Hydroponics

[Longhair1]

Originally Posted by free.urMIND

Simple.. couldnt find the answer..

Two of my 3 sprouted seeds are about an inch above the rockwool but the seeds wont shed, pretty much completely covering with a small crack in the shell for the root. Is it dead or am i being impatient, only been this way for about a day, but no progression.

Hello,
Give Them A Little Time Usually They Come Off By Themselves. If Not, Take A Toothpick & Gently I Mean Gently! Try To Pop It Off. I Take A Fingernail & Sorta Flick It Off GENTLY!
Thank You
Longhair1

[Longhair1]

Originally Posted by GoldenGoblin

Algae and fungus are kind of inevitable. There are a few things you can do. Fungicidal soap sprays for vegetables will semi control it but make sure you don't saturate it. You can also cut some cardboard/plastic/anything that will block light growth. That will reduce it.
Hydroton on top of your plugs could help too.
It probably isn't mold but more likely fungus.
I think the fungicidal soap sprays probably the easiest way to deal with it.
Ventilation, ventilation will also help to dry out the top layers of your plugs
Lets see how that goes.

Hello,
On This Run I Had Gold Algae Then Root Rot Real Bad! On Another Site A Member "Haps". Told Me This, "I have been doing a simple root rinse at each transplant for three years, and it has eliminated most of my rrot issues. The secret? Tap water, with the chlorine still in it. I take the plant, and a bucket of water, dip the root up to the net pot three times, then I gently massage the root under water with my clean hands, till any brown is gone, and to remove any piecs of root or leaf. That is it, simple, cheap and tested effective."
It Worked For Me Better & Quicker Than Anything Else. Remember When Playing With Roots Be Very Gentle! Just Do It Once.
Thank You
Longhair1

[Longhair1]

Originally Posted by LI_NY

what should i use to clean out my rez before even adding water to start my grow?
i have used these 18 gallon bins previously (not to grow) and i want to make sure
they are good to go, clean and prepared before i get it up and running. -New york

Hello,
Bleach & Rinse The Hell Of It. Then Rinse It Again.
Thank You
Longhair1

[Longhair1]

Originally Posted by bakedchef

Here is some pics. We are finding allot of single & three fingered leaves as well as what appears to be nute burn. We are running our ppms at 920 / ph at 5.8

Also the bloom process seems to be going rather slow. we are at about 2 1/2 weeks into bloom and the nuggs are barely forming.

Any ideas?


Using flora grow, bloom, and micro series with mother of all bloom.

Thanks

Hello,
Happened On THE HOG I'm Running Now. What I Was Told Was I Had A Light Leak Which Stressed It Out Of Blooming Of 6 Weeks Back Into Vegging. Flowers Everywhere But No Buds 1, 2, 3, 7, 8 Bladed Leaves. Also Looks Like There Is A Cal/Meg Deficiency.
Thank You
Longhair1

[Longhair1]

Originally Posted by Sherlock0824

My question is, when using a hydroponic set up, what are the most efficent types of Nutes to use, what brand, and more specifially, what bottle(s). Im having a very hard time understanding this one concpet of hydroponics. Im trying to do as much research as i can before i start my bubble bucket experiement, and i know that Nutes are one of the major factors. Its just confusing to me, so anyone that can help me out...its much appreciated.

Hello,
GH Flora Series Or GH Floranova.
Thank You
Longhair1

[Longhair1]

Originally Posted by mikeownow

Help BROWN ROOTS IN HYDRO AHHH!

Hello,
On This Run I Had Gold Algae Then Root Rot Real Bad! On Another Site A Member "Haps". Told Me This, "I have been doing a simple root rinse at each transplant for three years, and it has eliminated most of my rrot issues. The secret? Tap water, with the chlorine still in it. I take the plant, and a bucket of water, dip the root up to the net pot three times, then I gently massage the root under water with my clean hands, till any brown is gone, and to remove any piecs of root or leaf. That is it, simple, cheap and tested effective."
It Worked For Me Better & Quicker Than Anything Else. Remember When Playing With Roots Be Very Gentle! Just Do It Once.
Thank You
Longhair1

[Longhair1]

Originally Posted by dotar1701

I am in the fifth week of flowering and my leaves are dying, the buds look ok but are not turning amber?

Hello,
Probably Cal/Mag Problem & PH Lock Out. IMO!
Thank You
Longhair1

[wh1t3w1dow]

Didn't read through all the pages here but here's my question taken from another thread I asked in.

"Also I know you said you've never done hydroponics but what do you think of it? Will the quality be that much better and would you yield more or what? Hydroponics just seems like a hassle to setup though, lol."

[Hydra-Glide]

A county collective has developed a two-bucket system that feeds from the top from 50 or 25 gal. gallon blue barrels and a small pump - said to prevent mid-stage root rot.
They initially use pod-cups under a low-watt (1/2" dia.) twin tube - to get 3" seedlings. If your wave your hand slowly over a flat of seedlings, towards your nose, high-quality aroma is evident. They accept donations (at cost) for each fem-plant.
The medical-patient can then transfer the "starts" to the (mesh cup) clay-ball medium, for root foundation under a 250 watt HPS lamp, until the plants get waist high, then QUICKLY change to 350 watt HPS to flower the plants. The reason, they say, is because once the plants begin to want to flower, they will stretch up a foot or so to reach the lower 250W bulb and you'll have gangly tops and wasted grow space.
You have to keep the HPS light about 3' above the plants, because they don't like close heat (you can feel the heat if you hold your hand in front of a fully glowing 250 hps and see why the plants can't take to much of it). [Caution: Don't touch the HPS bulb ever. If you do, then wipe it with alcohol when it's cold.]
Although, real gardeners can use the heat to make the tops bend away from it. ("You'll have a huge top that gets fat mid-way, and then makes a turn to avoid the heat lamp, which creates more flower surface".)
I'm thinking of building a booth with a carbon filter for smell containment, if that's possible.
My problem, is that I want to shield the HPD lights from radiating light and making my place look like a lighthouse at night.
I donated $100. (at cost) for a used 250 HPS (with an internal ballast) from the collective.

Are their any indoor booth plans at city site?

[cultiv8]

Originally Posted by fLnIriE420

They are pretty good, but a lot of it is just hype. Their additives are overpriced and have a tendency to not be consistent in quality. I prefer to use a base made by Super Nutrients (SVA + SVB for veg adn SBA + SBB for bloom). Using a middle of the range base will allow you to add a lot of extra things to your water, curtailing your nutrient mixture to your specific strain.

I gotta disagree. I don't think it's hype.

Granted, they get a little enthusiastic with their advertising sometimes but I've used their nutes for awhile now and I think they've earned the right to toot their own horn. I've never had any trouble with their stuff.

Can't say the same about Super Nutrients. It's okay I guess, just really basic for my needs.

Originally Posted by fLnIriE420

What are some expensive good nutrients?

Advanced Nutrients makes a base called "Conesiur" which is really great, but it is about $100 per liter vs $25 per gallon of something like Super Nutrients

It's "Connoisseur" and it does cost a lot. I've only used it once and it was everything they said it was. I'm actually planning to use it again next grow. Hands-down it grew the best smoke I have ever had bar none.

Originally Posted by fLnIriE420

DO NOT USE DISTILLED WATER!!!!! It is way too pure, and your nutrients will be too concentrated.

I'm not sure it would make the nutrients too concentrated, the problem is that nutrients are formulated for use with "regular" water that has certain trace minerals (nutrients) in it already. You'll have deficiencies with distilled water.

Awhile back there was this guy that started one of those health-kick things centered around drinking distilled water, touting it's "purity" as a cleansing thing for the soul or some such nonsense. Long-term use of distilled water as drinking water led to a number of health problems from trace mineral deficiencies including some serious bone deterioration.

Originally Posted by Longhair1

Hello,
I Don't Have Any Mason Jars For Curing. What Should I Use?
Thank You
Longhair1

If you don't have any Mason Jars I recommend using Mason Jars. Just get some. They sell them at Wal-Mart, so it's not as if they're some rare and hard to find item.

BTW, the "under observation by men in white coats" hyperactive posting thing is a little off-putting. Just a suggestion, but you might want to keep your consecutive uninterrupted posts down to at least a single-digit number, if not one less than 3.

[Smiles420]

Originally Posted by NtothePtotheK

It is my opinion and experience that growing semi-hydroponically, using potting soil as the medium, is cheapest and easiest.

<b>Q:</b> What? But growing hydroponically means growing without soil, right?
<b>A:</b> Wrong!
Hydro-: A prefix meaning water or liquid
Geoponic: Of or relating to agriculture or farming

Generally people accept "Hydroponic" to mean "growing without soil" but it actually means "growing WITH water [or liquid]."

You still need something for the roots to anchor onto, and for the nutrient solution to drain from, so your plant can stand upright and your roots can breathe oxygen. Inert materials like vermiculite, perlite, rockwool, legos, etc. are usually used. Soil still works for this purpose. I say let nature have her say... soil it is!

<b>SOIL PROs:</b>

- Inexpensive!
- Easy as pie
- Easy as goddamn pie

<b>SOIL CONs:</b>
- Messy (duh, it's dirt)
- Slow growth
- Growth SEVERELY limited by container size
- Nutrient "hot" and "cold" spots (poorly mixed soil = poorly mixed nutrients)
- Need to transplant frequently OR start with unweildy, large pots
- Overwatering more possible
- Nutrient quality is poor in cheap soil, and more expensive soils are.. well.. expensive.

<b>HYDROPONIC PROs:</b>

- Rapid growth
- Container size still a limiting factor, but much less so (bigger plants in smaller containers for longer periods of time)
- Full control over nutrient intake

<b>HYDROPONIC CONs:</b>

- expensive to set up
- expensive to maintain (even self-maintaining hydroponic systems like continuous drip still need to be tested and adjusted frequently, unless you have years of experience, and they tend to be more prone to plant problems because of neglect).
- Until you have a good system and proven formula down, you have to constantly adjust nutrient solution levels to your plants' needs. LOTS OF EFFORT HERE! I'm not kidding! Not for beginners.
- pumps, pipes, power, timers, tubes, etc.
- Fungus seems to be a more common problem than for soil-growers. Especially if you recirculate nutrient solution to save money.


There is a compromise. For about $2.50 USD per 10 dry quarts, you can buy cheap potting soil with time release nutrients already in it. It's not enough nutrients for the amount of watering your plants will need, especially during flowering, unless you want to CONSTANTLY transplant into bigger pots and add more soil. Instead, you can supplement the natural (and factory-added) nutrients that are in the soil by feeding with weak hydroponic solution every, say, third watering. For example, I use a complete soil with an N-P-K of .08-.12-.08 and every third watering, I supplement the water with Miracle Gro (when mixed as directed, has an N-P-K of .08-.07-.06). This results in, among other impressive specimens, a 2 foot tall plant in a 3" tall sawed-off 2 liter soda bottle (with decent internodal length), and only a tiny bit of purple spotting on some of the stems (the beginnings of Nitrogen deficiency). This is a plant that needs to be repotted now, but in plain soil it never would have gotten this far in a soda bottle.



Read everything you can, LOOK FOR AND READ MULTIPLE GROW GUIDES, MULTIPLE TIMES. There are plenty of good links in these forums. Everything I've learned about growing I've learned because of these forums (or links therein), albeit many months ago. It's not hard to become an adept grower with a little study-time and a little experience! Until then, here are some very basic tips:

Don't overwater, don't overfertilize (don't feed nutrient solution too often, it builds up in the soil and is flushed out by clean waterings), and <u>most of all don't panic and overfertilize your plants if leaves start dying</u>. They may be dying because you ALREADY overfertilized.

Anyway, I find this combination of soil and hydroponic techniques to require less effort and money than a hydroponic setup, but with similar results.

P.S. - I'm kidding about the legos. Good luck!

dude, plants dont need oxygen to grow, they need co2 and if growing hydroponically ment growing with water then wouldnt that mean that EVERY plant in the world is growing hydroponically because they NEED water? lolz i think u ment submerging the roots in water at all times, so growing hydroponics in dirt can be different, there is a drip system and i suppose you could use dirt as a medium and that IS hydroponics then again hydroponics can mean other things, like having a water pump to pump supply the plants with nuetrients because in a drip system they arnt ALWAYS submerged...then again im stoned...very very stoned so if none of this makes sense just lauggh

[Peflora]

Wow. The disinformation in these last posts is frightening.

Can you grow good weed in soil- OF COURSE, but you can grow more weed in a smaller space, in a shorter period of time using 1/10 the nutrients while avoiding a lot of bug issues associated with soil grows. I know, I have done both. So what's not to like?

Hydroponics is the growing of plants without soil! There are a variety of ways to do this- bubbleponics, fogponics, DWC, flood and drain, misting, drip...

Hydroponic mediums include hydroton, rock wool, and the newest generation from Sure2Grow., which is by far the easiest, cleanest soilless medium currently available.

O2 and CO2. The plants need CO2 but their roots need dissolved oxygen and fertilizer. You can easily over fertilize soil grown plants, that will cost you a grow, whereas you can push the hell out of nute delivery in aero/DWC/Ebb and Flow and fogponics. Not so much with drip, because it is fertilizing from the top down. If you make a mistake with hydro you will quickly see the result. You simply dumpthose nutes, run a flush for 24 hours, make a fresh batch of nutes and continue on.

Nutrient Delivery Low pressure misting is popular and provides really good results, but only fogponics, which uses high pressure pumps and fogheads introduces the nutes to the roots in the most readily usaeable form. This is where you will get max yield per plant, and it's really quite easy to do.

[skudzzz]

Hey GC quick questions for ya...

I've been researching hydro grows, and am starting an indoor hydro grow for myself and my roommate. I have a question about the nutes I bought: Schultz brand Plant Food Plus Micronutrients (10-15-10). Is that a decent enough NPK rating to get started off with? I've heard seedlings/vegetative growth requires a lot of Nitrogen, and I read that the N rating should be the highest number when buying nutrients; am I good with what I have, or do I need to get something else?

I'm planning a small, 1 or 2 plant, DWC perpetual grow using 4 CFLs in a PC case; flowering more than likely in a couple large Rubbermaid containers. Starting off with bag seed, but getting some medicinal seeds from California in a few weeks

Any help at all is appreciative. And pizza sounds really good right now
Skudzzz....

[pbplaya001]

if you use a bubble bucket do all hydro nutes work with the bubbles in the water

[Peflora]

Any good brand of hydroponic nutes should have the type of their nutes to use (and the amounts to use) during early veg, mature grow, and bloom.

I advise you NOT to grow until you have a basic understanding of this. Also how much nute to use is very dependent on the amount of lumens your plants are receiving.

Do more studying, and only use bad seeds until you get a good understanding of how to grow hydroponically. I am an experienced soil grower, but lost 2 crops of expensive seeds before I got a handle on hydro. Actually, I started with drip- too easy to get root rot) then ultrasonic fog (don't recommend it unless you also use a spray/mist bar), I am now using high pressure pump and fog heads. This method provides the nutes to the roots in the optimum way, BUT, optimum nute delivery without proper lighting will give you stretched plants and little yield.