gravel and pvc in soil pots for more o2?

[proto]

i did some autos in 1 gal pots with this method and when i pulled the root ball out the sunleaves rocks i used came out as one big mass of nice white roots and when i shook them all out i could not believe how many roots it had. the 2 in 3 gal pots have done great except for having to prune the hell out of them. both plants(2 diff strains) put on a lot more plant mass in veg and in the first half of flowering,should have done a scrog and trained them better. i'll put some pics of them in my gj and pics of the roots at harvest. not saying it's the end all beat all but i think it's better than just soil. i would like to try the air pots i have been hearing a lot of good things and will probably pick up a couple soon and run a side by side test with some clones. peace all.

 

[Roddy]

Even in my 20 gal tubs, the rootballs are the entire mass at harvest...not much soil to re-capture. Had I put in less oil and some rocks, well.....

 

[Jper6647]

I am new, but if perlite and vermiculite are nothing more than clay and volcanic glass. They don't absorb water, but more less drain it right? I don't think they impart more than a fractional mineral difference do they? So I might try pea Gravel in my first mix. Right now its about 10% sand, 10% Sphagnum, 5% dry crushed corn cob, 40% Pete, 35% organic potting mix. It seems like a good Idea if it creates an aeration tunnel for the roots.

 

[sunakard2000]

pea gravel in your soil mix? uhmm no... use perlite, it works great and no they dont absorb water they act as drainage, and reason its better then pea gravel is the pea gravel are soild rocks, perlite is not soild its actually cooked and expanded so the water passes through not just around the perlite...

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

I am new, but if perlite and vermiculite are nothing more than clay and volcanic glass. They don't absorb water, but more less drain it right? I don't think they impart more than a fractional mineral difference do they? So I might try pea Gravel in my first mix. Right now its about 10% sand, 10% Sphagnum, 5% dry crushed corn cob, 40% Pete, 35% organic potting mix. It seems like a good Idea if it creates an aeration tunnel for the roots.

I'm with Sunakard on the pea gravel--it simply is not the same as perlite and vermiculite (which are also not the same and cannot be interchanged). And just so you know, vermiculite does retain water. I also never use sand in my soil mixtures. I also think that is too much peat (peat is acidic). I know nothing about using crushed corn cobs. I would recommend that you use a soil mixture that is tried and true, rather than trying to make one up from stuff you have lying around. Cannabis is a high energy plant and has some very specific nutrient needs. I use a base soil that I get from Home Depot that is inexpensive and quite good. It is organic and has enough goodies in it to get the plants through the first several weeks. After that I use a super soil and supplement with teas. Are you planning on growing organic? If so, what are you planning on feeding them?

 

[ozzydiodude]

Check the soil mixes thread in my sig it will give you a better idea of what you need in your soil mix for the mj plant to be all it can be.

 

[Jper6647]

Well thats the formula I have. Don't know what I could add to the mix to take down the ph, but I should test it with some strips first. I did a lil fine styrofoam but other than that same as above. I could care less about organic, just results this time. It is a nice airy and light medium that should drain well, and be pretty neutral in ph, with some minor organic nutes present. I guess I will stay liquid supplement to stay on the safeside if a flush need be.

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

Well thats the formula I have. Don't know what I could add to the mix to take down the ph, but I should test it with some strips first. I did a lil fine styrofoam but other than that same as above. I could care less about organic, just results this time. It is a nice airy and light medium that should drain well, and be pretty neutral in ph, with some minor organic nutes present. I guess I will stay liquid supplement to stay on the safeside if a flush need be.

Are you saying that you got this soil recipe somewhere? If so where? Why this particular recipe? What does each ingredient contribute to the mixture?

I am thinking that the pH may need to be raised--peat is quite acidic. However, every good soil mixture should contain lime to help buffer the pH.

If you use chemical nutes, you are going to need to pH your water and nute solution to 6.3-6.8. The plants will not need food for a few weeks though.

 

[pcduck]

Pea gravel works, but it has to be crushed into a fine powder(rock dust), it adds minerals.

I would not use pea gravel as a aerator, I use perilite for that. Pea gravel is heavy, perilite is not.