Big Soil Little Room, Recycled soil trial

[VerdantGreen]

Just read through the thread again and wanted to give you props for how well you document your grow, I found it very time consuming even for my two-bob cabinet grows so you deserve huge gratitude for this.
i truly believe for organic soil that when you take away any possibility of root binding, you are removing the possibility of most 'everyday' plant problems. Most deficiencies occur, imo, because of a certain proportion of a plant's roots working inefficiently because they are in contact with each other or the container rather than the soil. this is true for any size grow and i always advise people to use as much soil as they can reasonably fit into the tent/cabinet/room.
Ive been using gypsum myself recently to good effect, and seeing how much you just amended and how happy the young plants look has inspired me to add a bit more on this recycle.
much respect as always. You're planning to scrog this time? that should be awesome.

VG

 

[milkyjoe]

What ppm co2 do you run and if it is under 1000 what controller do you use?

 

[Microbeman]

lots of calcium is key - yup

 

[FatherEarth]

I like my co2 as high as I can afford. Some say its not useable but the fastest growth Ive seen was hovering around 2000ppm + even during the night cycle. Strictly soil produced co2. Right now I have it sitting @ 1200 ppm. I use a Sentinel CHHC-4 environmental controller that does a wonderful job at maintaining the room levels. It kicks off my Co2 when it kicks on the exhaust and has an expansion module for plugging in 240v high wattage appliances like AC's and such. Ive had to send in two different units to get worked on.Both time I was at fault, one I fried some internal parts hooking up 120v to a thermostat when it should have been powerd by AAA battteries, lol and the other I tripped over the sensor cable in the dark while walking thru the greenhouse at night. Both issues they fixed and returned within a week or receiving. They fixed issues and only charged me for the sensor replacement. THey even gave me a new keypad for free because mine was faded from the sun. The Generator they make is top notch as well. Im with sentinel for the long haul.

Yes, you can run it under 1000 ppm. I would do low co2 in the cloning room.


FE

 

[FatherEarth]

VG,

Yea Im about to start the first layer this week before they get too big. I plan on doing 3 layers and I may even do some topping this time.. .

Ive noticed that the beds that got the most gypsum are doing the best. Also I ran thru 58 lbs amending. Had to get a new brand and it turned out to be ultrafine powder vs a gritty sort of fine I used for the majority. The ultrafine is really the good stuff. Im thinking of going back to a few beds and adding a bit more to be honest. I dont think it could hurt..


FE

 

[FatherEarth]

Lawn grass clovers and oats

Even though it looks like its dry on the top the drip system keeps it nice and moist just below the surface. go down about a 1/4" and its nice and evenly moist. You can see the dripper spacing nicely here...Loving the drip system, much easier and better water distribution.

I would have preferred to only have them under the 660w setting for a day maybe a day and a half but I couldnt get to them to turn it up. Ultimately I think it was a tad too long and this is why I have somewhat lanky growth. Especially on the GG4 which is supposed to be rather bushy. I ended up having enough ready to do a bed of the glue.. vigorous to say the least..

Gorillas

 

[anonymousgrow]

is that perlite at the base of each plant? how come?

 

[FatherEarth]

is that perlite at the base of each plant? how come?

lol, to keep the base of the stalk dry and clean. Helps prevent fungal infections.

 

[FatherEarth]

What good is turbo if you never use it? I think Im going to bump the wattage up to full power 1150w
Ill probably bust out the apogee and test the umols first but I think they are ready....

 

[who dat is]

I really like your setup! I would naysay the living mulch that you have but you probably won't have to worry about them with the auto drippers like you would hand watering. I used a clover mix for a living mulch and they just ended up needing more maintenance than the plant itself.

 

[Scrappy-doo]

Wow man impressive thread! Taking a seat.

 

[FatherEarth]

Chunk,

Only thing I can see becoming a problem is that the grass may get too tall and Ill have to cut it back. I noticed some of the grass at 6 inches tall ++ already. I figured that would come about. I have these giant hand scissors that will make short work of it and itll give me some time to examine each bed while I do so. This run is so hands free with the watering being auto Im rarely around to check on em. I pop my head in once or twice a day to make sure they are looking good and thats it. All that hard work designing a building the setup is paying off... Im about to start another room and a breeding project is about to jump off as well Busy busy ;-)

 

[who dat is]

Chunk,

Only thing I can see becoming a problem is that the grass may get too tall and Ill have to cut it back. I noticed some of the grass at 6 inches tall ++ already. I figured that would come about. I have these giant hand scissors that will make short work of it and itll give me some time to examine each bed while I do so. This run is so hands free with the watering being auto Im rarely around to check on em. I pop my head in once or twice a day to make sure they are looking good and thats it. All that hard work designing a building the setup is paying off... Im about to start another room and a breeding project is about to jump off as well Busy busy ;-)

Yeah, just chop and drop as necessary

 

[anonymousgrow]

1150w is killer for degrading chlorophyll at the end of a cycle. Plants that normally show some color will show a ton of pretty colors.

 

[FatherEarth]

today they seem to have really started to pick up the pace. Way tighter spacing and really bushing out. They seem stout, very sturdy feel to them. The stalks are beefing up and leaves seem to have doubled in size on the Shishkaberry. I didnt water yesterday and this morning they were all praying hard when I checked in. looking stellar. I would snap pics but left my method sevens at home and I cant stand HPS yellow tinted photos..

 

[Luther Burbank]

FE, looking good looking good!

 

[FatherEarth]

Day 10

Day 10

Dog

the glues are getting gigantic quickly..notice the giant plants in the back dwarfing its neighbors...

 

[FatherEarth]

Day 11

Day 11

 

[rik78]

nice fans!!!

 

[rhino420]

great thread ... very nice set up