Feeding Schedules & Calculators
For when you want to go beyond water-only. Optional, but powerful.
First, the honest truth: you can grow incredible plants with nothing but good living soil and plain water. That’s the heart of the BuildASoil way, more soil, less fuss, and it’s where we always tell people to start. If you’re new here, start with a water-only setup and don’t worry about any of this yet.
So why feeding schedules at all? Because there are real situations where supplemental feeding genuinely helps:
- You’re keeping a big plant going in a smaller container, where the soil volume can’t carry it the whole way alone.
- You’re running a commercial grow and want consistent, repeatable inputs at scale.
- You just want to tinker for that last few percent of quality and yield.
Think of it like an athlete. The average person does just fine on three good meals a day. But a high-performance athlete under heavy demand follows a far more dialed nutrition routine to get the absolute most out of their body. Plants are the same. Most of the time, the “three meals a day” of living soil is all they need. But when you’re pushing for peak performance, a little intentional feeding can take you the rest of the way.
We don’t lead with this, because you truly don’t need it to succeed. But when you’re ready to go deeper, here’s how to do it right.
The BuildASoil Supplemental Schedule
This is our guide for using the full range of BuildASoil inputs, botanical teas, ferments, top-dresses, and supplements, throughout your grow. To be clear: none of this is strictly required. It’s a roadmap for how to use all the different products if and when you choose to, so you’re feeding with intention instead of guessing. Use as much or as little as you like.
| Product | Purpose | Seedling Week 1 · per gal |
Veg Wk 2–Final Veg · per gal |
Pre-Bloom Wk Before Flower · per gal |
Bloom (Stretch) Weeks 1–4 · per gal |
Full Bloom Weeks 5–8 · per gal |
Ripening Week 9+ · per gal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BuildAVeg | Veg | – | 1 tsp | 1/2 tsp | 1/4 tsp | – | – |
| BuildABloom | Bloom | – | – | 1/4 tsp | 1/2 tsp | 1/4 tsp | – |
| Big 6 Micros | Micros | – | 1/4 tsp | 1/4 tsp | 1/4 tsp | 1/4 tsp | – |
| Quillaja Extract 20 (or 60 or ThermX70) |
Wetting | 1/8–1/2 tsp | 1/8–1/2 tsp | 1/8–1/2 tsp | 1/8–1/2 tsp | 1/8–1/2 tsp | – |
| Rootwise Mycrobe Complete | Microbes | 1 tsp | 1/2 tsp | 1/2 tsp | – | – | – |
| Rootwise Bio-Phos | Microbes | – | – | 1/2 tsp | 1/2 tsp | 1/2 tsp | – |
| Rootwise Enzyme Elixer | Enzymes | 3ml | 3ml | 5ml | 5ml | 5ml | – |
| Horticultural Aloe Vera Powder | Plant Extract | 1/4 tsp | 1/2 tsp | 1/2 tsp | – | – | – |
| Horticultural Coconut Freeze Dried Powder | Sugars | – | 1 tsp | 1 tsp | 2 tsp | 3 tsp | 4 tsp |
| Thrive Holy Cow | Ferment | 1/4 oz | 1/2 oz | 1/2 oz | 1/2 oz | – | – |
| Fermented Plant Extract – Comfrey or Hemp | Ferment | – | 1 oz | 2 oz | 2 oz | – | – |
| Fermented Plant Extract – Pumpkin or Peach | Ferment | – | – | 1 oz | 2 oz | 2 oz | – |
| Topdressing Products | |||||||
| Craft Blend | Fertilizer | – | 1/8 cup | 1/8 cup | 1/8 cup if needed | – | – |
| BuildAFlower and/or COWOCO | Compost | – | 1/4–1/2" layer | 1/4–1/2" layer | Handfuls if needed | Handful if needed | – |
| Gnarly Barley | Enzymes + | – | 1/8 cup | – | 2 tbls if needed | – | – |
| Kashi Blend | Bio Fertilizer | – | Sprinkle top | – | Sprinkle top | – | – |
| Pushin P | Bloom | – | 2 tbsp | 2 tbsp | – | – | – |
| Ocean Blend | Micros | – | 1 tbsp | 1 tbsp | – | – | – |
Tip: on mobile, scroll the table sideways to see all growth stages. Follow this schedule weekly, one time. You can mix it into one watering or split across waterings, but less is more, don’t overdo it. If you’re ever overwatered, foliar spray, dim the lights a bit, and focus on dry-down. Don’t keep feeding just because the chart says so, overwatered is overwatered.
The calculator does the math for you, just enter your setup and it tells you what and how much to use.
Remember: water-only works.
If any of this feels like a lot, it’s because it’s the advanced, optional layer. The foundation is always the same, good living soil, kept alive and moist. Feed when you have a reason to, tinker when you want to, and never feel like you’re doing it wrong by keeping it simple.
New to all this? Start with The BuildASoil Way and a simple water-only setup. Come back here when you’re ready to go deeper.
