GREENATIK'S HOUSE OF FOAM

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Originally Posted by greenatik

coco is the shit.
just make sure you rinse it well before using it the first time. :hippy:

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Hi Greenatic, do you rinse with PH water.

heya green,

I did not rinse with ph water this go around. I had a lot to rinse and I really wanted to wash it well, so i just used plain tap. but after I rinsed it and let it dry out a bit, I watered it with ph'd water and a light nute mix right before transplanting into. my mix contained piranha root mass, b1, liquid karma, and a tiny bit of maxigro veg nutes (everything was 1/6 strength or less)

but if you can do it, phd water would be the better route, although I saw no problems doing it this way :hippy:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by greenatik

here's just a few pics way too high to do a full update
:D anyone smoked grape ape? some of the best shit i've ever had


:hippy:

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let me tell you a little something about grape ape.... OMG it basically fried my brain and i didnt know anything at all.. it felt like i was trippin off salvia for 3 hours then just snapped back to normal crazy shit lol :hippy:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by greenatik

heya green,

I did not rinse with ph water this go around. I had a lot to rinse and I really wanted to wash it well, so i just used plain tap. but after I rinsed it and let it dry out a bit, I watered it with ph'd water and a light nute mix right before transplanting into. my mix contained piranha root mass, b1, liquid karma, and a tiny bit of maxigro veg nutes (everything was 1/6 strength or less)

but if you can do it, phd water would be the better route, although I saw no problems doing it this way :hippy:

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I was not sure if you would have to with coco, I know its best to soak rockwool cubes in PH water.
what PH is your normal tap water, over here mine is 7.1

mines about 7.5

it would be best to soak it in ph'd water i would imagine, but the rinsing is to remove the excess salts that coco is so renown for having. I probably ran 2-3 gallons through each of my gatorade pots lol. now the runoff is really clean. I did not rinse pilav's coco nearly as well, and nearing the end of that run, lots of salt started to buildup on top of container :(

oh, what i like to do, is ph an entire cooler full of water at a time, then separate it into smaller containers for flush/nute mixes

my flush water is at a ph of 5.8 and all I add is calmag

my nute mix is ph 5.8 and all I have been adding is 1/6 strength flora nova bloom and a little bit of sweet

I try and do 3 flushes to 1 nuting
:hippy:

Thanks for the info man, I am gonna give coco a try next time round:thumbsup:

that makes me happy man..

if i've helped convince a couple people of how easy and explosive coco is, then this log was entirely worth it :jointsmile:

a couple more points about coco:

first of all, using a nute that is ph balanced and made for hydroponic mediums is key (IMO). last run i used botanicare bloom pro, and now I am using flora nova. both are 1-part nutes, containing everything needed for a hydro medium. There are lots of guides to follow over at icmag in the coco section about nute formulas compiled by some of the best coco growers i've seen. Lots of people recommend the canna line of nutes. I couldn't get my hands on it locally, but I would steer you towards that line. The nutes are specifically built for coco, not just hydro in general

secondly, don't be afraid of overwatering. it's possible, but only in a finer coco. i used botanicare BOSS coco last run, and it was fine enough to not have to water for up to two days. I pump water through this coarse coco twice a day, and i think this is where the difference will be seen this time around. The roots are thick white with lots of side branching.

pot size is not significant like it is with soil. my gatorade bottles will be more than suitable for the entire run. but the bigger the pot, the less you have to water.

the last tip i have is bottom feeding. I picked up this technique again over at icmag. it encourages the roots to grow more efficiently and replenish the root zone with fresh oxygen.

first i take a bucket filled with ph water and my calmag (or nutes, but I usually flush with this method)
Then, take your plant and push the pot down into the bucket. you can actually see air bubbles shooting up and once the pot stops trying to rise up and starts to sink, its been watered thoroughly. im going to find the link on the article about this

hope this helps :rasta::rasta:

I am so gunna try this.
and where can I get this stuff.

Us coco growers are taking over the world!
:D

About the coco nutes Hesi is also very good and have a specific line for coco growing so depending on what you can get your hands on Hesi or Canna will both be excellent choices.
This is the chart and the nutes I use.
http://www.hesi.nl/english/objects/i...ngels-coco.jpg
I go a bit harder than that though. ;)

Puffzter

most hydro shops have a good selection of coco. if you can water daily or put them in a tray to wick, get a coarser coco. you might be able to get coco elsewhere, im not sure though :wtf:

the hydro shop or online will be the only place to get the nutes though.

so this is what id get

1 bag, or 1 'brick' of coco
1 bottle of calmag
1 ph tester (and up/down to fix) ph needs to be 5.5-6.0
one part veg nute
one part bloom nute

thats the basics, any additives are up to you. im using piranha, sweet/molasses, kool bloom liquid/dry. the piranha is just fungi for massive root growth and you only use it for a couple of times in veg. the kool bloom liquid starts after week 5 of flower and the dry is a ripener for the last couple weeks. ive been using sweet for a week now and will continue every other watering until flush. the last weeks i will add the molasses

now i gotta go tend to the garden :rasta: