only laughing in relation to cats ... 
InTheShed Grows Inside & Out: Jump In Any Time
Scottylikesbud
Well-Known Member
Hiya shed,
So how’d you go about your soil ph?
I flushed mine out with ph water until the run off read as 6.3
But as I used the same run off to water the plant down. I probably just reintroduced the same salts to the soil. Just re dispersed and ph downed this time XD
Hmm maybe I should Have just dumped it.
But as you previously said in a post.
when a plant takes in a positive it releases a negative.
So now that all those salts are less concentrated in some root areas. And in the nute water.
I am kinda thinking that the plant should start taking more salts right? And at the same time idk recycle the ones that i flushed out Of the medium, but not dumped?
Or does that seem a bit flawed?
So how’d you go about your soil ph?
I flushed mine out with ph water until the run off read as 6.3
But as I used the same run off to water the plant down. I probably just reintroduced the same salts to the soil. Just re dispersed and ph downed this time XD
Hmm maybe I should Have just dumped it.
But as you previously said in a post.
when a plant takes in a positive it releases a negative.
So now that all those salts are less concentrated in some root areas. And in the nute water.
I am kinda thinking that the plant should start taking more salts right? And at the same time idk recycle the ones that i flushed out Of the medium, but not dumped?
Or does that seem a bit flawed?
@InTheShed your opinion please.
Just jumping in.
- Thread starter
- #21,648
I'm pretty sure I never said " when a plant takes in a positive it releases a negative" and I'm not even sure what that means!
Also, if you take your runoff water and use it to water the plant then you haven't cleared the soil of anything and you're back where you started.
Also, runoff pH is not a measure of anything so there's never a need to measure it.
Also, you never need to pH your flush water, so you can skip that step. But dump the water that comes out as it's filled with the salts and unused ions you were trying to get rid of.
Also, flushing the salts out won't change the pH of the medium, which is why I'll be using a fertilizer higher in ammoniacal nitrogen to try to lower the pH, as opposed to MegaCrop which is almost entirely nitrate nitrogen (which will tend to raise the pH over time).
Okay BTF, we get it!
Would the water used to flush change the ph of the medium even though the salt flush will not?
That is why i wanted your opinion was to get that answer.
- Thread starter
- #21,652
The water of the flush won't change the pH of the medium unless it's incredibly high in alkaline, and then it might raise it some over time. I refer you back to the info in my original post in this thread:
"It is the alkalinity of nutrient water and the potential acidity/basicity of the fertilizer(s) that influence the pH of the growing medium and root zone. For example, if the alkalinity of nutrient water is moderate or high, pH of growing medium will rise over time.
a. Plant roots are electrically charged and must maintain a neutral balance.
b. For ammonium nitrogen (NH4) fertilizers, plants release of hydrogen ions to take up NH4. Hydrogen released is essentially acid and this drives pH down.
c. For nitrate (NO3) form of nitrogen in fertilizers, plant exchange hydroxyl ions for NO3 uptake, which causes growing medium pH to rise.
d. Alkalinity (CACO3) is essentially dissolved limestone. The higher the alkalinity of water, the greater tendency to raise pH of growing medium over time."
Ok my tap has a ph of 7 is that alky enough?
- Thread starter
- #21,654
The pH of your water is an expression of its alkalinity rather than its alkaline content. That info you would need to get from your water company, or have it tested.
Scottylikesbud
Well-Known Member
Sorry I was referring to the ions in nutrients. And how roots take them in and release them.
I don't fully understand it enough.
okay, yeah I saw how Mc would Just slowly raise the ph over time. So I’m trying to figure a work around for that problem in the near future XD.
And idk.
I just thought ph water would help lower it? Kinda like acid rain?
And I don’t really want to dump those unused nutrients, And salts. I want the plant to utilize them.
But if that don’t work then I’m obviously going to dump it out...
and I might lose a fine plant when that happens XD.
But I guess I’ll find out with more time if it’s beneficial or not.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Thank you for answering my early bird question of the day
- Thread starter
- #21,657
Over the course of a single grow, I don't believe that MC will raise the pH in a buffered medium sufficiently to be a problem. My problem came about not as a result of the MC, but because the ProMix HP was sold well-beyond its best-use date and had degraded.
Got an outside garden you can dump them in? I flush my plants over near my lemon trees so as not to waste the water.
Glad to help!
Scottylikesbud
Well-Known Member
Okay, so good to know that I might have over reacted over a misunderstanding.
As it is my first promix grow idk how long the buffer lasts. But when I saw you had problems I was like crap. I’m probably going to have some similar ones here pretty soon myself.
But as yours was expired. As you said.
I was worried over I problem I might not have.
As it is my first promix grow idk how long the buffer lasts. But when I saw you had problems I was like crap. I’m probably going to have some similar ones here pretty soon myself.
But as yours was expired. As you said.
I was worried over I problem I might not have.
The ups and downs of growing.
Heavenly Hybrid
Well-Known Member
When you identified this problem, did you use a slurry test? I worry about my small containers/big plants using up all the buffers sometimes.