Iām a coco grower myself
@HornHead is that the name of the brand?
Iāve only used Fox Farm Ocean Forest, and Happy Frog. I prefer the latter, because I can use it from start to finish. Ocean Forest is too hot for seedlings, Happy Frog seems just right. I get a week or two after losing the cotyledons before needing to feed. It seems like a happy medium between Ocean Forest and something more or less inert like coco or something like promix. However, if you start in something good for seedlings, then transplant into something like Ocean Forest, you can get away without needed āgrowā nutrients, and only begin feeding when the plants begin flowering.
@elheffe702 So get Ffof and ffhf with perlite or coco mix? Will that work for seedling to flower or will I need to tweak it?
When will I know when to feed or not.
The options are limitless. Some people mix all of the above. I would read about the pros and cons of each before you decide.
Start here:
Whatās great for my garden might be disastrous in yours, and vice versa. Try to find what you think will work best for your grow.
Growing in coco coir has the same advantage hydro, grows faster. It drains very easy in cloth pots, damn near impossible to over water. You just have to control nutrients yourself
@HornHead So would it be smart to get 50 soil 50 coco? Thatās what Iām thinking is the best for me. @elheffe702
What will I need to make sure I have before I go buy it and plant another seed?
As far as soil goes, fox farms is probably most commonly used. Coco is obviously not soil, and needs to be treated differently. If youāre on the fence, you may want to look at a peat mix which is something like promix. Thatās considered soilless. Either way, you should research all 3 and make an informed decision on which is best for you.
@dbrn32 couldnāt have said it better. Iāve used all of them and am currently growing in Promix HP. Like coco : itās a soil less media but all input PH is in soil range 6.3 to 6.8 instead of coco being in the hydro range. Itās even more airy than coco and you can achieve some remarkable growth but youāre tied to the plants due to having to water daily. Itās more expensive than soil too.
Your best bet is, like suggested, start in a starter soil then transplant into Ocean Forest. You wonāt need to feed until flower.
Soil is the basics. I went with ffof combined with a small bag of dr earth and a few āliving soilā ingredients cooked for a month. Definitely hot enough to not need nutes and i still burnd tips. Problem with soil is its messy and attracts bugs
Coco seems like a soil substitute. No mess. No bugs. Also no stired nutes so youāll have to feed them step by step. Most prefer complete control but not super beginner friendly.
Hydro grows the strongest and fastest. But it takes a COMPLETE setup
N understanding. I believe its possibly the best way to grow. But I recommendleaving that to the vets for now. Complete nute control. Res changes. Flowing water. Root babysitting.
Look around. If you know u have mire background with one of the tougher two. Give it a try. If soil seems safer. Take a look into the āKINDā soil grow on here. Or as someone else mentiond Promix makes a few root friendly options you can combine with soil for both worlds effect. There is no wrong way. Just ways we have yet to try
@PurpNGold74 @dbrn32 @HornHead @elheffe702 @Myfriendis410
I have been reading last night what do you guys think about this
Starting off I wanted to use happy frog potting soil because it aids in root development and provides a perfect place for microorganisms living in the soil that supply the plant nutrients.
Then once transplant was needed, then switch to a 50/50 blend of ocean forest potting soil and happy frog jump start. To prevent shock, reduce the need to feed so she can just grow and once sheās in the flower stage ill probably have a little bit of time to get the next fertilizer for her stage. Maybe 10 percent of perlite solution in the soil instead of coco?
Then once they start to flower use doctor Bush flower kiss, says the nutes can be absorbed directly through the leaves.
My advise to you is try all of them, you can get little bricks of coco pretty cheap from amazon, I recommend botanical coco as it has little salts and is easy to controll ph. And go grab a small bag of promix and try each.
The one issue with coco is you almost have to give nutrients almost every watering, but your plants only get what you put in. (Little more expense on the nutrients) promix I have always battled ph rises. But you donāt have to water near as often as it holds more moisture. Imo
Like everyone has said what works for me may not work for you, plus trying them you may decide that you prefer one over the other
OkY I will do
I use FFOF and mix another 25% perilite in with it. I agree with these guys, it is hot when she plants are young, but it does keep me from giving nutes during veg period. It seems to be working so it must be ok.
And with that āhow about thisā soil idea. I usually mix 25% or more perlite in my soils. All about drainage. Have you chosen pots? Look into growbags/ fabric pots. Dries out a bit quicker but seems to be greatly preferable
Iām currently make a list of the items I need now. @Familyman Iām thinking of doing @PurpNGold74 what you guys both suggest. I did the research and adding peplite to a soil base just seems better in my opinion for air flow than coco since I am new and would like a little wiggle room for error.
I didnāt realize pot structures matter too much. But Iām using plastic pots they seem to do really well with holding moisture but then again they are in miracle grow soil.
But also you guys have been telling me I need a new light ASAP. Iāve been looking at the 70 - 150 dollar range for a decent light then was just going to double up. But this light I found seem very cost effective thinking about buying 2 or 3.
This is the most overlookd undervalued step imaginable. Lighting. Everyone sees those āhigh watt-low priceā numbers and jump the gun. Next thing u know, you have 400$ worth of crappy lights. And could have invested āwiserā to start. Are u on the led bandwagon? And is $150 in ur range? Also is 2x2 ur expected size usage or maybe 3x3?
Forgot u had the other forum. U have some lighting experts over there. Im basically parroting. For sound solid advice just ask and dont be intimidated by the lingo. They are amazing at āfor dummiesā editions 
Couple questions
How many plants?
Are planning on doing this for awhile?
I bought an Amazon light to start with too. The price and amazing reviews were too good to be true. And they were. I should have got on the forums first and put that $90 towards the Horticulural Lighting Group quantum boards. They have fixtures that are very close to your price range and will last a long time. Also, they are more power efficient so you can use less watts per sq ft. Donāt spend good money after bad and invest in quality equipment. Google professional growers and see if they use the purple amazon lights. These guys here are great and want people to succeed in growing.
Yea for right now I wanna spend about 150 but obviously down the road Iām going to be spending more.
Not only that Iām a brand new until I started talking to you guys I was simply going off lumens now Iām trying to teach myself about par Iām starting from scratch so Iām trying to figure out everything now so I can just go to the store when I get paid and buy everything in one trip or order these things online.
Iām going to opt out of the hydroponic route because the amount of knowledge and work needed to support the system and plants is daunting because Iām so ignorant so Iām going to stick with the soil base medium then experiment with some perlite or even maybe some coco. Definitely going to stop using miracle grow products but I do have a very high nutrient fertilizer from miracle grow so Iām going to use that for a while.
I was looking on amazon and found a grow tent with the spectacle of 36 x 36 x 48 so Iām thinking that should be good enough for one really big plant. I have plenty seeds but Iām not going to just keep planting and wish for the best. From now on Iām going to do one at a time until I become very good at it. @PurpNGold74
Soil Iām going to use the soil mixture that I said before or possible ffof and coco 75/25 or 50/50 mixed with 25 percent perlite.
I guess now I need to know what specific kind of lights I need to get because I want to do one at a time maybe two later down the road.
Anything else I need to be considering or things Iāve left out?