Dinger’s Hydro Green Crack Grow Journal 2019

[Dinger]

Hello everybody, I got too impatient and now have started a second grow just as I flipped my chemdawg into flower. The reason for the second one is that a friend told me that this is the most fool proof way to grow. Pretty much, set it up and besides changing nute is runs by itself. I bought a few items but he is loaning me most stuff to see if I like it. So here we go!

Info:
Strain: Green Crack (given to me in the grodan cubes already - plus they had mite damage)
Environment: Basement holds a steady 65 degrees with 50% humidity
Tent: 48x48x80
Lighting: Sun System 315 watt LEC Boss Commercial Fixture + Par Pro LEC Brand 315 Watt 3100K (CMH)
Medium: Grodan Rockwool Slab (3ft)
Nutrients: Flora Series (Micro, Grow, Bloom)
Oscillating fan (on all times)
Small Humidifier (if needed)
Small Heater (if needed)

I am not familiar with the style of growing (not even sure what it is called) so I will be reading up in the forums.

 

[DonkeyDick]

That is a novel style I’d have thought you’d bury the cube 1/2 deep at the top of a pot of soil. You seem to know what’s happening though. Looks fun!

 

[Barney86]

Heya buddy whats that strange contraption youve got there? Flood and drain perhaps?
Is that a rockwool cube sitting on a slab of rockwool? Im familiar with most things hydro but not that lol.

 

[Dinger]

Heya buddy whats that strange contraption youve got there? Flood and drain perhaps?
Is that a rockwool cube sitting on a slab of rockwool? Im familiar with most things hydro but not that lol.

That is right rockwool will sit on top of rockwool. What he told me you start with the small cubes once they outgrow you set it down onto the big one. Roots just have tons of space to expand without any transplanting issues.

There is a pump that pumps nutrients into the top Rockwell cube and it drains into the bucket so it's just a recirculating. Here is a link I found on YouTube "Rockwool". Is that what you call flood and drain? I'm not too sure it's only my second grow.

I fancied up with the contraption, originally the guy just had two buckets with the two by four on one side just to raise it up so it would drain

 

[Barney86]

Hmm...few alarm bells ringing from that slab to be honest but I've never seen it done like that before.
I grow in a pretty similar set up, NFT. nutrient film technique It's called but I don't use the slab. They just grow in 4" cubes balanced precariously on the shelf in nothing but fresh air. There's a 1mm thick sheet of spreader mate on it to ensure the water spreads out evenly but nothing else.
About 500 litres a day drips from the pump back into a Res underneath.
In fact, it's exactly the same as my set up other than the slab.
Fuck it count me in mate.
This will be a learning experience for me too
if it works the same as mine then it is pretty full proof. Just hope you cleaned that rockwool propperly first.
im not trusting that slab though. Is the pump on 24/7 or on a timer? Just trying to get my head round what's going on.
Oh and I hope you've usually got a lid on that bucket. Light promotes bacteria. Bad idea lol.

 

[Dinger]

Hmm...few alarm bells ringing from that slab to be honest but I've never seen it done like that before.
I grow in a pretty similar set up, NFT. nutrient film technique It's called but I don't use the slab. They just grow in 4" cubes balanced precariously on the shelf in nothing but fresh air. There's a 1mm thick sheet of spreader mate on it to ensure the water spreads out evenly but nothing else.
About 500 litres a day drips from the pump back into a Res underneath.
In fact, it's exactly the same as my set up other than the slab.
Fuck it count me in mate.
This will be a learning experience for me too
if it works the same as mine then it is pretty full proof. Just hope you cleaned that rockwool propperly first.
im not trusting that slab though. Is the pump on 24/7 or on a timer? Just trying to get my head round what's going on.
Oh and I hope you've usually got a lid on that bucket. Light promotes bacteria. Bad idea lol.

I don't understand the issue with the slab doesn't that just give the roots more area to expand? This is the way the guy told me he's done it for many many years. Here's a pic of his latest grow.


Nutrients pump 24 hours a day, I was told if it doesn't you run the risk of the pump getting an airlock you coming back to your plants being dead.

yes thanks for reminding me he did mention need to put something over the top of the bucket if I put a lid on there how do I catch the runoff? I guess I need to get some more hydro pieces and pipe the excess back into the bucket?

 

[Dinger]

Hmm...few alarm bells ringing from that slab to be honest but I've never seen it done like that before.
I grow in a pretty similar set up, NFT. nutrient film technique It's called but I don't use the slab. They just grow in 4" cubes balanced precariously on the shelf in nothing but fresh air. There's a 1mm thick sheet of spreader mate on it to ensure the water spreads out evenly but nothing else.
About 500 litres a day drips from the pump back into a Res underneath.
In fact, it's exactly the same as my set up other than the slab.
Fuck it count me in mate.
This will be a learning experience for me too
if it works the same as mine then it is pretty full proof. Just hope you cleaned that rockwool propperly first.
im not trusting that slab though. Is the pump on 24/7 or on a timer? Just trying to get my head round what's going on.
Oh and I hope you've usually got a lid on that bucket. Light promotes bacteria. Bad idea lol.

Ghetto style

 

[Dinger]

Hmm...few alarm bells ringing from that slab to be honest but I've never seen it done like that before.
I grow in a pretty similar set up, NFT. nutrient film technique It's called but I don't use the slab. They just grow in 4" cubes balanced precariously on the shelf in nothing but fresh air. There's a 1mm thick sheet of spreader mate on it to ensure the water spreads out evenly but nothing else.
About 500 litres a day drips from the pump back into a Res underneath.
In fact, it's exactly the same as my set up other than the slab.
Fuck it count me in mate.
This will be a learning experience for me too
if it works the same as mine then it is pretty full proof. Just hope you cleaned that rockwool propperly first.
im not trusting that slab though. Is the pump on 24/7 or on a timer? Just trying to get my head round what's going on.
Oh and I hope you've usually got a lid on that bucket. Light promotes bacteria. Bad idea lol.

So you do the same thing but with just four inch cubes? I assume with her sitting on top of the rack with just air underneath the root just get air pruned and then grow back into the 4-inch cube.

 

[Canuckush]

I'm going to follow along and see how these go, interesting.

 

[DonkeyDick]

 

[Dinger]

Got roots growing out of the 4 in grodan block into the slab. Adjusting the pH to 6 .0 every few days. Will be changing out my nutrients Wednesday or Thursday.

Leaves don't look the greatest but I'm assuming it's part of the mite damage that was there when I got the cuttings or maybe the light is too strong in this phase.

 

[Dinger]

Mixed up another 4 gallons of full strength nutes per GH veg schedule. Watered ph to 6.0.
Temps been steady 79 and humidity 65%.

Went ahead and added a Granddaddy Purp to the line up.

I picked up two more clones - Sundae Driver and GG4. I am going to add them to this tent in Hempy buckets.

Here is the GDP.

 

[Dinger]

Nothing's much changed, you can see that I added two hempy buckets; one with Sundae driver and one with gorilla glue number 4. I added them because I thought it was a waste of space not to do something.

So I have three different types of growing going on now. NFT, hempy and a chemdawg in Coco coir.

 

[Dinger]

Roots are definitely growing.

 

[Dinger]

Oh man. What's going on here? Pretty thin new growth on a few plants.
Temps: 79
Humidity: 53%

 

[Dinger]

Oh man. What's going on here? Pretty thin new growth on a few plants.
Temps: 79
Humidity: 53%

I did some reading and I think it is related to the light being too low. I have raised it and will report back.

 

[DonkeyDick]

Coming along nicely, Dinger.
Your temp:RH is good.
How are your new additions liking it? A happy garden makes a happy gardener.

 

[Dinger]

Coming along nicely, Dinger.
Your temp:RH is good.
How are your new additions liking it? A happy garden makes a happy gardener.

They seem to be ok, growing along the lines at the other ones. They only been in the tent for 10 days so hard to tell.

They don't hurry up there to be flipped to flower because of this tent going into flower in a week or two no matter what.

 

[Dinger]

Okay I'm ready to flip these girls to flower. Will put them on a 12 to 12 cycle and change nutrients to transition to flower from general hydroponics.

Advise?

 

[DonkeyDick]

Good stuff, Dinger. Great stage to be at.
I’d say keep up the grow nutes til the end of stretch - three weeks after flip day.
They still need the high nitrogen mix while they put on volume. That was a mistake I made on my first grow where I was basically just nursing sick plants to the finish line. Managing that better this time - mine’re in their last week of stretch now and still a nice, healthy colour. Hope that helps.