hi id like to lower the PH of my soil. its basically all worm castings, casue i didnt realise i should mix in some perlite or something. but thats not the problem, my PH is 7+ and id like to lower it a notch or two.

how do i permanantly lower it or do i just lower the water to around 5 or so and that will even it out?

(this damned crazy flashing is making me dizzy)
jangle or johnny, how about we all chip in and submit new images for these things, some are cool like the van, but this one is frekish as hell... hehehe

LMAO! That thing is nuts...I don't think that has anything to do with marijuana.

Peace.

more of an acit terip thing...

as for the plants they dont seem to be suffering from a 7(ish)PH. they are very green, but id like to lower it at least to 6 or 6.5 so as i have a buffer of 0.5 up or down...

I would just keep adjusting the water, maybe a little lower than your target, if your soil is very base. I haven't checked my soil runoff...I just adjust the water.

That all I got.

Peace.

You can add dolimite lime to your soil mix to buffer the ph. It is not expensive and is pretty easy to get. That is what I do. For a soil grow it should be 6.8 ph. a bit either side is usuaully fine. If your leaves start yellowing at the bottoms it could be a high ph. If they are fine, then leave it. It can cause problems correcting the ph again and again. For ph down you can use a few drops of vinigar,and for ph up you can use a bit of baking soda, but as I said, if the plants are fine, don't mess with it, as adjusting all the time can harm the plants more than it can help.

If it ain't broke, babes, don't fix it?

peace

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can i add the dolomite mixed with some soil to the top of the soil? will that do it?

It won't hurt, Ileso. Might buffer it somewhat. It breaks down at a slow rate and will be flushed down to the roots. Try it. but use it caustiously, and next time you have to repot, mix it in to the soil.

peace

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aka GP purrie kittie attack cat!


My Little Grow LST'ing w/Hardware

My Outdoor Odyssey 2008 BONSAI MUMS

My Little Grow Indoor To Outdoor 2009

I would suggest getting the dolomite lime to buffer the pH.....but your soil mix should probably be changed too. my last grow i tried to grow some plants in mostly earthworm castings and perilite. IT DID NOT WORK. the plants did not like the constant stream of nitrogen from the castings, and it messed up the plants going into flower with the nutrient balance. the earthworm castings will do ok for the veg stage, but i HIGHLY SUGGEST you amend your soil with some other things like nutrient-free potting soil, peat moss, perilite, and dolomite lime.

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Just let it grow,you said the leaves are nice and green.Dont fix it.It doing fine.The next time you mix soil you only need 1 table spoon of lime to one gallon of soil.So be carefull and dont put very much on the top.This is a mix I used when I was growing in soil, local garden shops potting soil, lime, perlite mixed two parts soil,one part perlite,one table spoon of dolimite lime,1/4 cup bonemeal.This for veg cycle and the same for flowering but no bonemeal.Use bloodmeal 1/4 cup to a gallon of soil mix. This worked great for me.Just keep doing what you are doing and you will be fine.Keep the ph where it's at and leave the lime out. Peace

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Anything I may say or do is stickly for entertainment only.This is all make believe and is not To believe by me or anyonehttp:\\www.greenpassion.org/f73/over-grow-government-ogg-2009-what-8722/

Toke is the expert on this, he knows his stuff big time.

Peace

__________________
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j-angel

aka GP purrie kittie attack cat!


My Little Grow LST'ing w/Hardware

My Outdoor Odyssey 2008 BONSAI MUMS

My Little Grow Indoor To Outdoor 2009

hi again, to day i found this somewhere else...

Beginners pH Guide.
by:GigZ-16

I posted this yesterday, but I decided to add a few more helpful things and repost it. Sorry for the double posting.

What is pH?


pH is the measure of how basic or acidic a solution is. The pH of a substance is measured in a numerical fashion using a scale of 1 through 14. A solution with a pH higher than 7.0 is considered to be basic and is called a base (or alkaline). A solution with a pH less than 7.0 is considered to be acidic and is called an acid. The strength of an acid or base can be either weak or strong. The stronger an acid or base, the closer the solution is to its respective number on the pH scale (basic being 15 and acid being 1). The weaker a solution or base, the closer its pH value is to a neutral rating (neutral being 7). Every full point change in pH signifies a 10 fold increase or decrease in acidity or alkalinity. For example, water with a pH of 6.0 is 10 times more acidic than water with a pH of 7.0, while water with a pH of 5.0 is 100 times more acidic than water with a pH of 7.0.

Here are some examples of acids and bases and their respective pH ratings.
-.2 Battery Acid
1.2 Gastric fluid
2.2 Lemon juice
3.6 Orange juice
4.4 Beer
5.6 Pure Rain
6.6 Milk
7.0 Distilled water (H₂O)
8.0 Seawater
9.2 Baking soda (NaHCO₃)
10.6 Milk of Magnesia (Mg(OH)₂)
11.4 Household ammonia (NH₃)
12.8 Household bleach (NaClO)
13.6 Household lye (NaOH)

What is PH? pt. 2

pH is defined in chemistry in several ways. An acid is sometimes defined as a solution with the potential to donate a Hydrogen ion (H⁺, also called a proton), or to accept a Hydroxide Ion (OH^-) from a base. A base on the other hand is sometimes defined as a solution with ability to donate a Hydroxide Ion, or... you've guessed it, accept a Hydrogen ion. Low pH corresponds to a high hydrogen ion concentration and vice versa, while a high pH corresponds to a high Hydroxide ion concentration and vice versa.

Why is pH important when growing a plant?

Any substance that is going to be used to support any form of life has to fall within a certain range on the pH scale. The range may vary from organism to organism. Marijuana is no different. The soil, nutrient solutions and water all need to be monitored and adjusted to stay within a specific range, depending on your method of growing. When growing Marijuana in soil, the soil and water supply should stay within the range of 6.5 to 7.0, while in hydroponics the nutrient solution should stay within the range of 5.5 and 6.0.
When a plant's soil or nutrient solution becomes too basic the nutrients become unavailable to be absorbed by the roots. When the soil or nutrient solution becomes too acidic the acid salts will chemically bind together the available nutrients and they will be nonabsorbent by the roots. When this happens the plant will show tell-tale signs of stress. Some novice growers and even a few seasoned growers will falsely think they need to add more nutes or fert, which only compounds the problem by usually causing toxic salt build-up. Toxic salt build-up stops the roots from absorbing water. So remember as a rule of thumb to always test the pH before reducing or increasing a fert or nute dosage!
The pH of your soil or hydroponics setup can be measured with a simple 20$ or 30$ pH Tester, or small one time paper tests. These are highly recommended when growing any plant.

Some things to remember when using an electronic pH tester

1. Clean the probes of the meter after each test and wipe away any corrosion.
2. Pack the soil tightly around the probes.
3. Water soil with distilled or neutral pH water (7.0) before testing.
4. The meters measure the electrical current between two probes and are
designed to work in moist soil. If the soil is dry, the probes do not give
an accurate reading

What causes fluctuations in pH?

When growing in soil any fertilizer you use can cause an excess build up of salts when it decomposes in the soil. This almost always results in a more acidic soil which stunts the plant's growth and causes brown foliage. When using a Hydroponics set-up the nutrient solution can very easily cause a fluctuation in the growing reservoir. Other common reasons as to why soil may become too acidic when doing outdoor grows are rainfall, leaching, organic matter decay and a previous harvest of a high yeild crop in the same soil. In dry climates, such as the desert Southwest US, Spain, Australia, etc., irrigation water is often alkaline with a pH above 7. The water in rainy climates, such as the Pacific Northwest of North America, the UK, Netherlands and Northern Europe, is often acidic with a pH below 6. Lightly sandy soils with little clay and organic matter are quicker too become more acidic. Another common mistake is that a grower will mix his soil unevenly, leading to "hot spots" in the growing medium, so mix all ratios as well as you can.

How do I raise/lower my pH?

A great way to regulate the pH of your soil is to use Dolomite Lime(calcium-magnesium carbonate). While growing Cannabis plants in containers, mix one cup of fine dolomite lime for each cubic foot of soil, then lightly water it. After watering, mix it once more and wait a day or two before checking the pH. While growing in an outdoor garden, follow the dolomite lime manufacturers instructions. Dolomite Lime works well because it has a neutral pH rating of 7.0 and tends to keep the soil a constant pH throughout the entire life cycle of the plant. This is a highly recommended method of regulating your soil pH.
If you find the pH of your soil or Hydroponic reservoir to be too acidic or basic you could add either pH up or pH down. These are chemicals sold at places like Home Depot or any Gardening store. They usually come in one liter bottles and are to be diluted in the water used to water the soil growing plants or the Hydroponic reservoir according to directions on the packaging.

Some examples of Home remedies to raise/lower pH are as follows:
1.Lemon juice. 1/4 tbsp can bring a gallon of tap-water from 7.4 to 6.3.
2.Phosphoric acid. lowers pH and provides Phosphor too!
3.Nitric acid. lowers pH.
4.Hydrochloric acid. strongest way to lower pH
5.Hydrated lime. flush soil with a teaspoon per gallon of water to raise pH.
6.Baking Soda. eats acids to raise pH.
7.Calcium carbonate. raises pH (very strong)
8.Potassium silicate. raises pH.

What are signs of a PH fluctuation in my Cannabis plant?

A Cannabis plant can show signs of a pH flux in several ways. The leaves may begin to turn yellow or brown, dry up and/or shrivel on the sides into a straw like shape. Keep in mind however that other deficiencies and disorders may show the same signs of damage, so don't jump to conclusions until you do some testing and adjusting to your plants and their growing medium.

Some things to remember(I didn't write these ones)

1.Always test the pH of raw water and drainage water with a pH meter.
2.Raw water pH above 6.0 helps keep fertilizer mixes from becoming too acidic.
3.The pH dictates the environment of bacteria necessary to the
uptake of organic nutrients.

__________________

My advice is ............ R/O water and cal mag for perfect water. I use Epsom Salt for Mag and Calcium so I did without the CalMag. R/O water filters out the Mag and cal both unfortunately but hey its easy to fix every gallon in one second.