Indoor growing w/soil: nutrient questions

Zito said:

Hi everyone,

First post, so allow me to introduce myself. People call me Zito, and I've been growing hydroponically for about 3 years. I want to try using soil indoors, and had a couple questions about nutrient administration. I'd greatly appreciate any insight anyone can offer.

Just to give some info that might help, I'm using a 600w digital ballast setup, and I'm a Fox Farm Nutrient guy (going with the full line:Grow Big, Big Bloom, Tiger Bloom, Beasie Bloomz, Open Seasame, and Cha-Ching). I plan on using Fox Farm Ocean Forest soil, whic came highly recomended. I have a well ventalated tent system, temp/humidity arent an issue, and I'm using an MH bulb for vegging, and an HPS for flowering.

So without further ado...

When using hydroponic systems, I simply added the nutes to the resivoir and they were fed to the plants through the drip/ebb & flow setup. Real easy, life was good. With soil, my thought is to get a watering can that holds X number of gallons (I imagine 1-2 at the most) add the appropriate amount of nutrients with the water in the can, and use it to water my plants twice a day. Is this a solid plan, or is there a better way?

Also, is there anything I should look out with while using soil, and what do other people think of using it indoors?

Thanks!

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Zito said:

So, do you pour the water right out of the water jugs, or put it in a watering can first? And thanks for the heads up, in hindsight, twice a day does sound excessive lol.

Have you ever had any bug problems using soil? I'm just hoping it wont be an issue, but want to know what to expect.

And a learning curve for sure lol I just hope these babies turn out alright.

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Zito said:

So, do you pour the water right out of the water jugs, or put it in a watering can first? And thanks for the heads up, in hindsight, twice a day does sound excessive lol.

Have you ever had any bug problems using soil? I'm just hoping it wont be an issue, but want to know what to expect.

And a learning curve for sure lol I just hope these babies turn out alright.

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vhsmopnglo said:

Try to keep the number of transplants you do into bigger pots to a minimum...transplanting will slow growth and shock them depending on how well it was done... Also, I find that I don't need to use a nutrient solution every watering... I'll use the nutes about every 3rd watering and using distilled or rain water ( helps that I outdoor grow lol) the rest of the time...Used milk jugs are awesome for having a portable gallon... Good luck!

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Mr Bomb said:

Pour the water from the gallon containers into a watering can after you have already mixed your nutrient solution and adjusted for proper pH.

Personally, I have never had bug problems but many people have so be careful and keep your area clean.

Respectfully, I have to disagree on a couple issues. First, definetly use nutrients every watering once you have worked up to a full dose. Your plants need and want those nutrients.

Second, don't us empty milk containers. Its near impossible to rinse them clean of any milk residue. I don't know about you but I don't want to water my babies with milk no matter how small the amount. I use empty 1 gallon water containers.

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Mr Bomb said:

I am basically your opposite. I have been growing for several years but have never done any hydro. Soil is a great way to grow and produces some excellent herb.

I also am a Foxfarm guy and use their whole line just like you do but with soil things are a little different. You can find their soil feeding schedule on their website or at most hydro shops.

Its a good idea to use a watering can but I don't recommend mixing your nutrients in it. The best way is to use gallon containers filled with water that have sat out for a day or two before you add nutrients, pH accordingly and use them on your plants.

Watering twice a day in soil is way too much. You will stress or even kill your plants. You should only water when the soil 3-4 inches below the surface is dry. This is normally about every 3-4 days depending on the size of your plant and local weather conditions.

You pretty much have everything else down but still expect a bit of a learning curve when first experimenting with soil. If I can help at all just pm me.

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