Staker's 2017: SSSDH, Killer Purps, Dolato, Candyland & Breeder's Test Grows

[CareStaker]

hell cs those are better than pretty good there beauties I could see where that wedding cake would be fun to grow so far everyone ive seen is covered in frost now is it good frost I no that diesel is good nice work bud!

They are a little lumpy, and were lushed up just in time to flower... you know, abused. I even had to chop a couple tops (GMO/Cake) just to fit them in lol. Ah well, the flowers are looking pretty sweet. And there just 8-10" over where I wanted anyway, so not like it's way off. Smells are getting to be nice 6 weeks in, getting stronger.

Fun with PM. (none at the moment, knock wood)
I've been growing in a legal area, and have had many bouts of PM, growing so near the ocean. But, with cleaning, and airflow, I was able to achieve stretches of a few years with no fungal losses. After full legalization, this just isn't the case. At least where I am now, it'll come out of no where, just a few months after all of your efforsts.

So, I've tried a dozen or more remedies, and am looking at the proactives. Right now I'm using Procidic to control it. Not the overpriced 2 version specially labled for pot, but the original one for like beans and lettuce or whatever. At 9ml per 13ml water. 90ml/g once a week. So far, we have been running 50-80%RH for two weeks, as the last of summer daytime temps bleed off her in fall. Essentially it hits the plants at low pH, around 2.75pH and is a concentration of citric acid. OMRI listed, GRAS etc that becomes systemic. The plants don't love it, but they don't hate it either, it's ptetty darn close to neutral, but will lean slightly negative. I get the slight impression that some leafs seem a little dryer than they might otherwise be, after multiple sprays. A price worth paying imo, if I don't have to see that shit in the GR this fall. I can swap it back out during the winter. So far I'm liking it more than other other I've tried, but that means I've got to finish these ones out without that crap for it to be worth it.

 

[ilikemsticky]

im sorry you have to deal with that sounds like a real pain seems like with every grow there has to be some kind of shit going on I have not had a mold problem here I do have a whole house dehumidifier in the bedroom there if the r/h gets to high like when it rains for a week it can get high 80-90% outside and usually its cold enough so the heat from the dehumidifier doesn't cause a problem it sounds like that is going to work for you will keep our fingers crossed I had two plants outside get a couple worms lost a little buddage not much could have been worse then the aphids im lucky im retired and im here everyday I was checking two plants 3or 4 times a day for these little green flies that give birth to aphids rite on your leaves man those things were seeking out these stink bombs they obviously like the smell of these plants but I won that battle what the hell if they were almost pretrimmed rite on the plant next outdoor grow will include some stinky garlic onion spray around September to keep those fffs off well you have good luck there cs your plants look delicious!

 

[CareStaker]

Thanks Sticks, it’s cool, I’m just aiming for as perfect as I can, until I can cut a new hole somewhere lol and fix my Rh flux. I’m spraying them, where I normally wouldn’t spray anything at all this late in flower. Well we will see. 20K ppl per mile her, I'm sure PM is blowing down main st.

Dam cake is sexy

 

[ilikemsticky]

 

[TheBlaze]

Great update as usual. That wedding cake looks like a low yielder.

Here is the link you asked about : Test grow - organically grown Blue Dream (Humboldt Seed Organisation)

Thanks for the support bud.

 

[CareStaker]

Great update as usual. That wedding cake looks like a low yielder.

Here is the link you asked about : Test grow - organically grown Blue Dream (Humboldt Seed Organisation)

Thanks for the support bud.

Anytime B Cake should be better yielding, that's why I'm looking at them critically, they look smaller than they should be. Or I should say that the one closest to the door looks small. The one in back was better going in, and is stacking a bit better. I did just turn up the wattage to 750w, so let's see if it's just the light.
I'll be over to check out your HSO run.

backatch buddy. There's always some shit to deal with. I'm not really complaining, everything else seems to be rolling along. I'll even yield pretty dam well at the end, despite being a little behind. The plants are pretty dam big, so that helps. I'm running big 3gals. They say 3, but they are more like 4g. Big girls in small pants, is just what I like.

 

[TheBlaze]

Have you grown Wedding Cake before? I can't remember now.

 

[GrizzWald]

Whoops wrong spot... Looking good man

 

[Graytail]

Hey Mr Staker, freelancer and Master of plant nutrition ... ... we have a question.

Ok guys got an issue for you. How can i stop the lower leaf consumption? I'm going to have no leaves left by the time they are done. What info do you guys need?

Damned good question, and one I should face myself someday soon. I jus' let 'em drop.

I suspect it's a combination of soil activity and light intensity. I've grown out several small plants in 3 gallon pots, and they don't have that issue. They're also much smaller and they're not close to the light. If I mess up with the 6 gallon pots and let one of them slump, I pay for it immediately in lost fans.

So my operating theory is that it's a transpiration issue and a soil moisture issue. Heavy Transplant drenches and more careful watering should tend to the herd, and we may be stuck with the lighting. Higher RH and CO2 would help with that, but if we want enough light to grow a deep canopy, we have to put up with stress at the top.

... I think ... dunno fer shure.


[Edit] I remember doing some research on nutrient migration in the plant, and learned that old fans are primarily sugar producers. They're out of the hormone loop, for the most part, so they don't grow, and don't produce hormones that prevent other tissue to grow. Many people say that the plant consumes its fans for energy but I never bought that. It may shed them as net losses perhaps. Maybe they just lose their own connection to what's going on in the plant, being off to the side like that. So it would be our responsibility to keep them engaged somehow, the question being how did we let them drift away.

And it occurred to me that you would probably know what to do to help with that.

Critical Jack & Dark Devil Auto Cross In Doc Bud's Kit

 

[CareStaker]

Hey Mr Staker, freelancer and Master of plant nutrition ... ... we have a question.

Hey GT, thanks for the new Title. Not sure if I know anything, but here's what I think, with what I've read.

The plant 'flagged' those leafs as shut off, and expendable. It did so because it is measuring all of it's environment and resources, and the data it received back, instructs the plant to discard what it cannot support - for one reason or multiple reasons. It's amazing to watch, and it shows the elegance of the underlying code that is their operating system. Shade avoidance is a good example of this instruction set.

To that end... growing a big or small leafs, staying short or stretching, and dropping leafs, is all a choice (within it's genetic potential). Each choice depends on what a plant finds in it's historical inventory of resources combined with it's environment and generational capacity. The plant will adapt to almost anything, due to the way it's code is written. It's this process, of decisions which run like phyto-algorithms, that triggers early fade imo. If it's not a genetic that does it ALL the time, then it's a decision. You can help the plant NOT make that decision if it is advantageous to the grower, but older leafs - are usually the first to become negative net power/sugar. The plants OS sends a signal to 'shut off' the leaf, and then drain all it's resources until it falls off. Maybe the pot wasn't big enough, or the light was too red, or RH too low, or that leaf was blocking too many buds.

One could compensate and feed more right to the end, in huge pots, but then have horrible end product.

A deep fade is needed in most all soil plants imo to smoke right.

 

[CareStaker]

Reading that again.. I don't think it really don't think I did a great job of explaining it lol.
I was trying to explain the concept of how there's a spectrum of response possible in almost all situations, and how there's a equation/calculation made in each case, based on resources and goals.

Under indoor artificial light, if there's no overabundance of food, whether it be N or not, one should expect to shed some fans mid/late-flower on on most plants. The plant finds that it only has so many resources, and they will drop old fans, unless you provide overabundance. That kills the smoke imo. In soil only, hydro is different.

And for smoke/fade, it's part of the reason for growing in soil/organics imo... and hell some cuts are hard to get right, they hold N like crazy. The flush on this OG is 30+ days and I barely got her to yellow her out. Smoke is finally great after cure, but it could have been a little better and quicker. Other stains will be different of course, but I find most have the best flavor with a decent fade.


At harvest last Spring- OG Kush ... This pic was a little too green still

This pic is better... if they were all like this I would have been happy, but could go even more yellow.

 

[Graytail]

Thanks for the help, CS.

I had it right intuitively - just don't know the details. I see gardens with perfect fans and perfect color, but they tend to be well sealed grows, with all the fixins - controllers, CO2, etc.

I'm getting my small ones not to tire before harvest, but the big ones still escape me.

 

[CareStaker]

Thanks for the help, CS.

I had it right intuitively - just don't know the details. I see gardens with perfect fans and perfect color, but they tend to be well sealed grows, with all the fixins - controllers, CO2, etc.

I'm getting my small ones not to tire before harvest, but the big ones still escape me.

I figured you did. And I'm not sure i was any help

Even without all the fixings, most any soil plant will finish in perfect condition, if you stay on top of it and overfeed. It's a lot easier in hydro, higher CEC. But the question would be, why would you do that in soil? Soil plants that finish in perfect condition aren't generally the best smoking buds imo. All that nitrogen must taste pretty dam It's why these OG are tough to work with. You can't let them finish too green or you get less of the good flavors and they don't burn as nice. No N after 28 days this run, let's see how it goes. Again, in hydro this is easier lol. Soooo why am I in soil again.... ffs.

Oh, it's because soil/organics grown bud have more character, flavor, aroma, and potency than other methods I've tried.

 

[Graytail]

I think we forget about transpiration and all its complications, too. The big improvement to my space has been lighting, so I'm adjusting to more plant volume, which leads to increased water uptake and increased evaporation off the leaf mass. I can get solid growth 2 feet into the canopy, but it's the kind we're talking about - it's on that balanced edge of utility. If I rattle its cage, it turns off the spigot and shifts growth upward, dropping the old fans. And since the upper growth is getting such solid light, the plant is driving hard to supply the top of the canopy, and is perfecting willing to let the old stuff go.

But if the smaller plants in smaller pots aren't doing it, I'm blaming it on root mass and/or soil activity. If I was in bigger pots, I think the fans would last longer.

I'm not so much concerned with fading at the end of bloom. I just hate to lose fans in that early/mid bloom stage, when it doesn't seem appropriate. It doesn't bother me because I don't believe it has much effect on the final product, but it annoys me as a grower. I should be able to avoid those cage-rattles. On the other hand, I'm a lazy grower and at peace with that.

 

[ilikemsticky]

I figured you did. And I'm not sure i was any help

Even without all the fixings, most any soil plant will finish in perfect condition, if you stay on top of it and overfeed. It's a lot easier in hydro, higher CEC. But the question would be, why would you do that in soil? Soil plants that finish in perfect condition aren't generally the best smoking buds imo. All that nitrogen must taste pretty dam It's why these OG are tough to work with. You can't let them finish too green or you get less of the good flavors and they don't burn as nice. No N after 28 days this run, let's see how it goes. Again, in hydro this is easier lol. Soooo why am I in soil again.... ffs.

Oh, it's because soil/organics grown bud have more character, flavor, aroma, and potency than other methods I've tried.

I agree with you my son grows hydro gets massive yield but his smoke is lacking something so this grow he is doing a cut from my tut and a ud cut from me when there done were going to get together and compare soil grown to hydro grown lol I already no the soil grown is going to be the favorite but its fun anyway!

 

[CareStaker]

Have you grown Wedding Cake before? I can't remember now.

No, it's my first run of her. I'm using the Diesel as my gauge from last run. So far Diesel is the best of the bunch in yield, but the other girls kill her on frost and density. Smells from Cake are nice, she has a confectionary smell to her with some dankness.

 

[TheBlaze]

I've heard she is a great looker, but fairly bland smoke. Let's hope those people are full of shit. LOL!

 

[ilikemsticky]

Even without all the fixings, most any soil plant will finish in perfect condition, if you stay on top of it and overfeed. It's a lot easier in hydro, higher CEC. But the question would be, why would you do that in soil? Soil plants that finish in perfect condition aren't generally the best smoking buds imo. All that nitrogen must taste pretty dam It's why these OG are tough to work with. You can't let them finish too green or you get less of the good flavors and they don't burn as nice. No N after 28 days this run, let's see how it goes. Again, in hydro this is easier lol. Soooo why am I in soil again.... ffs.

Oh, it's because soil/organics grown bud have more character, flavor, aroma, and potency than other methods I've tried.

dam straight cant beat good old earth 28 days ha that's way to soon for me pretty much the only nitro they get comes from the ewc tea and the crescendo im using which is almost none ill cut the tea off about 3 weeks before chop unless they still need some the crescendo gets cut off the week before then its just sugar water,your plants look amazing cs!

 

[CareStaker]

Original Diesel, pics taken over the last week or so.. smells coming on, she's pushing 50 days in now. She's starting to yellow up just a touch more than I'd like, but most of her heavy flowering is done, she just needs to swell, and finish. Pretty sure I can get her to fade her out nicely, maybe feed with teas. If I hit her with a dose of salt, she'd green up and be more resistant to pests at finish, but I there's a price paid in flavor. Smells are much better this round on this girl, real dusky dank smells.

 

[CareStaker]

GMO cookies.. she's a little behind the others in maturity, not sure by how much, but she's a five foot frost queen 40ish days flips. She's a pretty big plant in a small 3g pot (really like 4). I kept putting off flipping her and she was in coco growing like crazy lol.

This girl is a good example of fan leafs. She's got most of them. I pulled what was blocking light or air and left the rest.
She's juuuust starting to show some lighter green coloring. If I fed her to adundance or overabundance, she's be even more green, and she wouldn't develop the flavor profile I'm looking for. Keeping her on the slightly negative side should push her to start yellowing out, and shutting off whatever isn't producing. If not, I'll yank all those leafs pretty soon, which will leave her with less to work with. She's got some light burn...but otherwise looking good.