new grower...Soil question ?

[PinkLatinaKali]

Hi i'm a new grower..and i just have a few questions about soils

I've been using Miracle grow But it's not producing as i would have imagined it might

so if any of you can please tell me what kind of soil to use on my Babies ?

PinkLatinaKali Reviewed by PinkLatinaKali on 06-16-2005. new grower...Soil question ? :p Hi i'm a new grower..and i just have a few questions about soils I've been using Miracle grow :confused: But it's not producing as i would have imagined it might :mad: so if any of you can please tell me what kind of soil to use on my Babies ? Rating: 5

[SaH]

I use FoxFarm Ocean Soil.... http://www.foxfarmfertilizer.com/index.htm

[IthoughtIknewitall]

soils are important but you dont have to spend alot of money. I bet your soil is not aerated enough to let the roots breathe. I would mix perlite in with it. The perlite will aid in aerating the soil and make it dry quicker. I would use a five gallon bucket with holes. Water, then let dry completely. Over watering can drag them down badly. Let me know how it works.

[PinkLatinaKali]

soils are important but you dont have to spend alot of money. I bet your soil is not aerated enough to let the roots breathe. I would mix perlite in with it. The perlite will aid in aerating the soil and make it dry quicker. I would use a five gallon bucket with holes. Water, then let dry completely. Over watering can drag them down badly. Let me know how it works.

IthoughtIknewitall i think that might work ,i was able to cut some holes in a 5 gallon bucket and i also cut extra holes in the current containers i was using ...i think that might be my problem we shall see soon thank you

[TwinShadows]

place rock "Lava or river rock is fine" an inch high at the bottom of the pot.

This will allow air to reach under the soil and also keep roots from sitting in water at the bottom of the pot. perlite or something like it is a must, it helps water drain and keeps the soil from turning into mud.

[HARDDON]

place rock "Lava or river rock is fine" an inch high at the bottom of the pot.

This will allow air to reach under the soil and also keep roots from sitting in water at the bottom of the pot. perlite or something like it is a must, it helps water drain and keeps the soil from turning into mud.

Great advice. Added advice is:

Place a water collection tray under the pot and keep it 1/3 to 1/2 full. This will allow the lava rock to remain wet/moist.

This will keep the grow medium and the bottom roots from drying and growing looking for new water.

The plant roots will grow into, under and around the lava rock, encasing it and having it become part of the rootball.

This will allow you to grow larger plants in smaller pots as well.

The lava rock and dust are high in minerals as well and will lessen the need for ferts long term.

The debate about Miracle Grow rages on. Some are sold on it, others despise it.

I think there are far superior grow mediums for plants than Miracle Grow...unless you grow tomatos.

[TwinShadows]

I always use Miracle Grow on my vegetables. The bag says to do half MG and half soil but I use a quarter MG, quarter Perlite and half soil. I never had a problem with tomatoes, peppers and squash.

Just remember you do not have to fert for at least a month and never start a seedling in MG, wait 2 weeks and transplant into the above mix. The only problem I can see with MG is that it feeds for 3 months and that would in most case run into flowering stage. So when you use a BLOOM fert you might want to use it sparingly at first or really flush your plant going into flowering. Trace elements have been a concern with MG from some articles I have read but with my Veg. Garden I have never had an issue but I do add Epson salt from time to time.

Basically you have no control over the ferts in MG and if you do not have a problem with that it should be fine. If you like to control every step of your plants life, use a fert made for Marijuana plants and by some good soil that has no ferts in it.


I hope this helps

[PinkLatinaKali]

Thank you all ...I went to wal-mart and K-mart and picked up some of the stuff you gentlemen spoke of...i'm currently using lava rock on 5 of the plants

the remaining plants are outside ..some in the ground and some in pots
ive been making sure they get right amount of sun rays each day

as for the other plants in my grow room
the white widow has just begun flowering so..i had planed to do some clones and i'm pretty sure 4 of the 7 white widows are females
we shall see what happens soon enough

[PinkLatinaKali]

On a side note to the miracle grow

i have tried many types of soil and the 1 i haven't tried is the moister control miracle grow ..i was wondering if of you have tried this soil or is it even worth the money ?

i did find out that organic valley top soil seems to help my plants alot

[TwinShadows]

On a side note to the miracle grow

i have tried many types of soil and the 1 i haven't tried is the moister control miracle grow ..i was wondering if of you have tried this soil or is it even worth the money ?

I saw that at home depot when I was getting my vegetable garden going this spring. $8.00+ for a bag is high when you can control all that yourself for less and if you have, "in my case" allot of tomato and pepper plants it just cost to much, I might as well by the food at wal mart.