distilling. I can easily test fertilizer solution in suspension for Ph, plus I can test soil with a slurry method. @raustin is mentoring me well, and I’ll use Foxfarm Ocean Forest soil, and I think the Ph there is pretty specific. I’ll keep tabs on my nutrient and water Ph with hopes all will stay within range with monitoring.
Damn, you’re so logical in your thinking. I like that.
Don’t worry about the watering, when the time comes I’ll hold your hand through it.
AND ANOTHER DISTILLER HAHA! Amazing how many there are here.
Oh yeah, I love full grain mashing, problem with distilling is that to make anything “decent”, it needs to be barrel aged which can literally take several years. OTOH, I just finished brewing an IPA that will be ready to drink in 3-4 weeks, so there is a more immediate gratification with home brewed craft beers.
I used to do lagers back in the day with 2 row Klages malt and Chinook hops for bittering with home grown Cascade hops for flavor. Won one of the nationals back in the 80’s with that…
Smaller barrels age much more quickly and having a big temperature delta (hot to cold) daily will drive the spirits into the wood and speed the aging process. One thing you CAN’T speed up is the polymerization of tannins to produce that gorgeous vanilla note in good bourbon.
We made corn whiskey, bourbon, rye, distilled brandy (we’re in wine country) and did other stuff like Akvavit, gin, 3 vodkas etc. Look for “American Star” Caviar Lime Vodka: it’s the most fantastic stuff! Our “Calyx Gin” won best gin in the world in 2016’s World Spirits Award competition.
Wow! You have tons of brewing and distilling experiences!! You mentioned home grown Cascade hops which I envy - but my climate/latitude isn’t particularly suited for hop cultivation. Cascade is such a solid hop and one of the reasons Sierra Nevada is the mega-giant among craft breweries.
I’ll try smaller oak barrels to age my bourbon more rapidly. The fact that the contents have more contact with the wood staves in smaller sized barrels should make aging more rapid…thanks for the tips!
Is American Star Caviar Lime Vodka still in production? I haven’t seen it in stores, but if it is available, I’d like to give it a try.
It’s very interesting the scope of personalities I have seen on ILGM. This group is far more diverse and interesting than I originally figured on…quite unlike the stoner mentality I remember back from college. Luckily most of us grew up ok…lol.
Thanks for being there to get me started!
It’s a great group of people here. And all they want is for you to grow good cannabis.
When barrel aging, put it outside for sun then into a cool place at night. There’s a distillery in Las Vegas that sun ages in small barrels and it’s amazing after 12 months. It’s not bourbon (4 + years to be called that) but still good.
Sierra Nevada is IMO as close to home brew as you can get.
Don’t hesitate to ask questions and you can tag anyone using the @sign like @MattyBear.
