Hi everyone, New guy here trying a new hobby.
I have a 27x27x48 set up. I’m using th Doctor potting mix. Also picked up a quatium par meter.
Plan on supplementing your medium. Bush Doctor contains no nutrients.
Thank you for the tip. It will be going back. I was planing on using PK 13/14 and bud candy when flowing. I’m hoping to find a soil that won’t require much fertilizer before flowering.
for a soil that will carry for a while id go with fox farm ocean forest. it carries about 4-5 weeks. Many folks will start seedling in fox farm happy frog since its not as hot nutrient wise. ive never had any problem with starting plants in ffof myself. welcome to the community and growing… you came to the best place on the internet for info and good people. This forum has made growing evem more enjoyable for me.
The bushdoctor you have is coco coir it is a differnet medium than soil. Its popular and widely used but it is more for growing in situations where you want to have total control of what nutrients the plants get, since you have to add them all. it also has different rules when dealing with Ph and such. If you do decide to go with soil i wouldnt mix the two for that reason. Id also highly advise getting a ph meter.
Looks like you have your part and pieces all in place.
I would note one thing about cannabis. It’s a plant that you can place a seed in a pot water let her rip or you can use nutrients to cultivate a nice specimen to enjoy. If your looking for that ‘Eye Candy Bud’
If using any type of ‘Soil’ or for that matter coco coir or general purpose potting mix you’ll eventually need, but not required, added nutrients.
PK 13/14 is a product name for a cannabis nutrient that contains high levels of phosphorus and potassium. It is used to boost the flowering and fruiting of cannabis plants by providing them with essential elements for cell formation, sugar production, and osmotic regulation. You would use this during the final 6 weeks of growth.
Here’s things you’ll need for the parts list you have. I use the General Hydroponics Flora product line.
Growing cannabis in coco coir requires providing your plants with the right nutrients, especially calcium, magnesium, and iron, which coco tends to hold onto and prevent from being absorbed by the roots¹². To avoid nutrient lockout, you need to use a CalMag supplement and a coco-specific nutrient line that has higher levels of these elements¹³. You also need to feed your plants from day one, as coco coir does not contain enough phosphorus and potassium for flowering plants⁴⁵. Some of the popular nutrient brands for coco coir are Canna, General Hydroponics, and Advanced Nutrients²⁶. You should follow the manufacturer’s instructions and monitor your plants’ response carefully to avoid nutrient burn, deficiencies, or reduced yields.
Source: Conversation with Bing, 11/6/2023
(1) The Ultimate Guide to Coco for Cannabis│Seed Supreme. https://seedsupreme.com/blog/coco-for-cannabis.
(2) Best Coco Coir nutrients | Ironhead Method. Best Coco Coir nutrients | Ironhead Method.
(3) Coco coir nutrients for cannabis | i49 Blog. Coco coir nutrients for cannabis | i49 Blog.
(4) Growing Cannabis in Coco Coir | Grow Guide and Tips - Herbies. https://herbiesheadshop.com/blog/growing-in-coco-coir.
(5) How to Grow Cannabis With Coco Coir: Visual Guide - I49 USA. How to Grow Cannabis With Coco Coir: Visual Guide.
(6) Growing Cannabis in Coco Coir: Your Foolproof Guide - Green Avenger Seeds. Growing Cannabis in Coco Coir: Your Foolproof Guide.
There is nothing wrong with running straight coco and you will normally see increased size and yield from using soilless. I run coco in 3 gallon with Jack’s and typically harvest 12 oz. dried per plant.
Just a suggestion - as I am a first-time grower, as well. I am currently in the 5th week of flower with my first indoor crop, which I started in late August.
I did a lot of research before I even attempted the grow and, after some back and forth I settled on a living organic soil. Why? There’s several reasons: as a first-time grower, there are a number of areas that you’re going to need to focus on (especially in a tent), such as dialing-in and maintaining your temps and relative humidity during light/dark. In addition, for me, was light-stress training to bush my plants outwards, and to increase the yields (that was my main goal).
The last thing I wanted to do was worry about nutrients: mixing, managing, balancing, etc. One thing I noticed when I read about growing, a large percentage of growing problems was the result of incorrect balances of nutes that then impacted the soil.
I didn’t want to deal with any of that - I wanted to get through my grow, and just focus on the environment and training my plants.
So I looked into the biology of cannabis and learning about soil and how the two benefit each other.
At the end of the day, I was glad I left the heavy lifting to the plant/soil relationship and the naturally occurring process found in nature. I have not had one yellow leaf or any issues during my entire grow - just happy, healthy plants.
Here’s the soil I used. Some folks will shake their head at the price, but keep in mind, I made up for it by not having to buy a bunch of nutrients:
edit: removed unauthorized link
You simply have to water.
I added my own compost to the mix, along with some perlite… When I transplanted into my pots, I used a Mycorrhizal Fungi Root Enhancer - this is a great add since the micro-organisms will help with the breaking down of nutrients and matter, which the roots will love.
I added some Liquid Seaweed and black-strap molasses to my water - and that’s it. You just need to watch your plants and soil and be sure you’re not overwatering.
I spent my time tending to my plants and never had a single issue - and this is the result:
For what it’s worth, from a new grower such as yourself. Regardless of how you decide to grow, enjoy. Its a really fun hobby and I’ve had a blast the past three months - hope you find as much joy in the process that I have.
Welcome to the community !
Here’s the easiest, and most effective way I have found to grow a successful plant.
Get some fox farm happy frog soil, and solo cups. Moisten the soil, and fill the solo cup. Plant the seed directly into the soil (not very deep), spray a little water on it to settle the seed, and stick a baggie over the top to make a little greenhouse. Keep it warm, and it should break ground in about 3 or 4 days. Stick it under your light on low power, and don’t water until dry.
When seedling is as wide as the cup, transplant into pot of happy frog mixed with perlite, worm castings, and fox farm fruit and flower 4-9-3 per the instructions on the package. Then top dress with the fruit and flower after 6 weeks, then once a month after that. PH your water, and I do use a little kelp me kelp you during veg, bio thrive bloom during flowering, and Recharge. All organic.
I am sure it does. It is one of the soils I use. I am not at home. I will snap a pic of the back of the bag with the ingredients. I just wanted to clarify for the OP so that he doesn’t zap his soil with nutes. Cannot find the back panel of the bag anywhere online or I would post that.
I know it has Earthworm castings, bat guano, kelp, aged forest products, microbes and alot of other goodies. I will check and chime back in either way.
I have been seeing this going around here lately. Coco Loco is not coco coir. It is a soil with a small percentage of coconut hisks mixed in. This product should be treated exactly as you would Happy or Forest by Foxfarms.
I do not see a call out for NPK. Just the stuff I already mentioned. Here is the back of the bag. Since I do not see it called out, I digress and concur that it does not have “nutrients”. Gonna have to call them and ask for a better breakdown of what’s in it.
I would say it’s a ‘fortified’ coco coir. If I were to use this I’d definitely add a bunch of perlite as it’s designed to hold water; not a good thing with cannabis. A runoff test and plan on supplementing would be a good idea.
True. I supplement and use a 1:4 ratio with the Ocean Forest and add 10% perlite. I always thought it had a small amount of NPK in it just due to the other ingredients.
Foxfarm just called me back. The NPK is;
N = .05%
P = .15%
K = .20%
It has no Calcium or Magnesium.
Thank you for correcting that. ive never used the product amd was just going off it saying coco coir on front of bag. I wonder if its designed for growing marijuana? Ive always been told not to mix soil and coco coir so thats interesting. again thank you, I wouldnt want to give someone bad info. I probably shouldnt have commented on it having never used it, but figured it was coco coir.
No worries, we got an extensive knowledge base here. You know stuff I dont, well pretty much everyone knows stuff I dont. 
I just happened to know this one thing haha… 
I am an anomaly. I treat non living soil like living soil. Meaning I do not water to runoff everytime and I do not let it dry out all the way. I also spray the topsoil the day after I water to A) slow down the drying out at topside and B) To mitigate hydrophobic soil. I use microbes once I am in the final pot all through flowering. Kind of a mix of several methods all mashed up…like trap or dubstep. Which I also love.
Foxfarms just sent me more of a label that is on the bag. It does have some calcium in it.
And the numbers they gave me on the phone are not quite the same. .05% and .50% N is quite a bit different.
So it may as well be straight coco.
Are you growing autos or photos?
