Green Knight Berry Bomb Hydro CFL - Experiment #1: Supercropped Defoliated ScROG

[Green Knight]

I think the CFLs will do well. I love hitting individual colas with their own bulb. The scrog will allow you to do this with less CFLs.

Not sure I'll really get any more CFL's in there unfortunately spring - the reflector is literally the dimensions of the cupboard, there's about an inch to spare all the way round!

 

[Green Knight]

Man you seriously have to be happy with that! Looks really nice. Interesting on what you say about the canna feed schedule. I have found mine have prob been slightly too hot but am in flush now so not to much of a big deal but i will definalty be dialling them back a smidge next round. Have you got your boost running in your res also? I have just finished and opened a new bottle and i tell you what it nearly makes me cry everytime i have to go buy another. Damn expensive! Might have to do a side by side one round! Be interesting to see the results.

Thanks Tony; yeah I'm really pleased with how she's looking - I cant wait for the buds to develop.

Re: the Canna, I downloaded their light and normal feed schedules and have been following the normal for this grow (the auto I followed light, but that was still too hot). I'm sure there's an element that's strain and system dependent but I do watch the EC closely, particularly if I increase or change it. It's a little hot since increasing to 1.5 so the EC climbs by 0.1 and pH drops about 0.2-0.3 over a couple of days so every other day i top up the res with a few litres of unadjusted water and it brings everything back into line.
The one that really turns the heat up is the pk13/14! I don't think you're grow will suffer much from the burn mate - the buds look great and like you say you're nearly there. It's been fine all grow and it's only recently they've shown any burn isn't it? I think there's a good chance it was a couple of weeks of the pk13/14 that may have contributed, it shoots the EC right up.

Yeah, I'm running the Boost since I changed to 12/12 and I'll keep running it until harvest. It is really pricey, I feel your pain! I'd be very interested to see a side by side if you decided to do one mate - it's a bit of a leap of faith and being a sucker for marketing at the moment, I'd love to see the difference it makes, particularly given the price. If you do it I'll be watching closely mate

 

[spring2012]

Yeah the CFLs will pack it up! I love em but I cant wait to try the big boys. Either way your grow is going well.

 

[Green Knight]

Thanks spring. Yeah, I'm looking forward to eventually getting an led, but for now it's the 125w all the way. No complaints in the meantime - aside from the light distribution it's doing a pretty good job

 

[BigIrishDoode]

its looking super duper buddy, dont feel bad bout being hesitant to bend i did the same, my first scrog was an uneven disaster but i still pulled more frosty nugs than the same number of plants grown regular, so rokk on GK!!

 

[Vick074]

Hey Knight!
thanks for the reppers!

 

[geturgrowon]

everthing is looking great keep it up !

 

[Green Knight]

its looking super duper buddy, dont feel bad bout being hesitant to bend i did the same, my first scrog was an uneven disaster but i still pulled more frosty nugs than the same number of plants grown regular, so rokk on GK!!

Thanks bid; it was a minor hiccup but I've manned-up: she's getting bent when and where necessary!

 

[Green Knight]

Hey Knight!
thanks for the reppers!

Pleasure Vick

 

[Green Knight]

everthing is looking great keep it up !

Cheers mate!

 

[ajagunle]

sucker for marketing

I am sure this is what drives the dilution advice, another for

Thanks spring. Yeah, I'm looking forward to eventually getting an led, but for now it's the 125w all the way. No complaints in the meantime - aside from the light distribution it's doing a pretty good job

I can't stop thinking LED, but CFLs have their place, with out them I wouldn't have started indoor gardening!

The screen is looking tremendous GK

 

[DrTentgrow]

You really know how to show just how to get thebest out of cfl's good work mate!

 

[Green Knight]

Thanks mate! The next few weeks will be the real test but I'm hopeful I should be able to pull a reasonable yield; enough to keep me going for a few months anyway, fingers crossed

 

[Green Knight]

Day 16 12/12, Day 5 of flowering.

Things are progressing nicely and the screen is pretty much there now I think, it's filled out nicely and there aren't really many squares left:

Not really sure how many tops there are but there seem to be quite a few - I've counted about 45 easily (i.e before I lose count, or forget which ones have already been counted!) but there are quite a few which are obscured by the leaves of others - there's basically one per square more or less (other than the ones round the sides that aren't filled of course). I'm tucking these leaves out of the way as and when but they do tend to pop back up. I'm not too concerned as come day 21 everything's going to get stripped anyway which will open the others up to the light.

Which poses a question. From reading various journals etc there seems to be no real standard acceptance or consensus of when flowering starts - some say from when you flip the lights to 12/12, others from when the first flowers show.
From when the first flowers show makes perfect sense to me, but where you count from obviously makes a big difference to when day 21 is, and when she qualifies for her defoliation. I'm 16 days from it if you take it from the first flowers showing, 5 days from it if you count from 12/12. Any consensus from those more experienced than me?
Looking at how things are progressing gut feel says the former (16 days time) is more appropriate as I think there's still some stretch to go and the tops need to grow up above the screen quite a bit more.

A few of the tops have shot up a lot more than others and I've been supercropping these where necessary to bring the canopy back down level and to let some of the slower one's catch up:

Underneath is all good - a bit untidy but there's still pretty good airflow. I've ordered another fan which will sit under the scrog and when I defoliate all the leaves etc under the screen will go:

That's about it really for now. EC and pH is all good, no surprises or issues, and RH is holding at 48%. Everything's reasonably even and the cfl is sitting just above the top of the canopy so she seems to be happy as larry.

 

[ajagunle]

Fantastic looking!

I am defoliating for the first time and I would advise sooner rather than later, get light to the newly exposed parts as quickly as you can!

 

[Green Knight]

Thanks Aj. Yeah, I'd like to get more light to some of the tops that are obscured, but 5 days time (21 days from 12/12) feels a little bit too early at the moment. My gut's telling me I should wait at least another couple of weeks, but the speed these plants grow a lot can change in 5 days!

 

[Vick074]

Beautiful job on evening out the canopy!
Combined with the supercropping, perfect!
The idea of the 21 defol is so that stretch is coming to and end. But as to when you would defol, from flip or pistols, I'd say pistols. Other will say different. It's really up to you from where you start the coundown.

With flowering times, the general standard seems to be start counting from start of 12/12. As most seed vendors advertise their finishing times from flip.
Myself, I have always counted from when pistols show, and think this should be the standard, but then again, as X states some seed companies are now advertising their finishing times from show of pistols.

Xlr8 just posted an interesting little read on this very topic in jon's journal yesterday.
I'll drop it here, I'm sure he won't mind.

I read once that Subcool, for example, uses flowering days based on flowering starting "day 1 after switching from 18/6 to 12/12" Most seeds seem to be from when the flip is made, not when the pre-flowers show - but not all. But, they probably also assume that they are vegged to sexual maturity, which most growers probably don't do. I usually count flowering days from the flip, because it's so much easier and I think more how most people think of it (it's confusing though, huh?). There are seed companies that say their flowering times are based on pistils showing. So... it's confusing I guess!

I'd rather do it from when flowers show, but I have to agree that it's more universal to refer to time from flip. There's no right or wrong, just what's right for you. Your journal, your grow, your days-in-bloom method. Just sharing my 2 cents. I used to think of it like you too, but got sick of fighting against the grain...

 

[Green Knight]

Thanks Vick, I was thinking pistils too. And thanks for the post by X; I saw that earlier today and that's what got me thinking (and confused!)

I was originally in the 'from 12/12' camp, then saw Jon counted from first sign of flowering which made much more sense to me (and it also tied in nicely with the Canna nute schedule, which recommends Vega until the first appearance of flowers and then switch to Flores, rather than changing to Flores at 12/12).

Then I saw X's post and realised that there really isn't a consensus and I suddenly got brain melt when it comes to defol because it potentially makes a week or two's difference to when you strip! Very confusing!

I'm thinking to take it from the pistils combined with a bit of a feel based on when stretch appears to have come to an end. Nothing's ever straightforward! But then I suppose stretch is also strain and environment dependent to an extent, so whilst day 21 is a guide, I'd be surprised if it's a hard and fast rule.

Thanks for the support and advice Vick, always helpful and appreciated mate

 

[jon705]

you wont hurt her by pinching off a leaf here and there that really needs it bro. 99% of the time when I count from the first preflowers the plant will finish with around 15% amber trychs at the breeders recomendations for flower time, it takes a little getting used to but I wont do it any other way now its just the way I like to do it. defoliation doesnt have to be right at day 21, like Vick said you want to do it once the stretch is pretty much done. I did mine heavy enough this round that I wont be taking much off at all on day 45 just pinching a few here and there. she filled the screen nicely GK looks like there still some stretch left in her, very healthy +reps

 

[Green Knight]

Thanks Jon (and thanks for the reps!!)

Yeah, I reckon I'll play it by ear (or eye) and strip once it's clear the stretch is coming to an end. It's funny that there's so little consensus on when to start counting flowering though; it seems such a fundamental part of the grow. From the first pistils seems to make more sense. What do outdoor growers count it from, can't really 'flip' the sun, I'd imagine it would be from when flowers show