Cannabis Nutrients

Advanced Nutrients pH Perfect Connoisseur Bloom is now available. Advanced Nutrients is a company people either love or hate. I like to make up my own mind and not blindly follow other peoples opinions. So I am here to say that Connoisseur Bloom is really good stuff.

Advanced Nutrients pH Perfect Connoisseur Bloom Really Works

I found that it does adjust itself to about pH 6 and it grows nice healthy green plants. I wouldn’t throw my pH pen away just yet though.

The thing you have to remember about Advanced Nutrients is they market their products heavily and throw around lots of hype. But that doesn’t mean they don’t have some good products.

I would not ever use their whole line of supplements it just costs too damn much but I did use their Connoisseur Bloom Part A+B along with Big Bud and Overdrive and produced an excellent crop of OG Kush with just that and some supplemental Cal Mag.

Using it like that it really is not any more expensive than any other high quality nutrients.

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According to its maker, Primordial Solutions , Sea Green nutrient will improve your plants nutrient absorption and make everything more available to your plants.

Sounds too good to be true, but I decided to give it a try. So this is my Sea Green review.

I have been growing some Biker Kush and it just wasn’t looking right to me so I decided to give Primordial Solutions Sea Green a try.

I was feeding Dutch Master and Cal/Mag at 1200 ppm. But increasing either of these did not seem to improve the appearance my plants. They were growing OK but not showing the best leaf color.

There were no nutrient lockouts or burn but the plants just looked hungry, like they were needing something that just wasn’t there.

I never had experienced anything like this before so I was totally clueless because everything these plants needed should have been there.

If you grow weed for any amount of time you can tell when your girls are really happy and when they are not.

Sea Green Nutrients Benefits

According to the manufacturer Beneficial Biologics Sea Green does the following:

• Make nutrient absorption possible even under high salt conditions!
• Break down nutrients into forms that can be easily absorbed by your plants!
• Increase the amount and type of nutrients that can be absorbed.
• Keep essential nutrients available.
• Prevent nutrients from leaching out of the soil

Yeah, I know it seems too good to be true, but my girls were crying the blues so I knew I needed to try something different.

So I went to my local hydro store and picked up a bottle of Sea Green. I had read of some growers getting good results with it. When I got home I prepared a foliar spray at the recommended 1/2 ml per gallon. Since they had just started to flower I didn’t want to use a spreader sticker that might get in the buds and so I just sprayed my plants that evening to run off with the Sea Green.

The next morning just before lights off the plants were much greener and healthier looking. The improvement was very noticeable and there were no signs of any leaf burn. So I decided to add it to my res  at the recommended rate of 1 ml per gallon rather than continue foliar feeding.

That evening at lights on the plants were a healthy dark green and looking better than they ever had before. Please bear in mind that I grow aeroponic weed and with the high pressure mist and exposed roots changes can occur extremely fast. In soil or coco it may take a bit longer to see results but that is actually what primordial solutions sea green was designed to work for and they actually have a new product called Sea Green Hydro for hydroponic grows.

Sea Green Nutrient Spray – Before And 4 Days Later

Lights make it hard to get true colors sometimes but here is a before and after shot of the same spot on the trellis and you can see the plants on the right are noticeably greener than those on the left.

This stuff is black, super concentrated and very thick and is supposed to foam a lot in hydro. I had no problems with it though because my reservoir isn’t aerated. Still, I imagined a bubble bath coming out of my misting nozzles, but there was none. It also mixed very well with my existing nutrients.

I don’t really know what is in it but it definitely did the trick. It does have a 1.5-0.5-4.0 NPK ratio in it but this certainly isn’t enough to have made that much of a difference. The exact formula is a secret but they do say it has fish protein hydrolysate and humic acid in it. I believe it also has beneficial bacteria in it and possibly some kelp extract too because of its black color.

Beneficial Biologics Sea Green is a game changer in my opinion. The label says it promotes vigorous growth and it does all of that. It works in soil, coco or hydroponic systems. It is very concentrated and a little goes a long way. Next grow I will be using it right from the start. Sea Green has earned a place in my nutrient line up for sure. With so many over hyped products out there it’s a relief to actually find a great product that actually works as advertised.

Get Sea Green Online At Amazon

I just picked up an Aptus Believer pack from my local hydro store. It contains a trial size of Aptus Fasilitor and StartBoost, enough to make 50 gallons.

I have heard a lot about this stuff and want to find out if it’s all hype or if Fasilitor really is something special.

You are supposed to use these along with your regular base nutrients. So my Aptus nutrient reviews will be based on using Dutch Master Gold Flower A&B nutrients and the trial will be done on my new Biker Kush Grow.

I will only be trialing the Fasilitor because the StartBoost would likely cause serious problems in my aeroponic system. The Aptus Plant Tech site says:

Do not keep StartBoost in your reservoir for more than 2-3 days in order to avoid organic biofilm buildup and blockage of irrigation drip lines. – See more at: http://aptus-usa.com/startboost#sthash.dyoHog21.dpuf

I will give the StartBoost a try in my RainForest where I keep some cuttings and probably on some house plants I have that are in soiless medium.

What Does Fasilitor Do For Your Plants

What Is In Fasilitor?

Fasilitor is supposed to provide readily available silicon, boron and molybdenum and have a profound effect on plant health. It is their flag ship product. The idea behind the Believer Pack is that once you see the results you will be hooked on their products.

Aptus nutrients are pricey and Fasilitor is the most expensive of them all. Some growers simply refuse to try it simply because of the price. But this stuff is extremely concentrated and with running an aeroponics grow a little can go a long way.

Some very experienced growers swear by this stuff and most that actually try it say it works really well. Of course most of the critics object solely based on price and without actually trying it. They always argue you can make your own silicon supplement for pennies. But is it really the same?

Aptus holds a patent on this stuff. Most silicon is not readily available to plants until acids convert it to useable form. Fasilitor contains silica as silicic acid which is immediately available. They claim it is very expensive to manufacture to justify its high price.

I have never used any silicon supplements in my grows and are not really completely convinced of the benefits but seeing will be believing. If it really works as advertised it would not add much cost to my grow.

The effects are so dramatic according to its manufacturer that some are claiming it has PGRs in it.

Are There PGRs (Plant Growth Regulators) In Aptus Fasilitor?

Aptus says: “Some of the effects seen with FaSilitor can appear like those of plant growth regulators (PGRs). Aptus products contain no synthetic or unnatural PGRs! The key thing to understand is that FaSilitor works with natural plant mechanisms rather than trying to manipulate in unnatural ways.”

OK, well if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck it probably is a duck. Please notice the wording used is “synthetic or unnatural PGRs” Below is an analysis done by the state of California:

So as you can see there are no artificial or synthetic PGRs in Fasilitor. That does not mean it doesn’t have natural PGRs in it though. Triacontanol is the secret ingredient in products like Canna’s Boost and it occurs naturally in alfalfa. Other natural PGRs occur in kelp and I see no harm with using these in my grow.

They may be present in Fasilitor and Aptus, like many nutrient manufacturers don’t list everything they use on the label. This is how they protect their exclusive formulas from being copied. After all, does Coke list all its ingredients on the can?

To me the real proof will be in how the plants react. If my plants are growing and yielding better and appear healthier I will use the stuff.  I am not concerned about the cost it adds to my grow, but I am concerned about my plant health. Healthy, happy plants yield more – really it’s a no brainer.

Aptus Nutrient Review

After test out this believer pack I must admit that I am not a believer. I did see some node shortening with the fasilitor on my OG Kush but it was minimal. Maybe a few inches height reduction.

The grow was in a recirculating coco system and plants did very well but I really cant say how much these nutes had to do with that.

I did not notice any significant results with these products when added to my grow. I guess I would need to do a side by side to know for sure if they made much of a difference. It is possible they increased yield a bit but at their price point I would need to see some major changes to buy them again.

It might be worth testing these in your own grow because they are all different but at this point I would just try to find a Believer Pack for that. Nothing I have seen makes me want to rush out and buy this product in a larger size.

My final thoughts are forget all the hype and save your money.

I have been reading a lot of really positive Heavy 16 nutrients reviews online and thought it would be a good idea to give Heavy 16 base nutes a try. I will only be using their Bud A&B nutes this round and not their whole lineup.

I am very happy with my Dutch Master A&B but it never hurts to see if there’s something better out there. One thing that I like about Heavy 16 is the fact it is made in California. That means my money stays here in the US instead of going overseas. Dutch Master is an Australian company and while there is nothing wrong with that I like the idea of buying American made.

Update On My Nutes

Dutch Master Gold is gone. I hear they were bought out and they are dropping the Gold Line so I am without my go to nute brand. I am now growing in coco and can use the full Heavy 16 line so I will be doing a full Heavy 16 in coco review soon.

One thing that impressed me right off the bat was Heavy 16 owner Bryce Patterson. He has a degree in Agricultural/Horticultural Science and has been involved in growing for some time. He set out to create a hype free line of nutrients that uses cutting edge technology but yet doesn’t require a ton of overpriced additives. He also makes himself available to his customers and answers their questions personally which is quite rare in any business.

I wanted to try the whole line actually but since I grow with aeroponics I had concerns about how my system would react to his various brews. So I decided to contact Bryce and here is that conversation:

Me:

Been reading some really good reviews about Heavy 16 and Prime really sounds like a great product. I would like to try it. But I grow with aeroponics which is a different animal entirely. Currently I am using Dutch Master with good results but will be testing your base nutes in my next grow.

I would like to use Prime also but I am concerned that it might clog my misters. Also since roots hang in the air would all those extracts be beneficial without any growing medium. Would Prime be OK in an aeroponic system?

Hello Steve,

Your apprehension is warranted.  PRIME is a very dynamic product that is used as an organic acid pH adjuster, microbial feed, fulvic-humic-kelp-molasses type product..  With the heightened levels of oxygen and agitation in an aero system, you may simply volatilize these organics too quickly and have pH levels rise along with it.  I have seen some growers use PRIME in an aero system with success, but it was intermittent spray blasts and they had larger orifice sprayers.  You could try an experiment to use possibly ¼ mL per gallon of PRIME to see how it functions for you.  I cannot guarantee it will not clog, yet you could get the benefits with the efficiency of the aero system.  Everything else I make would be fine to run in the system though. I definitely incorporate the “LIGHT” feed schedule off of our nutrient calculator online if using Aeroponics.

Well it looks like Prime is not going to work for my system and I am guessing not Fire either. I don’t have any agitation at all in my system so things would probably settle out and as the roots are already hanging in air air stones in the res seem redundant and may actually do more harm than good. Do you think I would be OK just using the base nutes in my aeroponic system? I do really like the idea of supplying multiple forms of an element. Either way I wish you the best because it seems you have really created a great product.

Bryce

Yes actually I would use just my base with ROOTS at 1-2 mL per gallon.  The ROOTS has the same phosphorous forms as FIRE just in a lessened rate, with other organic stimulants and a drip-clean like water conditioner.

I was pretty impressed by this interaction and was tempted to try the prime anyway because I have really good filtration. It might produce really killer results with an aeroponic system. But in the end I decided to only test the base nutrients.

Heavy 16 Vs Dutch Master – What’s In The Bottle?

I did some comparisons between labels on these 2 nute brands. If you add up both bottles the Dutch Master works out to 5-8-9 and they Heavy 16 comes out at 3-3-9 so it would appear the DM is more concentrated but most bloom formulas provide excess P anyway. I actually think the Heavy is a more balanced formula. The DM uses a mix of ammonium and nitrate nitrogen while the Heavy uses only the nitrate form. I believe this form is more available for plants to use which may explain its lower nitrogen level.

Both formulas provide ample trace elements but Heavy 16 provides 4% calcium while Dutch master has only 1.5 percent. Heavy also uses multiple calcium sources and has a lot of zinc. It’s not on the label though, but it was found when they submitted samples to the state to register their product. It has twice the sulfur, more iron and nickel which is not in the DM. The only thing I found missing from its formula was boron.

I only use bloom formula in my grows with Dutch Master so I felt the best comparison would be to use the Heavy 16 Bud A&B alone with nothing else. I will be growing C99 or Sugar Punch again because I know these plants. I wish I could do side by side grows but unfortunately I just don’t have the space.

I will be finishing my current C99 and Sugar Punch Scrog up and in about 2 weeks I will be starting a new grow with Heavy 16. Right now I want to try something new so it is looking like I will be growing some Hells Angel OG and a few c99.

I may get brave and add some agitation to my res and try the Prime on a later grow. I think my filtration will likely prevent clogs as anything larger than 10 microns will stay in the reservoir so it’s just a matter of preventing settling of its ingredients.

Heavy 16 Bud A&B – Some Early pH Observations

I have just started using the Heavy 16 bloom nutrients and although I have not been using it long enough to totally evaluate it I can say this stuff is definitely different than any nutes I have used before.

Most nutes that I have used are pretty acidic and I have almost always needed to raise my pH. I use tap water because mine is only 30 ppm so it is essentially RO water plus chlorine. It runs at a pH of about 9 and I still have almost always needed to use some pH Up. Less with Dutch Master and much more with others I have used.

But with the Heavy 16 it’s exactly the opposite. I am now having to use pH down because my mix is running in the upper 6s. I am still at lower concentrations since I have young plants and am only at about 700 ppm. I think when I get up around 1200 ppm I may not need to add anything though.

Heavy 16 – Final Verdict

I pulled the plug on Heavy 16 Bud A&B about two weeks into my grow. I think these would be excellent for soil, coco or other soiless mixes.But at least for aeroponics in my situation they did not perform well.

Unfortunately the pH was nearly impossible to keep below 6 and my plants were suffering because of it. It looked like they were experiencing lock out because of high pH. Plants were a yellow green and were not growing well.

I know these nutes are supposed to be used with other products from the heavy 16 line like Prime and Fire. But again most of the line simply was not compatible with my growing style. I had serious concerns about settling and clogging. The flower formula was fine and mixed clean and easy but the others have added teas and micros that just wont work for aeroponics.

So with a very limited trial I would have to say Heavy 16 should not be used for aeroponics and possibly not in other recirculating hydro systems. If you don’t try something new you will never learn anything new so experimenting is good even if you don’t get the results you wanted.

However, if you are growing in a soil,coco or soiless mix type of media it should work really well for you and I know some folks are getting amazing results with the Heavy 16 line.

Looking back, and comparing notes with other growers, the Biker Kush strain is a difficult one to get through veg and early flower without issues. So I may have over reacted on pulling the Heavy 16. I will be doing a new grow with this strain in coco and will give the Heavy 16/Aptus Fasilitor combo a try again.

Updated Review

I ran these again in a second grow with the Biker Kush from clones and the Heavy 16 did very well.  My yield was 1.25 # which is pretty good for OG without co2. My only complaint is that pH wanted to stay around 6.2 and I was constantly trying to bring it down. No lock outs or problems in spite of the higher pH though. Unfortunately I was not able to test the full line because of my drip system.

I am going back to growing aeroponic weed. I just get better results but if you are growing in soil I think Heavy 16 nutrients are a top quality product are a good choice. You would also be able to try the whole line of additives, especially the Fire without worrying about clogs.

Since that time I developed pythium in my aeroponic units. I was unable to get rid of it entirely and my grows suffered.

So this year I made the decision to go back to coco. It took quite a while to get new cuts of my genetics healthy again but so far there have not been any problems with pythium root rot.
I am currently testing Cyco nutrients I am using the Cyco Platinum Pro Starter Kit. There are a lot of bottles to it but I feel to evaluate any nute line it is important to run the whole line without other companies additives.

I plan on running Heavy 16 again after that batch of nutes are gone. I like the Cyco but I want to run several nute lines to find the best for my system. So Heavy 16 will be up next.

Choosing the best nutrients for your weed is as  important as choosing your strain. All nutrients are not created equal. I use Dutch Master nutrients, specifically the Dutch Master Gold.

I have tried many different nutrient formulations, most were OK but I really turned the corner on my growing when I started using the Dutch Master nutes.

I grow aeroponic weed so I need a really clean formulation that wont leave deposits and clog my misters. So I use dutch master gold flower for all my grows now and it works great.

It is clean, has a pleasant smell and is very stable PH wise. I check my PH at least once a day out of habit, but I never need to readjust it with these nutes. In the past I have had PH swings that lowered my yields, but none since switching over.

My yields are higher and my plants are healthier and I have had no more problems with nutrient lock outs either. It is a 2 part system that you mix in equal amounts. The 2 parts are there to keep deposits from forming. I have tried one part nutes and had problems with precipitation and don’t recommend using them.

One thing I really like about the Dutch Master Gold is that it is loaded with calcium and magnesium so I don’t need to add any. I grow in Washington and my tap water is soft and has none so it needs to be added.

Some parts of the US have hard water and calcium and magnesium levels are high enough naturally. But these are critical elements and calcium in particular is not very mobile so it is important that plants get it right from the start.

I only use dutch master gold flower and nothing else. You really don’t need separate grow and flower formulas. In fact I don’t see a need for all the expensive supplements many growers use. Save your money. Keep it simple. You don’t need to concoct some complicated witch’s brew to grow good weed.

The flowering formula will give young plants more than enough nitrogen to grow well and I don’t think long veg times are a great idea either. Big plants grow a lot of popcorn buds unless you prune them heavily. So you wind up pruning away a lot of what you are trying to achieve size wise anyway. Don’t waste your time, just grow a few more plants to fill the grow area.

If you want great yields and healthy plants I really suggest you give Dutch Master gold a try. Once you do you will never look back.
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