First all organic grow. FFOF, BMO nutes, RO water. Am I good to go?

This will be my first completely organic grow. I'm using Ocean Forest, Blue Mountain Organics nutes, and RO water. Seeds just sprouted a day or two ago. I used to grow years ago in Miracle Gro or Sta-Green. Only nutes I ever used was a teeny tiny little Peters bloom booster in flower. I decided to go organic this time and more than likely forever since my first grow back was a complete failure. Basically the Sta-Green I was using killed all my seedlings. Don't know what it was, and they might have survived, but I said to hell with it and decided to start all over.

My question is, do I need any thing else besides the BMO nutes? I've got a soil feeding schedule from BMO that I plan to use (as well as common sense and my own judgement). I just wasn't sure if there's anything that I should be aware of with a totally organic grow like this.

Thanks in advance.

I would suggest some sort of cal-mag additive to use with the BMO. A little garden lime to balance pH wouldnt hurt either.

Jerry Garcia said:

I would suggest some sort of cal-mag additive to use with the BMO. A little garden lime to balance pH wouldnt hurt either.

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With RO water its a good idea.

Unless your tap water is over 200PPM, I would lose the RO water completely.

RO water is great for hydro, not so good for soil and even less so for organic soil.

IMO, RO water has gotten a internet status like flushing. Too often deemed necessary and used when really not called for.

A BIG +2 on the dolomite lime! Some Azomite and/or kelp meal would also go a long way in improving the soil mix.

Wet

Wetdog said:

Unless your tap water is over 200PPM, I would lose the RO water completely.

RO water is great for hydro, not so good for soil and even less so for organic soil.

IMO, RO water has gotten a internet status like flushing. Too often deemed necessary and used when really not called for.

A BIG +2 on the dolomite lime! Some Azomite and/or kelp meal would also go a long way in improving the soil mix.

Wet

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I agree with this

When I used to grow I always used tap. I never even let the chlorine evaporate or checked ph or anything like that. But since then, my town started using chloramine. I read that chloramine doesn't evaporate out and can really screw up your plants. That's why I decided it's probably a good idea to use RO water. I only plan to have about 4 or 5 plants due to space constraints and it's easier just to buy gallons of water instead of a RO machine. I guess in the long run a RO machine would save a few bucks, but gallons are easier than having a big ass filter machine in my bathroom with a bunch of hoses running everywhere.

Thanks for all the info.

For the chloramine, I just use those aquarium drops to eliminate it. 1 drop/gallon and it's gone. Works great and at 1 drop/gallon, even a small bottle last forever. My city uses chloramine also.

You can also add a small amount of organic matter to the water. The chloramine is attracted to it, converted to chlorine and then off gassed. A teaspoon of something like EWC for a 5 gallon pail works fine.

Wet

Sunshine Closet said:

When I used to grow I always used tap. I never even let the chlorine evaporate or checked ph or anything like that. But since then, my town started using chloramine. I read that chloramine doesn't evaporate out and can really screw up your plants. That's why I decided it's probably a good idea to use RO water. I only plan to have about 4 or 5 plants due to space constraints and it's easier just to buy gallons of water instead of a RO machine. I guess in the long run a RO machine would save a few bucks, but gallons are easier than having a big ass filter machine in my bathroom with a bunch of hoses running everywhere.

Thanks for all the info.

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My municipality uses chloramine (I know because once a year they switch to chlorine...the system requires it every so often or something...and you can totally smell the difference) and I just use a brita faucet filter with a hose and fill 10 1-gallon jugs at a time.

I started out buying 1-gallon jugs, but even with a few plants it becomes a pain in the ass! The faucet filter doesn't remove the chloramine, at least I don't think it does, but it cleans the water enough that I can use it straight from the hose if I need to. Typically the jugs sit with the cap on for a few days before they get used, but chloramine doesn't evaporate like chlorine so I don't think it makes any difference how long they sit or if you let them sit with the cap off or on.

Wetdog said:

You can also add a small amount of organic matter to the water. The chloramine is attracted to it, converted to chlorine and then off gassed. A teaspoon of something like EWC for a 5 gallon pail works fine.

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Interesting. Never knew that.

I am surprised I don't hear of more organic growers collecting rain water at all. Obviously it isn't always available, but whenever it pours out all you need to do is put a CLEAN 5 gallon (or larger) receptacle out underneath a downspout or where ever significant amounts of water tend to drip off of your roof. If you have a large enough container or stand-by buckets and are vigilant enough you can collect obscene amounts of pure, free water.

The rainwater I collect typically has a TDS between 003 - 007 ppm, with a perfect pH. When it is fresh I'll use it straight out of the bucket; sometimes there is some gravel in there but that's about it. The only concern is that after several days stuff is probably liable to grow in there, not a major problem because you can always filter it somehow or even make your own rainwater filter.

I like to use the purest water I can anyways... I can't know exactly how much of what is in my tap water, even when it is only at 50 ppm out of the faucet (in which case it can't be providing many minerals anyways).

And about the earthworm castings and the chloramine: how are you so sure it causes the chlorine to become volatile? I have never heard of that; but I have heard of trihalomethanes which is only one class of toxic chemicals that are produced when chlorinated compounds react with organic matter. Free chlorine is more liable to participate in such reactions, but chloramine to a lesser extent.
Although it would make some sense, because many THM's (think chloroform) are themselves volatile.

Why is RO water bad for organics?

red fury said:

Why is RO water bad for organics?

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Short answer; it's pretty much dead/sterile/lifeless and nothing for the microbes.

Wet

Nullis said:

And about the earthworm castings and the chloramine: how are you so sure it causes the chlorine to become volatile? I have never heard of that; but I have heard of trihalomethanes which is only one class of toxic chemicals that are produced when chlorinated compounds react with organic matter. Free chlorine is more liable to participate in such reactions, but chloramine to a lesser extent.
Although it would make some sense, because many THM's (think chloroform) are themselves volatile.

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IDK to be honest. It was a very long, detailed, chemical thing, that the chloramine reacted with the organic matter, turned into chlorine, which then off gassed. I really have no way of checking.

I still rely on my drops.

Wet