Mars Hydro Grow Journal SP 3000: Blue Kush, RDWC, ScrOG

[GoogleGenie]

Day 45 Flower​

The readings this morning:

PPM : 510
PH : 6.1

Pretty substantial drop in EC/PPM this morning (30ppm). The water level has dropped a lot too with the girls consuming around 12L between then since the res change. PH is stable. Pretty perfect start to the day for the girls.

I made up another 35L batch identical to yesterday’s and topped up. I have 10L left I’ll use to top up as necessary. The readings after topping up:

PPM : 570
PH : 6.1

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 25, 2021

Blue Kush - Day 45

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 25, 2021

Blue Kush - Day 45

Audrey

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 25, 2021

Blue Kush - Day 45 - Audrey

IMG_6366-1.jpg GoogleGenie Feb 25, 2021 Blue Kush - Day 45 - Audrey

IMG_6367.jpg GoogleGenie Feb 25, 2021 Blue Kush - Day 45 - Audrey

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 25, 2021

Blue Kush - Day 45 - Audrey

I'll be doing some defoliation later this evening to just remove larger fan leaves that are blocking buds lower down. I'll also remove fan leaves that are blocking airflow. I do not expect this to be a big job, with minimal defoliation.

 

[Diatomacious]

Nutrient levels look pretty good (almost a tad light just how it should be)... should make some sweet smoke.

 

[GoogleGenie]

Day 46 Flower​

Morning guys. The readings were pretty stable yesterday, they dropped down to 5.8 so i bumped it up to 6.0 before lights out.

The readings this morning:

PPM : 570
PH : 6.0

Exactly as i left it before lights out - happy days!

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 26, 2021

Blue Kush Day 46

Audrey : love:

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 26, 2021

Blue Kush Day 46 - Audrey

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 26, 2021

Blue Kush Day 46 - Audrey

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 26, 2021

Blue Kush Day 46 - Audrey

 

[GoogleGenie]

Nutrient levels look pretty good (almost a tad light just how it should be)... should make some sweet smoke.

Thanks @Diatomacious - I do try to feed light

 

[GoogleGenie]

Here are a few snaps of some of the other buds in the canopy.

A bit of heat/light stress. I've dimmed the lights for now and I need to make some adjustments in my room to allow for better air flow. I'll be thinking on this...

Anyway, for the buds...

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 26, 2021

Blue Kush Day 46

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 26, 2021

Blue Kush Day 46 - Audrey

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 26, 2021

Blue Kush Day 46 - Audrey

 

[Paul Squiggle]

Nice quality photography. They still look amazingly healthy, even if they are a little stressed.

 

[GoogleGenie]

Nice quality photography. They still look amazingly healthy, even if they are a little stressed.

Thanks mate. I've been using my phone. I'll see if i can get hold of my partner's fancy camera this weekend and get some shots of the other buds in there. Audrey's lovely, and there are a few other beauties in there too!

 

[Diatomacious]

You're not letting that pretty Audrey get fat are you GG? ... just kidding they look great

 

[GoogleGenie]

Day 47 Flower​

The readings this morning:

PPM : 560
PH : 6.1

Slight drop in EC/PPM, PH is stable. I topped up with the remaining nutrient solution from yesterdays batch which bumped the strength up to 580ppm. I've made up a fresh batch with the same proportions, they're drinking quite a bit at the moment.

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 27, 2021

Blue Kush - Day 47 Flower

Audrey

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 27, 2021

Blue Kush - Day 47 Flower - Audrey

IMG_6405.jpg GoogleGenie Feb 27, 2021 Blue Kush - Day 47 Flower - Audrey

IMG_6406.jpg GoogleGenie Feb 27, 2021 Blue Kush - Day 47 Flower - Audrey

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 27, 2021

Blue Kush - Day 47 Flower - Audrey

 

[Diatomacious]

they're drinking quite a bit at the moment

They love to suck water when the bud starts to swell... any plans on running a flush?

 

[Tokin Roll]

Sorry @GoogleGenie

I was somewhat side track by the remodeling of my bathroom/tub/shower/plumbing/electrical/flooring/carpentry.

Anyways, Audrey is looking very impressive as she swells up. It's looks like you are back on track. I am glad the Epsom salt spray worked for you. You can wash the buds if you like, but it's not necessary if you only used it a few times to get her back on track.

Like I say you are doing a great job; I hope you have a dozen or so mason jars ready to be filled.

Tok..

 

[GoogleGenie]

They love to suck water when the bud starts to swell... any plans on running a flush?

At the most maybe 24-48 hours. These have been fed really light pretty much the whole way through. And when I say flush, it always stays around 0.3-5ec due to the nutrient present in the roots themselves, so it's not really a flush, rather a very light feed.

I know there is much documentation, opinion etc around flushing, too much in fact, it's hard to tell the wood from the trees. I just go by my own experience now. For me, if a plant has been over fertilised, I don't claim flushing will do anything for taste, or that its flushing nutrients from the buds, or anything else, but a flush/leech does seem to help with harshness/smoothness IMHO.

These have been fed nice and light though, so should give a nice taste (provided drying goes well). I do aim to under feed these days, i get much better results. I perform a short flush as a precautionary measure. 5-7 at the very most if i know they've been over fed or have any ongoing burn come harvest time, but it's usually 24-48hours in RDWC if I've managed to keep on top of feeding.

What are your thoughts on flushing @Diatomacious?

 

[GoogleGenie]

Sorry @GoogleGenie

I was somewhat side track by the remodeling of my bathroom/tub/shower/plumbing/electrical/flooring/carpentry.

No apology necessary Tok. I appreciate you are a man in demand - I appreciate you coming back to me

Anyways, Audrey is looking very impressive as she swells up. It's looks like you are back on track. I am glad the Epsom salt spray worked for you. You can wash the buds if you like, but it's not necessary if you only used it a few times to get her back on track.

That's good to know thanks. I only sprayed once. I'm thinking of giving it through the roots end of next week. As you advised, I don't want to overdo it, but they do appear to respond well to it.

Like I say you are doing a great job; I hope you have a dozen or so mason jars ready to be filled.

Thanks Tok. I have 9 jars free atm, I may have to ramp up my consumption to empty another 3 in time for harvest

 

[Diatomacious]

What are your thoughts on flushing @Diatomacious?

Sounds like you are right on track... I was just curious about DWC (new to me). I flush because I grow in a soil-less medium... get rid of the nutrients about 2 weeks before harvest (depending on feed schedule) and the plant will begin to use the nutrient it has accumulated in the leaves. You are 100% correct that you can't flush the nutrients once they are in the plant so light feeding is the answer (a lot of fertilizer in the plant at harvest will really diminish the quality of the smoke). My thought is that the plant has already accumulated enough fertilizer to finish out by 2 weeks from harvest... there again just depends on how heavy you feed in the first few weeks.

 

[Enjoil]

I had a very bad experience with Blue Dream. If I never see another ill be happy. (Hermie)

Oh my god! I got a funny story about blue dream. I got into trouble on another site( I forget what about... some bs) and had my dude make me another profile, well when he did it he marked that blue dream was my favorite strain. ( it’s not at all- blue dream only got so popular cuz it grows like a champ and is really hearty and has a good high. It don’t taste extra special, it’s just a good cash cropper( when it don’t hermie on you) but some re re was like” you don’t have the real bludream” I was like... what? I got hso’s blue dream. He’s like they don’t have real blue dream cuz it’s clone only. So.... nobody ever took that “clone only” strain and selfed it.... I bet they did. Several people did I bet... what you think about that noise?

 

[Bill284]

Oh my god! I got a funny story about blue dream. I got into trouble on another site( I forget what about... some bs) and had my dude make me another profile, well when he did it he marked that blue dream was my favorite strain. ( it’s not at all- blue dream only got so popular cuz it grows like a champ and is really hearty and has a good high. It don’t taste extra special, it’s just a good cash cropper( when it don’t hermie on you) but some re re was like” you don’t have the real bludream” I was like... what? I got hso’s blue dream. He’s like they don’t have real blue dream cuz it’s clone only. So.... nobody ever took that “clone only” strain and selfed it.... I bet they did. Several people did I bet... what you think about that noise?

I couldn't tell you where the dam seeds came from originally, a friend said they were blue dream. It was the never ending hermie hell. At the time I kept rotating plants into the tent. One out one in. Those dam plant's took turns hermieing if thats a word and ruining every other girl in the process. It was months of misery. Being new didn't help so probably made it worse.
Now 10 out 10 in and never get mixed. Also I run the best genetics I can get,and clone like crazy. So just reading the strain bd gives me anxiety.

 

[GoogleGenie]

Day 48 Flower​

Hey guys! I hope you've all had a nice green weekend!

This morning the readings today, all day:

PPM : 580
PH : 6.1

Not much change here. Still a nice consistent drop in water level too. All is well.

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 28, 2021

Blue Kush Day 48

Audrey Even the new flowers are starting to turn.

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 28, 2021

Blue Kush Day 48 - Audrey

IMG_6437.jpg GoogleGenie Feb 28, 2021 Blue Kush Day 48 - Audrey

IMG_6438.jpg GoogleGenie Feb 28, 2021 Blue Kush Day 48 - Audrey

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 28, 2021

Blue Kush Day 48 - Audrey

And here is a shot of one in the back.

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 28, 2021

Blue Kush Day 48 - Big cola at the back

 

[GoogleGenie]

Oh my god! I got a funny story about blue dream. I got into trouble on another site( I forget what about... some bs) and had my dude make me another profile, well when he did it he marked that blue dream was my favorite strain. ( it’s not at all- blue dream only got so popular cuz it grows like a champ and is really hearty and has a good high. It don’t taste extra special, it’s just a good cash cropper( when it don’t hermie on you) but some re re was like” you don’t have the real bludream” I was like... what? I got hso’s blue dream. He’s like they don’t have real blue dream cuz it’s clone only. So.... nobody ever took that “clone only” strain and selfed it.... I bet they did. Several people did I bet... what you think about that noise?

I was debating the CBD Blue Dream more for it's medicinal value, as i've heard good things about it. But I think I need to do some more research on the strain before I do. Sounds like it is easily stressed

I couldn't tell you where the dam seeds came from originally, a friend said they were blue dream. It was the never ending hermie hell. At the time I kept rotating plants into the tent. One out one in. Those dam plant's took turns hermieing if thats a word and ruining every other girl in the process. It was months of misery. Being new didn't help so probably made it worse.
Now 10 out 10 in and never get mixed. Also I run the best genetics I can get,and clone like crazy. So just reading the strain bd gives me anxiety.

Man that sounds horrible Bill! Sounds like a stressful time. Especially if you were new to it. I'm glad you stuck with it though and saw it through

 

[GoogleGenie]

a lot of fertilizer in the plant at harvest will really diminish the quality of the smoke).

I couldn't agree more @Diatomacious. And this is exactly my experience of it too. As you say, the answer is not to over feed in the first place. Growing this way makes it makes it more challenging understanding where this line is strain to strain, but it's worth the effort.

 

[GoogleGenie]

Veg Predicament continued...​

I thank you all for your input. The latest scores were. The Coco lady lives on.

cenario 1 - Flower	Scenario 2 - Cull
@Dabeast09	@copperrein
@Bill284	@GoogleGenie
@Rexer
@420ragz

I'll be honest, I was also leaning to the cull option. But you guys persuaded me to give it some more thought, so i did.

I've come up with an auto watering system which is driven by the moisture level in the coco. I have a prototype working. I have a better quality moisture sensor on the way as the proof of concept works. And this is what I will use to water this plant. It cost me about £50 to setup (excluding dripper and pumps etc).

In a nut shell, it's a Smart Power Socket and a Raspberry Pi Zero

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 28, 2021

Smart Power Socket and Raspberry Pi - during testing

which is connected to a moisture sensor in the coco:

IMG_6449.jpg GoogleGenie Feb 28, 2021 Coco wired up...literally

sensor.jpg GoogleGenie Feb 28, 2021

Which does what it says on the tin. When the moisture goes below a certain threshold, the Pi turns on the smart socket (which is connected to the pump) for 1 minute. This pumps ~0.6L of nutrient through the drippers.

IMG_6448.jpg GoogleGenie Feb 28, 2021 Coco wired up

IMG_6443.jpg GoogleGenie Feb 28, 2021 Dripper Manifold

After that 1 minute, the pump is turned off. And the sensors wait for the moisture in the coco to drop below that threshold again before turning the pump on again.

I use these clips to keep the drippers in place on the pot:

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 28, 2021

Pot clips

A benefit of this whole project is that it means that the coco will never be dry but will be allowed to dry out to moist/barely moist. If i could do this by hand i would, but it's time consuming.

Another positive is that I won't have run off unless I want run off.

I'm still playing with the moisture levels and thresholds, I'll have them sussed in a few days, the concept is working. And it's saving me the trouble of having to hand feed. Which is a huge relief.

Here is my make shift case for the Pi until I work out a more safe home for it.

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 28, 2021

Raspberry pi temporary housing

And here is the monster pot this plant is in. I usually don't like plants in really big pots, and I would only grow one with a pot this big if i t was automated, hence this project. I usually favour 12L-16L pots when I grow a few smaller plants, but this is quite big plant. I'm going to try and form a nice big root mass in that pot before I flip in about a week or so. It's a 35L pot filled about 2/3 of the way. 70/30 Coco/Perlite.

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• GoogleGenie
• Feb 28, 2021

Temporary drainage solution.

This is my makeshift drainage solution until I can think of something better. It will be better when I can move this into the tent that Audrey and Co are in as that has some more head room.

I'll probably cover this whole project with a separate journal, I just thought I'd let you guts know where I'm at with it and what I've been up to the past few days.