Is AN ok for my first grow ? Or should I stick with organic nutes for the first grow and see how it goes, what you all guys think ?
I am not personally a fan of Advanced Nutrients. But that is just a personal choice that I have arrived at over time. Many people use that line and are happy with it. Realistically, just about any nutrient brand can provide you with a harvest. There are dozens (or more) of them, and people are growing/harvesting cannabis with each and every one, lol.
IDK what the average person would say, but my recommendation is to not worry about "organic" nutrients,
at least initially. The way to succeed with those is to create a biosphere - you are not feeding your cannabis plants, you are feeding microorganisms in the soil, which break down and excrete things which your plants roots use. A problem not directly related to your plants can... lead to problems with your plants (so to speak). On the other hand, if you are feeding your plants directly, it might be easier to figure out issues which may occur. Seeing signs of nitrogen deficiency? Feed it more nitrogen. Et cetera. It is not
quite as simple as that - some element toxicities can end up looking like other element deficiencies, or even end up causing them. But if you are new to the hobby, it is easier to learn the basics of cannabis growing first. After getting some practical experience, you might wish to try different methods - and may then decide that you like a different method better (or not).
Actually, I have often told people to remove soil from the equation, lol, and to begin with a simple DWC ("deep water culture") setup, where you basically grow a plant in a container full of "water" (nutrient solution). Assuming that the grower introduces enough DO (dissolved oxygen) into the reservoir - which is cheap and easy - and can measure the pH of that nutrient solution (also easy - and even high-quality pH meters are relatively cheap (economy ones are like $20 or so, and would be fine for the beginner), and can follow simple directions, then there really isn't much to it. The "less is more" approach to feeding is helpful. Common sense is too - you wouldn't want a clear container, lol, because a highly nutritive solution that has lots of oxygen in it and that gets lots of light is a great environment for growing... algae. Things like that. A larger reservoir is a good idea - a 20 to 25 gallon Rubbermaid (etc.) tote instead of a five-gallon bucket, for example. But that is as much for the grower as for the plant... it extends the time one can go between reservoir maintenance events, it makes drastic swings in pH far less likely (meaning that if you see one, it is then a
clear indication of a problem), a large amount of solution almost certainly contains more oxygen than a small one, "trees" can uptake and transpire an incredible amount of moisture (I have seen
well over ten gallons disappear in a day in a grow room that was, admittedly, way too hot for cannabis to survive in - but the plant transpiring that much, combined with (again) really high levels of dissolved oxygen in the solution and a strong fan in the room meant that the plant looked (and was) perfectly healthy when I returned to discover that my a/c had failed, even though it was over 100°F in the grow area and my pets in a cooler part of the home appeared to be suffering. IDK what they'd have looked like in fairly small containers full of soil, lol, in that heat and under intense light. I'm glad I did not have the opportunity to find out.
But soil versus hydroponics is just another personal choice (and another debate
). It all depends on the grower. I found that I was better suited to disposing of the old nutrient solution (poured it into the other houseplants, the vegetable garden, et cetera) than I was to carrying in and out heavy soil. Among other reasons, I figured there would only be so many trips I could take into my home with a large bag of soil/etc. over each shoulder, before a neighbor went, "Hmm..."
They may look like they aren't growing, but there's a lot of stuff going on under that soil that you don't see. The babies roots are growing in their big crib, and soon the tops will start growing fast!
