Hi Lori, I'm sorry it took me so long to respond to your question, but as luck would have it I just had a conversation with Debra Wink about this very subject yesterday. Timing is a consideration, since at the beginning of the process feeding once a day with a higher percentage of starter as compared to flour (preferably whole grain flour) and water, may be helpful in creating a lower pH, which seems to help pave the way for the onset of yeast activity. However, once the yeast kicks in, she mentioned that a larger feeding (more flour and water as compared to the amount of starter) allows for more generations of growth, which can actually help encourage both the yeast and lactic acid bacteria (LAB) populations. At that point there is certainly nothing wrong with following a 1:2:2 ratio, or even 1:3:3 or 1:4:4, if this seems to work better for you. Keep in mind that the idea is to replenish your starter when it's at its peak of rising or just beginning to fall; waiting until the starter has fully collapsed will generally cause it to behave more sluggishly. You can also adjust the ratio of feedings to line up with when you're able to replenish (larger feedings take a bit longer to rise than smaller feedings). Temperature also influences the rate of fermentation, with warmer temperatures causing fermentation to occur more quickly. I also got confirmation from Debra Wink that the sourdough starter creation process doesn't require vast quantities of flour, and it's fine to create with these smaller quantities as well, so if you want to do those larger feedings with smaller quanties of flour, consider something like this: 20g starter : 40g water : 40g flour. If you'd like more information on the science behind all this, please check out Debra Wink's articles, the Pineapple Juice Solution, Part 1 and Part 2. 

Barb

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