2 questions about temperature and pH level in soil…

Geeked

Member
I am new to growing. And I’m the kind that will research and learn as much as possible and sometimes will take advice and information way beyond it is given. So with that said, what do they mean when they refer to cannabis prefer to temperatures of 65F to 80F. Do they mean the surrounding air temperature or the soil temperatures? And my next stupid question is pH related. What is pH really? Is it the acidity level in the soil or the texture of the soil as in it being too denses and compact or too loose and soft/non compacted? Only reason why I asked is because my pH soil meter tester will sometimes register different pH level in the same pot but in different areas of the pot and I noticed when the ph level is really low, it happens to be in a soft loose area of the soil and when it’s high pH, the area is very hard to stick the meter in for testing.
 

Geeked

Member
Ah thanks. So cannabis pH level information is just regarding to the run offs and levels of the liquids, not the medium? Right? So those soil “pH” meters don’t really measure the real pH levels in the soil.
And temperature is literally impossible to achieve when you have a high powered light on 16 hours a day with fan motor and exhaust vent Motor running 24/7. During summer time, I was nearing 90F almost everyday and now we into fall winter, 85 is manageable… but thanks for clearing it up.
Oh and one more. When seed banks advertise the “yield”. Do they mean before it’s dried or after dry? Because my first grow was flawless and I didn’t even come near what they stated after dry but if it’s before dry, I surpassed it by far!
 

Geeked

Member
Thanks for the quick replies. Yah I been lurking on the forums for a while but decided to sign up because of some unusual issues that I’m still trying to figure out.
 

Dank Bongula

Well-Known Member
Ah thanks. So cannabis pH level information is just regarding to the run offs and levels of the liquids, not the medium? Right? So those soil “pH” meters don’t really measure the real pH levels in the soil.
And temperature is literally impossible to achieve when you have a high powered light on 16 hours a day with fan motor and exhaust vent Motor running 24/7. During summer time, I was nearing 90F almost everyday and now we into fall winter, 85 is manageable… but thanks for clearing it up.
Oh and one more. When seed banks advertise the “yield”. Do they mean before it’s dried or after dry? Because my first grow was flawless and I didn’t even come near what they stated after dry but if it’s before dry, I surpassed it by far!
I seriously doubt your first grow was flawless. Let's be real here lol. pH info is useful in regards to what is going into your medium. I take my water, I add my nutes, I pH it to 6.3 or so and then I slowly water it into my soil. I do not use a soil pH meter so I cannot speak on those although my understanding is they do measure the pH of the soil but they are specific probes...not the same as a typical pH meter for solutions.

Not sure what you mean by air temp is impossible to achieve. You have to work with what your environment gives you, then you may or may not need extra things to help you control that environment in your growing space. Is your area to hot? Add an AC unit. Is it too cold, change your lighting or add a heater, humid? Grab a dehuey....etc...mif you are still having trouble with heat from your lights, you can run your lights during the cooler evening period instead.

My tents hit mid to upper 80s with the LEDs on and mid 70s with it off. My extraction fan is mounted outside my tent and circ fans inside just move the air.

I would assume seedbanks are advertising finished dry weight since that is what is actually useable bit I don't pay attention to that. They tend to give a square meter or outdoor result. But it all depends on your skill as a grower, your lights, genetics and your environment. They also give timelines for when the plant should be done but those are horseshit too.
 

Thundercat

Well-Known Member
AIr temp and soil temp are both actually important.

Air temp will impact respiration and transpiration of the plant.

Soil/medium temp will impact nutrient uptake.

Achieving ideal temps is a major challenge for most home growers. It usually involves air conditioning in the summer and heaters in the winter I'm temperate climate areas.

You should ignore all yield estimates, and harvest times provided by seed banks or breeders. Yields and harvest times are both EXTREMELY subjective and will change based on your grow environment, genetics and care.
 

LeastExpectedGrower

Well-Known Member
I am new to growing. And I’m the kind that will research and learn as much as possible and sometimes will take advice and information way beyond it is given. So with that said, what do they mean when they refer to cannabis prefer to temperatures of 65F to 80F. Do they mean the surrounding air temperature or the soil temperatures? And my next stupid question is pH related. What is pH really? Is it the acidity level in the soil or the texture of the soil as in it being too denses and compact or too loose and soft/non compacted? Only reason why I asked is because my pH soil meter tester will sometimes register different pH level in the same pot but in different areas of the pot and I noticed when the ph level is really low, it happens to be in a soft loose area of the soil and when it’s high pH, the area is very hard to stick the meter in for testing.
In general, best to keep the whole plant (roots to tips) in that range, if you can.

For pH, it has nothing to do with how dense or light the soil. It's all about how acidic or alkaline the soil & water/feed is.

You'll want to abandon your multi-pronged stick-in-the-soil pH meter...they really don't work accurately (as you've found out). Most people are using a pH testing 'pen' to test the water before it goes in or after it runs out the bottom...and/or doing slurry tests with the soil to get accurate pH readings. There are digital soil testers but they're expensive.
 

Geeked

Member
I seriously doubt your first grow was flawless. Let's be real here lol. pH info is useful in regards to what is going into your medium. I take my water, I add my nutes, I pH it to 6.3 or so and then I slowly water it into my soil. I do not use a soil pH meter so I cannot speak on those although my understanding is they do measure the pH of the soil but they are specific probes...not the same as a typical pH meter for solutions.

Not sure what you mean by air temp is impossible to achieve. You have to work with what your environment gives you, then you may or may not need extra things to help you control that environment in your growing space. Is your area to hot? Add an AC unit. Is it too cold, change your lighting or add a heater, humid? Grab a dehuey....etc...mif you are still having trouble with heat from your lights, you can run your lights during the cooler evening period instead.

My tents hit mid to upper 80s with the LEDs on and mid 70s with it off. My extraction fan is mounted outside my tent and circ fans inside just move the air.

I would assume seedbanks are advertising finished dry weight since that is what is actually useable bit I don't pay attention to that. They tend to give a square meter or outdoor result. But it all depends on your skill as a grower, your lights, genetics and your environment. They also give timelines for when the plant should be done but those are horseshit too.
yeah you’re right. It wasn’t flawless but it did produce good yield and to me, that’s flawless since I came into this with no growing knowledge except for the ones Google provided. Lol. I am in an area that it’s frown upon so my space is limited but let’s say I have the equipment to raise temp and lower. I do have a dehumidifier but it seemed to be underpowered even tho it’s rated for 450 sq ft and the room is not even half of that… used to be in a tent but if the rapid growth, I had to build my own but I used insulation foam this time since it had its own reflective features and alot less! $9 for 4’ x 8’ insulated foam sheet. It’s only 4’x8’x8’ with 6” filter vent pulling air from the room that has its own AC / heating unit. Ceiling fan with a oscillation fan and 4000w LED. I did change the lighting to come on during night in the summer time and off during day but still produced too much heat from the motors. Now that outside temp don’t get any higher than55 degree F, it’s a little bit more manageable but now they are flowering and only 2 weeks from harvest. But you guys are right about harvest time, the closest ones to the lights mature alot faster than those further down. And now that you guys stated that the yield was dried advertised, I guess my first grow wasn’t as impressive as I thought it was. Still haven’t found out but I am well over 4lbs per plant. From looks of it, one of my main cola is probably like 100g wet. Easily.
 

Geeked

Member
Yeah guys. I was very fortunate to have my very own filtering water system. Luckily the wife wanted one so I didn’t decline! I had a test pen but the bulb broke and I didn’t invest in another one since I was getting 6.0 run offs. I never really got to research about the ppm since I never decided to get another one but water going in we’re always 5.5 - 6.5 range. Most of time I opt for 6.0. Yeah my regular tap water were in range of 8.5. Tested it before the pen broke lol.
 

drsaltzman

Well-Known Member
yeah you’re right. It wasn’t flawless but it did produce good yield and to me, that’s flawless since I came into this with no growing knowledge except for the ones Google provided. Lol. I am in an area that it’s frown upon so my space is limited but let’s say I have the equipment to raise temp and lower. I do have a dehumidifier but it seemed to be underpowered even tho it’s rated for 450 sq ft and the room is not even half of that… used to be in a tent but if the rapid growth, I had to build my own but I used insulation foam this time since it had its own reflective features and alot less! $9 for 4’ x 8’ insulated foam sheet. It’s only 4’x8’x8’ with 6” filter vent pulling air from the room that has its own AC / heating unit. Ceiling fan with a oscillation fan and 4000w LED. I did change the lighting to come on during night in the summer time and off during day but still produced too much heat from the motors. Now that outside temp don’t get any higher than55 degree F, it’s a little bit more manageable but now they are flowering and only 2 weeks from harvest. But you guys are right about harvest time, the closest ones to the lights mature alot faster than those further down. And now that you guys stated that the yield was dried advertised, I guess my first grow wasn’t as impressive as I thought it was. Still haven’t found out but I am well over 4lbs per plant. From looks of it, one of my main cola is probably like 100g wet. Easily.
4 lbs per plant?!
With a 400W LED?
That's gotta be a typo...
 

Geeked

Member
4 lbs per plant?!
With a 400W LED?
That's gotta be a typo...
It wasn’t a typo. I think you just overlooked the 0. Lol. I looked back at my post and it was 4000W led. And 4lbs wet!!!!! Possibly even more but from my recent harvest, I realized it 80% weight loss after dried and cured… so that’s why I asked the yield question about it being advertised. And that’s why I THOUGHT this grow was flawless but apparently not if it’s suppose to be 454g per yield dried.
 

Geeked

Member
Maybe he weighed the entire plant
Don’t be silly. I’m talking about smokeable content. That estimated based on my recent harvest. But like I said, if it’s “dried” yield. Then yeah, there’s no way I even near the advertised yield and that 4lbs will probably be like 200g once dried. Yeah 4lbs wet. Oh did I mention they were started in beginning of July?
 

drsaltzman

Well-Known Member
It wasn’t a typo. I think you just overlooked the 0. Lol. I looked back at my post and it was 4000W led. And 4lbs wet!!!!! Possibly even more but from my recent harvest, I realized it 80% weight loss after dried and cured… so that’s why I asked the yield question about it being advertised. And that’s why I THOUGHT this grow was flawless but apparently not if it’s suppose to be 454g per yield dried.
4000. Yep I missed a zero.
If you get a lb. per plant dried you're doing an amazing job.
Half pound and you're still doing great.
Post some pics when you get a chance.
 

Geeked

Member
And his elbow.
I don’t think we’re on the same page. I wasn’t claiming each plant were 4lbs after dried and cured. 4lbs as in freshly harvest with some stem and sugar and fan leaves still on. Easily, maybe even more. But from recent experience with how much weigh it actually loses when dried and cured enough to smoke smoothly, I would say about 200g per plant. If I’m even lucky.
 

Geeked

Member
4000. Yep I missed a zero.
If you get a lb. per plant dried you're doing an amazing job.
Half pound and you're still doing great.
Post some pics when you get a chance.
Will do. I’ll post the wet weight and then dry weight and you’ll see what I mean. I don’t know why mine is so heavy on water. I only water enough to have tiny drainage as I hate having to pull them out to dump out so it’s not sitting in it’s runoffs.
 
Top