My intro and bona fides...

[PakaloloFromPNW]

I think I soaked my seeds on Friday and moved them to the SST t-shirt yesterday. I checked them out today and all six seeds have popped. I'm going to let them go until tomorrow or Wednesday. So far I'm impressed with this technique.

I cloned some Eminem, Trainwreck 2 and Chocolope today. I'm trying the Rapid Rooters and I mixed up my own cloning soil that I described in a few posts back. My first impression of the Rapid Rooters is the hole is big compared to the stem. When I pushed the stem down I did meet some resistance so I'm hoping that this will work. My own cloning soil got the nailed for the hole and then I packed the soil around it. I dipped each clone end in honey before I put them into the RR or soil mix.

4 of the clones were in the water mixture overnight. So I'm going to see if that makes a difference.

Lots of experimenting going on in my cellar. I'll keep my findings coming and post pictures too.

 

[PakaloloFromPNW]

I'm not liking what I see with this Rapid Rooters and the seed germinating station. I'll give it a few more days but I'm cloning in the clone soil mix (my new ProMix) later today.



I don't see this much wilting from the way I've always cloned. I like the water mixture and I'll probably use that to water. I'll make a final decision later in the week.

 

[PakaloloFromPNW]

Okay, on to a more tragic subject. My cellar has mice in it and I'm trapping them all the time. This is part of the reason I haven't grown from seed.

Goblin Queen (formerly)


Noctural (maybe)


I may salvage noctural but GQ is gone. I'm going to have to figure out something to put over the top of these seedlings until they are bigger. The mice never bother the clones or plants but they love to eat the seedlings.

 

[PakaloloFromPNW]

Here is some good news though. The SST seedling sprouting technique seems to be working.

 

[PakaloloFromPNW]

Okay I have come up with a temporary mouse protection for Noctural. I just put a 1 quart ziplock over it. I also laid down a mouse trap. I'm sure the mouse will be back for more.





You can see Noctural with the ziplock and the mouse trap. I've also cloned Trainwreck 2, Chocolope and Eminem.

 

[PakaloloFromPNW]

I took my first cutting off of MTV today. I used my old cloning technique with this one. No experimenting on this clone. I have a picture of Eminem and MTV together.



I'm thinking that MTV is going to turn out to be female. On top of that MTV has a very thick stalk and great structure. In case you can't tell one from the other that is MTV in front and Eminem in the back.

 

[canna woop!]

bummer about the GQ, those rodent's always seem to pick the stinkiest sprouts to munch on

they really went for the mazar sprouts i made instead of the other's and it stinks, quite well

 

[PakaloloFromPNW]

Hey choom - do you have a grow journal?

 

[PakaloloFromPNW]

I took the SST technique seeds and planted them today. I like this technique but I'm going to change it a bit. I put 2 pieces of t-shirt material in a quart ziplock baggie and had the sprouted barley between the pieces and set the marijuana seeds on top. It looked like this.



You can see the sprouted barley between the cotton material and inside the ziplock. I closed the ziplock so the water won't run out. I'm afraid that it will go anaerobic with no air circulation. So I'm going to buy a few small containers and put holes in them so there will air circulation. I'm still going to use 2 pieces of cotton, sprouted barley but in containers rather than ziplock baggies. My anaerobic worries will be gone.

 

[PakaloloFromPNW]

I stopped by Target and got the plastic container. It's 66 quart container and I put the seedling into it and the clones. The clones don't need to be in there but I just don't have any room. The cloning experiment is still not looking good. The plants are limp but I might be imagining some small perkiness to a couple of them. I'll let them go for a few more days before I make the final decision.

Here's what I bought and how I'm using it.

 

[choom]

Do I!? I'd love it if you checked out my albums!! I want to hear about what kind of strains you enjoy to medicate with and what flavors and functions you select after, I'm interested in Goblin Queen and Nocturnal they're extremely interesting crosses; I'll be around!

choom(0:

 

[Weyenot]

I was a ProMix grower with bottled nutrients. I was thinking about switching to DWC hydro when I came across some posts on organic growing. I did some reading of organic threads and after a few hours of that decided to go with organics. I'm about 4 weeks away from my first organic grow harvest. This has been the biggest buds I've grown so far. That's over 25 years with ProMix/bottled nutrients. I'm not going back.

gl

Hey there Pako, its been a real treat reading your thread! Im not done reading but I think its best I say something now before I get too far in and forget some things I wanted to say; dang short term memory and I dont smoke much so I dont think I can blame it on that!

Anywho, congratulations on making the switch over to organics; I think youre already seeing how beautiful it is when plants reach their full potential, pretty sweet isnt it?!

I was in a similar position as you a few years ago when I started growing; I was going to do a full aeroponic setup but found some articles on organics( ive got to give credit to the rev over at skunk for those first inspirations, thanks bro!! ) and I never looked back and Im soooooo glad I did!!

Ill be keeping up with your progress and popping up with a comment or encouragement from time to time

Keep rocking it, the plants are loving you for it!!

 

[Weyenot]

I hear you on watering. Actually I'm a lift the pot type watering. I usually try to let it dry out some but not totally. When I do water it is to moisten the soil and not soak it. Water is one of the few skills that transfer over from bottled nutrients to organic growing. My plants are getting thirsty now as they are putting on buds but they will slow down in a couple of weeks as the buds finish.

gl

Much respect on the watering skills, you sure do have it down!!

I use a very similar soil and Ive noticed that it needs less watering than I would think with all the organic matter and whatnot holding onto the moisture. I like the "lift method" too, it puts you in touch with whats actually in the pot and once you get a feel for it its very accurate. Although I will say that I have overwatered a bit before because I wasnt used to the soil being like a sponge with all the peat and EWC in it; when the pot seemed dry enough to water it actually wasnt because of the aforementioned ingredients holding enough moisture yet still being light. Mulching really helps with moisture retention, its like a cap that keeps the water from evaporating plus its good food for the critters in the soil; is yours still working for you?

 

[Weyenot]

How about some updates on the ladies.

OG Kush
https://www.icmag.com/ic/picture.php?albumid=50417&pictureid=1187574View Image

OG Kush bud
https://www.icmag.com/ic/picture.php?albumid=50417&pictureid=1187575View Image

Pitbull
https://www.icmag.com/ic/picture.php?albumid=50417&pictureid=1187576View Image

Pitbull bud
https://www.icmag.com/ic/picture.php?albumid=50417&pictureid=1187577View Image

gl

Seriously beautiful ladies here Pako, well done!! Im stoked to see them finish out

I like the structure on the OG, nice and bushy and it looks sturdy; the pineapple looks nice too, even more uniform and bushy by the looks of it. I saw you mention using protekt in a spray; do you use it in your regular watering routine? I use it every watering and in sprays and it makes even less structurally sound varieties much stronger!

Again, BEAUUUUUUTIFUL ladies!!

 

[Weyenot]

I took the SST technique seeds and planted them today. I like this technique but I'm going to change it a bit. I put 2 pieces of t-shirt material in a quart ziplock baggie and had the sprouted barley between the pieces and set the marijuana seeds on top. It looked like this.

View Image

You can see the sprouted barley between the cotton material and inside the ziplock. I closed the ziplock so the water won't run out. I'm afraid that it will go anaerobic with no air circulation. So I'm going to buy a few small containers and put holes in them so there will air circulation. I'm still going to use 2 pieces of cotton, sprouted barley but in containers rather than ziplock baggies. My anaerobic worries will be gone.

gl


This is interesting, Ill be keeping an eye on your findings for sure! I use the sprouted seed tea in most of my waterings and have noticed benefits such as faster growth and more resin production and I dont plan on stopping use any time soon. I soak one cup of barley seeds in a gallon pickle jar half full of water with a sprinkle of ful-p in it overnight or for about 16hrs; I put the seeds in a sprout bag I got from therawfoodworld, its a website that sells all kinds of healthy foods and products and I dont think its the only place that has them so a little poking around should turn up other options. I then strain the seeds and dump the water out ( i use the water to water something that needs it ) and put the bag with seeds in it in back in the jar and put the jar on its side with the lid off so the bag can be spread out which the seeds as much surface area as possible so they can breath and wont go anaerobic. I keep the jar on a shelf in my veg area thats out of direct light and it usually takes a few days of sitting for the seeds to have tails on them a little longer than the seed itself. I usually dont even have to remoisten the bag because I dont shake it out too much when I initially strain it so theres enough residual moisture. This method works quite well and Im able to start several jars in succession so I have sprout brew whenever I need it; maybe you could give it a try and do some comparisons? Actually you could use bigger pieces of cotton and tie them up into sacks then put them in jars and you would be good to go. Im not trying to push the idea, ziplocks are more of a pain compared to jars for me and I thought it might make things easier on you; Im interested to see what you think.

Upon further inspection of your picture I think i understand better. You sprout the barley, soak it according to posted directions and then put that in the ziplock with the cotton and the canna seeds, is that correct? I could see where a more solid container would make that easier to avoid spillage.

After I sprout the barley seeds and soak them for a day I strain off the liquid and use it without the sprouts still in it; is there a particular reason you done remove the sprouts? After I strain the sprouts I fill the jar back up with water and soak another day; I do this because I think there are still leftover enzymes there that could be used.

Im curious, why do you sprout your canna seeds before planting them; its a pretty widespread practice but Im starting to think that maybe its better to just put the little ones in soil without any soaking or anything and let them do their thing without any interference. I used to soak my seeds for about 24hrs and then let them sit in some paper towel in a ziplock till they got tails but I think they started slower and I lost more than I should have, so in my nect run Im going to put them directly in soil and see what happens. Ill take notes and let you know what I see

Keep up the awesomeness!!!gl

 

[Weyenot]

I think I soaked my seeds on Friday and moved them to the SST t-shirt yesterday. I checked them out today and all six seeds have popped. I'm going to let them go until tomorrow or Wednesday. So far I'm impressed with this technique.

I cloned some Eminem, Trainwreck 2 and Chocolope today. I'm trying the Rapid Rooters and I mixed up my own cloning soil that I described in a few posts back. My first impression of the Rapid Rooters is the hole is big compared to the stem. When I pushed the stem down I did meet some resistance so I'm hoping that this will work. My own cloning soil got the nailed for the hole and then I packed the soil around it. I dipped each clone end in honey before I put them into the RR or soil mix.

4 of the clones were in the water mixture overnight. So I'm going to see if that makes a difference.

Lots of experimenting going on in my cellar. I'll keep my findings coming and post pictures too.

gl

Hey again Pako I think its awesome youre experimenting; thats the best way to find what works for you and we are all individuals so not everything will work everyone!

Could you please elaborate on your previous cloning method; it sounds like you were cloning directly into soil but Im not sure.

Are you referring to the sprout tea when you mention the water you soak the clones in? Ive never used the sprout tea for that purpose but youve got me thinking now! I currently use CC's clone soak recipe and I love it; its the one with aloe, silica and ful-p in it. I went from using straight EWC to peat to a 50/50 peat and perlite and now Im giving straight perlite a try. Its been a progression towards a more aerated mix and it is paying off; the plants experience less stress and root quicker it seems.

Peace bro

 

[Weyenot]

And one more thing. I totally dig the picture youre using; the dude abides!!

 

[PakaloloFromPNW]

I think my cloning experiment with the Rapid Rooters and the germination station isn't working out.



The poor clones have wilted worst than I've ever seen in my entire growing career. So I'm tossing the Rapid Rooters and the germination station tomorrow. I'll still use the little heater unit under the germination station but that's it. I've been using it before the Rapid Rooters.

These are the clones I took these cuttings two days ago. They're a little limp but are beginning to stand up. This is what I'm used to seeing with my cloning. So it's not the lights or the humidity dome that is the difference. It is the cloning medium that is different here. I'm still testing out the difference between ProMix and my cloning soil mix though. It's too early to tell but both medium are working.

 

[PakaloloFromPNW]

Weyenot - You asked a lot of questions and provide sound advice. Thank you for that.

I read some posts on the Grass City website that got me interested in organic growing. I have experience with the herb dating back to the early 70's. I also did organic vegetable gardening most of the 80's. So in a few hours it all made sense to me. I'm never going back to any other way of growing. Organics all the way.

My watering technique is something I learned over the years. I grew underground for my personal use and I don't remember why I did it but it seemed a good way to figure out the amount of water in the pot. I go with the idea of keeping my soil between 30% and 80% where 0% is desert sand dry and 100% is peat bog wet. So I don't water all my plants at the same time. I water when they are about 30%. Another thing I do is feel the soil at the pot's drainage holes. Here is what I think of as time to water.

30% dry


80% wet


So it has been a long time since I had trouble with watering. Even the move to organic soil has been no difference. I think a lot of my bottled nutrient growing techniques transferred over to organics.

My OG Kush was attacked by spider mites and I had to take some major intervention to get her this far. She suffered some leaf damage but I'm going to get an okay harvest from her. PE was attacked by PM and I took her down on Sunday. She is hanging upside down in my drying area along with some Pitbull branches and Trainwreck 1. All had an issue with PM.

My experiment with SST cloning is a success as far as I'm concerned and I'm going to use this from now on. I am going to change up and not use ziplock bags in the future. I sprouted my barley seeds in a jar like I used to do in my hippie days, cheesecloth and a rubber band. I rinsed them regularly until they sprouted much like you described. I then placed them in the cotton material. I used CC's clone soak recipe to moisten/wet the material then put the canna seeds that soaked in CC's recipe for 36 hours on top of the t-shirt. Your suggestion sounds interesting but I'm going with the small plastic containers. I only pop a few seeds at a time so I don't need much room. I'm going to continue to sprout the old hippie way and place them in the small container, cover with cotton and place canna seeds on top. I'll take a picture when I do this.

As far as 'The Dude' I searched for the avatar because the dude and I have a lot in common. We're not totally the same but that picture sums me up. Going through life with that grin.

I may have missed some of your questions so ask away. If you have a journal I'd like to check it out. You obviously have some organic growing experience and this is my first grow organically. So I've got a lot to learn.

 

[PakaloloFromPNW]

My noctural seedling got attacked/nibbled on by a mouse and I wasn't sure if it would recover. I can see some growth in the middle so I'm sure it will turn out okay.

Noctural