[Boyd Crowder]

unfortunately , i havent a clue why its so acidic.

since you put it like that , i guess ill continue to put this mix on hold and start from scratch

meanwhile , i need to get these mothers in a soil mix thats gonna make em happy for a few more weeks. i hate to lose em having come so far with em.
im off tomorrow so i guess ill mix up a batch of new soil, whats a good no burn in mix?

[stihgnobevoli]

don't forget theres also calcium in lime.

[BigBozat]

Originally Posted by Boyd Crowder

unfortunately , i havent a clue why its so acidic.

since you put it like that , i guess ill continue to put this mix on hold and start from scratch

meanwhile , i need to get these mothers in a soil mix thats gonna make em happy for a few more weeks. i hate to lose em having come so far with em.
im off tomorrow so i guess ill mix up a batch of new soil, whats a good no burn in mix?

Maybe it just needed to be pH-balanced, like you're doing?
I wouldn't completely toss it... just concerned that if you don't know the reason for the low pH, you may need to keep amending in lime (and thus risk Mag excess) until/unless you remove/remedy the cause. With liming and some 'cooking' time, maybe it will stabilize & be fine...

Er, by 'no burn in' you mean no mixing up your own & letting it 'cook' for a while? So, straight out of a bag, eh?

[Disclaiming all endorsement... YMMV]

FoxFarm Happy Frog?
Since you're transplanting, maybe cut that 1:1 with their Light Warrior?

I've used b4 (b4 I started building my own), fine...
I've heard/read good, bad and everything in between (incl occasional production quality differences/problems at their diff plants), but in the couple bags I had gotten, no probs.

Their Ocean Forest is a bit hotter (not OK for clones, so wouldn't recommend for sensitive transplants either). But, honestly I've never put plants directly into anything straight out of the bag, literally (always involved amending and/or time).

Maybe the best things you can do, since you're going for the emergency bagged soil, is to utilize inoculants & biostimulants that promote strong root growth (rooting compounds/auxins/IBA = Clonex & such), and perhaps secondarily induce/trigger some sort of systemic plant defense/immunity response (eg, salicylic acid, chitin/chitinase).

There are organic sources for these (eg, willow water & birch twigs for SA; kelp meal/powder/liquid for auxins; shrimp/crab/lobster shell meals & insect frass for the chitin... maybe also alfalfa meal for triacontanol [tho its not very bioavailable]... and maybe later after roots fully established, coconut water for cytokinins to promote shoot growth?).

Also, some auxins are manufactured by mycorrhizal fungi, so if you use broad spectrum myco products (and/or beneficial bacteria), that should help... which reminds me: worse comes to worse, look for bagged product that comes pre-inoculated w/ mycos (a lot of the Pro-Mix sphagnum products are, among others). Otherwise, grab some Great White or similar. For bene bacteria = Azos.

[stihgnobevoli]

i've started seedlings in straight coco mixed with ewc and had no issues.

[BigBozat]

Originally Posted by stihgnobevoli

don't forget theres also calcium in lime.

Yup, that's how it raises pH of acidic soils, by adsorbing onto available negatively charged soil particles [clay, organic matter]...

Ca++ cations, which are alkaline, replace [primarily] H+ cations, which are acidic, and essentially 'push' them out, freeing them to be washed out by the next soil drench.

In the realm of the EcoAg movement, Albrecht's base cation saturation theory says that if you fill a soil's CEC (cation exchange capacity) with a particular range of Cal, Mag, K and Na (sodium) [among other things], then the soil will [almost?] automatically self-adjust to a stable 6.4 pH... which ostensibly yields better, healthier crops & higher long-term sustainable output.

Whether the theory works is the subject of much
I find it interesting, compelling even... but I claim no clear scientific evidence, and in the interest of full disclosure thought I should highlight the controversy. There is an EcoAg thread elsewhere, with some excellent dialog by a number of folks that I have much for... YMMV

[Boyd Crowder]

i picked up a bag of vermicompost and ffof yesterday
along with some birb and bat guano
some kelp meal and some lime

brewed up about 3 gallons of tea to water my girls and these germing seeds.

mixed the vermi and ffof into my old soil
and planted my flower beds and some veggies today woot!

i need more water so im brewing 5 gallons right now to make some water for the veggie pots and my girls.

gonna need more guano and will pick up some more amendments over the next few weeks as well.

gonna make 3 more gallons of tea tonight too.

feels good to start another garden , even if its on my proch this time.
dirt all under the nails and stuff is dope.

thanks for your help bozat and ilbh

[BigBozat]

Originally Posted by Boyd Crowder

thanks for your help bozat and ilbh

YW... and you know I'll toss in whatever else I can in trade for an awesome BC logo design someday, right? lmao

[Boyd Crowder]

better believe it , boz

[Boyd Crowder]

so its time for an update
i used all that old soil , and found that my clones... actually liked it , even at 5.5 ph
my seedlings .... not so much. they have cal mag lockout , so i mixed some powdered lime in a gallon of water for a watering (2.2L) pots , a week later they are stable
meanwhile , I mixed up a btrand new batch of soil.
I used lc's #2 recipe. 60 gallons worth . Im letting it cook now , but used 20 gallons for my beans and cucmbers , as well as repotted a herijuana clone in 7g pot to see if Id have poests to deal with oor imbalances.
the recipe came out at 6.3 ph and seems to be perfect so far , now , I need a second batch to get aging asap

[Boyd Crowder]

so its time for an update
i used all that old soil , and found that my clones... actually liked it , even at 5.5 ph
my seedlings .... not so much. they have cal mag lockout , so i mixed some powdered lime in a gallon of water for a watering (2.2L) pots , a week later they are stable
meanwhile , I mixed up a btrand new batch of soil.
I used lc's #2 recipe. 60 gallons worth . Im letting it cook now , but used 20 gallons for my beans and cucmbers , as well as repotted a herijuana clone in 7g pot to see if Id have poests to deal with oor imbalances.
the recipe came out at 6.3 ph and seems to be perfect so far , now , I need a second batch to get aging asap