ph testing?
- Thread starter csj
- Start date
Mother's Finest
Well-Known Member
It depends on how well you know your soil mix. The more you use the same soil & fertilizer mixes, the less you need to check. Setting it correctly when it's first mixed and then checking it the day after each watering should work well for new soil mixes. Once the pH is right, it usually takes at least a whole watering cycle for that to change considerably. The soil needs to be wet for most tests so sometimes you have to wait until next watering anyway. It is, of course, a good idea to have a way to test dry soil pH. Always test the soil itself and not the runoff. Try to test soil about a day after watering/feeding. The pH can change slightly as the liquid & soil sit and react together awhile.
darkdestruction420
Well-Known Member
flush after 1 month of good veg growth to remove any possible salts in the medium or basically do a mini flush every water, which alot of old timers have been testing it(myself included) and it really really helps. plus, opposite of what you'd think the containers will start feeling light earlier than ones given a smaller watering.
csj
Active Member
Thanks mate, when u say whole watering cycle, wot exactly is a watering cycle? At the mo its pretty cold where I am so I'm only watering once a week and that's with the fert, my temps are lower than perfect, I'm using a heat mat under the pots to help but iv got seedlings so they aren't using up the water the water quickly?
darkdestruction420
Well-Known Member
no problem, happy to help if and when i can, having difficulty of putting it into words right now cuz im real high and took pain meds of mine a bit ago. lol, to my surprise im also having trouble finding a good article or thread that explains it in good detail.well, i couldnt find a detailed one, although im sure they exist, but i did find....found one, its not perfect but its pretty good, i made sure to scan through it a few times. just noticed its from a good friend of mine who left here a long time ago.
"i have 7 plants that are around 12 inches high and 5 weeks into veg in 11litre pots under a 600hps, how much water is needed per plant for how long i.e 1 litre per every 2 days, also could you please give advice for plants into flower watering amounts...
thanks in advance" (original question asked)
I have and used a moisture/ph meter in the past. They are available from most of the major garden centers for under $20. This meter reads consistently without using batteries. It is invaluable for determining watering schedules (for newbies) which vary tremendously from plant to plant, overwatered conditions, and uneven moisture distribution within the container.
Growers that allow their medium to dry out to the point at which the leaves "droop" are reducing their final yields and quality. The medium contains a certain amount of salts that dramatically increase in concentration as the water dissipates. The roots can be repeatedly stressed going through this technique called "wet/dry cycle". The plant is being deprived of moisture that would be available to fuel additional growth and suffers.
The moisture meter's probe should be inserted to various depths to accurately assess conditions. The tester has a 1-4 scale on the meter, but what is imporatant is relative moisture. The lower potion of the medium in the container should not be so consistently and constantly moist as to "bury the needle" at the top of the scale. The middle depths of the container should be kept in the upper half section of the meter's range and the top should be allowed to dry out to the lower half of the range before rewatering.
This is far more accurate to the lifting and guessing game played by many. The weight of the container does not indicate where the moisture is inside. A grower would never really know if things at the bottom were oversaturated without a probe to tell them. If the bottom is soaked and never dries out, the container feels "heavy" even though other areas may be quite dry. Many grower use large, tight grids of 3-5 gallon containers which can amount to 50-100+ containers. How could they use the lift and guess method, if they can hardly reach some of my plants just to water and prune them. It would be impossible and bad for their backs to use anything except a moisture meter. In other situations the plants are attached to fixed supports, such as SCROG or simply tied up prohibiting movement. There is no more accurate or versatile way to determine your watering schedule.
But now i am one of those that plays the "lifting and guessing game" and I will always recommend that you use your sense to judge and understand your plants rather than trusting in a $20 Wal-mart toy.
If a grower has lots of large containers then they are likely experienced and likely growing mostly the same crop. When you know your plant and your system you don't use a moisture meter. No serious grower that I've met personally does.
Moisture meters are fine for beginners IF you use multiple sample points in each pot. It's too easy to hit a pocket of perlite or just rub the sensor the wrong way. I'd rather judge by visual and tactile response rather than entrusting a wavering needle on an inaccurate meter. You know that when you lift up your container, is it wet ?? or is it dry ??
The "lift the pot" method is a widely practiced, and very accurate method of knowing when to water your container plants.
The best way in my opinion to know when soil grown potted plants need more watering is by checking how heavy the pots feel. This method is very simple to learn once you get the feel for how light a ready for watering pot of soil feels.
Get an equal size pot and fill it with your soil. The medium should be about as moist as a new bag of potting soil. Use this planter as a learning tool to get a rough idea of how much the pots should weigh before watering again. The pots with your plants will feel only just slightly heavier when the soil is ready for more water. Pick up one of your planted pots, if its noticably heavy, do not water it until it feels "light". Next time you water a planter, pick it up and feel how much heavier it feels compared to the sample pot of soil.
It only takes a few times picking up the pots until this skill is like a "second nature" to you. You wont even need the sample pot after you get accustomed to the lifting method.
Sure your plants are always putting on more weight as they grow larger, but once you're proficient at lifting the pots, you'll also know how to compensate for the weight of the plants with ease.
I dont know how to better explain this method of knowing when to water, but believe me, anyone who learns this method, will always know when its time to water.
"i have 7 plants that are around 12 inches high and 5 weeks into veg in 11litre pots under a 600hps, how much water is needed per plant for how long i.e 1 litre per every 2 days, also could you please give advice for plants into flower watering amounts...
thanks in advance" (original question asked)
I have and used a moisture/ph meter in the past. They are available from most of the major garden centers for under $20. This meter reads consistently without using batteries. It is invaluable for determining watering schedules (for newbies) which vary tremendously from plant to plant, overwatered conditions, and uneven moisture distribution within the container.
Growers that allow their medium to dry out to the point at which the leaves "droop" are reducing their final yields and quality. The medium contains a certain amount of salts that dramatically increase in concentration as the water dissipates. The roots can be repeatedly stressed going through this technique called "wet/dry cycle". The plant is being deprived of moisture that would be available to fuel additional growth and suffers.
The moisture meter's probe should be inserted to various depths to accurately assess conditions. The tester has a 1-4 scale on the meter, but what is imporatant is relative moisture. The lower potion of the medium in the container should not be so consistently and constantly moist as to "bury the needle" at the top of the scale. The middle depths of the container should be kept in the upper half section of the meter's range and the top should be allowed to dry out to the lower half of the range before rewatering.
This is far more accurate to the lifting and guessing game played by many. The weight of the container does not indicate where the moisture is inside. A grower would never really know if things at the bottom were oversaturated without a probe to tell them. If the bottom is soaked and never dries out, the container feels "heavy" even though other areas may be quite dry. Many grower use large, tight grids of 3-5 gallon containers which can amount to 50-100+ containers. How could they use the lift and guess method, if they can hardly reach some of my plants just to water and prune them. It would be impossible and bad for their backs to use anything except a moisture meter. In other situations the plants are attached to fixed supports, such as SCROG or simply tied up prohibiting movement. There is no more accurate or versatile way to determine your watering schedule.
But now i am one of those that plays the "lifting and guessing game" and I will always recommend that you use your sense to judge and understand your plants rather than trusting in a $20 Wal-mart toy.
If a grower has lots of large containers then they are likely experienced and likely growing mostly the same crop. When you know your plant and your system you don't use a moisture meter. No serious grower that I've met personally does.
Moisture meters are fine for beginners IF you use multiple sample points in each pot. It's too easy to hit a pocket of perlite or just rub the sensor the wrong way. I'd rather judge by visual and tactile response rather than entrusting a wavering needle on an inaccurate meter. You know that when you lift up your container, is it wet ?? or is it dry ??
The "lift the pot" method is a widely practiced, and very accurate method of knowing when to water your container plants.
The best way in my opinion to know when soil grown potted plants need more watering is by checking how heavy the pots feel. This method is very simple to learn once you get the feel for how light a ready for watering pot of soil feels.
Get an equal size pot and fill it with your soil. The medium should be about as moist as a new bag of potting soil. Use this planter as a learning tool to get a rough idea of how much the pots should weigh before watering again. The pots with your plants will feel only just slightly heavier when the soil is ready for more water. Pick up one of your planted pots, if its noticably heavy, do not water it until it feels "light". Next time you water a planter, pick it up and feel how much heavier it feels compared to the sample pot of soil.
It only takes a few times picking up the pots until this skill is like a "second nature" to you. You wont even need the sample pot after you get accustomed to the lifting method.
Sure your plants are always putting on more weight as they grow larger, but once you're proficient at lifting the pots, you'll also know how to compensate for the weight of the plants with ease.
I dont know how to better explain this method of knowing when to water, but believe me, anyone who learns this method, will always know when its time to water.
Mother's Finest
Well-Known Member
My apologies if DD mentioned it already as I didn't finish his post, but a watering cycle is the time from one watering to another, regardless of whether the water has any nutes in it. A week is a pretty common watering cycle.
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