H1gherD1mensionz 3rd Grow: The Level Up! Amnesia Haze & Zkittles OG Autos

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Setting - Wardrobe in bedroom
Tent - 60x40x120 cm
Light - ViparSpectra XS1000
Light cycle - 18/6
Extraction - 24/7: 4" AC Infinity Cloudline S4
Filter - 4" 100x200mm carbon filter
Intake - Passive (negative pressure)
Air Circulation - AC Infinity 120mm PC fan, 150mm Desk Fan, 2 x 80mm PC fans
Humidifier - 500ml ultrasonic
Container - 2 x 11ltr square fabric pots
Medium - BioBizz All-Mix soil, barley straw mulch
Nutrients - BioBizz line: Root Juice, Acti-Vera, Grow, Bloom, Top-Max
Inoculation - TNC MycorrMax
Nutrient schedule - BioBizz
Water - Bottled mineral water, distilled water
PH control - Organic apple cidar vinegar
PH measurement - Chinese amazon pen, luck
Seeds - Amnesia Haze Auto (Fast Buds), Zkittles OG Auto (Barney's Farm)
Germination - 36hr soak in water, plant into final pot under humidity dome
Training - LST, defoliation, telepathy

Greetings everyone I'm back with my 3rd grow and I've made some upgrades! I've increased my tent size and moved away from the small microgrow tent. Still keeping it organic with the same inputs. For lighting I'm starting off with the ViparSpectra P600 but I have a ViparSpectra XS1000 on the way.

In the UK we're now transitioning into fall season now and the temps will be dropping from the previous intense summer which should offer some relief for the grow environment.

I welcome all suggestions and assistance with this grow and thank any in advance for participating, and what's up @VetSmoke85 @Mdlroad @Squiggle @Bill284 and everyone else

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Day 4

Temp: 28C
RH: 60%
VPD: 1.53kpa
Plant: 3cm
Light: 16"h, 30%, 220 PPFD, 9700 lux

We are off to a clean start! On the left we have the Amnesia Haze Auto from Fast Buds and to the right is the Zkittles OG Auto from Barney's Farm. Initially I wanted to pop a Glueberry OG seed instead of the Zkittles but the container for it was mysteriously damaged and the seed has vanished.

For germination I soaked the seeds in bottled water for 36 hours. The AH showed it's radicle within 24hrs and popped out of the soil a day before the ZOG. I used the cut base of water bottles for humidity domes with a single cut hole for air and kept it on for about a day+ after both had sprouted.

There are no deformities on the seedlings and the ZOG looks the healthiest, whereas the AH stem is looking a bit brown and is missing hairs... perhaps I left the domes on for too long and it was too humid. The medium is on the dryer side however so I'm confident it will be fine.

Amnesia Haze Auto seedling:

Zkittles OG seedling:

 

[Paul Squiggle]

Howdy do mate.

Alls looking great.. I might have to try that type of training you mentioned
I have been using the same Ph measurement, but my luck ran out and poisoned my plants.
Anyway, good to see you back!
I'm in for the ride

 

[VetSmoke85]

Nice upgrade mate.

 

[Mdlroad]

Setting - Wardrobe in bedroom
Tent - 60x40x120 cm
Light - ViparSpectra XS1000
Light cycle - 18/6
Extraction - 24/7: 4" AC Infinity Cloudline S4
Filter - 4" 100x200mm carbon filter
Intake - Passive (negative pressure)
Air Circulation - AC Infinity 120mm PC fan, 150mm Desk Fan, 2 x 80mm PC fans
Humidifier - 500ml ultrasonic
Container - 2 x 11ltr square fabric pots
Medium - BioBizz All-Mix soil, barley straw mulch
Nutrients - BioBizz line: Root Juice, Acti-Vera, Grow, Bloom, Top-Max
Inoculation - TNC MycorrMax
Nutrient schedule - BioBizz
Water - Bottled mineral water, distilled water
PH control - Organic apple cidar vinegar
PH measurement - Chinese amazon pen, luck
Seeds - Amnesia Haze Auto (Fast Buds), Zkittles OG Auto (Barney's Farm)
Germination - 36hr soak in water, plant into final pot under humidity dome
Training - LST, defoliation, telepathy

Greetings everyone I'm back with my 3rd grow and I've made some upgrades! I've increased my tent size and moved away from the small microgrow tent. Still keeping it organic with the same inputs. For lighting I'm starting off with the ViparSpectra P600 but I have a ViparSpectra XS1000 on the way.

In the UK we're now transitioning into fall season now and the temps will be dropping from the previous intense summer which should offer some relief for the grow environment.

I welcome all suggestions and assistance with this grow and thank any in advance for participating, and what's up @VetSmoke85 @Mdlroad @Squiggle @Bill284 and everyone else

TY for the tag I'm in

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Howdy do mate.

Alls looking great.. I might have to try that type of training you mentioned
I have been using the same Ph measurement, but my luck ran out and poisoned my plants.
Anyway, good to see you back!
I'm in for the ride

Good to see you mate, I had delays with getting the tent here thanks to Brexit which dampened me off lol...

Yeah those pH pens will turn on you at any minute, I hate them. I actually had forgot about mine and let it dry out... I opened it up and the little white crystal thing had green bacteria all around it lmao... I cleaned it up tho and recalibrated, seems fine so far

@VetSmoke85 @Mdlroad Thanks for tapping in, I need to catch up a lot of grows lol

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Day 8

Temp: 25.2C
RH: 50-60%
VPD: 1.62kpa~
Plant: 5.5cm
Light: 16"h, 45%, 385 PPFD
Phase: Week 1 Veg

The seedling phase is over and we're now going into week 1 of veg. The babies seem to be going nice and steady with a bit of curl on the ZOG, perhaps due to low humidity. The temperatures have suddenly dropped now and maintaining humidity has been a challenge, especially when the soil is dry. I'll most likely have to upgrade my humidifier for this larger tent space as the small one struggles and requires too frequent a refill.

As for watering the plants I've only given them 100ml each of plain pH'd water so far and I will now introduce them to the root stimulant and aloe vera product for the next feedings.

Today my new ViparSpectra XS1000 has arrived, plus a new carbon filter so we can complete the tent now! All that is left to do is prepare the barley hay for the mulch layer so we can keep those roots and microbes happy.

What will I do with my old P600? I'm thinking to grow some veggies actually... I'm curious what have you guys done with your other lights?

Amnesia Haze:

Zkittles OG:

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Day 10

Temp: 26C
RH: 60%
VPD: 1.36kpa~
Plant: 6cm
Light: 14"h, 50%, 385~ PPFD
Phase: Week 1 Veg

Everything is set in the garden now. We've installed the new light, rearranged the exhaust system by bringing the fan inside the tent and have added the barley hay mulch layer. Now it will just be a process of experimenting and dialing in the light to keep the girls happy.

The added benefit of adding the barley mulch is that it blocks the intense light from scorching and drying out the top soil, helping to retain moisture which allows the microbes, fungi and feeder roots of the plant to make use of the surface layer. It also helps insulate the pot by retaining heat, protecting from cold.

I did some searching on humidifiers and apparently evaporation-type humidifiers do not cause the mineral dust which ultrasonic humidifiers do. However the issue is that they seem to be somewhat larger and more expensive so I'll keep looking into this.

I've also been on the lookout for some type of grid to place between the pot and the saucer to raise it up and get air under the pot. Any suggestions would be lovely!

AH

ZOG

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Day 13

Temp: 26.4C
RH: 50%~
VPD: 1.7kpa~
Plant: 7.5cm
Light: 14"h, 50%, 400-550 PPFD
Phase: Week 1 Veg

The girls are growing steady, now starting to show some individual character with the Amnesia Haze being slightly chubby with broad leaves and the Zkittles taking the slim route. I would have expected the opposite tbh since AH is more sativa. It was pleasant to see the plants praying up this morning.

Humidity has been a struggle again with it staying around 50% but the girls don't seem that bothered. To combat that I lowered the AC Infinity fan to the lowest setting hoping to boost humidity with less exhaust. I also decided to put the light on 50% where it was around 42% as I'm being careful not to upset the autos.

I also want to note how soft and fluffy the soil is now that its under the mulch. Prior the soil was dry and very hydrophobic, not very hospitable to our microbe friends. Now with the larger pot size its also a learning curve for me to gauge when to water by the pot weight.

AH

ZOG

 

[Paul Squiggle]

Looking good brother. I would recommend getting the smart controller for the AC infinity. It will keep the humidity where you need it.
Did you say yours was noisy? You can make a silencer for the exhaust end, well, for the whole fan and output. A cardboard box and a few old bedsheets. I had to do that with my very first fan, it sounded like i was living on the runway of Newcastle Airport. I just got a huge box and made a muffler. It halfed the noise. Hope alls well..

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Thanks mate @Squiggle hope you been good. I'm definitely gonna get it then... and I'd say its too noisy past 4 since its in the bed room. Since I moved the fan inside the tent its a bit less noisy. I had forgot all about the cardbox trick... I'm good to just stick the exhaust in there which comes out the top of the tent?

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Day 16

Temp: 27.2C
RH: 45%~
VPD: 2.01~
Plant: 9cm
Light: 14"h, 50%, 400-550 PPFD
Phase: Week 2 Veg

Greetings everyone! We're now in the second week of veg and things are coming along. VPD is struggling as I've been stuck on 45% rH this week but the girls seem to be putting up with it. I've heard some stay at 50% rH for the whole grow anyway... Humidity should be easier to keep up once the plants get bigger and I can actually water the pot more.

As for the girls themselves, the Zkittles is actually growing ahead of the Amnesia Haze now and is the prettier one thus far. No discolorations or signs of deficiency which I'm happy about. Also as per the biobizz feeding schedule I'll be introducing Bio-Grow next and we'll see how the plants jump up in size.

In week 1 I gave nutrients as following: 150ml water, 0.2ml root juice, 0.1ml acti-vera, 0.4ml acv to pH 6.2, 1/4 tsp mycorr per plant.

(fun fact, as I was typing this a spider appeared right in front of my face, hanging from the ceiling! lmao)

Amnesia Haze

Zkittles OG

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Guys I'm also tempted to introduce bokashi bran to the garden but I'm unsure whether it is worth it outside of a no-till system. I know it will promote microbial activity but since I'm using organic liquid nutes and not solid amendments, what would an increased layer of microbes really feed on? There are no worms or bugs to speed the breakdown process either...

As far as I'm aware, the trick to biobizz is that it uses liquid organic nutrients which are more available to the roots and soil, compared to solid material (amendments, cover crop) which needs a larger soil culture to work it fast enough to be usable to the plants (worms, springtails, beetles, mites etc.)... meaning the soil system doesn't have to work as hard to break the food up and the plant stays happy as long as the doses are balanced... while still gaining the benefit of a microbal/fungal networks. Therefore would adding bokashi hinder the system more than boost it? Thats my thoughts atm...

 

[Mdlroad]

Day 16

Temp: 27.2C
RH: 45%~
VPD: 2.01~
Plant: 9cm
Light: 14"h, 50%, 400-550 PPFD
Phase: Week 2 Veg

Greetings everyone! We're now in the second week of veg and things are coming along. VPD is struggling as I've been stuck on 45% rH this week but the girls seem to be putting up with it. I've heard some stay at 50% rH for the whole grow anyway... Humidity should be easier to keep up once the plants get bigger and I can actually water the pot more.

As for the girls themselves, the Zkittles is actually growing ahead of the Amnesia Haze now and is the prettier one thus far. No discolorations or signs of deficiency which I'm happy about. Also as per the biobizz feeding schedule I'll be introducing Bio-Grow next and we'll see how the plants jump up in size.

In week 1 I gave nutrients as following: 150ml water, 0.2ml root juice, 0.1ml acti-vera, 0.4ml acv to pH 6.2, 1/4 tsp mycorr per plant.

(fun fact, as I was typing this a spider appeared right in front of my face, hanging from the ceiling! lmao)

Amnesia Haze

Zkittles OG

I am a big fan of using vpd, after I found it. Vpd is a tight window but it makes a huge difference. My current grow doing well. Even at high temps if the vpd is right they still pray to the light. The plants are basically breathing easy and expiring water at the proper rate which results in water and nutrients uptake at max efficiency.

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

@Mdlroad yes since I was within VPD range the plants were praying where my previous 2 grows they didn't pray. Humidity is definitely my challenge in fall though because now all of a sudden my bedroom is at 60 rH from 45 all week and it hasn't even rained or nothing lol...

Do you have a journal going atm? I'll follow along.

 

[Mdlroad]

@Mdlroad yes since I was within VPD range the plants were praying where my previous 2 grows they didn't pray. Humidity is definitely my challenge in fall though because now all of a sudden my bedroom is at 60 rH from 45 all week and it hasn't even rained or nothing lol...

Do you have a journal going atm? I'll follow along.

Yes but I'm way behind I'll do an update today

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Day 17

Temp: 27.2C
RH: 56%
VPD: 1.6~
Plant: 9.5cm
Light: 12"h, 50%, 400-550 PPFD
Phase: Week 2 Veg

Feeding: 300ml water, 0.1ml root juice, 0.2ml grow, 0.3ml activera, 0.9ml acv, 1/4 tsp mycorr

Not much to report today other than I purchased a metal steaming rack which works perfectly to elevate the pot. These ones stand at 7cm but I think I'd have preferred the 4cm ones now.

Temps have been sitting high in the tent and the exhaust felt weak so I changed the pre-filter which was indeed clogged with the mineral dust from the humidifier... I guess I'll be changing it every 2 weeks then... since then, the environment has been nice and stable and the plants really do pray when the VPD is in a good range.

I'm now keeping the exhaust fan speed at 3/10 and have opened a second passive air vent to improve negative pressure and air exchange.

AH

ZOG

Raised pot and mineral dust

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Day 19

Temp: 27.6C
RH: 54%
VPD: 1.72 kPa
Plant: 11.5cm
Light: 12"h, 50%, 400-550 PPFD
Phase: Week 2 Veg

Not much going on today. The Amnesia Haze has just started to show pistols and while both plants are the same height, the Zkittles OG looks more vigorous and has a thicker stalk thus far. We are getting close to beginning the low stress training but I want to make sure the plants are a bit taller, perhaps by day 21.

AH

ZOG

Pistols on Amnesia Haze

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Day 20

Temp: 26.8C
RH: 46%
VPD: 1.93kpa
Plant: 12cm -> ?
Light: 18"h, 75%, 400-550 PPFD
Phase: Week 2 Veg

Feeding: 350ml water, 0.1ml root juice, 0.2ml grow, 0.3ml activera, 1.5ml acv!, 1/4 tsp mycorr

The plants have been doing well and getting fatter, they also started to release a pleasant smell. Dialing in the environment is tricky, as I opened the tent just after lights on I noticed the humidity was at 70% which is quite the spike and might have contributed to the following issue.

Observing the plants further I noticed that the node spacing is pretty short so I figured it would be time to press on with the LST and begin the first bend. With this I also raised up the light to 18" just in case it was too close and causing those short nodes.

The smaller AH was easy to put into position unlike the thicker ZOG. I was actually a bit rough with the ZOG and ruptured part of the stem while bending, almost topping it! Although its nothing too serious, we all know they grow back stronger with TLC.

Amnesia Haze

Zkittles OG

ZOG stem damage

 

[H1gherD1mensionz]

Day 24

Temp: 26.2C
RH: 51%
VPD: 1.69kpa
Plant:
Light: 18"h, 75%, 400-550 PPFD
Phase: Week 3 Veg

Feeding: 550ml water, 0.2ml grow, 0.5ml activera, 2ml acv, 1/4 tsp mycorr

It has been a hectic week with many outside matters unfolding... I had to be away from the girls on the day I started LST for potentially 2 weeks! Thankfully I was able to return sooner.

So we've fallen a bit behind on the LST and feeding. The pots were very hydrophobic and it seems my pH pen is acting up now or perhaps my vinegar has grown weaker because imo its taking too much acv to get the right pH. Has anyone used BioBizz pH Down? Is it worth it?

In terms of managing the plants nutrients it seems that the AH is less keen on the nitrogen as she was darker and thicker from the start compared to the ZOG which seemed to have more willingness to eat. With that I've been using 0.1ml grow instead of 0.2 for the ZOG just to be on the safe side.

I also feel like the plants are growing too squat and short? I may be just rushing things but what do you guys n gals think? Is my light too strong? I am pleased with the LST angle I've achieved with the Amnesia Haze. The ZOG is being a chunk and is harder to manipulate. No pistols showing on the ZOG either so she's in no rush compared to the AH.

AH

AH LST angle

ZOG