I’ve always let Mother Nature water my outdoor plants, with the occasional spot watering by hand when they look thirsty.
This year I tested the pH of my rain water, and it’s over 7. I’m debating keeping them covered and only hand watering with the proper pH’d water. Growing indoors has turned me into a control freak. I grow in 10 gal containers.
@Drinkslinger I have never phd my outdoor grow for the reason mine go straight into the ground , but I do prep my area (3ft wide 3ft deep,) with super soil a few months before I transplant and let the microbe activity get started,then just use plain rainwater
@Drinkslinger. Due to the weather where I am in australia around harvest time we tend to get long wet windy periods that really wreak havoc with powdery mildew and bud rot. So this time round my outdoor plants will have a covered roof with open walls to help shield them from the rain. I have always used rainwater to water my plants and my ph has been as high as 8.1 .In the past I have never bothered to adjust up or down , rather I rely on the organisms in my organic soil to naturally buffer the ph. This time around I intend to still use the organic soil and rainwater but on 1 or 2 plants I will adjust the water to 6.5 and see what happens.
I’m sorry @Drinkslinger got distracted and didn’t answer question, it all depends on what type grow your doin, organic or inorganic. If your feeding you’re soil(organic living soil) dont ph, if your feeding your plant I would stick to recommend feeding instructions in bottle and start 1/4 strength, then would work my way to full strength and I would Ph my water.im so sorry was really blasted and forgot to add this part. Hope this helps my friend.
I agree. @Mrcrabs My oudoor grows i never ph, i save rain water in 55gal barrels and water all my plants veggys and herbs with rain water. Good supersoil and micobial life buffer it better.
This is my first year trying and outdoor grow, and this is exactly how I did the ones I put in the ground - I prepped about a 3x3 area as well with a super soil (that will be a living soil from here on out)… I am growing two that way and haven’t really had to do anything to them except water them a couple times due to no rain. My tap water is typically a PH of around 6.4. One I vegged for around 6 weeks inside (it’s a gold leaf):
Awsome my friend, I so happy for you, Mother Nature has a way of fixing its ph, I love organic living soil grows, the are like growing on cruise control, just water and relax, your plants are looking mighty lovley my friends keep up the good work!! @Bogleg
If you are trying to grow organic, vinegar works fine for lowering pH. You can even use apple cider vinegar if that makes you happy, but the cheap stuff works fine and vinegar is about as organic as you can get. My plants love it.