The method of watering will not mess up the roots. We just need to decide on the best way to handle what is going on. I would keep them in veg until they recover and hopefully by then you will have a plan in mind for the flower room. I am not a DWC guy nor have I done a flow n grow, I do grow in rock wool, but I use the little crutons for a medium not a solid block. In your flower room if the rock wool is constantly in water an never gets a chance to dry that is what the majority of your issue is. The rock wool needs to dry out. You can top feed them with as much water as you want at a time, the rock wool only holds so much water the rest can just flow back into your res buckets. But you need to let the rocknwool dry out somewhat before watering it again. Thats why I suggested a DWC/top feed hybrid. You may be able to let the roots grow out of the bottom of the pot into your buckets, but you need a way to keep the rock wool from sitting in the water. Even at that, the roots may wick enough water to keep the rock wool wet. That way you will not need to cut up the cube and your roots and you may be able to flower sooner as you wont have to wait for the root system to recover. I would try it with one plant first myself. Try a couple of different things in your flower room to let the rock wool dry out and see how the plant does. Otherwise your going to be looking at cutting up that cube.
2 days into flowering and this! Hydro
DRM Ranch
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I started that plant in a jiffy plug, then a 3"x3"x2.5" RW cube, then #1 pot, then #3 pot (pictured root mass), then a #5 pot.
The small cubes are grodan cubes, each is about the size of a crouton.
I water top down, not bottom up like a flood and drain table.
The small cubes are grodan cubes, each is about the size of a crouton.
I water top down, not bottom up like a flood and drain table.
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- #44
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- #45
The Rockwool in the flower room isn't sitting in water, it just stays soaked after the flood water touches the bottom couple inches of it. Not sure if that changes anything. So you're saying top water if needed until the end?
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- #46
DRM Ranch
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I would keep the rock wool cube out of any standing water for any time beyond that needed to water/feed.
pH to 5.8-5.9 if your pH stays stable, 5.6-5.7 if your pH trends up enough to get into the 5.8-5.9 range, or 6.0-6.1 if your pH falls between waterings. Basically you want the pH to be in the 5.8-5.9 zone as long as possible.
Top down watering helps flush the rockwool of unused salts, so long as those salts have a place to go, standing water is not an option. For top down watering to be effective in this way you need to water with at least 3 times the volume of the container, its similar to flushing but your doing it with your regular nutrients. It works just as well.
Out of curiosity is the wrapping removed from the cubes when you put them in the hydroton? They dry out much faster without the wrapper.
pH to 5.8-5.9 if your pH stays stable, 5.6-5.7 if your pH trends up enough to get into the 5.8-5.9 range, or 6.0-6.1 if your pH falls between waterings. Basically you want the pH to be in the 5.8-5.9 zone as long as possible.
Top down watering helps flush the rockwool of unused salts, so long as those salts have a place to go, standing water is not an option. For top down watering to be effective in this way you need to water with at least 3 times the volume of the container, its similar to flushing but your doing it with your regular nutrients. It works just as well.
Out of curiosity is the wrapping removed from the cubes when you put them in the hydroton? They dry out much faster without the wrapper.
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Yes, pot sizes are standard nursery 1 gallon (#1), 3 gallon (#3) etc. Most nursery pots have this # sizing.
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- #49
The wrapping is temoved. We followed the instruction on the wrapper about soaking the cubes in nute water for 24 hours prior to use. Can we use the flower n grow sites and top water followed by pumping the water back out and up into the rez?
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I would think that is an option. how often was the flo and gro watering initially??
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- #52
I had it set to water once daily and 15 minutes was my smallest incriment. So it would fill till full then sit till 15 min was up and then it was supposed to pimp back into the rez. I'm thinking now that it is possible that the first day in flower the pump that is supposed to go back into the rez didn't kick. Causing water to sit. Thoughts? Also what does double post mean?
Thanks
Thanks
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- #53
double post was just the same post twice in a row, forget about that. The important thing is to find out if that water drained back to the res. If it did not then you may be able to just continue on the way you are, as long as that rock wool is given a chance to dry out. I would think that it does not matter if you water from the top or not, as that cube should wick the water to saturation point. Again, i am in rock wool crutons and I water twice a day for 15 mins at a time. Letting it dry out is the key part here.
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- #55
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- #56
Don't mind the chiller sitting at 70. had just turned it on. The one is about dead, and we have one that never really grew up. It is our first grow! This is veg tent. Everyone is hanging out and the roots that were sitting in the little bit of water are white and the other roots have started to brown. We are thinking no matte what we need air stones in each site in the basement. thoughts? Sidenote: Our water chiller/pump held some strong nutrient solution in it which caused it to blow nastiness out into my 50 gallons of clean RO water. Now i get to clean it out again. YAY! Thoughts on everything? Still not sure exactly how we want to water in the basement. We may try a few things.
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- #57
Also, We have been in what i would assume to be size #4 because 4 gallons since day one. Plan on never having to transplant in general? does this sound like a solid plan? and for future planting, might we take the route of smaller cubes surrounded by a mix of hydroton and the rockwool pieces?
Thanks all!!
Thanks all!!
DRM Ranch
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The differing media (rockwool and hydroton) have very different dry and water cycles. Rockwool at best might need twice a day watering, where I can see hydroton needing many flood and drain cycles to work optimally.
In the future I'd go either all rockwool or all hydroton and water/feed as per the media needs.
It looks like your roots are struggling a bit due in part to being exposed (air pruning).
I think a big part of the issue here is the dual media. I'd replace the hydroton with rockwool cubes or chunks. The root loss is going to slow the plant for a week or two, but they would catch up if you tried it.
In the future I'd go either all rockwool or all hydroton and water/feed as per the media needs.
It looks like your roots are struggling a bit due in part to being exposed (air pruning).
I think a big part of the issue here is the dual media. I'd replace the hydroton with rockwool cubes or chunks. The root loss is going to slow the plant for a week or two, but they would catch up if you tried it.
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- #59
DRM Ranch
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I'm looking at flowering in nothing less than a #7 container. I believe there is a direct correlation between root mass and ultimate production.
Root mass directly impacts watering/feeding schedule and quantity.
Progressive up sizing of the containers allows the roots to saturate the media evenly. I imagine they would not do the same in a very large from the start container but I have little to support this opinion so take it with a grain of salt.
As for a #4 pot size going all the way through flower, that depends on how long you veg for and how large the root mass wants to be by the time you take the plants down, I'd want to avoid restricting the plant because I didn't want to up size the container, seems like false economy to my eyes.
My plants need to move from a #5 pot to a #7 pot at 10 weeks of veg, that much I know for a fact.
Root mass directly impacts watering/feeding schedule and quantity.
Progressive up sizing of the containers allows the roots to saturate the media evenly. I imagine they would not do the same in a very large from the start container but I have little to support this opinion so take it with a grain of salt.
As for a #4 pot size going all the way through flower, that depends on how long you veg for and how large the root mass wants to be by the time you take the plants down, I'd want to avoid restricting the plant because I didn't want to up size the container, seems like false economy to my eyes.
My plants need to move from a #5 pot to a #7 pot at 10 weeks of veg, that much I know for a fact.
