Stardawg17, Dutch Bucket, Cookie Wreck, 2020: Dive Into The Deep End

[stardawg17]

Here's how the girls are getting along today...still no significant changes noted. I'm starting to think I moved them to the rock wool cubes too early

Oh yeah...I almost forgot my reservoir water sample system. It pumps water into the sample reservoir where I have sensors for pH, PPM and temperature. It's a 10 gallon aquarium filter that I've repurposed. I put a water level sensor on the side so I can shut off the pump when the water level is too low. It should also help oxygenate the water in the feed reservoir.

 

[PK]

do you put them right into the wool cubes before the water glass method? trying to figure why your wool cubes are that wet

 

[stardawg17]

do you put them right into the wool cubes before the water glass method? trying to figure why your wool cubes are that wet

I soaked the seeds in water glass for 18 hours and then into wet paper towel. When I got the first tap root 3/4" long I soaked the rock wool cubes for 2 hours in 5.5 pH water then let them drain on a dish rack for 15 minutes. All of the seeds were cracked open and I put them in the rock wool and feathered the fibers to close the holes. Then I made a pint of hormex vitamin b1 and hormone solution with pH 5.5 water and poured it over the cubes. It filled the grooves in the tray bottom but didn't flood the tray.

 

[PK]

you don't think those cubes are too wet in the picture? maybe its the time of the picture, just wondering

 

[stardawg17]

you don't think those cubes are too wet in the picture? maybe its the time of the picture, just wondering

I thought rock wool was supposed to drain. How would I go about drying them out a bit?

 

[TriangleCheese]

TC...thanks and welcome aboard! Hopefully everything comes together and we reap some benefits. You've got my curiosity totally piqued with DIY grow lights

Thank you SD I manufactured my second prototype and only thing that needs to be changed is lens angles. I am using 60 degrees lens now and I noticed that it doesn't cover the canopy %100 on my tent. I'll go with 75 degree lenses and all will be fine since these lights are ridicilously bright.

I thought rock wool was supposed to drain. How would I go about drying them out a bit?

Personally, I don't like to plant my seeds in any medium looking that wet. Rockwool cubes and coco coir are both more air transparent compared to soil but that doesn't mean you should keep them soaked all the time. Maybe a mild squeeze would help.

In seed form, they all need to sit in water but roots thrive faster when they are forced to find water. I always plant my seeds after germination rather than letting them germinate inside a medium and when planting I always give a small watering to get my medium wet enough but not soaked. After that I leave them completely dry and let the plants grow, for as long as they can. When the leaves show first signs of droop, I water the plant away from the stem and close to pot rim. I think by doing these, I grow plants with amazing roots pretty fast.

 

[stardawg17]

Thank you SD I manufactured my second prototype and only thing that needs to be changed is lens angles. I am using 60 degrees lens now and I noticed that it doesn't cover the canopy %100 on my tent. I'll go with 75 degree lenses and all will be fine since these lights are ridicilously bright.



Personally, I don't like to plant my seeds in any medium looking that wet. Rockwool cubes and coco coir are both more air transparent compared to soil but that doesn't mean you should keep them soaked all the time. Maybe a mild squeeze would help.

In seed form, they all need to sit in water but roots thrive faster when they are forced to find water. I always plant my seeds after germination rather than letting them germinate inside a medium and when planting I always give a small watering to get my medium wet enough but not soaked. After that I leave them completely dry and let the plants grow, for as long as they can. When the leaves show first signs of droop, I water the plant away from the stem and close to pot rim. I think by doing these, I grow plants with amazing roots pretty fast.

Thanks TC....I'll take this into account from here on. I just didn't expect the rockwool to hold so much water.

I've turned off the heat mat and opened the side vent on each end of the dome. I've also opened the bottom vent on each side of the tent. Hopefully that aids drying this cubes without growing any mold

 

[TriangleCheese]

Let me look in my media

Thanks TC....I'll take this into account from here on. I just didn't expect the rockwool to hold so much water.

I've turned off the heat mat and opened the side vent on each end of the dome. I've also opened the bottom vent on each side of the tent. Hopefully that aids drying this cubes without growing any mold

I had no mold problems with rockwool cubes and I don't think you will see any either. However, root rot is real. Just don't try that hard on your seeds or clones. I never used anything other than paper towel and a ziplock bag for germination. Some strains like soaking before the paper towel. The best way to achieve a perfect plant is keeping things as simple as possible IMO.

 

[stardawg17]

Time and tide wait for no man
-- ancient proverb

So I'm on vacation this week and had hoped to finish this setup. Things just haven't worked out the way I planned

I did manage to clean up the replacement bucket and get it painted...tomorrow I'll convert it to a Dutch bucket and add it to the setup.

Also about midnight last night I decided to take the germinator off the heat pad. I also opened up all of the vents in the dome and moved the setup off the insulated pad and onto the top of the buckets. After the move I turned the heat pad back on and the temp does appear to be a bit lower.

You can see the temp dropped again after opening the dome to snap some pictures

The one sprout does look healthy and the second plant is starting to pop out of the top of the rockwool. The tray is almost completely dry now. I'll not water again until the rockwool cubes are barely damp, but, I won't let them dry out completely

Current conditions in the germinator...

I also rinsed the sludge from the hydroton out of the bottom of each bucket. Putting the medium back into the buckets was interesting. The weight pushed down on the drain spouts putting them at a weird angle. I tried my best to get the hydroton to form around it and we'll see how it does when I pump water through the drip irrigation system. I also got a little too agressive with one of them and pushed the grommet through the bucket. So, I had to remove the medium, re-install the spout and grommet and re-fit the medium again

Finally, when I added the camera to the raspberry pi I loosed several of the wires for the relays. So, tomorrow will hopefully be the day I get the raspberry pi back up to par and moved out into the lab. Then, I will fire up the irrigation system. Hopefully we'll be all systems go and then I can get back to work on my water quality monitoring system.

 

[TriangleCheese]

Thats the idea. Keep them just moist enough until you can monitor the leaves. Then you can dry it out and place inside the hydro bucket. I think they will be fine brother

 

[stardawg17]

“That wall is your mind playing tricks on you. You just need to say, 'One more step, I can do this. I have more in me.' You'll be so proud of yourself once you push yourself past your threshold.”
-- Kerri Walsh

I didn't realize I transferred these girls into rockwool cubes just 4 days ago. My paranoia got the better of me and I split the rockwool cubes open to see what was going on inside. Here's what I found...

Harriet

Daily Journal​

Date​

Phase​

Nute Week​

Flush?​

FloraKleen​

Height​

Girth​

Temperature​

Humidity​

H20 Level​

PH​

PPM​

CO2​

Leaf Health​

Stem Health​

Root Health​

Notes​

​

​

See tab​

Yes/No​

Tsp. per 5 Gallons​

Inches​

Inches​

Hightest/F​

Highest/%​

Inches below​

Reading​

Unknown​

Unknown​

1 to 5​

1 to 5​

1 to 5​

Changes​

09/06/20​

Seedling​

1​

No​

0​

1​

0​

83​

91​

na​

5.7​

23​

NA​

​

​

​

First to sprout​

09/10/20​

Seedling​

1​

No​

0​

1​

0.5​

86​

89​

na​

?​

?​

?​

3​

3​

?​

doubled in size today but leaves look a little wilty​

Rosa

Journal​

Date​

Phase​

Nute Week​

Flush?​

FloraKleen​

Height​

Girth​

Temperature​

Humidity​

H20 Level​

PH​

PPM​

CO2​

Leaf Health​

Stem Health​

Root Health​

Notes​

​

​

See tab​

Yes/No​

Tsp. per 5 Gallons​

Inches​

Inches​

Hightest/F​

Highest/%​

Inches below​

Reading​

Unknown​

Unknown​

1 to 5​

1 to 5​

1 to 5​

Changes​

09/06/20​

Seedling​

1​

No​

0​

0.25​

0​

83​

91​

na​

5.7​

23​

​

na​

na​

na​

seed shell fell off taproot...placed in rockwool with taproot​

09/10/20​

Seedling​

1​

No​

0​

0.5​

0.25​

86​

89​

na​

?​

?​

?​

na​

3​

1​

considerable growth in 4 days​

Catherine

Journal​

Date​

Phase​

Nute Week​

Flush?​

FloraKleen​

Height​

Girth​

Temperature​

Humidity​

H20 Level​

PH​

PPM​

CO2​

Leaf Health​

Stem Health​

Root Health​

Notes​

​

​

See tab​

Yes/No​

Tsp. per 5 Gallons​

Inches​

Inches​

Hightest/F​

Highest/%​

Inches below​

Reading​

Unknown​

Unknown​

1 to 5​

1 to 5​

1 to 5​

Changes​

09/06/20​

Seedling​

1​

No​

0​

0.1​

0​

83​

91​

na​

5.7​

23​

​

na​

na​

1​

tiny taproot​

09/10/20​

Seedling​

1​

No​

0​

0.1​

0​

86​

89​

na​

?​

?​

?​

na​

na​

1​

not much change since transplant​

Jackie

Journal​

Date​

Phase​

Nute Week​

Flush?​

FloraKleen​

Height​

Girth​

Temperature​

Humidity​

H20 Level​

PH​

PPM​

CO2​

Leaf Health​

Stem Health​

Root Health​

Notes​

​

​

See tab​

Yes/No​

Tsp. per 5 Gallons​

Inches​

Inches​

Highest/F​

Highest/%​

Inches below​

Reading​

Unknown​

Unknown​

1 to 5​

1 to 5​

1 to 5​

Changes​

09/06/20​

Seedling​

1​

No​

0​

0.01​

0​

83​

91​

na​

5.7​

​

​

na​

na​

1​

Shell cracked and showing just the tiniest of taproots​

09/10/20​

Seedling​

1​

No​

0​

0.01​

​

86​

89​

na​

?​

?​

?​

na​

na​

1​

unable to get good look​

Josephine

Journal​

Date​

Phase​

Nute Week​

Flush?​

FloraKleen​

Height​

Girth​

Temperature​

Humidity​

H20 Level​

PH​

PPM​

CO2​

Leaf Health​

Stem Health​

Root Health​

Notes​

​

​

See tab​

Yes/No​

Tsp. per 5 Gallons​

Inches​

Inches​

Hightest/F​

Highest/%​

Inches below​

Reading​

Reading​

Unknown​

1 to 5​

1 to 5​

1 to 5​

Changes​

09/06/20​

Seedling​

1​

No​

0​

0.01​

0​

83​

91​

na​

5.7​

23​

?​

na​

n a​

na​

Last seed to crack​

09/10/20​

Seedling​

1​

No​

0​

0.01​

0​

86​

89​

na​

?​

?​

?​

na​

na​

1​

taproot starting to form​

The germinator was pretty well dried out today as well as the rockwool cubes too. I put them back together and pinched the tops closed and back into the germinator. Instead of watering the rockwool cubes I watered the tray until the water reached the bottom of the cubes so the water can wick up to the plants.

Hopefully I didn't ruin this grow and the girls start to pick up the pace. I also rewired the relays to the raspberry pi and fitted the reservoir with the feed pump, air pump and large aeration stone. I added beneficial bacteria to the reservoir and turned on the feed pump. I had to raise the end of the return line and the last bucket. I also finished up the replacement bucket and added it to the system. I still am having trouble with the float switch on the reservoir, so, for now I'll just need to keep a close eye on it to ensure the pump doesn't run dry. All in all...I think today I moved the ball forward

 

[stardawg17]

Okay, Houston, we've had a problem here"
-- Jim Lovell

I raised the grow light in case it is light burn. Should this girl be getting nutes?

 

[stardawg17]

your home will always be the place for which you feel the deepest affection, no matter where you are
-- ancient proverb

Tonight I make my first post from the lab

I installed the shelf for the security system and monitor and setup the PC. My drill bit the dust so I didn't get the cameras installed yet, but, I did get the lawn mowed so that gives me extra time this weekend

Unfortunately, I believe this grow is not off to the best start. The 1 seedling is already wilting.

I decided to pull the shell casing off the leaf and added light nutes to plate. I'm assuming as the rockwool cube dries out the nute solution will wick up to the root.

No visible changes to the other ladies.

Since the other girls are being so shy I decided to give them a little privacy.

Hopefully these adjustments get this grow back on track

 

[stardawg17]

Tonight's Details

Nute

• FloraMicro
• 600 ppm
• 69 F
• 6.0 pH

 

[TriangleCheese]

Tonight's Details

Nute

• FloraMicro
• 600 ppm
• 69 F
• 6.0 pH

600 PPM seemed a little harsh to me. I think you should dry the RC of the popped seedling out to give her roots a better chance to grow

 

[stardawg17]

don't put all your eggs in one basket

-- ancient proverb


Well, I've all but given up on Harriet

My seed bank gave me a bonus seed, so, tonight Michelle took the plunge/

As for the rest of the ladies... It looks like Rosa is about ready for her coming out.

 

[stardawg17]

Sometimes the hardest part isn't letting go but rather learning to start over.

-- Nicole Sobon, Program 13 (The Emile Reed Chronicles, #1)

Harriet

Michelle

No change in the other girls

 

[stardawg17]

No, I mean, you do what you are. You're born with a gift. If not that, then you get good at something along the way. And what you're good at, you don't take for granted. You don't betray it.

-- Alex Cross, Along Came a Spider

Well...apparently I'm not good at growing weed

So while my first attempt slowly dies a painful death I've returned to what I know. Yesterday, I installed the security system and moved the pi out into the lab. I connected the lights and circulation fans to the relay box. This morning I also plugged in the heating pad for the germinator into the relay box and now I can control the temp inside that guy

I've also gotten back to controller 2. I had a float switch go bad and fried a GPIO pin on the arduino uno, but, now I'm back in business and moving forward with the water sample sensors. The dashboard is expanding...

 

[stardawg17]

ctr-alt-del

It's been a week since I reset this grow. I managed to drown all 5 seeds in the rockwool cubes. So much for the theory you can't over water rockwool cause of all the oxygen trapped in the fibers.

09/15
So this time around I dropped s single seed. Michelle was born 9/15 when she sprouted her tap root.

I prepped the rockwool cube by soaking in pH5.5 water for an hour and then set on the germinator tray to drain.

09/16
The next day I put michelle into the cube, feathered the hole closed and put it into the dome. The dome temp is now monitored and controlled by the mycodo system.

09/17
Michelle sprouted and pushed out those beautiful first pair of cotyledon. They are dark green with a green stem.

09/20
She stands 2 cm tall and the cotyledons are 1.3 cm wide.... And... Her first set of true leaves are fairly well defined.

This is where it all went sideways last time so let's hope history doesn't repeat itself here. I still haven't added more water or nutes to her yet. I have dropped the light to 12" because I think she may be stretching too much.

I'm anxious to get her into her forever home in the bucket, but, the pH isn't stable in the irrigation system. I bought a good pH meter and have been adjusting the level down around 5 each night. However the next day when I check it it's back up around 7 again. I don't know if it just takes time for the solution in the buckets to circulate or if the perlite or hydroton will drive it up like that and I need to adjust it every day. I give it 5 minutes to circulate with each adjustment so I'm just confused here.

 

[PGA Caddie]

Consider buying a bag of rapid rooters.
I use them to start seeds and clone with great success.