Potentially Perpetual... 2 Tents and a dream

Heading into grow four-and-a-half, I realize that up till now each grow was an experiment at best. I will always be learning and looking to improve efficiencies, but I think I'm nailing down my ever evolving "style" of growing.

Previous set up:

• Space: Veg & bloom in one 36" x 22" x 5' tent.
  
• Lights: 1 - Pro-Grow 180 LED, 1 - Pro-Grow 90w, 1 - 90w GothamHydro LED, 8 x 23w CFLs
  
• Medium(s): Soilless Hempy, 8gal Bubbleponics, Fox Farm soil in cloth pots.

Nearly complete set-up:

• Space:
  Veg in 36" x 22" x 5' tent.
  Bloom in 54" x 35 1/2" x 7' tent.

• Lighting :
  Veg - Pro-Grow 180 LED & CFLs as necessary
  Bloom - 600w digital, dimmable, air-cooled-tube HPS, on a light mover.

• Medium(s):
  Coco Hempy, 8gal Bubbleponics, Fox Farm soil in cloth pots.

Currently in the veg tent we have

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• 2 Jock Horror in Fox Farm (50%-50% Happy Frog/Ocean Forest).
• 2 rooted(?) Nirvana Blackberry cuttings (about a week-1/2 old).
• 2 seeds in coco pellets - House-bred seeds (Feminized Blue Mystic x Mystery DNA x self pollenated)

In the Bloom-Room

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2 Nirvana Blackberry in 4.5 gallon Bubbleponics (Week 10 from seed, Day 22 of Bloom (as of date of pic May 9).

It looks like our 600w HPS won't be here till next week :-(

More to follow...



More to follow...

 

From the near beginning...

Meet the Jocks... Day 4


Day 12...


Meet the Jocks... Day 20


Meet the Jocks... Day 28


Meet the Jocks... JHA #1 Day 28


Meet the Jocks... JHA #2 Day 28


Meet the Jocks... Day 33


JHA #1 Day 33


JHA #2 Day 33​

At weeks 4 & 5, Jock #1 & #2 have now officially declared female. I'm watching for any signs of "auto flowering." It is possible these will have the auto trait, though I think it's unlikely and we will have to 12/12 them.

Jock #1 is a stout ,thick bugger with very tight node spacing, while its sibling Jock #2 is a taller, more lanky plant. Jock #2 is taking well to a little LST and should offer up bunches of nice tops in bloom. Jock #1 got the same LST treatment, but her growth is so dense, we'll really have to tie and wire her branches open to let light in.

The plan is that as soon as the HPS is in the Bloom-Room, the Jocks are moving out there with the Blackberry duo. I plan to take a cutting each from the Jocks today or tomorrow, and start 2 Northern Light Autos next week.

 

Hi juscoolin,

I agree. I think it'll be a logical hit or miss, then the timing will dial in.

In my parts, we're limited to 6 in bloom, so trying to find the balance between having the largest harvest possible, yet remain of a harvest cycle that won't leave me dry (barring any natural disasters, or unnatural circumstances) in between the harvests.

Thinking back on my first two grows, I never had so much fun making mistakes ;-)

 

In the Bloom-Room...

BB#2 left side, BB#1 right side. Day 21 of Bloom, Week 10 from seed


Day 21 of Bloom, Two little buildings from BB#2 (left side of reservoir).


Early trichomes emerge on a 21-day-old bud from the far right of the screen (BB#1)​

Three weeks down... Six to eight more to go... Time is a small price to pay for sweet sativa goodness...

 

Thank you! Hopefully they'll only get nicer over the coming days.

 

Hello!

There are certain times that things start go so smoothly. Everything is running in-synch and I am grateful for it... Temperatures have been perfect, no insect invaders, no deficiencies to speak of, the Veg-Tent is greening up nicely, and everything in the Bloom-Room is beginning to boom!

A serene look at the chaotically lit canopy.​

This SCROG (attempt) has taught me a great deal, the how's and why's of canopy management are becoming clearer. Most importantly, timing is everything when it comes to adding the screen just prior to the "stretch" into bloom. I did mine a little too early, coupled with there has been little if any stretch.

Four weeks down, 5 to 7 more to finish... Seems like I've been saying that forever


Sativa dominant, but this phenotype has exhibited the best qualities
of it's hybridization with an Indica strain as well.


At day 28, these Blackberry are blooming as fast as I can throw nutrients & light at them.​

More light, more plants, coming soon...

Be well everyone!

 

Between the Pro-Grow LED grow lights, and 3 differing spectra of CFLs, the buds are fattening up at a wonderful pace.

A prism like array of LED and CFL light spreads across the canopy

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This is BB #2. Her buds are about 15% smaller than BB #1′s are, but the trichome (resin) production is noticeably higher. There is still a lot of time left till the finish, and I expect much more growth prior to the last week or two.

The undersides of the colas on BB# 2, reveal a forest of trichomes

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The hardest part I'm having now is the decision & action of trimming fan leaves from the young buds to allow more overall light in to the canopy.

Perhaps I left a too much lower growth...Oh well, If it looked dense, I left it

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Beyond the contrasts I stated earlier, both plants are for the most part, very similar in appearance to the casual looker. Their aromas are nearly identical, I really have to focus in to tell the difference. The buds are pretty shaggy, as a higher leaf to calyx ratio they appear to have, it could also just be that the calyxes have yet to swell & mature. Either way with their current trichome production, I'm not too worried.

Side by side it's hard to tell the two plant's buds apart.

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Be well

 

Hi GC Citizens,

Past update from 5-22-11

Spent Saturday morning setting up the Bloom-Room with the light mover, 600w HPS and air-cooled tube & ducting...

Behold, the new 600w HSP on a mover! Holy Schnike, that's bright!


The girls seem to love the new HPS lighting, but LEDs make for cooler looking pictures :wink:​

The air temp reads 81ºF, but feels cooler than when I had 160w of CFLs in there. I'm blown away at how well the duct-booster fan ($39) works for cooling the HPS.

It hit me, that I'll need to keep an eye on and possibly adjust the nutrients/pH, as after only a day I can tell they are now sucking down water at a much faster pace.

It's only a HPS, but I feel I've entered a new realm of indoor farming and I'm excited! My LEDs aren't getting boxed up though. The Pro-Grow LED is moving into the Veg-Tent, to well... veg of course, and well be sprouting some NL Auto-Flowers in the next day or so to grow along side seedlings & cuttings.

Be Well Everyone!


Past update from 5-23-11

Sorry... this is a random, eclectic, rushed update.

Since I can have a maximum of 6 plants in bloom, :idea: why not at least try?

Just started...

2 Northern Light Autoflower seeds are go! Chose the two chubby ones in the middle.​

I'm planing on blooming these out in the Veg-Tent (while vegging), under the Pro-Grow LED.

Meanwhile in the Bloom-Room, growth (even prior to the HPS) has been exploding:

This morning (above)
Close to doubling in size over 5 days :loveweed:
5 days ago (below)

Day 31 Bloom​

Even after 2.5 grows, I'm still learning & experimenting. Light distance from the canopy has been a moving target from strain to strain, and thus reading the plants needs is an on going process.

Learning to "control the stretch" could be the title of my last learned lesson. From the supposed Sativa dominance, through the transition to bloom under the induction lighting and then on to LEDs, I really thought I'd see a great deal of stretch, though there was little. Now, in hindsight I think if I'd raised the PG-180 panel from its respective 10" distance to about 18", I could have forced more vertical growth. We'll see what time under the new HPS does...


Meanwhile, back in the Veg-Tent

The Veg-Tent. (left to right):
Jock Horror A #2, The 2 Blue Mysteries, White plastic dish - Cuttings from the Jocks,
The other two (sickly looking ones) are cuttings from the blackberries.​

Sorry for all the chaos!

 

Hi all!

I hope everyone is doing well.

The Bloom-Room - Day 38 of Flowering, Week 12 from seed.
The plants are consuming about double the water (about 1 gallon to 1.5 gallons a day), as when under the Pro-Grow LEDs. Nutrient up take has also increased, though not anywhere in proportion to the water uptake.

Now I'm just trying and read the plants, as an assisting monitor to common sense and good plant care. Not too concerned with nitrogen deficiency signs, but the symptoms of a lack of phosphorus, I have begun to address carefully. It is so easy to over do the phosphorus.

Day 38 of Bloom, 28 - 42 more to go. Thankfully they are getting fatter by the week too.


So far, so good!
The budding Blackberry plants adjust to the HPS lighting,
as do I in regard to maintaining proper temps and nutrient levels.​

Yesterday afternoon, the tent temperature was at 88ºF. Though everything seemed fine, I thought it should be a bit lower, and I took advantage of the dimming feature & lowered the lights down about 5" (113cm) to see if it would make a difference. After an hour or so at 50% (300w) temps were at 82ºF, and there was still plenty of light. As of this morning, it is cold and rainy. I have cranked the power back up to 100%.

Res temps have gotten as high as 74º. I've been using a hygrozyme & h2o2 routine and so far have no issues to speak of root wise. I have since thrown in the air pump & the green airstone that came with the kit back in the reservoir to bolster the 2 - 14" stones on a dual pump already in there.
I think I'll fabricate an insulated reservoir...:idea:

Meanwhile back at the Veg-Tent
After looking at a few contenders to replace our flagship LED, I fell back to the "bean to bud" simplicity of the selective spectrum on the Pro-Grow line. The 260 Series is luminous enough to retire the CFLs, which is really good, because I could really use them in the kitchen & bathroom.

Veg Spectrum


Full Spectrum​

I've also raised the height of the lamp as to facilitate a little more stretching towards the light. Nodes are so tight on the Jock Horror (far left) it's ridiculous really.


Be well!

 

I had one orphaned, old-school 90w UFO laying about. Deep in my heart I knew 600 watts of HPS wasn't good enough for my girls, so they now have 600w + 90 watts of LED on them, it's kind of cute really...

Just for the helloveit...
Yeah 600 watts + 90 more!

The UFO was just sitting on the shelf, What else would I do with it?​

 

Took some time and got the Veg-Tent cleaned & reloaded. We are now using a Pro-Grow 260 for our seedlings, cuttings... and autoflowers. If I can, why not bloom in the veg room too!

Jock Horror #1 - Wk 8 from seed (on the left),Blue Mysteries, Blackberry...

Jock#1 looks like she may be going into bloom @ 18/6. We'll give her a week or so and reassess if she stays or moves into the Bloom-Room.


Day 16 - Color & growth have picked up on the 2 Blue Mysteries,
they display the traits of their Indica heritage so well.



This is Jock Horror #2 (auto that didn't) Week 8 from seed.
Day 7 of bloom... ​

And lastly, from the Bloom-Room... Gratuitious Bud Pr0n

Blackberry #1, Week 6 of Bloom, Week 13 from seed.



Blackberry #1, Wk 6 Bloom, Wk 13 from seed.​

I need pics of BB#2, and I really need to get some "normal" lights in there just to take some pics, I didn't mind it so much with the LEDs , but the HPS pics look so...monochrome. The color shift in the above two pics is my first attempt at white point correction. Epic Fail.



Be well!

 

Here are a few I took just after lights out. I had to hang a CFL to get the shots.

BB #1 sports bigger buds & purpling tips, but doesn't have the same trichome production as #2


Spear-like cola tips of Blackberry #2, leafier but has higher trichome production​

 

Day 50-ish...
We got in a warm spell, mid-60º's then, BAM! Thurs-Sun all in the 80º range. Thursday and Friday got away from me by the time I realized and dropped the wattage to 450w high in the tent was 94º Thursday & 92ºF Friday. Thankfully, I was able to kill the HPS and swap it out for with the Pro-Grow 260 from the Veg-Tent.

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I was really surprised at the coverage & penetration, if heat becomes an issue when it does actually warm up here, I can confidently shelve the HPS till fall & replace it with the 260. The only down side is that it would be back to CFLs for veg, leaving fewer spaces for future seedlings & cuttings.

Sunday, I tore down, moved, rebuilt, re-ducted, the Bloom-Room and I also threw in an extra air-stone & pump. Currently I am running the HPS at about 75% (450 watt) and maintaining 76ºF.

Thus far, only Blackberry #2 showed any heat stress, barely a slight edge curl on the leaves, but a few of her cola tips began to stretch out. I hope they'll fill in again, we only have a few weeks remaining.

Here are some lights-out shots, Day 57 of bloom...

Blackberry #2 has been a bit more temperamental than her sister (BB #1) from day one. She is showing signs of what I can only attribute to heat; Tips excessively stretching.

The only issue from last week's bout with heat, is stretching tips on Blackberry #2.​

Here you can see the colas on BB #2 all spear-tipped, some worse than others.

A little sea of spear-tipped Blackberry #2
​

Meanwhile Blackberry #1 is plugging away. She's starting to accumulate orange hairs throughout her buds, all the while still cranking out new white hairs & growth.

With only a couple weeks remaining, BB #1 is still packing on new growth and mass​

Actually she's looking really good...

Thankfully, Blackberry #1 shows little to no sign of any stress at all


Some of the tops on BB #1 are displaying tinges of color on the older calyxes.​

 

Thanks Zip!

So far the 600w Revolt ballast & HPS/cool tube set up has performed very well. The dimming feature is quite nice, as it has been warming up here.

As to clones and cuttings getting all wonky, I've noticed some do get strange, while others look much like an ordinary plant. I wonder if it has to do with the stage the doner or mother plant is in?

For a while these blackberry cuttings below, looked like something out of a Dr. Seuss story.

Reverting back to single fingered leaves, then starting over again... 3... 5... 7​

 

The current insanity...

Sorry everyone, dumping a ton of update pics here... This is current up to Sunday, June 12th, or so...

Veg-Tent

Phone-cam group shot!​

Blue Mystery (Blue Mystic offspring) #1 auto

Our little offspring, a Blue Mystic Autoflower, day 6 bloom, day 29 from seed. ​

Very slow growing... the Northern Light Autos are at 21+ days, tiny but colorful.

Started 3 weeks ago, another set of NL Autos has been sprouted to see if it's a fluke, or bad seed.​

Jock Horror #1 was not an auto, so into the Bloom-Room she went, after a massive pruning.

Before the prune...​

Even after removing cuttings, and about 40% of inner & under growth, she's still thick!

During...

...and after!​

The Bloom-Room

Bloom-Room occupants - June 2011​

Jock Horror #2 - Day 23 of Bloom, day 68 from seed.
What can I say about her, other than exceptional! She literally was in bloom the 1st week of 12/12 and her scent is so sweet, reminiscent of easter candy.

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Nirvana Blackberry 1 & 2

They got a major and final trim & pruning to improve light penetration & air flow.


Blackberry #1, oh so pretty... and about a week out form harvest. , BB#2 is still 90% clear trichomes


Running on pH'd water and some sweet carbs...
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