Advantages of coco vs soil for a new grower?

WDIK

WDIK

Active Member
I ask because I don't know. I see a lot of new growers having issues with coco. What are the advantages of coco over a good soil?

I will probably always be a soil grower because my job sometimes requires me to be out of town for 2-3 days. I can usually plan for this and adjust my feeding/watering schedule accordingly. I used Espoma Organic soil for a grow (with added perlite), and it couldn't have been much easier. I didn't have to feed any nutes until week 4.

So again, why are so many new growers using coco rather than a good soil?
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Jussblaz3420

Jussblaz3420

Well-Known Member
With coco, you control exactly what goes in, with soil its a little more difficult since theres already nutes in the soil so adding more when its not needed could cause problems, but if u know how to read ur plants then i agree that using a good organic soil is the way to go, but thats just my opinion and what works for me, some things just work better with other people and their setup.
 
WDIK

WDIK

Active Member
Jussblaz3420 said:
With coco, you control exactly what goes in, with soil its a little more difficult since theres already nutes in the soil so adding more when its not needed could cause problems, but if u know how to read ur plants then i agree that using a good organic soil is the way to go, but thats just my opinion and what works for me, some things just work better with other people and their setup.
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I can agree with that. I guess all of the research I did before starting my (soil) grow suggested holding off on nutes until week 3-4. And even then start at 1/4 strength. Not sure how it could get any easier for a 1st time grower.
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Jussblaz3420

Jussblaz3420

Well-Known Member
WDIK said:
I can agree with that. I guess all of the research I did before starting my (soil) grow suggested holding off on nutes until week 3-4. And even then start at 1/4 strength. Not sure how it could get any easier for a 1st time grower.
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Exactly. I add a 6" layer of "super soil" to the bottom of my pots, its called Recipe 420, loaded with goodies and the second my taproot hits that soil my plants take off and i get to hold off on feeding for a couple more weeks.
 
tightpockt

tightpockt

Well-Known Member
1. Cant over-water
2. Plants grow faster and yield more.
3. Re-usable
4. Can precisely control feeding
5. Many options for automated feeding. I.e. ebb and flow, top drip, recirculating, wick, hand water etc.
Coco in smart pots is the shit.

WDIK said:
I ask because I don't know. I see a lot of new growers having issues with coco. What are the advantages of coco over a good soil?

I will probably always be a soil grower because my job sometimes requires me to be out of town for 2-3 days. I can usually plan for this and adjust my feeding/watering schedule accordingly. I used Espoma Organic soil for a grow (with added perlite), and it couldn't have been much easier. I didn't have to feed any nutes until week 4.

So again, why are so many new growers using coco rather than a good soil?
>
>
Click to expand...
 
WDIK

WDIK

Active Member
tightpockt said:
1. Cant over-water
2. Plants grow faster and yield more.
3. Re-usable
4. Can precisely control feeding
5. Many options for automated feeding. I.e. ebb and flow, top drip, recirculating, wick, hand water etc.
Coco in smart pots is the shit.
Click to expand...
That's great. Was your first grow using coco? My title should have been better, and I have now edited it. I see a lot of new growers having issues with coco for some of the same reasons you list as benefits.
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tightpockt

tightpockt

Well-Known Member
my first couple of grows I used the soil and they turned out okay but it was a grind..
Lugging around heavy soil pots, dealing with pests, deficiencies (easiest way to clear up a deficiency in soil is to foliar feed btw), watering issues. as with anything, do it long enough and you'll get it right. Coco was a total game changer for me. I dont know what issues nrwbies are having with coco...is it the calcium? There's tons of coco specific nutes on the market that address this. I haven't had a deficiency in years.
WDIK said:
That's great. Was your first grow using coco? My title should have been better, and I have now edited it. I see a lot of new growers having issues with coco for some of the same reasons you list as benefits.
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hoban

hoban

New Member
The only issue i have had w/ coco and ro water is you must add calmag......2nd is silica....i found the stems and whole structure becomes stiffer yet pliable....w/o you cant train the stems as they are almost hollow and soft....thats just my experience.....with tomatoes you can actually see in the stem where you added silica cause the vine gets much thicker............i did notice that buds were fatter but leafier growing same strain and using same nutes.
 
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