Musik's Indoor DWC ClosetGrow 400w HPS

[The Butcher]

WOW bro you got your hands full. Lov'n the colors. Just a suggestion, you should trim those lowers in your flower area. It will help with all the top growth and allow better air circulation. And that veg area is perfectly green.:greatjob: Still watching..

 

[musikgenman]

Yo Butcher, any tips would help. Im not completely sure what I can get rid of and what I can't. According to my program I have 3 weeks left, of course you and I both know it could be less but more than likely they will take longer which I'm totally ok with. But what do I cut down? I'm assuming I find any smaller stems coming from the base of the stalk. I've been trying to find 'Good' before and after photos to help me there but have been somewhat unsuccessful. I know that any cuts I make now will take some time to heal. a couple days to a week. I have this feeling that by doing so I will be able to help the top budz fatten up. Before I go cutting down I need a little more direction in this area.

Musik

 

[The Butcher]

Gotcha.. Like you said anything small on the lower half of the plant. Keep in mind all those lil branches at the base arent getting light. SO unless you plan to do a second harvest, after just chopping the tops off. take a look at whats in there, meaning the lower half and if you see small undeveloped flowers or branches, I would start w/ chopping those. Then for the big branches do the same. Obviously the tops would be fine. However the lowers may not be getting light as well. if oyu can take them out and get a good look at them and start to trim from the bottom up. At the least I personally would trim the first 6 inches off starting from the base. just make sure you just take the small branches off. and if there are big branches making it to the top, trim the lower portion of them at the base as well. This will help release some of the energy and refocus it to the tops where its mostly needed. Hope this info helps. I'll be in and out of the site today. So I'll keep an eye out for your journal. Again I hope this helps.

 

[musikgenman]

Yeah, that helps a great deal and right along the lines I was thinking. The only other question I would have is this...Is it too far along to make any cuts?

You mentioned unless I was planning on a second harvest...which I definately wanted to try and see what happens. But of course it is a first for me so I have no clue what to expect. I figured a week or two after I cut the majority of whats finished I would be able to harvest again. How long should I flower a "second harvest" after I cut the tops off?

Because of my now ready Veg area I can pretty much take as much time as I need for these. I do have to say that I definately don't have as dense of budz as I had in last grow by 6 weeks, but I definately have used what seems to be a much weaker solution. I wonder if a second shot of the Kool-Bloom Powder would do anything?

Anyhow this flower cylce I found and decided to give it a try, At first it seemed that the plants just loved it, a better green, really healthy plants. Once new growth turned to flowers the colors came alive, leaves turning yellow, pinks and purples, stems and all. Definately the most colorful of grows. Like i mention I just hope everything fattens up, as far as the knowledge I have obtained, these last 3 weeks are the fattening stage. LOL


Based on 63 day 12/12 Flower Cycle:

Day 1-14
6ml micro
9ml bloom

Day 15-21
6ml micro
9ml bloom
1 tsp./Gal. Kool-Bloom Liquid (ONE FEED,DAY 15!)

Day 22-28
6ml micro
9ml Bloom

Day 29-35
9ml Bloom
1 tsp./gal. Kool-Bloom Liquid (ONE FEED,DAY 29!)

Day 36-52
9 ml Bloom
(AND ON DAY 36,a 1 tsp./gal Kool-Bloom POWDER Slam!!)

Day 52-63 (Flush)
5.5-6.0 pH h20 at 50 ppm

So I'm on day 45 everything is going great so far. I am very pleased that I didn't end up with any Hermaphrodite plants so now its just...Fatten Budz Fatten!

Musik

 

[The Butcher]

Well the way a second harvest works is this:

Fallowing your first initial harvest, you let the plants recover for a couple days, then start them on nutes slowly. you can feed them for about a week or however long you see fit.. Fallowing this you would then start to flush the plants system once again and once again give the plants long enough time to flush and finish off. The second harvest will allow all those lowers to get dense. in figuring out a timeline makes sure you take your flushing time into consideration. One thing that helps w/ the second harvest is to use something like a finalflush agent. This will allow you to cut the flushing time, if you choose to do so.

You can trim when you like, I personally trim whenever I need to. Sometimes less is more, if you know what I mean. does this help. Sounds and looks like you got all your ducks in a row. Flushing is on its way, so any issues will be resolved quickly I'm sure.

 

[musikgenman]

First off, I want to thank you Butcher. I know we all get busy from time to time, and for most people this part of the year is the busiest until the holidays, getting our yards together, spring cleaning, fixing any issues that occured during the winter, and getting our gardens in shape! As such, I have been fairly busy in my area, the midwest has had a crazy season so far. So I just wanted to start out with a huge thanks.

As I make this entry I have this revelation. This point at which im at with this garden since last june is incredible. Not only have I learned a whole bunch about this plant that everyone loves so much(even some love to hate), but I have also learned quite a bit about myself.

So as far as the flush goes... I have obviously been flowering in 5 gallon buckets via Deep Water Culture hydroponics. Most setups like mine also incorporate a drip system. That part of it I left out.(Drippers aren't necessary as far as I have learned but Drippers will make sure that nutes are absorbed at almost every level of roots)...so as far as the flush goes, is it necessary? is it necessary to flush for 2 weeks? The one thing I have found to be totally true, is that a flush will leech out some of the fertilizer so there is more of a smooth smoke.

I had no idea even how to imagine it until my last batch. I had read that I didn't have to. So I didn't. When testing the plant I found that I would get an itching feeling, almost stinging, or a scratchy feeling at the back of my throat. I found that after a while of curing this was lessened. Well good news, that was caused by the fertilizers still in the plant. Honestly it wasn't so bad that I would now say flushing is a must. Of course when im in between crops I have to outsource, and I go to the same place. And when I do that I get a good Idea of the quality im looking for and a not so itchy throat. LOL

LOL so i ended up making a sort of question into a story. So on to my question. I'm not totally certain that 10+ days is needed. I really think that a flush for a week 5-7 days is suffice. What is too long, and what is too short of a time period for flush?

Again Thanks for everyone who has taken a look at my log. Its the best part of the grow. I hope to have some better bud porn up soon.



Musik

 

[The Butcher]

5-7 day flush will be cool. I personally use flora kleen as a flushing agent. it helps. The thing with DWC is that the salts or nutrient build up that is relesed is left in the water. So more water changes are necessary. The last week I do 3 change outs. For a 7 day plan I would suggest this:

Days : H20
1-2: Plain PH'D Water
3-4: PH'D Water & Flora Kleen
5-7: Plain PH'D Water

Flora Kleen instructions suggest using it the last set of day. I dont like the idea of having any additives in the water at all. So I use it in the middle of the week. So the salts and nutrients flush out and the next changeout will be clean and pure.

 

[musikgenman]

Unfortunately I'm not going to have the florakleen available for this. I hope ph'd tap water will do. It will be better than not doing anything LOL If I can get some hydrogen peroxide I will do so.

Musik

 

[The Butcher]

the Water will do. Its jsut an option. The trick is to change out the bucket every couple days the last week. If you got a PPM or EC meter. Itll show if oyu check. If you dont, trust me the change outs will help BIG TIME. You got it all under control.

 

[musikgenman]

Time for some updates.

So I have been watching closely. It's day 59 and budz have thickened up within the last week and one plant even has milky trichomes, while the other two I can't find anything but clear trichome heads. That really is fine with me its just not going to be ready by 4/20. Oh well! So here are some photos. Once I find a good INDICA its on!

Well I was really hoping to get about 8oz from all this. I don't know if that is going to happen. But when I can get them, I will post some pics of the recent clones I cut. Wish I could post some more. Right now is tough. Maybe I crop my first round this time next week. That all depends on the trichomes however.

Musik

 

[musikgenman]

So I might have made a blunder that is cracking me up. I have no idea where I found this information, but guess what I did?! LOL

I poured out some superthrive into a small cylindrical container I had.(It held about 8ml) And I was using the superthrive as my rooting agent LOL I am now wondering why I would do that. I mean, I'm sure I read somewhere that someone did that but now thinking about it. DUMB DU DUMB DUMB.....DUUUUUUMB LOL
Anyhow, the clones have been cut for 4 days. They are still alive. I hope they make it, but I have this feeling that they wont root now. What I think I'm going to have to do is supplement them now with some nutes higher on the P and K and hope they root. Of course after only 4 days they haven't. Heck I dont know. They are still alive and I'm going to cut some more today or tomorrow. Since I dont have any rooting stuff like Clonex or Olivia's. All I have is Superthrive and tap water. Hmmm. Maybe they turn out just fine. I hope LOL



Musik

 

[TorturedSoul]

So I might have made a blunder that is cracking me up.

ALL my blunders crack me up.

Eventually.

I can even laugh about the time I got married. Now.

I poured out some superthrive into a small cylindrical container I had.(It held about 8ml) And I was using the superthrive as my rooting agent LOL I am now wondering why I would do that. I mean, I'm sure I read somewhere that someone did that but now thinking about it. DUMB DU DUMB DUMB.....DUUUUUUMB LOL

Yeah, that cracks me up too. (For which I apologize and hope that you've got more cuttings available if it proves necessary, lol.)

But, hey - you can turn it into valuable research! You see, I never did really think that Superthrive was of much use - or at least as much use as one would think after reading their comic-book ads. And given the tender nature of cuttings and the minute ratios that they suggest you mix the stuff - coupled with the fact that you used it straight - I would tend to guess that if you rinse those out and place them into some de-chlorinated water (or whatever you normally use) for a couple of weeks and they DO eventually grow roots, well, that would go a LONG way towards convincing me that I was right all along in my assumptions. If they instead wilt, shrivel up, and die, then... I guess the jury is still out.

If it makes you feel any better:

I've got some Schultz Take Root and Rootone powders. They both contain anti-fungal agents (I believe) and work great. And I've got a bottle of Dragon Plant Starter with Vitamin B1 and Chelated Iron (3-12-4) that's probably 20 or 25 years old (a little dab will do ya, lol) that also works great for rooting clones (and transplanting, and for correcting iron deficiencies... on just about any type of herb, flower, fruit, vegetable, shrub, or tree you care to mention). I've also got a bottle of OLIVIA'S CLONING GEL <W00t!> along with a bottle of Olivia's Cloning Solution (fertilizer/etc. for potential and rooting clones) - and if anything could be said to be able to grow roots on a ROCK, it would be their stuff. I believe that Olivia's Cloning Gel is the best I've used even without using their Cloning Solution with it. And I've got a pretty decent cloner I built, sits on a heating pad, two 12" air stones, etc. that has a cover that retains a lot of humidity and diffuses the light without stopping all ventilation.

But 90% of the time I'm either in a hurry, lazy, or forget to get things ready beforehand and I end up either sticking the cuttings in a glass of water that sits in my kitchen windowsill. Or else sticking them in cups of damp perlite/vermiculite (retains moisture - but not too much) mix and sticking them under a dim fluorescent light or "not real close" to a metal halide light, trying to remember to check regularly to make sure that the media doesn't dry out, making a point to make sure that it doesn't cross the line from damp to WET and cause rotting, and misting the leaves when I stick 'em and (<COUGH>usually) two or three days later if they look too wilty. If I think of it and want to mess with it, I'll hang some saran-wrap over them for the first two days or so.

And they most often root just fine. Might (ok, probably does) take a little longer but I never considered the time it took to root a cutting to be a mission-critical kind of thing; rather only the fact that they did do so. Discounting screw-ups (you know, knock the glass off the windowsill and don't notice until it's too late, place the cup directly under a 400-watt MH "for just a minute" while you run into the living room to answer the door and remember the cutting a few days later, CAT eats it, etc.), the way that grandma rooted her cuttings still works great. After all, grandma was poor as dirt and for her it was a matter of growing things to feed WAY too many kids so you got to figure if there was a way that had a markedly better success rate, she'd have found it. I've taken a dozen cuttings, remembered that it was time to go pick up the GF, wrapped them in a (slightly) dampened paper towel, thrown the mess into a baggie and the baggie into the refrigerator, left to get the GF, ended up going to the store... and had her ask me two days later WtF the mess in the vegetable drawer was - and gotten them all to root. And back in '93 or thereabouts I received three clones in a package that had to have been in transit for at least five days. Two were obvious goners when I opened the package - the other one grew into a wonderful mother. (Ok, I remember that I used cloning stuff on that one - but my point is that cuttings are generally going to GROW unless we kill them first.)

Yeah there are some strains - and some species of plants - that don't seem to have the vigor to root well. And there are situations where you really want the cuttings to start growing ASAP. And situations where a 98% success rate isn't good enough - if, for example, you just drove 400 miles from Uncle Tommy's house and he only gave you one cutting or you returned home from vacation only to find that your best mother plant was in the last stages of a horrible death by crisping and there was only one branch left that wasn't crunchy - and in such situations, here's hopin' that you've managed to order a bottle of Olivia's Gel (and their Cloning Solution is a helpful thing also) to turn that 98% into a 100% and allow you to sleep peacefully that night.

Other than that, the gels, powders, etc. are a convenience (and a time-saver). Nice to have and I do highly recommend that you pick something up - but still a convenience.

Hope this helps you feel better (or cures your insomnia; I didn't mean to run on so, lol),
~TS~

 

[Andy 371]

This has been a very informative journal. I have learn't heaps reading through.

Best of luck musik, I will be stopping by often in hopes to learn heaps more.

 

[musikgenman]

Tortured actually that does make me feel better. LOL.
Here is an update on the clones. So they have had a few spots on the leaves that dried up. I have been trying to just keep them moist. The fan leaf stems have purpled so i am now giving a really light bloom/gro mix. On some of the clones I cut I did notice that where I dipped them they turned to moosh. So I just stuck them further into the rockwool. On others I could actually see, at the very top, that there was a white growth on some. I figured these to be rooting sprouts. LOL
So yeah, I definately think that I should have dipped the cuttings into a watered down solution of superthrive. Olivias is the rooting agent and nutrients that I have my eye on. Just need the funds. So I have taken 7 more clones today. These got dipped in a diluted solution of superthrive. I figure this is better than nothing because if anything it helps the cuttings stay alive a little longer. Like the ones that I have now I can tell they are dying, but they aren't dead yet. Live and Learn. LOL. Anyhow I have been with hydroponics so I am real partial to the rockwool cubes. The next batch of cubes tho I am going to soak in a light gro/bloom ph'd solution. I am soon to get some pictures posted.

Andy 371 - thanks for stopping by. I am still learning myself so if you have any questions feel free to ask. If there is anything I could have done differently yet so far it would have been to just get one plant going at a time. With one 400w light, the space I have, mainly growing from seed. One plant would have totally been sufficient enough to get what I needed. Now that I have started to take cuttings I hope that I can improve not only quantity but quality.

So here is my update on the cuttings. Like I mentioned they aren't dead but they aren't exactly thriving quite yet. I do have hope for roots and never ever again will I be dipping cutting into superthrive LOL. I expect another week or two if any of them are going to root.

Thanks for stopping by.

Musik

 

[musikgenman]

I can't believe it. I have a clone that definately has roots. OMG!!!! And its only been 11 days. LOL For sure I have one out of 7. LOL Now I kinda do wish that I did a control group. LOL Yesterday there was not roots showing through any rockwool cubes, today one of the cubes has about ten shoots coming out in all directions. LOL I so wish I had a camera. I hope some more root in the next couple days.

Musik

 

[musikgenman]

I just wanted to make a post noting that I have clone number 2. So the clones are coming. I think I am definately going to lose some but it seems that those are the ones that succumbed to rotting out. Anyhow I'm really busy this week, I gotta "make like a rocket and blast off"(-Quote taken from the movie 'Defendor') LOL

Musik

 

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