Freedom 45's Three Ring Coco Circus!

[Arminius]

First off, sorry for my absence the last couple of months. Personal life takes priority sometimes...
I am hanging up the DWC for now, too many issues when life veto's your gardening time. I have switched to #2 smart pots and coco. They are hand watered for now, but will be upgrading to Blumats next harvest, if not sooner.
My last Blue Dragon in DWC was the nail in the coffin. 6oz for 6 plants is unacceptable to say the least. I was given a 6 site Current Culture XL system, that I plan to put into service in a couple of months, but for now, I just need simple and proven.
I am currently finishing week 2 with 8 USD, and a week behind is 5 HK#1, 1 Sour Grape (Sour Diesel x Grape Ape), and 10 Cherry Pie.
right now I have 15 plants around one light until they get split off and sent to the 3rd ring.
I have been foliar feeding 2-3 times a week, and the results are amazing! The USD are in full stretch right now and growing 1-2 inches a day...
Rather than clutter the initial post with photos, I will reserve the next 3 posts for pictures.
Got a lot of fires burning today, so it may be later tonight that I upload all the photos.

 

[Arminius]

Clean House

Clean House

After my last run I took the opportunity to completely break down the room, set off a bug bomb, and cleaned everything up. I now have the full room ready for production for the first time since I put plants in last year.
Basically I have 3 setups, all stacked 600w bulbs. I tucked all my equipment into one corner, allowing for max usage of the space.
Third Ring

Second Ring

Drying rack between 1st and 2nd ring

First Ring

Res, a/c, and nute station

 

[Arminius]

USD

USD

First day of 12/12

Close up

After one week

Close up

First time with smart pot, and was amazed to see roots popping out getting root pruned...

I will snap some more shots tonight as we approach the end of week 2...

 

[Arminius]

Cherry Pie, HK#1, and Sour Grape

Cherry Pie, HK#1, and Sour Grape

I vegged for about 2 weeks and threw these into 12/12 a week behind the USD.

All 15 around one light for now

Close up

I don't plan on using screens on these plants. In my experience the Cherry Pie is a pretty sturdy plant, so I am hoping a few bamboo stakes should do it.
I put some small tomato cages around the HK#1, and may do it for the Cherry Pie as well.

My plan is to run one of the three sites with 11-12 week sativas, and the other two with faster 8-9 week strains. I may employ screens for the other two if I veg longer, but for now I am happy with baby steps, and only firing up the lower light if necessary.

 

[DHF]

Go get em Arm....Git `er done......

Peace....Freds........

 

[Arminius]

Thanks for stopping by Freds! Always reassuring to know you are around!
I know you offered to help me via a PM about pruning. I would like to do it here if you don't mind. I will be leaving town for almost a week starting this Thursday. My USD will be approaching 4 weeks by the time I get back, and will be in need of serious pruning. I will do my best to have very clear photos, and we can go over it step by step for the benefit of others...

 

[Arminius]

I may as well go over my nutrients since I am sure someone will ask...
I use RO water, so Cal/mag goes in first. My EC after cal/mag is between .2 and .4
Next I add my base nutes. For the USD I am using samples of Xnutrients base 3 part, for the rest I am using Canna Coco A and B. I am also using amino blast, and a little SM-90. This usually brings my EC to 1.2 I fed them 1.6 soup and instantly the USD started getting tweaked leaves. I added just RO water to the pots, and corrected itself almost as instantly...
Every 2-3 days I foliar feed a mixture of amino blast, cal/mag, bloom spray, and SM-90.
Every 10 days or so I foliar spray some compost tea. As soon as flowers pop I will just top dress with the compost tea.
So far I am real pleased with my nutrient regime, and although not as simple as feeding in DWC, I feel much more comfortable.
Any questions or feedback is welcomed by all...

 

[pankynugga]

Cant wait to see how these look in a couple weeks!

 

[el bee]

I love the octagon screens. It's my go-to design for vert. Hex is for Honey!

Quick question: If your using Wall Of Green techniques in a "closed" space, why not just put the pots on the outside of the octo for pruning, training, watering, etc... convenience? Plus if you're leaving for long stretches you'll be less likely to experience leaf burn from plants stretching for the light. Distance from light will be less, but......

I totally respect the design and will be following. Grow 'em big!

 

[Arminius]

I love the octagon screens. It's my go-to design for vert. Hex is for Honey!

Quick question: If your using Wall Of Green techniques in a "closed" space, why not just put the pots on the outside of the octo for pruning, training, watering, etc... convenience? Plus if you're leaving for long stretches you'll be less likely to experience leaf burn from plants stretching for the light. Distance from light will be less, but......

I totally respect the design and will be following. Grow 'em big!

Definitely open to options on the screens. I like the option to be able to pull the octagon apart to access the corner plants. They get attached to the screen with paperclips, and are a serious pain to remove from the screens. That site will be dedicated to my stretchy 11+ week strains. Those strains are my preferred head stash...
For the other two production rings, I am considering just putting a 12-16" diameter screen around the light, and just pushing the tops through. The sativas need more support, that is why I like to tie the bitches down...
Thanks for stopping by and chiming in!

 

[el bee]

Right on...now that I think of it, as an old scrogger, I liked having the entire mass of plant above the screen for removal/harvesting purposes. S'pose it's the same with vert. I am contemplating alternative screens to make the process easier. Vertical string-like things that will slide through the plant mass......I'll post as it comes online.

I'm with ya on the Sativas and the 11+ week strains.....definitely the preferred head stash.

 

[Arminius]

USD at 2 weeks

USD at 2 weeks

Phone update, so excuse any grammar or formatting issues...
Overhead

Close-up

Leaving town for a week, and looking forward to cleaning up some foliage...
I have been modifying my screens from bucket mounted to free standing. Will get in there tonight to retrofit the last 4, and secure them while I am gone.

 

[Maj.Cottonmouth]

Really nice setup man, glad to see you back around.

 

[Ichabod Crane]

What size is that drying rack? If it is 2 feet in dia you could get a washing machine tub to place under it to collect anything that falls through the screen. Mine cost me $13 and is 28 inches by 30 inches or close to that. Last run I collected over a ounce of leaf, small bud pieces and pistil hairs that had fallen through. you can get them in the plumbing section at the store.

 

[Arminius]

What size is that drying rack? If it is 2 feet in dia you could get a washing machine tub to place under it to collect anything that falls through the screen. Mine cost me $13 and is 28 inches by 30 inches or close to that. Last run I collected over a ounce of leaf, small bud pieces and pistil hairs that had fallen through. you can get them in the plumbing section at the store.

After taking two hits off a pure kief bowl the other night, I am definitely considering a "hot water heater pan" under the rack... The racks within the range of a large water heater pan. Will pick one up before next harvest to capture any runaways...

 

[Arminius]

HK#1, Cherry Pie, and Sour Grape

HK#1, Cherry Pie, and Sour Grape

About 10 days in.

HK#1

Sour Grape

Cherry Pie

 

[Shcrews]

Looking great Arminius! I hope this grow tops the charts yield-wise. My USD is also a couple weeks into flowering, the stretch is ridiculous..

 

[Arminius]

Yeah, the stretch on those bitches are out of control! On the 15th I measured them at 18", and today they are 24"! That's two inches a day ffs!
I think I am going to have to raise that lower light tonight before i leave town. A bit too early to fire up that second light, but if I don't, they will be 8" above the fixture when I get back...

 

[Bonzo]

howdy Arminius lookin' green and healthy...i am usin X nutes at the moment as well...friend of mine gave them to me...nice to see someone else givin' em a whirl...i like the sound of your foliar mix...never been much of a foliar feeder but been thinkin' bout it lately...

lookin good...

 

[Arminius]

Thanks for stopping by Bonzo. I was lucky enough to chat with Elizabeth, one of the owners. She hooked me up with some free quarts of their stuff. She suggested using 5m of the aminos, with 5m of the bloom spray, every other day. I just spotted the first flowers on my fast finishers at day 11! She even called me the other day to check in. If this stuff is as good as they say it is, then i will be using their full line. Their costs are a third of h&g, and canna...