New grower here, semi-knowledged by what i've been reading

So I'm looking to do the CFL method, 4 CFL's per plant based upon this tutorial:

http://www.growweedeasy.com/easiest-grow-method-cfl-coco-coir

I can afford everything in this tutorial, but I also know plants do grow in soil too (which is potentially) cheaper. I read a bit about the effects with people and MG, etc etc, saw one video where they mixed their own soil, perlite, building sand etc but that's a lot of materials to get to mix and probably outweighs the money saving options. Could I get away with a decent MG Organic mixed with perlite and a decent watering cycle? (The watering cycle without nutrients) I'm honestly aiming to grow two plants at a time, about 5+ oz's.

I'm in the knowledge gathering mode, so any help on this is appreciated

I'm on my first grow also. And I learned quite a bit from that website. But I ended up buying a bag of Fox Farms Ocean Forest and mixing it with 33% perlite. I'm growing a Northern Lights and a Blue Mystic. I started under CFL's but added a 150W HPS, which is small and only runs about $80 or so. I started in solo cups and repotted twice to a 2 gal planter. So far they haven't needed much more than water. From what I've read there's mixed reviews on MG. But then there's mixed reviews on FFOF also. I might give the coir method a try but I wanted to keep it as simple as possible.

I use miracle grow organic potting soil. I use it in my outdoor plants and haven't had any troubles at all. Though next time I will be using fox farm ocean forest soil. From what I've read it doesn't get much better . Google hydroponic stores in your area... You'd be surprised at the number of hydro stores in your area that carried it, i was. Also remember spending a few extra bucks for the good stuff in the beginning is worth the product in the end! Good luck!

never have expectations of how much you'll get also for that kind of haul from two plants i'd recommend a 50/50 mix of tga super soil and tga soil. just water and watch no nutes involved. truly phenominal stuff

and for the love of god please don't ever use miracle weed for weed it will burn your plants

MG gets a bad rap mostly because Cannabis growers just have to help a bit more.
Adding ferts to MG is a bad idea, but, I've seen quite a few really nice plants grown here using the stuff & water.
The key is to not "over-love" them.

That said, I'm a Super Soil guy.
It cost a bit for the amendments, but I think the taste & effect justify the game.

dr grinsp00n said:

and for the love of god please don't ever use miracle weed for weed it will burn your plants

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WTF is miracle weed ?

GreatwhiteNorth said:

WTF is miracle weed ?

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haha miracle weed, diggin this site. You know I'll look into the fox farms ocean blend. And what is TGA?

I use MG also.. gets the job done and cheap. its not the best option but itll work. good luck with your grow. throw some pics up when you get a chance

haha i meant miracle grow. fox farms ocean blend will burn plants that aren't heavy feeders, mix fifty fifty with light warrior if thats all you have. TGA is the brand of the best soil you could you could use (my experience)

Urfacemypalm said:

haha miracle weed, diggin this site. You know I'll look into the fox farms ocean blend. And what is TGA?

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TGA is subcool's brand. He is a breeder. I like his stuff. Many ppl do. But not everyone. He does have what I think is a great recipe for a soil mix. It's not expensive. And u can reuse it for a couple years, just amend it after each grow. He does. I think by mixing your own soil you will learn and appreciate more the importance of soil biology and its influence on taste of your buds. By buying a ready made mix you learn nothing. But if you still want to cut a few corners then by all means pick up a few bags of FF or whatever. I've personally never used it. I have used MG Organic Choice with success. It does not have time release fertilizer in it. The problem with time release nutes is you have less control and many of the pellet time release fertilizers will dump all of their nutrients in temps above 90F. A buddy who grows ornamental woodies told me that and I never forgot it.

Thanks for the replies guys. I like the info, I may go with the mg organic which is cheaper, and just water whenever it dries a bit. How many ounces did you get off of this method?

Miracle grow doesn't work as well because it isn't the right mixture for growing marijuana/tomatoes. almost any nutrient that says its good for tomatoes will be good for weed. especially those bought at the grow shop

dr grinsp00n said:

Miracle grow doesn't work as well because it isn't the right mixture for growing marijuana/tomatoes. almost any nutrient that says its good for tomatoes will be good for weed. especially those bought at the grow shop

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There have been some incredible grows on this site using only MG soil & water.
Try the search feature - they're here & they just might make you rethink your position.
I would not say MG is the Be all-End all soil (I like SS), but it does work well when one understands what you're working with.

Personally I looked through a lot of threads here. There is no go to huge method. You can do any medium for the most part of you're smart.

For mg organic soil, what should the ph levels be? Most I notice don't even use ph especially with their mg product which ends up burning their plants or killing them off. I feel its more of 'how much work are you willing to do with the soil you have' rather than this soil is better and such.

I'm going to be growing with 4 42 watt cfls on each plant. Start with 2 till flowering, and ill have a timer as well to make it a bit more auto so I can do the 18-24 hrs then switch to 12/12