2nd MediGrow - White Widow, Blue Hash, LSD, and Red Dragon

[Patient 957]

Preliminary Information

• I use Soma's organic method with a few tweaks I've added via Jef Tek's articles in Treating Yourself magazine.
• All waterings are pH balanced between 6.0-6.5 prior to feeding.
• I use a custom blended soil mix using Light Warrior and Ocean Forest by Fox Farm, perlite, and worm castings. During seedlings' initial first 14 days of life, I start them in only Light Warrior.
• Organic nutes used are Thrive Alive/B1 during Veg (every other watering). During Flower, I will be adding Budswel to the feeding schedule (I use the kelp as a supplement the entire grow through week 7 of Flower).
• I use neem oil spray as my only insecticide every few days til the end of the 3rd week of Flower.
• This is my first grow in my new GrowLab 4'x4' tent. I use an Elicent 6" fan with a Phresh brand carbon filter. I run a Hortilux 600W HPS lamp inside a HydroFarm Daystar AC hood.
• Strains chosen for this grow: 5 LSD and 5 Red Dragon feminized seeds - 1 White Widow and 1 Blue Hash feminized seeds by Dinafem.
• Containers are given a quarter turn daily. In addition, when the plants start to grow/stretch, I change the arrangement in the floor plan so the smallest plants are getting as much direct light coverage under the hood as possible; moving the larger plants to the sides of the pattern. I also use super cropping to maintain the canopy's uniformity.
• For this grow I am considering using the FIM technique the day prior to forcing 12/12 - I'd love any feedback from gardeners who use the FIM technique regarding the appropriate time to do the clipping.

General Information

I've decided to keep a grow diary online to share with my fellow newbie/green patient gardeners. In addition, I've decided it would probably be in my better interest to have a 3rd-server documentation of my growing activity simply because if I'm ever monitored by any federal agency or local law enforcement, they will see I am sticking to my plant limits for my location/county. This is probably an unnecessary concern, but you can never be too careful in my opinion. hehe

My first grow was only 3 plants on my balcony this past summer season to get a feel for the species using bag seed. This is my first grow using quality, established genetics, but also my first time ever using a grow tent. As you'll soon see below, I had to learn really fast that micro-environments exist in any enclosed space, and I'm feeling happy about how I've been reacting to those perceptions. Hopefully my peers will be able to let me know if that's really true or not. hehe

I'll be adding a new post per update instead of doing one long-ass entry. With regards to replies, I humbly request people to not post replies of a non-technical nature. I don't ask this to be rude or inconsiderate, but I've noticed a tendency on this forum for a ton of single-word or single-sentence replies that usually don't add to the educational aspect of keeping a grow diary. So please, if you see things that need to be corrected or have questions for me, by all means post away! I'm here to learn from my peers and value any feedback that is constructive. Let's just keep the subjective dialogues for other areas of the forum.

And with that...I present my ignorance and humility for the whole world to see. LOL Hopefully this will be a good experience for everyone!

Peace,

P.957

 

[Patient 957]

Seedling - Day 2

Seedling - Day 2

I learned very quickly during the first week of seedling growth that the Elicent fan pulls air through my tent so quickly that it was not keeping a high level of humidity in my tent. As a result, some of the babies started to fry. I started doing foliar misting immediately, several times a day, to help keep them healthy. I also had to water them daily in small amounts.

Peace,

P.957

PS - I forgot to mention that one of the RD seeds never popped through the soil during the first few days. I think I had it too deep in the soil.

 

[Patient 957]

Seedling - Day 14

Seedling - Day 14

This was taken in the tent and I'm posting here as its own entry as I then proceeded to transplant the seedlings into their main containers. The next post in the thread is Day 1 of Veg, but its the same day as this picture. As you can see, the two largest/healthiest seeds are the Dinafem genetics. The Barney's seeds gave me trouble from the start; with the Red Dragons being the most sensitive of the two strains.

Peace,

P.957

 

[Patient 957]

Veg - Day 1

Veg - Day 1

Shots of the seedlings under regular lights to show you the development and recovery from the dry shock they received during the first week. My smallest/weakest seedling is a Red Dragon by Barney's, and I've nicknamed her Runt. You can see how she almost died on me. But like with other plants and vegetables, I never give up til the plant gives up on itself. Finally, the two next-smallest/weakest seedlings (1 LSD and 1 Red Dragon) I had to pot together as I ran out of my soil blend and I wasn't sure if the RD was going to make it.

(My baby runt!)

(White Widow)

(Blueberry x Hash Plant)

(Healthiest LSD)

(Healthiest RD)

I added the top layer of perlite underneath the two weakest seedlings to help maintain a micro-layer of humidity to aid in their recovery/growth.

Peace,

P.957

 

[Patient 957]

Veg - Day 7

Veg - Day 7

Recovery and root growth improved during the first week of Veg.

(2 weakest Barney's seeds bounced back)

(White Widow)

(Blue Hash)

(averages)

I decided to lower the lamp to be approximately 2.5 feet above the plants to see if it helped raise the ambient humidity amidst the plants as well as continued foliar feeding in addition to keep the leaves moist.

Peace,

P.957

 

[Standaman]

Hey just to say i'll be lurking, my friend got some Red Dragon beans from the Dam so will be good to watch how you get on, LSD is supposed to be very impressive too.

On the technical side i would say supercropping is great and easy to do but fimming really is hit and miss so i have found, you may want to try it on 1 plant, just an opinion.

Supercropping i love! I have supercopped one side of my grow and scrogged it too, and the other side i have left to grow itself with no SC whatsoever just to see how they differ.

Any branch you crush just grows bigger buds it's as simple as that, this grow i actually crushed the plants right at the base of the main stem in the 1st or 2nd week of veg and i think it has made a difference.

Well i hope all goes well and you get some good meds

 

[Patient 957]

Veg - Day 9

Veg - Day 9

Rotated the pattern position, removed one of the air vents to try to keep the airflow controlled better. The Thrive Alive/B1 has been keeping them healthy as they continue to root up. Some burn spots resulted from the neem spray droplets on the leaf surface.

(Healthiest RD)

(Widow leads the race)

(Healthiest LSD)

(No longer in the infirmary)

(Runt survives)

Peace,

P.957

 

[Patient 957]

Veg - Day 11

Veg - Day 11

Vegetative growth has begun to escalate. All 11 plants survived the seedling growth stage. The Red Dragons are still the most sensitive plants to feeding and low humidity, but the LSDs are all flourishing and the Dinafems are still leading the way. Lowering the light definitely helped improve the pace of development, although low humidity is still an issue til I can afford a fan speed controller next week to help lower the pace of the airflow through the tent.

(Canopy develops - RDs tallest)

(Healthiest RD)

(Runt continues to improve)

(Widow seduces me...)

Peace,

P.957

 

[Patient 957]

Veg - Day 13

Veg - Day 13

My final post for today. I had to supercrop the healthiest Red Dragon as it's stretching faster than everyone else. Since I cropped, I won't be able to force flower this Saturday like I was planning, but will wait until the crop recovers and then will FIM and switch to 12/12.

(Supercropped RD)

(Widow)

(Blue Hash)

(Runt working it!)

(LSDs)

Again, I'm getting a speed controller to help lower the rate at which the Elicent is pulling air through the tent. After closing some of the vents it now is keeping a warmer average temp with my humidity staying in the low 50th percentile, but now the edges of the tent are imploding from the negative pressure.

Peace,

P.957

 

[Patient 957]

Thanks friend!

Thanks friend!

On the technical side i would say supercropping is great and easy to do but fimming really is hit and miss so i have found, you may want to try it on 1 plant, just an opinion.

Yeah, I'm not sure if I want to FIM yet or not. I may just do traditional SOG after the one cropped RD recovers. When I grew this summer on the balcony, I had over two months of vegging to work with and supercropped at least 5 or 6 times before the natural cycle kicked into flower. Since I want to force these before they hit maturity, I may just let these all grow out with one main cola and call it a day. I don't want to bend or top any of the weaker plants as they need all the strength they can get right now.

Any branch you crush just grows bigger buds it's as simple as that, this grow i actually crushed the plants right at the base of the main stem in the 1st or 2nd week of veg and i think it has made a difference.

Well i hope all goes well and you get some good meds

I completely agree about super cropping. The few local patient growers I've come to know all agree that super cropping is definitely the way to go versus topping, but I do like the article Jef Tek published about the FIM technique. But maybe I should just hold off trying too many new things at once.

Thank you for the advice!

Peace,

P.957

PS - I forgot to mention that even though it shows up in some of the pictures, the large oscillating tower fan is NOT being run right now. The Elicent is pulling enough air through at this point that all the branches dance gently...I'm just too lazy to remove it from the tent right now. lol

 

[HighTech]

Hey P 957,

Looks like a quality grow diary is beginning!

I'm looking forward to checking along as things progress.

Break a leg!



HT

 

[Patient 957]

Thanks!

Thanks!

Thanks Hitech!

Now that I have everything uploaded through today, I plan on only updating every Saturday unless something funky happens (let's hope not).

Peace,

P.957

 

[Standaman]

Yeah its a tough one to call, i'm just giving my view, the fimmed buds looked horrible during flower no matter the variation on the amount that i took off 10 20 30% it never mattered.
I have topped each plant on the left side once and SC as and when i feel the need, but you seem clued up so i will say no more.

Some plants just don't develop fast enough as others thats how mine has ended up as it is now. But as long as they are healthy it will be fine it all looks great so far anyway, a little bit of breeze don't hurt they will grow stronger stems as a result.

Keep up the good work

 

[Patient 957]

Thank you.

Thank you.

Some plants just don't develop fast enough as others thats how mine has ended up as it is now. But as long as they are healthy it will be fine it all looks great so far anyway, a little bit of breeze don't hurt they will grow stronger stems as a result.

Keep up the good work

Hi Standaman,

Thank you for your reply. I was going to turn the oscillating fan back on once they all hit at least 12" tall. I actually had the fan on low when they were seedlings til the dry-out/burn started. I was trying to err on the side of caution to save the crop. hehe

I got some great feedback from two of my mentors via email today, and as a result, I plan on leaving FIM for another crop. I am also going to vegetate these plants at least another 1-2 weeks to help the "slow pokes" catch up to the leaders, and I've also SC'ed another of the RDs tonight because it too is starting to blast off into stretchville. hehe Since I'm already comfortable with the super cropping technique (and having seen the results with the first crop) I feel I will be able to stay in better control this time around now that they've recovered from the shock/stress of the dry start.

I'm still concerned that Runt might not develop proper buds, but each new leaf set she puts out is healthier than the previous one and she's now adding blade count to the leaf sets...so I have a feeling she is going to be okay, just not the largest yielder of the crew. But hey, my one buddy had a runt in his crop of AK47 and he told me that her's was the nicest effect of the entire crop. So perhaps my Runt will treat me the same for not giving up on her. hehe

Thanks again for your input. I'm enjoying your grow diary too!

Peace,

P.957

 

[Standaman]

No worries at all, yeah they can be sensitive well you could try tapping them a little that will help them a bit too just a few taps a day will do.

Not a bad call SC is the way forward, so how long is that for veg in total? Hopefully about 4 weeks minimum and it will reap better rewards.

Keep the runt! I never cull a freak i have 3 in my tent always show love to the gimps even if they don't yield much.
I had the choice to add a pheno that gave me 12+ oz a plant but chose the runt that pulled 3 or 4 oz just on the taste and potency of it. So i hope she is good to you too.

No worries it's what it's all about, oh nice one good to have you present Patient!!

 

[Patient 957]

Hi there!

you could try tapping them a little that will help them a bit too just a few taps a day will do.

OMG, talk about feeling a little embarrassed! lol I never used foliar feeding on my vegetables or other house plants, so I must wipe the egg off my face. I can't believe I never thought of that before. haha Thanks for the tip!

so how long is that for veg in total?

Today (Sat, 12/12) is Day 15 of Veg. After checking in on them this morning the first RD I SC'ed already has the main shoot facing upwards again and the 2nd RD I SC'ed yesterday afternoon is already half-way back to normal position. I was originally going to force flower today to try and keep the "finish line" of this crop in February...but I'd rather give the girls another full week (at least) if not 2 more. I may have to top the healthiest/largest RD - she's stretching at a faster pace now that vegetative growth has increased.

I also learned something interesting this week. I am waiting for my local gas and electric company to come and turn on my gas for the season (but they're not coming til this Wed), and this week has been unseasonably cold. A friend told me a trick to help keep the apartment warm til then: boiling a pot of water on the stove. Added bonus? Now my humidity in the tent is staying in the 60%'s! I only have to boil 2-3 pots throughout the day/evening to keep the apartment comfortable and the plants seem to LOVE it. They're all juicing up faster now. hehe

I'm going to SC two more plants today and test the soil for feeding. Since it's been so cold they're not going through the water as fast as they were last month when I first transplanted them. I'll post a new picture today of the canopy. My camera's batteries are about to die, but I'll grab at least one shot to show the improved health of the leaves.

As always, thank you for taking the time to comment about the grow. I truly appreciate the feedback!

Peace,

P.957

 

[Patient 957]

Veg - Day 15

Veg - Day 15

As promised, here are some quick update shots of the grow. Again, today is day 15 of vegetative growth (Day 28 of life since the seeds popped) and I've super cropped two more of the Red Dragons. You'll see a before and after shot of the canopy below. See if you can spot the difference. lol (the one isn't very obvious)

(before)

(after)

Also, you can see in the foreground-left that the first RD I super cropped two days ago is already healing and the elbow has started to stiffen/seal. I'll say this much about the Red Dragons, they might not be the most beautiful looking plants, but now that they're rooted up they're definitely going full steam ahead.

In addition, since my batteries are about to die in the camera, I didn't have time to do the usual light balance adjustments to get the yellowish hue from the HPS out of the shots...so I'm sorry they're so neon-ish today. hehe

The soil in all the containers is still too moist for their next feeding. At this rate Monday looks like the next day for sure. And finally, since the boiling water trick has improved both the humidity and temperature levels in the tent, I've started the oscillating fan on low today.

That's all that's new today. Have a great weekend everyone!

Peace,

P.957

 

[Standaman]

Hey Patient things are looking good your sharp with the updates too, yeah foliar feeding is good to do not too much and not to often but i find a lil bit of Rhizotonic or similar does the job nicely.

Yeah well i would say if you can do it wait 2 weeks or even 1 like you said, you can get a better yield and the plant will be that bit more mature.

Thats some good thinking on the humidity why didn't i think of that i was using cold water!!

Well i'm thinking the next couple weeks are gonna be fast moving for you, SC will make them a lot more stronger and as long as you don't crop too many at once they shouldn't really slow down that much, as for the look of the RD's many plant look funny in veg then look great in flower.

 

[Patient 957]

Quick clarification...

Quick clarification...

Thats some good thinking on the humidity why didn't i think of that i was using cold water!!

Just to clarify, all I'm doing is boiling a full pot of water on the stove til it's all evaporated. Again, I am doing this on a friend's suggestion to keep my apartment warm til the heat is turned on this upcoming Wednesday...but the side effect is that it's improved the humidity in the tent (two rooms away from the kitchen). hehe

Once I have heat I'm hoping the humidity in the tent will stabilize to levels I'm comfortable with, but if they don't, at least i know I can still keep doing this work around until they're ready for flower.

Take care for now!

Peace,

P.957

 

[Standaman]

Oh in your apartment not in the room! Lol i get you now. Yeah once they get big enough to transpire you will find you want less humidity