Case File No. 28-NUT01 Subject: Plant Nutrition and the Final Haul Investigating Officer: Matty Ridge
G’day, and welcome back to the workshop.
Your plants are footy players mid-season—no pies and schooners, they need protein shakes and steak dinners. A champion needs a solid feed plan, or they’ll be on the bench by the final whistle. Forget the confusing charts and the fancy science—this guide is my personal playbook. We’ll get you and your plants sorted, no dramas.
Let’s get to it.
Exhibit A: The Big Three (NPK) & The Supporting Cast
You’ll see NPK on every bottle of fertiliser. It’s the core diet plan for every plant. Think of them as the fundamental tools in your kit.
Nitrogen (N): This is your welder. It’s what plants use to make strong stems and lush, leafy growth. Without enough N, your plant will be weak and a bludger, like a rusty ute with no grunt.
Phosphorus (P): This is the spark plug. It fuels root growth, flowering, and bud production. Your plant will be a proper dud without enough P when it’s time to flower.
Potassium (K): This is the duct tape keeping it all together. It helps regulate water, fight off disease, and handle stress. It’s what keeps your plant tough as nails and ready to go.
These three are the star players, but don’t forget the supporting cast. Things like calcium, magnesium, and iron are also crucial. They’re the unsung heroes that keep the whole operation humming smoothly.
Matty’s Pro Tip: Think of NPK like a three-piece band. N is the drummer keeping the rhythm, P is the lead guitarist with the solo, and K is the bass player holding it all together.
Exhibit B: The Bush Mechanic’s Triage Kit
A good mechanic knows their tools. And a good grower knows their numbers. You don’t need a science lab to get it right. All you need to worry about is two things.
pH: The acidity or alkalinity of your soil. This is the most important number to know. If the pH is off, your plant can’t absorb the nutrients, even if they’re swimming in them. Think of it as opening the plant’s mouth. Keep your pH between 6.0 and 7.0 for soil grows.
EC / PPM: This is the octane rating in your tank. It tells you the strength of your nutrient solution. The higher the number, the more food in the mix. A simple EC meter is your best mate for this.
Matty’s Pro Tip: Your pH pen is your spanner; your EC meter is your fuel gauge. Without them, you’re driving blind.
Exhibit C: The Bush Mechanic’s Playbook: Hydro vs. Soil vs. Organic
This guide is your blueprint, but you’ll need to make one quick call: are you growing in soil, a water-based system, or building a living ecosystem?
For Soil Growers: You’re already a step ahead. Soil holds nutrients, so you don’t need to feed as often. Your main job is to listen to your plant and make sure your pH is on point.
For Hydro Growers: You’re basically Formula 1 pit crews—constant tuning, no smoke breaks. Your plants get all their food directly from the water, so there’s no room for error. You must be on top of your EC and pH readings constantly.
The Organic Bush Mechanic: If synthetic nutrients are like giving your plants a power shake, organic growing is like building a five-star buffet for the soil. Your job isn’t to feed the plant directly; it’s to feed the soil, which in turn feeds the plant. It’s a slower, more rewarding process.
Exhibit D: The Bush Mechanic’s Playbook: The Veg Stage
This is your plant’s gym membership phase. She’s in full-on growth mode, building her engine for the big show. This is where you get her on a proper training diet.
Bush Tales: I once fried half a tent full of promising young plants by thinking, “more food equals more buds!” I just kept adding nutrients, and by the end, every leaf tip was burnt to a crisp. Spoiler: it doesn’t work. The best growers are patient growers.
Prep Your Mix: Mix your chosen grow-phase nutrients into your water. Target an EC of 1.2–1.6 (or PPM of 600–800). If you’re using soil, feed with nutrients every second or third watering. If you’re using coco or hydro, feed with every watering.
Check the pH: Before you feed, get your pH pen out. For soil, aim for a pH of 6.3–6.8. For hydro, a tighter range of 5.8–6.2 is spot-on.
Water to Runoff: Pour your solution slowly and evenly around the base of the plant until you see about 10–20% of the water running out the bottom. This flushes old nutrients and ensures the roots are fully fed.
Read the Runoff: After feeding, check the pH and EC of the water coming out. If the numbers are too far off from what you put in, it’s a sign that your medium needs some attention.
Exhibit E: The Bush Mechanic’s Playbook: The Flower Stage
This is prom night—time to switch from protein shakes to steak dinners. Your plant has stopped growing up and is now focused on building buds. The diet needs to change.
Matty’s Pro Tip: I once forgot to dial back nitrogen at flower—ended up with leafy colas thicker than a phone book. Remember to switch from the veg nutes!
Transition the Mix: Switch your nutrients from a high-nitrogen “grow” formula to a high-phosphorus and potassium “bloom” formula.
Adjust EC/PPM: As your plant gets hungrier, increase the strength of your mix. Start at EC 1.8 (PPM 900) and gradually ramp it up to a peak of EC 2.4 (PPM 1200) around mid-flowering.
Monitor Your Plant: The plant will tell you what it needs. Yellowing leaves from the bottom up mean it’s hungry for nitrogen; purple or dark green leaves can be a sign of a phosphorus issue. Check your pH and EC before every feed.
Keep the Routine: Follow the same watering and runoff routine as you did in the vegetative stage. Consistency is key to a solid final product.
Exhibit F: The Bush Mechanic’s Playbook: The Final Flush
This is your victory lap. It’s what separates the legends from the blokes who just grew a bush. Skip this, and your buds will taste like sucking on a spanner.
Start the Timer: About two weeks before harvest, stop feeding your plant all nutrients. Set a reminder on your phone. This is a non-negotiable step.
Plain Water Only: From here on out, your plant gets nothing but pure, pH-balanced water.
Check Runoff: Water with a good amount of runoff to flush the medium. Check the EC of the runoff water. You’re aiming for it to get as close as possible to the EC of the plain water you’re putting in.
Watch the Leaves: It’s normal for the leaves to start yellowing. This means the plant is using up its last stored food. This is what you want.
Matty’s Pro Tip: Flushing your plants is like a proper pre-flight clean-out before a big flight. It gets rid of all the rubbish and ensures a smooth landing.
Exhibit G: The Plant’s SOS Signals
Even with a perfect plan, things can go wrong. Here’s how to spot and fix the most common problems. If you need a more detailed breakdown, you can check out my full guide on Leaf Forensics.
Bush Tales: I once knew a mate who was so impatient he forgot to flush his crop. Smoked a big joint with him after harvest and he said it tasted like wet cardboard and lawn clippings. Don’t be that mate.
Nutrient Burn
Symptoms: Leaf tips look burnt, crispy, and yellow. They’re curling upwards, as if they’ve been in a fire. This happens when you’re feeding them too much.
Bush Fix: Stop feeding them! Give the plants nothing but pH-balanced water for a week to flush out the excess. When you start feeding again, use a much lighter dose.
Symptoms: The leaves look like they’re lacking nutrients (yellowing, spots), even though you’re feeding them plenty. The pH is probably off, and the plant can’t eat.
Bush Fix: Flush the plants with plenty of pH-balanced water. Test the runoff to make sure the pH is back in the right range. Then, start your feeding schedule again, but be sure to get the pH right from the start.
Magnesium Deficiency
Symptoms: Yellowing that shows up as racing stripes between the veins, usually on the lower leaves.
Bush Fix: She’s sulking like a Holden with no alternator. Fix it quick with a dose of Epsom salts or a dedicated Cal-Mag supplement.
Exhibit H: FAQ: Bush Mechanic’s Quick Q&A
What are the best nutrients for bigger buds? Listen, mate, a healthy plant is a dead-set champion. So, focus on getting the basics right first. Once your plant is healthy, the key to bigger buds is a serious boost of phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) during the flowering stage. These two are the heavy lifters that fuel bud development. Don’t forget the calcium and magnesium, too—they’re the silent heroes that prevent your buds from getting skinny and weak.
Do I need to feed my autoflowers? You bet your boots you do! Autoflowers are in a sprint, so they don’t have time to muck around. While they can be sensitive at the start, they’ll want a lighter, more consistent feed schedule once they get going. Just follow the feed guide and you’ll be stoked with the results.
Can I use the same nutrients for soil and hydro? No worries, you can, but it’s a bad idea. It all comes down to the dirt. Your soil is a living ecosystem—it’s a massive, slow-release buffet with its own microbes and nutrients. Hydro, on the other hand, is just water. You’ve got to provide everything your plant needs, from NPK to all the trace minerals, in every single feed. Using soil nutes for hydro is like trying to use a spanner as a hammer—it’ll work, but you’re gonna break something.
Exhibit I: The Final Verdict
Growing a champion plant isn’t about guesswork—it’s about having a solid plan. Your plant will tell you exactly what it needs, you just have to listen.
Follow this playbook, and you’ll be looking at jars so fat they groan when you stack ‘em.
Ready to get started? Browse our complete range of Matty-approved fertilisers and nutrients and kick off your best season yet.
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