8 Plants x 8 Lights. Farmer's New Toys

[FlowerFarmer]

I tried to keep the lights dimmed down to 600w, but still no cigar. Plants seem to develop deficiencies or lockout right away once thrown in the HPS room. I'll look into D9s schedule.

Here are some recent shots. I think these ladies are going to be OK after discovering that I was hitting them pretty heavy when I didnt have my truncheon. Maxibloom alone at 7g/gal is a pretty high EC in comparison to what many recommend around 1.2 or so. Throw some silica and calmag on top of that and it was through the roof.

These trees have been flushed down to around 1.4-1.6 (both input and run-off), ph remains the same both in/out. My circles room however is looking sad after going into HPS room and run-off EC is recording 2.0-2.2 with a much lower input. It's weird though because I give the same juice to recently potted clones and they take it no problem. I would say its a deficiency based upon this once moved into the HPS, but obviously the EC run-off tells a different story. Maybe transpiration changes (or that lumen shock) or something leading to accumulation/lockout.

Not sure, but definitely need to setup my circles room to accommodate large volumes of run-off because right now its difficult to bring that EC back down where I want it.

Here are some trees shots. Still kickin.. about half way point here. Not the healthiest, but the buds are super frosty and the smell is phenomenal.

 

[DaveTheNewbie]

damn I wish my shit looked like that.

 

[noyd666]

amen to that. room full.

 

[noyd666]

15 year old ppk.

 

[ImaginaryFriend]

The light intensity from floros bumping up to good bulbs on good ballasts is crazy. The 8-4-8-4 helps balance out light saturation points...

I would go a step further in my caution--based on nothing more than observation--and say that I have the impression that when you are going from not-so-bright to really-fucking-bright you need to have intermediate steps to give the plant time to make physical adjustments.

For example, a few days under a horizontal 600 slowly getting dropped to the canopy.

I'd be surprised that plants jumping from T5 veg into your flower room will not be shocked. Another alternative is to only run half your lights at half power (or whatever) for a few days untill you visually see the new serge of growth.

I guess my point is... the brighter your flower lights, the more transition they'll need from T5.

 

[DHF]

FF......Although your big plants are halfway through , you should be ok as long as yas level out ppm`s and keep em lower across the board........and....

Get the wall fans OFF the plants and let em blow above as well as below if yas don`t have any down low......and why ?......

Constant airflow on the plants makes em transpire/sweat excessively and directly makes em suck juice through the established rootmass to make up for the increased transpiration.....and what does this do ?.......

Stores ppm`s that haveta be metabolized and they can`t get rid of em as fast during lights out swellage , and when lights come back on the process begins all over again and becomes cumulative......now.......

IME with your startups in coco what you`re experiencing with deficiencies and drooping once the plants are put under the big lights is as has been stated by IF.....regardless of the dimming down of the ballasts cuz again what happens is they go crazy with the increased lumens and ........

Start transpiring and suckin up juice , and ppm`s get stored with ph droppin without major flushes until they get back into an even keel and get past it and get bigger "slowly" instead of rapidly as they could be doin , which is exactly what you`ve posted about elevated ppm`s/ec.....so.....anyways.....

Hereta help....and......

Good luck....DHF.........

 

[Grow4Flow]

Lumen shock?

I've seen it... it does exist.

For a while I though it was like a unicorn. But then I seen it.

Then I saw the lumen shock.

Now I'm waiting for a 'Squach.

I've done seen 'bout everything...

Absolutely! i too have noticed this which is what convinced me to grab some dimmable ballasts, now i start at 600w when moved from 400+w T5s and crank it up to 1kw once the leaves reach for the lights.

 

[noyd666]

flower farmer there is some good leaf photos of sick plants on [grow weed easy .com.

 

[Ilovecoconuts]

Hi FF! Great thread, it was a really good read. I learned a lot. After reading the entire thread, I have a couple of questions to ask. You mentioned in your first round that you let them go natural, besides thinning the insides, by natural you meant you didn't top/fim/lst/super crop any of them?

Did you let them go natural on the second round as well?

Why do you wait for a period of time after they are in the final container to use the blumats?

If I were to put 3-4 blumat maxis in a 20 gallon container with a rooted clone and hand watered for about 2 weeks to get the roots going into the container then start using the blumats, do you think that would work?

What did you learn during your first round that you would do differently. As in would you grooming etc. Thank you for taking your time to read this and keep up the great work!

 

[FlowerFarmer]

Hi FF! Great thread, it was a really good read. I learned a lot. After reading the entire thread, I have a couple of questions to ask. You mentioned in your first round that you let them go natural, besides thinning the insides, by natural you meant you didn't top/fim/lst/super crop any of them?

Did you let them go natural on the second round as well?

Why do you wait for a period of time after they are in the final container to use the blumats?

If I were to put 3-4 blumat maxis in a 20 gallon container with a rooted clone and hand watered for about 2 weeks to get the roots going into the container then start using the blumats, do you think that would work?

What did you learn during your first round that you would do differently. As in would you grooming etc. Thank you for taking your time to read this and keep up the great work!

No, not any type of training done to last round or this round.... not any that I can remember.. I might have done a little pinching to keep them out of the T5 while they were vegging, but nothing beyond that.

Didn't even really thin as I should have. Lots of larf/bullshit in their inner guts.


As far as waiting for the blumats.. mainly just laziness and lack of the need to automate these 7 trees. I originally had them on blumats setup the day I left for 2 weeks. They barely survived my leave as my reservoir didnt have enough capacity for the new transplants (into the 7s). They were handwatered RO only by a friend until my return and nearly starved to death. I do think that there is a greater chance of run-aways with blumats when going into a loose pot of fresh coco as opposed to stabbing the carrot into a bit of root mass.

Last round was on blumats.. this round never made it on them..and likely wont. It is no biggie to hit these daily as I'm currently living with these trees. Due to higher EC run-off readings I've been just hand-watering to allow me to keep them flushed down with plenty of run-off.

I've never grown in a 20gal pot, but think your plan is on target. 2 blumats in a 7Gal seemed to work just fine.


What would I do differently? Well.. 1st of all these threads aren't necessarily educational tools to show others what to do. I'm far from an expert growing in coco and often repeat the same mistakes again and again..lol. Mainly due to too much on my plate..things never getting done when needed, etc..pair that with a bit of laziness/procrastination (and lack of RO water reserves for when needing to flush) and you've got a recipe subpar gardens.. it has got to stop but I'm one to be always helping others and putting my shit off. Just not enough hours in the day trying to do this along side a job.

Pruning..thinning.. better plant support (I lost an entire section or so of a plant last night due to snapped branch region). Those type of things I could definitely work on. Some fans under each bulb and a repositioning of my wall fans is in order as well. Honestly.. I'd be stoked with simply healthy plants right now.. coco hasnt been so idiot proof for me as of late.



DHF, no sweat posting over here. I appreciate the advice.

 

[Ilovecoconuts]

Thank you for taking the time to share your knowledge. Everyone appreciates it. I will be watching and learning from this great show :]

 

[GrowTechLB]

You seem to know a few tricks man, I'm beginning to like your brain.. check out my last post and maybe give me a few pointers? It would be greatly appreciated,

thanks a lot Mister_D
GrowtechLB

 

[GrowTechLB]

FF, DHF, IF, and D These are some serious threads. Thanks for all the great info, I've been reading for 2 days..

I don't mean to intrude but I'm new to ICMAG and threads in general. If anyone direct me to some good DWC/Rockwool threads that would be greatly appreciated.

I just have a few questions... I'm also used to growing in coco and trying "mini-trees" in DWC..

my rooms 12X14 and unfortunately I'm only going to be running 4k Lumen HPS but hoping to get some side lights in action maybe a little later in veg... any ideas?

Again FF thanks for the amazing thread and sorry if I've clogged up the bottem as of late.

happy grows.. GT

 

[FlowerFarmer]

Netprophet has an awesome RW thread going. (6x6 blocks on tables)
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=228994

GameTheory has a DIY undercurrent underway.. pretty much fast DWC recirculating
Looking nice - https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=252222




You're going to be doing horizontal lighting or vertical in that 12x14? If horizontal just shoot for each 1K light over a 4x4 or so. Don't use the entire space. Can't go wrong with tables.

If growing vertically maybe just a few donuts similar to my circles thread. Can't go wrong with some mini trees around a vertical 1K.

 

[GrowTechLB]

Netprophet has an awesome RW thread going. (6x6 blocks on tables)
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=228994

GameTheory has a DIY undercurrent underway.. pretty much fast DWC recirculating
Looking nice - https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=252222




You're going to be doing horizontal lighting or vertical in that 12x14? If horizontal just shoot for each 1K light over a 4x4 or so. Don't use the entire space. Can't go wrong with tables.

If growing vertically maybe just a few donuts similar to my circles thread. Can't go wrong with some mini trees around a vertical 1K.

Thanks for all the input man, really appreciate it.

I don't know if I would be comfortable with tables. I have always been a successful grower but very humble in my skills haha.. meaning I know I'm no biologist.

The DIY set-up looks really easy and A good approach, but I don't know how great it would be from me going from soil and coco to only water DIY. The straight up old fashion bubblers seem quick and dirty to me with some wiggle room. This grow will be my first grow running Co2, at least at a sustainable PPM level. I have a tank and a regulator, what's worked best for you fellas?

Typically I grow Horizontally but since I've gone through these threads, vertically looks like to be interesting.. I might just try to grab another 1K HPS and hang 4 Horizontally in a 10X10 space and drop one in the center vertically having them surrounding it (rather than an 8X8) being able to rotate them daily for the vertical light.

Any thoughts?

Thanks again for the humble help, greatly appreciated FF..

happy grows.. GT

 

[GrowTechLB]

Oh, and another possibly helpful thing for everyone who's enjoyed all the knowledge through this thread..

All plant problems - large pictures, explinations and remedies for each problem.

Really great page..(most of you probably already have seen this)

http://www.growweedeasy.com/marijuana-symptoms

 

[FlowerFarmer]

Once ya go vert.. ya never re-vert. It just makes more sense to hang the bulb vertical if you've got the ability to run barebulb.

Never dealt with tanks. I run a generator and set point controller and keep the co2 around 1100-1200ppm.



If you've never grown hydro I don't recommend jumping in head 1st with DWC for your entire garden. Play around with a bucket or two in conjunction with your coco plants (reliable results).

They don't call it death without cause for no reason. DWC can be tricky if water gets warm or nasties take over. Unless you've got the ability to lose a whole crop I'd experiment before doing a whole room of something. Ebb and Flow is much more forgiving in my opinion. Might want to checkout Ebb buckets such as the multiflow or CAP ebb n'gro. Less likely for warm water to cause much harm.

~68 or less water temps. pH 5.2 to 6.2. In a medium like hydroton I'd shoot for 1.8 - 2.0 EC using a clean base nute with no additives (or select few).

^follow those rules and hydroponics is easy. EC meter and at least pH drops are critical if you want to see how the plants are consuming in regards to your nute strength.

 

[silver hawaiian]

Thanks for the simplicity of the above post there FF. I've got an itch lately, and I'm not sure exactly what's it fer, but I've been thinking I oughtta familiarize myself with some hydro setups.

I've been lulled to complacency by the "it's hard to fuck this up" of my organic garden.. Feeling like I oughtta expand my horizons - if not in the garden itself, at least in my noggin..

 

[GrowTechLB]

Once ya go vert.. ya never re-vert. It just makes more sense to hang the bulb vertical if you've got the ability to run barebulb.

Never dealt with tanks. I run a generator and set point controller and keep the co2 around 1100-1200ppm.



If you've never grown hydro I don't recommend jumping in head 1st with DWC for your entire garden. Play around with a bucket or two in conjunction with your coco plants (reliable results).

They don't call it death without cause for no reason. DWC can be tricky if water gets warm or nasties take over. Unless you've got the ability to lose a whole crop I'd experiment before doing a whole room of something. Ebb and Flow is much more forgiving in my opinion. Might want to checkout Ebb buckets such as the multiflow or CAP ebb n'gro. Less likely for warm water to cause much harm.

~68 or less water temps. pH 5.2 to 6.2. In a medium like hydroton I'd shoot for 1.8 - 2.0 EC using a clean base nute with no additives (or select few).

^follow those rules and hydroponics is easy. EC meter and at least pH drops are critical if you want to see how the plants are consuming in regards to your nute strength.

Thanks again flower, I think I might just do the EBB.. That's what I was originally going to do but I wanted to challenge myself. Who can really "Afford" to loose a whole crop..

The nutes i'm used to using are sensi but since seeing a few threads (the one you told me about earlier) I might try V+B.. looks very promising with little hassle. What do you think?

Definitely well aware of h20 readings and very prepared. I've got a nice big house and a nice big room to do it in. The room will be sectioned off and only used for my garden and my garden only.

and how soon until you're stackin' on your PPK thread!?
Thanks again FF,

Happy grows.. GrowtechLB

 

[FlowerFarmer]

You'll like the Ebb, but do keep close eye on float switches and pumps. I cant say I exactly recommend the CAP unit because I do know a few who have had the controller bucket fail or pump issues. I never had float issues but did lose a crop due to pump failure or air-lock.

My last flood bucket grow was remote.. visiting every 3-4 days. Pump must have got air-locked in the controller bucket and the system sat in a flooded state for days.. All of the plants drowned and did not recover.

A DIY if you've got the skill set is always the way to go. Float switches are available online, but you've gotta do some research. Someone once had a flood bucket setup on here that operated using pumps/timers/gravity float valve.. it did not employ electronic float switches and seemed pretty simple. Anyone remember it or got a link?


V+B looks awesome.. I;ve got some samples to try, but really think I use too much juice to be ordering it. I'm finishing the last of my Maxibloom and going to try Jack Hydroponics + CalNit. So long as I can dial it..it's super cost effective.

I like simple. I like clean. I like cheap.

After I sort out everything I've got going now I'm going PPK trees in my sealed co2 room (around the 1st of March you'll see PPK action out of me). Circles room is being retired for summer (it runs off my central air 30a breaker during the winter).

Remotely I'm unsure of what I want to do. Trying to keep it easier for the caretaker.. currently hand watering coco and making a mess with run-off. Want to switch to Hempy buckets here.. but also trying around the idea of sneaking some trays in and just running flood tables or top-feed RW (something I'm always shied away from. This location is critical that I'm not hauling a lot in/out so I'm either re-using coco or trying to go full mediumless in flood tables with a lid (sort of like medman tables or whatever).


SH,

Hydro is fun! It's how I started growing and I really miss not having it in my own gardens. You cant go wrong with flooding hydroton.. its as simple as it gets.

Though..I'm into flowing water culture type of systems because you can literally hook a RO up to your reservoir for it be continuously topped. This gradually dilutes your nutes..raising PH.. and your only job is to stir with your EC truncheon from time to time and addback nutes. Got a fast flow PVC stadium in hiding that I need to find a space for.


My current coco growers are all botched up, but I'll ride these threads out. These trees are looking fat and super resinous, but yellow is starting to creep into the lower bud leaves. Might make a nightmare of a trim. Not sure what happened. I had locked them up with high EC it seems.. then flushed until input EC (~1.0) was the same coming out. ..did that for a while and plants yellowing, etc.. just hit them with a few doses of 1.6-1.8 again. Gonna flush for harvest here shortly.. chop date around the 1st.

I have no idea really..coco is great and I normally don't have much trouble with it, but these last few grows have been a headache. Hopefully PPKs do be right. I'm itchin for something more then coco and blumats right now although I have aquired all of the fixins' for a water only amended soil run. Might have me singin a different tune if I can just blumat water into dirt and have success.