Any substitutes for rockwool ?

[420tyme]

im thinking about trying a home made hydro grow

and i have the things i need but i dont have anything to start the seeds off in .

Is their any house hold products i could use to start my seeds in besides the rockwool cubes ?

or does it have to be the cubes or the other fiberglass style products ?


EDIT ,


Do you think i could cut off and use the yellow part of this sponge ?

think the roots would grow through it ?

 

[Young Pumpkin]

Oasis cubes preferred here. Or peat pellets, or promix. Just make sure you get the dirt out before trans planting to hydro. All the dirt. I dont trust the sponge, especially with that side of "scotchbrite" on it. Too many time tested options. Then again you may have the cleanest roots around. Or end up in the infirmary wondering why your clones are dying or your ph is screwy. Give it a try, let us know......

As I understand it o cubes are neutral and need no presoaking ph adjustments like r cubes. I start with distilled water then pop that cutting in.

 

[FreezerBoy]

Rockwool starter cubes are a lot cheaper than that sponge. Cut your own from a six inch block and they're even cheaper, a few pennies each.

 

[stoney917]

lol .... theres lots of other options. i wouldnt use nething from the cleaning isle of the supermarket to start seeds.... that spongue can be useful when ya clean ur rez...
if u got a personal beef with rockwool it has a competitor called stg sure to grow its the same concept except white not yellow..

 

[Saran]

I Luv Rockwool

 

[Oldmac]

I use Grodan marco-plugs for starting cuttings in my personal grow. They cost only 16 1/2 cents each when bought 2000 at a time. I like the convinence of "transplanting" them into 4" delta blocks.

Un-like Saran I've grown to hate RW. There is just too much waste to dispose of. It took me a year and a half just to figure out how to get rid of of the evidence roots my 4" blocks contained and break down the blocks to sand. The anwser was fire, heat and beatting on the hot cubes to make them break down to sand. Then shoveling out my burn barrel of the crap.

Reason why in my partnered grow I insisted on makeing aero/fog grow trays....no medium.

OM

 

[stonedwarrior]

would anyone suggest germing seeds in good quality potting mix and then transferring to neoprene pool noodle pucks?

 

[hippydan]

would anyone suggest germing seeds in good quality potting mix and then transferring to neoprene pool noodle pucks?

It's possible to to wash the soil off the roots but to save on headaches I'd suggest growing a mother in soil and taking cuttings to root them in the pucks.

 

[Rednick]

I think the rw is a little too tough to start seeds in, always been able to germ in wet, warm paper towels, but then the roots are just too weak to penetrate the rw cloning cube.

I say Rapid Rooters. Can't say FTW (but I'm thinking it), because I haven't used seeds in them yet. But I have used them before and they rock, a little lighter and more penetrable than rw, IMO.

What a buddy uses that works great is the little 'Aero-Gardens'. Those t/v herb gardens.

 

[hippydan]

I germ'd seeds in RW cubes, and yes the roots wanted to push the seeds out of the hole instead of growing down through the cube, but I did get 100% success rate, however I only started 4 seeds.

 

[stonedwarrior]

It's possible to to wash the soil off the roots but to save on headaches I'd suggest growing a mother in soil and taking cuttings to root them in the pucks.

What headaches would you predict sir?

I have the seeds germing now in potting mix, but have plenty more to do with as I wish

 

[mad librettist]

Any substitutes for rockwool ?

for rooting clones try a bed of calcined DE like napa auto parts #8822. you just yank it out when you are ready.

as long as you have drain holes you can't overwater it.

 

[hippydan]

What headaches would you predict sir?

I have the seeds germing now in potting mix, but have plenty more to do with as I wish

Anything "extra" you do adds potential for things to go wrong. I'm a firm believer in germinating the seeds in whatever medium they are going to be living in and leaving them in it. If you've got lots of time to spend with your plants and don't have many plants to tend to, by all means start them in soil and move them into a hydroponic system. It's just not efficient, veg a mother for an extra week and have solid clones every time instead of all the work you want to do. Sexing plants to find females and strong mothers will take an extra bit of time the FIRST grow, after that you're golden.

 

[!!!]

you can use a sponge but stick to rockwool. Plants (or roots) LOVE it.

Alternatives are diff brands of rockwool, coco, peat pellets (cheap), riot cubes, etc..

rockwool is the shit though

 

[420tyme]

ok thanks every ,

i do not have anything against rockwool

iv never done hydro before and i was just seeing what i could get by with

but it looks like i need to just wait until i can get the actual things i need

instead of trying to modify household objects lol

thanks everyone

 

[Sgt.Stedenko]

Rapid Rooters in a hempy cup work great for me. Straight from there to netpots w/ hydroton.

 

[420tyme]

Will you check these out and tell me what you think ,

Do you think they will work just as good as rockwool ?

http://www.amazon.com/Aerogarden-Co...ges-Aerogardens/dp/B003WQTSKW/ref=pd_sbs_ol_7

 

[FreezerBoy]

Grossly expensive. You can get a 6" Rockwool cube for half that, no delivery charges, no waiting, just pick it up at the store today. The 6" cube can then be easily cut into over 200 1" starters.

You're making things far harder and more expensive than they need to be.

 

[FreezerBoy]

I think the rw is a little too tough to start seeds in, always been able to germ in wet, warm paper towels, but then the roots are just too weak to penetrate the rw cloning cube.

Rookwool is ideal for germing as new roots can penetrate with ease. Your problem was the paper towel. You told the roots they would never meet resistance and they believed you.

If you can't grow in it (and you can't grow in a paper towel) don't germ in it. Warm, moist rockwool (or, soil, rapid rooters, jiffy plugs) will not freeze or dry your seed. Whatever you think the towel will do, rockwool will do better, faster. By the time you see a tap root poking out of paper, you could have a full blown seedling in rockwool with roots protected as well.

 

[420tyme]

Grossly expensive. You can get a 6" Rockwool cube for half that, no delivery charges, no waiting, just pick it up at the store today. The 6" cube can then be easily cut into over 200 1" starters.

You're making things far harder and more expensive than they need to be.

That would be nice my man

but their is not a store near me that sells roockwool

i would most definitely would do that if their was a store near by

all i have is a wal-mart , and lowes and an ace hardware store ,

No home depot or anything else

the closest hydro store to me is almost 2 hours away i believe