BongRipkenJr's new setup and first time coco grow

[BongRipkenJR.]

The botanicare was at the top of the list for me actually with the lucas formula coming in 2nd, but I had a last second change of heart. Funny how that happens. I can already tell I am going to go through so much of these nutes though. This is going to get pretty damn pricey! Maybe for the 4x4 tent I will try the botanicare and see if there is any difference.

 

[Snow Crash]

The botanicare was at the top of the list for me actually with the lucas formula coming in 2nd, but I had a last second change of heart. Funny how that happens. I can already tell I am going to go through so much of these nutes though. This is going to get pretty damn pricey! Maybe for the 4x4 tent I will try the botanicare and see if there is any difference.

LOL~! Exactly.

You know what they say about great minds...

 

[prowler]

Coco is my own personal medium of choice, & I think you'll like it! It sounds like you're learning the same lesson that most new coco users learn. . . don't let it go completely dry! It's not like soil, Rockwool or anything else and it has it's own set of rules. You'll pick up on them quick enough. It isn't rocket science. Some things to remember:

• bigger containers allow more time between waterings, so plan accordingly (& realistically)
• a constant cycle of dry medium, saturated medium, dry medium, saturated medium, etc will work, but keeping the medium's moisture content in that "sweet spot" is a real game changer
• If you plan on feeding your plants bottled nutrients, coco coir needs to be flushed every so often. A common way is to go through the dry/wet cycle mentioned above, while ensuring 10-15% run-off at every watering & then feed with only water or a weakened nutrient solution every third watering or so. Better yet get a feel for how long your plants can stay at that "sweet spot" mentioned above, and then flush right before build up becomes an issue

Coco really is great. Very easy to hand water if that's your thing, but also very easy to automate if the need arises.

Looking forward to seeing what you come up with.

I couldn't keep my mouth shut about this issue. First of all the key for a successful coco grow is the correct size of your pots. Too large pots will cause lack of oxygen in your rootzone and cuts back your growth. It is not a good idea to use over sized containers with small plants. 1 Gal = roughly estimated 45 gram plants. What you need to know is when you grow roots let coco dry out completely and you'll get roots. Huge big ass white roots even popping from the top of your container. After that your plant asks for fresh water and nutrients - give those and you'll have a healthy plant with kick ass roots. When you go to bloom never ever let your coco completely dry out as it will cause symptoms of underfeeding and lockouts.

Secondly coco does not need to be flushed if you use correct amount of nutrients and good coco. Neither does it need cal-mag or drip clean. It is good to have some calsium and magnesium available if your plants need it but so many ppl use that for nothing! If you have problems do a proper flush. If not - none of this this is needed. KISS ftw. Flushing without the need is wasting $.

Peace and happy growing m8!

 

[THINKING GREEN]

I couldn't keep my mouth shut about this issue. First of all the key for a successful coco grow is the correct size of your pots. Too large pots will cause lack of oxygen in your rootzone and cuts back your growth. It is not a good idea to use over sized containers with small plants. 1 Gal = roughly estimated 45 gram plants. What you need to know is when you grow roots let coco dry out completely and you'll get roots. Huge big ass white roots even popping from the top of your container. After that your plant asks for fresh water and nutrients - give those and you'll have a healthy plant with kick ass roots. When you go to bloom never ever let your coco completely dry out as it will cause symptoms of underfeeding and lockouts.

Secondly coco does not need to be flushed if you use correct amount of nutrients and good coco. Neither does it need cal-mag or drip clean. It is good to have some calsium and magnesium available if your plants need it but so many ppl use that for nothing! If you have problems do a proper flush. If not - none of this this is needed. KISS ftw. Flushing without the need is wasting $.

Peace and happy growing m8!

I second that...... Flushing without the need equals starving your girls....

 

[Justin_Credible]

I couldn't keep my mouth shut about this issue. First of all the key for a successful coco grow is the correct size of your pots. Too large pots will cause lack of oxygen in your rootzone and cuts back your growth. It is not a good idea to use over sized containers with small plants. 1 Gal = roughly estimated 45 gram plants. What you need to know is when you grow roots let coco dry out completely and you'll get roots. Huge big ass white roots even popping from the top of your container. After that your plant asks for fresh water and nutrients - give those and you'll have a healthy plant with kick ass roots. When you go to bloom never ever let your coco completely dry out as it will cause symptoms of underfeeding and lockouts.

Secondly coco does not need to be flushed if you use correct amount of nutrients and good coco. Neither does it need cal-mag or drip clean. It is good to have some calsium and magnesium available if your plants need it but so many ppl use that for nothing! If you have problems do a proper flush. If not - none of this this is needed. KISS ftw. Flushing without the need is wasting $.

Peace and happy growing m8!

That is why I do gradual up-potting.
Not just wasting money, LOSING money.

I second that...... Flushing without the need equals starving your girls....

Should only have to flush if you have a lock up problem going on...other then that feed, feed and feed again.

 

[BongRipkenJR.]

This is my reservoir doing its thing.



Here is the plants the day of the transplant. Kind of yellow, kind of droopy, but the photo with the light on makes it look worse than it is.


Now this is a day later.

Again, they look a lot darker then the photo shows. I should get a good photo with the lights off.

I only fed them with 850ppm nutrients the day of the transplant. I want to feed them again, but I am waiting for the pots to dry out so the roots will be hefty. So for now it is roots over dark lush growth. After tomorrow though they will be on a feeding schedule and no matter if they are completely dry or not they are getting fed.
The nutrient run off after the feeding was only 875 but the pH went from 5.9 in the reservoir to 6.9 in the run off reservoir. Hmmm, Anybody know if that is a problem?

 

[BongRipkenJR.]

Even though they are freshly transplanted I think I might have to start using the Cal Carb and add some more Mg even the the flora nectar is chalk full of it. I feel my nitrogen is being locked out

any thoughts?

 

[Snow Crash]

Oh shizzle, this is recirculating?

I'm not entirely sure what to resolve here but unless they are a lot greener than the pictures I'd say they need a dose of just about everything.

 

[B. Self Reliant]

I only fed them with 850ppm nutrients the day of the transplant. I want to feed them again, but I am waiting for the pots to dry out so the roots will be hefty.

Granted, I don't know the in's & out's of your particular strains, but I have a hard time believing they're lacking nutrients if they got a dose of 850 PPM solution at transplant and they aren't even dry yet. Especially since you're using a fairly simple mixture and most of those PPM's are probably from NPK. Just doesn't sound right.

I know you don't want to feed them until they're dry, but at this point it doesn't look like they're gonna be building roots at a recored pace anyways. . . Why not try feeding them with some sort of CalMag supplement mixed in? I know you're not new to this and you have your routine down, etc, but it can't hurt. The same things happens to me when I don't use some sort of supplement for Calcium & Magnesium.

 

[BongRipkenJR.]

I was actually going to do that today. I have some Cal carb that was given to me and the Flora Nectar I am using has plenty of MG i figured. The thing is, it doesn't show any sign of calcium or mg deficiency. Just a little lighter. The roots are actually exploding in the pots. Within a day of transplant you can pull on the stems and they aren't budging. They are already rooted pretty heavily. I think they just got a little shock and need a boost of N. It isn't a recirculating system either. I just like testing the run off. I am gonna pick up some cal mag today and see how that works. I hope I don't have a Nitrogen lock out. They actually seem healthy and are bushing and growing quite nicely, just not dark and lush with the leaves pointing straight out.

 

[BongRipkenJR.]

I have some rhizotonic that I have had for months now. Canna told me that the date is a sell bay date so I can still use it. Time to see if this stuff works.

 

[B. Self Reliant]

I am gonna pick up some cal mag today and see how that works. I hope I don't have a Nitrogen lock out. They actually seem healthy and are bushing and growing quite nicely, just not dark and lush with the leaves pointing straight out.

CalMag is cheap, application is easy and there's more than a slight chance that it will work, so it sounds like a good plan to me!

At least your plants seem to be doing well, even if a little pale and not as springy as you'd prefer. As you've already noticed, coco allows plants to react to changes very rapidly. In this case the plants got yellow pretty quickly, but they'll probably recover pretty quickly too!

 

[BongRipkenJR.]

Thanks man, I appreciate the help you guys have been giving me. As a grower you have the idea in your head and you know what the problem is, but when a few people chime in with the same suggestion it validates your assumptions and makes things easier.

 

[B. Self Reliant]

Haha. . . remember that when harvest comes and we're all waiting to see the results!

 

[BongRipkenJR.]

Okay, so I hit the Platinum Purps(diesel X Urkle) with a some cal mag in the mix today and gave some rhizotonic to the purple trash clones. I also sprayed them with Cal Carb(a calcium carbonate derivative).

I don't think they really have a problem. I was tripping. Here are some pics from today.

 

[buddin_904]

they look sick....22 huh??? wuhhhooowww! thats really packin em in...so how high do u expect them 2 finish stretch at....this is a SOG grow correct?

no topping? training? supercropping at least??

cant wait 2 see them buddin-out!

ohh also? are they in 12/12 or are u veggin them?

 

[BongRipkenJR.]

No, only 20 are going under that light. I am just seeing if they will be bushy or not so I am vegging. I will top once. I have some purple trash, but those clones wont be ready for awhile so I am picking up some Kandy Kush to go in the other side. I am trying to get maximum plant numbers with minimal veg.

I dont think they look sick, just needed a little more Calmag. I took em out of the light I realized they weren't yellow like I thought. They just had a little transplant shock and now they are perkin' up. That light seems extra bright in those tents. I figure one more week of veg. I was told by the dude who made the strain that it will stretch around 200-300%. I figure 2 1/2 - 3 foot will be a good height. Right now they are at about 8-9 inches.

 

[buddin_904]

LOL no no no...i meant they look "sick", as in cool/good/awesome LOL!

my bad!

mmm and kandy kush?? dam u got all the fire strains dont u!?

 

[BongRipkenJR.]

lol, it is just an OG X Trainwreck. Supposed to be good, but I dont know to be honest. I dont have that many strains at my disposal, just whatever some friends around here have and maybe someone on the B*u*dtrader might have something fancy. I dont even have a veg room, so I am limited on what I can have. As soon as I have room to veg I will pop some beans to try to find something worth while.

 

[Snow Crash]

I ran some Kandy Kush x Skunk #1 about a year ago. Some of the best stuff I've had. It has this "pink" hue to it. What I had smelled like a combination of Cotton Candy and Skittles.