Soiless medium considered hydro or soil?

Olive Drab Green

Well-Known Member
"Forced feeding"?
"PH has to be adjusted"
Higher burn threshold

...was why. Sorry if I read you wrong?
Well, no, it is. The synth nutes are, assuming pH is right, directly available to the roots, but are also an overdose of nutrients so it's a bit easier to burn your plant with it. I didn't even necessarily mean "force feeding." It was an analogy.

As for pH being adjusted, outside of peat, coco, or other substrates that are buffering, pH is more important for synth nutes.
 

bravedave

Well-Known Member
Well, no, it is. The synth nutes are, assuming pH is right, directly available to the roots, but are also an overdose of nutrients so it's a bit easier to burn your plant with it. I didn't even necessarily mean "force feeding." It was an analogy.

As for pH being adjusted, outside of peat, coco, or other substrates that are buffering, pH is more important for synth nutes.
I would say PH is just as important to both. I actually see more PH complaints from soil users than anyone. Bottom line is, I don't think it matters if a microbe working on bat guano makes a nutrient available or if that same nutrient is synthetic and comes from a scoop...
both will have a similar PH need to make it available to the plant.
 

Olive Drab Green

Well-Known Member
I would say PH is just as important to both. I actually see more PH complaints from soil users than anyone. Bottom line is, I don't think it matters if a microbe working on bat guano makes a nutrient available or if that same nutrient is synthetic and comes from a scoop...
both will have a similar PH need to make it available to the plant.
It does. Synths are bound to salts.
 

Yodaweed

Well-Known Member
Salt based nutrients = force feed, organic = bacteria breaks down the material and processes it for your plant. Totally different processes, your process is considered Drain to Waste Hydroponics. When doing salt based hydroponics you should be PHing your nutrients. between 5.5-6.5 should be optimal. Organic grows do not PH water, the soil has buffers in it that fix the PH of the water.
 

bravedave

Well-Known Member
Salt based nutrients = force feed, organic = bacteria breaks down the material and processes it for your plant. Totally different processes, your process is considered Drain to Waste Hydroponics. When doing salt based hydroponics you should be PHing your nutrients. between 5.5-6.5 should be optimal. Organic grows do not PH water, the soil has buffers in it that fix the PH of the water.
Here I always thought that both organic and none just present the plant with the food they might require and plant's ability to utilize that nutrient is dependent on the PH condusive to the plant and that nutrient. Are you saying when a nutrient is provided to a plant organically, it is offered up almost humbly but certainly, softly and sweetly, maybe with music playing....while if it happened to come from a synthetic source it is a forced feeding? ;)
 

Kingrow1

Well-Known Member
I thought in hydro it was the ratio of H to OH which dictated nutrient availability and that was dictated by ph.

More alkaline conditions in soil form toxic levels of aluminum because the alkaline OH can join with aluminum making it a plant available salt. The alkaline conditions move the reaction to the right and more OH oxides are formed.

The use of lime in soil prevents this but hydro has no buffer so needs ph'ing.

Ph up and down is generally a salt of acidic phosphorous or alkaline potassium in solution. One adds hydrogen H and one adds OH or hydroxide.
 
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Kingrow1

Well-Known Member
Here I always thought that both organic and none just present the plant with the food they might require and plant's ability to utilize that nutrient is dependent on the PH condusive to the plant and that nutrient. Are you saying when a nutrient is provided to a plant organically, it is offered up almost humbly but certainly, softly and sweetly, maybe with music playing....while if it happened to come from a synthetic source it is a forced feeding? ;)
Rather than chem nitrogen they uotake organic amino acids etc.

Organic nutrients can differ to chem nutrients.
 

kmog33

Well-Known Member
What is easier for a novice soil or hydro? Can you set drip for soil? Ph should be easy to control in each. I would think. Pig4buzz. Zzzzzzzzz
Soil is more forgiving than hydro so when you mess up its kind of ok. Hydro plants die if you mess up lol. So I would say soil is better for a novice grower
 

Pig4buzz

Well-Known Member
Soil is more forgiving than hydro so when you mess up its kind of ok. Hydro plants die if you mess up lol. So I would say soil is better for a novice grower
Thanks kmog33. I was told that auto seeds not femized were 80% females. Any truth
 

bravedave

Well-Known Member
Soil is more forgiving than hydro so when you mess up its kind of ok. Hydro plants die if you mess up lol. So I would say soil is better for a novice grower
Just as easy for a noob to mix their soil too hot as it would be to over-fertilize a peat watering. The peat plant can be started in the right direction with the next watering...what does the guy do to rectify his hot soil?
 

Alienwidow

Well-Known Member
Like the dude said, no real size reference. As is, his guess is as good as mine. You have something totally undeniable to show us here on the interweb? Dry right? :)
Well thats a five gallon smart pot its in dave. And about three and a half feet tall. What do ya figure dave? And yes, dry weight of course.
 

bravedave

Well-Known Member
Well thats a five gallon smart pot its in dave. And about three and a half feet tall. What do ya figure dave? And yes, dry weight of course.
Ahhhhh, sensing butthurt....
If it is 3.5 feet then it certainly doesn't look like a 5 zip plant. Rich, Tell you what, open a thread asking everyone to guess the weight given that height. I will owe you a dollar for every guess 5 and over and you will owe me for every guess under five. Sorry dude, neither the original plant pic nor your trimmed up one is overly impressive. If it/they are/were over 5 then, yes, impressively dense.

Edit: Forgot Kmog already guessed...counting me ... You start out owing me $2. :)
 
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