Sannies Jack Herijuana

This will be my first serious grow. Several years ago, I started with a simple closet set up, two Blueberry clones, and a handful of CFLs. They turned out alright considering all I used was regular potting soil, water, and those CFLs. A little while later, my roommate at the time and I decided to set up a little SOG - invested in some T5s, nutrients, and a 2'x4'x6' metal shelf (separated into two zones for veg. and flower). We had 14-plant cycles going for a little while - still not the greatest due to some atmosphere problems that we couldn't afford to get under control. Then I moved and didn't have a good spot to set up something new. Several years later (now), I've moved again, have the space, enough extra cash to have a decent set up, and decided to jump back in.
 
I'm just about finished with building the box. It's 4'x4', 6' high, wooden box lined with mylar (except the floor, where I used vinyl tiles to help with any water spills). I'm planning to only run 4 plants at a time so they'll have plenty of room. I also have a reverse osmosis system already set up in the kitchen, so I'll be using that filtered water. Here are some specs for what I'll be using:

• SolisTek Matrix 1000w Digital Ballast (dimmable)
• Eye Hortilux Blue MH 600w (for veg)
• Eye Hortilux Super HPS 1000w (for flower)
• Phresh 4"x12" Carbon Filter
• Vortex Inline Fan 4" (200 cfm)
• Maximizer Reflector (not air cooled - this was one area where I had to downgrade a bit)
• 2 Lasko 6in Clip Fans (already looking into a few others, but these should be fine to start with)
• Horti-Control Dust Shroom 4" (for intake vent)
• General Organics nutrients - got the go box (BioThrive Grow/Bloom, CaMg+, BioRoot, BioWeed, BioBud, BioMarine, Diamond Black)
• RootMaker Pots (1 gallon to start and will transplant to 5 gallon just before flowering)
• Random Accessories (PH meter, TDS meter, PH Up/Down, thermometer/hygrometer, adjustable rope hangers... might be missing some stuff, but you get the gist)

I'll post some pics of the box once I get it finished up (likely tomorrow morning). Just working on some finishing touches for light-proofing and still have to hook up the Phresh filter.
 
I just got my seeds today (which was a bit quicker than I expected, hence the box not being complete yet). As the title implies, part of the order was for Sannie's Jack and Herijuana, which is what I plan to start with. I'd read some great things about both (Jack Herer is my favorite strain, but figured I'd start with Sannie's version before splurging on the Sensi version). One concern I have is the significantly different growth patterns - I realize the Jack will grow quite a bit taller than the Herijuana. I've read a few journals/posts of folks who did them together with success, but as this is my first grow in several years, I'm a bit nervous about it. To help combat the difference, I'm thinking of topping the Jack and not topping the Herijuana. I was originally planning to top all four, but read some posts about Herijuana not needing it and figured it might help with the height difference. I've actually not topped before, but I'm pretty comfortable/confident with going that route. Anyone strongly recommend not even trying to grow these two together? What do you think of the topping one and not the other approach?
 
I plan to start germinating tomorrow, so I'd appreciate any thoughts. I plan to go get some Happy Frog soil tomorrow as well, so I'll be ready once those seeds pop. Any one have any other soil recommendations? I've heard great things of Ocean Forest as well, and I might end up doing a mix.
 
As far as goals, I'm trying to stay conservative for this first round - healthy and happy. I feel that 1oz dried weight per plant is a reasonable goal (though don't get me wrong, I'd love to blow that out of the water). I feel like too many new(ish) growers get too bent up on yields out of the gate - I plan to focus on the fundamentals and see what comes. After I get through a successful cycle, I'll start working on ways to increase yield in the future.
 
I'm sure there are some details I'm forgetting, but I'm sure they'll come up. Feel free to ask any questions as well. Apologies for the lengthy post, but I wanted to give some background and go through specs. I'll likely update a few times a week or as big events come up. Please feel free to share your thoughts, ideas, recommendations, etc. - I'm hoping to lean on some of your knowledge throughout this process.

 

Finished up the box today. The door didn't go on as well as I had hoped; the hinges were probably just not strong enough, so the door started to pull sideways. And the latch I got to keep the door closed doesn't keep the door tight enough, so it opens a crack (which wouldn't hurt me too much now if I weren't trying to have a completely sealed environment so I can better control atmosphere). But I decided to run out and get some new hinges anyway, so I grabbed a new latch in hopes that it seals a bit tighter. I'll likely replace those pieces tomorrow. I did snap a few photos of the box though - let me know what you think.
 
I also started the germination process. I decided to keep with my original plan and started 2 Jack and 2 Herijuana. I'm using the damp paper towel on a plate approach - have a bowl covering to keep moisture in/light out and have the plate sitting on a heated blanket. I was surprised with just how small those seeds are - I had read some other comments about them being pretty small, but I was surprised nonetheless.
 
I also picked up some soil today. I decided to stay on plan and get Happy Frog. I think I might do a mix with Ocean Forest when I transplant into the 5 gallon pots for flowering, but I'll make that call once I get to that point.
 
I'm still hoping to get some feedback from you guys on my thoughts of topping the Jack and not the Herijuana, so feel free to comment! Hopefully these little guys will pop in the next day or two, then the fun starts (though I must admit, it's been pretty fun planning/buying/building so far, so I'm just rolling on that momentum).

 

Felt a bit anxious, so I decided to attach the new set of hinges tonight rather than waiting for tomorrow. Much better - door is stable and swinging freely. Also attached one of the two clip-latches that I got (kept snapping/stripping the screws when trying to install the second one, so I decided to give up and wait for tomorrow on that) - seems like they'll keep my door nice and snug, so I'm feeling pretty good. Once I get the second one on, I'll do the official light- and air-proof tests (though I did a mini-test earlier and all seemed good except for the known issues with the door).
 
Fingers crossed that I'll start seeing some taproots tomorrow!

 

Been a few days since last post, so I figured an update was in order.
 
The germination process was not successful at all. As mentioned, I used the damp paper towel technique (which I've had great success with in the past). I had the paper towels on a plate, covered with a bowl, and placed on a heating blanket for warmth. Since I was a bit anxious, I told myself that I wouldn't check for 24 hours (didn't want to disturb the little guys). But when I came back 24 hours later, the paper towel felt pretty dry and the plate was very hot (didn't think the blanket would make it so hot). So I put a little more water on, turned down the blanket, and pressed the bowl down firmly in hopes of better trapping the moisture.
 
When I came back 24 hours later, the paper towel felt extremely moist and the plate was still pretty hot, so I pressed the paper towel to get some of the moisture out and turned the blanket down again. At this point though, I noticed that 2 of the seeds had cracked open a tiny bit (didn't see any taproots though), so I felt like everything would be okay.
 
24 hours later (72 total), the plate felt warm and the paper towel still very moist, but still no taproots. I started getting a little worried since I somewhat expected to see at least a few taproots by day 3. Afraid that I had killed them with the heat and/or under/over watering, I went to the forums for a bit of research. A few things I read led me to believe that I had locked out oxygen with the bowl, and that I might have water-logged them. So I decided to take the bowl off altogether and went to bed in hopes that the following morning I'd see some taproots.
 
Still no taproots the following morning, and the paper towel had completely dried out overnight. I was pretty frustrated/disappointed by then, so I decided to just toss them in soil and hope for the best. I figured the soil might be better at holding moisture, and that if these guys were frail already, being in their home might be best. When moving them to the soil, I did notice that an additional seed had cracked open a little (3 total now). With one of the seeds that had originally cracked, I could see the taproot (hadn't really emerged from the shell, but was pressing against it - looked bloated). With the other seed that had originally cracked, I could see the taproot inside the shell (just barely). The third seed that had cracked last had no visible sign of a taproot. The fourth seed had not cracked at all.
 
It's been about 48 hours now since I moved them to the soil (~5 days since originally putting them on the paper towel), and there are still no signs of growth. I've since looked into some other techniques/options, and I think I might get a tray of Rapid Rooters for future use. Almost all of me has called it on the initial 4 seeds (which sucks, but at least I got extra of those plus a few other strains). However, a small part of me wants to give them some more time to see if they'll pull through. Right now, I'm thinking that I'll wait til Wednesday, and if still no growth, I'll start 4 more seeds in Rapid Rooters (another 2 of Sannie's Jack and 2 of Herijuana). What do you guys think? Do you think the initial seeds are done for, and that I should just start germinating more now? Or do you think I should wait the extra 2 days (or more)? I've read that some seeds can take up to two weeks, but I've also read that's unusual. I feel like the initial two seeds that cracked have to be dead (I don't think they would crack and then wait this long for the taproot to emerge), so my only hope would be the other two (in which case I'd still want to germinate two more seeds anyway) - do you guys agree with that thought or not? I feel like I just over-thought this one since I was so anxious to start these guys.

 

Thanks for the post, TMG. I haven't heard/seen anywhere of Herijuana herming frequently, so hopefully mine will come out alright - sorry you haven't had good luck with it. That Jack Squared looks pretty nice. Let me know how it turns out.
 
As for an update, still no signs of growth with the initial seeds. Today was my final call on them, so I ended up going out to get some starter plugs and a tray w/ dome in hopes better success this time through. I already dropped 4 new seeds (2 Sannies Jack and 2 Herijuana again) - fingers crossed this round goes better.

 

Just realized that I forgot to mention that I'm using fem seeds - seems like it's an important thing to forget. Anyway, 100% germination success this time around - picture of the seedlings attached. The two Herijuana (left) were fully emerged yesterday morning and look real healthy and happy - already have their first set of true leaves. One of the Jacks (back right) emerged late yesterday. The other Jack (front right) had to turn itself upside down since the taproot ended up emerging from the part of the seed pointing upward, but looks like it's almost straightened out. The cotyledons on it are still stuck together (the tips almost look fried together on close inspection), but I'm going to let it be for now in hopes of self-correction. If they don't separate by tomorrow morning/afternoon, I might take a toothpick or some tweezers and try to separate them gently.
 
I attached a few pics of the dome/box setup as well. I'm doing homemade co2 using the sugar & yeast technique and using straws to direct the flow. I drilled two small holes in the dome to slip the straws through. I have two bowls of water for humidity, and I've been leaving the vents mostly closed at this point (but will open/vent out the dome several times throughout the day). The temp has been staying around 80 degrees F (~82 when I checked last). Humidity has been staying mostly between 50%-70%. Yesterday it got up to 90% at one point, which is when I started venting the dome periodically, and I close the vents if it drops below 50%. Last I checked, it was ~55%.
 
I have a small tower fan circulating at the bottom of the box to keep the dome/tray cool (temp was getting close to 90 degrees in the dome at one point, so I figured the fan should help a bit), and I have the two lasko fans pointed at/just below the light to dissipate some of the heat. The light is currently 3' above the plants and they seem to be doing okay with it. After a few days (or when the Jacks perk up a bit more), I'll start lowering the light little by little.

 

The front-right Jack finally emerged from the shell fully overnight. One of it's first true leaves is curled a bit, but I'm not too worried about it right now - figure it's just because of the weird way it popped from the shell. So now all seedlings have their first set of true leaves. Since they all seem to be doing well, I moved the light down to ~2.5' above them for now - will keep it there for a few days and try 2' (slowly working down to 12", or as close as I can get without damage/stress).
 
I also gave them some water since the plugs looked to be pretty dry. I didn't measure the water, just used a little dropper til the plugs looked quite moist again. They probably needed some last night, but I had some guests over and didn't have a chance to get back to the plants before dark cycle. On that note, I've started a 20-on, 4-off cycle for the light (last night was the first dark cycle). I've always done 24-on in the past (and switched straight to 12/12 for flower), but I've read good things about keeping a dark cycle in veg and figured I'd give it a try this time around. I know it'll slow growth a bit compared to 24-on, but I'm not trying to rush through this grow. I plan to keep it at 20/4 for a few weeks, then switch to 18/6 for a few weeks before flower. I've read that the gradual increase of dark hours creates a more natural cycle for the plants, therefore minimal stress. I also plan to keep with the MH for the first week or two of flower before switching to the HPS (another stress-reducing tactic), but I'll discuss that more when I get to that point.
 
My initial plan was to transplant from the tray into 1-gal RootMaker pots, then into 5-gal RootMaker pots before flower. However, I'm starting to think of going straight to 5-gal (skip the 1-gal altogether). I was thinking that the roots may not be robust enough by the time I switch to flower, making the transplant more risky. And in general, not sure I want the added stress to the plants just before flower. I've had great success with transplanting in the past, and I've see pros/cons to both methods, but just have the gut feeling that straight to 5-gal will be best in the long run. What do you guys think? I'm also not sure how long I want to keep the seedlings in the dome, and I would love some recommendations. I was originally thinking of letting them grow as much as they can in the dome before transplanting to the bigger pot (whether it's 1- or 5-gal) - the dome is 7", so I figured I'd let them get to 5" or 6", then transplant. The primary reason is humidity - I know plants in seedling/veg stage like higher humidity, and I'm currently having trouble keeping the humidity in the overall box higher than 30-35%. Since I can keep the dome at 50-70%, I figure they'd like that environment more.
 
I'm also having second thoughts about topping any of the plants, and instead just doing some LST. Can you tell that my overall theme is minimal stress? I saw a journal recently where the grower had great results with doing some very minimal LST - simply bending the plants to one side of the pot and just letting them grow normal from there. I've seen some where the plant is wrapped almost entirely around the edge of the pot, but I don't think I want to get that extreme with it (nor do I want to wait that long in veg). This was another reason I was thinking of going straight to 5-gal pots - I could plant the little guys about 1/3 from the edge of the pot and bend them towards the 2/3 clearing. Any thoughts on this approach?

 

I decided to transplant into the 5-gal pots two days ago - couldn't tell you exactly why, more of a gut feeling to do so. Decided to just use the Happy Frog soil instead of doing a mix. I also gave the first round of nutes after transplanting - I generally would have waited for a bit more growth first, but Gen. Organics feeding schedule has a seedling phase built in, so I just followed that dosage. Plants seemed to be fine with it. There hasn't been much growth above soil in the last few days (though I noticed a bit of growth this morning), but I expected that as the growth is likely happening under the soil right now.
 
I had a little humidifier laying around, so I threw that in the box to help with the low humidity. Had to unplug one of the Lasko fans (pointed at the light) to plug in the humidifier, but since it's a cool-mist one, I figure that should offset losing one fan. As of right now, my climate has been pretty solid. Temps are staying around 75F (plus/minus a few degrees) during light, dropping to ~65F during dark. Humidity has been staying in the 50-60% range (drops significantly any time I open the door, and spikes a bit at night when the exhaust fan turns off). I'm running the humidifier on high during light and started switching to medium before dark - I might turn it off altogether during dark if the spikes don't get better (my hygrometer showed a max of 99% this morning - seemed a little unbelievable, so I reset it and should have a better idea tomorrow morning).
 
I also lowered the light down to 2' this morning. Since my climate is solid and the plants seem to be adjusting quickly, I'll probably bring the light down to 1.5' tomorrow, then hopefully 1' this weekend. I noticed that the leaves were all pointing upwards this morning, which from what I've read is generally a great sign. I read that it could be mag. deficiency (praying for mag, as they say), but since I gave a dose of CaMg+ a few days ago, I can't imagine that's the case. Also read it could be reaching for light, which is partly why I lowered the light this morning and plan to lower again tomorrow if they're doing good. I feel like I should start seeing some vigorous growth this weekend and onward.

 

Quick update with some pics. Lowered the light to 1.5' today, and gave another feeding. Gave about 32oz of water to each - stuck with the seedling dosage for nutes. Temp started climbing once I lowered the light, so I moved around the fans and humidifier a bit and seems to have helped.
 
Jack #1 (was front-right in the plug tray, and is front-right pot currently)

 
Jack #2 (back-right from plug tray, back-right pot currently) It's second set of leaves look to be a bit discolored - purplish. Will have to keep my eye on that as I'm not sure what it could be.

 
Herijuana #1 (front-left from plug tray, front-left pot currently)

 
Herijuana #2

 
Pic of box to show light height and fan configuration

 
 

 

Light is at 1' now (moved it on Saturday). I watered today with just plain r/o water - gave each about 1.5-2 gal, til there was good run-off.
 
Jack #1 - the new growth on this was seriously curling under. I think it might have been N tox, so I flushed a decent amount of water through her today. I'm hoping the pure water perks her up.

 
Jack #2 - the purplish color seems to have cleared up, but now has some canoeing. Think it might be the low humidity (or the extreme fluctuations - see below).

 
Herijuana #1 - probably the healthiest of the group. Haven't had any problems with her, and she's growing nice.

 
Herijuana #2 - also growing nice and looking healthy

 
Temp/Humidity

 
I'm starting to have some climate issues again. Heat is a little higher than I'd like, but staying around 80F right now - spiking in high 80s (max 88F) and dropping to high 60s during dark (min 68F). I think 20 degree fluctuation is a bit much, so I'm really trying to get that down to ~10 degree fluctuation. Humidity has been all over the place - having a hard time getting above 40% during light, and still spiking at night once the temp cools (though not as high as it was previously). I put the bowls/tray of water back in the box today, so I'm hoping that helps. I've also been turning off the humidifier just before dark, which helped the nighttime spike a bit, but lights are back on at 2am and I generally don't get the humidifier back on til 7am at the earliest (which is likely causing the extreme lows). I need to get a timer or something to control the humidifier, but haven't had a chance to yet.
 
Let me know what you think of the ladies, or if you have any other ideas/suggestions about the canoeing/curling. I also noticed that several of the leaves themselves seemed to stretch a bit, but I haven't had a chance to look into it much - anyone had this problem before or know the cause?
 
Happy growing.

 

Some pictures and seeking some advice.
 
Day 12 veg (technically day 12 above soil, but for ease, I'll be lumping seedling into veg):
 
Jack #1 - you can see the 2 leaves that were affected by N-tox still curled, but from what I read, they're simply going to stay like that, just not get worse. The new growth is looking good though.

 
Jack #2 - definitely seems to be slowest grower right now, but I'd say looking pretty good still. Canoeing seems to have stopped on the new growth.

 
Herijuana #1 - fastest grower still, but leaves don't seem to be coming in as big as Herijuana #2. Looking healthy though.

 
Herijuana #2 - still going strong

 
As you can see, there's been a decent amount of growth in the last three days - visible signs of growth every day now. I moved the light up a few inches (~14 inches from plants now), and that seems to have helped the heat issues I was starting to have again. I also added a few more plugs into the box, so I was able to get all the fans back on and even added another (4 fans now; 2 exclusively for the light/just under the light to prevent hot spots, 1 oscillating to give plants a breeze, 1 off to the side just to promote overall air movement in the box - it's a powerful one, so I don't want to point it at the plants). Also got a cheap analog timer for the humidifier, which is working pretty good - hasn't been in play long enough to impact the max/min for my thermo hygrometer, but I know it's making a difference already.
 
Based on current readings:
Temp: 81F, max 88F, min 64F
Humidity: 38%, max 88%, min 27%
 
Those are from my AcuRite, which I'm starting to think isn't perfect (I know most aren't). I'm using it mainly because of the max/min feature. But I have two other thermo hygrometers in the room that always give different current readings. It seems the AcuRite is consistently 4-5 degrees higher for temp (the other two are almost always exactly the same) - could mean my highs aren't as high as I've been saying, but could also mean my lows are even lower. The humidity is often different on all 3, but I think that's mainly because of the placements and the fact that my humidifier doesn't mist across the entire box. Either way, the fluctuations are still too high for my liking, so I'm still thinking that through.
 
Now on to the advice portion (for those that made it this far - I know I always have long posts, but this journal is mainly for self-improvement and knowledge retention, so I don't like skimping on details). I believe I have a salt buildup in/on my soil. I first noticed it yesterday. I actually freaked out thinking it was mold, but after some research, I'm pretty sure it's just salt buildup. I knew I should have just trusted my gut and waited to give nutes, but I think I was just set on following the GO Box schedule (which I'm realizing is likely meant for soilless where no nutes are present to begin with). Needless to say, I'll be holding off the nutes for a while.
 

 
I read a lot last night about handling this, but it seems there are differing views, especially with organic nutes. Most folks say to flush - some say right away, others say to wait for soil to dry out first. But then others say not to flush at all when using organic. Also saw a lot about adjusting PH, but again, others say not to adjust PH when using organic (and GO nutes specifically say not to adjust PH). My soil still seems pretty moist - not sure if that's simply because I gave a good amount of water 3 days ago, or if the plants are just not taking up as much because of the salt buildup. If I just wait for the soil to dry out more and water as usual, will the salt just get picked up in next watering and self-correct? Should I flush with 2x-3x container size? If so, should I do that now, or should I wait? Should I try adjusting PH? Since my plants all seem to be doing good still, my gut tells me to just wait, water as usual, and hope for self-correction (since I won't be adding more nutes when watering the next few times) - is self-correction even possible for salt buildup? I've never dealt with this problem before, so any advice/guidance would be greatly appreciated - especially from those who've used Happy Frog with GO lineup.
 
Thanks in advance. Happy growing.

 

Decided to check PH of my runoff and it was pretty low - just below 5. So I think the issues I've been having may be do to that. I did a decent amount of research over the past day about PH in organic set ups, and ultimately came to the conclusion that I should have put some dolomite lime in the soil before planting. I decided to add it in at this point anyway, but I wasn't able to get any until tonight. I got a fine powder form and sprinkled on top of the soil, then finger-mixed it a bit with top inch of soil and gave a small amount of water so it'd soak in a bit. Hoping that'll help buffer the PH of the soil (which is why most folks don't need to worry about PH in organic set ups). I didn't use any PH up (even though I have some) because I've read that using the liquid PH adjusters like that will actually kill all the beneficial microbes in the soil, which would probably just compound the issue in the long run.
 
Some pics from today (day 16 veg):
 
All Four

 
Jack #1 - most of the spots showed up in the last 24 hours. Definitely the most sensitive plant thus far, but hoping the dolomite helps her out soon.
 
 
Jack #2 - also pretty sensitive, but doesn't seem nearly as bad on #1
 
 
Herijuana #1 - still growing fast, bust just started to show some issues (leaves curling a bit)
 
 
Herijuana #2 - also just starting to show issues, but most growth is still looking healthy
 

 

I noticed a few days ago that Jack #2 has a whorled phyllotaxy mutation - 3 sets of leaves growing at the nodes. Just got around to taking a good pic of it, so I wanted to share. It was probably somewhat brought out by the stress the plants have been under since it didn't start out like that, and Jack #1 doesn't have the mutation.
 

 
From what I've read, should be okay/turn out fine. I did notice several comments about them turning out male/herm, but read enough other info to not make me worry at this stage - would be a shame though because I'm interested now to compare this final product to Jack #1 to see how they differ.
 
Overall, plants appear to be doing a lot better - new growth is coming in pretty healthy, so I think that dolomite really did make a difference. I'll take some new pics and get 'em up likely tomorrow.

 

 
Hoping that's the case.. we'll see. I was starting to think about taking a clone or two off it just in case, but from what I've read, the clones usually lose that trait.

 

Day 20 veg pics:
 
Jack #1 - new growth looking really healthy again, and haven't had any new spots show up. both Jacks are about 5 inches tall right now.
   
 
Jack #2 - this is the one with the leaf mutation. you can see how much fuller she is than the other.
 
 
Herijuana #1 - doing pretty good, but leaves are a bit droopy even though soil still has moisture. both Herijuana's are just under 6 inches tall so far.
   
 
Herijuana #2 - leaves are getting super fat. she's growing pretty good, but just started drooping a bit. looks healthy overall though.
 
 
Temp & Humudity still seems to be fluctuating too much, but mostly stays 75-80F & 35-50% during light period

 
I think they're about big enough to start LST - what do you guys think? As mentioned previously, I plan to just bend them to the "clear side" of the pot (read my previous post about where I planted in the container). Depending on new growth, I might do the first bend tomorrow or Sunday.