15 plant coco grow, recurring Nutrient/Magnesium deficiency problem
- Thread starter Tokesome
- Start date
Hey guys.
The plants have had 3x15minute feeds today, the res level has dropped by at least as much as I`d expect when I was feeding them on a 4x45minutes, maybe a little more. Best of all, they started with EC16 and that figure hasn`t risen with the decrease of volume which means the plants must have their appetite back. ph is also stable.
I haven`t been around during the feed cycles today so I dont know how much run-off there is on the 15minute feed time, but I imagine it`ll be a fair amount being as there are no drip nodes on the end of the feed lines and is constantly trickle fed for the 15 mins.
Obviously I`m not counting any chickens and its too early to tell if this feeding will get them back on track, but its encouraging all the same.
Oh I messed up a bit last night though, I left a 60watt bulb on during the 12 hours darkness, just to confuse the buggers a little bit more eh? Doh
The plants have had 3x15minute feeds today, the res level has dropped by at least as much as I`d expect when I was feeding them on a 4x45minutes, maybe a little more. Best of all, they started with EC16 and that figure hasn`t risen with the decrease of volume which means the plants must have their appetite back. ph is also stable.
I haven`t been around during the feed cycles today so I dont know how much run-off there is on the 15minute feed time, but I imagine it`ll be a fair amount being as there are no drip nodes on the end of the feed lines and is constantly trickle fed for the 15 mins.
Obviously I`m not counting any chickens and its too early to tell if this feeding will get them back on track, but its encouraging all the same.
Oh I messed up a bit last night though, I left a 60watt bulb on during the 12 hours darkness, just to confuse the buggers a little bit more eh? Doh
Yeah Opt1c, I forgot to check how much run off there was today. I only fed them twice today as the pots had plenty of moisture in them. Doh, and dont even mention hermie, my friend was saying with this strain they`d left the light on fo 72 hours mid flower and never found a seed so lets hope not eh?
The plants look like they`re responding well although its too early to tell how well and how much they`re gonna be affected in the overall. The res level has dropped significantly and the EC and ph remain stable still. . . . . YIPEE
!!
I`m wondering what to feed them next. I dont want to overdoo them with anything. I`ll be refilling the res` again in a couple of days time and wondering if they`re still thirsty girls and responding well whether I should try and give them the recommended doseage of nutrients and maybe knock the Epsom salts on the head. Obviously I`d keep a close eye on things and the last thing I want to do is over feed with anything now. Like EC18 including some PK13/14.
A few pics here, can you notice an improvement? I know its difficult to tell from photos.
The plants look like they`re responding well although its too early to tell how well and how much they`re gonna be affected in the overall. The res level has dropped significantly and the EC and ph remain stable still. . . . . YIPEE
!!I`m wondering what to feed them next. I dont want to overdoo them with anything. I`ll be refilling the res` again in a couple of days time and wondering if they`re still thirsty girls and responding well whether I should try and give them the recommended doseage of nutrients and maybe knock the Epsom salts on the head. Obviously I`d keep a close eye on things and the last thing I want to do is over feed with anything now. Like EC18 including some PK13/14.
A few pics here, can you notice an improvement? I know its difficult to tell from photos.
Attachments
I timed the feed til the last pot is running off. around 5 minutes for the last one to come on, but most are showing some run off after 3 and a1/2 minutes. 3 res tanks, 3 different pumps so they`re not all going to flow exactly the same.
I could try and re fit the dripper nodes and try and adjust things till they`re more even, but I`m thinking some run off wont hurt.
My EC reading has dropped from 16 to 15 in two tanks and between 15 and 16 in the other so hopefully the plants are telling me I can up the feed a little as they`re hungry.
I`m not sure whether to adjust my feeding times to 4x5minutes during lights on or leave them as they are on two feeds allowing lots of run off and longer for the pots to dry out a little more, in between feeds.
I know its limited but the run off does tell you something about what`s happening with the nutes, ie. changes in ph and Ec readings, but I know there is a lot said about shorter but more frequent feeding times over and opposed to longer and less frequent. Anyone any ideas??
I could try and re fit the dripper nodes and try and adjust things till they`re more even, but I`m thinking some run off wont hurt.
My EC reading has dropped from 16 to 15 in two tanks and between 15 and 16 in the other so hopefully the plants are telling me I can up the feed a little as they`re hungry.
I`m not sure whether to adjust my feeding times to 4x5minutes during lights on or leave them as they are on two feeds allowing lots of run off and longer for the pots to dry out a little more, in between feeds.
I know its limited but the run off does tell you something about what`s happening with the nutes, ie. changes in ph and Ec readings, but I know there is a lot said about shorter but more frequent feeding times over and opposed to longer and less frequent. Anyone any ideas??
hey tokesome
the optimum humidity is around 50% well it is in my grow room ,other people might say lower ,its too stop mold , am doing a cheese mother in coco but its not a big system like yours so i cant give you any decent advice soz; but i will watch this thread to see what response you get
the optimum humidity is around 50% well it is in my grow room ,other people might say lower ,its too stop mold , am doing a cheese mother in coco but its not a big system like yours so i cant give you any decent advice soz; but i will watch this thread to see what response you get
Yeah I usually crank up my dehueys a bit towards the end, and the last week or two of flushing I dial back waterings so the buds harden up a bit. Two days before the chop I turn off the lights and watering completely, 2 days of dry darkness then cut.
This speeds up drying quite a bit, and I always end up with sticky, resinous buds.
This speeds up drying quite a bit, and I always end up with sticky, resinous buds.
Oh, and for the feeding schedule, gotta have the same equipment for each setup if possible, so they can be kept even. Same tubing, pumps, drippers, no variables! If it only takes 3-5 minutes to get runoff then yeah, dial back the watering to 3-4X per day at 3-4 minutes per watering. They will like this schedule even more I bet.
Jackiee, I'm curious, what do you think Epsom salts are comprised of? Table salt?
Ok I`ll have a little money by the weekend, I`m going to get a digital timer and adjust to more frequent but shorter feed times. Till then I`ll do the best I can manually.
Ph has drifted up to 6.0 now and EC has remained the same at 16.
I`ll change the res out on Thursday or Friday and flush each pot with 10 or 12 liters of ph6.0 water and give them nutes and PK13/14 to a value of aprox EC18 and see how they like that.
I`m figuring that if the plants are feeding properly on the nutrients they should be absorbing enough Magnesium from the nutrient`s 1% Mg content. So I`m thinking of leaving the Epsom salts out, not because I think its comprised of table salt. If too much Calcium build up in the medium locks out Magnesium, I`d think it was the wrong way to go with Cal Mag etc.?
On the other hand if the plants have been deficient of Magnesium it may be better to keep up a small maintenance dose of Epsom salts. Any thoughts guys?
Yeah I suspect the temps are a bit on the high side, though measurements are taken almost directly under the light, which is moved daily along the length of each tank. I do have a 400watt sodium I could put in place of one of the 600`s, which are placed 18inches above the nearest tops of the plants, this would probably bring it down a few degrees, but also the lumens of course. What temperature should I be aiming at right at the top of the canopy near to the lights??
Thans, Tokesome
Ph has drifted up to 6.0 now and EC has remained the same at 16.
I`ll change the res out on Thursday or Friday and flush each pot with 10 or 12 liters of ph6.0 water and give them nutes and PK13/14 to a value of aprox EC18 and see how they like that.
I`m figuring that if the plants are feeding properly on the nutrients they should be absorbing enough Magnesium from the nutrient`s 1% Mg content. So I`m thinking of leaving the Epsom salts out, not because I think its comprised of table salt. If too much Calcium build up in the medium locks out Magnesium, I`d think it was the wrong way to go with Cal Mag etc.?
On the other hand if the plants have been deficient of Magnesium it may be better to keep up a small maintenance dose of Epsom salts. Any thoughts guys?
Yeah I suspect the temps are a bit on the high side, though measurements are taken almost directly under the light, which is moved daily along the length of each tank. I do have a 400watt sodium I could put in place of one of the 600`s, which are placed 18inches above the nearest tops of the plants, this would probably bring it down a few degrees, but also the lumens of course. What temperature should I be aiming at right at the top of the canopy near to the lights??
Thans, Tokesome
For lights, I use the hand test, put your hand on top of the canopy, palm down, and leave it there for a couple minutes. If it gets too hot for you, well you can figure out the rest.
For cal/mag, yes you pretty much have to keep it up in the res, every time I've tried to forgo it I've seen rust spots within a week, so you must keep it up (or switch nutes so they're already built-in.)
For cal/mag, yes you pretty much have to keep it up in the res, every time I've tried to forgo it I've seen rust spots within a week, so you must keep it up (or switch nutes so they're already built-in.)
E
EvilTwin
Hi T,
Happy to hear that your gals are eating again. You know how I feel about epsom vs calmag but whatever you choose to use...a mainenance dose added to the res is a pretty good idea. Prevention is much easier then cure with mag deficiency.
On my recommended dosage...you probably discovered that many people use much more. I saw one guy recently adding a tablespoon per gallon.
In an acute deficiency, I will go as high as 1 tsp/gallon and as maintenance dose I use approximately 1/4 tsp/gal. I haven't run into a single plant that had a problem with that maintenance dose though I do reduce that even more if I'm growing really light feeding sativas.
I have a floatation tank at home and so I buy epsom salts in 1000 pound batches. I always have a plentiful supply! lol
Peace,
ET
Happy to hear that your gals are eating again. You know how I feel about epsom vs calmag but whatever you choose to use...a mainenance dose added to the res is a pretty good idea. Prevention is much easier then cure with mag deficiency.
On my recommended dosage...you probably discovered that many people use much more. I saw one guy recently adding a tablespoon per gallon.
In an acute deficiency, I will go as high as 1 tsp/gallon and as maintenance dose I use approximately 1/4 tsp/gal. I haven't run into a single plant that had a problem with that maintenance dose though I do reduce that even more if I'm growing really light feeding sativas.
I have a floatation tank at home and so I buy epsom salts in 1000 pound batches. I always have a plentiful supply! lol
Peace,
ET
Hi Lazyman, yeah my nutes do have something like 3% calcium and 1% magnesium in them.
Hi ET, yeah thanks, the only thing I`m pondering is that with adding the Epsom salts is that it increases the EC reading, and was just wondering if that now the girls are drinking again, whether they`d benefit more from having the recommended dosage of the balanced nutes + PK13/14, bearing in mind their requirements for bud production, and whether Epsom salts on top of that may raise the EC reading to much. I dont have a set idea in my head, more like just questions really, so just fishing for other`s opinions for my situation.
I think I`ll flush again later today, then fresh nutes for them tmro so I have 24 hrs to ponder and gather some opinions too that may hopefully help me decide.
Thanks guys, Tokesome
Ps ET, lucky you having a floatation tank, must be great after a smoke or a good strength cookie/brownie
Hi ET, yeah thanks, the only thing I`m pondering is that with adding the Epsom salts is that it increases the EC reading, and was just wondering if that now the girls are drinking again, whether they`d benefit more from having the recommended dosage of the balanced nutes + PK13/14, bearing in mind their requirements for bud production, and whether Epsom salts on top of that may raise the EC reading to much. I dont have a set idea in my head, more like just questions really, so just fishing for other`s opinions for my situation.
I think I`ll flush again later today, then fresh nutes for them tmro so I have 24 hrs to ponder and gather some opinions too that may hopefully help me decide.
Thanks guys, Tokesome
Ps ET, lucky you having a floatation tank, must be great after a smoke or a good strength cookie/brownie
E
EvilTwin
T,
I overlooked your EC ceiling. I'm going to change my vote. Leave the Epsom Salts out in favor of the bloom nutes. Just watch them close for Mg deficiency.
And another odd thing about Epsom salts. There are some people who maintain that they enhance flavor or smokability. Some flush products contain Epsom salts supposedly for that reason. AN Final Phase is the one I use and it contains Epsom salts. Not suggesting anything...just a little random info.
I built the float tank myself and utilize it mostly straight for physical therapy...but when I'm in the mood, I whip up some brown rice flour cakes and grow some mushrooms. That's the ticket for an adventurous float!
Peace,
ET
I overlooked your EC ceiling. I'm going to change my vote. Leave the Epsom Salts out in favor of the bloom nutes. Just watch them close for Mg deficiency.
And another odd thing about Epsom salts. There are some people who maintain that they enhance flavor or smokability. Some flush products contain Epsom salts supposedly for that reason. AN Final Phase is the one I use and it contains Epsom salts. Not suggesting anything...just a little random info.
I built the float tank myself and utilize it mostly straight for physical therapy...but when I'm in the mood, I whip up some brown rice flour cakes and grow some mushrooms. That's the ticket for an adventurous float!
Peace,
ET
heheheh...... if you still had a problem man those new pics you posted a couple posts back wouldn't have looked so nice; i think you got it nipped in the bud so to speak
As long as the plants aren't showing signs of nute burn the ec should be ok; especially during the bulking phase of flowering
With recirculating i've learned it's best to just empty the tank every 7 days if you want to avoid any problems... don't do addbacks
very few people do coco and recirculate it so dropping the feeding time until there is no runoff or just a little and allowing the coco to dry out even more might give you better results
maybe pay attention to the runoff if you want to really dial it.... try rerouting it to like a 5gal bucket and see how much runoff each tray gives; they could vary; you never know until you try.... if the coco isn't needing to be watered as much maybe running each pump manually; like 5-10mins; instead of 15 will get even better results
i'll say this.... they look better and not worse than before so crack a cold one and give yourself a well deserved pat on the back
As long as the plants aren't showing signs of nute burn the ec should be ok; especially during the bulking phase of flowering
With recirculating i've learned it's best to just empty the tank every 7 days if you want to avoid any problems... don't do addbacks
very few people do coco and recirculate it so dropping the feeding time until there is no runoff or just a little and allowing the coco to dry out even more might give you better results
maybe pay attention to the runoff if you want to really dial it.... try rerouting it to like a 5gal bucket and see how much runoff each tray gives; they could vary; you never know until you try.... if the coco isn't needing to be watered as much maybe running each pump manually; like 5-10mins; instead of 15 will get even better results
i'll say this.... they look better and not worse than before so crack a cold one and give yourself a well deserved pat on the back
