Silica

[Buddy Hemphill]

When do you cut out the silica?

 

[MakinGoo]

I cut mine out at week 5-6 in flowering

 

[SSHZ]

Botanicare recommends stopping it after the 8th week of flowering.........

 

[phenotyper]

Usually one week before plain/molasses water. The K boost always seems great for the plant.

 

[daddymexbricks]

I heard silica affects taste.. Don't know from experience.. But I cut mine out 2nd week of flower..

 

[EveryOneSmokes]

In my experience silica does affect the taste... I've uses through out flowering and it gave a slight taste once cured, so decided to cut it out at week 6 and haven't had the same taste since... really good product for ur plant and Ph'ing up

 

[phenotyper]

I have not experienced this before. Is it possibly because there are deposits of potassium still in the plant?

 

[MakinGoo]

I've cuts it out week 6 the latest & I get great flavor

 

[EveryOneSmokes]

I'm with u on That one makingoo... I'm sure u can use it all the way thru u just need to flush the girls good...I had to give a quick flush which may of added to the taste... but since then 6th week is the cut off for me
.. IMO

 

[Gaphoon]

I cut it between week 5-6 as well.

And since we're on the Silica topic. Has anyone used mad farmer silica shield?

 

[CelticEBE]

I usually taper down during flower just like cal-mag, cutting it completely on week 6 on a 9 week strain.

On the subject of Silica, something I learned about it, is to add it to your rez before anything else. After it has mixed really well bring your ph down to desired level before adding your base nutes. If you add it after your base nutes you can potentially have some reactions with your base nutes because it raises the ph so high. I can't remember where I got this from but it makes sense to me.

Aptus has a new silica based product that I am very interested in. What are you guys using and does anyone disagree with mixing Silica based products in your rez first?

 

[GrimloxK]

thats an interesting idea Celtic. I've been doing it wrong.

Originally I bought Pro-Tekt to help ph up my nute solution but i've been adding it after adding my nutes which end up lowing the ph of my solution to about 4.2 and I find I need to add wayy more than the recommended amount of pro-tekt to get it up into the sweet zone.

i'm gonna start adding it to my water before to see if it makes a difference.

 

[Z-ro]

yea i noticed if you add straight silica to a rezy full of nutes it turns milky when it hits the water, but since i like to try to stick to the micro-base-additives schedule, i found myself mixing the silica with a good amount of plain water, and still adding it to the full rezy very last and it was mixing clear, no more cloudy. i cut it out at wk3. I also experienced the same 'milky' effect with canna pk 13/14 and thats where i found the method to mix with water to dilute, then add to rez. gonna try adding it first and see how it goes.

 

[chrisloc]

only cut out the silica once you begin your,high levels of p and k around week 5 or 6 which ever week you start your bud expander/ Shooting Powder...


Peace

 

[UNITEDGROOVES]

Copied from a respected member on IC, Crazy Composer.. Very interesting info on Silica.. Many thanks to CC for sharing this info..

I pondered -at length- whether or not to share this... but I will share it once here in my grow thread. I also mentioned it in b self reliant's thread... This is big news for increasing the quality of your smoke, and may be surprising because it's so simple and effective.

Silica!!!! Silica!!!! Silica!!!! (but not for the reasons you thought!)

Silica has revolutionized the way I think about growing pot. It has revolutionized the quality of my pot. And I found this out by slowly, carefully changing my nutrient regime over the last few years... one change at a time to control the experiment. This is what I found and the process with which I found it:

First... the pay off, then the explanation. The payoff: TRULY AMAZING POT with very little effort.

The way I discovered this:
First I will explain how I like to explore nutrients... Let's say I am using Gen Hydro's 3-part system and I am not happy with the smell and taste (truth)... instead of simply getting rid of the 3-part system, I will make one change and finish a crop with only that one change. This gives me a good idea of what change occurred, and because I only made one change, you can be pretty sure any difference in the product was due to that one change. So this is how I move from one nutrient regimen to the next... slowly and carefully.

I will start at the point where I was using JUST the Gen Hydro 3-part system, then work my way through the steps that got me to silica.

I was not happy with the smell and taste of the Gen Hydro 3-part system. It grew great-looking herb, and lots of it, but it wasn't floating my boat. So, I added some humic acid to the mix for one harvest cycle in order to coax some flavor from the buds... It worked, but not to the extent that I hoped.

Next I used the regular Gen Hydro 3-part system for the entire grow, except for the last half of flowering, where I substituted Gen Hydro with Pure Blend Pro Bloom (soil and coco formula). I liked the results much more than Gen Hydro alone... so I switched over to just Pure Blend Pro.

Being a purist, and being hopeful that the answer to my ultimate quest of being able to grow the best pot in the simplest way... I used ONLY PBP Grow and Bloom... nothing else. This produced better herb that the Gen Hydro, but not that much better, honestly. So I added Liquid Karma to the PBP Grow and Bloom regimen. The plants liked that very much, and the taste and burn improved slightly. Good. But not best.

One day I was looking into silica because I wanted some protection against hot temps in the grow room during the summer months. What I read floored me, and got me thinking. I learned that 10-20% of the dried weight of plants (not just pot plants, all plants) living in the earth was silica weight! That's a lot of silica! And so I began to realize that... if a plant takes THAT much of something into itself, it is SUPPOSED TO BE THERE. I also read that studies about silica have been few and far between (where plant nutrition is concerned), and that we likely have very little clue about the true role silica plays in plant nutrition. But it seemed obvious to me that plants crave it, so I gave it. I had no idea how profound the difference would actually be!

I added silica to my Pure Blend Pro regimen, and the results were nice at first. I could tell that my plants were sturdier, the leaves were more... "leathery" and stiff than usual... all results I had expected to see... fine.

The first UREKA! moment... The first time I smoked my herb with the silica regimen was the epitome of a lifetime for me. The strain was SFV OG Kush, the herb burned as good as any herb I ever smoked... Like incense. Light the tip of the joint and walk away, you don't need to puff on it at all, it will burn to nothing all by itself. At first I thought, "well, it's probably because the herb isn't completely dried and cured yet, and this is an anomaly. But the entire harvest burned like this... AND was getting people higher than ever!
It dawned on me... Silica is doing this... and I think I know why.

Silica is used by plants as a building block for cell walls... in other words, plants are stiffer with silica because the cell walls become stiffer. Now, when smoking a bud without stiff cell walls, the flame will collapse the cells on the outer edge of the bud and the flame now wants to run around the herb instead of through it. However, WITH silica and the stiff cell walls it creates, the flame (cherry) can work THROUGH the bud because the cell walls are not collapsing. Also, silica is basically glass... and glass is a conductor of heat. This conduction of heat means the cherry is self preserving! Silica makes the herb burn better... is the point I am making here!

Now... just one crop isn't exactly a controlled experiment.. so... before I went ahead and believed that these awesome results were due to silica alone, I added silica to a friend's garden who was using the same EXACT nutrient regimen I was using. Wouldn't ya know it... after adding silica to his garden, his herb also burned perfectly and was getting people higher than without silica! So... two separate gardens, same STRAIN EVEN... same nutrient regimen... Same leap forward in quality at both places after adding silica.

Wanna know another awesome fact about silica? It can be added to your plants at the last moment and the cells will STILL suck it up. Silica does not need to be added while cells are forming (although that is ideal). My friend's SFV OG Kushes were ready to be flushed... I suggested he put off harvest a week and give silica to see if plants can use it AFTER they have completed their cellular growth. The silica was sucked up by the already existing cells and the results were identical to my own. Amazing.

Another benefit... remember earlier when I said 10-20% of the dry weight of plants grown outside is silica weight? Well, cannabis grown with silica is, indeed, heavier and denser. No doubt about it. The same amount of herb I am used to seeing in a bag weighed up to substantially more than it usually would. And the texture of the bud material was much denser and substantive.

The difference was so immediately awesome, I pondered not even saying anything in public... this is too good for every Tom Dick and Harry to know... whoever has this knowledge will get an immediate competitive advantage. But, seeing as it has been my mission to teach what I know, I decided to fully share this information ONE TIME... And this was it.

Pro-Tekt or Silica Blast work for me. Advanced Nutrients (Advanced costliness) has a product called Rhino Skin.

I cannot express enough how much this discovery has changed the way I think about growing cannabis... It's like I have entered Crazy Composer's grow career version 2.0. Every strain I have every grown without silica can be grown again, and it will be like growing that strain for the first time. It's a completely new ballgame now, the rules have changed.

It's amazing to think that there are so many folks using silica for the health of the plant, and don't know that the good results they are getting in the quality of the smoke is because of the silica... It never occurs to people! It's been right there under our noses the whole time.

Think about it now... these plants THRIVE in their native environments... in the SANDY, pebbly soil of Afghanistan, Pakistan, etc. Think about it. As it turns out, plants grown in sandy soils turn out so nice NOT solely because of the drainage provided by the sand, but by the silica in the sand.

I use it with every watering now, except the final few days.

 

[El Cerebro]

Anyone found a good alternative source for silica besides silly nute company jugs?

 

[MakinGoo]

Copied from a respected member on IC, Crazy Composer.. Very interesting info on Silica.. Many thanks to CC for sharing this info..

I pondered -at length- whether or not to share this... but I will share it once here in my grow thread. I also mentioned it in b self reliant's thread... This is big news for increasing the quality of your smoke, and may be surprising because it's so simple and effective.

Silica!!!! Silica!!!! Silica!!!! (but not for the reasons you thought!)

Silica has revolutionized the way I think about growing pot. It has revolutionized the quality of my pot. And I found this out by slowly, carefully changing my nutrient regime over the last few years... one change at a time to control the experiment. This is what I found and the process with which I found it:

First... the pay off, then the explanation. The payoff: TRULY AMAZING POT with very little effort.

The way I discovered this:
First I will explain how I like to explore nutrients... Let's say I am using Gen Hydro's 3-part system and I am not happy with the smell and taste (truth)... instead of simply getting rid of the 3-part system, I will make one change and finish a crop with only that one change. This gives me a good idea of what change occurred, and because I only made one change, you can be pretty sure any difference in the product was due to that one change. So this is how I move from one nutrient regimen to the next... slowly and carefully.

I will start at the point where I was using JUST the Gen Hydro 3-part system, then work my way through the steps that got me to silica.

I was not happy with the smell and taste of the Gen Hydro 3-part system. It grew great-looking herb, and lots of it, but it wasn't floating my boat. So, I added some humic acid to the mix for one harvest cycle in order to coax some flavor from the buds... It worked, but not to the extent that I hoped.

Next I used the regular Gen Hydro 3-part system for the entire grow, except for the last half of flowering, where I substituted Gen Hydro with Pure Blend Pro Bloom (soil and coco formula). I liked the results much more than Gen Hydro alone... so I switched over to just Pure Blend Pro.

Being a purist, and being hopeful that the answer to my ultimate quest of being able to grow the best pot in the simplest way... I used ONLY PBP Grow and Bloom... nothing else. This produced better herb that the Gen Hydro, but not that much better, honestly. So I added Liquid Karma to the PBP Grow and Bloom regimen. The plants liked that very much, and the taste and burn improved slightly. Good. But not best.

One day I was looking into silica because I wanted some protection against hot temps in the grow room during the summer months. What I read floored me, and got me thinking. I learned that 10-20% of the dried weight of plants (not just pot plants, all plants) living in the earth was silica weight! That's a lot of silica! And so I began to realize that... if a plant takes THAT much of something into itself, it is SUPPOSED TO BE THERE. I also read that studies about silica have been few and far between (where plant nutrition is concerned), and that we likely have very little clue about the true role silica plays in plant nutrition. But it seemed obvious to me that plants crave it, so I gave it. I had no idea how profound the difference would actually be!

I added silica to my Pure Blend Pro regimen, and the results were nice at first. I could tell that my plants were sturdier, the leaves were more... "leathery" and stiff than usual... all results I had expected to see... fine.

The first UREKA! moment... The first time I smoked my herb with the silica regimen was the epitome of a lifetime for me. The strain was SFV OG Kush, the herb burned as good as any herb I ever smoked... Like incense. Light the tip of the joint and walk away, you don't need to puff on it at all, it will burn to nothing all by itself. At first I thought, "well, it's probably because the herb isn't completely dried and cured yet, and this is an anomaly. But the entire harvest burned like this... AND was getting people higher than ever!
It dawned on me... Silica is doing this... and I think I know why.

Silica is used by plants as a building block for cell walls... in other words, plants are stiffer with silica because the cell walls become stiffer. Now, when smoking a bud without stiff cell walls, the flame will collapse the cells on the outer edge of the bud and the flame now wants to run around the herb instead of through it. However, WITH silica and the stiff cell walls it creates, the flame (cherry) can work THROUGH the bud because the cell walls are not collapsing. Also, silica is basically glass... and glass is a conductor of heat. This conduction of heat means the cherry is self preserving! Silica makes the herb burn better... is the point I am making here!

Now... just one crop isn't exactly a controlled experiment.. so... before I went ahead and believed that these awesome results were due to silica alone, I added silica to a friend's garden who was using the same EXACT nutrient regimen I was using. Wouldn't ya know it... after adding silica to his garden, his herb also burned perfectly and was getting people higher than without silica! So... two separate gardens, same STRAIN EVEN... same nutrient regimen... Same leap forward in quality at both places after adding silica.

Wanna know another awesome fact about silica? It can be added to your plants at the last moment and the cells will STILL suck it up. Silica does not need to be added while cells are forming (although that is ideal). My friend's SFV OG Kushes were ready to be flushed... I suggested he put off harvest a week and give silica to see if plants can use it AFTER they have completed their cellular growth. The silica was sucked up by the already existing cells and the results were identical to my own. Amazing.

Another benefit... remember earlier when I said 10-20% of the dry weight of plants grown outside is silica weight? Well, cannabis grown with silica is, indeed, heavier and denser. No doubt about it. The same amount of herb I am used to seeing in a bag weighed up to substantially more than it usually would. And the texture of the bud material was much denser and substantive.

The difference was so immediately awesome, I pondered not even saying anything in public... this is too good for every Tom Dick and Harry to know... whoever has this knowledge will get an immediate competitive advantage. But, seeing as it has been my mission to teach what I know, I decided to fully share this information ONE TIME... And this was it.

Pro-Tekt or Silica Blast work for me. Advanced Nutrients (Advanced costliness) has a product called Rhino Skin.

I cannot express enough how much this discovery has changed the way I think about growing cannabis... It's like I have entered Crazy Composer's grow career version 2.0. Every strain I have every grown without silica can be grown again, and it will be like growing that strain for the first time. It's a completely new ballgame now, the rules have changed.

It's amazing to think that there are so many folks using silica for the health of the plant, and don't know that the good results they are getting in the quality of the smoke is because of the silica... It never occurs to people! It's been right there under our noses the whole time.

Think about it now... these plants THRIVE in their native environments... in the SANDY, pebbly soil of Afghanistan, Pakistan, etc. Think about it. As it turns out, plants grown in sandy soils turn out so nice NOT solely because of the drainage provided by the sand, but by the silica in the sand.

I use it with every watering now, except the final few days.

Great info

 

[Kcar]

How about Ag-Sil 16H from here.

 

[OGONLY]

Protekt is the bomb! I only add enough to bring my PH up to where I want it. If you add the recommended amount you will have to bring your PH down.

I cut mine out week 5 of flower.

 

[dankworth]

I miss barricade from AN. Recommended application rate was .1 ml/liter. Rhino Skin is now 2 ml/liter. I need to get off my ass and buy a big bag of potassium silicate from a laboratory supply place.
I am just using Pro-tekt @ 1 ml/gallon because it is convenient for now.