JoJo's Hempy SOG 'n SCROG - LED - C99 - Northern Lights - NL99

[Weaselcracker]

Oh geez, I have the memory of a stoned goldfish. I've seen your scrog setup so many times. Somehow I failed to remember what the base structure looks like....
Well, I remember now that I'm looking at it...
I think the Cap'n did his scrog setup so the support pipes had a section which slid inside another pipe, with thumbscrews to tighten and lock them in position, so legs could be shortened and lengthened as needed. If you understand the explanation.

Like my life in general, my scrog suffers from lack of time. I put the plant in the screen when I take it to the 12/12 flowering room, and spread it out in the screen as best as I can. It looks like a mangled mess afterwards. I come back a week later- spend five seconds trying to arrange the branches better, and possibly raise the screen to account for stretch. I may do this again a week later and again after that till the stretch is over. I don't have the time to do a proper scrog where I train and tie the branches down extensively as I might if I scrogged during veg. Basically I'm growing a plant in the shape of a candelabra which pokes up through the screen. It doesn't offer much support if the growing tips above the screen get more than 10" or so long. This is what I'm dealing with now with my Pineapple Chunk. I maxed out the length of the support rods I used on those particular ones and couldn't go higher. Now they're flopping all over the place.
I compensate for the different screen heights by raising some pots up with pieces of wood and stuff.
Another trick I do sometimes is to pull the branch tips straight downwards to the framework underneath- with limited success. It's fairly easy to deal with the buds as long as they're not much more than 8" or so. I may try adding silica to my grow soon- reputed to make stems as strong as steel... Not sure if that would be better or worse.

 

[Weaselcracker]

Wow- genius idea to write on the leaf!

 

[jojo677]

Oh geez, I have the memory of a stoned goldfish. I've seen your scrog setup so many times. Somehow I failed to remember what the base structure looks like....
Well, I remember now that I'm looking at it...
I think the Cap'n did his scrog setup so the support pipes had a section which slid inside another pipe, with thumbscrews to tighten and lock them in position, so legs could be shortened and lengthened as needed. If you understand the explanation.

Like my life in general, my scrog suffers from lack of time. I put the plant in the screen when I take it to the 12/12 flowering room, and spread it out in the screen as best as I can. It looks like a mangled mess afterwards. I come back a week later- spend five seconds trying to arrange the branches better, and possibly raise the screen to account for stretch. I may do this again a week later and again after that till the stretch is over. I don't have the time to do a proper scrog where I train and tie the branches down extensively as I might if I scrogged during veg. Basically I'm growing a plant in the shape of a candelabra which pokes up through the screen. It doesn't offer much support if the growing tips above the screen get more than 10" or so long. This is what I'm dealing with now with my Pineapple Chunk. I maxed out the length of the support rods I used on those particular ones and couldn't go higher. Now they're flopping all over the place.
I compensate for the different screen heights by raising some pots up with pieces of wood and stuff.
Another trick I do sometimes is to pull the branch tips straight downwards to the framework underneath- with limited success. It's fairly easy to deal with the buds as long as they're not much more than 8" or so. I may try adding silica to my grow soon- reputed to make stems as strong as steel... Not sure if that would be better or worse.

No worries Weasel, we all suffer from a little bit of memory loss! And don't worry, I could understand everything you described! I may have to make my screen adjustable. I can see how it'd be nice. I need to pick up some wire fencing and once these clones root, the training begins!

 

[J189RFC]

Thought I should mention, not that it's a big deal, but for best results when cloning, take a little cap full, like the top of a pop bottle cap(that is clean and stuff) and fill it with rooting hormone. This way if there is excess humidity of water/plant borne ilness you wont contaminate the rest of the jar. Throw out the left over rooting stuff from the cap. Lookin good in there!

 

[jojo677]

Thought I should mention, not that it's a big deal, but for best results when cloning, take a little cap full, like the top of a pop bottle cap(that is clean and stuff) and fill it with rooting hormone. This way if there is excess humidity of water/plant borne ilness you wont contaminate the rest of the jar. Throw out the left over rooting stuff from the cap. Lookin good in there!

Hah, I knew someone would call me out on that! I used to put powder in a separate container and dispose of it, but I got lazy.. I haven't had any types of diseases/bacteria/fungus issues with my plants, but it's probably better to play it safe! Thanks for keeping me in line, I'll put it in a separate container from now on!

 

[jojo677]

Update (27 days old):

Hey all! I fed again tonight and everything is looking great! The topped seedlings have recovered well and are starting to grow fairly well. The little soon-to-be mother is in soiless mix. I forgot to mention that earlier. I still have some FFOF and ProMix, so I put it in about a 50/50 mix. I figured it'd be easier to keep bonsai mothers in this mixture instead of just perlite, especially in such a small container. Plus I can do root trimming much easier this way, if I decide to.

I also did a bit of training to the main plants. I keep wanting to call them seedlings, but they're bigger than anything else! I bent up some pieces of wire into a certain shape that holds 2 branches opposite right where you want them.

The clones could look better. I want them to get plenty of fresh air, but they had to go a few days without much of it due to being busy. I still think they'll all root! I've gotta keep up my 100% success rate...

That's all for now, folks!

 

[Perfect Sun LED]

they look like they are taking

 

[jojo677]

they look like they are taking

Hiya LEDRF, thanks for joining! And I think the older clones should start shooting roots out any time now. The lower leaves are starting to yellow, and I usually see them a day or two after.

I wish I had some big plants to show off, but we'll have to wait a few weeks!

 

[jojo677]

Update (34 days old):

Sorry I haven't updated in awhile, I've been busy! I do want to share pictures with you all though! The grow room is looking great. All the plants are happy and I just watered/fed them today. I've been watering about every 2-3 days. I give straight water to the C99 mother in the green pot, and week 3 of the nutrients to the plants in the 2L bottles.

A few waterings ago I thought I had some nute burn on the 2L girls, so I gave them straight water. Turns out it wasn't nute burn and they started cannibalizing (or is it cannabalizing ) themselves. So I moved to week 3 nutes, and they are looking better. I would have upped the feeding even more this time, but I think I've been having pH issues! You can see several deficiencies, and I think they're being caused by pH problemos.

A few days ago my pH meter was acting funky and I re-calibrated it (with my DIY solution). I was reading about 0.6 low, so I must have been feeding at a higher pH. That's IF my meter is even good. I tried using it and recalibrating tonight, but the numbers were all over the place! Maybe I need new batteries?? Anyway, I used my trusty litmus strips and got my pH in line today, as close as I could.

Do you guys think I'm right on my diagnosis?


7 Day Comparison:

I also decided I wanted to try adding silicon to my nutrients, to help build stem strength and bud density. Maybe then my plants can support big buds! I got a free sample awhile ago, so I started out at low feedings (1/4 tsp/gal). Have any of you had good luck with adding silicon?

And yes, you see potted clones in those pictures! Some started rooting yesterday, and the rest of the NL99 and NL rooted today (5/5). That means 12 days for each to root. For my own recordkeeping, A rooted the fastest and healthiest, followed by C. I think they could have all rooted faster if my pH was more ideal too!

The C99 clones still haven't rooted. I gave the rockwool a good flushing and gave 'em some air today. They're still pulling nutrients for growth, but they feel rooted (by slightly tugging at the stem). They were taken while the mother was in bad shape though!

By the way, labeling the leaves worked perfectly - I can identify all of them!

The C99 mother is looking great! She's just shooting up now, and I have to water her every 2 days or so. I think the FF/ProMix medium helps buffer the pH quite a bit, so I'm not seeing so many problems with her. I also FIM'ed her 2 days ago. I never know if I'm FIM'ing right, as it's not easy to get it perfect. I'll keep her nice and short!

That's all for now! I'll try to update more often now that things will start getting interesting. I think I'll flower the 2L plants soon, so I can see which plant I want to keep! I'll probably keep the NL and only 1 of the NL99 plants. That way I'll have 3 mothers (C99, NL, and NL99)!

 

[jojo677]

Update (36 days old):

Hey all! I fed tonight and decided to share some pictures since my LST continued. I used a soldering iron to make clean holes all around the top of the 2L and solid 22ga insulated wire to tie the branches down. I did the bending last night and they sprung right back!

Overnight Comparison:

I hadn't watered the clone transplants, as the mix I put them in was pretty moist, but apparently not quite enough. Several of my clones were badly wilted, so I watered them and put them back under the dome for a day. They look much better now!

Also, someone in my "DIY Light Louver" tutorial requested that I put up a pic of how well it works. Not bad, I'd say!

Yes, I'll get around to fixing my door soon! It just doesn't matter at the moment, so I'll procrastinate!

Stay classy!

 

[rhetorrikz]

Hey jojo good to see you adapting some lst ! Looks good , love the louvers! Are you feeding the same nutes to the c99 in promix as the perlite hempys? Hows the fim looking im about to give it a go on a seedling , ive tried it before but failed .
Keep em green !

 

[jojo677]

Hey rhet, I haven't actually fed the C99 in Promix/FFOF yet. The Ocean Forrest has quite a bit of nutes in it, and early on I tried to feed seedling nutrients and got some nute burn! I haven't fed it since. The hempys are now getting week 4 of the GH feeding schedule I posted earlier.

The FIM is doing great! There was pretty slow growth for a few days, and I don't even know if I cut enough off! I have to wait a bit more for the growth to continue. They're looking great tonight!

Anyway, I'm going to have to flip to 12/12 soon. These hempys are way too big for their pots already, so I might as well flip them now. I might do a defol before.. Then again, I might wait until 21 days into flowering...

 

[rhetorrikz]

I did a light defol this time before flipping, last grow i didnt and waited till after stretch. In theory it made sense to open up the plant a bit and let light in allowing all budsites to stretch.. we will see if theres a noticeable difference

 

[Weaselcracker]

Hey JoJo. Looking great. Those hempy plants grow fast. I've been spread pretty thin the last while so haven't posted much.
I'm curious how the labelled clones worked out? Did any of the leaves die off, leaving you with no label to identify your cutting by?

 

[jojo677]

I did a light defol this time before flipping, last grow i didnt and waited till after stretch. In theory it made sense to open up the plant a bit and let light in allowing all budsites to stretch.. we will see if theres a noticeable difference

I've done both in the past, and I think I like trimming the budsites off before the flip. If you don't it's putting a bunch of energy into that tiny stuff you're just going to chop anyway! That's how I think about it. I may be to lazy to get around to it though...

Hey JoJo. Looking great. Those hempy plants grow fast. I've been spread pretty thin the last while so haven't posted much.
I'm curious how the labelled clones worked out? Did any of the leaves die off, leaving you with no label to identify your cutting by?

I understand Weasel, you've been busy with your MOTM spotlight! Congrats by the way man, you deserve every bit of it! And now you get an LED to grow under!

Anywho, the clones all look fine and the sharpie is still legible! Some of the leaves got curled up when they dried up, but I can still read them all! I still haven't labelled the cups actually... Tonight! I'll put up an update later.

 

[jojo677]

Update (38 days old):

What's up guys!? I just fed the girls and did some trimming. They are looking SUPER healthy and so are the clones. I gave them full strength nutes today and I think they're doing great. I'll let them recover for a few days and then it's flowering time! By the way, when I trim off the growth, I always leave the fan leaves. I figure they're still good for catching rays and giving up their nutrients if needed. Why do most people trim them off? I know I have in the past for no really good reason. Maybe it's cause humidity isn't really a concern for me.

Anyway, I trimmed a lot, leaving only 8 dominant ones. I think a few smaller will fill in, but I figure this will give me a good structure. They're also all trimmed equally, so I can better compare all the plants and harvest!

And these last two are for you rhet, just cause you asked about the FIM job! I think I actually got it right this time. There's no top, so there should be several dominant ones.

Coming soon to a screen near you... "THE STRETCH!"

 

[jojo677]

Update (41 days old):

The girls are looking good! They're getting even more oversized for their pots! I transplanted the C99 clones into 2.5 L bottles (a bit bigger) yesterday, and I'll wait for them to start growth before flipping to 12/12. Starting with these plants, from now on I'll be using straight perlite, leaving out the vermiculite. If I wasn't recycling my perlite, I would probably still use vermiculite. I liked how it held water. This should work mostly the same once the roots get established though.

I'll be moving the vegging plants up to the veg cab in the next few days, and I spent some time lightproofing it a bit more today. I'm really liking this grow setup compared to my last one. So much cooler/less stinky!

On the 2L girls, they're all looking great, but I think I have some minor pH issues. My pH meter was giving me trouble last week and I've been using litmus strips as a backup. I'm not sure if it's the battery, but I'll be getting another one soon.

There's also a stranger in the room. I decided to try to clone a mandarin orange tree, so it'll be staying in a controlled environment. I made sure to rinse the whole cutting down well as to not bring any pests into my grow. Kinda quirky, but I find citrus tree leaves kinda cool looking. They almost look plastic.

Later!

 

[jojo677]

Update (1 day flowering, 43 days old):

I put the NL99s into 12/12 last night, so the wait begins! They're looking pretty good, and I fed them tonight (it's been 3 days). I got my new pH meter in, so I actually know where my pH is now. I must have been feeding high! It's really hard to use litmus paper to get any accurate result. I fed with 5.8 pH nutes with plenty of runoff, so that should be corrected.

I'm still feeding with veg nutes, and probably will for the next few feedings. I'll wait for the C99 clones to get a bit bigger, then they will join the flowering girls.

I also got a bit of work done on the grow room. I added some 2x2s to help flatten the door (worked amazingly well) and a latch to hold it shut better. I still have work and a tiny bit of lightproofing to do, but it's in good shape overall. There's no light leaking right now, and temperatures have been really good. I'll be updating the veg lighting here in the next day or two, and make a fixture and reflector.

Can anyone help me with what's going on here? I'm not really sure if it's a deficiency, but I'm assuming it has to with my pH probably being off (I didn't check runoff). Any guesses?

On to the veg cab... These plants are all looking great! The C99 clone is showing slow growth and just starting to show deficiencies, so I've started feeding her a bit. The Promix/FFOF held out for a few weeks though! I want to keep these mothers tiny anyway, so all is good. I'll be ready for 2-3 cuttings soon. The SOG begins!

I also spent a few minutes making a reservoir for my new pH pen. I have been storing mine in a solo cup filled with distilled water and KCl, but it got pretty nasty. I got my inspiration from Weasel's tutorial:
PH pen reservoir mod

I hope all is well in your world!

 

[JuanCarlos]

Jojo I really like what you've done with that grow room. Good job bud.

 

[Weaselcracker]

Rocketing right along JoJo. I'm glad someone finally got some use out of that ph pen reservoir idea.
About your yellowing plant- remember you did say guesses, Lol, it led me to go looking at the old sick plant charts again, partly because I sometimes see my plants getting yellowing in the foliage closest to the light and am curious about this. Someone told me it's calmag but that doesn't seem to fit... So I went and looked around again and as always- nothing conclusive. But- high ph would cause zinc deficiencies- which, it seems to me, in the early stages could look like the symptoms you have.
Hope all's well. Looking great!