Soil mix for landrace sativa (indoors led)?

[raggyb]

Have grown several finicky landrace sativa (Africans, Highland Thais) indoors in soil and knowing most of them don't like hot soil I try to make weaker soil. Typically by taking mix that works well for hybrids and cutting it to double volume with plain pete and perlite. Most of them seem to get a lot of yellowing and dying leaves, and no matter how weak the soil when I feed a small amount they seem not to like it, showing tip burn for example. Can anybody share soil mix proportions (organics) that work well under the lights for the long flowering sativas? By 20 weeks flowering most of them will look pretty sad. I'm sure my environment can be less than perfect, but I'm trying to address the soil side of things for now.

Thanks!

 

[GrnMonStr]

wow, this should be interesting. How many plants will you be growing? The reason I ask is if its more than one I would experiment and come up with your own parameters for each pot. Like two pots in just coco using Big Bloom only but keep one using less water cycles, then two pots use a slightly acidic soil low in nutrients, and again keep one with less water cycles.

I am just starting some 70% Sativa myself not comparable to what you are doing but its also kinda new to me going to a Sativa dominant strain. I will be in soil and in a cold frame outside, basically a unheated green house with roll up sides. I plan on adding a dehumidifier, fan, and heat come fall.

 

[conor c]

Have grown several finicky landrace sativa (Africans, Highland Thais) indoors in soil and knowing most of them don't like hot soil I try to make weaker soil. Typically by taking mix that works well for hybrids and cutting it to double volume with plain pete and perlite. Most of them seem to get a lot of yellowing and dying leaves, and no matter how weak the soil when I feed a small amount they seem not to like it, showing tip burn for example. Can anybody share soil mix proportions (organics) that work well under the lights for the long flowering sativas? By 20 weeks flowering most of them will look pretty sad. I'm sure my environment can be less than perfect, but I'm trying to address the soil side of things for now.

Thanks!

You could mix in some horticultural sharp sand as well the coarser stuff maybe this why i use seedling compost vs grow soil for landrace and even then it sometimes wants less n i find with some things

 

[weedstoner420]

Following along because I've been wondering the same thing. I'm planning to grow an Ethiopian sativa by Ace later this summer. I have some left over super soil from my last grow, which was definitely on the hot side before I did a flower cycle in it. Now I'm not sure how depleted it got from that cycle, and am undecided between using it as-is, cutting it with some normal potting mix, or adding a bit of Tomato-tone either at the beginning or as a top-dress midway through flower...

 

[raggyb]

How many plants will you be growing? The reason I ask is if its more than one I would experiment and come up with your own parameters for each pot.

I am just starting some 70% Sativa myself

I have tried different things but never growing multiple same strain sativa all at the same time. I'm afraid the whole grow would then be a bust so I do mostly hybrids and one sativa.
Just throwing out there I don't think 70% sativas hardly have issues like 100% sativas do.

You could mix in some horticultural sharp sand as well the coarser stuff maybe this why i use seedling compost vs grow soil for landrace and even then it sometimes wants less n i find with some things

Thanks, I'll look into the horticultural sharp sand I've never heard of it. What is in seedling compost? Is that same as seed starter?

Following along because I've been wondering the same thing. I'm planning to grow an Ethiopian sativa by Ace later this summer. I have some left over super soil from my last grow, which was definitely on the hot side before I did a flower cycle in it. Now I'm not sure how depleted it got from that cycle, and am undecided between using it as-is, cutting it with some normal potting mix, or adding a bit of Tomato-tone either at the beginning or as a top-dress midway through flower...

I've put in used soil also but results were not much different in my case. I did Ethiopian and I forget what the soil I used but E was the most finicky ever so if you have success I'd say you have it figured out. For me they often will look like they have mag def but when I water mag they immediately get tip burn. I do wonder if starting them a bit richer than they prefer would force them to get used to it at a young age. But I'd rather just find what's wrong with the mix.

 

[conor c]

I have tried different things but never growing multiple same strain sativa all at the same time. I'm afraid the whole grow would then be a bust so I do mostly hybrids and one sativa.
Just throwing out there I don't think 70% sativas hardly have issues like 100% sativas do.



Thanks, I'll look into the horticultural sharp sand I've never heard of it. What is in seedling compost? Is that same as seed starter?


I've put in used soil also but results were not much different in my case. I did Ethiopian and I forget what the soil I used but E was the most finicky ever so if you have success I'd say you have it figured out. For me they often will look like they have mag def but when I water mag they immediately get tip burn. I do wonder if starting them a bit richer than they prefer would force them to get used to it at a young age. But I'd rather just find what's wrong with the mix.

Yeah its just dead light based compost with barely any feed in it seed starter will be the same and yes the sharp sands a thing bud you get different grades of it too from fine to almost stones you dont want the extremely big coarse one tho i wouldnt grow in complete sand only but its good for rooting cuttings as well it was popular for that long ago before other mediums like rock wool or coco became more used has to be horticultural grade tho as theres other building type ones with stuff in it ya dont want like building lime

 

[weedstoner420]

I've put in used soil also but results were not much different in my case. I did Ethiopian and I forget what the soil I used but E was the most finicky ever so if you have success I'd say you have it figured out. For me they often will look like they have mag def but when I water mag they immediately get tip burn. I do wonder if starting them a bit richer than they prefer would force them to get used to it at a young age. But I'd rather just find what's wrong with the mix.

Well dang, good to hear from someone with experience with this strain then... I planted mine in little starter cells with seedling mix (literally just fine peat and perlite) and they started getting hungry before I expected, the cotyledons were already dying after only the second true leaves came out. I recently transplanted them into 4-inch pots with Coast of Maine potting mix and they seem to be much happier.

I'm going out of town in a couple weeks and am going to put them in my SIPs with the used soil while I'm away. It's mostly so I can be gone for a week without having to water them, but also to see how they react to the soil. I'm planning to leave them in there until they show sex and then take clones to flower out, either in the same soil or modified depending on how they seem to like it.

 

[raggyb]

Yeah its just dead light based compost with barely any feed in it seed starter will be the same and yes the sharp sands a thing bud you get different grades of it too from fine to almost stones you dont want the extremely big coarse one tho i wouldnt grow in complete sand only but its good for rooting cuttings as well it was popular for that long ago before other mediums like rock wool or coco became more used has to be horticultural grade tho as theres other building type ones with stuff in it ya dont want like building lime

I have extra leveling sand I would like to use that if it's fairly close to horticultural grade it is supposed to be course but I don't know if it has additives in it.

 

[conor c]

I have extra leveling sand I would like to use that if it's fairly close to horticultural grade it is supposed to be course but I don't know if it has additives in it.

Your risking it if its got quicklime in it tho cos thats toxic to plants bud

 

[raggyb]

Well dang, good to hear from someone with experience with this strain then... I planted mine in little starter cells with seedling mix (literally just fine peat and perlite) and they started getting hungry before I expected, the cotyledons were already dying after only the second true leaves came out. I recently transplanted them into 4-inch pots with Coast of Maine potting mix and they seem to be much happier.

I'm going out of town in a couple weeks and am going to put them in my SIPs with the used soil while I'm away. It's mostly so I can be gone for a week without having to water them, but also to see how they react to the soil. I'm planning to leave them in there until they show sex and then take clones to flower out, either in the same soil or modified depending on how they seem to like it.

Cool I use Sips too. I didn't have sips when I did the Ethiopian however. Really cool plant though. Very consistent. Males seemed very dominant when crossed to other strains. Mine always started slow and small for a sativa but eventually stretched.

 

[raggyb]

Your risking it if its got quicklime in it tho cos thats toxic to plants bud

oh shit I don't know if it does. I grew clones with a different sand and perlite 50/50 and I was very happy with that for cloning. I think it was not playsand. Only thing I did was check it for water flow. Maybe if I wet the leveling sand I'm guessing it would crust up a bit if it has quicklime in it?

 

[conor c]

oh shit I don't know if it does. I grew clones with a different sand and perlite 50/50 and I was very happy with that for cloning. I think it was not playsand. Only thing I did was check it for water flow. Maybe if I wet the leveling sand I'm guessing it would crust up a bit if it has quicklime in it?

Id think so but idk 100% any time i dealing with that kind of sand i was concreting or for mortar etc never tested just the sand n seeing if it crusts up alone or not

 

[GrnMonStr]

@ bottom of post#5 discussing E and 100% Sativa I decided to research the soil. The location was based on this first link, soil tests in second link. If anything it is just something to consider.

Location:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannabis_in_Ethiopia

Soil Link:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/365127435_Soil_Fertility_Assessment_and_Mapping_at_Shashamane_District_West_Arsi_Zone_Oromia_Ethiopia

 

[raggyb]

Id think so but idk 100% any time i dealing with that kind of sand i was concreting or for mortar etc never tested just the sand n seeing if it crusts up alone or not

Hey Conor, no problem. I looked at the bags yesterday and they are leveling sand. So not for concrete mix. I dont see why they would add anything to levelling sand would they?

 

[raggyb]

I have extra leveling sand I would like to use that if it's fairly close to horticultural grade it is supposed to be course but I don't know if it has additives in it.

@ bottom of post#5 discussing E and 100% Sativa I decided to research the soil. The location was based on this first link, soil tests in second link. If anything it is just something to consider.

Location:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannabis_in_Ethiopia

Soil Link:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/365127435_Soil_Fertility_Assessment_and_Mapping_at_Shashamane_District_West_Arsi_Zone_Oromia_Ethiopia

seems slightly acidic and medium P is what I'm interpreting as most likely in the second link. I read once Ethiopian was brought from Jamaica which the first link seems to confirm, so I wonder if Jamaican soil assay is same as Ethipian?

 

[FLORIDA GRASS]

seems slightly acidic and medium P is what I'm interpreting as most likely in the second link. I read once Ethiopian was brought from Jamaica which the first link seems to confirm, so I wonder if Jamaican soil assay is same as Ethipian?

Sup raggyb? I have grown some pure sativa (Haze#1, Mexican, Malawi) Every one grows different (examples) Haze #1 grew enormous in just a 3 gallon. Didn’t mind a little fertilize. Flower time 24 weeks, stretched about 10x. Soil was a basic perlite/moss reused from previous grows. The Mexican, same kind of soil mix, but adding fertilizer is a no/no, just a little extra goes a long way. Stretched about 5x in size, flowered in 18 weeks? Last Malawi, had problems with this one. It did not like microbial at all. Does not like bright light either, so avoid led’s! Grew really slow in veg and took 22 weeks to flower. Hope you have the time I figured out it needs a special mix, 50% perlite and 50% course vermiculite (sterile mix). I think your problem could be the led, 18 hours of LED isn’t very natural to a landrace sativa. I always start my plants with t5 fluorescent, LEDs are way powerful. I bought some Oaxaca x (panama x columbian) from Ace seeds, every day I’m wanting to start them. Maybe tonight ? Just trying to help,I’m no expert.

 

[raggyb]

Sup raggyb? I have grown some pure sativa (Haze#1, Mexican, Malawi) Every one grows different (examples) Haze #1 grew enormous in just a 3 gallon. Didn’t mind a little fertilize. Flower time 24 weeks, stretched about 10x. Soil was a basic perlite/moss reused from previous grows. The Mexican, same kind of soil mix, but adding fertilizer is a no/no, just a little extra goes a long way. Stretched about 5x in size, flowered in 18 weeks? Last Malawi, had problems with this one. It did not like microbial at all. Does not like bright light either, so avoid led’s! Grew really slow in veg and took 22 weeks to flower. Hope you have the time I figured out it needs a special mix, 50% perlite and 50% course vermiculite (sterile mix). I think your problem could be the led, 18 hours of LED isn’t very natural to a landrace sativa. I always start my plants with t5 fluorescent, LEDs are way powerful. I bought some Oaxaca x (panama x columbian) from Ace seeds, every day I’m wanting to start them. Maybe tonight ? Just trying to help,I’m no expert.

Hey Florida, thanks for the input. I think maybe yes they don't like LEDs. I don't know if this is just coincidence but for me it's the super thin leaved sativas that have been the most picky. I would like to try the sterile mix you mention. You must have fed it something though. Especially curious what did you feed it in flower and did it work well?

 

[FLORIDA GRASS]

Hey Florida, thanks for the input. I think maybe yes they don't like LEDs. I don't know if this is just coincidence but for me it's the super thin leaved sativas that have been the most picky. I would like to try the sterile mix you mention. You must have fed it something though. Especially curious what did you feed it in flower and did it work well?

Hey raggyb, it’s been a while but I did add amino acid, kelp, and molasses one time. Probably a tablespoon of amino and kelp and an 1/8 teaspoon of molasses. The plant grew really slow, so you couldn’t add too much. It could take nitrogen but would claw. I added before flowering. I would use low nitrogen fertilizers.Top dress with kelp, small amounts of molasses. The seedling stage was the most difficult. Don’t use too much light! After that not a big deal. I did start the Oaxaca Panama only three out of six made it. Two look like shite. I had to open the seeds with tweezers or none would have made it. They look like the type that are sensitive to light. Take care

 

[conor c]

Hey Conor, no problem. I looked at the bags yesterday and they are leveling sand. So not for concrete mix. I dont see why they would add anything to levelling sand would they?

No if its raw washer sand it be fine bud

 

[conor c]

seems slightly acidic and medium P is what I'm interpreting as most likely in the second link. I read once Ethiopian was brought from Jamaica which the first link seems to confirm, so I wonder if Jamaican soil assay is same as Ethipian?

With Jamaica and weed its from multiple sources i would say yes that might be one source but indian weed was took there as well