Hempy bucket

[Solstice]

Hi there.

Now that my introduction is out of the way.

I've decided to start growing again but this time using the hempy bucket method.

I've already started off my seeds which are a mix of cbd auto flowers and I intend to use a combination of Vermiculite and Perlite for 3 plants and just 100% Perlite for 1

I've started them off in soil and I've already reached day 16 and yesterday afternoon I transferred them into their final 3 gallon pots.

I've read on here and on other forums that with hempy grows you don't need to really bother with ph or ppms. so with that said how do I know that the ph is dialled in correctly because I thought that the ph had to be somewhere between 5.8 & 6.5

Cheers

 

[Haste Makes Waste]

Please take my words with a chunk of salt, but I believe you’ll want ph around 5.6-5.8. I find myself chasing my tail some when measuring ph going in and coming out. Usually it rises as the roots eat/drink, so I aim for 5.6 going in and 5.8 coming out. I’m using megacrop and bud explosion in coco/perlite buckets. I think I had nutrient lockout in my current bucket, trying to water with just distilled every few days to prevent that and keep ppm 600 or less when feeding.

Edit to add one of the most helpful posts I’ve found. Hope that works, not accustomed to linking posts.
Nutrient Problems, pH & Plant Issues: A Visual Guide

 

[bluter]

I've decided to start growing again but this time using the hempy bucket method.

there's a few of us. you may also be interested in sips which is very close.
sips can be a bit more stable from what i've seen.

I've already started off my seeds which are a mix of cbd auto flowers and I intend to use a combination of Vermiculite and Perlite for 3 plants and just 100% Perlite for 1

you only really need the vermiculite if you are in a drier climate. the original hempy mix was 3:1 perlite to vermiculite.
most hempy growers dropped the vermiculite over time.

it has a tendency to settle near the bottom, and can hold enough water to contribute to root rot issues.

I've started them off in soil and I've already reached day 16 and yesterday afternoon I transferred them into their final 3 gallon pots.

you can use a grow plug to germinate them to seedling then transplant to hempy for easier starts. you can also germinate the seed and then put it straight in to a hempy cup for nerve wracking fun.

i of course do the latter because lunatic.

I've read on here and on other forums that with hempy grows you don't need to really bother with ph or ppms.

you always bother with both. follow your nute schedule for the product you chose.

so with that said how do I know that the ph is dialled in correctly because I thought that the ph had to be somewhere between 5.8 & 6.5

as hempy is a hydro rules method you should always ph to 5.8 for feeding. there are some nute types that are more flexible, but the sure money is on the 5.8.

Please take my words with a chunk of salt, but I believe you’ll want ph around 5.6-5.8. I find myself chasing my tail some when measuring ph going in and coming out. Usually it rises as the roots eat/drink, so I aim for 5.6 going in and 5.8 coming out.

5.8 going in is where you want to start. 5.6 is not bad, but you are gonna want an upward drift. don't bother chasing runoff, it's your inputs you want to watch.

I’m using megacrop and bud explosion in coco/perlite buckets. I think I had nutrient lockout in my current bucket, trying to water with just distilled every few days to prevent that and keep ppm 600 or less when feeding.

bud explosion is super hot, you only really want / need to use it in flower, and you should make head room for it. are you running hempy bucket in that mix, or just a regular or fabric pot ?

generally, you want to run MC on a constant feed basis, reducing the ppm is only going to starve the plant when it gets to a point it's looking for more. if you have issues, in that mix i'd maybe try a f/f/w schedule, or try a flush and reset / rebalance the nutes on a constant feed.


MC is one of those nutes where ph is not as restricted. it's all about the chelation. the bulk of the macro nutes in MC are still mineral based though, and that part is sensitive to ph.

 

[Haste Makes Waste]

Thanks bluter, that’s helpful info regarding MC and BE. I’m seeing exactly what you’re saying with starving them.

 

[Solstice]

Thank you both for your input.

I'll invest in the ph meter, even though I can't afford the essentials ph device which seems be the one that most growers use. Or their is the blue labs one which is definitely too expensive for me.
It'll have to be one of those yellow cheapos for me.

On another note is there a way to tell roughly what the ph of your tap water is by measuring it's ppm.

Also because the seeds were started in soil. Does that mean that I need to use soil nutrients at first or until the roots hit the reservoir.


Cheers.

 

[bluter]

Thank you both for your input.

I'll invest in the ph meter, even though I can't afford the essentials ph device which seems be the one that most growers use.

good chance you will need both depending on which nutes you go with. liquid bottle nutes ususally needs ppm tracked. i don't often use my ppm/ec meter anymore, but i still use it time to time to make sure i'm in the correct feeding window, and if i encounter issues.

Or their is the blue labs one which is definitely too expensive for me.
It'll have to be one of those yellow cheapos for me.

investing in decent equipment saves loads later. you may burn through a few of the cheap models before settling on one that works. there are budget models even within good brand names.

On another note is there a way to tell roughly what the ph of your tap water is by measuring it's ppm.

no. you can use cheap ph strips or drops to get you a ballpark estimate. i used to grow with both in the 70's and 80's.

Also because the seeds were started in soil. Does that mean that I need to use soil nutrients at first or until the roots hit the reservoir.

nutes suited for hydro or coco are optimum. some soil nutes will not work in hempy. the majority of nutes will.

 

[Solstice]

Cheers bluter dude.

I don't think I planned this grow to go the way I wanted it.

Here is what I read on another forum that made me want to go hempy.

Hempy buckets are by far the easiest, cheapest and most cost effective way to grow hydroponically. In my 7 years of growing Ive done aeroponics, dwc, bio-buckets and Hempy and there is no comparing the simplicity.
No pH testing needed
No ppm meters
No stress about root rot

&

In the 3 years I've been growing with this style. I've never tested my PH. but I know from before while doing DWC that my tap water is about 7.0 out of the faucet so with my nutes added it should be right around 6.0 anyway. If you already have all the pH shit you may as well balance it, but my advice to people who don't have a pH pen is to try a round without, you might be fine without.



Wish I started them off in those grow plugs or maybe even just done them buffered coco to begin with

This grow of mine is definitely going to be on a budget & with the lack of a ph metre even though I can't even afford a cheap Chinese job. Because I spend all my money UK cbd flower... it might be better to just stick them in the ground for a guerilla grow.

I mean I do have hydro nutrients but I can't get my head around using those nutrients to begin with. The nutrients are both vitalinks hydro max grow and bloom.

Maybe I'll fill a gallon drum with my tap water and assume it's still 7.8 I'll add 5 drops of ph down and cross my fingers after adding 1ml per litre of vitalink hydro max grow. Hoping that it's near or between 5.6 & 5.8

Cheers

 

[Solstice]

Good evening. Cheesus the weather here in Scotland is bloddy miserable. I can sense it's going to be another crap summer. Won't be long until the days start getting shorter and it'll soon be halloween.

I was thinking about a few things related to hempy grows.

I've noticed that alot of growers run hempy grows in white buckets. Clear buckets. Coloured buckets.

I was under the impression that the roots had to be sheilded from grow lights which is why I choose to use black pots.

I take it it doesn't matter.

Is that true.?