First Grow 12/12 No Mercy Style Skunkberry 400W CMH

[Setting Sun]

7 girls!

They're looking good too!

 

[Indicana Jones!]

Hey Indic@n@!!! Conr@ts on the lovely l@dies!!!! Up until now h@ve you just been w@tering without nutes??

Thanks Am!! No, I've been giving them Iguana Juice at 25% + Silica + Cal Mag and Molasses and a bit of seaweed every other watering. Only for the last few weeks though prior to that it was RO water, Molasses and silica only, then a few drops of nutes and up to the 25% level.

Looks like it turned out to be a pretty good week

Two things:

What's the pH of the solution your feeding with?

What's the pH soil of the soil reading?

Hey Andy!! Yes the Ganja Goddess has smiled on me!

I PH my solution to between 6.2 and 6.5. I don't have any idea of the PH of the soil itself though. I use one of those cheap garden probes to check the moisture level deeper in the bed, it has a PH meter but I don't consider it trust worthy more as a rough indicator but it's pegged at 7 as near as I can tell and that has me a bit confused. I didn't add lime to my soil mix so I was expecting a problem with PH drop but it seems to be climbing but I don't have a means to measure the PH accurately since none of my watering results in any runoff. I've been thinking of just putting several large spoon fulls of dirt into a metal strainer running some RO water through it and PHing that..

I have splashed on my girls more than once, i try and dab as much off with toilet paper as I can but I think maybe some of the leave damage may be from that. I expected the signs of heat stress and transpiration issues, the soil is getting dry fast as these ladies drink it up but they can't 'sweat' it back out fast enough so there is some leaf curl (been doing some reading on heat stress, Google is my friend!).

The parts for my home-made cool tube have started to arrive (my bake-a-round!) so with a little luck I'll have a cheap arsed cool tube for the next grow so temps and RH should be a little easier to control.

7 girls!

They're looking good too!

Hey SSun! 7! Andy says he pulled the number out of his arse but the Ganja Goddess seems to have been listening!

They're bunched up so they're overgrowing each other and that'll pose problems later when budding gets going. Next time out I'll be using 2 Gal containers. I like the large bed of soil idea but I also prefer to have the ability to get a little more hands on and move them around under the light, fan ect. Also I want to try my hand at LSTing.

The seem to be adding a inch of height per day/night cycle now! 12 inches yesterday (day 30), 10 inches on Day 28, 8 inches on day 26... On Day 20 the tallest plant was 4.5 inches.

MY prediction is a final height of between 18 and 24 inches.

Thanks!!

Indicana.

 

[OldMedMan]

Hey Indicana
Those girls look great.
Keep doing what you're doing

 

[Setting Sun]

They're bunched up so they're overgrowing each other and that'll pose problems later when budding gets going. Next time out I'll be using 2 Gal containers. I like the large bed of soil idea but I also prefer to have the ability to get a little more hands on and move them around under the light, fan ect. Also I want to try my hand at LSTing.

I came to the same conclusion after a few tub grows. Having each plant in its own pot provides a lot more flexibility and advantages.

keep it green bro!

 

[AmGrowR]

quote:Hey Andy!! Yes the Ganja Goddess has smiled on me!

I PH my solution to between 6.2 and 6.5. I don't have any idea of the PH of the soil itself though. I use one of those cheap garden probes to check the moisture level deeper in the bed, it has a PH meter but I don't consider it trust worthy more as a rough indicator but it's pegged at 7 as near as I can tell and that has me a bit confused. I didn't add lime to my soil mix so I was expecting a problem with PH drop but it seems to be climbing but I don't have a means to measure the PH accurately since none of my watering results in any runoff. I've been thinking of just putting several large spoon fulls of dirt into a metal strainer running some RO water through it and PHing that.. :quote


Hey Indic@n@, I re@d on here somewhere @bout using something long @nd skinny to poke holes in the soil to @ire@te @nd help with dr@in@ge. So I cut off the bottom of @ wire clothes h@nger @nd used th@t to poke holes in mine @nd it definitely cre@ted some run-off. In the words of L@v@r Burton, "But don't t@ke my word for it." I'm not sure if th@t's the best thing to do so I'd w@it for someone who RE@LLY knows wh@t they're t@lking @bout to comment on this method. Good Luck Buddy!!

 

[Indicana Jones!]

Hi all!

Just thought I'd keep the journal up to date. So far everything seems to be going good, a few signs here and there of minor stresses still but all in all everything looks healthy. Flowering is in full swing with the tallest lady reaching 20 inches and the runt down on the right corner is barely 12 inches.

I'm starting to add in a small amount of bloom nutes and will continue to switch from grow to bloom nutes over the next week.

I thought about doing some pruning of the lower branches since they're so shadowed by top growth that they hardly get any light but I'm so happy to have brought them this far that I'm intimidated by the prospect of cutting parts off of them now.

The first slight hint of weedy smell is coming off of them now when I'm right on top of them, perhaps some of the skunk coming through on these skunkberry's!

Thanks!

Indicana!

 

[dgh420]

Do you think that you will grow this strain again?

Just wondering as it looks great and from what you can see you are having great sucess groing it. Well done.

 

[AmGrowR]

Hey Indic@n@!! Wow, those @re coming @long nicely. They h@ve @ shitlo@d more pistils th@n l@st weekend!! Gre@t job @nd keep it up. I'll be w@tching closely @s I @m interested in the 12/12 grows bec@use I h@ve no room or p@tience.

 

[Setting Sun]

Plants are looking great, brother!

 

[Indicana Jones!]

Do you think that you will grow this strain again?

Just wondering as it looks great and from what you can see you are having great sucess groing it. Well done.

Thanks! The seeds are inexpensive and despite being more than a year old they hit a 100% germ rate and 2 out of 3 sowed turned out to be female. So far I'm pleased with the strain to say the least!

Part of the grow experience for me is going to be the exploration of strains, with something like 800 strains now I was thinking I wouldn't likely grow the same twice very much! If I find a good medical strain I'll grow that for my medical needs but the rest I grow will be my... exploration crops!

I have 8 seeds left of the Skunkberry and honestly a smart person would, considering this is his first grow, grow the same strain a 2nd time to work out the kinks in his grow because he'll already be familiar with the plant..

A smart person...

I'm a smart person.. with the urges and impulses of a stupid person!

God amazing how a few puffs makes me ramble.. Anyway, the final decision will of course be made by my PHx Trinity, if the first quarter gram puffs up as well as what passes for mid-high grade around here I may well go with this strain a 2nd time. Cept.. I figure I can get 10 2 gal containers in my space.. and I wanna plant 1 each of 10 different strains I want to try!

Gahhhhhh!!! So much herb so little time...

Hey Indic@n@!! Wow, those @re coming @long nicely. They h@ve @ shitlo@d more pistils th@n l@st weekend!! Gre@t job @nd keep it up. I'll be w@tching closely @s I @m interested in the 12/12 grows bec@use I h@ve no room or p@tience.

I hear ya! They are filling out nicely all things considered! So far this grow is paralleling another grow of a sativa/indica hybrid and if that continues I expect the whole thing to go 12ish weeks from seed to scissor. That's from a plant with a indica's regular 8-9 week flowering time. What I'd like to do is get 20 seeds of the same strain grow 10 out 12/12 with some LSTing and then try another 10 with 3 weeks standard veg plus the 9 weeks of flowering, LST'd like the first batch and see if there is any clear indication of an advantage one way or the other. The 12/12 method was never about yields though but about being able to rotate more crops per year through a grow room. My requirements are for less time growing so I need a larger yeild from when I do grow thus despite the fun of the 12/12 method I'll veg my next crop 3-4 weeks first.

Although, 12/12 from seed is a great way to get ones feet wet! It's exciting and fast!

Indy, what's your feeding/watering schedule at with the Iguana Juice?

Hey Andy! My feeding/watering schedule is currently at 4 cups per day now, 25% iguana grow. I was giving silica and Cal Mag at 50% (my mistake) and wonder if I did some burning with those since they are stronger chemical nutes. I have them backed off to Silica every other feeding at 25% and Cal Mag once per week at 25%.

Last watering I slipped a wee bit of Iguana Bloom in there and will be increasing the amount of bloom and backing off the grow and then I will want to start ramping up the bloom amounts to encourage 1 pound per plant! Or as close as I can get...

Some of these girls are pretty branchy for 12/12 plants (I got one lady who's tall, thick and branching and budding like crazy, she'd be a good mom!), I'm going to have a lot of immature buds at the end.. That or perhaps I'll be taking the tops off these ladies and giving the lower branches a few more weeks to finish. I've read a few grows were people have decapitated their ladies and they've lived.

Plants are looking great, brother!

Thanks SSun! Growing is as much fun as smoking!



Indicana.

 

[Setting Sun]

With plants close together in a tub, I agree with Andy that the main colas should get as much energy as possible.

If you've got the vertical clearance, I'd trim the bottom growth to encourage the main colas.

The bottom growth is going to get very little light anyways in your setup.

 

[Indicana Jones!]

I would like to see ya do this! Love side-by-side comparison grows.

I am giving this more and more thought actually since I'd really like to give something back information wise (even if it is a tiny thing) to a community that has freely given so much. That and I've been reading over at the Mandala seeds site and they've gotten me 95% seduced into trying Hashberry and I suspect I could learn to endure having to smoke two crops of that back to back.

The reason I asked about your feeding/watering schedule was because I suspected something like you just described. After taking a look at your pics, I thought to myself that they look TOO green, due to an abundance of nitrogen. Makes sense, since you've been feeding with the grow formula with every watering, until now. Not the end of the world, but it can slow the blooming process down, which is counter-productive, since you're forcing flowering from the onset. The slight 'claw' look your fan leaves are taking on (the leaf tips curling down) is also a result of excess nitrogen.

My advice is to water with nothing but H2O, for your next couple waterings, to dilute some of the nutrients. Watch for the leaves to lighten their shade of green. Then resume feeding, using the Iguana Juice Bloom, every other watering from here on out.

I think you did the right thing by scaling back the Cal/Mag and Silica additives, especially since you're watering daily, if I read correctly. Excess micro nutrients can cause toxicity, as well as interfere with the availability of other elements.

I've actually only been feeding every other watering but I plan to take your advice and give only water the next 2 times then perhaps consider feeding every 3rd watering after that..

You're being facetious, right...?

Yeah! I have no real expectations yield wise at this point. Something.. That's all I'm asking for! This was mostly about proving my less than perfect grow room could still be usable. I already have several key modifications in mind before I next sow!

I would advise against topping, based on your grow method. The tub is already looking congested, and topping would encourage more branching. I'd actually do the opposite, get as many tops as you can up through the canopy, and then in about two weeks time, trim away the undergrowth to eliminate tiny buds. Hopefully this will stimulate more growth in your tops.

I'd like to hear some other peeps' take on this. Recommendations?

Thanks for the update, I was wondering about ya...

With plants close together in a tub, I agree with Andy that the main colas should get as much energy as possible.

If you've got the vertical clearance, I'd trim the bottom growth to encourage the main colas.

The bottom growth is going to get very little light anyways in your setup.

Yeah, the thought of pruning.. But I guess it needs to be done. I'll be posting more pics before weilding the scissors!

Thanks!

Indicana.

 

[fluroman]

just found this 1 and gotta say good job they look awesome, if you wanna try LST'ing check out some of the great jobs and different ways to do it
tunes 420 does a great job at it he keeps em very low.
check out my journals as its the only way i do it except on this grow i had some come in late and just tossed em into 12/12 but if ya want some huge plants its the way to go !!!!!!!!!!!!!
anyway good luck i'll be watching for sure and + reps for ya

 

[OldMedMan]

Hi Indicana

Funny how we get when we have success. Brings up visions of the possible future grows.
Go to it my friend. I think you'll have even more success.

 

[Indicana Jones!]

DAY 44...

Hi! It's that time of the week again!

With plants close together in a tub, I agree with Andy that the main colas should get as much energy as possible.

If you've got the vertical clearance, I'd trim the bottom growth to encourage the main colas.

The bottom growth is going to get very little light anyways in your setup.

I took the bottom node off each plant 3 days ago and will probably take one more node off each this weekend. I found a few old 12/12 journals and pruning the bottom 2 nodes was recommended so it seems to fit in with what you're saying.

Keep a close eye on the ladies and keep the updates coming.

Indy, I have a clever lil' order worked out (if you're ordering from Attitude) that includes Hashberry from Mandala. It maxes out the freebies for the least amount spent. 30 seeds + three freebies. ~$120.00USD shipping included.

I call it the Order of the Beast! It works out to 6.66/female plant!

That's if you use a 50/50 male:female ratio and all plants survive. Let's say you get an ounce per plant, to be very modest - not a bad price on the oz.

If you're ordering from Attitude and have your heart set on the Hashberry, lemme know, and I'll PM you the order details.

I hadn't thought about where I'd order the seeds from yet but I'll keep that in mind. I've never bought seeds so it'll be a first time and if Attitude is a good company than I may give them a go.

just found this 1 and gotta say good job they look awesome, if you wanna try LST'ing check out some of the great jobs and different ways to do it
tunes 420 does a great job at it he keeps em very low.
check out my journals as its the only way i do it except on this grow i had some come in late and just tossed em into 12/12 but if ya want some huge plants its the way to go !!!!!!!!!!!!!
anyway good luck i'll be watching for sure and + reps for ya

Yeah, I'm going to LST on my next grow, a fellow named Flurple is doing something interesting with cutting the stems but I suspect that's more of a high stress than low stress and I need to keep my grow time short so no radical training for me. LSTing though looks like it holds a lot of promise to help me get the most from my crop in the shortest time.

Hi Indicana

Funny how we get when we have success. Brings up visions of the possible future grows.
Go to it my friend. I think you'll have even more success.

Heh heh heh.. I wonder how my urge to try new strains will get along with the urge to do some experimenting. Of course a big part of that will be my schedule in the new year, have to plan grows around things and may be only able to get 2 grows in next year and if that's the case I'll REALLY want to try 2 different strains, a heavy indica dom and maybe something a little more playful like a sativa.. Mmmmm...

But anyway. The girls seem to be coming to the end of their stretch, the growth has slowed with the tallest one just touching 24 inches and the runt a full 10 inches behind at 14.

Feeding every 3rd watering at the moment, still 25% Iguana Bloom, plus a every 5 day dose of seaweed at 50%, Cal Mag once a week at 25% and Silica every 3rd watering also at 25%. Molasses throughout. They've been taking 4 cups of water a day for a while now.

There is a bit of weed smell now but it's still pretty faint, i can't complain about that. One lady is a real trooper, she's the 2nd tallest and just putting out bud sites like crazy. The tallest is, well tall but not as buddy, there are 3 average girls and the poor runt who's still flowering for all she's worth. But the one, she'd be the one to clone for a mother if I was into that sorta thing.

So that's where I stand at what i expect is the half way point of the grow. 44 more days would make 88 and that's about right for a indica/sativa hybrid grown 12/12 from seed. In my expert opinion!

Now I just need them to get FAT!!!!

Thanks!

Indicana.

 

[nbk380]

hey indy. nice grow.

i can show your future.. go to my black queen & black pearl link in my signature line..

i rocked a 12/12 from seed, in giant tubs, with LST, no trimming, 19 plants all were an oz+, with ease. even had a little assembly line going with 3-4 ladiez finishing every couple weeks.

your moving down the stoned pathway my friend. BIG TIME +Rep

 

[AmGrowR]

You're the m@n Indic@n@!!!! The girls @re looking very h@ppy, you must be doing it right!!! Keep it up, buddy.

 

[Indicana Jones!]

hey indy. nice grow.

i can show your future.. go to my black queen & black pearl link in my signature line..

i rocked a 12/12 from seed, in giant tubs, with LST, no trimming, 19 plants all were an oz+, with ease. even had a little assembly line going with 3-4 ladiez finishing every couple weeks.

your moving down the stoned pathway my friend. BIG TIME +Rep

Hey NBK, I am reading your grow journal now.. On page 16, might bookmark it there for the night though! Thanks for stopping in. I love the 12/12 thing and if I could keep a grow running year round that would be the way I'd go. Exactly like you have it, just keep rotating new seeds in as plants get chopped, always have 2-3 strains going to keep things interesting. *sigh* Ohh how I dream of the day..

You're the m@n Indic@n@!!!! The girls @re looking very h@ppy, you must be doing it right!!! Keep it up, buddy.

Hey AmGrowR! Half way home and no major issues! I won't complain, things could have turned out bad, but a little reading, a little advice and presto living flowering plants! I can't way to renovate my grow room in December and start planning next years grow(s)!

Thanks!!

Indicana.

 

[Setting Sun]

Niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice!!!

Your plants are looking awesome!


Great job bro .

 

[NEchronic]

whatup indicana. just found your journal and read it; nice grow man. I have a lot of interest in where this takes you as it is similar to my own project. the 12/12 system suits my situation as it seems to suit yours, and the yield:space ratio of a good LST has also caught my eye. good luck (though you dont need luck...!) ill be watching. +rep for some good ideas and great plants