Autopot/Airdome - Great White Shark/White Rhino

[jimbobdaz]

Hi All, This grow is in week 3 at the time of posting... not sure how many people here have experience with autopots, this is my first time so any tips will be appreciated ,so far so good!

Grow medium- Soil (standard potting soil) 50% perlite around airdome/20% above
Pots- 6x 15ltr Autopots with Airdomes
Lights- 2x 4 bulb T5`s / 2x Omega Lighting 600w MH (blue spectrum) in air cooled silverstar hoods
Light Cycle- 24hr
Nutes- Oldtimer
Plants- Grown from feminised seed... 3x GWS (Super Skunk x Brazilian x South Indian) / 3x WR (Afghan, Brazilian and South Indian)

 

[VictorVonDoom]

Nice set up

 

[jimbobdaz]

Cheers Victor... it's only my 3rd grow with this tent (first 2 didn't do very well) , have doubled up the lights and used better bulbs this time, with the autopots and airdomes I'm hoping for a better result this time

 

[VictorVonDoom]

What was the problem on the fist 2 can I ask?

Also I don't think you need to be running your lights 24/7, 18/6 is better for the plant and for you pocket in my opinion.
The plant actually benefits from darkness.

Also what are auto pot's? are they a form of hydroponics?
I'm a soil grower you see, but I know some experienced people who know about/use hydro and dwc systems, who I can link you to.

Let me know if you have any questions and I will do my best to point you in the right direction

 

[jimbobdaz]

What was the problem on the fist 2 can I ask?

Also I don't think you need to be running your lights 24/7, 18/6 is better for the plant and for you pocket in my opinion.
The plant actually benefits from darkness.

Also what are auto pot's? are they a form of hydroponics?
I'm a soil grower you see, but I know some experienced people who know about/use hydro and dwc systems, who I can link you to.

Let me know if you have any questions and I will do my best to point you in the right direction

I did try the lights 18/6 on the first grow but had better results with 24 on the second... i might have jumped the gun a bit by assuming it was the lights, there where so many other factors like under/overwatering, water ph, nutrients, temp, humidity etc... i used rain water on the first seedlings which was a compete disaster ,anyway...i am keeping better records now lol
The autopots are not hydroponics... just a gravity powered watering system, perfect for lazy growers like me and it means i can go away for a few days

[video=youtube;3d31y2uw8eI]

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[video=youtube;9v34PDauF9Q]

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[jimbobdaz]

Btw... the back three are the Great White Shark and the front White Rhino

 

[VictorVonDoom]

I did try the lights 18/6 on the first grow but had better results with 24 on the second... i might have jumped the gun a bit by assuming it was the lights, there where so many other factors like under/overwatering, water ph, nutrients, temp, humidity etc... i used rain water on the first seedlings which was a compete disaster ,anyway...i am keeping better records now lol
The autopots are not hydroponics... just a gravity powered watering system, perfect for lazy growers like me and it means i can go away for a few days

I get what your using now, didn't realise it was called that.

Yeah there are a lot of factors to go wrong, but the community here will be able to get you on track.

Ok I really don't think it's would be the lights on 18/6 that would have a negative effect on your plant.

Also rain water is usually really good for plants, compared to tap water.
What water do you now use? Do you PH your water?

What problems did you have with your last plant? Leaf discolouration? Leaf curling? Stunted growth? Mould problems? Etc

Everything is looking good so far, what have you done different?

Apologies for all the questions just trying to understand what's happening, it's easier to help that way.

 

[jimbobdaz]

I get what your using now, didn't realise it was called that.

Yeah there are a lot of factors to go wrong, but the community here will be able to get you on track.

Ok I really don't think it's would be the lights on 18/6 that would have a negative effect on your plant.

I think i will go back to 18/6 for the next grow

Also rain water is usually really good for plants, compared to tap water.
What water do you now use? Do you PH your water?

The rain water here is slightly acidic so i thought it would be good... maybe there was something else in the water?, moved to tap water and had better results. Yes i ph the water, normaly its neutral so i lower it to around 6

What problems did you have with your last plant? Leaf discolouration? Leaf curling? Stunted growth? Mould problems? Etc

Some yellowing and curling down of the leaves but nothing too major... no mould but the plants never grew very high (i`ll see if i have any pics somewhere)

Everything is looking good so far, what have you done different?

Apologies for all the questions just trying to understand what's happening, it's easier to help that way.

I have changed the brand of potting soil, one that i use in the garden (erin) ,changed bulbs from dual spectrum hid`s to blue spectrum mh and doubled them up, i was using an organic seaweed based fert with vitalink bloom buddy... changed to oldtimer.
don`t worry about firing the questions at me, it makes me realize how much i need to keep a log of everything i do

 

[VictorVonDoom]

I wish I knew how to add quotes like that makes it really easy to read.

Ok, just so you know it's possible to change you light cycle from 24/7 to 16/8 any time during veg growth

Right I get you, the only thing with tap water is there's stuff in it you don't want, to get around this I would advise you fill up some containers with water, let the sit for 24hours min without a lid on or being covered. This will help to get rid of unwanted nastys. You could also boil water and let it cool down but that can get expensive, but good if you need the water fast.

Are you adding liquid neuts as well?

Was the leaf yellowing toward the end of the grow near harvest? This is normal

What are your temps with lights on?

Ill put a comment on my journal, and get some people to come give you some good info.

I'm only on my 1st grow so I don't know very much.

 

[VictorVonDoom]

Also you might wanna add you grow journal as a link in you signature, makes people aware you have a journal then people will follow

Here's a good how to guide

How To Add Links To Signatures

 

[KingJohnC]

subscribed. I use 18/6 18 hours of light and 6 hours of darkness for vegetative growth. I read a thread on light schedule versus root length and plants grown under 16/8 grew the longest roots, 18/6 was not tested. I was made aware of a study on lighting schedule versus root length and plants given at least 5.5 hours of darkness grew the most.

 

[jimbobdaz]

I wish I knew how to add quotes like that makes it really easy to read.

its pretty easy... just reply with quote, then all i do is copy the start and end quote code around each comment i want to separately reply to (there is probably an easier way to do it but it works for me atm)

Ok, just so you know it's possible to change you light cycle from 24/7 to 16/8 any time during veg growth

Right I get you, the only thing with tap water is there's stuff in it you don't want, to get around this I would advise you fill up some containers with water, let the sit for 24hours min without a lid on or being covered. This will help to get rid of unwanted nastys. You could also boil water and let it cool down but that can get expensive, but good if you need the water fast.

Are you adding liquid neuts as well?

Was the leaf yellowing toward the end of the grow near harvest? This is normal

What are your temps with lights on?

Ill put a comment on my journal, and get some people to come give you some good info.

I'm only on my 1st grow so I don't know very much.

ah ok... i might change the lights tonight then, i was worried that it might effect them, the leaves where yellowing about halfway through the veg stage (nute deficiency?) , this time the temps are around 27/28c although the humidity is fairly low... 30-40% ,i`m adding the minimum amount of nutes at the mo

Also you might wanna add you grow journal as a link in you signature, makes people aware you have a journal then people will follow

Here's a good how to guide

How To Add Links To Signatures

subscribed. I use 18/6 18 hours of light and 6 hours of darkness for vegetative growth. I read a thread on light schedule versus root length and plants grown under 16/8 grew the longest roots, 18/6 was not tested. I was made aware of a study on lighting schedule versus root length and plants given at least 5.5 hours of darkness grew the most.

Hi and thanks KingJohn, i remember reading about the light cycle effect on root growth... will look back into it

 

[VictorVonDoom]

its pretty easy... just reply with quote, then all i do is copy the start and end quote code around each comment i want to separately reply to (there is probably an easier way to do it but it works for me atm)

Nice one, we will have to see if it works

ah ok... i might change the lights tonight then, i was worried that it might effect them, the leaves where yellowing about halfway through the veg stage (nute deficiency?) , this time the temps are around 27/28c although the humidity is fairly low... 30-40% ,i`m adding the minimum amount of nutes at the mo

temps sound good, are you taking the temps from canopy level?
humidity should be ok
do you have nutrients in your soil?
How old are the plants? i'm gonna guess about 4 weeks?
I think that is a good idea to give them minimal nutrients too, have you got a feeding schedule for them?

 

[jimbobdaz]

Nice one, we will have to see if it works

temps sound good, are you taking the temps from canopy level?

Temps were taken from just below canopy level... will take them higher up from now on

humidity should be ok

do you have nutrients in your soil?

the soil has its own nutes but i was thinking after a couple of weeks i should start adding a min amount

How old are the plants? i'm gonna guess about 4 weeks?

would it shock you to know i planted the seeds 3 weeks and 3 days ago... most of the plants have only been above the soil for just over 2 weeks

I think that is a good idea to give them minimal nutrients too, have you got a feeding schedule for them?

umm... not really, only just started adding it. as i`m using a water tank i`m not completely filling it up, added nutes to 20ltrs... should i not add any next time?

 

[VictorVonDoom]

Temps were taken from just below canopy level... will take them higher up from now on

Cool, that's the place that the temps matter most

the soil has its own nutes but i was thinking after a couple of weeks i should start adding a min amount

To be honest I wouldnt even give them nutes yet if you have them in the soil. As they are still quite young and have food available.

would it shock you to know i planted the seeds 3 weeks and 3 days ago... most of the plants have only been above the soil for just over 2 weeks

Nice

umm... not really, only just started adding it. as i`m using a water tank i`m not completely filling it up, added nutes to 20ltrs... should i not add any next time?

I wouldn't just yet

Looks like you have a bit of leaf curl happening as well, and as every thing else in your ecosystem seams ok, I'm gonna have a guess and say it due to over feeding.

For now I would just add straight water to your res and see how you plants look in about 3-4 days
but that's just my opinion

 

[jimbobdaz]

To be honest I wouldnt even give them nutes yet if you have them in the soil. As they are still quite young and have food available.

Looks like you have a bit of leaf curl happening as well, and as every thing else in your ecosystem seams ok, I'm gonna have a guess and say it due to over feeding.

For now I would just add straight water to your res and see how you plants look in about 3-4 days
but that's just my opinion

cheers, will add some straight water to the tank and dilute the nutes down even more, also have been doing some reading up through the forum and decided to go down to 18/6 on the lights, dont want to shock the plants so will do a few days of 22/2 then 20/4 before 18/6

 

[b.real]

Awesome setup. Plants need 14+ hours of light to veg

 

[jimbobdaz]

Awesome setup. Plants need 14+ hours of light to veg

Cheers b.real ,some of my friends swear by the 24hr lights "force them up! don`t feel sorry for them" one of them told me... fair enough, but not the way i want to do it

 

[VictorVonDoom]

cheers, will add some straight water to the tank and dilute the nutes down even more, also have been doing some reading up through the forum and decided to go down to 18/6 on the lights, dont want to shock the plants so will do a few days of 22/2 then 20/4 before 18/6

Sounds all good to me pal.

You don't need to do that, but it wont do any harm at all using that method.

Hope all that has helpd

 

[jimbobdaz]

Sounds all good to me pal.

You don't need to do that, but it wont do any harm at all using that method.

Hope all that has helpd

Yep, this has been a great help, will post some more pics in a few days and we can see how the girls are doing