Boocoo’s Ghetto Grow Redux

[Bucudinkydow]

Well I’m on the verge of marking my 4 year anniversary here at 420Mag and my first grow ever. It was a simplistic effort with the grow box constructed from a single piece of sheetrock and a split stud for the framework. No fans or filters, just a handful of CFL twisties as a light source. Everything I could do wrong, I did; too much water, too much light, too much fertilizer. In spite of trying to love my plants to death, they not only survived but thrived. I actually reaped a pretty decent harvest of some really good pot. I had a long time smoker friend of mine critique my results. After a couple of healthy tokes she warned this wasn’t pot for a beginner. She averred it was the most potent weed she had encountered locally. I was enthused and anxious to begin again.

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• Bucudinkydow
• Nov 2, 2015

Over the past four years my goal has changed little. I’ve been constantly involved in finding a method of gardening that requires the least expenditure and effort that will still produces a decent crop. I have two homes and often find myself an absentee gardener. So additionally, I’ve been seeking a semi-autonomous grow system. I’ve averaged almost three gardens per year since I started and have seldom used the same lights, grow box nor watering system repetitively.

In order to establish parameters of success, one must first find the points of failure. Over the years I’ve found more than my share of failure points.. I view failures just as educational as successes and have never become disillusioned. Just creating a base upon which to build.

Let me assure you that I don’t strive to achieve a trophy plant or exemplary harvests so you won’t find any pointers here to achieve that end. Instead, I’m hoping to achieve a very affordable, low maintenance grow method that can be used to achieve respectable results. I’m convinced that there is a large community that would like to join our hobby but initial start up costs can offer challenges. And it’s to those individuals that this journal will be dedicated.

Come tag along and let’s see what works and what doesn’t. Nothing fancy, nothing difficult.

Check back to see what’s behind these cruddy ol’ doors.

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 4, 2019

 

[DonkeyDick]

 

[Skottelgoed Spons]

I'm going to take a seat and see how this is going. Very interesting. I like!

 

[Bucudinkydow]

Welcome, folks. Hope all had an enjoyable Independence Day. I’m away for a few days but anxious to unfold the next segment when I return.

Thanx for stopping by.

BCDD

 

[Bucudinkydow]

Seven days ago my seed broke ground. I closed the door to the grow cabinet and left on a vacation. When I returned this morning I was anxious, albeit a bit apprehensive, to see what fate had dealt me. When I opened the door, I found the poor plant lying prostate on the deck. It appears the foliage had far outpaced the stem. In fact the stem is almost thread like while the foliage is robustly healthy appearing.

As you can see, I’ve now got it staked and supported and I’m confident the stem will strengthen post haste. I have a small fan blowing on it just enough to cause a little wiggle. While it’s been my experience a gentle breeze can effectively harden a weak stem, too much air flow on the tender plant can cause wind burn.

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 8, 2019

I’m quite pleased with the results thus far. In fact, looking back at past photos I’ve archived of previous gardens, I find nothing even close to this stature at only seven days old.

In consideration of the the fact that there was absolutely no human intervention for the first week of life, I feel this is a respectable start for a grow dedicated to the theme of minimalistic expenditure of time and funds.

I’ve now closed the doors once again and actually have no plans on looking in on the garden for another week.

O
LET’S JUST K.I.S.S.

 

[Bucudinkydow]

And now for the strain info. This is a new adventure for me. My first attempt at growing cannabis hemp. I don’t foresee the growing techniques to be much divorced from cannabis Sativa/Indica.

The strain name is Cherry Wine. This actually has genetic lineage from Charlottes Web. In shopping around I saw other cultivars bred from AC/DC as well as several other popular high CBD marijuana strains. I feel the lines between hemp and sativa/indica cultivars are quickly becoming blurred. Modern day hemp is far removed from what we saw even three years past. No longer is it being bred primarily for the long stringy stem coveted for industrial fabric and rope purposes. You now find hemp with large flower heads rivaling it’s more popular cousins. Lab tests are showing a nice array of secondary cannabinoids and some impressive terpene profiles.

Genetics: The Wife x Charlotte’s Cherries
Grown By: Know Fun Ranch
Cannabinoid Content: 15.4% CBDa & .07% Δ9 THC
Dominant Terpenes: farnesene, β-Myrcene, β-Caryophyllene, a-Humulene
Type: Hybrid
Nose: Subtle, with hints of fresh plant matter. When broken apart, the aroma transforms, combining the pungent, resinous fragrance of berries and citrus with the intoxicating blend of chocolate and earth.
General: This flower is made up of small to medium sized, moderately-dense buds that are clearly the result of an expert grown and cure. Resin sparkles across the surface, highlighting shades of gold and green, intertwined with dark peach-colored pistils.

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 9, 2019

I’ve always had the perception that hemp was probably about as satisfying as kissing your sister. As prominent as hemp CBD has become, I summized that there may be something more than simple hype that was driving its popularity and decided to give it a try.

I bought a 1 oz bottle of Infused MCT oil containing 1500 mg of full spectrum hemp CBD. Contrary to my preconceived conception I found it most rewarding. It offered a very calming effect without the least sign of a “muddle-headed” feeling I sometimes experience when using a high THC product.

I felt this could definitely be something I could use to combat bouts of anxiety I often experience. The problem for me, however, is the cost. With this bottle containing just 1.5 grams of CBD, a quick computation revealed that at the price I paid the actually CBD had a price in excess of $1100 per ounce!!! OUCH!! That rivals the price of gold!

I realized the best way to avoid supporting these green gold diggers was to simply grow my own. So here we go!

To be continued.......

 

[DonkeyDick]

Loving the rationale. And the chemovar.
Fingers crossed she’s all good in another week’s time. Nice one.

 

[Bucudinkydow]

Loving the rationale. And the chemovar.
Fingers crossed she’s all good in another week’s time. Nice one.

Thanx DD

Do you have experience with this or other varieties of hemp?

It’s killing me not looking in on it. I’m usually down there several times a day. I’ve been known to pull up a chair, crank up some good music and just watch the garden grow. Pure serenity!

I hope I can adhere to my hands off policy. If I open the doors I just can’t resist fiddling with it some how and I really want to establish a reliable hands off grow system.

 

[DonkeyDick]

I’m with you on how hard it is to keep your hands in your pockets. So long as you know your environment is tweaked you should be able to let her go. I’d be nervous though.
I grew some rope from bagseeds 30 years ago, and used a bunch of hemp rope sailing, but no I can only offer you my enthusiasm for this project as my expertise is very low.

 

[Bucudinkydow]

While I’m waiting on my plant to come out of lockup I’ll touch on the grow box.

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 4, 2019

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 11, 2019

I’m a big proponent of utilizing what I have. Most of my fellow vets of a more recent era than mine will probably recognize this as a military wall locker from years gone by. It measures about 2’x4’x6’. I happened to be at the right place at the right time. There was a major barracks renovation at a nearby military base several years ago and I was allowed to drag out as many as I wished. It has served numerous purposes since, none so noble as my trusty standby grow box.

I have a 6” inline duct fan with charcoal filter. There’s a couple of cheap small fans hanging on the walls just to keep a little air stirring. I have eight 2” holes drilled in the floor and covered with fine mesh screen for air intake. And the walls are lined with Reflectix that I sourced from Lowe’s.

This box is in constant readiness even if not in use but I’ve experimented with a variety of DIY units over the years.

The first was a simple unit constructed of a single piece of drywall and a few 2X4’s. This is an excellent option for a low budget box if you’re a bit of a DIY’er. I split the lumber down to inch and half square pieces to use as the frame work. Table saw would be advantageous for this task but could be carefully done with circular saw if it has a guide. Depending on prices in your area, for about $20 you can build a decent 16”x24”x48” box that will comfortably accommodate a couple of good plants. Jumping a few months ahead, I’m going to archive the construction process and post it in the DIY section here.

My next box was similar in size. The frame work was the same but the walls were just Reflectix stapled in place. The reflective capabilities of the interior walls was a theoretical advantage but finding hard points to mount accessories offered some challenges.

The next adventure was the most radical attempt. It was a round unit that was 6’ in diameter and 6’ high. My plan was to do a naked bulb vertical grow and theoretically the round shape would avoid the dark square corners as well as keeping the distance from bulb to plant constant. It was constructed of similar frame work with a solid plywood top and slatted bottom covered with fine mesh screen. All sides were Reflectix that was stapled and velcroed in place. This offered easy access from any vantage point.

There are a lot of options available for low budget grows. Prospective growers just need to analyze their unique circumstances and apply a little ingenuity. In some cases a confinement may not be necessary. A spare closet or corner of a seldom used basement or an attic space (if weather permits) may work for you. Many options to explore.

To be continued........

 

[Bucudinkydow]

All seemed well at the grand opening today. The stem has thickened and fully capable of self support now. I did leave the skewer support in place, however, in order to begin some training.

1 WEEK OLD

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 8, 2019

2 WEEKS OLD

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 15, 2019

It measures 6” high and 6” across. Very bushy. Vigorous lateral growth but vertical growth seems to be disproportional and lagging a bit. I noticed some very minor clawing that is probably due to some heat stress, 90 degrees in the cabinet. It seems to have weathered the week long confinement well so here we go again.

To be continued.........

 

[Bucudinkydow]

Well I’ve got some catching up to do and I guess a short discussion on nutrients will be a good place to start.

There’s a world of excellent choices out there and everyone has there favorite for unique reasons. The prices can range from reasonable to astronomical. Not long ago I saw a “kit” of nutrients that surpassed $500. To each their own but I’m just not able to justify that type of expenditure for my needs.

In following the theme “let’s just keep it simple”, I use a single nutrient from start to finish.

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 16, 2019

I’ve never used anything but the FloraNova Bloom for any of my gardens for the past four years. I have no doubt there are products on the market that will bring more gratifying results but for the cost and simplicity I’m totally sarusfied and have no plans to make a change. The price is reasonable and I’ve yet to experience disappointing results. Pints can be had for around $16 and quarts for $26. The larger size can make 200 gallons of solution even at full strength which will grow a lot of plants.

I grow exclusively in coco/perlite and primarily under LED’s now, both of which are notorious for causing cal-mag deficiencies. While I’ve never experienced a confirmed cal-mag deficiency, I feel the supplement is probably a prudent expenditure. As you can see I use the General Hydroponics brand but I’d recommend Advanced Nutrients. It’s better absorbed by plants as well as the added advantage of having several essential minerals that GH brand doesn’t offer.

To be continued..........

 

[Bucudinkydow]

Thanx Skottelgoed Spons for following along. This thread has garnered little interest and I’ve toyed with the idea of letting it die. My primary driving force now is simply a strong desire to always finish what I start. So moving on.......

So let’s talk grow mediums. I can’t use comparative phrases since I’ve never used anything other than coco coir and perlite mixture. There are a lot of good options available and there are users of each that are just as enthusiastic about their choices as I am mine.

From my first garden about four years ago, I’ve found coco/perlite most forgiving of my rookie mistakes. After passing seedling stage it’s difficult to overwater. Conversely, my automated watering system failed during an extended absence and went for over a week without a drink. They looked sad but survived. It offers an excellent delivery mode for nutrients as well.

I haven’t found the parameters of longevity yet. I’m still using the original coco I purchased 4 years ago, just adding a bit of new material as necessary. At the end of the grow I simply remove as much of the root material as possible, rinse it thoroughly and spread it out to sun dry for a while before placing it back in storage. Many add enzymes to previously used coco but I haven’t found that necessary.

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 17, 2019

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 17, 2019

These quantities offer the most bang for the buck but may be excessive for your needs. If so, Home Depot offers an 8 qt bag of perlite for about $5. If you’re fortunate enough to have access to a local grow shop you can probably buy an individual brick of coco coir for cheap. This would be adequate for a nice sized container for a single plant.

To be continued...........

 

[Skottelgoed Spons]

This is actualy great info you given here. I am going o make a note of this.

 

[WankirA]

Hey there @Bucudinkydow
Like your approach. Not being bogged down by yields or best lights etc etc the way most of us are is refreshing.
Might i offer some small nugget of advice.
Simple is great but not sure your nutrient regime is doing you or plant any favours, I say this only because missing out on the traditional 'growing' nutes will potentially stunt the plants markedly.
Definitely with you on maximizing what you got, but even a few amendments costing 5-10 quid would potentially boost your plants health, structure strength .
I use biobiz, its cheaper than most and organic. (Amz sell 'try boxes' for less than $30 for 1-4 plants which contain grow, bloom and bud enhancer) Certainly cheap enough and I use a quarter of recommend dose in a 70/30 coco pearlite mix.
Am a very new grower so my opinion is easy to dismiss, but growing plants with a nutrition skimp isn't likely doing either you or your girls any favours.
100% you call though
Following either way
Btw did some of that unnecessary touching last week and snapped a prime cola head clean off: lesson learned - no more touching.

 

[Bucudinkydow]

This is actualy great info you given here. I am going o make a note of this.

Thanx SS. Great to have you tagging along.

 

[Bucudinkydow]

Hey there @Bucudinkydow
Like your approach. Not being bogged down by yields or best lights etc etc the way most of us are is refreshing.
Might i offer some small nugget of advice.
Simple is great but not sure your nutrient regime is doing you or plant any favours, I say this only because missing out on the traditional 'growing' nutes will potentially stunt the plants markedly.
Definitely with you on maximizing what you got, but even a few amendments costing 5-10 quid would potentially boost your plants health, structure strength .
I use biobiz, its cheaper than most and organic. (Amz sell 'try boxes' for less than $30 for 1-4 plants which contain grow, bloom and bud enhancer) Certainly cheap enough and I use a quarter of recommend dose in a 70/30 coco pearlite mix.
Am a very new grower so my opinion is easy to dismiss, but growing plants with a nutrition skimp isn't likely doing either you or your girls any favours.
100% you call though
Following either way
Btw did some of that unnecessary touching last week and snapped a prime cola head clean off: lesson learned - no more touching.

Welcome WankirA and thanx for your input. It is my sole mission here to present some gardening techniques that offer budget products and minimilalistic methods that will fit the needs of those with limited budgets and time.

The assortment of different products I’ve used is narrow. While I can offer options I’ll hold short of offering recommendations for anything I’ve not personally experienced.

I’ve found the only thing addictive for me about cannabis is gardening and I grow far more than I use. Unfortunately, I live in a judicially intolerate state that looks very dimly on distribution of any sorts. While I’d dearly love to share my excess products, fear forces me, instead, to destroy it. I’ve averaged disposing of a pound or so each year so I’m pretty comfortable with my yield.

I’ve found a niche, process and products that accommodate my needs comfortably but by no means do I aver this is the utopian situation for all.

I’m a firm believer that the strength of a forum environment is created by the composite knowledge of its members. Sharing your experience and offering options beyond my parameters of expertise is most welcomed. Thanx again for your participation and assistance in this venture and please continue to contribute. It will be a learning process for us all.

BCDD

 

[Bucudinkydow]

A quick word on containers, a subject that’s often overlooked.

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• Bucudinkydow
• Nov 2, 2015

My first few grows were in some improvised rag bags. This is the epitome of “utilize whatcha got”! They were made by lining some antique egg gathering baskets with some shade fabric. They had a capacity of about three gallons and worked flawlessly. The egg baskets are about 75 years old. They belonged to my aunt and uncle who operated a commercial poultry farm for a hatchery back in the ‘40-50’s.

There’s a world of options available from a solo cup to a child’s swimming pool. Im a big proponent of root zone aeration so I’m once again stuck in a rut here; I’ve used nothing but fabric bags of one sort or another. Not only do they offer excellent aeration but they also afford the roots an opportunity to self prune. In a hard container, when the roots reach the wall of the pot they follow it around and eventually become “root bound” or “pot bound”. When the root tip reaches the wall of a fabric pot it’s exposed to air and the tip basically dies. This promotes numerous secondary root branches along the length of that root that had its tip growth halted. Super advantageous for water and nutrient absorption. I did eventually abandon my DIY egg basket containers for some larger off brand “Smart Pots”.

There’s another container that offers root zone aeration that is called Air-Pots. I’ve never used this type of container but there are a lot of fans. I think they’re a bit pricey: about $30 for a 5 gal in the name brand with off brands coming in at about $10 a pop. They seem to incorporate the same principle as fabric bags and I’m not sure that they offer enough benefits to justify the extra $$$.

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 19, 2019

I have this particular brand in 1gal, 5gal and 7 gal sizes. They’ve been used multiple times and have served me well.

I’m probably going to run up a lightning rod here for disagreements but I CANNOT directly relate plant size to container size when using coco/perlite as the grow medium. In my last garden I made a concerted effort to restrict the size of my plants by using a 12/12 light regimen from seed and utilizing 1 gal fabric bags. To my surprise one of the plants turned out to be the tallest plant I’ve ever grown indoor reaching a height of about 4’! While it wasn’t necessarily the most productive I’ve grown it did reap over two and a half quarts of only the top quality buds.

On another occasion I did an eleven plant grow. I had to muster all bags I had available of varying sizes. I can definitely attest to the fact there was no direct relationship between the size of the plant and the size of the grow bag. I’ve increased the size of bag on my current grow to 7 gal for reasons I’ll go into later but I definitely will explore this theory a bit further.

To be continued..........

 

[Bucudinkydow]

Well, I’ve been out of town for a few days and won’t be returning until tomorrow so my weekly update will be +1.

In the meantime, let’s talk lights. Grow lights are arguably the most polarizing segment of our hobby. Everyone has their favorite system supported by a long list of attributes to justify their choice. Broad spectrum LED panels seem to be the most popular trend right now. Unfortunately, this is one of the few light sources that I haven’t tried so I’m not going to have much to say about them except I’ve seen some super results under these lights. There are some units available for under $100 and I think I’ve seen some approaching a grand. In an effort to adhere to our “let’s keep it simple” and frugal theme, I think we can at least explore some other options.

My first grow was under a handful of 13w CFL’s. The lights supported my garden fairly well. I reaped an admirable amount of very potent product but the buds were small and quite airy.

I returned to CFL’s for my second grow but made a couple of improvements.

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• Bucudinkydow
• Nov 2, 2015

The concentrated configuration and reflector definitely had positive effects. I made a couple of these and placed one each over a single plant.

My next attempt was with a 150w HPS from Sun System. At the time I paid $65. They are still available but I think the price is about $85 now thanx to Don John’s tariffs! I like the little HPS pretty well and have returned to it occasionally. I made the mistake of trying to squeeze 3 plants under this little light with poor results. The center plant prospered but the fringe intensity was too low to adequately support the other 2 plants. In my opinion, this unit is appropriate for a single plant.

The greatest attribute of an HPS is it’s ability to provide deeper penetration. The shortcoming is the fact that it’s arguably the least efficient.

For my next grow, I purchased a 600w HPS & MH with intentions of doing a naked bulb vertical grow. That never developed and I used it for a conventional grow over 11 plants. That was spreading the footprint a little thin but all but 2 plants did surprisingly well. Again, offers great penetration but not as efficient as other options. I’ll probably not use this setup again. Just not a good choice for the budget grower in my opinion.

My last three grows have been under screw in LED’s (SIL’s). I’ve been very impressed with the results with this super cheap light option. I’ve got a lot to share on these bulbs but I’m going to have to save it for the next segment.

To be continued............

 

[Bucudinkydow]

Returned home this afternoon. Opened the cabinet door and was greeted with this:

WEEK 3 (+1 day)

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 23, 2019

As compared to 8 days ago:

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 15, 2019

The plant seems to be thriving in spite of the hands-off philosophy. Thus far, the only input on my part since germination has been;

Week 1- I staked the plant with a bamboo skewer for support.
Week 2- Bent her over with a pipe cleaner a bit to start some training.
Week 3- Repositioned the lights and did some additional training.

I’ve set up a rather unconventional training concept but my plants not being very co-operative.

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• Bucudinkydow
• Jul 23, 2019

I’ve strung twine across the width of the cabinet with hopes of coaxing the top to grow horizontally as I tie it to the clothesline “. The problem is the fact that the plant has become so incredibly bushy I’m not sure if this method is going to be effective. It measures 12” tall and 18” across. I’ll give it another week and see how it develops. Initially I had planned on a 6 week veg period but that may require modification also. Time will tell.

Light segment to be continued..........