coco

I have grown in soil before. I am going to go with coco this time around. I am watering by hand simply because my budget is currently low. How often do I need to water? Does anyone have a mixture of things they add to the coco; perlite, hydroton etc?

Be careful with coco. It is not a neutral medium like many people think. It is high it Potassium. Keep that in mind when deciding on a medium, and nutrient mix.

I used the coco for 2 years now, i can tell you it's the BEST stuff in the world..all my friends turn for coco after the see my results...This story of potassium is crap, wtf, where he hear that???

Also, the PH is 100% STABLE, it's come around 6 or 6.5 but after 2 or 3 times watering the coco it's will reach 5.8 and if you always calibrate you water to 5.8 the stuff will stick to it and be 100% stable.

Anyway, the most important thing is to buy a GOOD brand, the best is Canna Coco in bag of 50 liters, the main reason is the PH and SALT, because coco come from the south an is grow closed to the sea, it's could contains SALT and salt is a nutriment lock for the plant. So use Canna Coco and you are 100% safe, they clean the coco and caliber the PH, also the add tricoderm for protect the product and plants from bacteria.

the price of a bag is more high than dirt but i reused the stuff for 1 year (6 crops), you don't have to mix anything, don't add perlite or other stuff, Coco is made for use like it is.
Even beter after the second crop you get better result than the first because the coco stuff is 100% stable.

I water by hand once every 4 to 5 days in small 3 liters (6'') container. Before ,In dirt, i was using 8'' container but the coco is holding 10 times is weight of water, with smaler container i can fit more plants under 1 lamp and have the yeild per plant.
Even if i used smaler containers i get more roots than before, coco is more soft so roots develop faster.

Also the good part, better than dirt, is about the air in the coco, it's impossible to over-water the coco, in fact when you give water you have OVER WATER the plants each time and have at least 1 cup of water dripping from the bottom of the container event if you have more water dripping it's better, me i let about 1 liter of water driping, this rince the over nutriment each time you water, so no need to make any watering with low ppm during the crop, but it's also important to let the plants dry the coco the most possible befor each watering. This thing is amazing even after transplanting your clones and over-watering the coco, the leaf stay high.

Other thing to know is the PH, When growing in coco you have to use 5.8 (not 6.3 like dirt) Coco is hydroponic stuff also at the harvest the THC level is more high like in pure hydroponic when i do my hash i have the double than before.

For best result, used the Canna Coco nutriment A+B, they are designed for that stuff, regular nutriment solution is not well taked by the plants in the coco and this is where PH come unstable, troubles come this nutriment absorbtion and where you lost your plants, so this is the main reason why is better to used Canna Coco A+B they are more expensive but you are sure to have the best result also you take less stuff each time you make your mixture, you have to lower a bit the concentration.
also those nutriment are 100% completed with folic acid, even if it's a bit more expensive you get more weight at the end and have no side product to add (only bloom booster).

Using this stuff give you the best result. For the part of bloom booster you can use regular liquid PK 13/14 that work well and it's cheap.
Last crop i have try to used a product call Atami Bloombastic it's a pk 20/21 with lots of mineral, more complete product on the market and i raise my result of 20% just by using this stuff with A+B, nothing else, this stuff is $$$$$, but so concentrate it's good for lots of crops (used only 0.5ml/liters) and it's pay by itself with the result.

One thing t know when you make your mixture, do it 24h before watering, doing this ensure you that the PH will be 100% stable before watering, i use the same coco soil for one year and if i take the water that drips from the container and check the PH it's will be at 5.8 stable.

When reused the coco, empty your container, remove the big roots, refill the container and plant your clones...After for your first 3 water time add enzyme solution (like Cannazym) for help destroy the rest of small roots.

Like you see i always use most of the time Canna brand, i'm sure the product will be perfectly cmpatible with the stuff.

Other good part for this medium is, NO BUGS, the dirt come from outside and sometimes with eggs, coco come from tree.

Also if you have problem with high humidity level, coco will help you ther, because the coco do not release humidity, i have lower my room of 20% with that stuff.

Other thing, the dirt become compact after some watering, with coco you never have this problem, the soil stay always soft and when you add water, event if it's at 99% dry, the coco take the water like a sponge.

When you change the coco just throw it on the garden like dirt.

i've grown in coco for a few years now. there are many ways to grow in coco. but for the best results you have to keep in mind that coco is basically hydro. there are a couple of very good brands out there. canna is one, and b'cuzz is another. both are (supposedly) pre-rinsed and ready to use. i always give them a little flush, 5 gallons gets a 5 gallon flush. probably not necessary, but that's just the way i roll. i "always" add 10-15% perlite. the air capacity is 30%, but a bit of perlite makes it even better. coco in fact can be over-watered. for best results, coco should have several small feeds per day. this is best done with a timer and some sort of manifold set-up. i hand water 2x a day since i have never gone to the trouble of setting one up. it's also best to run to waste. you should "always" allow for a good 10-15% run-off. this totally eliminates the need to flush, and keeps a fresh, balanced supply of nutes in the medium for the plants to feed/drink from. here's some info. from "integral hydroponics" that will be helpful to you.

COCO COIR
is a product derived from the husks of the coconut.
Visually it looks like peat.
It's air capacity is about 30%.
Coir is most suited as a run to waste medium.
Coir can become saturated and it is not truly inert medium.
This means that the nutrient will change over a short period (due to the nutrient collecting micro and macro elements as it passes through the coir.
Coir tends to release potassium and to withold calcium.
For this reason it is desirable to use a nutrient that is blended specifically for coir.
Coir has a remarkable capacity to protect the plants root system in times of heat.
It also tends to promote vigorous and healthy root development.
Plant growth tends to be very consistant with coir.
Coir is very tolerant of over and under watering, which makes it a very forgiving growing medium.
Coir has a very strong cation exchange ability, which means it can hold and release nutrient elements based on the plants needs.
Coir tends to retain nutrient salts. because of this, less nutrient (lower ec) is required.
On a less positive note, coir can also contain high levels of sodium (salt)....
If your growing in coir be aware that this can be a potential problem.
Either purchase a pre-flushed coir product or flush ph (5.5-6.0) stabilised water through the coir prior to use.
Measure the ec of the water and then measure the ec of the run off.
When they are the same, it is ready for use.
Large amounts of potassium are naturally present in coir.
Potassium competes with calcium and magnesium... buffering and plant nutrition needs to compensate for this!!
For this reason there are several nutrients that are specifically formulated with the coco coir's unique characteristics in mind.
By using a nutrient specifically formulated for the coir based system, you are ensuring that your plants are receiving the best possible nutritient package.