Hey
@Dan10thousand , welcome to 420 Magazine!
We're glad you are following the "how to water a potted plant" article - it is very helpful.
I had this exact question when I first started, and here's what I learned.
In soil, it is a good idea to track your pH and ppm while feeding - it's a double check to make sure your feed is in range and you are on track.
BTW, as an aside, a lot of people here use ppm still, but a lot of us are encouraging everyone to switch to using EC because it is a universal measurement.
With soil, the runoff pH and EC are not going to mean very much. The runoff is going to contain a lot of salts, particulates and debris which are going to skew your numbers - especially the ppm!
Soil has a natural ability to buffer its own pH - dolomite lime plays a big role in this - but the pH can and will drift (become more acidic) over time.
Also, if the water you are using is alkaline (hard) you will see a quicker drift in the pH of your soil.
This is why we choose to flush our plants growing in soil, with 3 times the pot size of water, every 4 weeks - it helps us avoid pH drift and also removes the built up salts and debris. We then follow the flush with an immediate pH balanced feed - something we have decided to call
"Flush & Feed All In One Go".
Since you are in Week 1 of flower - it would be good preventative maintenance for your soil and your plant to do a "Flush & Feed All In One Go".
Are you seeing any issues with your plant right now?
Alright, we hope this helps - and please let us know if you have any other question.
PS - if you really want to know the pH of your soil, you can do a "Slurry Test".
