Thoughts about pH.

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NorthRiverNugz

Member
So sitting here freshly vaped staring at my aquarium and I got to thinking about pH. So much about pH and what pH is proper yadda ydaa bla bla bla. So much debate.

I been keeping freshwater aquariums for many many years. We have extremely hard alkaline tap water here. They call it liquid rock. Ph 8 or greater and 300 + ppm. Most fish I love thrive in soft acidic water BUT they will do ok if acclimated to a non optimal pH. So long as it is stable and there are no wide fluctuations. They can still live long healthy lives they just won't breed or be able to raise fry in sub optimal conditions. So all in all with fish keeping a stable pH is better than a very specific pH even if it is not optimal. Perhaps this is similar with cannabis plants or am I just nicely vaped and this is all just silly stoner theories. Hopefully someone knowledgeable can chime in here.
 
SaucyAussie

SaucyAussie

Active Member
pH is critical in cannabis cultivation, in fact, I tell people it's probably the single most important thing. Below a certain pH and certain nutrients are locked out. Above a certain pH and certain other nutrients are locked out.
 
bertaluchi

bertaluchi

Well-Known Member
I agree about pH being critical in cultivation but I also think that the quality of the water being used is about as important to a good grow as anything. I have ok water where I live, it is a bit hard so I mix it at a rate of 1:1 with RO or rain water. I know a few people that have had a drastic change in their grows since switching to a high quality water source. I would suggest that a newbe grower purchase a good pH and PPM meter so you can get off on the right foot
 
chocobear

chocobear

Active Member
pH is critical in hydroponic cultivation of plants, in soil its less of an issue, and apparently with organics it is no issue at all. While it certainly is important, when it goes to plants, no one thing is the most important. There are a whole bunch. Light, water, and the 16 nutrients essential for plant life, along with co2. If you are missing any one of those things your plant will die. That being said, ph in fish and plants are different.
Your fishies are going to eat their food regardless of the ph, and that is how they get their nutrition. In plants, the nutrients are taken up with the water. If your water's ph is too high or low, nutrients in the water are "locked-out" and your plants are unable to uptake/use them.
In short, proper ph levels are necessary in hydro. I have done a decent amount of soil gardening and have noticed the ph level is not quite as important.
 
AimAim

AimAim

Well-Known Member
If you are growing in soil, a decent buffered soil with some dolomite or ag lime, the pH of whatever you water / fertilize with is insignificant. The soil will buffer the soil solution (the water held in the soil) to a perfect pH.
 
bamacheese

bamacheese

Well-Known Member
pH is a big deal regardless of the media you are growing in....Phosphorous is the nutrient that is most affected and locked out of the plant. Any pH over 6.2 on a soil will cause a dramatic lock out of phosphorous. This is the most common problem encountered with cannabis cultivation. Overcorrecting pH is just as big of an issue. Get your damn soil tested people!! It isn't that hard.
 
AimAim

AimAim

Well-Known Member
bamacheese said:
pH is a big deal regardless of the media you are growing in
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I'll be the first to agree that pH of the soil is of utmost importance. But it's pretty easy to hit the nail on the head with most any over-the-counter potting soil and a handfull of dolomite.
 
Cobnobuler

Cobnobuler

Well-Known Member
I grow in soil and I use mostly FoxFarm OF. Early on I read a lot to learn how to do this and of course got concerned about PH. So, I'm on a limited budget so I bought a lower end Hanna PH meter and all it became was a huge headache. It would never read the same thing twice and there I am with quarts of PH up and PH down mix and tryin to piss around with all that until I said screw it, it was beginning to take the fun out of it. The PH of my city tap water is 6.5. Along the way I treat the soil with some dolomite lime and I've been happy with every harvest I've had since.
 
AimAim

AimAim

Well-Known Member
Cobnobuler said:
Along the way I treat the soil with some dolomite lime and I've been happy with every harvest I've had since.
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Thumbs up. Or you can make it complicated. pH blathering is just that. Mostly nonsense by people who do not actually understand pH.
 
SaucyAussie

SaucyAussie

Active Member
I had to take a boat load of chemistry in college while I was working in pool/spa maintenence at the same time, I understand pH. :)
 
C

churchhaze

Well-Known Member
Do you grow hydroponically, and if so, do you mix your own salts, acids/bases for nutrients?

You should go for it if you had to take a boat load of chemistry. Not being sarcastic, that's what me and a few others around here do.

SaucyAussie said:
I had to take a boat load of chemistry in college while I was working in pool/spa maintenence at the same time, I understand pH. :)
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D

D19bal

Member
I'm having some problems with a plant and have been told its the PH ..... Im going to order a testing kit online to see if thats the case. My main questions here are what can i do to tap water to make it more plant friendly and also if i do find the ph isnt ideal what can i add to the soil to amend it. The plant is in its 4th week of flower
 
Mr.Marijuana420

Mr.Marijuana420

Well-Known Member
SaucyAussie said:
pH is critical in cannabis cultivation, in fact, I tell people it's probably the single most important thing. Below a certain pH and certain nutrients are locked out. Above a certain pH and certain other nutrients are locked out.
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I think he's on something there, after all soil ph greatly varies across different landscapes to say that plant will be unable to adjust to a minimal ph change is ridiculous. if everything in our world was that finicky there'd be very little room for evolutionary change. Organisms that fail to evolve in our ever changing world ultimately die. Now Im not saying you can have your plants in an extremely alkaline or acidic soil and all will be well nor do I think the OP meant that. but say your medium has a ph 1 up or 1 down of the neutral 7. As long there isn't any major increase or decrease in ph throughout your plants life all should be fine. Now nutrient uptake may not be ideal at these levels, and as pot farmers we're always gonna try to get the most out of our plants, so we're gonna try and keep our soil/medium around 7, but don't think the plants gonna completly reject the medium because its a little off
 
Mr.Marijuana420

Mr.Marijuana420

Well-Known Member
bamacheese said:
pH is a big deal regardless of the media you are growing in....Phosphorous is the nutrient that is most affected and locked out of the plant. Any pH over 6.2 on a soil will cause a dramatic lock out of phosphorous. This is the most common problem encountered with cannabis cultivation. Overcorrecting pH is just as big of an issue. Get your damn soil tested people!! It isn't that hard.
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hmm something like below 55 or 50 degrees F also locks out phosphorous, Guess what outdoor temps are come mid sept here in our northern climates, and for the last 4-5 weeks of 40s-50's my plants still manage to grow these nice hard and fat colas?
 
SaucyAussie

SaucyAussie

Active Member
churchhaze said:
Do you grow hydroponically, and if so, do you mix your own salts, acids/bases for nutrients?

You should go for it if you had to take a boat load of chemistry. Not being sarcastic, that's what me and a few others around here do.
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Nah, but sounds like fun. I just use GH nutes but I do use nitric acid to lower pH. I've never actually had to raise pH. I use distilled water exclusively. They throw a bunch of lime in our tap water and it runs 250-300 ppm and 9.55 pH.

Mr.Marijuana420 said:
I think he's on something there, after all soil ph greatly varies across different landscapes to say that plant will be unable to adjust to a minimal ph change is ridiculous. if everything in our world was that finicky there'd be very little room for evolutionary change. Organisms that fail to evolve in our ever changing world ultimately die. Now Im not saying you can have your plants in an extremely alkaline or acidic soil and all will be well nor do I think the OP meant that. but say your medium has a ph 1 up or 1 down of the neutral 7. As long there isn't any major increase or decrease in ph throughout your plants life all should be fine. Now nutrient uptake may not be ideal at these levels, and as pot farmers we're always gonna try to get the most out of our plants, so we're gonna try and keep our soil/medium around 7, but don't think the plants gonna completly reject the medium because its a little off
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No, of course, nature is highly adaptable, things that don't adapt die, but we're going for optimal conditions here, right? :)
 
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