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Distinguished and Nurtured Kind

dank.frank

ef.yu.se.ka.e.em
ICMag Donor
Veteran
Welcome to the Halls of D.A.N.K. This will be a new journal for seed exploration. I've got a ton of stuff. Most of it old and perhaps not viable. With some luck, a few here and there will germinate. If they don't grow, at least they aren't clutter in the fridge any more.

This isn't a massive grow operation and by current day standards this is basically a micro grow. No worries though. I'm only growing for my own head. I only need enough volume to produce an uninterrupted supply edibles, extracts, and enjoyment.

To answer a few of the immediate questions:

Grow space? = room in a room style aka "the big ominous box". It's basically 8 x 6, or basic area rug size. Veg is 4'2" x 5' and flower is 2.5' x 5'. 7' interior vertical space.

Lights? = Veg is under T5 with plans to upgrade to custom LED. Flower is 2 x 315w CMH.

Grow method? = Organic soil bed. 24"w x 58"l x 16.5"d or roughly 80 gallons. The bed will likely only be filled with about 70 gallons of soil, or 15". This will either be 8 or 6 plants at a time. I will be transplanting into flower from 1 gallon containers and veg a bit in bed and spread plants under one screen and then flip into a full canopy double screen. Ideally.

3D model shows I won't have much room. Maybe only about 36-40" total between soil surface and minimum distance for lights. This means strain selection will be critical and it will ultimately hold more influence on what stays and what goes than anything. I could see this quickly becoming a 32 plant SOG where the plants are never taller than 18-22", as well.

Genetics? = First tray of seeds failed. BKGK Bx1 and Digi Bx2. There are more to try eventually. 2nd tray was better and will be the first flowered out. Nspecta's ATW x Bubba fems. Not far behind those, will be Med Tree SuzyQ Bx2, which is a 25:1 - 30:1 CBD line, essentially. A couple Relentless Big Easy failed. Tried a seed soak tea, and got a few older seed to crack and spit tails. Hopefully, round two of Relentless 818 x The White will break soil. That round was started with some Stank Bros FBPK and some SFV/Chem D IBL x SSCDH as well. Time will tell. If all those fail to give me anything to take up space, I'll pop some ABF Cobalt Haze since those are still hot off the press.

After not documenting anything new for a long time, I figured now is better than never with so much change and a new rig, why not?

I'll post more information and some veg shots before too much longer. We are still about 3 weeks away from any possibility of flipping for flower.

The ATW x Bubba show pretty heavy phenotype segregation. The plant that has my eye the most has no smell but very long, thin leaves. Much more Wreck influenced or rather, less Bubba dominated, perhaps is a better way to say it. The other, I marked as a standout 50/50 pheno and it is likely going to be the best of the bunch. Very rank sour lime funk on her stem rubs. A bit more vigor than Bubba alone, elongation in the leaves, but not too much thinning. However, all have limited side branching as they are maturing. It's very clear they'd make better SOG plants than bushed trees, but, perhaps we'll go that route once keepers are found.

Anyway, new grow journal. Woo hoo.



dank.Frank
 

dank.frank

ef.yu.se.ka.e.em
ICMag Donor
Veteran
This is the basic layout. I have my goals, but I'm not expecting much. Just enough to play around with again. Rooms will all be HEPA filtered, climate controlled, blah, blah. The biggest issue will be humidity in flower during the night cycle simply because the limited space doesn't allow much room for a dehumidifier. It'll get worked out though.

picture.php




dank.Frank
 

dank.frank

ef.yu.se.ka.e.em
ICMag Donor
Veteran
Hey, Subrob, I see you lurking, brother. :respect:

Telling you right now, there are a few seeds that take priority. If they fail, they fail, but they aren't getting any younger. I gave Stoney a few of the Daywrecker x Va and that leaves me a few from the personals you gave. I have 5 Raskal x Va left as well. I see no reason those shouldn't be viable, and those are the next on the menu.

I want to sort those with Hummus Monk / Mack_10 Chem D x Chem '91 f/m and Chem '91 x Chem 91 f/m seeds. That male was a freak in CobCoop's Va S1's.

Best case scenario, I'd love to think I'll be able to salvage a SuperWrecker x D/'91 male line to sort.

After those, within the Chem family, it's Zoolander's Sis x NL. They will or they won't. Love to think they will.

Much love to the SDF crew. Can't count the time you all re-written the script for what is grown. Always honored to run the genes. Either way, I am getting to these beans ASAP. Let's hope for some great plants.

Oh, also have some Valley99 that will see earth sooner than later.



dank.Frank
 

blynx

WALSTIB
Moderator
ICMag Donor
Veteran
Looking forward to following this thread!


Tried germing some BPP this summer but no luck.
 

gmanwho

Well-known member
Veteran
Sweet.

DF put the dehumidifier on a shelf or hang from the ceiling with threaded rod
 

subrob

Well-known member
ICMag Donor
Veteran
Hey, Subrob, I see you lurking, brother. :respect:

Telling you right now, there are a few seeds that take priority. If they fail, they fail, but they aren't getting any younger. I gave Stoney a few of the Daywrecker x Va and that leaves me a few from the personals you gave. I have 5 Raskal x Va left as well. I see no reason those shouldn't be viable, and those are the next on the menu.

I want to sort those with Hummus Monk / Mack_10 Chem D x Chem '91 f/m and Chem '91 x Chem 91 f/m seeds. That male was a freak in CobCoop's Va S1's.

Best case scenario, I'd love to think I'll be able to salvage a SuperWrecker x D/'91 male line to sort.

After those, within the Chem family, it's Zoolander's Sis x NL. They will or they won't. Love to think they will.

Much love to the SDF crew. Can't count the time you all re-written the script for what is grown. Always honored to run the genes. Either way, I am getting to these beans ASAP. Let's hope for some great plants.

Oh, also have some Valley99 that will see earth sooner than later.



dank.Frank

Waddup dude...
Just tried three of the raskal91 beans and didn't have any luck. Gonna precrack next time.
Just hit spicoli up and he is gonna hook me up w some of the valley99 seeds me and growtech gave him. Just finished up third small run w the Josh d cut, sourced from un-impeachable grower, and spicoli was correct, valley is better. Noticeably better.
Monks seeds have sprouted some gems I've seen here and there, and zoos sis x nl, well, what else needs to be said?
Lots of potential in these runs. Looking FWD to seeing what happens.
This fall/early winter will see my next seed project go down. Will let ya know what's up, well, when I make the final decisions.
 

dank.frank

ef.yu.se.ka.e.em
ICMag Donor
Veteran
One of the things I want to share and develop within this journal is the establishment of a "drug type" cannabis specific N-P-K profile on a per acre basis.

Personally, one of the last big hurdles I see with reusing organic soil, which issues are amplified in a soil bed, is knowing how to properly re-amend the crop after each cycle to ensure a consistent flower. The general "use half original amounts" works but I don't believe it to be the best approach.

That being said, there are a couple of formulas I'm going to use along the way that are essential to this goal.

The first formula, will tell us how much of any given amendment to apply to achieve a desired nutrient level within a known planting area.

[(pounds per acre needed/square foot in an acre) x sq ft to be fertilized] / elemental percentage of fertilizer being applied

Example: A soil test says you need to apply 120 lbs per acre of P. You decide to use steamed bone meal. 2-14-0. Let's assume you have a 2' x 5' soil bed, so 10 sq ft.

[(120 lb/acre / 43,560 sq ft/acre) x 10 sq ft] / 0.14 = 0.1968 lbs of 2-14-0 steamed bone meal to provide 120 lbs of P to the 10 sq ft bed.

However, notice we also applied nitrogen in the bone meal. So that brings us to the second necessary formula, which is a simple 3 part process.

A. weight of fertilizer applied x percent of elemental nutrition
B. Square Foot per acre / square foot fertilized
C. A x B


To continue with the example above, in the process of applying the bone meal to get 120 lbs of P, we also added:

A. 0.1968 lbs bone meal x 0.02 (nitrogen) = 0.0004
B. 43,560 sq ft per acre / 10 sq ft = 4,356
C. 0.004 x 4,356 = 17.424 lbs of N applied


Using this basic approach, I am going to start with a known set of values and then test the soil bed frequently and amend accordingly until I have enough data to establish an optimum amendment process that is truly care free.

When I build the soil, I'll share all the data for the inputs and where things are starting. Let's just say I've learned a few things over the years and it's time to apply some of that knowledge.

The main goal with this project is to increase input efficiency while by default reducing input costs, without, diminishing quality. However, there is zero sense in throwing more at the soil than is necessary.

This is the same process that was used to develop the NSPB mix, except organic options and my own personal knowledge have both improved in the last decade and in some ways I view that mix as obsolete as a result. I think I can develop something more cost effective without diminishing the positive aspects that formula provided.

One of the most common questions I see on organic forums is some version of, "can I sub ____ for ____. It is generally a sourcing issue that prompts such questions.

By sharing these equations, and documenting this process, I hope to give others the tools they need to create mixes that work for them, based on what is available to them. I hope to eliminate the nagging fear of altering a recipe.



dank.Frank
 

dank.frank

ef.yu.se.ka.e.em
ICMag Donor
Veteran
Sweet.

DF put the dehumidifier on a shelf or hang from the ceiling with threaded rod

This was exactly the plan, actually. It was drawn up that way originally to hold old school heavy magnetic 400w ballasts. With the upgrade to 315w, that same mount will be adjusted for a dehumidifier, which means, quality can go way up. The more control over the environment, the more apt you are to reproduce the same outcome. Preaching to the choir with you, sir. :tiphat:



dank.Frank
 

gaiusmarius

me
Veteran
This was exactly the plan, actually. It was drawn up that way originally to hold old school heavy magnetic 400w ballasts. With the upgrade to 315w, that same mount will be adjusted for a dehumidifier, which means, quality can go way up. The more control over the environment, the more apt you are to reproduce the same outcome. Preaching to the choir with you, sir. :tiphat:



dank.Frank

what would you consider a better investment an AC unit or a dehumidifier? i suppose it depends on whether you have more issues with heat or humidity where you are.

cool to hear you are working with the 315 cmh lights, been considering switching out 2 x 600 for 2 x 315cmh in one place to see how it goes, been told they will out proform the 600hps on a gpw basis. also make less heat. do you have a preferred brand of 315cmh lights?
 

dank.frank

ef.yu.se.ka.e.em
ICMag Donor
Veteran
As far as a better investment, A/C, simply because they will cycle SOME humidity out of a room on their own. I'm not overly concerned with temps to be honest. This isn't a fully sealed room and I'm not supplementing CO2. Just lots of air flow, using the veg room as a lung room essentially. If heat becomes an issue there are several possible solutions I can put into play.

However, a dehumidifier isn't really a do with out item either, regardless the size of the grow. Less of a concern with plants in pots or fabric bags, etc, but when in a soil bed, I'm not taking any chances. Best to know there is a means to control excess humidity in the night cycles. Being able to control the environment and keeping it in check is the best way to produce quality flowers. 65 RH% first 3-4 weeks flower, then down to about 45-50% the rest of the way.

Can't really say I have a preferred brand for anything. For the most part, I think the Greenbeams are probably superior at the end of the day, but that is just a hood. The ballast seem to be more or less all the same.

I went with Grower's Choice though because of their compact all in one design and less cord clutter as a result. Their price point was much less than other brands, so that was a good selling point as well. I've been sold on the tech now for a couple years, just finally pulling the trigger. I wanted Greenbeams, but they basically take 12" once mounted. I'm already in a limited space situation, vertically. The Growers Choice units are only 7" and with the mounted ballasts, it just makes more sense given my restrictions.

The mounted ballast actually fixes a huge issue of trying to figure out where to put a dehumidifier.



dank.Frank
 
Last edited:

gmanwho

Well-known member
Veteran
what would you consider a better investment an AC unit or a dehumidifier? i suppose it depends on whether you have more issues with heat or humidity where you are.

cool to hear you are working with the 315 cmh lights, been considering switching out 2 x 600 for 2 x 315cmh in one place to see how it goes, been told they will out proform the 600hps on a gpw basis. also make less heat. do you have a preferred brand of 315cmh lights?


all 3 are needed for optimum environment.

lights on....the ac has the heat load from the lights. Ac pulls water out of the air as a by-process of cooling it. A humidifier will be needed.

When lights off.... the canopy will still be transpiring. The ac will not work as much since the heat load is reduced. Meaning lights off. the humidity will spike to 90+%. Bigger the canopy, bigger the humidity spike...
 

dank.frank

ef.yu.se.ka.e.em
ICMag Donor
Veteran
I've not exactly kept up with the current university/scientific research in states where things have been legalized. One of the key elements for controlling costs and increasing production efficiency is establishing nutrient thresholds.

Does anyone now of any university/scientific research that has established base NPK profiles for drug type cannabis? I know the information is out there for hemp, but I can't find it for cannabis.

The best I can tell, from studies done in Israel, a common NPK profile used in greenhouse systems is essentially 4-6-5. Using that as numbers to establish a base line for feeding on a per acre basis, we are looking at 200-300-250.

If cannabis was grown like a traditional row crop, where nitrogen leaching was a concern, the entire bulk of N-P-K is applied at the beginning of the season, followed by much smaller applications of N, usually about 1/5 the original amount, as the season progresses. We do much the same when we transplant into a larger container, providing a new dose of nutrients for the roots to spread into and feed the plant.

Before I go down a road that has likely already been traveled by those with more resources at there disposal for having true controls to contrast the variables with. Larger data sets to compile from which to draw more accurate conclusions.

Known per acre NPK profiles for drug cultivar cannabis?



dank.Frank
 
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