# How to use FloraNova grow



## jameraquanza (Oct 17, 2007)

I was wondering if Flora Nova grow by GH is meant to be used by itself during the growth stage? Is this the only nutrient I need until im ready to flower?


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## wafflehouselover (Oct 17, 2007)

yup, its a 1 part.


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## jameraquanza (Oct 17, 2007)

do you think it would be safe to assume that the cap on the bottle it comes in is equivalent to 1 teaspoon?


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## wafflehouselover (Oct 17, 2007)

nope, but you can always go to your local dollar store to purchase a measuring cup found in the cooking section.


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## jameraquanza (Oct 17, 2007)

Ive read that my ppm should be between 800 and 1600 for growth. According to the flora nova grow label i should add 1-2tsp per 1 gallon of water. According to the GH ppm calculator which is located on GH's website, doing this would only give me a ppm of 235. What am i doing wrong?


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## wafflehouselover (Oct 17, 2007)

not sure, what are you doing wrong?


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## jameraquanza (Oct 17, 2007)

I have no idea, ive been reading for the past hour about it and have found nothing. Do you have any ideas? Are you sure the Flora Nova grow is meant to be used by itself?


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## wafflehouselover (Oct 17, 2007)

http://generalhydroponics.com/genhydro_US/feeding_charts/GH_KeepItSimple_Recirculating.pdf

Yes im sure.


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## email468 (Oct 17, 2007)

FloraNova Grow is fine by itself for veg and FloraNova Bloom is for flowering - also fine by itself. You should start adding nutes with a light hand - 300 PPM (or less) then maybe 450-500 PPM (or less) and any sign of nute burn (yellowing or crispy leaves) and you've added too many nutes. The main idea being start slow and add nutes a little at a time (week to week).

When you switch to Bloom formula (could be right when you switch your lights to 12/12 or a week after), start out with a light hand again. If you max nutes for veg was 1100 PPM, drop back down to 3-400 PPM when you go from veg to bloom.

You can add Floralicious Plus for veg and bloom and KoolBloom during flowering if you want but not necessary.


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## rothelb (Oct 18, 2007)

i use this gh and for grow i start out at 1100 ppm for the first week or 2 then in 3 and 4 up to 1600ppm and in flowering started at 1100 and by the 6 and 7th week i up to 2000-2100 ppm and it is in recirc dwc


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## jameraquanza (Oct 19, 2007)

rothelb said:


> i use this gh and for grow i start out at 1100 ppm for the first week or 2 then in 3 and 4 up to 1600ppm and in flowering started at 1100 and by the 6 and 7th week i up to 2000-2100 ppm and it is in recirc dwc


I dont have a ppm tester so about how many teaspoons per gallon of water is equal 1600ppm?


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## asiankatie (Oct 19, 2007)

you NEED a ppm meter. i found this out the hard way. it's way way way to difficult without one. and trust me i got ripped a new one for not having one.. 

my ppm is like 450, and im 2nd and 3rd week of veg. (some of my plants are at different weeks because of a cat mishap)


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## jameraquanza (Oct 19, 2007)

Im currently lookin online to buy one...you know any place where i can get a deal on one?


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## email468 (Oct 19, 2007)

jameraquanza said:


> I dont have a ppm tester so about how many teaspoons per gallon of water is equal 1600ppm?


I wouldn't hazard a guess on that question - depends on nutes, the hardness of the water to begin with, full teaspoons or almost full teaspoons - too many variables.

Obey asiankatie and get a PPM meter.


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## asiankatie (Oct 19, 2007)

jameraquanza said:


> Im currently lookin online to buy one...you know any place where i can get a deal on one?


yeah i picked mine up on ebay, with shipping and everything it was 18 bucks? it was made by hanna?? i think. blue top with a black stick thing. looks uber 70s style but it works great.

i might be wrong cuz im a newb but imho 1400 ppm is WAYYYYYYYY too high for veg. I dont even think you want it getting that high durning flowering. @ your first start you want to do about 1/2 strength i think. but you might like me end up with a small deficit. I had to end up adding calcium and magnesium to my plants they look amazing. but i was using foxfarm growbig. another user on here sent me some flora nova i have yet to add it but will on my next water change ill let you know what my ppms at: just post something in my grow journal and ill remember to tell you when i do


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## email468 (Oct 19, 2007)

I'm agreeing with asiankatie again - i usually stop at about 1600 PPM and that is right at the end of flowering but my experience is limited so i'd say (as usual) let experiment and experience be your guide. I mean rothelb is having luck with much higher PPM so there ya go.

i have one of those blue meters but i could never seem to get it calibrated right. If i calibrated to 1400 PPM the 700 PPM solution test was off and vice versa. Glad yours is working! I ended up buying one of those Hanna digital PPM/pH self-testing meters (with the replaceable tester). It works great and I'm glad I have it but I wish my 20 dollar meter would have worked like yours 

It is probably just me cause I had the same difficulty with the red pH one too but now that I think of it - i don't think they were Hanna-brand.


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## jameraquanza (Oct 19, 2007)

Maaannn...i went out and bought a waterproof tester by oakton instruments along with some calibration solution but i cannot figure out how to calibrate this damn thing...there are no instructions in the box how laaame


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## jameraquanza (Oct 19, 2007)

Alright the calibration buttons were in the battery compartment....turns out my nutrient solution was at 1700ppm....luckily its only been at that level for 2 days. I emptied all the solution out....should i fill it up with water for a couple days or just refill it with a solution of about 600-1000ppm?


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## asiankatie (Oct 19, 2007)

well mixed in with the water it wont be like that. in fact i dont even know what the ppm of my solution is. only once mixed in. remember you can always add more so dont do too much. i do about 1/2 strength of the nute solution and 1/2 of the supplement.

again like i said, lets keep in touch on the flora nova. as i will be changing to that next water change


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## jameraquanza (Oct 19, 2007)

Its down to ~550ppm now. I just added 1 tsp per gallon of water instead of two, and one gallon of water with less than half a tsp. 2 tsp will give you about 1600 ppm....1 tsp will give you ~800. THANKS I've been lookin through your journal...ill keep in touch there.


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## asiankatie (Oct 19, 2007)

jameraquanza said:


> Its down to ~550ppm now. I just added 1 tsp per gallon of water instead of two, and one gallon of water with less than half a tsp. 2 tsp will give you about 1600 ppm....1 tsp will give you ~800. THANKS I've been lookin through your journal...ill keep in touch there.


550 sounds good. ^_^

glad i could help


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## bongspit (Oct 19, 2007)

rothelb said:


> i use this gh and for grow i start out at 1100 ppm for the first week or 2 then in 3 and 4 up to 1600ppm and in flowering started at 1100 and by the 6 and 7th week i up to 2000-2100 ppm and it is in recirc dwc


I use the gh stuff and was wondering if you drain your system when you add the bloom or add bloom to the grow already in your tank?


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## wafflehouselover (Oct 19, 2007)

@ bongspit, yes you do!


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## rothelb (Oct 20, 2007)

drain and start with fresh water when i switch then again this time i did not just to see what would happen and i started slow and worked up seems ok 5 weeks into flowering and it looks great never changed water at all maybe luck but i will see next time as i will do this again.


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## rothelb (Oct 20, 2007)

jameraquanza said:


> I dont have a ppm tester so about how many teaspoons per gallon of water is equal 1600ppm?


 i would not guess at that without a ppm meter but if you are using 20 gallons of water follow the directions on the bottles but only mix it for like 16 or 18 gallons to be safe till your ppm shows up


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## bongspit (Oct 20, 2007)

rothelb said:


> drain and start with fresh water when i switch then again this time i did not just to see what would happen and i started slow and worked up seems ok 5 weeks into flowering and it looks great never changed water at all maybe luck but i will see next time as i will do this again.


There are some folks here that change water all the time and I do not understand that ...why would change water unless you had a serious problem?


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## Shackleford.R (May 29, 2009)

I'm reviving a dead thread... got a problem with it??? haha.

how do you pH with these nutes? i have the GH test kit, drops/test vial, i do not plan to purchase the fancy test pen, i grow for personal use, and the defeats my low cost attempt/purpose... long story short.. how does it effect pH of the water? if i pH before hand and i like what i see, can i assume the Nova doesn't effect it too much? anybody know anything? no rush... starting grow when seeds get here (should be a week)

PLEASE SOMEONE CHECK THIS AGAIN!! haha


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## polishfalcon420 (May 29, 2009)

I was kinda wondering the same thing. the standard is to test the ph after you mix the nutes with water but the nova is a type of organic and changes the color.


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## Shackleford.R (May 30, 2009)

bump bump bump!! lets get this answered!!

does any know or have info on pH'ing the floranova without a test pen... using the drop test method?!
maybe its organic nature doesnt affect pH??

BUMP!


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## caddyluck (May 30, 2009)

That's a bitch to test the ph using the drops, there is no definitve answer without a PH pen. I do know the Nova Series has PH buffers so you don't have to adjust it as much. I got a cheap PH pen when I started for like $30 on E-Bay, it was slow but accurate.


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## Shackleford.R (May 30, 2009)

30 you say? how do i search for it on ebay?
also i heard about these pH buffers, does that mean instead of throwing your pH by 2 or 3, it does so by 1 (for example)?
im wondering if i could just wing it... but i dont really want to wing it on purchased seeds (been bagseed growing till my AG grow... link in sig)


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## Mr.Niceguy03 (Jun 1, 2009)

I just go by the feeding schedule online and I use it for veg along with 1 ml of floralicious plus per gallon and it works great... Just go by the feeding chart schedule... Start 1/4 strenght at first and work ur way up.. But chart is right on


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## caddyluck (Jun 1, 2009)

Shackleford.R said:


> 30 you say? how do i search for it on ebay?
> also i heard about these pH buffers, does that mean instead of throwing your pH by 2 or 3, it does so by 1 (for example)?
> im wondering if i could just wing it... but i dont really want to wing it on purchased seeds (been bagseed growing till my AG grow... link in sig)


 
try searching "ph checker", there is a red Hanna one for about $30, I know it's a decent one because it's the same I'm using at the moment. Fairly fast & accurate.


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## notpatient (Jun 10, 2009)

my question to FN users is do your roots ever turn dark brown from the fert , I have a freind who uses it and get absurd results but ever time I use them I get like clogging,or like Ive noticed thick chucks on root and then they die from being covered in goo


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## polishfalcon420 (Jun 10, 2009)

you need to make sure the nutes are mixed well in water before you add it to your res. I was advised to mix it then run it through a strainer to make sure that it is properly dissolved. hope that helps.


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## notpatient (Jun 10, 2009)

I'll try that next time Im feeling froggy ,FNG is thick as hell 
are you suggesting any ole strainer sitting around ?


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## polishfalcon420 (Jun 14, 2009)

premix it in a glass of water and just pour it through a screen/strainer.


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