Looking for FloraNova alternatives.

[GrowerGoneWild]

I absolutely recommend Maxibloom. The plant in that pic was grown outside in straight coco and Maxibloom at 1tsp/gal.
I'm now running a table of the same pheno, using the same ratio, adding Floralicous+ every other rez change.
Maxibloom is not quite a powder, more of granular, so you gotta shake it good to get it to dissolve properly, but the results are freakin amazing!

Ah.. Thanks for clearing up the grow specs on that one.

Advice taken.. I'll dissolve in water prior to adding it to the main tank.

 

[GrowerGoneWild]

I know it's not a one part solution, but consider looking into GH Flora Bloom and Micro (Lucas Formula). It would be 2 part but with zero grit and has an extremely long shelf life unlike FloraNova.

I use FloraNova Bloom (Lucas) in an NFT setup. Mixing aside, I love it. I've had my best yields (same genetics) by far using it. But with your system, I can see why you are looking for alternatives.

Good luck!

One of the main reasons for me not wanting a two part is I plan on automating the res changes, and GH Flora and Micro cannot be mixed together at full strength in a holding tank.

Second is simplicity, lets just say that she needs the simplest solution possible. I can handle lucas formulas, but when I'm gone and somebody needs to refill the tank, Simple is best.

 

[Helis]

This has been an awesome thread! I have been looking at FNB because of pH buffers (have had some problems without them) but after reading this and the ones posted by *mistress* I'm sold on MaxiBloom... Since it's cheap I'm gonna have to run out and grab some up.

 

[trugreens]

a one part nute thing does sound a lot easier...

i just got stuck on using either sensi A&B or grow-micro-bloom from advanced nutrients...works too good to let go of...

something about those nutes makes me nervous about switching up, but then again, making things simpler is a good idea too....

this thread is awesome for learning new nute ideas tho.

unless advanced nutrients is making a one part nute that i havent' found yet....anyone? anyone?

 

[GrowerGoneWild]

a one part nute thing does sound a lot easier...

i just got stuck on using either sensi A&B or grow-micro-bloom from advanced nutrients...works too good to let go of...

something about those nutes makes me nervous about switching up, but then again, making things simpler is a good idea too....

this thread is awesome for learning new nute ideas tho.

unless advanced nutrients is making a one part nute that i havent' found yet....anyone? anyone?

I used to be hardcore about using just about everything to throw into the res.

It worked.

Then I got tired of having something like 10+ bottles of main nutrient and adjuncts.

I tried out a 1 part organic FNB, and it worked nearly as good as my complex multi part system.

I would love to try out a 1 part nutrient from AN, but as far as I know there is no such thing.

 

[Centrum]

If you like GH nutes why not just keep it simple and use the 3 part nutes instead of the nova series ?

 

[Helis]

Centrum do you mean the 3-part (Nova Series) instead of FloraNova or Maxi line?
Personally, I am currently using the lucas formula with the Flora series (though I own all three bottles)... I have wanted to start using FNB (because of pH buffers and humics/fulvics, one I need the other I don't) but have no desire to pull out the paint mixer, especially for something that will take me months to use.
After looking into maxibloom more... 1.5 lbs is $15 at the shop, same price as FN Micro. That will last me forever. If I don't like it for cannabis I have lots of other things to feed, but from those who DO use it, there won't be a reason to not like it

Helis

 

[*mistress*]

the flora magic is 100% water soluble.
check msds's on maxi bloom, flora mato & flora magic...

the flora magic is most water soluble... will also have lower ph than maxibloom...

just have not the need for that high level of phosphorus (14%) as is in maxibloom. the (8%) of flora magic seems more mngble... w/ a ~1:2 n:k ratio... phosphorus is usually included in higher %'s that just the 'P' on the box/bottle, due to the 'phosphates' in the neg/pos ion/anion bonds that make ferts...

flora magic also clearly state 'one-part all purpose plant food'...

hard to beat jack's classic 20-20-20 though. reliable, 100% water soluble. just lack cal... which is ok... most profession greenhouse mixes have calcium nitrate in separate solution, to prevent chem reaction... same w/ some part a/part b 'hydro' mixes...



enjoy your garden!

 

[SweetIndica2]

Do you guys use the MaxiBloom only or the MaxiGrow as well (for vegging)? And if i used those instead of FN, is there any other nutrients i will need to add? I liked the fact that i could use JUST the FN grow and bloom with usually Canna PK 13/14 or another Bloom stimulator and still achieve great results. Also since it's dry formula, how many gallons of nutrient/water mixture could i get from a 2.2lb bag of the MaxiGro/MaxiBloom if i was using say 1tsp per gallon?

Thanks in advance!

 

[jawnroot]

I use both (gro and bloom). If you're using them with tap that has 100-200ppm of dissolved solids, you don't have to add Cal-Mag b/c it's already in the tap. The problem with tap is that most municipalities are switching to chloramines (sp?) as opposed to standard chlorine. Chloramines do not evaporate out of solution, no matter what you do, whereas chlorine will after about 24 hours.

I know my municipality is making the switch to chloramines, so I'm probably going to go with RO or distilled, with about 1ml per gallon of Cal-Mag (Bontanicare) added prior to mixing in the Maxi. MaxiBloom and MaxiGro are "simple" one part nutes, which effectively means they were designed to be used with tap, which has present roughly 50-100ppm of dissolved cal-mag on average, once you factor out all the other junk that's in there.

In other words, MaxiBloom and MaxiGro most likely lack the levels of Cal (and perhaps Mag) needed to take a crop to harvest. If you're using a soil or soiless mix that has a good shot of calcium (via bone meal or other), you may not have to worry about this, depending upon how large you grow your plants. But most growers and most situations, even the ones using the aforementioned mixes, will probably benefit by adding 1ml a gallon of cal-mag.

If you wanted to keep it real simple, you can use Maxi with RO or distilled, and then add dried and powdered egg shells to the top of your soil/soiless mix. When you water, a little bit of calcium will leach down into the soil. This is, of course, not nearly as precise as metering out a dose of Cal-Mag, but it'll get the job done K.I.S.S. style. If you're growing hydro, I'd imagine Cal-Mag would be the only alternative if you're not using tap.

 

[SweetIndica2]

Ok, thanks. And how many TSP of MaxiBloom will i get per 2.2lb bag? I'm just trying to figure it out so i can compare it price wise to FN.

 

[jawnroot]

According to the label, it's one gram in 1 liter, or one tsp in 1 gallon. There are slightly more than 3.75 liters in a gallon, so you figure about 3.75 grams per tsp based upon those numbers. 2.2 pounds is one kilogram (1000 grams), so you're getting 260 doses of Maxi in the 2.2 pound bags (rounding down). At my local hydro place, I've never paid more than $12 for a 2.2 pound bag, including tax, so that's 4.6 cents a dose.

By contrast, a bottle of FN contains 946ml. The average dose is 2.5ml/2 tsp a gallon. At that rate of application, you're getting about 375 doses per bottle. FloraNova is $21 a bottle on a good day, or 5.6 cents a dose.

So we're talking a difference of 1 cent per gallon, or 20% more for an equivalent amount of FN, which can really add up if you do a fair amount of growing. Even beyond cost savings, Maxi (IMHO) is a lot more user friendly when compared to FN, and you get the same results.

I should emphasize that I'm a soil, and to a lesser extent, soiless grower. Many of you guys are talking straight hydro, and I can't vouch for Maxi's performance in that medium, although I imagine it would work as well or better than FN.

 

[mjcrusader]

one part nutes does sound a lot easier in one respect, but at the same time, i think that a three part nute is better for my plants since it allows me a chance to tweak some things since i'm a little anal when it comes to my nutes...sometimes i don't always do a perfect 1:1:1...and when i have different bottles, i can change things up...

now, that doesn't always work, true, but for me, i think three part nutes like the Micro-Grow-Bloom from Advanced Nutrients just gives me a little more flexibility when my plants seem to be finicky.

or that might be a grower that's finicky....

maybe in the future i'll have to check out the one parters tho....it might save me time in teh grow room...

but if the plants aren't going to come up as much as my past grows, that's a little nerve-wracking...eh

cool info thx to every1

 

[RewTheJew]

look into humboldt nutrients oneness. I have heard nothing but good things from that company, so it might be worth a shot.

btw you guys have me sold on maxi bloom.. 12 bux for 260 doses. nice

 

[SweetIndica2]

jawnroot - Thanks for the info, your math is dead on. It's about exactly 20% savings like you said, and i'm all for saving money. I do agree that it should be easier to use as well. I hate constantly shaking FloraNova, and sometimes it doesn't dissolve that well. It can be a hassle to use. Plus with dry nutes, i don't have to worry about them spoiling as easily or at all.

I'm just trying to think how much i am going to need. Probably atleast 4-5 of the 2.2lb bags, i might just even buy one of the 16lb containers of it. I know it will last awhile since it's dry, but is there any shelf life on it? If i buy too much and don't end up using it all i'd like to save it for future use.

It also has PH Buffers just like FN right? And i know you were talking about the chloramines. How can i tell if my tap water has chloramines in it?

 

[jawnroot]

I'm just trying to think how much i am going to need. Probably atleast 4-5 of the 2.2lb bags, i might just even buy one of the 16lb containers of it. I know it will last awhile since it's dry, but is there any shelf life on it? If i buy too much and don't end up using it all i'd like to save it for future use.

It'll last indefinitely. The only issue you'll run into is if it's exposed to high temperatures (above 80*F) or high humidity. If that happens, the stuff will start to mat together. In other words, if it's stored in improper conditions, it will turn into a solid mass. If that happens, all you really have to do is break it up/crush it and your good.

For all intents and purposes, it will never go bad in the traditional sense. If it's stored in a typical home environment (about 70*F and 70% or less humidity), and you keep the lid on, you'll be fine.

It also has PH Buffers just like FN right? And i know you were talking about the chloramines. How can i tell if my tap water has chloramines in it?

Yup, it has buffers. Indeed, it's amazing how well Maxi can buffer even the crappiest water. It maintains pH as well or better than FN, from what I gather.

I don't know that there's any foolproof way of knowing 'bout chloramines, short of contacting your local municipality and asking. Barring that, you could bubble a sample of your water for 25-48 hours and taste/smell it. If it still has that chlorine sensation to it, it's probably chloramines.

I know there's some technique of getting rid of chloramines involving vitamin C. If you poke around on the forums you can probably find it. But really, once you get into all that, it becomes more practical to get an RO/DI kit, or buy distilled if your grow is small enough.

 

[SweetIndica2]

It'll last indefinitely. The only issue you'll run into is if it's exposed to high temperatures (above 80*F) or high humidity. If that happens, the stuff will start to mat together. In other words, if it's stored in improper conditions, it will turn into a solid mass. If that happens, all you really have to do is break it up/crush it and your good.

For all intents and purposes, it will never go bad in the traditional sense. If it's stored in a typical home environment (about 70*F and 70% or less humidity), and you keep the lid on, you'll be fine.



Yup, it has buffers. Indeed, it's amazing how well Maxi can buffer even the crappiest water. It maintains pH as well or better than FN, from what I gather.

I don't know that there's any foolproof way of knowing 'bout chloramines, short of contacting your local municipality and asking. Barring that, you could bubble a sample of your water for 25-48 hours and taste/smell it. If it still has that chlorine sensation to it, it's probably chloramines.

I know there's some technique of getting rid of chloramines involving vitamin C. If you poke around on the forums you can probably find it. But really, once you get into all that, it becomes more practical to get an RO/DI kit, or buy distilled if your grow is small enough.

Thanks for the info, i really appreciate you taking the time to help me out. That is awesome that it will stay good for that long, that is the main reason i wanted to switch to dry nutrients because i am sick of spending a premium on FN and other liquid nutes and having them go bad within a year. I keep all my nutes in a dark closet that is very cool and dry too.

I will probably have to use tap water. I am upgrading a bunch of equipment, and only have a budget of about $650. RO kits are usually a few hundred right? I already have a big shopping list and my wallet won't allow that right now. My grow is too big to buy distilled water too. It would cost me hundreds of dollars just to feed them distilled water. I will see if i can figure out weather my water has chloramines in it or not. Although one thing i have noticed, is that when i have left water bottles out for a day or two and then taken a sip from them they do have a very chlorine smell and taste, i've actually only noticed it fairly recently and said something to my roommate about it.

I'll have to check to be sure though.

EDIT: I also just noticed this is in the hydro forum, so sorry if this doesn't belong here since i use Pro-Mix for a medium. The MaxiGro and MaxiBloom will work fine in Pro-Mix right? And will the PH be buffered correctly for Pro-Mix also? And if using Pro-Mix would i still feed them 1tsp per gallon of water? Thanks.

 

[*mistress*]

According to the label, it's one gram in 1 liter, or one tsp in 1 gallon. There are slightly more than 3.75 liters in a gallon, so you figure about 3.75 grams per tsp based upon those numbers. 2.2 pounds is one kilogram (1000 grams), so you're getting 260 doses of Maxi in the 2.2 pound bags (rounding down). At my local hydro place, I've never paid more than $12 for a 2.2 pound bag, including tax, so that's 4.6 cents a dose.

By contrast, a bottle of FN contains 946ml. The average dose is 2.5ml/2 tsp a gallon. At that rate of application, you're getting about 375 doses per bottle. FloraNova is $21 a bottle on a good day, or 5.6 cents a dose.

So we're talking a difference of 1 cent per gallon, or 20% more for an equivalent amount of FN, which can really add up if you do a fair amount of growing. Even beyond cost savings, Maxi (IMHO) is a lot more user friendly when compared to FN, and you get the same results.

I should emphasize that I'm a soil, and to a lesser extent, soiless grower. Many of you guys are talking straight hydro, and I can't vouch for Maxi's performance in that medium, although I imagine it would work as well or better than FN.

1 tsp=~5ml=~5g

but, since every substance will have its own weight, it could actually weigh more or less...

2 teaspoons = 10ml...

however, w/ flora nova nutes, ea batch can have different 'net weight'... which will affect the amount of nutes (ppms) in each batch. & thus in ea teaspoon... based on the same dosage suggest on label.

this may be helpful in calculating any/all fertilizer formulations... including fnb, etc, etc...

&/or foodstuff amendment ppms (molasses, etc... any item w/ 'nutrition facts' label):

calculating npk/nutrient profile

enjoy your garden!

 

[SweetIndica2]

1 tsp=~5ml=~5g

but, since every substance will have its own weight, it could actually weigh more or less...

2 teaspoons = 10ml...

however, w/ flora nova nutes, ea batch can have different 'net weight'... which will affect the amount of nutes (ppms) in each batch. & thus in ea teaspoon... based on the same dosage suggest on label.

this may be helpful in calculating any/all fertilizer formulations... including fnb, etc, etc...

&/or foodstuff amendment ppms (molasses, etc... any item w/ 'nutrition facts' label):

calculating npk/nutrient profile

enjoy your garden!

2 tsp sounds like a lot per gallon, 3-5ml is what i usually used. I don't think he meant 2 tsp, he probably just made a mistake.

One thing i'm wonder is, for Pro-Mix i was told to use 3ml every watering or 8ml every 3 waterings when i was using FloraNova. With this i'm assuming i just use 1 tsp per gallon even if i'm using promix and feeding every watering right? I'm just wondering, because Pro-Mix seems to take nutes differently compared to other mediums and this will be my first time using the Pro-Mix.

 

[GrowerGoneWild]

If you like GH nutes why not just keep it simple and use the 3 part nutes instead of the nova series ?

The FNG or FNB nova series is one part.

I've even trimmed it down to 2 parts using the Flora series. 2:1 formula.