Coco Coir questions?

I bought 2, 5 kilo blocks of Botanicare CocoGro today and im unsure of some things...

Should I PH the water I soak the blocks in or is 6.5ph RO water ok for the initial soak? ( I know to use hydro PH range when growing in it)...

Also Should I add some dolomite lime to help correct the problem Coco has with cal/mag or will lime be a problem for PH reasons?

when i do my bales i just use tap water because i flush after expanded and then 1 more time in the pot b4 puttn a plant in it . then after i plant i water to a good runoff with nute mix
i havent had any problems yet
as for the lime ? i have no idea i use the K.I.S.S method with maxibloom and tap so i think my tap supplys some extra cal mag for them as i havent had any problems yet

just my experince but it has been workin for me

stay safe
1

there should be instructions on the packaging. i don't like the blocks, too much work and additives. i have used the blocks, and rinsed them well. i would treat it as a final flush and 3x it, or more. i like to see clear water draining out. you don't need the lime, i never have. if you use a coco specific line of nutes, you don't have to fret cal/mag issues.

The instructions are to follow the directions on the botanicare fertilizer bottle lol.. I dont use those nutes and I couldnt find it on their website either, just labels that dont have coco instructions...

It didnt seem like much work, put the block in a 45 gallon trash can and put about 7 gallons of water in it then set the block in it.. After about 5 mins I began to seperate the block. I then add another gaollon or two of water and let it sit for a few hours.. It is all moist by then and any lumps are easily broken.. The loose bagged fiber was $45 for 50 liters, the block was $12 for 70 liters, this is why I chose the block lol.. The botanicare block seems fine just my

Botanicare claims their coco is pre washed and ready to use out of the bag but im going to give it a quick rinse anyways.. I dont use coco specific nutes I use Sensi grow and bloom and a few advanced additives but I also bought a bottle of cal-mag plus so I think Im in the clear.. The only difference I can see with coco specific nutes is the higher calcium level in it, not much higher of magnesium..

Thx for the help

calcium is the nutrient that actually does build up in cocos, as inert as it is. nutrients geared for cocos are exactly that, made with less calcium to prevent it from building up. I would be careful using too much cal/mag, especially not using nutrients meant for cocos. I've never used lime in my cocos.

happy growing

I know coco absorbs calcium because of this you need to give your plants more calcium.. Heres a bit that Ed Rosenthal wrote in his coco guide

"Coco Problems

There can be no Heaven without Hell, so let’s look at problems to watch out for with coco. First let me say, the problems are minor and easily fixed. And while not necessarily a problem, I should mention that coco can be a little on the expensive side. Personally I don't think it's a big deal, but thought I'd mention it just the same. I don't think it's any more expensive than good soil to be honest. Besides, money is like the wind, you only feel it when it's moving.

Calcium – The only real issue I’ve ever experienced in all my coco grows is calcium deficiency. This is a well documented trait of coco, it tends to absorb it and not release it in the quantity the plant needs. Many coco specific nutrients claim that their product corrects this, and I believe some do. But I can tell you not all of them do.

To correct the issue, whether using coco specific nutes or standard hydro nutes, supplemental calcium is needed. Botanicare CalMag is a very common and recommended fix. It works well but some heavy feeding plants hitting their stride, even twice the dosage may not be enough. This has happened to me on many occasions. The one thing I’ve found that works very well is adding dolomite limestone to my coco medium at the rate of 1 tbsp per gallon of medium. Hydrated lime also works very well, and needs to be applied every 4 to 5 weeks as a top dressing.

Once a calcium deficiency starts, it will continue to deteriorate even after a fix has been applied. It’s an extremely frustrating ordeal and can trick you into taking drastic actions because nothing seems to be working. If you stay calm, you’ll find that it really doesn’t affect much other than making your leaves look like crap and killing them. Buds seem to be unaffected for the most part.

Calcium deficiency is more of a pain in the ass than problem, but it usually starts with little rust spots"
www.weedguru.com • View topic - Coco Coir Guide



Also Botanicares CNS17 regular hydro formula has 2% calcium, CNS17 Coco has 2.5% calcium.

Canna Vega hydro nutes have 2% calcium, Canna Coco has 5% calcium

All of the coco nutes I can find have boosted levels of calcium, they do this because the coco is robbing the plant of calcium... Ive done my home work

Well sorry for not believing you Mr. Experienced, but you are the opposite of every bit of info out there on growing MJ in coco... just typing in COCO Marijuana in google field comes up with 100's of posts in other forums and guides written for it... Every one of them out there says the exact opposite of what your saying.... I cant say for sure since Ive never tried coco but Im going with the majority here.... Why would I believe you? You werent even right about the calcium levels in coco specific nutes... Every coco grower out there says use cal/mag or a coco specific nutes... If you were right here why would Canna nutrients put double calcium in their coco nutes? And why didnt you know that coco nutes have more calcium than standard hydro nutes?

See this is why I dont believe you, you have already made completely false statements..

Read my origional question I didnt ask if I should use cal-mag... I couldnt find the answers to those questions so I asked bro.... Ive used cal-mag for years and Ive never had it harm my plants.... But since your so experienced Im sure you know if theres somthing in coco that your plant doesnt like its easily flushed.. Im not new to growing either and I know how to tell if my plants are unhappy....

Have a good day

Looked at your journal your plants look healthy but not as spectacular as you are claiming.. How many harvests you get a year growing like that? Maybe 2 lol? People who are good at growing dont have to go around bragging either.. So after you get off your pedestal you should look at the guaranteed analysis of every coco nute out there, it has more calcium in it than the standard hydro version.. Your just plain wrong about that...

Obviously we arent going to agree here so your opinions arent needed here.. You have already stated false facts so you have blown it anyways...

But I guess I dont know what Im doing either lol!!