How do i apply wood ash to raise ph?

Hello fellow growers =)

Ill make this my first post at this excellent forum, been reading it for a while though =)

I have been searching everywhere to get some info about how to apply wood ash to raise soil ph but never got any "recipe"

My plant are really pale and have been for a while, there are some other issues too but i narrowed it down to a ph problem.
ph in soil is about 5 right now and i really need to get it up to about 6,5.

I tried flushing but it did not make it better.

I need to know how to use the ash i got in the best way possible to raise soil ph in a pot with a plant in its last pot.
Should i put the ash in to water and give to the plant or sprinkle it on top of soil and water after?
How much ash should i use for a 2 gallon pot (about 8-9 liters)?
How long before i can see any result?
Any other ideas?


I know i can use lime but now i got ash at home and i want to use it.
Anyone with experience of using wood ash?

I would greatly appreciate any help.


Crilloz

Read the following article, it covers the basics on raising pH.

http://homeguides.sfgate.com/change-soils-ph-potted-houseplants-35807.html

I know it doesn't cover wood ashes but it the plants have any potential and you can spend a few $ I'd do it these methods rather than risking screwing them up worse with a wood ash homebrew..

i don't see any info on container use of wood ash. ppl have been using it as a k source forever tho. i would think a tbl spoon worked into the top of the soil and watered in would be a good starting point.

Organic ash is good for weed but it also alters ph. Different types of lime have diferent propertys. In my flood and drain table I use a combination of ash and dolomite lime on a micro scale to lock the ph as one will react against the other and dispell co2 into the root bed, This combination will provide all the micronutrients the plant(s) needs for healthy growth. But much like using NPK the amount used has to be correct. To do ph properly you'll need an accurate method of testing ph. Never try to amment soil while the plant is living in it. you might do your plant(s) more harm than good.

AimAim: Thank you for the link. It was very informative. I will take the info in to consideration.

1itsme: I will try that as a starting point, i really need that kind of advice.

Bird mcbride: Maybe i should give them a very small amount of ash to begin with?
I Have Gold Label nutrients and they are planted in Gold Label Special mix. That soil should keep them happy for a few weeks as far as i know.

I gave it a small amount of nutes after 3 weeks. It really need some nitrogen though, but it seems locked out. i´ve been really patient and have not made any big changes to make it worse (as far as i know)

Just to give some more info. The plant is 6 weeks old now and i really want to get it in to flowering as soon as possible, but it needs to be happy first.
I use a 250w HPS bulb with a cool tube from start in a Secret Jardin DR60 (2x2) (60x60cm). Is it possible that it is more pale with a HPS than it would be with MH bulb?

Ill add a pic of my tent.
Since this is my first plant for a while i decided to give all my love to this as a starter. Though i have a pair of cuttings on the side just to make sure =)

I have used wood ash to raise the PH, good source of K too, just mix it in the water you use to feed, keep adding until desired ph os reached!

Should i raise the ph with the ash really high in the water before i give it to my plant to make up for the low ph in soil?

I used it to control the ph of my water, most soils are pretty hard to really knock off the ph, if you are using liquid fertalizer i would suggest watering with a good ph, which wouldnt change the soil from the start. Raising soil ph i would prob go with lime

I use the ash in place of phUP, continuous use never seemed to build up in the soil and effect its ph... If it did my ph would be 14+ by now.

I have used about two tablespoons on top of soil and watered it down, i have seen just a littlebit of improvement but i doesnt seem to do the trick. Should i keep give it more ash or should i wait and see?
How fast should i see a good progression in my leaves if im doing this right?

BubblegumBLOW: Do you ever give ash directly to the soil? I will probably go for lime if this doesent work, but i need a quick fix and as far as i know lime takes some time to work.

I'd wait a bit, you need to be carefull when you messing with your soil ph. You can do a lot of damage to the plants if you overdo it or correct it too fast. I would just make sure you keep water and nutes within acceptable ph ranges.

Just as an update. I used the wood ash and it didnt go well. Maybe i used to much.
1itsme: You said "You can do a lot of damage to the plants if you overdo it or correct it too fast". Well i did and i think that it was the final thing that killed my plant. probably to much pH fluctuation.
Though i am starting to beleave that it was a poor phenotype also. It was growing in a strange way, one side of it was growing much better than the other and one branch growed in a spiral into itself.

It was a good lesson to have this problem and i learned a lot. This time im going to do some things a little different from the start and im sure i will do better. I think having a stable pH is better than have the perfect pH.
Maybe im wrong? If so, i would love some advice.

I thought it's baking soda, and vinger lowers it. I think wood ash is for magnesium

it's really unlikely that a little wood ash hurt the plants imo. ppl have been using wood ash as a k source forever. a little more k is unlikely to hurt the plant esp with the npk ratios that most ppl grow with.

the lime thing usually buffers ph pretty well in soil mixes. also it should cover most of the calcuim and magnesium needs that alot of ferts leave out. generally when plants get really sick bc of ph it's in hydro. when it's a problem in soil usualy it's bc the person adjusted it wrong.

It's also easy to leach K+ ions out of soil if you screw up.

For simplicity, I couldn't ever imagine using anything but potassium hydroxide for this, considering you just measure it out in grams and that's it. Easy to know what results to expect, but wood ashes is cool.

1itsme said:

it's really unlikely that a little wood ash hurt the plants imo. ppl have been using wood ash as a k source forever. a little more k is unlikely to hurt the plant esp with the npk ratios that most ppl grow with.

the lime thing usually buffers ph pretty well in soil mixes. also it should cover most of the calcuim and magnesium needs that alot of ferts leave out. generally when plants get really sick bc of ph it's in hydro. when it's a problem in soil usualy it's bc the person adjusted it wrong.

Click to expand...