Best soil recommnedations

[jamesphoto]

Great question! That was the question I was looking for an answer to. I have used Happy Frog now for my first grow (which it's still my first grow) and my lone auto is growing just fine. Since this is my first grow I have nothing to compare it to. I think as a beginner I will just continue using HF until I see a reason to change.

[VertsMonts]

Yup, so far. I water based on feel but 4 days is how it's worked out. I'm feeding every other watering, starting with 1/4 strength and moved up to 1/2. They're growing really fast and seem thirstier so I will probably step up my watering to every 3 days...they feel dry today. It's also super dry here, we heat with wood and we lost power twice this week so the tent has been open a lot (to get some natural light), they're parched.

[dustydundee]

vertsmonts, so I take that to mean you water once every 4 days or so in a 5 gal bucket, and feed every other watering?

[HobbitGDF]

I also use "earth dust" base and boost. You can create a living soil in whatever soil you choose to use. You also can re use the soil, it makes it better. Just have to add more base. It's only water. No use for bottled nutrients. Just water. If you have inline water filter you dont even have to PH the water. It's great man. It's not that expensive.
I use FFOF and happy frog. I like FFOF. It is hot but if you add perlite its not to hot IMO
good luck.
You dont want to get any like miracle grow that releases nitrogen for months. Right guys? Idk personally but I think that's right.

[9fingerleafs]

Last year I lost 40 plants to pythium, the economical loss was far greater than the 500 bucks it costs me to fill them with new coco. I’ve been getting creative in getting rid of the discarded coco. I’m terraforming the area surrounding my house tryin to even the ground and stop vegetation from taking over haha

[VertsMonts]

I didn't feed my current seedlings in FFHF until day 20 (almost a week after transplanting into 5-gal) and they may have not needed it even then. They certainly didn't look deficient in any way. I'm on day 37 now, have only fed them twice (probably feed tomorrow) and they are growing like crazy. Obviously YMMV.

[VertsMonts]

My sprouts go right from the paper towel into jiffy pods/solo cups full of FFHF and seem to thrive. I think FFOF is too strong for seedlings.

[VertsMonts]

Not sure about better, but we've always had very good luck with FFHF. We use it for every plant in the house but cannabis seems to respond well. None of my issues, and I have had plenty, were soil related as far as I know. I get it locally for like $13 a bag, which was enough for four, 5-gallon pots mixed with a bag of perlite.

[MeEasy]

Before I switch to living I would use the fox farm trio and followed their feeding schedule, I stayed with hf so that I could follow it (O f would have been to hot). So I started feeding as soon as I saw the second set of multi fingerd leaves. That's when I consider a seedling changes to a veg plant

[dustydundee]

i'm thinking of trying OF and HF side by side to see. Can anyone say how long before feeding in HF vs OF? It was said above OF can go for a month, how long can HF go without feeding? As a side note, if I have seedlings side by side, one in HF and one in OF, what is the visual cue that the one in HF is ready for nutes while the one in OF is fine and dandy?

[MeEasy]

Happy frog and ocean forest is close to the same mix but OF has added amendments (poops and shell n kelp powder) to feed your plants for awhile. Both are great mix and it depends on whether you are ok to let your plants start with the natural feeding provided by the OF or if you would rather from the beginning use your choice of different natural products or salt nutes then HF is the one you'll want.
personally I use HF and a premixed product that has organic amendments and little soil critters making it a living soil. With this stuff (earth dust) I reuse the same soil over n over just adding the earth dust and couple handfuls of perlite before starting the next grow

[bboyfromwayback]

That’s a lot of Coco lol

[dustydundee]

good feedback. if you wait a month to feed with OF, how long do you wait to feed with happy frog?

[billyboy]

FFOF has more good food in it. I read/heard that it may be too hot for seedlings, but I have always cut it with perlite for the seedlings and never had an issue. Once I get them in the fabric pots and the roots get established the girls just take off. I like to build a manifold and you need healthy, well fed, strong plants and FFOF has delivered for me every time. You don't need to feed with nutes until about a month into veg

Happy Frog is just a lower quality (or maybe better stated as a less "hot") soil.

The reality is you will get a good result with either if you just let the plants tell you what they need. I just like not going to the nutes early and getting that nice growth pop when topping down to the third node and building the base

[dustydundee]

FFOF and a bag of perlite

i'm leaning in this direction. one of the foxfarm soils. why is Ocean forest better than happy frog, or vice versa.