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Doc Crow's Medicine Cabinet. 420 W CFL powered Perpetual Micro SOG PPK
- Thread starter DocCrow
- Start date
D
Dr.RedWhite
I like the way all the holes are perfectly even. I just can't freehand with a holesaw that well. Nicely sawed and sealed too.
Chloemobile
Active member
Sick setup man. I feel like in following in the same progression of growing style. I'm in dr.bud style now but you've got me itching to try a little PPK system. Just gotta figure out what woks in my space. But damn your plants look happy from such a lazy growing method. Great info about jacks in here too you guys are killing it. Can't wait to see how this turns out.
Sick grows Pete.
=D
Sick grows Pete.
=D
DocCrow
Member
I pulled the plants out today, drained the reservoirs, and used my new ppm meter to mix up some actual 600ppm solution for the girls. I also did a major defoliation as the fan leaves were sucking up so much light in the cab. Need to make room for more in there. The good news is I think they have all stopped stretching. Glad to know I got the PPM under control. I cannot believe it. I am supposed to feed a total of about 5/8 tsp of nutes per gallon for 600ppm. They were getting about 3 1/2 tsp! And STILL LOOKING HEALTHY?? I think I will stick with the PPK for a while. What would happen if I tried to feed 3000 PPM nutes to a plant in DWC?? Ebb n flow?? Speaks VOLUMES.
Later, need to get back to being a lazy bastard
DC
Later, need to get back to being a lazy bastard
DC
DocCrow
Member
Drill press, and Fostner bits. Hole saws suck. You should see some of the other stuff I make. THat box will NEVER come apart.
I can't either. Truth be told now I wanna see how the next rounds perform with a regular nute feed.
Just do it. Now. Seriously. What are you waiting for????
petemoss
Active member
DC after defoliation, the plants transpire much less and even the normal 1.2 EC feed can lead to nute burn. You should feed weaker after plucking leaves. But then, your plants seem to have good resistance against nute burn!
I was scratching my head trying to figure out why your young plants weren't burnt to a crisp. But then, I thought better not ask DC any insulting questions LOL. Maybe he isn't mixing right, Jacks first and stir in, let it sit awhile then mix some more, then add the Calcinit and shake. Maybe he thinks he's making a cake, where you put in all the ingredients and then mix everything. That would cause stuff to fall out of the solution and you would see some sandy precipitates on the bottom of the jug. The resulting mix would be weaker than you planned. Nah, he must have read the mixing instructions, I figured. Then it occurred to me that you may not be mixing into a one gallon jug. Maybe he thinks the five gallon buckets are one gallon buckets! LOL Somehow you dodged a bullet and got away with a potentially fatal error. Guess it's your karma to succeed with your high-density SOG!
I was scratching my head trying to figure out why your young plants weren't burnt to a crisp. But then, I thought better not ask DC any insulting questions LOL. Maybe he isn't mixing right, Jacks first and stir in, let it sit awhile then mix some more, then add the Calcinit and shake. Maybe he thinks he's making a cake, where you put in all the ingredients and then mix everything. That would cause stuff to fall out of the solution and you would see some sandy precipitates on the bottom of the jug. The resulting mix would be weaker than you planned. Nah, he must have read the mixing instructions, I figured. Then it occurred to me that you may not be mixing into a one gallon jug. Maybe he thinks the five gallon buckets are one gallon buckets! LOL Somehow you dodged a bullet and got away with a potentially fatal error. Guess it's your karma to succeed with your high-density SOG!
DocCrow
Member
I am buying distilled water till I can get an RO since my tap is shite. I mix in the 1 gal jugs. Jacks, mix, sit, mix, sit, calnit mix. I was getting clumping since I was adding too much, but out of 8 gal of solution with a combined 24 tsp of nutes there maybe 1 tsp of sediment on the bottom of the tank. I have been helping out a lot of friends / doing some volunteer work with free time, etc since losing my job, so I am going with Karma on this one. I think my only saving grace was the fact they were all 30 days from seed when transplanted into the PPK.
Thanks for the heads up on the defoliation tip.
How do you handle defoliation in your cabinet? Do you pull every big fan leaf?
petemoss
Active member
I don't take out fan leafs until the stretch is just about done, after three weeks in flower. And then only a couple big leafs or fans with long stems. While the plantlet is stretching, I remove half of big fan leafs that are blocking bud sites, just rip them in half with my fingers. So as much as possible, I try to leave the fan leafs alone and only remove what I need to get some light to the lower buds.
I'm not trying to slow down the stretch by defoliating. If the plantlet is stretching too tall, with big spaces between nodes, I collapse the stem with two folds. It's easier to see in pictures:
After folding the stems, the Vanilla Kush plants develop multiple top buds. It's mostly the sativas that need to be collapsed. It looks drastic but doesn't seem to overly stress my plants. They never droop. As DrBud preaches, a good grower knows how to control a flowering plant; he doesn't let the plant control him! So tie up those lanky bitches, show them who's boss!
I'm not trying to slow down the stretch by defoliating. If the plantlet is stretching too tall, with big spaces between nodes, I collapse the stem with two folds. It's easier to see in pictures:
After folding the stems, the Vanilla Kush plants develop multiple top buds. It's mostly the sativas that need to be collapsed. It looks drastic but doesn't seem to overly stress my plants. They never droop. As DrBud preaches, a good grower knows how to control a flowering plant; he doesn't let the plant control him! So tie up those lanky bitches, show them who's boss!
Hey Doc, nice journal bro... very imteresting...
PeteMoss.. nice pics man...
PeteMoss.. nice pics man...
petemoss
Active member
Before anyone tries to collapse a stem, I should caution that the stem should be flattened first. Maybe one to two inches long where you want to fold. That prevents the stem from kinking as you start the fold. Eventually you'll get a sharp kink but if it comes later, it's less likely to completely break the stem. Start the fold by wrapping the flattened stem around your finger. after the second fold, use a twist tie to wrap up the stem loosely.
Sorry for the long ramble, DC. Don't mean to sidetrack your excellent thread. I just love growing and talking about growing!
Sorry for the long ramble, DC. Don't mean to sidetrack your excellent thread. I just love growing and talking about growing!
DocCrow
Member
I was gonna ask this q anyway man. Sidetrack all you want man.
DocCrow
Member
DAY 35 Flower UPDATE
Well I think I have the res pretty stable at about 600PPM. I put 4 clones in yesterday. It is 4 in every week from here on out. Hopefully these plants really kick into gear now that their nute levels are stable at a reasonable level. I am pretty sure that is resp[onsible in the poor growth of a few of the plants. Out of the 40 clones I took I think I killed 10 of them at the most. 4 went into the flower cab, and the rest are rooted and in 12oz cups of coco waiting for their turn in the flower cab. With the exception of M6 and M8 they are all flowering along nicely, though the AKs and M3 are likely to be done a week or 2 before anything else from the looks. I think right around new years will be the tentative date.
Looking forward to getting things going and filling this thing up. I am excited that my first wave for my perpetual went in today. That puts me at fifteen. I should have enough room to put 4 in every week from here on out.
I am not expecting much at this point from what is in there right now. I'm pretty sure the overfeeding and the plants overgrowing the space will reflect poorly in my tally, but the primary reason for this first run was to get enough viable clone stock to start the perpetual going. That is where the $$ is.
Got some exciting news today too. Hopefully within the next month or so we will be seeing some new crosses in here searching for the funk! Hogsbreath clone x Alien Kush, Sour Double Kush BXII and 98 Bubba Kush x Fire OG BX. I am hoping to get something worth keeping out of each. They all sound like they should be dank as all hell.
Sorry for the lack of pics this week. I could not find my camera when garden time came today. I will make it up next week. I will have my auto water setup finished by then too.
I spotted the new cones up with about 3" between the top of the coco and the pot. I think this will make pulse feeding without overflowing a lot easier. I also think that the slight reduction in medium will help control the height of the plants too.
I am starting to see the downside in the CFL bulbs in regards to light penetration in this setup. It is not that I don't think this is a bad setup, I just think that it could be better. I think V2 will be a combination of horizontal HPS bulb(s) and Vertical PLL to help with undergrowth. The biggest issue I was having was all of the Fans were pressing against the glass and forming a solid canopy before I defoliated. I may have gone a little extreme on some of them, but I wanted to see the difference in how they react to being partially defoliated (50% of the large fans) and stripped of all of the large fans.
That is all for now.
DC
Well I think I have the res pretty stable at about 600PPM. I put 4 clones in yesterday. It is 4 in every week from here on out. Hopefully these plants really kick into gear now that their nute levels are stable at a reasonable level. I am pretty sure that is resp[onsible in the poor growth of a few of the plants. Out of the 40 clones I took I think I killed 10 of them at the most. 4 went into the flower cab, and the rest are rooted and in 12oz cups of coco waiting for their turn in the flower cab. With the exception of M6 and M8 they are all flowering along nicely, though the AKs and M3 are likely to be done a week or 2 before anything else from the looks. I think right around new years will be the tentative date.
Looking forward to getting things going and filling this thing up. I am excited that my first wave for my perpetual went in today. That puts me at fifteen. I should have enough room to put 4 in every week from here on out.
I am not expecting much at this point from what is in there right now. I'm pretty sure the overfeeding and the plants overgrowing the space will reflect poorly in my tally, but the primary reason for this first run was to get enough viable clone stock to start the perpetual going. That is where the $$ is.
Got some exciting news today too. Hopefully within the next month or so we will be seeing some new crosses in here searching for the funk! Hogsbreath clone x Alien Kush, Sour Double Kush BXII and 98 Bubba Kush x Fire OG BX. I am hoping to get something worth keeping out of each. They all sound like they should be dank as all hell.
Sorry for the lack of pics this week. I could not find my camera when garden time came today. I will make it up next week. I will have my auto water setup finished by then too.
I spotted the new cones up with about 3" between the top of the coco and the pot. I think this will make pulse feeding without overflowing a lot easier. I also think that the slight reduction in medium will help control the height of the plants too.
I am starting to see the downside in the CFL bulbs in regards to light penetration in this setup. It is not that I don't think this is a bad setup, I just think that it could be better. I think V2 will be a combination of horizontal HPS bulb(s) and Vertical PLL to help with undergrowth. The biggest issue I was having was all of the Fans were pressing against the glass and forming a solid canopy before I defoliated. I may have gone a little extreme on some of them, but I wanted to see the difference in how they react to being partially defoliated (50% of the large fans) and stripped of all of the large fans.
That is all for now.
DC
petemoss
Active member
Before I collapsed stems with a double bend, I tried to corkscrew the stem and even tied some stems into a knot. But these always needed a support to keep them upright. I called these two the Twisted Sisters!
I showed some grower friends the folded stems but they were too scared to try it themselves. I suppose this may decrease the yield, but the decrease is more than made up by getting strong light to the tops IMO. At most, the folded plants may stall for a day or two. In more than three years of folding stems, I've yet to snap a plant in two.
I showed some grower friends the folded stems but they were too scared to try it themselves. I suppose this may decrease the yield, but the decrease is more than made up by getting strong light to the tops IMO. At most, the folded plants may stall for a day or two. In more than three years of folding stems, I've yet to snap a plant in two.
DocCrow
Member
I wish I would have thought of that. It is too late now I think. The stems are all getting pretty thick, but i think I can gauge early enough if they will need it or not in the future. I have some crispy tops on some of my plants haha. This last batch of clones were all 3"-4" tall. Hopefully they will end up a bit short. It will be easiest if I can use 5-6" minimum clones as they will be able to have a bit more time in the veg cab to build up the root system a bit before going into flower.
petemoss
Active member
According to DrBud, the main way to get your plantlet to finish at the desired height is to find its "sweet spot", or the height of the clone when initially put into flower. That ideal height varies depending on the strain. When growing a new strain, he puts the clones into flower at 2", 3", 4", 5" and notes how tall each clone finishes. When he finds that strain's sweet spot, all clones of that strain are flowered at that height. My Satori's are flowered at 2" while LUI are allowed to veg until they reach 3.5"-4". Sometimes you have to leave an open spot in your SOG until the clone grows to the sweet spot height. I'm still experimenting with Vanilla Kush and Super Lemon Haze to find the height that will make them grow in a single cola with minimal side branching and finish just under the light. I may have to use a smaller container for these sativas if 2" doesn't work.
wow dude U r tieing up thouse in a very interesting way there.
I tie up my sativas and top my indica's, but nothing this extreme. I tried to do it a few times but snaped the stem.
DocCrow
Member
Yup, that is my plan exactly. I should never have to wait for a clone to be ready for the cab. I take 4x as many as I need so I can be choosy.
DocCrow
Member
Day 43 UPDATE
Sorry I have not been too attentive around here, and slack with the updates lately. I have not been able too spend much time with my plants and got a bit behind. Santa's Woodshop has been in full swing lately. I have been out there trying to get my XMas gifts made in time for xmas. I make the bulk of my presents every year, and it always comes down to crunch time to get everything finished.
Everything is going well in the garden. I did add a small 2 bulb 24" T5 fluorescent strip on the back wall of the cab 5" above the top of the pots. I think this added light will help the clones to get going a bit better and will spend their first 2 weeks in the cabinet in the back row parked right in front of them. I think it will help lower bud production a bit too.
I went back in today and did another good defoliation. I think I did a better job this time, and I am getting a feel for how much I need to strip off of them to allow the light to penetrate, and keep the fan leaves from all pressing against the glass and shading everything out. There is a marked improvement in the light penetration now and all of the buds are receiving a good amount of light. As long as I can control the height in the future I think the runs will start getting really good.
Everything is starting to look pretty good. No pics of M6 or M8. Not even really budding yet. Small, the overfeeding probably hurt them more than the rest. If I didn't have plenty of space for em, I would just cull em, but I do so they keep their seat till room runs out or they finish. I think the AKs and M3 will be done on New Years. The rest should finish within the next 2-3 weeks following that. I expect the finish times from seed will be longer than from clone, and again, the overfeeding i am sure set some of them back some.
And on to the Pics.
(I know my camera work sucks. I promise to set up a light box for really good pics by the time my perpetual cycles start coming in. Once that starts my update will just show start and finish pics of the plants getting harvested that week, and a shot of the whole cab. )
Anyway the pics are shitty, and the plants are looking a bit rough, as most of the colas have been burnt from growing into the glass. Much more care will go into keeping heights in check during stretch in the future. Enjoy them as much as you can considering.
Kandy Kush
This one is coming on strong now that the feeding is under control. I have high hopes for this one for future runs.
BD X OG
WW x BB
Sorry I have not been too attentive around here, and slack with the updates lately. I have not been able too spend much time with my plants and got a bit behind. Santa's Woodshop has been in full swing lately. I have been out there trying to get my XMas gifts made in time for xmas. I make the bulk of my presents every year, and it always comes down to crunch time to get everything finished.
Everything is going well in the garden. I did add a small 2 bulb 24" T5 fluorescent strip on the back wall of the cab 5" above the top of the pots. I think this added light will help the clones to get going a bit better and will spend their first 2 weeks in the cabinet in the back row parked right in front of them. I think it will help lower bud production a bit too.
I went back in today and did another good defoliation. I think I did a better job this time, and I am getting a feel for how much I need to strip off of them to allow the light to penetrate, and keep the fan leaves from all pressing against the glass and shading everything out. There is a marked improvement in the light penetration now and all of the buds are receiving a good amount of light. As long as I can control the height in the future I think the runs will start getting really good.
Everything is starting to look pretty good. No pics of M6 or M8. Not even really budding yet. Small, the overfeeding probably hurt them more than the rest. If I didn't have plenty of space for em, I would just cull em, but I do so they keep their seat till room runs out or they finish. I think the AKs and M3 will be done on New Years. The rest should finish within the next 2-3 weeks following that. I expect the finish times from seed will be longer than from clone, and again, the overfeeding i am sure set some of them back some.
And on to the Pics.
(I know my camera work sucks. I promise to set up a light box for really good pics by the time my perpetual cycles start coming in. Once that starts my update will just show start and finish pics of the plants getting harvested that week, and a shot of the whole cab. )
Anyway the pics are shitty, and the plants are looking a bit rough, as most of the colas have been burnt from growing into the glass. Much more care will go into keeping heights in check during stretch in the future. Enjoy them as much as you can considering.
Kandy Kush
This one is coming on strong now that the feeding is under control. I have high hopes for this one for future runs.
BD X OG
WW x BB
