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Location

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Grittyville, WA

Is tissue testing important to getting top level results? Thanks!

11/12/2018 4:16:42 AM

Morgantown, WV

I started a couple years ago and will continue to do so. Still not competing with the top level yet, but I am learning a lot more about how my soil works with my plants throughout the season with them. As I continue to test, I feel I will get a lot better idea of how to manage my nutrients over 20 weeks rather than just in the spring to get them going.

That said, they can get to be a bit expensive, so I choose to do the plant that appears to be average in the patch and I apply the info to all the plants. Not the best way of doing things, but it allows me some real time information on a budget.

A lot of growers can make a lot of other improvements to add better gains prior to tissue testing, but if you're having a specific problem, or are otherwise pretty well tuned in on the rest, they can be a valuable management tool, yes.

Most here use Western Labs with John Taberna I think, as he's been recommending specifically on giant pumpkins for years while most other labs consider a pumpkin a pumpkin... I use Waypoint Analytical in Tennessee as I find the tests easy to read and a little cheaper. I use them for soil testing as well.

Look around, not all labs are the same price, or the same delivery setup for the information. Try a couple to compare and see if you like one over the other.

Others may agree or disagree, but I also find it helpful to send a soil sample in with each tissue sample. It adds to the overall cost, but I like to see what is in the soil at the time that I am seeing what is in the plant, otherwise you're moving forward with half of the information you need to make the fine tuning adjustments that I believe you're seeking.

Hope it helps, interested to see what others say!

11/12/2018 7:46:52 AM

Morgantown, WV

Also, "sap testing" is gaining in popularity and is slightly different than tissue testing. I don't know how many use it, but Matt Brungard would be a great guy to talk to if you can handle some science talk and want to learn more.

11/12/2018 7:49:33 AM

Grittyville, WA

Thanks. I feel bad I still owe western labs forty bucks or so for an extra test I ordered six months ago...I'm probably their least favorite customer. That may change.

11/12/2018 10:53:15 AM

Grittyville, WA

I admire the guys who can read their plants and improve because of accumulated knowledge and intuition but I am looking forward to getting better results by testing. Thanks Dustin. I will look into the sap thing.

11/12/2018 11:19:19 AM

http://www.canadiangreenhouseconference.com/attendee-information/speaker-program/speaker-program-wednesday/2015-cgc-presentations/2015%20CGC_King_WedPM.pdf

Here is a link that people might find useful. Just follow the scroll arrows on the right .

11/12/2018 1:12:34 PM

Mill Bay, British Columbia

Thanks for the link spudder, good stuff.

11/13/2018 10:45:56 AM