Bad batch of Ocean Forest

[Jerry Garcia]

So I went to pick up my 4th bag of Fox Farms Ocean Forest soil the other day. Seemed the same as the other 3 bags I've purchased...until I started using it.

The first thing I noticed was the smell. It is WAY more pungent than normal...almost like a strong bark smell. I thought 'probably not a big deal'...

Then I scooped some out and into my 7" square pots, and immediately noticed the color was different...much more gray in hue than the nice black color of the other 3 bags. I thought 'ok, this is odd'...

Then I transplanted my plants to the new soil and tried to water it. This was the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back. The water wouldn't absorb into the soil...it just pooled on top. And then after it finally did absorb, the soil felt soggy...not moistened like it normally does after watering, but SOGGY. Like walking through a puddle in a field that you can't really see, but once you step in it your up to your ankles in muck SOGGY.

This all happened on Friday, right before I left town for the weekend, and I just returned last night, so I haven't had a chance to call them yet. But this is my 4th bag of the stuff, and it is clearly NOT what Ocean Forest usually is/should be.

Maybe the bag I got was old? It was near the top on a pallet stacked about 4 feet high...

Honestly it seems like a problem with Fox Farms and the ingredients they used in this particular mixture of Ocean Forest. Usually the soil soaks the water right up (presumably from the peat or vermiculite or whatever they are supposed to be using) but not with this batch.

I just attempted to plant some cuttings in the soil and found the problem to be even more severe than I thought. I usually like to mist the top of the soil and the cutting together before fully watering it in, just to keep the soil from moving around too much during watering. Well now THE MIST WATER IS POOLING ON THE TOP OF THE SOIL. The damn soil can't even absorb 1 tablespoon of water applied via misting!

I love Ocean Forest...it has been a crucial part of my operation...but if someone doesn't replace this bag of SH*T I'm never using it again. Period.

They don't open until 830 PST so I'll update this thread once I've spoken with them. They are about to hear from one pissed off customer...

 

[Mountianman]

Let me know how that goes. I use ocean forest as well and I'm having great luck with it.

 

[Slater13]

I'm having the same issues. I have 1 fucking plant that actually likes the mix and the others HATE it! Along with the watering issues I think the nutes are different as well cause Im getting some fucked up looking colors before I add nutes. Shit, I added nutes early to get them more of what they need since they looked so shitty.

Im with you, I have had great luck til now but they HAVE changed something so since they changed so did I. I bought 2 new bags of BioBizz yesterday. Now time to fuck around with guessing what these fucks put in their soil so I moved on to something thats supposed to be a little more taylor made.

 

[robert 14617]

curtis?..............

 

[Jerry Garcia]

I'm having the same issues. I have 1 fucking plant that actually likes the mix and the others HATE it! Along with the watering issues I think the nutes are different as well cause Im getting some fucked up looking colors before I add nutes. Shit, I added nutes early to get them more of what they need since they looked so shitty.

Im with you, I have had great luck til now but they HAVE changed something so since they changed so did I. I bought 2 new bags of BioBizz yesterday. Now time to fuck around with guessing what these fucks put in their soil so I moved on to something thats supposed to be a little more taylor made.

I'm SURE the nutrient content is going to be different...which is too bad, because the original stuff was PERFECT.

At least I'm not the only one to notice the change. How long does the soil keep for? I may try to find somewhere else that carries it and see if they've got an older bag lying around somewhere. I really liked the original formula and will be crushed if this new stuff is permanent (and not just a bad batch...)

 

[Jerry Garcia]

curtis?..............

Who's curtis?

 

[Slater13]

I'm SURE the nutrient content is going to be different...which is too bad, because the original stuff was PERFECT.

At least I'm not the only one to notice the change. How long does the soil keep for? I may try to find somewhere else that carries it and see if they've got an older bag lying around somewhere. I really liked the original formula and will be crushed if this new stuff is permanent (and not just a bad batch...)

I didnt have any problems before hand, the nutes were a touch off according to the strains I've grown but this is horrible.

Just some guess work here but I think they added more compost for aeration cause for one I am watering much more often even with young plants in bigger pots. I like the aeration but I think the added sulfur from the compost is also causing my PH to plummit rather early in the plants life. I use organic ferts so that hurts a bit too when the girls hit a growth spirt and I have to feed back to back to keep them fed right.

Right now I have the choice of lowering their ferts in flowering (not too keen on this) to every other watering in which they wont be fed proporly or suffer with a low PH (5.9- 6.1) which is tolerable but not if it gets much lower. Hope the nutes will keep the PH buffered long enuff to finish flowering.

Thought about getting another bag and maybe adding more dolomite lime but I have no clue just what the hell is in their soil now so I dont want to create even more problems. Im hoping I made the right choice switching over to Bio. Have 6 seeds germinating right now and they will be going into the Bio so hopefully in the next few weeks I'll have a better idea how they compare to the Ocean Forest.

Thought I was done with experimenting.

I just noticed your sig man.

WE DEY ! ! !

 

[Johnboh]

check out Nikel Creek's Just Right Xtra soil, its badass, new to the market and totally worth it!

In my eyes it totally trump FF OF

 

[Jerry Garcia]

I just noticed your sig man.

WE DEY ! ! !

Are you a Texans fan? They're the only red and black colored team to beat the Bengals this year (Denver was the other and we totally should have won that game!).

The only other red and black teams I can think of are the Falcons, and we don't play them this year.

I love talking smack about football though! It's one of my biggest passions aside from growing!

 

[Snak]

I'm using the Happy Frog right now and I couldn't ask for much more from a soil. They seem to be a great company (FoxFarm).

I'm sure if you write them or call them and voice your complaints, they won't just shrug you off. Often companies will make it a point to send you coupons or rebates to keep you one of their customers. Let them know how you feel, you might just end up with a free round of nutrients or something

 

[capecodkid]

So I went to pick up my 4th bag of Fox Farms Ocean Forest soil the other day. Seemed the same as the other 3 bags I've purchased...until I started using it.

The first thing I noticed was the smell. It is WAY more pungent than normal...almost like a strong bark smell. I thought 'probably not a big deal'...

Then I scooped some out and into my 7" square pots, and immediately noticed the color was different...much more gray in hue than the nice black color of the other 3 bags. I thought 'ok, this is odd'...

Then I transplanted my plants to the new soil and tried to water it. This was the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back. The water wouldn't absorb into the soil...it just pooled on top. And then after it finally did absorb, the soil felt soggy...not moistened like it normally does after watering, but SOGGY. Like walking through a puddle in a field that you can't really see, but once you step in it your up to your ankles in muck SOGGY.

This all happened on Friday, right before I left town for the weekend, and I just returned last night, so I haven't had a chance to call them yet. But this is my 4th bag of the stuff, and it is clearly NOT what Ocean Forest usually is/should be.

Maybe the bag I got was old? It was near the top on a pallet stacked about 4 feet high...

Honestly it seems like a problem with Fox Farms and the ingredients they used in this particular mixture of Ocean Forest. Usually the soil soaks the water right up (presumably from the peat or vermiculite or whatever they are supposed to be using) but not with this batch.

I just attempted to plant some cuttings in the soil and found the problem to be even more severe than I thought. I usually like to mist the top of the soil and the cutting together before fully watering it in, just to keep the soil from moving around too much during watering. Well now THE MIST WATER IS POOLING ON THE TOP OF THE SOIL. The damn soil can't even absorb 1 tablespoon of water applied via misting!

I love Ocean Forest...it has been a crucial part of my operation...but if someone doesn't replace this bag of SH*T I'm never using it again. Period.

They don't open until 830 PST so I'll update this thread once I've spoken with them. They are about to hear from one pissed off customer...

Add some perlite to it see what happens50/50.

 

[Jerry Garcia]

Add some perlite to it see what happens50/50.

It's already got perlite in it. And it looks like the older batch had more than the new stuff, but it isn't the lack of perlite that is limiting drainage, it is the poor quality of the soil itself now...

 

[capecodkid]

I know it has perlite in it. I am saying add more perlite to the soil helps drainage.

 

[Slater13]

Are you a Texans fan? They're the only red and black colored team to beat the Bengals this year (Denver was the other and we totally should have won that game!).

The only other red and black teams I can think of are the Falcons, and we don't play them this year.

I love talking smack about football though! It's one of my biggest passions aside from growing!

Uhhhgggg!

Im color blind today or the Kush has got me stupid too early in the day already.

I've been a Bengals fan for...

shit, hang on...

ummm... since I was a kid. Been a while.

Put it this way, I've been a fan since the days of good ole Boomer. Boomer is why I became a fan when I was a kid. Bout time Palmer had a line to block and a back to run the ball. FUCK, it's about time they got it together. Hopefully they keep it up, make the layoffs and get a bit further than they did in 05.

 

[c5rftw]

I have had different soil bags smell completely different and you described the smell that I smelled....they plants were awesome... it was different soil though

 

[Jerry Garcia]

So I just spoke with a representative from Fox Farm's customer service department and this is what I've learned.

Recently (he said for "months") Fox Farm opened a new facility in South Carolina to meet the demand for Ocean Forest (and presumably other products, though I didn't ask) on the east coast. He said everything about the mixture is the same EXCEPT FOR THE BARK! The bark is different and therefore will have a different, more piney smell. He indicated other customers have called in about the smell, but none mentioned the inability for it to absorb into the soil.

I told him how nothing would absorb and he suggested using a surfactant (dishsoap) as a wetting agent to help the water "stick" to the soil better. I've heard of this in cases where soil has become extremely dessicated, but this is soil fresh out of the bag we're talking about. And the original formula certainly NEVER required any wetting agent to make the soil usable.

I gave him my name and # and he is going to call the shop I purchased the bag from and see if any other customers have reported similar problems. He told me to keep what I haven't used of the bag (about 2/3 of it) and return it to the store for another batch or store credit, and if they wouldn't take it back he would send something out to me. Too bad I have to drive an hour and a half both ways to get to my grow store...so I probably won't be returning it for a $20 bag of soil.

We'll see what develops when he calls me back...

 

[Jerry Garcia]

I just got off the phone with Fox Farm again and here's the scoop...they want me to return the bag to the store I purchased it and get a fresh bag. Then, Fox Farm will pay to have it shipped back to their lab (presumably in Cali) where they will do some testing on it.

He said the South Carolina plant has been producing the new soil for a while, and they've been conducting testing on it for at least 6 months. He said one of the first things they tested was water retention given the new type of bark used in the mix, and that they tested it on many plants and found everything to be acceptable.

It is possible this was an older bag/pallet and it just needs to be given some wetting agent in order to perk up...but this is a brand new bag and I've never had to use a wetting agent before with this stuff EVER. Furthermore, I've had bags sit after being opened for months at a time and they haven't dried out, so maybe this new bark sucks and dries out the soil. Hopefully it's not that serious, but they'll do some testing and I'll get a new bag and we'll both go from there.

Bottom line is that Fox Farm seemed genuinely concerned about the issue and wants to ensure their product is as good as advertised. They took my complaint seriously, which means a lot considering I really do like their product(s).

I'll keep updating as updates happen...

 

[Jerry Garcia]

I've been a Bengals fan for...

shit, hang on...

ummm... since I was a kid. Been a while.

Put it this way, I've been a fan since the days of good ole Boomer. Boomer is why I became a fan when I was a kid. Bout time Palmer had a line to block and a back to run the ball. FUCK, it's about time they got it together. Hopefully they keep it up, make the layoffs and get a bit further than they did in 05.

Hell yeah, great to have another Bengals fan in the house! I've been a fan since my youth as well, suffering through losing season after losing season...I was actually at the game against the Ravens on Sunday! It was a blast!

 

[Slater13]

Hell yeah, great to have another Bengals fan in the house! I've been a fan since my youth as well, suffering through losing season after losing season...I was actually at the game against the Ravens on Sunday! It was a blast!

You aint lyin! My best friend of 20 years is a fucking Steelers fan so I've had do endure his bullshit for a long time. Finally I might have a little shit to talk of my own. Still early to get excited tho.

Thanks for the updates on the Ocean Forest. Knew something was different but wasnt sure what.

 

[theloadeddragon]

sounds to me like the soil molded.........