Well folks, as the title suggests I am back after a very long break from the city. For those of you that don't know me, welcome! I have decided to make the switch from several years of soil growing to hydro. My reasoning is simple. Get the higher yields and better quality I've heard so much about. Here is some information about this run: 18 gallon sterilite tote 6 inch net pots with hydroton and rockwool 185 gph water pump Dual outlet adjustable air pump 4" airstone 600w in a 4x4 tent Sensi pH perfect grow and bloom A+B Bud candy Hydroguard Rapidstart Genetics: 2x regular Afghani from a herbies freebie pack (can someone say hash plant?!) I am totally new to the hydro scene but I think I've done enough research to give it a try. As always, any suggestions or feedback is greatly appreciated. I will put up pictures once something starts to happen in there. Until then...*rips bong*... Ahhhhh
I must confess that I have a lot of trouble being patient with things to get started. It's been just four days since I started the seeds and I have not seen any activity in terms of them being alive. Granted, the seeds were sitting around for quite some time so I am not sure if they are still viable or not. My res temp is at 68.1F so I'm wondering if it's too cold for them to activate. I'll give it some more time but I may have to order new genetics. Namasté
What are you germinating the seeds in to start? How deep are they planted? Personally i use the paper towel method and place them on something warm like my cable box. Till I see a taproot then place them into rapid rooters, normaly takes 24 to 48 hours. 68 may be too cool for germination but is good for established plants.
I just put them directly in the Rockwool. I've never really germinated seeds with soil I just plant them and let them go. Honestly, if they don't sprout I won't be heartbroken. Namasté
Sprout your seeds the traditional way and just place your small rockwool or whatever cube in the center of your pellets in the net pot once it gets roots sticking out of the rockwool. I really like the independent buckets myself but my buddy grows in a walmart container and loves it. The roots get tangled up so you can't spin the net pots. You can't run plants at different grow cycles because they all get the same nutrients. Thats why I like the buckets. I can stagger them so I harvest every month or so and each strain can have whatever nutrient mix it wants. I would suggest whatever nutrient mix guide you're using run it on the light side. Half of recommended strength is typical in DWC. With the roots soaking in nutrients 24/7 it doesn't have to be strong. The plants not really growing faster and you're risking burning them when the water level drops. I was going to build my own and then I found this for $99. Good reviews comes with everything including tubing and pellets. I will personally vouch for it. Great bucket system. 951gph air pump included with 6 way splitter. HTG Supply - Bubble Brothers 6 Pot DWC System Make sure you're not letting any light into your container. Black container preferred.
You're also stuck flushing all the plants for harvest at the same time in a container. If you're running different strains this can be problematic as they finish at different rates. Flushing with GH florakleen is 2 days minimum and your plants that still have 2 weeks left won't like that when they are at the peak of growth if they mature at different rates. Containers are best for a scrog start to finish grow room of the same strain.
I never grow different strains during the same grow but I will keep all of this in mind. I like the idea of having each plant in a separate bucket and staggering them for a perpetual harvest. The one downside I see with this system would be the increased work with water changes. Namasté
Yeah when they are big you can't ignore them for more than a day. They drink a lot of water 1/2 gallon easy. Some people resort to a big reservoir and return lines from the bottom of the buckets and drip lines on the top so they can run more water and ignore them for longer. It's called RDWC.
I placed an order for new seeds which I should have done to begin with. The strain I chose is LSD from Barney's Farm. These I will be sprouting the proper way. Namasté
Nice choice of strain. I'll be watching for those. Barney's seem to have a good rep for genetics. Which bank did you order them from?
My all time favorite strain to grow is blue cheese from Barney's so I'm giving this one a shot as it comes highly recommended. I used to do all my business with Attitude but they stopped accepting my main method of payment so I have since moved on to Herbies. I love the speed, price and stealth Herbies has given me. Namasté
Cool, thanks for the info. It's going to be a bit before I can purchase seeds again. Barney's strains are def on my wish list lol.
I've always had the best success with Barney's genetics. The flavor and potency are out of control even if you make a mistake. Highly recommended. Namasté
You must be anxiously waiting for your seeds to arrive. I'm excited to follow along from sprout to bud.
I am very excited for them to come in. It's tough waiting on something like this because all I want to do is stalk the mailbox but I know it takes a while. Namasté
Got my package today. Super fast shipping. Placed the order on the 26th and it was at my door today the 3rd. Got a couple freebies along with my order, they look nice. Time to get this show on the road. I'm going to start germination tonight between paper towels. Namasté