Wood Ash... Read all about it....

so what is a good organic ph down. right now im useing lemon juice. or vinager but it seems like it stays steady for an hour or two then its back up, ive even tryd to make my ph way low, but the same thing. and ideas would be good. im using a 4 gal hydro flood and drain system under cfl lighting, im one month and a week id say and everything is going great currently useing davids grow products but im wanting to bloom organic, then stick with organic .

this waas taken today. one month one week.

Ok, for keeping pH down there is a big issue that's difficult to get past--alkalinity. Alkalinity doesn't just mean high pH (base), it's also the term that refers to the buffering capacity of water. What's that? It's the water's resistance to pH shift (or change). When the water is well-buffered it resists pH shift so that when you try to bring it down it bounces right back up.

With me so far?

There a many factors that contribute to alkalinity, and one of them is the O2/CO2 content of the water. High CO2 = lower pH, whereas higher O2 = higher pH. You need oxygenated water for your hydro, so you don't want it to be saturated with CO2 (plus it's almost impossible to keep it saturated without pressurizing it, think Lake Nyos or a bottle of soda).

So, what's my solution when I need to keep a large volume of water shifted down? Filter through peat moss. The effect is very similar to what occurs in blackwater biotopes, is more natural, easier to control and a lot more difficult to screw up.

However, your girls sure look pretty good to me (great, actually). Is there a problem?

no not that i know im haveing a slight nitrogen def. but i havent ran any nutes in a week and a half . since im useing a chemical fert for now i like to keep it well flushed. im tryung to use a more organic way of growing. it drives me nuts when you get a bag of dro. and it tastes like licking some raw fert. this is my second grow with the first not going well. this time seems to be going tons better. but to the same account i have no problem with the babies. its when i transition to bloom is where i seem to have problems. but we'll see
your post was extremly helpfull and i thank you i think that ill be useing pete from now on.

If they're doing well now I am POSITIVE you'll have a wonderful flower. In fact, it will be SO wonderful that you won't want to cut them down. You'll just fall in love with their beauty. But, their beauty fades, you must harvest (although, you don't have to kill them, you could try a re-veg of the mother). And thusly, you must enjoy the fruits of your harvest, enjoy them greatly.

I am very glad I have helped.

Lets recycle this old thread..... wood ashes are a free source of K and natural pH adjuster...... just use them lightly...... they are powerful stuff........

i use garden lime in all my dirt..even if the dirt you are mixing the dolomite lime with..has a higher PH the lime PH will not go over seven..and it will treat the higher PH soil..the lime has all kinds of calcium and magnesium in it also..