Tom420 White Widow & Northern Lights #5 x Haze Scrog In Coco 2017

[tom420]

Oops ... I miscalculated the age of my girls They are actually 67 days from seed / 24 in flower. Not that it matters too much

 

[Pennywise]

Looking super Tom, getting some nice frost going now! .

 

[tom420]

Thanks Pennywise!
Yes, I'm hoping for a white Christmas this year! See pic below - taken today.

Btw, I was just gonna ask you about your stance on back building. But guess what? I've use a search functionality ha ha Searched for back building with you as an author and now I know. Thanks to you I went through Light Addict's thread. I may try it but from what I've read I should still wait a bit - a week for WW and two/three for NL5xH I guess. My WW has still at around 5 weeks to harvest, and NL5xH has perhaps 7.

Northern Lights #5 x Haze getting ready for white Christmas

 

[tom420]

Soooo .... 75 days from seed / 32 days in flower ...

The stretch is definitely over for both girls. During the last 7 days each of them grew only 1,5 cm (little over half an inch). They still continue to grow at this slow rate but it would be a stretch to call it a stretch ha ha.

So it looks the stretch period for them was the same - little over 3 weeks since 12/12. It's just that Northern Lights #5 x Haze grew a bit more in that period. NL5xH now stands something like 6-10 cm taller than WW. Not too bad.

So now I'm on the lookout for some nice bud development. I am taking photos of some colas each day to see in a week or so if buds are getting bigger. I take these photos just when the lights go off - I am sick of LED lighting spoiling the pictures and prefer to use the flash. I hope my girls will not mind these few flashes immediately after lights go off and will not hermie or anything!

White Widow shows some tip burn on two colas (out of perhaps 35 - 40). At the same time I can see rusty spots like Ca def on the same colas. What gives? Should I give more Ca/Mg while at the same time bring EC down by limiting base nutes? Well, I did just that and I'll see if it spreads to other colas or stays put.

Right now my feed is about 1,0 EC. Or, to be more specific:
I start with RO water which in my case is ca. 20 ppm (500 conversion).
I bring it up to 180 ppm with Ca and Mg.
Then up to 390 ppm with Canna Coco A+B.
And to 500 ppm with PK13/14 (that is about half of Canna recommended PK dose)
A bit of Rhizotonic, Cannazym, Boost and Drip Clean add another 20ppm.
Total: 520 ppm / 1,04 EC

One last thing - I find it hard to stay out of the grow room and just do nothing! Now that there is no need to weave the branches through the scrog screen, no need to defoliate anymore. I wish I could do SOMETHING! So the only thing I AM doing is to measure them every day. Doing that I have to get my measuring tape down to the scrog net and my hand touches the girls a bit - I know I'm not supposed to touch them too much. But let me tell you - the smell that stays on my hands after that is just SOOOOOO AMAZING! I cannot get enough of this scent! I absolutely love it! It's fruity, like pineapple and citrus perhaps. If you know Creed Aventus perfume - it's sort of that kind of smell.

Today, the White Widow - looks like any more resin and it will begin to drip

 

[tom420]

Happy New Year everyone!
I've been neglecting this journal for far too long. But year end is always super-busy for me.
I have had a few issues with my girls and one accident during those weeks since last post But they are still alive and approaching harvest.
I will update soon with some pictures and more details.

 

[Pennywise]

Good to see you back Tom.

 

[SamSmith]

Happy New Year everyone!
I've been neglecting this journal for far too long. But year end is always super-busy for me.
I have had a few issues with my girls and one accident during those weeks since last post But they are still alive and approaching harvest.
I will update soon with some pictures and more details.

Looking forward to some more pics. NL 5 x haze is on my list.

 

[tom420]

Hi 420 growers!

Hi PW, good to be back!
Hi Sam ... and as if on cue, some pictures are below, and more are coming in the next post

So here goes the update I mentioned in my previous post ...

So today is day 101 from seed / 57 from 12/12 (8 weeks in flower).
It's been some 3,5 weeks since my last update. Girls are still alive so that's good news
During those three weeks I didn't do much - basically just watched them grow.

I'm still cleaning my res every god damn day to avoid any unwelcome microbes/fungi/algae in there and I think it works pretty OK. Also, perhaps thanks to this everyday cleaning and Drip Clean, my drip lines are not clogging at all.

Ever since I started feeding them 6x a day I have started to see EC buildup in my runoff. I would feed them at 1.0 EC and runoff would be 1.4 EC for White Widow and 1.8 for NL5xHaze. So I have been lowering the feed gradually and having plenty of runoff. Right now I am feeding them just 0.6 EC and my runoff is ca. 0.8. Still higher than feed so I'm guessing they are not starving.

I have just run out of PK/13/14 and Rhizo 3 days ago and my Boost bottle ended yesterday. I would perhaps continue with Boost but I would need to drive 200km to buy it so I'm not going to bother

Below are comparative shots of the same colas from both WW and NL5xH taken on 14 December and yesterday, 8th January so you can see how they have developed over those 3,5 weeks. They could be bigger I guess but no complaints here - I like them as they are. They are my babies after all

Northern Lights #5 x Haze:

White Widow:

 

[SamSmith]

Damn those are pretty. They fattened up nice in the last month. Thanks for the update.

 

[tom420]

Continuing with the updates after being absent for so long ...

I've mentioned I have run into some problems in my grow.
Two things. Here we go ...

First issue was that a few weeks ago I started to see rusty spots on few colas of the White Widow - on the small sugar leaves. They looked like Ca/Mg deficiency, however from all the reading I've done, those macro deficiencies usually start on lower leaves since all those macros are mobile. The colas affected were only the tallest ones in the middle, right below the light. And even those were only affected at the very top, lower buds on the same branches were absolutely fine. Also, some leaf edges were curling up. So I have concluded that it must be the light. I have raised it few inches and that's that. Of course, those rusty leaves never recovered but the problem didn't spread either. So unfortunately my biggest White Widow buds will not be the prettiest :-( Check the picture below to see what I mean. Oh well, lesson learned - next time - keep these COBs higher! If that even was what caused the problem in the first place - I'm still not sure. But this far into flowering I'm not going to do anything else about it.

Second problem was more of an accident. I'm so pissed at myself!!! You can't imagine.
So as the girls were ripening the smell was getting really strong! I have a sizable carbon filter (400m3/h) so why the smelly issue? Well, that filter is almost 1 year old and was used already in my previous grow. Additionally, my high humidity this time (65%) didn't help either. I am venting the hot humid air from the tent to the outside of the house - into my garden, and smell was more and more noticeable day by day. Finally wifey started to complain and was worried that neighbors might notice. I had a smaller filter (200m3/h) laying around - brand new. Didn't use it as it was too small, but perhaps better that then the smelly old one. I decided to install it. And clumsy me, I cut the tie wraps holding the old filter and it SLIPPED OUT OF MY HANDS!!! It fell heavily on Northern Lights x Haze completely breaking few colas and bending quite few others. And it was a huge mf that filter! It was all sticky from all the trichomes it destroyed. Oh, I was so pissed!

Well, I removed those few broken colas and I am drying them in a paper bag now. Will cure them for a week too and try to vape them. They were some 4 weeks from being ready so I don't know if they will have any potency. And even if so, they will perhaps give me paranoia or something being all clear and no milky ha ha Well, we'll see.
I have tied the bent colas with some strings and all in all, if I compare top view pictures from before and after the accident I don't see that much difference in the Northern Lights x Haze section Could have been worse I guess.

That's it for today.
Next update I'm gonna ask your opinion on my plants readiness for harvest! So stay tuned because I need your input!

Cheers!

Rusty sugar leaves on White Widow bud. Doesn't look good, but it is how it is:

 

[Pennywise]

Still looks fine Tom just a tiny cosmetic issue, the leaf curl suggests light/heat stress so I think you called it correctly.

 

[tom420]

Thanks PW, good to hear!
However during the last couple of days White Widow is showing all sort of colors on her leaves! Perhaps she like a tree in fall - getting ready to shed her leaves and be done with this season. I'll post a picture later.

 

[bignugz420]

Hi 420 growers!

Hi PW, good to be back!
Hi Sam ... and as if on cue, some pictures are below, and more are coming in the next post

So here goes the update I mentioned in my previous post ...

So today is day 101 from seed / 57 from 12/12 (8 weeks in flower).
It's been some 3,5 weeks since my last update. Girls are still alive so that's good news
During those three weeks I didn't do much - basically just watched them grow.

I'm still cleaning my res every god damn day to avoid any unwelcome microbes/fungi/algae in there and I think it works pretty OK. Also, perhaps thanks to this everyday cleaning and Drip Clean, my drip lines are not clogging at all.

Ever since I started feeding them 6x a day I have started to see EC buildup in my runoff. I would feed them at 1.0 EC and runoff would be 1.4 EC for White Widow and 1.8 for NL5xHaze. So I have been lowering the feed gradually and having plenty of runoff. Right now I am feeding them just 0.6 EC and my runoff is ca. 0.8. Still higher than feed so I'm guessing they are not starving.

I have just run out of PK/13/14 and Rhizo 3 days ago and my Boost bottle ended yesterday. I would perhaps continue with Boost but I would need to drive 200km to buy it so I'm not going to bother

Below are comparative shots of the same colas from both WW and NL5xH taken on 14 December and yesterday, 8th January so you can see how they have developed over those 3,5 weeks. They could be bigger I guess but no complaints here - I like them as they are. They are my babies after all

Northern Lights #5 x Haze:

White Widow:

I love the comparison shots great job, what kind of COB unit do you run, I just got a Amare SE 450, it's a great light but lux isn't as high as my PS GOLIATH, OR CMH, AND CMH is lower watts 360 true and Amare is 440 true so I haven't put it up yet I think I'll us it along with GROWant 400 g4 pro series for extra supplement lights

 

[tom420]

And now the big question: ARE THEY READY?

Ok, I've heard the rule that if you think they are ready wait another week - fine with me.
I've also heard a rule that nothing is ready before 60 days, no matter what your breeder says - that's ok too, they are 61 days in flower as of today, ha ha

And what does my breeder say?
Well they (Sensi and White Label) state that flowering times are:
- White Widow: 50 - 65 days
- Northern Lights #5 x Haze: 60 - 75 days

Recently I came across a thread from 2011 over at the city (When to harvest to maximize THC | Grasscity Forums) where Gardenmaster grew a 70 days strain, harvested at 60, 65, 70, 75, 80 and 85 days and gave samples for THC/CBD/CBN analysis. He also made notes on pistils state and trichomes color ratios (clear/cloudy/amber). Of course it was just one grow so it's not like it's some extensive scientific study but an interesting read nonetheless. Check the original thread for the details. Here I just wanted to post a graph that summarizes the results:

Interesting how harvesting a little early didn't really do any harm, as opposed to late harvest with considerably reduced THC. This makes me think that perhaps I should err on the side on harvesting a little early rather than risk losing THC.

According to my seeds' labels White Widow (50-65 days) should really be ready at 61 days today.
And NL5xHaze (60-75 days) should be entering a ready phase just about now.

I am considering harvesting next weekend.
Below are some pics of buds and trichomes of both plants. It looks to me that pistils are mostly red/brown on both girls, like perhaps 90% on NLxHaze and 70% on White Widow. I still see quite some number of clear trichs but in that thread I mentioned, peak THC was with 40-60% clear trichs.

So anyway, check the photos and let me know what you think.

Northern Lights #5 x Haze:

White Widow:

And here is one little NL5xHaze bud from a broken branch from that filter drop accident 10 days ago. It's been drying slowly in a paper bag. I didn't even trimm it - just thrown in the bag and let it dry. I thought I'd throw that picture in here as well, just for the sake of it Not that it would influence the harvest time in any way.

 

[tom420]

Hi bignugz420! Thanks! Glad to hear you like those pics!

Quite an arsenal of lights you've got there bignugz!
I just googled it (well actually duckduckgo'ed it ) and have to say that Amare looks rather impressive!
However I'm not an expert on grow lights at all

As for my COBs, I have two lights:
- Citizen COB CLU048-1818C4 with few supplemental red Crees - 128 watts draw
- 3x Citizen COB CLU04H-85/200-PRB that I built myself - 230 watts draw
And I also have Mars Hydro Reflector 96 (not COB leds).

I have built that 3x Citizen COB one myself only because it was just pure fun to learn all that stuff about voltage, current, leds, electrical circuits, watts, drivers and what not. Well, actually not only it was fun but it was a lot cheaper too But I tell you, when I was about to power it on for the first time I was wondering if I would blow the whole house up or just electrocute myself. Lucky me, none of these things happened. It just worked

Below is a picture of it. I used a lot of tie wraps, computer fan and even some cardboard (on top of the heatsink) - the light looks very rough and DIY but I absolutely love it! The COBs are 200 watts max each - so in theory I could drive the whole thing at 600 watts. But I settled to drive them softly - at some 75 watts each (ca 230 watts total) - they will live longer and have better efficiency. And anyway, 600watts would fry my girls in no time

 

[bignugz420]

And now the big question: ARE THEY READY?

Ok, I've heard the rule that if you think they are ready wait another week - fine with me.
I've also heard a rule that nothing is ready before 60 days, no matter what your breeder says - that's ok too, they are 61 days in flower as of today, ha ha

And what does my breeder say?
Well they (Sensi and White Label) state that flowering times are:
- White Widow: 50 - 65 days
- Northern Lights #5 x Haze: 60 - 75 days

Recently I came across a thread from 2011 over at the city (When to harvest to maximize THC | Grasscity Forums) where Gardenmaster grew a 70 days strain, harvested at 60, 65, 70, 75, 80 and 85 days and gave samples for THC/CBD/CBN analysis. He also made notes on pistils state and trichomes color ratios (clear/cloudy/amber). Of course it was just one grow so it's not like it's some extensive scientific study but an interesting read nonetheless. Check the original thread for the details. Here I just wanted to post a graph that summarizes the results:

Interesting how harvesting a little early didn't really do any harm, as opposed to late harvest with considerably reduced THC. This makes me think that perhaps I should err on the side on harvesting a little early rather than risk losing THC.

According to my seeds' labels White Widow (50-65 days) should really be ready at 61 days today.
And NL5xHaze (60-75 days) should be entering a ready phase just about now.

I am considering harvesting next weekend.
Below are some pics of buds and trichomes of both plants. It looks to me that pistils are mostly red/brown on both girls, like perhaps 90% on NLxHaze and 70% on White Widow. I still see quite some number of clear trichs but in that thread I mentioned, peak THC was with 40-60% clear trichs.

So anyway, check the photos and let me know what you think.

Northern Lights #5 x Haze:

White Widow:

And here is one little NL5xHaze bud from a broken branch from that filter drop accident 10 days ago. It's been drying slowly in a paper bag. I didn't even trimm it - just thrown in the bag and let it dry. I thought I'd throw that picture in here as well, just for the sake of it Not that it would influence the harvest time in any way.

Your trichs are still a little clear to my thoughts but idk everyone is gonna give you a different opinions

 

[bignugz420]

Hi bignugz420! Thanks! Glad to hear you like those pics!

Quite an arsenal of lights you've got there bignugz!
I just googled it (well actually duckduckgo'ed it ) and have to say that Amare looks rather impressive!
However I'm not an expert on grow lights at all

As for my COBs, I have two lights:
- Citizen COB CLU048-1818C4 with few supplemental red Crees - 128 watts draw
- 3x Citizen COB CLU04H-85/200-PRB that I built myself - 230 watts draw
And I also have Mars Hydro Reflector 96 (not COB leds).

I have built that 3x Citizen COB one myself only because it was just pure fun to learn all that stuff about voltage, current, leds, electrical circuits, watts, drivers and what not. Well, actually not only it was fun but it was a lot cheaper too But I tell you, when I was about to power it on for the first time I was wondering if I would blow the whole house up or just electrocute myself. Lucky me, none of these things happened. It just worked

Below is a picture of it. I used a lot of tie wraps, computer fan and even some cardboard (on top of the heatsink) - the light looks very rough and DIY but I absolutely love it! The COBs are 200 watts max each - so in theory I could drive the whole thing at 600 watts. But I settled to drive them softly - at some 75 watts each (ca 230 watts total) - they will live longer and have better efficiency. And anyway, 600watts would fry my girls in no time

That light is dope how much with all parts and time consumed? I got a ton of lights some that haven't been used in over 8 months, but I am one day gonna be in a HUGE warehouse and need everything I have I power them up just so ballest or diodes don't die from non usage

 

[Pennywise]

Sativas seem to be better with clear and cloudy mixed.

 

[tom420]

Hey PW and bignugz, thanks for the input. I guess harvest is near Now I just need to find a day when I can spend few hours trimming and that's that - I'm gonna chop 'em down. But I will give them some 68-70 hour dark period before as I'm convienced by arguments on THC production.

And bignugz ... here's my shopping list for COB light:
- 3x CITIZEN 200 watts COB - $30 each
- MEANWELL 240 watts - $65
- 3x 90 deg reflector - $10 each
- 3x LED holder/connector - $2 each
- Any computer fan - $10
- Heatsink - $20

ca $230 total.

Plus perhaps another 10-15 for cables, connectors, etc., but you can brutalize some old equipment to get those. Like to power the fan I used a 12V power supply from an old router I had laying around.

I checked just now and could not find the COBs I used on eBay, but you could always go with Citizen CLU056 or Crees. I bought horticulture ones but it's all the same. And actually I made a mistake - I wanted ones marked PW (Plant White) and not PRB (Plant RB) but clicked the wrong button when ordering. Didn't want to bother returning them. For plants they are absolutely perfect, but no good for photography and this creepy violet light is really annoying.

Making this light took perhaps 2 - 3 hours. However planning and researching took days I didn't know anything about what voltage and current the driver should provide, serial/parallel circuits, how to match the power, where is the sweet spot for efficiency, active/passive heat control, etc. But when you know these things is dead easy to match COBs and the driver and put it all together.

 

[Pennywise]

Nice looking cobs