I
imnotkrazy
The start of a great season is upon you CanniDo. Enjoy your gardening, and the fruits when they are ready. Hell yeah!
Sleepy Hollow Canyon-2011
- Thread starter CanniDo Cowboy
- Start date
Nice work, makes me feel like a wussy growing indoors.
Dude, I came from the indoor wars...i call it war because I seemed to be battling one thing or another every year and mostly all year growing indoors. My biggest issue was the utilities (electric). They say for every action there is a reaction. Indoor growing IMO, is the epitome of that. Always chasing the "break even" point. If you yield too little, your profits get eaten up by overhead. If you go big, you need to run more equipment which means even higher overhead costs and it can put you right back at the too little.
Risk of fire, initial equipment investments, heating in winter, cooling in summer, filters, forever chasing temp controls and dont even get me started on the spider mites...lol
No bro, if yer doin the indoor on any sizable effort, ya aint no wus. Yer a warrior. Of course, I'm not talkin bout growin in your clothes closet. It takes part bull dog, part mad scientist and the rest just plain loco to come out on top indoors.
The good news, IMO, the learning curve for a grower going outside after being inside is not as steep as it is for an outdoor grower who goes indoors if he hasnt done it before. There's certainly a lot more to indoor growing...A hell of a lot more... CC
CC
LOL Sticks...Yea yea yea...It is a possibility I cant rule out. Never have really...lol Right now, my main concern is transplant recovery time on the larger plants. Theyve been a tad on the "off" side since transplant which I dont believe the smaller teens would have experienced. The hotter than normal temps might be a factor so I'm gonna give it a few more days to see if they "catch". If theyre going to dick around on me, the teens are waiting on deck and apprx 16 inches already...
Round bound later on is a possibility but has been minimized as much as possible by using the aero-pruning liner and ya know what, I'm thinking because they are indeed clones and not seed plants, the root systems might just be manageable in the 3x 3 holes. We'll see.
One thing for sure...In the grow game, only one thing is for certain...If you dont water your plants, they will die. Other than that, everything else, as seen from over the fence, IMO, is pure speculation... thanks man! CC
Heh, it's been well discussed already
CC - Cool man, yea I always like to just let mine go vertical and then clean up the mess as it happens LOL. You seen those texas tomato cages? (www.tomatocage.com) I bought a 6 pack to try on half my garden this year, I think they'll be great for inner support as things start to weigh down on the lower/side parts of the plant. They definitely seem strong enough for the job compared those measly normal cages... and like you I expect to go with the hortonova for an extra layer of support higher up..
Weather is kickin' and so are the plants. Take care CC!
LOL! Hey thanks for takin up for me Slang...Hell, I never claimed to know exactly what I was doin! lol As I posted earlier, my main concern right now is keepin a close eye on the larger plants for any recovery issues. They havent recovered as quickly as I would like but it's been in the mid 90's so the heat might be a factor. I'll give em a few more days before making a decision to let em keep goin or bounce em for the teens I have waiting. I'll plant a few of the teens anyway to compare.
Also, I picked up some 100 gal Smarties to plant some of the larger plants so there will be some further comparisons. As for future root bound possibilities, yea, it could happen but then, it's just one of the many things I will take in to next season. A fella has to keep in mind the big picture.
The Texas cages are cool although you can make the same cages out of 6 ft. field fence. I use the "towers" for bud drying. The fact they collapse is certainly an advantage. I just hate buyin stuff I can make if it does the same thing or close...Close bein the operative word..lol Best of luck bro...CC
All right they're in the ground!!!!
Just my opinion but I don’t agree with the root bound scenario comments. Most of my plants don’t grow that deep and I know its because I am supplying all the ferts they need. Looking at the pic of your plant out of the pot I didn’t see any signs of root bound and again in my opinion you wont see that in the holes. I think with your long season 1lb per plant (depending on strain) is a no brainer. I know you are looking for more than that but for sure 1 lb per. But we will see and it will be fun to do so. ------Good luck CC
Just my opinion but I don’t agree with the root bound scenario comments. Most of my plants don’t grow that deep and I know its because I am supplying all the ferts they need. Looking at the pic of your plant out of the pot I didn’t see any signs of root bound and again in my opinion you wont see that in the holes. I think with your long season 1lb per plant (depending on strain) is a no brainer. I know you are looking for more than that but for sure 1 lb per. But we will see and it will be fun to do so. ------Good luck CC
Hey Ham...Welcome back brother! Ya know, I think it's mostly my grower mentality. Always obsessing or frettin about something...lol I think alot of folks underestimate or dont understand the Smart Pot fabric theories. The aero-pruning effects tend to negate root bound-ness almost completely. I mean, that's one of the main reasons why people use them, right? And, yes, the photo I posted is a good illustration. That plant had been in a 3 gal Smartie since 4-20. Imagine what the root system would look like if it were in a plastic pot...
Ive said all along this is my pilot season. Everything is an experiment with noted observations. Yield isnt as important this year as is what I learn and the adjustments being applied to next season. This year is learning, next year is doing. Ive learned quite a bit already but have a long way to go...
Examples: In-ground vs Smart Pots? Smaller clones next year? Larger holes next year? Water supply...Tap or existing spring water?
And of course, the all important: Strains. I'm running 8 or more different strains to determine what grows well and what should be avoided. This process in itself can take several or more seasons. Knowing me, I'll never be content with that! lol
This season, "We'll see" is my approach: Knowing how and what to do to turn it into "That's it" for seasons to come, defines whether youre in it for the long run, or just standing in a field with yer dick in yer hand thinking careful and committed planning isnt relevant...sort of...lol CC
pics pics pics pleaseee
Slangheat
Member
Howdy CC!
Hope all is well - It's only been a day or two since we've heard from ya but man, I got that feeling I get when I haven't checked on my own garden in a day or so - I know I got a whopper of a surprise to look forward to when I finally see "whats been up" !
I am about 4x bigger and healthier than anywhere I have ever been in my outdoor growing career for June 17... can only hope things are the same for you and that they continue to be this way for all of us through harvest.
Have a perfectly rolled joint of some 1.5ish month cured Grandaddy, rolled up and down one of the top buds of a day 45 Green Crack plant for some extra umph (SOMA STYLE!).... and for some reason I just wanted to pop in and say high before I lit 'er up.
Enjoy the weekend CC!
Peace! Slang
EDIT: wow it's actually been nearly a week man, that's not normal for this thread - sincerely hope things are going well.
Hope all is well - It's only been a day or two since we've heard from ya but man, I got that feeling I get when I haven't checked on my own garden in a day or so - I know I got a whopper of a surprise to look forward to when I finally see "whats been up" !
I am about 4x bigger and healthier than anywhere I have ever been in my outdoor growing career for June 17... can only hope things are the same for you and that they continue to be this way for all of us through harvest.
Have a perfectly rolled joint of some 1.5ish month cured Grandaddy, rolled up and down one of the top buds of a day 45 Green Crack plant for some extra umph (SOMA STYLE!).... and for some reason I just wanted to pop in and say high before I lit 'er up.
Enjoy the weekend CC!
Peace! Slang
EDIT: wow it's actually been nearly a week man, that's not normal for this thread - sincerely hope things are going well.
Manitoid
Member
now it has been a week...
Hope nothing too bad, like grapefruit sized hail in a tornado.....
much good vibes.
Manitoid
Hey CdC, drop a line to let us know you're well when you can.
Now that we don't have the weather to complain about, we'll have to start talking plants.
Now that we don't have the weather to complain about, we'll have to start talking plants.
Alrighty then...All is well fellas, just got a bit busy doin life's stuff. Thanks all for the checkin-ins and concerns...Sleepy Hollow is doin fine, putting the final touches on the mechanics of the garden ie: back-filling the remaining container holes, raking out the pathways for them damn small ankle-turner rocks, figuring out the water system etc.
Speaking of water system, here's the update: I was hoping to use the natural spring located on my property but the reality is: until I go thru this season, I wont know if the spring flow (seep) will remain constant thru-out the summer months and sufficient enough to sustain the Hollow (18 plants). I suspect the spring will slow down as the water table drops during the summer and if that were to happen, I would have to rely on my city water supply and the mid-way switch to chlorinated water could create problems I would just as soon side-step now.
So, I'm utilizing my 55 gal barrel by filling it with the city chlorinated water, letting it perk with added nute goodies for 24 hours with the aid of 2 airstones bubbling 24/7. I split the plant watering schedule into 2 parts. I hand-carry a 5 gal bucket and water 9 plants, replenish the barrel, wait 24 hours and then water the remaining 9 plants. So basically, I water 9 plants every 2 days with an approx 3 day break in between which is OK, considering the fact I'm toting a 5 gal bucket a minimum of 9 times up thru the Hollow. A drip system would be nice but with the chlorinated water, it would mean an RO system and that would mean a lot of water waste. For every gal of filtered water means at least 5 gals or so of untreated water going to waste? So for this season, I'll grow-man up and tote the water...
What else? Oh yea. A growth update. Over all, things go real well. No issues or problems. I would like to say the plants really took off once in the ground but actually that didnt happen. I planted during a 4 day evening time process with all the plants showing minimal stress/shock and they all then kind of went thru a "root re-grouping" period. lol I cant say they just "sat" but because they were in the 3 gal Smarties so long, I think it took longer than it might have normally for them to acclimate and proceed on with their business. I switched to some higher-tech nutes (30% nitrogen) for a little bump start and that got em rockin. I'm keepin an eye on a couple "slow-growers" in case I need to replace with my still growing back-up clones. Gonna wait a little longer to see if I need to do that...
Weather update....Damn, it got hot real f'n quick. 94 yesterday. Gonna be around 102 today, pushing 104 tomorrow... That's a bit too much too soon for this cowboy but I guess I dont know enough about outdoor growing to be real scared... LOL
I'll post pics soon but wanted to get the last of the Sleepy Hollow clean and tidy before showing her off. I'm really stoked how it's all coming together. It isnt anything on a grand commercial scale but then again, it aint your grandma's apartment veranda operation either. lol You guys can be the judge of how the girls are doin. Comparisons from when I first planted to where the plants are now should show respectable progress. At least I think so...
Hope everyone got everything in the ground OK and y'all have a fine and safe growing season...CC
Speaking of water system, here's the update: I was hoping to use the natural spring located on my property but the reality is: until I go thru this season, I wont know if the spring flow (seep) will remain constant thru-out the summer months and sufficient enough to sustain the Hollow (18 plants). I suspect the spring will slow down as the water table drops during the summer and if that were to happen, I would have to rely on my city water supply and the mid-way switch to chlorinated water could create problems I would just as soon side-step now.
So, I'm utilizing my 55 gal barrel by filling it with the city chlorinated water, letting it perk with added nute goodies for 24 hours with the aid of 2 airstones bubbling 24/7. I split the plant watering schedule into 2 parts. I hand-carry a 5 gal bucket and water 9 plants, replenish the barrel, wait 24 hours and then water the remaining 9 plants. So basically, I water 9 plants every 2 days with an approx 3 day break in between which is OK, considering the fact I'm toting a 5 gal bucket a minimum of 9 times up thru the Hollow. A drip system would be nice but with the chlorinated water, it would mean an RO system and that would mean a lot of water waste. For every gal of filtered water means at least 5 gals or so of untreated water going to waste? So for this season, I'll grow-man up and tote the water...
What else? Oh yea. A growth update. Over all, things go real well. No issues or problems. I would like to say the plants really took off once in the ground but actually that didnt happen. I planted during a 4 day evening time process with all the plants showing minimal stress/shock and they all then kind of went thru a "root re-grouping" period. lol I cant say they just "sat" but because they were in the 3 gal Smarties so long, I think it took longer than it might have normally for them to acclimate and proceed on with their business. I switched to some higher-tech nutes (30% nitrogen) for a little bump start and that got em rockin. I'm keepin an eye on a couple "slow-growers" in case I need to replace with my still growing back-up clones. Gonna wait a little longer to see if I need to do that...
Weather update....Damn, it got hot real f'n quick. 94 yesterday. Gonna be around 102 today, pushing 104 tomorrow... That's a bit too much too soon for this cowboy but I guess I dont know enough about outdoor growing to be real scared... LOL
I'll post pics soon but wanted to get the last of the Sleepy Hollow clean and tidy before showing her off. I'm really stoked how it's all coming together. It isnt anything on a grand commercial scale but then again, it aint your grandma's apartment veranda operation either. lol You guys can be the judge of how the girls are doin. Comparisons from when I first planted to where the plants are now should show respectable progress. At least I think so...
Hope everyone got everything in the ground OK and y'all have a fine and safe growing season...CC
Nice to hear from you, man! Geez, I thought your elevation was similar to ours, but you're obviously lower if it's getting that hot. We are looking at 90 or 91 for the high tomorrow, not bad when it's triple digits in the valley.
Say, why couldn't you do a gravity feed with your aerated city water? Hauling those buckets is manly, but will get old in July and August.
Keep it cool.
Manitoid
Member
Thats what it means for R/O with hydro.
The "trash" water in my R/O system read 40ppm... the "trash" water goes through the carbon and prefilter, then is used to wash the R/O membrane.
The trash water is chlorine free... i just mix it 50/50 with the clean and call it 20ppm water
DO NOT THROW AWAY TRASH SIDE OF R/O for soil growing...
on outdoor soil, use it as clean
hope this helps
Manitoid
(and yes from personal experience i use the "trash" from R/O as clean water, 40ppm is NOT 370ppm water... chlorine free for sure)
and glad to see you back... i used to huck 48 X 5 gallon trips while watering... watering system will be done today or tomorrow, so I wont be doing that anymore.
Hey Maps...yea, got a little busy doin some other priorities but i did manage to tend the Hollow mornings and nites...I'm at about a 1000ft but this area is known for the summer heat...Actually, the revised forecast calls for 106 tomorrow, 104 the next day...So, we be gettin fairly extreme already, but then again, that's why this area is fine for gardening! lol I think my plants got put in just in the nick of time and being fairly large, theyre handlin the temps like real bitch-troopers...lol
My 55 gal res can only feed 9 to 10 plants each watering and a gravity feed without a plentiful source would mean having to make sure each plant gets an equal share. Hell, I'd do the RO first! LOL
Huckin 5's aint such a bad thing...The furthest plant away from the tea barrel is 'bout 100ft or so and the closet one is 8ft. Ive seen worse...lol Besides, Ive spent this season's allocated funds, so I'm just gonna have to suck it up and dream about the RO for next year...lol CC
Thanks for the input Mani...Next year, I'll have an underground cistern in place to hold the spring water. I dont think the spring will go completely dry during summer and if I'm right, a 600 gal underground tank will be highly righteous...Located above the Hollow, gravity will do the rest. I wanna bury it to keep things discreet and water temps cool.
If all works out, Rocky Mountain Spring Water wont have shit on the CC and his Sleepy Hollow Spring Water...LOL CC
