Calmag + Floranova?

[bumbabud]

I have been searching and can not find a concrete answer.
I have RO water, I am also using dolomite lime @ 2tsp Gallon in FFOF

so the lime, and ffof has cal mag. would that be enough?
has anyone found that they need to add calmag to FNG or FNB? and if so how much do you add?

thanks guys

 

[jasondanzig]

first of all, the ffof is a very potent soil, it has its issues by its self, i cut it with a local organic potting soil/mulch mix and perlite, a lot of perlite. i have heard people having mag deficiencies with this soil. i use the flora 3 part and other additives and have no problems with my mix. you could use this since we know nothing of your garden.
http://www.generalhydroponics.com/genhydro_US/feeding_charts/GH_KeepItSimple_DrainToWaste.pdf

your questions are a little vague. do you want a whole feeding schedule? what size are your plants? whats the room set up? what lights and what watt? seed or clone? what pot size? whats your goal, the list goes on and on. but i hope i helped a little, reply with a little more info, so we can better assess you situation. the more info we get, the better the help we can return with our experiences.

 

[sparkjumper]

I love ocean forest and also use a 5 stage R/O filter,I have been using cal-mag plus every other watering.I use 1 tsp per gallon soil dolomite lime also.I did a thread just this morning on the subject to see how much people are using.Some use it every watering.You are going to need it for sure,the dolomite is slow acting and mainly for ph control in flower.

 

[Pseudo]

FN already contains cal and mag

 

[DiscoBiscuit]

Ca and Mg are best absorbed in soil from 6.5 to 9.1. Two teaspoons lime per gal in FFOF sounds a little hot IMO. If pH is lower than 6.5, Ca and Mg lockout may occur. If this is the case I don't think Cal Mag would help. Like Pseudo said, "FN already contains cal and mag"
In this case I'd measure the runoff pH. If it's lower than 6.5, I'd see what I could do to raise pH between 6.5 and 7. Ca and Mg should then be available to roots. If runoff pH is between 6.5 and 7, I'd consider using Cal Mag+ (has N and Fe) if plants show a def. The label says to use 1 tsp Cal Mag per gal of water.

 

[Hydro-Soil]

FN already contains cal and mag

If you have that Mag deficiency around day 20-30, just raise the pH of your solution or medium for a couple weeks during that period, it will go away.

 

[bterzz]

Sorry to get off-topic.
I just started using Reverse Osmosis water and was concerned about cal-mag.

I noticed after taking pictures my girls seem to have some yellowing on the edges.

Does this look like the beginning of a cal-mag problem?

 

[DiscoBiscuit]

Sorry to get off-topic. Does this look like the beginning of a cal-mag problem?

wasup bterzz? your sig is prophetic. jk

The yellowing looks light a slight Zinc def. I bet your pH is too high. Zinc gets locked out of soil at 7.5pH or higher. The edges of the leaves look like they're curling up slightly. This could be heat/light and/or wind stress (fan too close and/or blowing directly on the plant.) If it doesn't get any worse the plant looks pretty damn good IMO. I'd check that pH though.

 

[bumbabud]

Thanks for all the replies! you guys are great.
I forgot to mention that i am a couple weeks away from doing this, i have seedlings right now in Light Warrior with 1tsp dolomite lime per gallon.

I am just trying to get it figured out before i have to start feeding them, so i thought if i could find someone that uses FNG/FNB with or without calmag i can plan better. I know that different soils/additives/enviro all factors in, so no two peoples setup will reflect the same outcome.

I do own calmag+, and have had to use it before with FF nutes, but now i am making the switch to FNG/FNB.

I did not have the bottle in front of me when i wrote this too so i didn't know that floranova already has calmag in it already, so then i shouldn't need it then, and if i do see a def i should raise the ph so im not prone to the lockout?

so once they are ready to be transplanted they (6 strains from seed) will be in 1gallon grow bags with FFOF/LW/Perlite(50/25/25) under a 250w MH in a stealth cab. So if 2tsp(dolomite lime) is too hot, i can add only 1tsp per gallon. I just remember reading 2tsp per gallon, but i am no where near an expert and i just want to make sure this run goes simple and smoothly.

Good call on the Mg def on day 20-30, ill keep that in mind. So you would just raise it a couple weeks, and bring it back down alittle after that? so is this what people mean by a PH swing? going from say 6.3 to 6.8 ( i have also read that this was the PH to keep in) depending on what needs to be absorbed at certain times?

yeah bterzz that girl looks nice. just keep an eye on the yellowing.

 

[bterzz]

wasup bterzz? your sig is prophetic. jk

The yellowing looks light a slight Zinc def. I bet your pH is too high. Zinc gets locked out of soil at 7.5pH or higher. The edges of the leaves look like they're curling up slightly. This could be heat/light and/or wind stress (fan too close and/or blowing directly on the plant.) If it doesn't get any worse the plant looks pretty damn good IMO. I'd check that pH though.

Sup brotha. Its not heat/light stress, and its not PH.

Maybe its the fan blowing on them, but I doubt it. I'm beginning to see more of a blotchy yellow as if someone was rubbing the green off of the leaf with there finger.

I'll take some pictures tonight and post them up.

Thanks

 

[Hydro-Soil]

Good call on the Mg def on day 20-30, ill keep that in mind. So you would just raise it a couple weeks, and bring it back down alittle after that? so is this what people mean by a PH swing? going from say 6.3 to 6.8 ( i have also read that this was the PH to keep in) depending on what needs to be absorbed at certain times?

Please keep it under 6.2 or you'll kill/seriously-maim your ladies.

Yes, except for the day 20-30 part where I keep the pH up around 6.0-6.1, the rest of the time I keep it around 5.8.

I use only RO water and have beautiful looking plants with 8ml/gal of FNB during flower. It's awesome and yet simple to use.

 

[DiscoBiscuit]

I did not have the bottle in front of me when i wrote this too so i didn't know that floranova already has calmag in it already, so then i shouldn't need it then, and if i do see a def i should raise the ph so im not prone to the lockout?

Don't worry about raising Ph in soil for Mg issues. Keeping your soil slightly below 7 will be fine. I think HydroSoil is giving you info about hydroponics. FFOF is clearly soil so lets stick to soil info. The Fox Farm Web site says Ocean Forest is pH balanced at 6.7 to 6.8. This is perfect, you won't have to use additional lime. I'd still measure the runoff before planting to see if they are right. FNG and FNB both have Ca & Mg. Whether you'll need additional will be up to your plants and you.

so once they are ready to be transplanted they (6 strains from seed) will be in 1gallon grow bags with FFOF/LW/Perlite(50/25/25) under a 250w MH in a stealth cab. So if 2tsp(dolomite lime) is too hot, i can add only 1tsp per gallon.

Hot means acid. Less lime = hotter. It sounds like Fox Farms uses enough lime in OF according to the Web site. Check the Web site to see if LW pH is listed. Don't rely on what they say alone. Perlite is benign, you won't have to lime it. Mix up a test batch, water and measure the runoff pH to be sure. If it is below what you want, add lime. The amount will depend on how much swing you need. Be sure not to over lime. If you have a question about how much to use, measure the runoff pH and shoot me a PM. I've been on both sides of the line and I might be able to help.