should i really not bother with the ph??

[thundercat]

Greetings everyone. Quick question. should i really not worry about ph??? I read as long as the soil is good i shouldn't ..i have an organic Autoflower grow going. I just gave water with a ph of 6.5 the run off was 6.9-7.0 so 7.5 is the ph im guessing The plant is in 2 parts ff happy frog and 1 part peat moss in a 3 gallon root pot. Also dolomite at 1 tbsp per gallon. Im using ro water with earth juice elements cal mag every watering. Someone please take me to school.

 

[944s2]

""" cat amongst the pidgeons""" lol,,,thundercat,,their has been a lot of threads/posts on this subject,,it might be worth having a search on the organic section of the forum,,good luck,,peace and regards 944s2

 

[thundercat]

Thank u. I will check it out.

 

[supermanlives]

your gonna get varied responses. before i gave up on ph. i tested a lot. once i was comfortable and using same mix i tossed my meter. haven't checked ph in long time now.

 

[SpicySativa]

The pH of the runoff is just that; the pH of the runoff. It is not the pH of the soil, it is not the pH in the root zone, and it is not particularly useful in an organic grow.

Here's the real question: Do your plants look healthy?

 

[VerdantGreen]

some will disagree with me but i would say the exception is your water supply, if your tap or well water has a high alkalinity then it may cause you problems. When i had to use tap water pH 8.5-9 i amended it with citric acid. it helped.

in good organic soil with a good water supply you shouldn't have any problems.

 

[thundercat]

Wow thanks peeps. Plants are looking good. I think im gonna bubble my tap instead of using the ro water. I've been reading the organics for beginners for the last hour haha.

 

[umbralindigo]

VerdantGreen is right IMO.
Forget the pH except in an extreme situation, i.e. the high alkalinity.
I have seen different responses on the "naturalness" of citric acid in living soil, but to me it seems a safer bet.
@thundercat, why wouldn't you use the ro water? the natural mineral imparted by dechlorinated tap? bro, to me that makes no sense, stick with the ro if its easy for you. Also, microbeman has touted molasses as a chlorine killer when used in small amounts in tap water.

 

[Easy7]

Keep giving ph of 6.5. The soil should come down over time. It's testing higher due to the dolomite. Once the lime flushes out, which takes time, you should have a perfect ph.

 

[thundercat]

@Umbralindigo i figured it would be easier to hit the sink and bubble. I had some trouble with the r.o and adding Cal mag i use earth juice elements cal mag but it looks like its stressing one of my ladies alil. My tap water after bubbling is 195ppm. I used a few times but had a lil fear of clorimine in it. Havent notice anything wrong with the ladies tho. Im a newbie to growin by the way so excuse me...i dont mind being schooled.

 

[thundercat]

Keep giving ph of 6.5. The soil should come down over time. It's testing higher due to the dolomite. Once the lime flushes out, which takes time, you should have a perfect ph.

Thanks for the tip fam

 

[umbralindigo]

You can mess with the pH if you'd like to, but I'm going to say the easiest way to get calcium in and pH in control is with compost. Good compost will do the deed.

Simplifying is great, dont get me wrong, but you may be defeating your own good intent with tap water and pH changing. IMO it is pointless with a capital P. Ro water will keep your shit legit, no funky boy build up from whatever your local water provider is "cleaning" the water with. Dude, if at all possible... Use rain water. I do. There is absolutely no need for pH changing. Catch water, use it, watch plants getting what they would outside . be happy. Loving you. Um

 

[sahdgrower]

curious as to why someone would not measure ph? I can understand if you have been using the same methods and resources for a long time and you are just that comfortable with the ingredients, but why else would you not measure? Do you check the air in your tires or just look at them and say "that looks about right" forgive me if I am naive but I would say if you have to ask the question then absolutely yes you should monitor and record your ph levels.

 

[Granger2]

I've never understood why some people get so adamant about not pHing with organics. What does it hurt? I pH my water because it is so alkaline with a lot of lime and high pH. I've never checked runoff pH, but I pH what is poured onto my plants. Growing in coco, pH is more important. Using Citric Acid, taking pH down to about 7 converts some of the Ca, Mg, Fe, etc. in the lime to plant available citrates, and cuts the alkalinity down.

Whether it's necessary or not, what does it hurt? Good luck. -granger

 

[surfguitar]

If your ph'ing your water besides in the case of suspect high alkalinity water your wasting your time and possibly harming your grow imo.

Too much acid can kill your bacteria and trying to control the PH of a properly built soil mix is gonna create problems and headaches for you. If you have to worry about PH imo it means your soil mix garbage and needs to be adjusted.

In a living organic soil the PH can rapidly change from one part of the soil to the next further complicating things. Leave measuring PH to the hydro guys.

 

[Eureka Springs Organics]

The only thing to ph is foliar sprays as they are best absorbed at certain ranges. This does not apply to compost tea foliars.

It can't hurt to ph other things, but it seems a hydro mind set, and not an organic mind set.

It also seems to be waste of time. Time being the most important thing in all of our lives. You can't ever get it back once it's gone.

 

[AloeRuss]

My first grow was organic and I was told not to bother with ph. I didn't. And I haven't until I became a coop grower for a living.
Just like good driver checks the gas, oil, tire pressure, etc. it doesn't take me longer then half a minute to check and correct ph to eliminate anything that may have to do with it.

 

[supermanlives]

when I had extreme high ph water ,I used earth juice for ph down lol. I think there is variables so . there is no.. yes /no answer. if your soil is right, your water ok then ph aint an issue. I ran my greenhouses and never ph ed the soil plants only hydro. never had any issues.

 

[Easy7]

Most water comes from lime aquifers, so your "safe" from burning plants. Most organics are alkaline. Composted products turn acidic. As organics break down acid is created. It is always good to check ph. It is a way of being on top and getting the most out of your time. If you don't check ph, your just lucky that you have lime in your water......or your ro water is just water, with a ph of 7. But soil is best at 6.5.

I stay away from lime because it's too strong. Oyster shell breaks down slowly, at a similar rate of other organics. Oyester shell also adds to the minerals.

Chlorine in water isn't strong enough to kill off much bacteria. You can't piss in a cup of city water then drink it, it doesn't clean anything more than already clean water and pipes. A lot of growers are extremists. Taking every bit of data out of reality. It's taking the lime out of water that makes ro water so much better.

 

[non]

agree with the posters above. personally i've never bothered with ph nor do i dechlorinate water, which is not ideal but i seem the get away with it. having very soft water with 0,1ec helps. i think humic acid was mentioned too for removing chloride?