i'll NEVER buy foxfarm happyfrog again !

iv'e been experiencing serious ph problems after transplanting into happyfrog potting soil. my plants are stunted but still green for some reason. then i did some
research and found a method of doing the soil slurry test and what do you know ? the ph was at 4.3 and the ppm was at 1200 ! i also used a sample from unused happyfrog soil and got a close reading on it too . so , then i sampled some promix and got a reading of 6.5 ph and a ppm of 700 . WTF ?!?!?!?! thankyou foxfarm ! now i have to start all over again !!!!

got a link for that slurry method? I thought you were supposed to add additives to the happy frog for instance Lime.

nraged said:

got a link for that slurry method? I thought you were supposed to add additives to the happy frog for instance Lime.

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why should i have to add lime when it says on the bag ph 6.3-6.5 ?

stonerj0e said:

why should i have to add lime when it says on the bag ph 6.3-6.5 ?

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I suppose going off that I wouldnt either I swore I read others complaining about this as well. Maybe I got it mixed up not sure. Too lazy to search

haven't used it myself, but i have seen a number of complaints about the happy frog soil
maybe a bit too 'nute dense'?

serves you right..... get ocean forest.

stonerj0e said:

why should i have to add lime when it says on the bag ph 6.3-6.5 ?

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What up Stoner!! I've gotta chime in because I'm usin Happy Frog also, but I'm havin nothing but positive results!! I don't use it straight though, it's about 50/50 mix Happy Frog Natural & Organic, and Black Gold Organic, then I add probably 30% more perlite, few scoops of worm castings, and I've always mixed in dolomite lime ( 1 cup/ cu. ft. ) to stabilize ph. I don't care what the soil bags say, I always just do it. Also, and I'm not sayin you're wrong bro, but I've got 10 bags sittin here, went over one bag three times, and couldn't find a ph level listed on there. It says it has dolomite lime added to it, but doesn't state a level anywhere.

Anyway, I'm feelin your pain, and my only advice would be to amend the Happy Frog somewhat with another medium, that way if one is a little lacking in somethin, or too strong in somethin, you have a buffer to work with, and the other medium will hopefully compensate for any highs or lows. Feel me? And I say, just add the lime; won't hurt anything at worst and it's not expensive at all.

Good luck on your grow!!!

IndicaFatnHeavy said:

serves you right..... get ocean forest.

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Same thing...Ocean Forest runs pretty hot, especially for seedlings and small plants, so i'd mix it with somethin else, at the very least lots of extra perlite!!!

stonerj0e said:

iv'e been experiencing serious ph problems after transplanting into happyfrog potting soil. my plants are stunted but still green for some reason. then i did some
research and found a method of doing the soil slurry test and what do you know ? the ph was at 4.3 and the ppm was at 1200 ! i also used a sample from unused happyfrog soil and got a close reading on it too . so , then i sampled some promix and got a reading of 6.5 ph and a ppm of 700 . WTF ?!?!?!?! thankyou foxfarm ! now i have to start all over again !!!!

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'

Man, I have had the same problems with FF Happy Frog. The nute solution I pour into the soil is at about 6.5 PH, then I measure the runoff pH and it is acidic as fuck, usually under 5. It seems that Happy Frog soil is acidic from the start.

Oceanforest.......duh!

riznob10000 said:

What up Stoner!! I've gotta chime in because I'm usin Happy Frog also, but I'm havin nothing but positive results!! I don't use it straight though, it's about 50/50 mix Happy Frog Natural & Organic, and Black Gold Organic, then I add probably 30% more perlite, few scoops of worm castings, and I've always mixed in dolomite lime ( 1 cup/ cu. ft. ) to stabilize ph. I don't care what the soil bags say, I always just do it. Also, and I'm not sayin you're wrong bro, but I've got 10 bags sittin here, went over one bag three times, and couldn't find a ph level listed on there. It says it has dolomite lime added to it, but doesn't state a level anywhere.

Anyway, I'm feelin your pain, and my only advice would be to amend the Happy Frog somewhat with another medium, that way if one is a little lacking in somethin, or too strong in somethin, you have a buffer to work with, and the other medium will hopefully compensate for any highs or lows. Feel me? And I say, just add the lime; won't hurt anything at worst and it's not expensive at all.

Good luck on your grow!!!

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That's some good shit. It's what I'm currently using, haven't had a single problem with PH yet. Plus it has built in perlite, dolomite lime, and worm castings. As well as sphagnum peat moss for moisture retention.

Tasty.

I had some weird problems with happy frog burnin the heck outta my plants too, switched to ocean forest and everything is better!

happy frog aint meant to be used by itself..

Yea man you just can't be using it by itself why you think ocean forest has more stuff? Ocean forest is the bomb ! I haven't burned any plants yet with it. Black gold is just an ocean forest wannabe.

hey thanks guys ! at least i can take some cuttings from the green stunted plants right ? and they will grow ? they are in veg at this time .

Mysticlown150 said:

Yea man you just can't be using it by itself why you think ocean forest has more stuff? Ocean forest is the bomb ! I haven't burned any plants yet with it. Black gold is just an ocean forest wannabe.

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Ugh, I know. Haha.

Wish I had some Ocean Forest. But the Black Gold works pretty great for now anyway.

Edit: Yeah you could take some cuttings, read up on cloning in the "101 already asked questions" thread at Newbie Central.

I knew I was right. I too use ocean forrest and havent had a problem. But I knew I read the ph needed to be adjusted using happy frog. I thought I was high. But hopefully everything works out for ya man. Unless your dead set on transplanting or cutting clones why not buy a ph up to offset this? I use the natural up by earth juice and its working great. I only use this to offset the low ph of Tiger Bloom Nutes since its very low. Dont Want Lockout nah mean.

Know this is old, but why start a new thread. I have been using Fox Farms Happy Frog recently and was told by the clerk that it is PH balanced. This I found on their website..

All of our soils are pH adjusted between the ranges of 6.3-6.8. This ensures an optimal growing environment.​

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I also found this nugget of info that has proved invaluable to me..

Helpful Hint: testing for pH in soil is very different than when you test in water. Testing the runoff from a container is not always accurate as the water just drains out nutrients. If you want to use your current pH instrument instead of one calibrated for soil, you must test your pH with a slurry test. Take ½ cup of soil and mix with 1 cup of water. Let it sit for 30 minutes and test away. We recommend that everyone test their pH as it is a top cause for many plant problems, but spend the extra money on a better meter and keep the tip clean.​

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Also their site says this about HF...

Our Happy Frog Potting Soil has the added benefit of soil-dwelling microbes and fungi that help break down organic matter and feed the plant roots. Happy Frog has the same earthworm castings, bat guano, and composted forest humus that make up all our fine soil blends. ​

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So Happy frog seems to lack ...

Pacific Northwest sea-going fish and crab meal.

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Not sure of the benefits of the fish/crab meal but gonna find out

So being the perfectionist I am I tested Happy Frog right out of the bag using the slurry method. Drum roll please.......... PH of 5.6

WTF, but never fear... dolomite lime is here. I added the equivalent of a little over 2 TBSP per gallon of soil mixed well watered and let sit about an hour. I then took another slurry test of the limed soil.... let sit 30 min....... Drum roll Please... PH of 6.6

Lesson I learned, test your soil BEFORE planting. I only had one bag seed plant in HF without the lime and its showing some deficiency's but when I transplanted I added the lime and new growth looks really good, nice and dark green and lush. I am going to test Ocean Forrest on my next run, but HF seems to be a solid soil but its gonna need some lime.

not sure on how much that stuff actually cost and also adding stuff to it like more perlite , lime etc
i like my blend of pro mix sheep manure peatmoss, shrimp compost plants seem to like it as well

hey stonerj0e, foxfarm s soils are pretty good one too....no matter what bags label said, you must always add lime into mix along with perlite...anytime i got a new batch of soils or soilless, i always add lime to it...in the long term you dont have to worry PH etc. dont give it up too early....start over with new seeds, just get some lime like garden lime 5 dollars of bag at the homedepot it will last you for long time and keep happy froggy i like the organic stuff and its all up to you to make a decide what of your plant even stunted but it will resume grow in about few weeks. its kinda of late for harvest but in the long run you will still get some buds from that stunted plant....good luck