Help! Hydroponic DWC Seed to Rockwool

IndyRacerNick

IndyRacerNick

Well-Known Member
So after I did 2 plants over the summer I decided to give in an try my luck at Hydroponics.

I will start a new journal on this once we are going. We are growing White Widow this time around.

I have a hydroponic system and she is all ready to go.

I placed a seed in water and paper towel for germination and she cracked and has a root which I will be placing in the rockwool today after work.

Couple questions which I was unable to find easily on the forums I need help with:

Rockwool:

The rockwool that was given me was not a rockwool cube. It is a rockwool cylinder and has a slit down the side. I am assuming after I soak the rockwool in water it will shut tight and I can place the seed into the rockwool.

My question is: When I place the seed in the rockwool, can I then move the rockwool directly to my DWC setup and turn it on, or do I need to wait until I see the plant sprout from the rockwool.

The setup will be in my room with 1 x 1500 Watt LED light. Would I hurt the plant by placing it in the basket with hydration pebbles/clay covering it or should I wait for it to break through the surface of the rockwool?

My theory is that if I place the seed in the rockwool, then place the rockwool in the basket of the DWC Setup and cover it with pebbles it will provide a stronger stem where the plant has to make its way through the pebbles to break the surface, the same way planting a seed a little deeper in the soil to make it work harder and get stronger to get to the top.

The instructions on the DWC setup says soon as I place the seed in rockwool to place it in the DWC setup and fire it up without any nutes added only ph'd water

Any advise?

Cheers
 
Rock wool is old and out of date technology (though people still use and like it). What people seem to really like now are Rapid Rooters. Big following.

If you do decide to use rock wool, don't breath the dust (kinda like asbestos--fine fibers can get in the lungs) and be sure to really shake out extra water (but don't squish the fibers) or you may drown your young plant.
 
Yeah I done a lot of reading on it. Gonna soak in pH adjusted water for a hour or two before placing seed, and will let the rockwool sit to drain after a light shake without squeezing to damage air pockets and the material itself.

Got that pretty down pat, rockwool was included in my setup so I just assumed it was the real deal. Either way it should still work. I am just curious about the method of planting the seed into the rockwool, if I should place it in my system right away or not.

Another reason I am thinking I should place it in there right away is because the mist from the air bubbles will be sure to prevent the rockwool from drying out but also keeping the roots away from light. I could be wrong, this is why I am asking.
 
Scientific said:
You don't want the rock wool drying, but neither do you want it soaking.

Here's a little rock wool drama that may be instructive/serve as a cautionary tale...
Scientific's Hydro Dwarf Low Flyer 24/7 Illumination Fireplace Grow Journal - 2017
Read posts 4 to 12.
Click to expand...

Totally agree! Too much water is no good during a seedling stage especially in rockwool, same rule applies when germenating in paper towel, dont soak it just have it wet.

I took a read at your post, very interesting and good to see you make use of a fireplace like that :)

I dont think I will have a issue with it be over saturated with water because after its soaked and ph balanced I plan on letting it sit in a drain for a hour or two as I said to let excess water out before the seed even gets placed in it.

If I place it in the bucket the hydroponics pump will provide a small mist but I dont think it will be enough to drown her because she will be a few inches away from the water, covered in stones. Maybe I am talking shit, who knows, thats why I am here.


My plan was to go home, ph balance water, soak rockwool, drain rockwool & let it sit, place germinated seed in rockwool, place rockwool on top of a layer of pebbles in DWC basket then fully cover the rockwool with the remaining pebbles, turn DWC on and let the pump run with plain water. It will either work, or my plant is on death row before its even out of the shell of a seed haha
 
IndyRacerNick said:
I dont think I will have a issue with it be over saturated with water because after its soaked and ph balanced I plan on letting it sit in a drain for a hour or two as I said to let excess water out before the seed even gets placed in it.
Click to expand...

Do give it a good shake! Rock wool can hold an amazing amount of water.
 
Jack420 said:
If i was u il start seed in cup with dirt befor goin strait in rhe dwc
Click to expand...

In a cup with dirt? Wouldnt the roots get damaged when trying to remove the seedling from the dirt when transplanting to DWC? I was really hoping to avoid dirt.
 
Heckk no to me its best bcuz u let the roots start with out the stress of adapting to water plus grow roots just wen u take out of soil b gentle n have a cup of water it will come in handy
420-magazine-mobile1774250131.jpg
i do all my plants like that n have great results evreytime
 
Rapid Rooters is something I will look at next time. Everything I was searching for was saying rockwool and I had a kit that came with it.

It is very late to switch that now because the seed is cracked and a root is out of the seed about 2" long on moist towel

So if rockwool is such a problem, can I just gently place the seedling in the tray with the pebbles?

I do have soil available as I am currently doing 2 soil grows. What if I took a solo cup, filled with soil, planted seed, and when she sprouts above the soil wash off all the soil gently from the root and plant directly in the pebbles and fill it up until pebbles are just under the 2 starter leaves?

Sorry for being a pain in the ass...i know there are many ways to do this and everyone has a personal preference. I rather not be setup for failure from the start. If I had access to other cubes or starter plugs I would get them, but where I am from thats not easy stuff to obtain unless its an online order.
 
Its strait man to b real i tried rockwool n from seed it was hard cuz to me they didnt sprout now if u want to start them in the hydro i would put a pump n do a drip feed to start them but i try to stay away from rockwool just pebbles n let roll but next time germ seed putt holes in a cup n dirt put seen in there in like a week or to transplant into hydro with just pebbles n u b good.
 
Jack420 said:
If i was u il start seed in cup with dirt befor goin strait in rhe dwc
Click to expand...

I have to say I wasnt sure about exposing the roots to light, but now I see where you are going with this.

I found a video as seen below..makes perfect sense. I like this method a lot more because I know I can grow in soil no problem, rockwool or anything like that means teh root has to penetrate through and can cause issues if too much water and all that jazz...

Will place the baby in a small cup for a week or two until she is sprouted and got the shell shaken off and a root system that is started, then into water to remove the soil and finally into DWC

Thanks again, this is exactly what I was wanting to know. You were all very helpful. Will update when I start the journal!

Here is the video so others can also see what you were talking about

[video=youtube;zpj2DFvMzNQ]
[/video]
 
IndyRacerNick said:
So if rockwool is such a problem, can I just gently place the seedling in the tray with the pebbles?
Click to expand...

That's what I ended up doing after my plant was drowning and being stunted by rock wool. I don't think it was ideal, but it sure took off after I did it. I think you can use rock wool just fine, just be sure not to have it sopping wet, especially before the roots emerge from it.
Scientific's Hydro Dwarf Low Flyer 24/7 Illumination Fireplace Grow Journal - 2017
This guy went straight into hydroton and did great
2017-04-02_Day_13_1600_rockwoolectomy_004.JPG
 

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