Doc Bud's High Brix Q&A With Pictures

[Doc Bud]

Hey guys! I am not ready to start a journal or anything so I thought I could post a pic or two of my progress or lack there of on this fine thread.. I pray I am not out of line..

1-3-15
Ken's Cut of Granddaddy Purple.
Moved clone from cloner to 1 gallon pot of Doc's freshly cooked kit soil. Sprinkled ROOTS! powder on clone roots and in xplant hole. Watered in with 1 pint ro water and 7ml transplant.

1-10-15
Still waiting for the clone to show drooping so I can water. When I do water I am not sure which route to take. I could do the 1/4 strength transplant? or the growth energy drench w/ tea and xplant per instructions? I'm not sure if it will be too soon for a drench. I also plan on spraying the brix tomorrow for the first time.

Take it easy..

Looking good bro. You went real heavy on the transplant. The new Roots! formula for about the last 6 months has no need for Transplant that heavy, like we used to do in the past. In the past, we did 1 oz. per gallon on the transplant, but no more. For future reference I'd water it in with 1/4 oz transplant per gallon of water.

Now, for a regular drench, that would be about right. However, that's just a young clone....thankfully it's GDP, a known hog.

Don't bloom that one for a while....you've got some photoperiod stress, hence the 3 bladed leaves. Wait till you get some 7 bladed ones before topping or blooming. You'll be very happy you did, trust me on that.

So, next watering, just RO.

 

[Shags]

Looking good bro. You went real heavy on the transplant. The new Roots! formula for about the last 6 months has no need for Transplant that heavy, like we used to do in the past. In the past, we did 1 oz. per gallon on the transplant, but no more. For future reference I'd water it in with 1/4 oz transplant per gallon of water.

Now, for a regular drench, that would be about right. However, that's just a young clone....thankfully it's GDP, a known hog.

Don't bloom that one for a while....you've got some photoperiod stress, hence the 3 bladed leaves. Wait till you get some 7 bladed ones before topping or blooming. You'll be very happy you did, trust me on that.

So, next watering, just RO.

Thanks for the advice Doc. I plan on veging for 6 weeks. I'm running 4 GDP in hydro under my bloom light now 3 weeks in.. So I have about 6 weeks to veg the brix plants.. If you recall I also tried to pop 4 Ken's Kush seeds. Two of the seeds poped during the soak, the other 2 still have not poped and I think they are lost. The 2 of them that germinated came up with the seed husk stuck on. I guess I didn't plant the seeds deep enough for the soil to pull it off.. I was able to pop one off and it is doing great. I broke the stem on the other one trying to get the seed husk off. Hopefully I can get everything straightened out in the next 6 weeks so I will have 6 nice ladies ready to bloom.

 

[Major PITA]

We can always just test your backyard soil and go from there. It might take a couple seasons to get it where it needs to be, but you'd see improvement immediately as long as you're not a compost guy who just keeps adding compost all the time.

Definitely stop doing that, if that's the case. No manure's either.

Good to know.
I don't feel compelled to add compost or manure. My indoor grows are all mine. However, this outdoor grow I'll share with my wife who is big on adding both. I'll have to see what the "War Department" says about the direction we take. I appreciate the guidance.

 

[Doc Bud]

Good to know.
I don't feel compelled to add compost or manure. My indoor grows are all mine. However, this outdoor grow I'll share with my wife who is big on adding both. I'll have to see what the "War Department" says about the direction we take. I appreciate the guidance.

If you want nutrient dense produce, no matter what you're growing, you need to keep potassium levels down. Yes, that contradicts the standard "Compost is good" mantra that corporate farming techniques have brought about, but excess potassium will start to replace calcium in the cell wall and it isn't possible to achieve high brix.

We want calcium to be the predominant mineral in the soil, and there are definite ratio's of everything else that need to be achieved in order for the biology to work right. Get all that in spec and really cool stuff happens.

 

[Major PITA]

Question: I keep reading about HB growers adding their fan leaves, etc. to their recycled soil. They get digested in a week or so. Isn't that compost? Confused...

 

[Doc Bud]

Question: I keep reading about HB growers adding their fan leaves, etc. to their recycled soil. They get digested in a week or so. Isn't that compost? Confused...

Yes, it's composted leaf material. That's quite a bit different that lawn clipping, chipped cottonwood trees, weeds, animal manure, cardboard, table scraps, etc.

When you compost the finished plant back into the soil and it's the same plant that grew in the soil, it actually "tunes" the soil to grow that plant.

 

[Doc Bud]

Here are some pics of Champagne, Afghan and some freshly jarred nugs.

 

[Any2cards]

Doc,

Amazing as always.

I have a question. From what I see and all that I have read I am pretty sure I have been hit with broad mites. 10 days since flip. From what I have read harsh chemicals like forbid/floramite/avid etc are the remedy. It may very well be a loss and too late or I don't even like the idea of using that stuff.

But it got me thinking about how something like that would affect the microbial herd. Thoughts?

Any2

 

[Major PITA]

Yum - beautiful!

 

[Doc Bud]

Doc,

Amazing as always.

I have a question. From what I see and all that I have read I am pretty sure I have been hit with broad mites. 10 days since flip. From what I have read harsh chemicals like forbid/floramite/avid etc are the remedy. It may very well be a loss and too late or I don't even like the idea of using that stuff.

But it got me thinking about how something like that would affect the microbial herd. Thoughts?

Any2

Floramite/Forbid/Kontos/Avid.....they won't effect the herd......unless you mean the "human" herd. Those products shouldn't be used this far into bloom! In fact, I wouldn't use them at all in bloom and would wait a month after using to put the plant in bloom. They have a half life....

I think you can kill the bastards by getting brix up, keeping rH in the high 50's, and using Azatrol or Azamax every 4 days for 12 days. Be sure to wash off the leaves really well after the last application!

Healthy plants won't be effected by the mites too much. I've seen full on web tents on mine before....no damage to the leaves at all. I just spray 'em with Brix or DeStress after picking off the web the few times that has happened.

 

[BrixKlinger]

Question: Heading out to get EWC to begin cooking today. Should I buy extra to use at recharge time? Instructions don't mention EWC for recharge, but I swear I read it somewheres.

yay!

 

[Governmentchz]

I'd get some extra. The directions say 20-40# (most bags are 30# bags which is what I got). I think I would have preferred to err towards the 40# mark.

Doc I have a question too. On the recharge in the 3rd week of flower cycle, do I simply mix in the recharge amendment with my fingers in the top couple inches of each pot? I only have 2x 7gal pots and three 1 gal (the small ones are for seed production), so how much of it should I use relatively?

 

[Doc Bud]

Question: Heading out to get EWC to begin cooking today. Should I buy extra to use at recharge time? Instructions don't mention EWC for recharge, but I swear I read it somewheres.

yay!

Lots of people do that. No problem at all. It's a good idea for sure.

 

[Doc Bud]

I'd get some extra. The directions say 20-40# (most bags are 30# bags which is what I got). I think I would have preferred to err towards the 40# mark.

Doc I have a question too. On the recharge in the 3rd week of flower cycle, do I simply mix in the recharge amendment with my fingers in the top couple inches of each pot? I only have 2x 7gal pots and three 1 gal (the small ones are for seed production), so how much of it should I use relatively?

1 lb of recharge services the whole bale....so 1/6 lb per plant.....or 2.6 oz per plant. It's not critical you get it perfect, close it fine.

 

[Jamba]

Ok Doc, it's been a long time coming. Please feel free to check out my journal whenever you have time. It should be in my Sig.

 

[Any2cards]

Floramite/Forbid/Kontos/Avid.....they won't effect the herd......unless you mean the "human" herd. Those products shouldn't be used this far into bloom! In fact, I wouldn't use them at all in bloom and would wait a month after using to put the plant in bloom. They have a half life....

I think you can kill the bastards by getting brix up, keeping rH in the high 50's, and using Azatrol or Azamax every 4 days for 12 days. Be sure to wash off the leaves really well after the last application!

Healthy plants won't be effected by the mites too much. I've seen full on web tents on mine before....no damage to the leaves at all. I just spray 'em with Brix or DeStress after picking off the web the few times that has happened.

I can't see them with a 30x loupe. I have done 3 3 day cycles and still see new damage. 10 days now 11 since flip. I don't have a refractometer but by looks I would say they are up in the zone. RH is right there too. I don't have time on my side so I was asking. Just having high brix numbers, azamax and RH are doing nothing. We are not talking spider mites here. I suppose one option would be to go back to a veg cycle and apply. So frustrating.

 

[Doc Bud]

I can't see them with a 30x loupe. I have done 3 3 day cycles and still see new damage. 10 days now 11 since flip. I don't have a refractometer but by looks I would say they are up in the zone. RH is right there too. I don't have time on my side so I was asking. Just having high brix numbers, azamax and RH are doing nothing. We are not talking spider mites here. I suppose one option would be to go back to a veg cycle and apply. So frustrating.

Yes, it is frustrating.

Have you tried Malathion? That's safe to use on food crops, especially this early in bloom. It doesn't work on spider mites, but might kill these broad mites. I've never dealt with broad mites before.

 

[DrZiggy]

Doc, I have a few plants beginning flowering in 30-31 days from seed under 11/13. One is a Mexican seed, i think my Kwazulu, a couple unknown strains, but the produce is awesome from the unknowns. The plants are at most 6" tall from soil. The 2 WNs, I think are preshowing their femaleness
I never grew 12/12 from seed, only transitioned.
I havent transplanted yet to their final pots. Should I asap?

 

[DrZiggy]

Doc,
Also they were grown with both switches, Veg and Bloom on, not just the veg switch, the platinum450, and the large enough ones were topped, 1 maybe 2 got FIMd a week ago.

 

[Dutty Panty]

Whats the best container all around that you have used for cooking the soil? Do the lids need burped on containers or is it best to keep lid tightly closed?
Ill be purchasing containers to store all 5 bales in tomorrow and would like to use the best you all have found over all
Otherwise I just may fab up something custom