Coco Growers Unite!

Thedillestpickle

Well-Known Member
Well I found the problem with my plants . They all had root rot. I was over watering them. Out of 12 7 died. Totally my fault. This is my first time dealing with coco. But I repotted them all from 100% coco to a 50/50 mix of coco and coarse perlite. I thought that repotting them was going to put them in shock, but it didn't at all. The next day they looked like they grew overnight. So 100% coco may work for some but it wasn't working for me. And it really wasn't allowing the feeding schedule I wanted. I was looking too be able too feed/water more frequently. I'm really looking forward to this grow and think its going to turn out good. Thanks for all the advice.
No need to water all the time, I let my pots get so dry they feel like they are full of styrofoam, no weight at all...

Why do you want to have a feed schedule where you water them all the time? sounds like a hassle. I want to be able to water only every 5 days if possible
 

3eyes

Well-Known Member
Well I found the problem with my plants . They all had root rot. I was over watering them. Out of 12 7 died. Totally my fault. This is my first time dealing with coco. But I repotted them all from 100% coco to a 50/50 mix of coco and coarse perlite. I thought that repotting them was going to put them in shock, but it didn't at all. The next day they looked like they grew overnight. So 100% coco may work for some but it wasn't working for me. And it really wasn't allowing the feeding schedule I wanted. I was looking too be able too feed/water more frequently. I'm really looking forward to this grow and think its going to turn out good. Thanks for all the advice.

What size pots are you in? i use 10L or 11L (3 gallon i think) with 100% coco and depending on the size of the plant everyday watering is a must although after reading some of these comments i might try adding some perlite next time to see how much of a difference there is
 

BeaverHuntr

Well-Known Member
No need to water all the time, I let my pots get so dry they feel like they are full of styrofoam, no weight at all...

Why do you want to have a feed schedule where you water them all the time? sounds like a hassle. I want to be able to water only every 5 days if possible
Dude I have a pineapple express free seed that I planted as a mother in some roots organic coco with perlite.. Holy shit that plant never asks for water and I barely have to water her maybe once every 4 - 5 days.
 

Thedillestpickle

Well-Known Member
Dude I have a pineapple express free seed that I planted as a mother in some roots organic coco with perlite.. Holy shit that plant never asks for water and I barely have to water her maybe once every 4 - 5 days.
Im in my first grow so doing alot of learning as I go here, I just read up on some more coco threads, and I'm finding the general advice is to water quite frequently. Not what I've been doing at all, I've been watering like soil, letting the top 2inches get completely dry and and only then do I water. Apparently this is not a good idea because it will cause serious salt buildup in the medium. I will start watering more often from now on, maybe every 2 -3 days. Also going to look into a method of airating my solution before watering. Glad I caught this mistake early enough, hasnt seemed to hurt my plants.

Hope I didnt steer anyone wrong suggesting to let the coco dry out so much

Damn that is one monster cola! pot size? lighting? dry weight?
 

3eyes

Well-Known Member
Im in my first grow so doing alot of learning as I go here, I just read up on some more coco threads, and I'm finding the general advice is to water quite frequently. Not what I've been doing at all, I've been watering like soil, letting the top 2inches get completely dry and and only then do I water. Apparently this is not a good idea because it will cause serious salt buildup in the medium. I will start watering more often from now on, maybe every 2 -3 days. Also going to look into a method of airating my solution before watering. Glad I caught this mistake early enough, hasnt seemed to hurt my plants.

Hope I didnt steer anyone wrong suggesting to let the coco dry out so much

Damn that is one monster cola! pot size? lighting? dry weight?

I let the coco dry with no problems, they get 1L of feed whenever the pot is light enough sometimes even 2L just to soak the whole pot then let them dry again
 

BeaverHuntr

Well-Known Member
It was grown in 6L pot using a Autopot system, Dry weight over 4oz used 125w fluros for 3 weeks & approx 6 weeks using a 400W HPS

Wow dude thats a super nice looking plant, man I sooo need to start defoliating, I was taught to not defoliate but I keep seeing awesome pictures from plants that have defoliated..
 

Thedillestpickle

Well-Known Member
I let the coco dry with no problems, they get 1L of feed whenever the pot is light enough sometimes even 2L just to soak the whole pot then let them dry again
hmmm well i was reading from an older thread, the guy seemed to be 100% sure it was a bad idea to let the coco dry at all

that was back in 2007, seems like we're still pioneering the coco thing though, not much written about it. lots of questions though lol

and how much runoff are you aiming for? sounds like none. What are you ppm's going in?
 

3eyes

Well-Known Member
hmmm well i was reading from an older thread, the guy seemed to be 100% sure it was a bad idea to let the coco dry at all

that was back in 2007, seems like we're still pioneering the coco thing though, not much written about it. lots of questions though lol

and how much runoff are you aiming for? sounds like none. What are you ppm's going in?
Run off only when feeding 2L ppm not sure my ec pen is fucked so 2ml A+B 2ml calmag 0.3 root excellurator 1ml enzymes at the mo just switched to 12/12 so others will be added in due course
 

Thedillestpickle

Well-Known Member
Run off only when feeding 2L ppm not sure my ec pen is fucked so 2ml A+B 2ml calmag 0.3 root excellurator 1ml enzymes at the mo just switched to 12/12 so others will be added in due course
Sounds easy enough. and no Drip Clean? Your using H&G?
I just learned that I was reading my ppm meter incorrectly and was infact feeding my 3 week old seedlings at 1600ppm, and they arent dead haha
that .5 conversion and .7 conversion for PPM really got me good
 

3eyes

Well-Known Member
Sounds easy enough. and no Drip Clean? Your using H&G?
I just learned that I was reading my ppm meter incorrectly and was infact feeding my 3 week old seedlings at 1600ppm, and they arent dead haha
that .5 conversion and .7 conversion for PPM really got me good
Yeah house and garden and no drip clean not sure i need it as i hand water, cannabis is called weed for a reason it's hard to kill, i've abused plants badly over the years and still got 2o of prime quality buds per plant now i'm taking care of the plants better the yield has gotten a lot bigger
 

LeeroySlim

Active Member
hmmm well i was reading from an older thread, the guy seemed to be 100% sure it was a bad idea to let the coco dry at all

that was back in 2007, seems like we're still pioneering the coco thing though, not much written about it. lots of questions though lol

and how much runoff are you aiming for? sounds like none. What are you ppm's going in?
you should never let coco dry out, its a big no no. i water anywhere from 3 to 5 times a day. on an outdoor coco grow when the temps get really high I can water up to 8 times in a day. Some of the coco nutrient bottles suggest up to 6 times a day. I learned from a hydroponic tomato grower. He also taught me how to make my own nutes, I can make 1000 litres a and b concentrate for under $300. although alot of those expensive addictives do really well nothing beats a bigger root mass(large pot), alot of light and a watering shedule to suit
 

Thedillestpickle

Well-Known Member
you should never let coco dry out, its a big no no. i water anywhere from 3 to 5 times a day. on an outdoor coco grow when the temps get really high I can water up to 8 times in a day. Some of the coco nutrient bottles suggest up to 6 times a day. I learned from a hydroponic tomato grower. He also taught me how to make my own nutes, I can make 1000 litres a and b concentrate for under $300. although alot of those expensive addictives do really well nothing beats a bigger root mass(large pot), alot of light and a watering shedule to suit
This sounds like good advice, I currently dont have a res system setup, I mix in 5gallon pales and hand water. I imagine your using something to airate the solution between waterings? My solution often is not properly airated as it just sits there in the 5 gallon pale. I am thinking of setting up a plastic garbage bin reservoir with an air bubbler for airation, a fish tank heater(because its 50F in my basement) and a water pump/hose/wand. My big problem right now is how do I get the water out of the runoff trays after feeding? my plants are small so i just shuffle them around the grow room while I hand water but when they get bigger its going to be tricky
 

LeeroySlim

Active Member
This sounds like good advice, I currently dont have a res system setup, I mix in 5gallon pales and hand water. I imagine your using something to airate the solution between waterings? My solution often is not properly airated as it just sits there in the 5 gallon pale. I am thinking of setting up a plastic garbage bin reservoir with an air bubbler for airation, a fish tank heater(because its 50F in my basement) and a water pump/hose/wand. My big problem right now is how do I get the water out of the runoff trays after feeding? my plants are small so i just shuffle them around the grow room while I hand water but when they get bigger its going to be tricky
I pump RO water from a tank and I have 2 fertilier injectors that draw the nuterients from 50gal drums. this way you can adjust the strength of each feed. the strenth of the solution should depend on the stage of the plant but also the temperature. Cold temps require less water and higher PPM and hotter temps require more water and lower PPMs. When I did start off though i did mix the solution in a tub and throw an air stone in there so that would work fine.

To catch the run off i would sit the pot in another pot the same size. drip 1 hole in the bottom and u can run a tube to catch the run off. if u have several plants u can connect all the tubes together and just have 1 outlet into a bathroom. I just cut a hole in the floor and put the tube in there.
 

Thedillestpickle

Well-Known Member
Im in a basement so there really nowhere down from where the plants are sitting. I don't want to sacrafice ceiling either because I am growing a stretchy strain I need that ceiling height. what I think I need is a wet/dry shop vac to suck out the waste water. I can hold off for a while and just shuffle the plants around like Ive been doing, in the meantime save up some money for the things I need to get.

glad I remembered the shop vac idea
 

LeeroySlim

Active Member
Im in a basement so there really nowhere down from where the plants are sitting. I don't want to sacrafice ceiling either because I am growing a stretchy strain I need that ceiling height. what I think I need is a wet/dry shop vac to suck out the waste water. I can hold off for a while and just shuffle the plants around like Ive been doing, in the meantime save up some money for the things I need to get.

glad I remembered the shop vac idea
one of my grows I used 30gal grow bags and just put a plastic sheet under it and a towel wrapped around the pot, then at the end of the day id just take them out to dry and put them back in the morning. abit like this pic
 

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