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My Sanctuary

mwz

Member
Veteran
After sitting on the pondering couch and getting baked, I feel like putting a couple of science heavy posts together.

1. My method for topping up the reservoir.
I top up my res mid week. To figure out how much nutrient to put, I first do the folling during a test week.
- Take a ppm measure of nute strength post refilling the res at the start of the week. 1200ppm was this weeks nute strength.
- Top the res mid week. Now take a ppm measure. Post topping up mine my ppm was 870ppm.
- Now I work out a percentage for the amount of nutes that need to be replaced. (100-((870/1200)*100)) = 27.5%
- My res capacity = 63L
- CANNA Full strength = 3mL/L

This means that when I do my mid week top up, I will add nutrients for the res capacity at a strength of 27.5%.

63*3*0.275 = 52mL/L

Therefore I will add a total of 52mL/L of CANA A + B to the res.
 

mwz

Member
Veteran
According to Ed Rosenthal, plants need a minimum amount of darkness each day.
http://www.mjgrowers.com/book_what_exper1.htm

It's an incredibly fascinating read. He says that by giving our favourite plant 12 hours of darkness in flower, we are giving it more darkness than it actually needs! Plants only need a minimum amount of unbroken darkness. The example he uses in the following website is 9 hours.
http://edrosenthal.com/2011/01/ask-ed-marijuana-grow-tip-23-international-dark-periods.html

I've been interrupting my darkness, approx 5-10 mins before the light turns on a couple of times per week. I've been doing this for each of the three first weeks of flower, yet my plant is progressing fine, with no signs of balls.

I think you can interrupt the darkness, just as long as the plant gets its minimum unbroken darkness it needs. I don't think it is about an equal rhythm, a pattern of on/off. It doesn't work this way in nature, plants sense the shorting night and enter flower phase, then the night time lengths get shorter and shorter!
 

frankenstein2

Astronaut Status
Veteran
I used to run my lights for 10 hrs on and 14 off. I had a really bad spider mite infestation once. The predator mites came when the lights were off. The plants had already had 12 hrs of darkness, just about to hit 13 hrs. So i turned the lights on an hour early. I did the same three weeks later. Never had a single male flower. Even now sometimes i turn the lights on a few mins before they are suppossed to. Still no male flowers. In my experience if the plants get the 12 hrs they need without any interruption, everything should be good to go.
 

mwz

Member
Veteran
Start of Week 4 Update!

Things are smashing along!!! You can see the frosting start in this picture!!



The plants are really filling out the space! Check out the number of tips and spacing! Perfect!



and the root ball is an epic BRICK! They are LOVING the additional root space!!! That's a 24L/6gallon bottom pot!!



My new carbon filter allows me to sleep with ease, knowing that my entire street is being pumped with the smell of mull!



Why grow plants, when you can grow TREES!! XD
 
W

willyweed

nice bit of root porn,and the plants look in superb health ,bring on some heavy stacking.:)
 
lovin the plants, pics, and layout of this thread, hats off to you bro.
Everything looks lovely jubley in there.

How much does the rootball drink each day?
lol, look amazing bro
 

mwz

Member
Veteran
Adjusting my pH after refilling the res.

I need to write this down as I often have long periods in between grows and forget how to do stuff!

My desired pH is 6.2

It takes 10 buckets of liquid to refill my res. The buckets comprise of ...
1 * (nutrient solution + tap water) = N
8 * tap water = W
1 * (tap water + pH down) = P

First I take a pH reading of the unadjusted tap water, and fill up 8 buckets with tap water.
tap water = 7.1pH

Next I mix my nutrients and additives in a single bucket and take a pH reading.
nutrient solution + tap water = 4.5pH

So we know,
N = 4.5pH
W = 7.1pH
P = ?

Then, we take the average known pH of the 9 buckets
(((7.1*8)+(4.5*1))/9) = 6.8pH

As there are 10 buckets, to get a pH of 6.2, we create an equation
((9/10)*6.8) + ((1/10)*P) = 6.2

Now you solve for P! :D

P = 0.8pH

If you can't remember your high school maths, or never learnt it because people told you that you would never use it in your life, don't fret! just copy and paste the equation into wolfram!
http://www.wolframalpha.com

So, a pH of 0.8 seems quite extreme! I dropped one bucket down to a pH of 2.5 and after putting all ten buckets in the res, my final pH was 5.8.

I'm pretty happy with this method. It saves me trial and error'ing to get the correct pH, which frustrates the shit out of me. Also, I recommend pH pens!!!!

Peace :D
 

mwz

Member
Veteran
@Willy - Cheers man! Let's hope the stacking is extremely heavy :D

@Sticky - The plants drink an insane amount of water! 21-28L over 4 days, which equates to 5-7L a day! I don't even drink that much water a day!
 
excellent post above mate, much appreciated.
Here, lol, them are drinking too much, they gonna be drunk soon , lol

Amazing man, im deffo gonna try hydro when i get my greenthumb in this game. A bit too scared right now, as the soil has been kinda forgiving to my overwatering/waterboarding, and lazy newb ways.

lol, im feeding mine about 250ml per day (1Litre per 4 days, lol). mixing about a litre and a half a day of nutes and feeding,
lol
:laughing:

reminder to self, dont complain whilst mixing under 2 litres of water and nutes...lol

Have a great weekend buddy.
Stay safe.
 

PetFlora

Well-known member
ICMag Donor
Veteran
By the way, I bought a pair of bitchin' drip rings :D :D

View Image View Image View Image

Where did you get those drip rings. They do look ''bitchin". How much volume comes out? I developed a DIY top spray bar system, but it's too hard to aim the lp mist head spray into my Air Pots.

Instead of clay, I use a combination of lava rock underneath and a cap of ornamental rock (dollar store). The lava rock also sloughs, but nothing like clay. However, LR
it drains quickly, but has bigger pockets to trap moisture (a good thing), PLUS, it makes a great root anchor.
 
Last edited:

mwz

Member
Veteran
Welcome to the grow petFlora! :) Hey Telsa :D

With regards to the drip rings, they were ten bucks each from my local hydro shop. I'm not sure of the volume. I do recommend them for RDWC:)

I've had to convert my grow into a DWC, due to the root mat blocking the drainage holes in my top pot. I'll nail it next time though!!!! :D So yeah, I'm not actually using the rings at the moment.
 

mwz

Member
Veteran
Aspirin is the bomb!!! I saw a definite lift in the plant. I had a bunch of tips which were wilted and had rams horns. Two days after doing a root drench, most affected leaves have ironed themselves out :D Recommend!
 

DreamsofTesla

Member
Veteran
Amazing man, im deffo gonna try hydro when i get my greenthumb in this game. A bit too scared right now, as the soil has been kinda forgiving to my overwatering/waterboarding, and lazy newb ways.

:laughing:

Don't listen to him! Check out his bud shots, I almost felt faint.

Both of you are doing excellent.

:woohoo:

<3 Tesla
 

DreamsofTesla

Member
Veteran
Aspirin is the bomb!!! I saw a definite lift in the plant. I had a bunch of tips which were wilted and had rams horns. Two days after doing a root drench, most affected leaves have ironed themselves out :D Recommend!

When we ladies get flowers we always re-cut the stems and put them into cool water with aspirin. I've been wondering if cutting a few stems from my willow tree and throwing it into compost would have a similar effect on plants grown in it?
 

mwz

Member
Veteran
I'm not sure with regards to the aspirin. My understanding is that ...

Aspirin is Acetylsalicylic acid which contains less than 0.1% salicylic acid (which is a phytohormone).
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?threadid=178414

And this is supposed to boost the immune system somehow. Apparently there is scientific litriture out there on this, and a lot of anecdotes like mine, but I definitely saw a lift. I'm going to drench the roots weekly when I change the res.

Other cheap, organic and easy remedies that I want to look at are Garlic and Chamomile tea. I've lifted these from this the link above too!

Chamomile tea is a cure-all for fungal diseases
It’s a little-known fact that chamomile tea has antibacterial and fungicidal properties that will aid plants suffering from fungus and mildew. I often make a simple brew for my sickly plants. Place 16 chamomile tea bags (or 2 cups of dried chamomile flowers) in 2 quarts of water, and simmer for 20 minutes. Turn off the heat, and allow the tea bags to steep for several hours. Strain, if using dried flowers. Use the tea to irrigate tender seedlings (from the bottom) to prevent damping off, or use as a foliar spray to battle diseases on plants. Because I never let anything go to waste, I also add leftover tea and used tea bags to my watering can.
Garlic helps thwart noxious diseases
For plants with a fungal, viral, or bacterial disease, cook up a batch of what I call "garlic soup." Purée two cloves of garlic in a blender for a minute. Slowly add 1 quart of water, and continue blending for about six minutes. Strain the mixture, and add 1/8 teaspoon of liquid soap. Pour the liquid into a storage container and cover tightly. When you're ready to take action, mix 1 part garlic soup with 10 parts water into a spray bottle and apply the mixture to the top and undersides of your sick plant's leaves, taking caution not to spray beneficial insects and larvae. Scientists have discovered that garlic leaves are potent in their own right, so you can also purée two handfuls of leaves instead of using cloves.
Aspirin is the remedy for fungal headaches
Black spot, powdery mildew, and rust are a terrible trio of fungi, which can attack and destroy your plants. Scientists have found that two uncoated aspirin tablets (325 milligrams each) dissolved in 1 quart of water and used as a foliar spray can thwart these diseases.
And yeah, you're right! Sticky has done AMAZING with his first grow!! I can't wait to harvest mine, having never grown a female I'm in unknown waters!! Everyday is exciting! Like, I tell myself I'll only go to the shed for 10 mins and check out the plant ... and I end up standing there for hours just staring at it lol It's really bloody stinking now too! Perfect timing for the carbon filter!

@Sticky Hydro is easier than you would think. I've never successfully grown anything in soil. It just doesn't click with my brain. But yeah, hydro can be easier, because you don't have to worry about nutrient deficiencies. And if you think you do have deficiencies, then they will be fixed when you change the res. Plus you only change the res once a week, so it's a bit like set and forget at times! :D
 

mwz

Member
Veteran
UPDATE! Mid week 5!

The plants are going great guns!! I have a feeling the lights were too close to the canopy, as there was a significant amount on leaf curl at the top which was not evident in the middle or lower bud sites. The pH is stable at 5.8, i've made no adjustments during the week. I probably should raise it to 6.2. PPM is good too, between 800-1200.

The plants are fosty, heavy and sticky!!

Yesterday I re-drenched the root balls in aspirin and raised the light. I also replaced the air stones just in case. Even though the plants don't look the greatest, they are packing on weight and will give me a sufficient yield. My next grow will be an improvement!

Here's some pics!! Sorry they arn't the greatest, I was pressed for time yesterday!



picture.php

Peace!!!!
 
W

willyweed

hiya ,they still look good to me,towards the end they lose a bit of colour and leaves show a bit more sign's of getting ready to die ,nice clean looking setup ,will ya take any of those leaves ?
 

mwz

Member
Veteran
Hey willy

Man, I really don't know, but I'm leaning towards not pruning the leaves. Reasons being,
- leaves tend not to grow back so much in flower, so I'm a bit worried about overdoing it
- the leaves which are getting light are functioning to convert light energy into food. If I remove leaves, the plant will need to redirect some of it's energy from food production into healing the new wounds
- i'd prefer it if the leaves fall off naturally

Anyway, that's my thinking. I'm going to show the plants to my mentor tomorrow and see what he thinks. I have a feeling he will be in favour of trimming the plants back.

The other upside of not trimming the leaves is I will have more leaf to make butter with lol

----------------

On a side note :) If you like listening to ambient music while baked, I highly recommend OTT's Skylon album :)
 

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