Nick Hardy's Skunk Works #3 5x5 - Dissertation Grow

[NickHardy]

Drama over seeds.

The Mimosa x Orange Punch arrived in one box. The Runtz x Layer Cake in another. Different shops. One shop also delivered something else the day before.

Wasn’t clear who was delivering what.

Anyway the shop meant to deliver the Tropicanna Banana, and there’s language issues here even Thai on Thai with & Co helping not great.

“In bubble”

I assumed meant bubble wrap so went through the bins. Found bubble wrap from the earlier delivery in the bin. He said OK I’ll send again. Then something tickled my feet

Alls well that ends well - now we have his phone number anyway so he can do us better prices direct not of the Shopee platform. Just sells Barney’s Farm and Blimburn which is handy!

The @Barney's Farm Blueberry OG and Purple Punch are marked as being at the local post office so guess later today we be popping for this grow.

About time!

 

[NickHardy]

Popping this evening. We a go!

 

[NickHardy]

Can’t post the best picture as has a minor in. L and & Co did most that.

Got a couple of @Barney's Farm stickers and a pack of papers (non smoker )

We be popping for this grow.

We also labelled both the bags and cups (so so pretty cups) whilst we soaked an hour.

L is a dab hand with the spray bottle!

Nick & Fam

 

[Wastei]

Can’t post the best picture as has a minor in. L and & Co did most that.

Got a couple of @Barney's Farm stickers and a pack of papers (non smoker )

We be popping for this grow.

We also labelled both the bags and cups (so so pretty cups) whilst we soaked an hour.

L is a dab hand with the spray bottle!

Nick & Fam

Looking forward to see Runtz x Layer cake for the production and Mimosa x Orange Punch for the nice effects! I miss some really sour/orangey terps that always make you feel good!

 

[NickHardy]

Looking forward to see Runtz x Layer cake for the production and Mimosa x Orange Punch for the nice effects! I miss some really sour/orangey terps that always make you feel good!

The Mim x OP no slouch on production either! Got a 1.8m indoor girl a week out

We both like Serious Seeds but Barney’s recent almost too easy since they moved to Spain. Simon’s got some catching up to do now he’s there too!

Fuck I love Bruce Banner

 

[NickHardy]

Right now looks like, feels like 12/12 popped. The Rh looks like about 75% upstairs and popping one of these next to them.

Been testing one in the dry room and seems pretty close on accurate. Bought 4 for the cost of one Inkbird and you ever owned an iPhone? Having a SIM pokey thingy included with each one is worth the $5 cost alone! You use it to pair with wifi.

So yeah - the lad gonna be finishing the pallet, the tent it about to go up and the sparky coming to wire everything ip in a few hours.

We are locked and loaded with a dozen seeds popped above ground.

Easy like Sunday morning.

Now that’s a tune!

Nick & Co

 

[NickHardy]

The 12 to the right are for this grow.

I put the sensor there and after about two hours it reads:

Seems pretty good to me - no domes required now. Cross checked back with other temp and Rh sensors in/on the house and its about the same

Gonna do video later of our new ground floor operations for this grow but the 5x5 is up. Some HVAC and Electrical work happening later today. Behold @Mars Hydro 4x4 8x4 and 5x5 Umm go huge or go home? Actually is my home but woteva. 5x5 is multi door. So happy.

A “Truck Boot Sale” happening out my truck apparently! Thai Fam and staff making money of selling the plants I wanted culled in the true tradition of a car boot sale!

Happy days

 

[NickHardy]

This our downstairs operation. Nearly done. Watch close you'll see my sparky and hear us laugh - its a longer video that normal because the song is special to me. And appropriate for this, on this day.

The seedling tray I nearly killed myself via electrocution on. Insta karma for killing the snake 5 minutes before.

The tray for the 5x5 the lad is gonna finish cutting and add nice blue car door protector rubber like the small solo pot tray is red.

The 8x4 with the @Mars Hydro FCE4800 lights (all the tents are Mars Hydro - one of the many sponsors here)

The 4x4 You got the tiny 320w NONAME brand light for the Canuk Grow (I'll probably buy another light though - I know myself too well!) and the 16oz Solo pallet.

There is also the new beautiful purple light. People who have read know where its from. Like Dutch Pro we ain't sponsored nor get any discounts. Its just what we use.

There's the 200L tank the 100L tank - the irrigation system is getting a pipe change to Netafim pipe, that standard garden pipe with drippers isn't for us.

There's the pump maybe, shoulda zoomed on but that's a dark dank place! The blue button to switch it on. Yet another Green Wet/Dry Vacuum! We have three last count. Necessary to try and control Rh

The riser feeds the Co2 upstairs (growing mushrooms accidentally) inside, its next to the upstairs C02 tank which is on because before 8PM - the custom electrics, driver shelf and stuff. There's a home office multi plug on the floor and an Alexa on the tank just for the purposes this video I could get out of Sparkies sight! I know doesn't look safe!

Blue pipe goes upstairs and everywhere to feed the nutes where we direct it.

That's our farm.

I designed it all - like my life. Did a fuck ton of the work too, though too be fair not as much as & Co did today - those are her tiny little black wellington boots in the video Watching her in her PJ's and those organising all this - hehe - fun times. She took her Mum fishing after, caught a bunch of fish

Nick & Co - (the family, the sparky all those that made this frankly awesome setup possible within a year - which includes a lot of people reading these words, love is the way)

 

[NickHardy]

So we are on to stage #3 for this grow.

Stage #1 Pop’em
Stage #2 Peat to sprout
Stage #3 Seedling Swicks

We had a failure on a Runtz x Layer Cake. So gonna swap in probably an Ayahuasca Purple also from Barney’s

They’re back under the purple light just for the rest of the day - we need it back for the next batch of 19 for other grows this evening. Need sparky to finish up something. Some where in there are the 12 for this grow. There’s picture of a typical plant under natural light (Its a CBD Warlock for the other grow but typical of how they look)

Pretty sure its something I learned from @Bill284 maybe some others too. Like a lot of the stuff that led to the “Nick & Co Way” We stand on the shoulder's of giants - we’ve taken something here and something there, 90% of it from this site

The purple Solos are just normal. No holes or anything. We put about 8mm of perlite in the bottom and now just added some more of the 1ml/l cal mag water they’ve been in but now its Ph’d to 5.8 - peat we don’t bother.

The clear solos have slits in the bottom and holes like chopstick sized. They too have about 8mm of perlite in the bottom then coco peat. Coco Peat is far finer than Coco Coir. From a different bit of the coconut. Our apparently is buffered we found out when they started actually labelling it! Has some myco in as well apparently And 10% perlite. About 1-1.5 inches up we put another thin layer of perlite and top up with more coco, add the plant and cover the top with more perlite.

A bit of the peat will remain with them through to the day they die though. You can often see at harvest. This probably gives them a little extra nourishment now. We’ll very carefully give them a little top watering - I mean like 5ml max around the edges until the roots hit the perlite res in the coloured cup - then we just syringe down the sides into the perlite res. Then they’ll also start getting low level nutes. A/B, Root Boost some others but that’s for another post.

they’re just spending the day until the sparky finishes up this evening remaining under this purple light. We need it back for another 19 this evening They’re going under what they’ll finish in which is LED, Not sure which. Maybe the new light they’re going to grow under - test the UV there - depends if its finished. Otherwise just a 320w $100 NONAME LED - probably on 18/6 but if its 24 its fine - we’ve done that too at this stage.

Nick & Co

 

[Bill284]

Rock and Roll.
Woohoo.


Stay safe
Bill284

 

[NickHardy]

So there are the 12 girls for this grow on amongst that lot. Under a 320w NONAME (when I say NONAME I meant it - there’s no logo or anything on it!) She awesome though. Really utility. $100 $120 maybe. Anyway yeah

The light is at 65% but way high. Like 4ft maybe 5ft up.

Couldn’t be bothered to hook on the ratchet ropes, she’s hung from the steel cables/hooks the 1000w HPS was on the last grow this tent was used for.

We’ll change it a little tomorrow.

We set the dimmer and this was very much both me and & Co by eye.

Skin and eyes, its my recent big theme. I know, I know I dropped $560 on Pulse Pro and got loads of other sensors but I haven’t always. You gotta gotta learn to pay attention we’ve found.

Normally at this stage there would be like 10 or so in these SWICKs and we put them under an @Mars Hydro Hydroline 16 - it has a small LED and a water tank. We just use the light now, not the DWC function but this is way too many to fit under that So I set the light, & Co and Fam put the cups in. I thought the light was a bit low level bright but the driver is far away Nd I’m lazy to walk there

Always move your drivers out the space unless you live somewhere even colder than Bill! Safer as much as anything.

So I asked her to think about what the light level looked like to her eyes compared to the light we normally use.

Came back after - “Same light we use before, same day one in those pots - the light too low, nit as bright”

I bumped it from a shade under 50% to 65% and I reckon we’re good

Can you imagine they’re all dead in morning oh I’ll look stupid. Sorry, People the dog ate my homework!

Light seems nice and cool white at this level. Probably what we’re after. Literally did zero research buying this light. Apart from Samsung and was it cheap but not the cheapest. First light - its not a bad decision process to go through until your certain you want to do it.

Nick & Co

 

[NickHardy]

OK - I do always check.

Walking in there to double, triple check the lights it feels drier in there than the house. Mildly surprised, ist so low but there’s a 6” Inline on full chat.

I switched off one of the clip fans. Its a bit fierce. Doesn’t have speed control right now.

Any its this in here

I’m certain how accurate that is. Think its lower than 77%

They have come from here:

That seems right its 81% on my desk and 96% on the roof weather station.

Anyway if its that I’m fine - I don’t want it any lower than 75% right now.

They are all like visually about 1cm taller than the photos earlier.

They’re now on the timer, 18/6 so 3 more hours light and I’ll go check them at 8am.

Or before one more time, nothing beats eyes on and there’s an awful lot of potential candy in there!

Nick & Co

 

[NickHardy]

Well yay, that’s one of the two timer banks with their fancy magnetic things confirmed working (actually this one #2 has always been fine.

Lights were on, on time.

The seedlings? Yeah managed not to kill them overnight, we’re ok.

How did we do on the light? Well we did just fine with our eyes. Below it shows we found our way to 231 PPFD

100-300 is generally held to be best for seedlings so we did pretty much middle. They don’t have much more to eat other than the leftover peat and a bit of Cal Mag right now so I’m happy there.

We’ll get some light A/B mixed up later today and then likely tickle the light level up tomorrow.

Sensor is working, its drier in there on the skin than it is outside the tent which isn’t ideal. I’d like nothing less than 75% now and 85% is just dandy. With this - I know the normal Rh and temp here, my skin tells me EDIT what a normal day is here, put my bare arm in the tent, is it higher or lower than outside the tent and how does that equate to what I want. So I opened the tent vents a little.

Here’s an hour ago. Its weirdly low Rh today by like 5% down. Changing seasons

You see the bump down as the light came on and started burning off the moisture. See how we go. If its still so dry later I’ll a little desktop humidifier in there or maybe just chuck some water on the tray. That’ll learn them.

Nick

 

[NickHardy]

Meh still dry for me in there.

Added some extra water in the tray. Rh always ticks up over night even without lights off (the sun goes off too right!)

The sun that drives the humid air up into what become clouds in the tropics and dump rain on London or New York.

They all look fine still. Not so much pop as yesterday. That’s OK. We charged the res of each and trickled a little Cal Mag solution around the stems. A few days to get them roots down but we do want the wick effect come up to meet them.

Nick

 

[NickHardy]

Its not dry in there anymore!

I just watered my own plants for the first time in gosh! Two weeks?

My golly the tank was already at Ph 5.8. Frankly that’s impossible. Even I don’t run that good. It generally comes out at 6.5, Ph Down is just temporary. You can’t fundamentally change it. That’s fine in coco when you’re watering to run off. Soil will generally buffer it is my understanding but we don’t grow big in soil. This is coco/hydro grow. Generally if we’re watering at 11am and 6pm in flower the Ph’d to 5.8 water will be 6.2-6.5 by 6pm. Ticks back up.

Makes me think my BlueLab Ph tester is out to be honest. So recalibration tomorrow. Well overdue too

Turned the lights up a little this morning.

Its been 34c and 88% all day on the street and house. Probably higher in the tent. That’s ok.

You’ll see from the photos they’re all OK (bar the one that was dead already but & Co has hope! She has lots of faith, (probably has to be being married to me )

Anyway seems like anything with two sets of “true” leaves has nearly hit the perlite res already. They’ve all emotied them in 24 hours but that’s water pressure and humidity. Tomorrow 19 more joining them and these will go on an A/B Veg mix.

Doing them myself - because. Because I did first in this house and, wow, I owe & Co. Watering this evening I realised I’d forgotten a little of the love I have for just growing plants.

Seedlings and Strawberry AK - its a powerful mix

Nick & Co (Newly Minted Grandparents)

 

[NickHardy]

Skin and eyes pretty good.

Feels wetter than that to me.

I mean I’m someone writing on the internet. I might be a complete fraud! But I did only just check after my last post.

 

[InTheShed]

Don't skin-test the RH right out of the sauna.

Also, congratulations Grandpa Nick!

 

[NickHardy]

Don't skin-test the RH right out of the sauna.

Also, congratulations Grandpa Nick!

 

[NickHardy]

So this grow is mixed in with our main grow. They’re 10 days since they popped and went in dirt. They’re ready for their first nutes. They are noticeably lighter now than the 18 next to them. Makes me think the potting soil is done, and just light cal-mag isn’t enough.
So bumping the CM up a touch
Then:

A/B Veg - just below the Dutch Pro suggested range
Root Boost
Total
Keep it Clean

All to Ph 5.8

Should perk them up!

Nick

 

[NickHardy]

I gave then a “goodnight” check a couple of hours ago - another 2 hours until 2am and lights out on 18/6

The node spacing is a little tight on some but we have younger ones also just behind like a week earlier now on same nutes. Those 18 are too many and I want them matched to these because its gonna make it easier with some being Co2 assisted and some not and only two tanks. We’re essentially gonna be running 4 grows in 4 places totalling 60+ plants in 4 different sized pots. I kill some the younger babies, meh.

So leaving them over night, some more green for sure, already. Probs late with the nutes a day or two.

Tomorrow the light gets bumped too if they haven’t shown a little vertical growth. I need a little stretch now please! But I shifted the light way off to the left to focus it more on the slightly older batch. It was hung close dead centre before. Easy way to compensate a little.

Took about 10 seconds because we have the driver outside the tent on an ultra long cable having replaced the original. Heat is not a problem to provide for us. But yeah even a cold place a big electric box in a fabric tent with humidity encouraged at times just seems like an unsafe idea.

Connectors and crap.


Nick