Question for Fox Farm nute users

[Bullmark]

Hello all, I just passed week 9 on my first indoor, first auto, first LED grow. I had some success for several yrs starting indoor under fluorescents and moving outdoor...but that was 25 yrs ago and boy have things changed.
Anyway, I have a great light, HLG 320XL, so the potential is there for my little 2x6 space. I went with FFOF on this first grow and made a few mistakes...but I digress. I didn’t give any nutes until the plants were flowering strong, and then only about a 20% volume. Consists of FF big bloom, tiger bloom, and beastie bloomz, with a light dose of cal mag. The buds were growing but the plants were fading w/ a few really yellow leaves and a few brown blotches.
I reached out on this site and it was concluded that the plants were basically underfed and hungry. So yesterday I fed them a full dose of the above nutes.
Too early to tell if this hit the spot but they don’t look any worse. FF calls for this particular dose every watering, which is once every 3-4 days....I wait for the soil to be almost dried out....still moist but the 3gal fabric pot is very light.
Finally my question....FF calls for a flush after every so often w/ their boomerang mixture. This is where I get nervous. I understand (I think) the concept of flushing w/ plain water.....but I’m wondering if this is needed??
I have been ph-ing my mixture before giving to the plant, and always tried to stay around 6.0....but when I recently calibrated my pen it was reading a bit high. So it’s possible most of my recent feedings, except the last, was at 5.6-5.8. It’s my understanding that the different nutes need varying PH to correctly be absorbed. Soooo, maybe a flush is in order...??
The pics are the day before they were most recently fed and the it looks like the buds are just not moving along like they should....and the overall faded tone of the plant, with a few worse spots is evident. The burned/yellow tips have been present since before flowering and before I gave anything but water.
Any and all comments/suggestions are appreciated and welcome. Thanks to everyone who have helped me with this hobby in the past as well.
Cheers

 

[simpleleaf]

I don't use your nutes, but would suggest checking EC in compared to EC out. PPM is basically the same thing, but uses a different scale. If there are more salts coming out than going in, you have some salt build up. In that situation, flushing may be useful.

 

[Bullmark]

i did check the ppm....I had roughly 1100 going in and almost 3x that in the runoff......but I’ve been told with ocean forest to pay no attention to runoff....
Even when I was giving just water the runoff was 2500-3000......so what the heck is a man to do?

 

[Thodoph]

Hello all, I just passed week 9 on my first indoor, first auto, first LED grow. I had some success for several yrs starting indoor under fluorescents and moving outdoor...but that was 25 yrs ago and boy have things changed.
Anyway, I have a great light, HLG 320XL, so the potential is there for my little 2x6 space. I went with FFOF on this first grow and made a few mistakes...but I digress. I didn’t give any nutes until the plants were flowering strong, and then only about a 20% volume. Consists of FF big bloom, tiger bloom, and beastie bloomz, with a light dose of cal mag. The buds were growing but the plants were fading w/ a few really yellow leaves and a few brown blotches.
I reached out on this site and it was concluded that the plants were basically underfed and hungry. So yesterday I fed them a full dose of the above nutes.
Too early to tell if this hit the spot but they don’t look any worse. FF calls for this particular dose every watering, which is once every 3-4 days....I wait for the soil to be almost dried out....still moist but the 3gal fabric pot is very light.
Finally my question....FF calls for a flush after every so often w/ their boomerang mixture. This is where I get nervous. I understand (I think) the concept of flushing w/ plain water.....but I’m wondering if this is needed??
I have been ph-ing my mixture before giving to the plant, and always tried to stay around 6.0....but when I recently calibrated my pen it was reading a bit high. So it’s possible most of my recent feedings, except the last, was at 5.6-5.8. It’s my understanding that the different nutes need varying PH to correctly be absorbed. Soooo, maybe a flush is in order...??
The pics are the day before they were most recently fed and the it looks like the buds are just not moving along like they should....and the overall faded tone of the plant, with a few worse spots is evident. The burned/yellow tips have been present since before flowering and before I gave anything but water.
Any and all comments/suggestions are appreciated and welcome. Thanks to everyone who have helped me with this hobby in the past as well.
CheersView attachment 5049029View attachment 5049030View attachment 5049031

I use fox farms trio and I go by their feeding chart I just twike it a little to suit the plant

 

[Thodoph]

i did check the ppm....I had roughly 1100 going in and almost 3x that in the runoff......but I’ve been told with ocean forest to pay no attention to runoff....
Even when I was giving just water the runoff was 2500-3000......so what the heck is a man to do?

Try happy frog and buffered coco coir 30/70. I found ocean forest is hard to maintain.

 

[simpleleaf]

...
I have been ph-ing my mixture before giving to the plant, and always tried to stay around 6.0....but when I recently calibrated my pen it was reading a bit high. So it’s possible most of my recent feedings, except the last, was at 5.6-5.8. It’s my understanding that the different nutes need varying PH to correctly be absorbed. Soooo, maybe a flush is in order...??
...

... If there are more salts coming out than going in, you have some salt build up. In that situation, flushing may be useful.

i did check the ppm....I had roughly 1100 going in and almost 3x that in the runoff......but I’ve been told with ocean forest to pay no attention to runoff....
Even when I was giving just water the runoff was 2500-3000......so what the heck is a man to do?

I'd flush it, but for the salts, not the pH. But do what you want! I've never grown in it.

Potting mix should be around 6.5 pH. Hydroponics 6.0. Peat moss and coco are considered hydro even though they may resemble potting mix. Ocean Forest contains "aged forest products" (aka compost) and "sandy loam": I'd want pH near 6.5.

 

[Thodoph]

If you gotta flush fox farms sledgehammer is good. I keep it on hand for emergency. It cleans out nutes and salt build up
that the plant didn't use helping the health of the plant.

 

[Bullmark]

Well the FF schedule does call for several flushes over the course of the grow....so I guess the worst thing that happen is....shit I don’t know.
Do u just wait until it’s watering time and send x amount through the soil.....wait 3 days or so and when the plant needs another watering/feeding hit it with the nutes again??

 

[Thodoph]

Well the FF schedule does call for several flushes over the course of the grow....so I guess the worst thing that happen is....shit I don’t know.
Do u just wait until it’s watering time and send x amount through the soil.....wait 3 days or so and when the plant needs another watering/feeding hit it with the nutes again??

That's is exactly how I do it. Like I said I use Sledgehammer flush hasn't harmed any of my girls.

 

[Bullmark]

That's is exactly how I do it. Like I said I use Sledgehammer flush hasn't harmed any of my girls.

Well I’m def gonna flush the one plant that is the most faded...it clearly needs something and there’s a block somewhere keeping it from taking it in. My 3 plants are all the same strain and if the one didn’t look so much better, I’d probably not see this as much of a problem....it’s buds are frosty and stink like a skunk orgy... But the buds on the best one are def coming together better in every category....they’re tighter, more colorful, Better calyx to leaf ratio, and they smell stronger. It’s leaves are nice and darker green and apparently it has taken in whatever the fading one has not.
So what heck, I’ll flush the one and see if I can improve it.

 

[Tiflis]

what are your temps like?
Although they are same strain, don't expect them to be exactly alike. One could be sensitive, or just plain hungrier.

 

[myke]

Well I’m def gonna flush the one plant that is the most faded...it clearly needs something and there’s a block somewhere keeping it from taking it in. My 3 plants are all the same strain and if the one didn’t look so much better, I’d probably not see this as much of a problem....it’s buds are frosty and stink like a skunk orgy... But the buds on the best one are def coming together better in every category....they’re tighter, more colorful, Better calyx to leaf ratio, and they smell stronger. It’s leaves are nice and darker green and apparently it has taken in whatever the fading one has not.
So what heck, I’ll flush the one and see if I can improve it.

Your on the right track,I seen the elevated pots above trays.Awesome ,so lets put them to use.

Simple answer,your soil is mainly peat ,once it runs out of food its an inert medium so feed it as such.

Think coco,hydro etc.Never straight water, feed to runoff every 2-3 days.Doesn't have to be a lot but 10-20% is good.

Dont let it get too dry,fertilizer turns to salt then you get problems.