[MEGA]Growing advice, tips, tricks and experience: Mark 3

[Artificial Emotion]

Sorry I had to make a new post to upload all the images. Shown is the worm compsot I was talking about and my compost tea brewer that makes actively aerated compost teas (AACTs) from things like garden compost, well rotted manure and worm compost or worm castings (the two are different, despite what most people think).

The tea is brewed for 24 hours at a constant temperature of 18C which is low enough to keep dissolved oxygen levels high but high enough to allow prolific growth of beneficial bacteria and fungi. I also included mollasses and fishmix, as well as some completely organic seaweed extract.

 

[SpanoonapS]

Its just weird... ever since we transplanted, the plants haven't needed food. Apparently the soil is filled with nutrients. They havent shown any signs of hunger.

 

[Artificial Emotion]

^ Most potting composts are. You basically have three types of compost in order of high nutrient content to low nutrient content;

- potting compost: high in nutrients and for growing plants on. Too 'hot' for small seedlings and cuttings.

- multipurpose compost: contains enough nutrients for several weeks of growth, but in low enough quantities to allow you to sow seeds successfully or to root cuttings. This is my favourite since it's so versatile and means you only need one compost for germinating seeds, rooting cuttings and potting on. Buying just this saves money too.

- sowing and cutting compost: as the name implies, you can sow seeds or root cuttings and is suitable for delicate, sensitive seedlings that have issues in compost that is too 'hot' i.e. has too much base fertilizer. However the plants soon run out of nutrients and will need to be fed. This is why it's only used for seedlings or cuttings and it's often quite expensive for what it is. Beginners assume it's needed and will pay the money when in fact for 99% of the strains it's not needed at all.

It's likely that you used either a multipurose compost, or possibly a potting compost and there is enough base fertilizer in the compost to last for a number of weeks. If you are potting up - that is, growing the plant in a small pot until you see roots through the drainage holes in the bottom and then transplanting in a slightly larger pot filled with compost and so on for between 3 and 5 times - each time you pot up there are enough nutrients inbetween each pot up, meaning no feeding will be needed at all up until a couple of weeks after you switch to 12/12, when the plant starts to flower.

If you don't pot up like you really are supposed to (instead of the wrong way of transplanting a small plant in a small pot straight into a large pot of compost without any steps inbetween), there should be absolutely no need for 'grow' fertilizers whatsoever' and the only nutrient that's needed will be a 'bloom' formulation starting from 2 weeks into flowering period after switching to 12/12. The high P and K levels in the bloom fertilizer will stimulate flowering and you'll yield more as a result.

it gets down to 40-50F

Prelude if you don't want to buy a greenhouse because they're too expensive or for whatever reason, I would strongly recommend buying some horticultural fleece to wrap around the plants at night, since they shield them from low temps. A sheet of horticultural fleece that is large enough to cover quite a few plants should only cost you about $6, so they're very cheap. They're basically very thin layers of fleece that allow the plants to breathe easily but keep the plants nice and warm. They're extremely effective and used all throughout the horticulural industry. You need to take it off every morning though, which is easy enough (if you forget it doesn't matter at all).

 

[SpanoonapS]

AE - When we got them... they were teens in cubes. We transplanted into 5 gallon pots with soil. We did nothing but water for 1 straight week. Then we fed. Then we watered. Now we just fed again. The formula we used is the CNS17 Grow and the Pure Blend Grow. Next week, we are supposed to up the nutrients slightly. Then, after 1 week, we put them to flower and switch to bloom nutrients.

Does this sound ok? The plants look great so far... I will post more pics tomorrow.

 

[Artificial Emotion]

What I would do if I were in your shoes is just water them with tepid tap water (not cold or warm) without any nutrients. Don't feed unless you see some yellowing and then switch to 12/12 when you see roots through the drainage holes in the bottom of the pot. Two weeks after you've switched to 12/12 start using the bloom nutrient at less than the rate recommended by the manufacturer (pretty much all nutrient manufacturers recommend using far more nutrient than you actually do need). Any time between now and 2 weeks into the 12/12 lighting schedule, use a small amount of the grow nutrient if you see any yellowing, and if you do, you won't need much. Remember, with nutrients usually less is more. Beginners mostly almost always end up using more nutrient than they actually need to and this never translates into more bud.

The reason you should not use the bloom nutrient for the first two weeks of 12/12 lighting is because during this time they effectively still in the vegetative stage. Root growth continues during these two weeks but after this it virtually slows to a halt, so this is the reason why you should wait until the roots have filled the pot before switching to 12/12.

 

[SpanoonapS]

AE - Thank you. I did start to see some yellowing (or the leaves just seemed a bit lighter) which is why I decided to feed them. I won't feed them anymore unless they ask for it... we will also follow your advice for the bloom schedule.

By the way - Could you show me a picture or example of what a plant looks like when its hungry. I want to know exactly what it will look like so I know to feed it.

Is it bad that we fed them?

 

[Vader]

I just thought it might be good if someone has a question and writteen in the FAQ under numbered headlines is a concise, succint and easy-to-understand explanation of a concept, such as what potting up is and why it's needed, then you could refer them to section 7a) for example, with a link so all they have to do is click on it. This would save having to explain the same thing to various people over and over again. Perhaps people would be more inclined to read it if you link it to a specific section and all they need to do is click on the link rather than trawl through loads of info.

Or instead you could write it at the beginning of the thread as you say and then whenever we need to refer the person to it, you either give a hypertext link or copy and paste it.

It's just an idea anyway, so if you don't think it'll work that's up to you since you're in charge, vadar.

Yeah, I certainly think that an FAQ at the start of this thread could be a good thing. As I say, I'd be more than happy to put it there, and then when someone asks a question that's been done to death, you can say "read the faq in the first post, then if you still have questions fire away". It would be silly for me to write and FAQ when I'm far from the most knowlegeable/experienced grower here, though; if it's going to get done, you guys need to do it. Community project?

 

[Artificial Emotion]

^ Sounds like a plan. I'll try and contribute to it slowly as an ongoing project, particularly if I answer someone's question it's good enough to directly copy and paste.

AE - Thank you. I did start to see some yellowing (or the leaves just seemed a bit lighter) which is why I decided to feed them. I won't feed them anymore unless they ask for it... we will also follow your advice for the bloom schedule.

By the way - Could you show me a picture or example of what a plant looks like when its hungry. I want to know exactly what it will look like so I know to feed it.

Is it bad that we fed them?

Sure, check out the photo. This is what yellowing looks like:

NSFW:

It's not bad that you fed them and probably will do no harm at all, so don't worry. Even if they did start to show a bit of over fertilisation it could easily be fixed by watering them with plain tapwater subsequently until any signs of over-fertilisation gradually goes away.

 

[SpanoonapS]

AE - Some of the leaves are a bit "crinkly" is that a sign of overfeeding? Some leaves are really dark green... that ok?

I also don't know how often to feed once they are in the flowering room. You said to water for 2 weeks then start the bloom nutrients. Do I wait for yellowing after that or follow the schedule?

 

[SpanoonapS]

Yeah, I certainly think that an FAQ at the start of this thread could be a good thing. As I say, I'd be more than happy to put it there, and then when someone asks a question that's been done to death, you can say "read the faq in the first post, then if you still have questions fire away". It would be silly for me to write and FAQ when I'm far from the most knowlegeable/experienced grower here, though; if it's going to get done, you guys need to do it. Community project?

Vader. I asked if I could create a faq/Grow Set Up page and you told me no!

 

[Vader]

I said that I didn't think that a separate thread would be warranted/appropriate. I have thought of a way that you can have your FAQ without cluttering the forum with redundant threads. Isn't this a satisfactory outcome?

 

[SpanoonapS]

Here are some pics so you can better judge. A couple leaves are a bit wrinkled and dark green. Not all of them, but some. What is this a sign of and what should I do?

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[SpanoonapS]

Also - I think we are going to flush them. If I use tap water (which has a high PH) then what's the alternative? I have no other way to flush them. Do I just use tap water, wait a day and then water with PH controlled water?

 

[Transcendence]

God damn, my plants aren't too bad for a first grow but they look like shit compared to yours. I just used normal miracle grow potting soil and they're starting to yellow fast from the bottom up after 30 days of veg so fuck me I guess.

I'm just about to switch to a 12/12 flower cycle. What nutrients can I easily add without changing the soil that will allow them to recover quickly?

 

[JoshE]

Nothing special, but here's an update of my late planted lady

We have been getting some intense storms recently, but she still seems to be going well even though we've had some real wild wind and rain.

NSFW:

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~Josh

 

[Artificial Emotion]

Also - I think we are going to flush them. If I use tap water (which has a high PH) then what's the alternative? I have no other way to flush them. Do I just use tap water, wait a day and then water with PH controlled water?

They are over fed. I would not flush them though. Just water them with plain tapwater. You never need to pH adjust your water at all with compost (even if you were flushing them), since compost naturally acts as a pH buffer, making any adjustment in pH futile anyway.

They look 'cabbagey'.

Do you have a good extraction and intake? Are you extracting outdoors?

You need to stop spraying them if you are. It will only cause problems and is not needed (I was going to say that the other day when you mentioned it but it slipped my mind).

Dark green foliage is a sign you're feeding them too much nitrogen (the second to last pic looks like the plant in it has been fed a little too much N). Overly lush foliage that results from this will hit your yield since plants fed lots of N have smaller buds/fruits.

 

[SpanoonapS]

Wow, I thought we had to check our PH. When I test our PH from the tap its VERY ALKALINE, are you sure about this?

I have a good extraction and intake. It extracts from outside and blows fresh air in. Another duct blows A/C air in. Another duct sucks old air out and blows it outside.

I mist them once a day. How often should I do this, or stop altogether?

Here is whats in the soil to help you judge this.

Basement Mix - Cocoa Fiber Based Soiless Grow Medium. Cocoa Fiber, Humbolt Forrest Humus, Compost, Perlite, Lava Rock, Earth Work Castings, Fish Bone Meal, Feather Meal, Bat Guano, Seabird Guano, Kelp Meal, Oyster Shell, Silica, Alfalfa Meal, Cocoa Chips.

Since they are overfed, are they gonna die? Is this a dead crop? (Thanks so much for your help)

 

[Artificial Emotion]

^ yes, very sure. Imagine walking into the chelsea flower show and asking a 1st place gardener, 'do you pH adjust the water you irrigate your plants with?'. They would just stand there with a blank stare! The problem is you're transferring a technique used in hydroponics into soil gardening. I've managed to grow extremely healthy plants that yield well and I've not pH'd the water once. If your water is extremely hard (so much that it would affect plant growth), changing the pH won't help anyway. The only thing that would work is an RO filter, but 9.9 times out of 10 it's not necessary.

When you say it extracts 'from' outside, do you mean 'to' the outside?

Don't worry, they're not going to die lol. The problems are very minor and could go away in as little as a week or less. Sorry that's my fault for giving you the impression that there's a serious problem. The problem is extremely subtle and hardly noticable in the first place.

When you water them are you using a wet/dry cycle? Are you aware there is a special technique for watering them you should use? You should not water until the soil is dry, but not so much so that they're wilting. This allows the roots to get oxygen from the air to function properly.

Misting is not necessary at all, so you don't need to do this at all. The only time you mist is if you're foliar feeding or spraying on microbial preparations.

 

[SpanoonapS]

Oh, I watched Ready Set Grow, it said misting helps with dust and bugs! lol

About the air flow - I have 1 Squirrel Cage Fan mounted to my wall. with 3 ducts attached to it (using a Y connector) *See Figure A Below* 1 Duct sucks air IN from the outside. 1 Duct is connected to the veg tent, the other duct is connected to the flower tent. Both ducts blowing fresh air to the tents. I then have an AC Unit with 2 ducts Y connected attached to both tents blowing AC air into both tents. I then have a duct hanging in veg room which sucks old air OUT. The duct goes through to the flowering room which is where its connected to a squirrel cage fan and carbon filter. Another duct is sucking air out of the flowering room. Both ducts are sucking air out of both tents simultaneously and blowing OUT the nearest window.

I have great air circulation. It feels and smells very fresh in both rooms. The temp never goes above 79F and the humidity ranging from 48-51% never higher.

We do use a wet/dry cycle for water. We wait till the soil is dry but no so dry they are wilting. We feel the weight of the pots and put our fingers into the soil to check. We then use a submersible pump in a 5GL bucket which pumps clean water through a tube. We use that tube to water each pot. We use about a 10 second count for each and there is limited to no drainage because we water the perfect amount. We water slowly into the middle of the pot to make sure the root bulb gets drenched. They were beautiful before we started feeding them.....

Figure A

 

[Artificial Emotion]

I would not have your ventilation system the way it is. If you're going to use AC, use it in the room both tents are in and don't have the intake going in to either of the tents. Put the intake relative near the output of the AC but not on it. You should have 1 intake going into the bottom of one of the tents from the room both tents are in and then run the extraction from that tent at the top of the tent on the opposite side to the intake at the bottom of the second tent. The run the extraction with a carbon filter attached to it on the opposite side of the second tent at the top outside of the grow room to the outdoors through the window (such as through a window box or just hanging outside the window if you don't care about stealth). For this setup you'll need two large inline fans and two smaller inline fans for the extractions and intakes respectively.

If you don't want to do this (I would recommend it as it's a pretty standard setup in commerical grows) then at least make sure you have negative pressure in both tents. The way to confirm you have -ve pressure is by looking at the tents to see if the sides are being sucked in. If this is not the case then your carbon filter won't work and people will eventually realize your growing weed.