is ph really THAT important?

H

hydrofiend

Active Member
i've been growing for a little bit but never once attended to my plants PH. I've heard that it's extremely important but the guy at the hydroponic shop said it wasn't. Ive had success growing hydroponicly AND using soil. If I had indeed worked on my plants PH would my plants have come out better? Is it worth it for me to go buy a PH kit if im only using nutrients that are obviously made just for growing reefer?
 
dude ph is very important and will make a huge impact on how available nutrients are in the soil, and yes having proper ph would have made a big difference in your end results...
 
I totally agree with 000420, think of it this way, the plants roots are like your veins, if you spend your life eating crap, you'll be in the hospital for emergency bypass surgery. Do you want your plants in the hospital being cared for by some ugly old nurse with a mole on her cheek and 3 hairs growing out of that mole? lol
No in all kidding aside, just like your veins though, the roots will lock up and no nutrients will make there way up, or depending on where exactly your ph is, off the scale, certain nutes will be locked out.
I recommend spending about $25 on a decent pH pen and testing the pH of the runoff water as an estimate of true soil pH.
Milwaukee Instruments pen
Hanna pen
Peace

000420 said:
dude ph is very important and will make a huge impact on how available nutrients are in the soil, and yes having proper ph would have made a big difference in your end results...
Click to expand...
 
i disagree, it all depends whether or not your growing hydro or not, in hydro grows ph is very important, in soil grows not so much, it takes alot to change the ph of your soil.
 
I agree with videoman. A ph meter is imperative with soil and esecially hydro.
I have found them as cheap as 10.00 at my lcl hydro shop.
The ph can fluctuate in soil also.
 
"The ph can fluctuate in soil also."

once you mixed up your batch of soil, it takes alot to permanently alter its ph again, assuming you have a plant in it and cant mix more into the soil. its def. not a big thing to worry about in soil mediums.
 
Look at it this way: Imagine a graph that depicts the plant's nutrient take-up. As the PH swings from say a low of 3.0 to a high of 9.0, You'll see that the majority of beneficial nutrients are taken up by the plant between a PH reading of 5.2 and 7.0. In hydro, a PH between 5.2 and 6.0 is best. With soil, going as high as 7.0 is fine. If you're not somewhere in the middle of the graph, and on the extremes, the plants will not take up nutrients, or at least the majority of the beneficial nutrients the plants need for maximum growth potential. For maximum yield from any given space, all the details must be attended to ... PH being one of the most important.

Vi

PS: Find a new hydro store. :)
 
While you are obviously free to think as you please, to recommend to someone to disregard the ph if growing in soil is acting with complete malice.
Why would you not recommend to teach somebody the knowledge required to do a successful grow, rather than to go blindly foward, and hope for the best? Even in soil, how do you know the source of his water, or god knows what he's feeding them. All this should be taken into consideration, which is why I recommended him to test his run off. This way he'll have a useful measurement.
But what do I know, maybe your right and he should just ignore all that? It seems like way too much work to simply take a sample.
Peace

EDIT:
The degree of acidity/alkalinity of a solution is identified on the ph scale of 0 to 14, with a pH of 7 representing the neutral point. The pH scale is logarithmic, meaning small changes in pH represent large changes in the degree of acidity or alkalinity. For example, a solution with a pH of 5 is ten times as acidic as a solution with a pH of 6, but a solution with a pH of 5 is 100 times as acidic as a solution with a pH of 7. The pH of the nutrient solution is a major determinant of nutrient uptake by the plant.
CREDITS:
Grow Marijuana FAQ, Cannabis cultivation - marijuana growing tips & photos

DoobsDay said:
i disagree, it all depends whether or not your growing hydro or not, in hydro grows ph is very important, in soil grows not so much, it takes alot to change the ph of your soil.
Click to expand...
 
no offense videoman, but its hard to objectively look at what you say when you have only one grow under your belt, and king of the copy paste. so how bout 13 years of growing in soil to tell you its dosent matter that much, hell tap water really isnt that bad either (in most places), which is another thing that is way over dramatized. go do some more growing, and gain more experiences instead of so much talking.
 
Obviously you've been lucky with your water, I havent been. I had problems in two previous grows with ph. Appearantly in 13 years you've either been lucky or havent learned much. Aside from the edit the rest was from my exp. Besides being objective, is a problem you've had since you got here. Alot of your posts are off, so the 13 years hasnt done much for ya, now has it.
Peace
and no offense taken

DoobsDay said:
no offense videoman, but its hard to objectively look at what you say when you have only one grow under your belt, and king of the copy paste. so how bout 13 years of growing in soil to tell you its dosent matter that much, hell tap water really isnt that bad either (in most places), which is another thing that is way over dramatized. go do some more growing, and gain more experiences instead of so much talking.
Click to expand...
 
i've never checked my PH. been growing in soil since 1985. i don't even know what to look for, as far as bad PH. i would learn as much as possible though.
 
No need for personal attacks over PH, guyz ... I mean, we're not talking politics here. *lol*

In the future, if you're growing in soil, mix a small handful of Granulated Dolimite Lime into your soil mix for every two gallons of soil mix. It will keep the PH stable.

Also, why not get a Reverse Osmosis unit and forget worrying about crummy tap water or carrying heavy bottles home from the store?

Vi
 
your delusional man, i havent been luckey with anything, weed is not hard to grow lol. who are you to say that growing the shit for 13 years and i havent learned anything? lol that is impossible. ive sure youve read and read and read like we all have, it only prepares you but so much for the real deal, so while my post might sound "objective" its worked 13 years for me and i know it works so y not pass it on.
 
i am the plant whisperer. i am one with my nature. feel me grow.

it's a zen thing for me. they tell me what they need and i give it to them. nothing but experience will bring this. grow on happy farmers.
 
videoman, there is no reason to send me a pm to try and prove that your point was correct from the beggining and that i took what u said wrong and blah blah blah, post it here so we can all see it, so its not just a waste of my time.
 
regarding soil grows -----

If the Ph is not between 6.o and 7.0 then you are fooked.... the plants will either die or produce shit yields...

this is not a debate.. this is truth.. kinda like... you need a stomach to digest food... it is not a debate.. it is truth...

sure... maybe there is a way to live via the NEEDLE (without a stomach)... just as there may be a way to feed a plant without proper Ph water.. but nobody on this forum is doing that...

now if you never checked your pH and your plants are doing great, then your pH is somewhere between 6.0 and 7.0... call it luck.. call it intution call it my fookig mom... i could give a rats arse...

So, YOU happen to get your water from a source that has GOOD pH or at least when you mix it with nutrients it ends up with a pH between 6.0 and 7.0

good for YOU...

If you want to be a master grower you must be aware of PH inside and out... Proper PH is the corner stone to growing... it is fundemental...
If you are growing something that cost $500 dollars an ounce and you can do jail time for it.. you might as well spend $15 and get a pH kit.. think of it as the cheapest insurance that you have ever purchased..

iloveyou

pH video - pH Water - See More Buds
 
Objective was never a word that crossed my mind as I read your post.

As you try to twist my words, what was said was, you are lucky with your water.

I have well water and can't use it straight from the tap. The poster may have well water too. So he may not be as lucky as you either. if you've grown for 13 years, you must also know of people with horror stories from a PH problem. I have some to tell myself. Point is the advice I gave was for him to gain the needed knowledge at a minimal cost, not to simply ignore his ph and say he'll be fine, you dont know that.
The pm was for your benefit, not mine. Thought I'd save you any further public grief.
Peace


DoobsDay said:
your delusional man, i havent been luckey with anything, weed is not hard to grow lol. who are you to say that growing the shit for 13 years and i havent learned anything? lol that is impossible. ive sure youve read and read and read like we all have, it only prepares you but so much for the real deal, so while my post might sound "objective" its worked 13 years for me and i know it works so y not pass it on.
Click to expand...
 
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