Shiva Blaster's Secret Multi-strain Grow Lab

Hey fellow blades, welcome to my new grow journal! I completed my first grow/grow journal in June and had some success, so I’m back for round #2. I found my first journal to be a great way to plan/document my grow for future reference, and was also a great way to get discussion going with fellow growers. Like most others here, growing is a secret hobby of mine, and the forums are my only way to share/discuss this pastime that I love!

Environment

My grow lab is a 4’x10’ secret room which I designed and built in the partially finished basement of my home. The room was created by framing two walls which sectioned off a portion of a basement room, and the room is accessed via a secret door built into the side of a closet. This door opens to a narrow passageway/work area section of my secret room. With this space set aside for moving plants around, watering, pruning, etc., I have a 4’x 8’ available for growing. For my first grow, I used a 4’ x 4’ tent while I completed construction, but the tent is no longer necessary so I thought I’d scrap it and take advantage of the extra space this allows.

Equipment

2 air-cooled, digital MH/HPS lights (one dimmable, one fixed wattage)
1 x 435 CFM exhaust fan on a speed controller
1 x 200 CFM intake duct fan
1 carbon filter

I decided to go with 2 lights now that I have more room to work with, and got a fantastic deal on a dimmable 600W light kit. I will be vegging under this light with a MH bulb and will increase the wattage and the plant size requires. I figured that a dimmable ballast was an easy way to save power…..last grow I used a regular 600W MH for the entire 5 week veg period which was a little overkill. This time around, I will use the 300 W setting for the first couple of weeks before increasing to 450 W, and then eventually 600 W by the end of veg. When in flower, I will add the second light and will continue to increase my wattage so that by the end of flower I am running 1200 W in a 4’ x 8’ area.

Medium

70 % ProMix HP
25 % Perlite
5% Worm castings
2 tbsp/gallon dolomite lime

Nutrients

I like the K.I.S.S. approach to nutes. I use General Hydroponics MaxiGrow and MaxiBloom, some Cal/Mag and a little Koolbloom during the later half of flower, that’s it.

Genetics

3 x Female Seeds “Bubblegummer”
4 x Female Seeds “C-99”
1 x Emerald Triangle “Bubba 76”

Some germination issues have forced me to tweak my plan a little bit. Of these strains, the C-99 has me the most excited, but both seeds I originally ordered from Attitude were duds L. I used the paper towel method (which I’ve had 100% success with until now), so I chalk it up to bum luck. I did not want to continue without C-99 in my room, so I immediately ordered a 4-pack from Attitude which will hopefully get here in 10-12 days. In the meantime, the 3 Bubblegummer, the Bubba 76 and the OG Kush were all successfully germinated and planted in 6” starter pots on Oct 1. 2 have already poked their heads above soil and the others should pop up and say hello at some point today J I have some Reserve Privada OG Kush, as well as some Female Seeds “WWxBB” in reserve should I have any more germination issues with the C-99.

I am planning on ending up with 8 plants in my 4’ x 8’ area, with 4 indicas and 4 C-99’s. The shorter indicas (bubblegummer, bubba 76) will get a two week head start while I wait for my C-99 to arrive. This actually works out nicely as the 2 weeks extra veg will help compensate for the height difference between the indicas and the sativa-dom C-99. My plan is to veg the indicas for 6 weeks, and the C-99 for 4 weeks. I will be doing some heavy LST on all plants with the goal of achieving 2’ x 2’ bushy plants.

Wish me luck, I look forward to having some of you along for the ride! Any and all comments welcome!

 

Here are some pics of my setup. Improvements made round 2 include increased soundproofing with specialized insulation, active intake (filtered) for better air flow, and insulated ducting. I will also be adding some reflective Mylar to the grow area, although I kind if like the clean look of the white poly.

 

[quote name='"esrplaya"']Sounds like you have a pretty damn nice setup going! My girlfriend picked up the cindy99 from a dispensary and fell in love. Good choice with the.c99![/quote]

Thanks! I took the summer off and I've got the itch now big time! Ive heard nothing but great things about the c99, and I'm most excited about the prospects for that strain. I value taste/smell as much as potency and love the fruity descriptions people give it....I also like productive 'up' highs, so it'll be nice to have a sativa in my garden

Thanks for the comments!

 

[quote name='"MasterBonger"']I am also excited for your C99! Excellent choice. The holy grail of Cannabis, a 55 day sativa dom beauty. My Querkle had a strong C99(Jack Herer/haze) influence and it had a very nice effect. I might do her later! lol. OG Kush sounds good too, but be nice to her. I hear she likes to herm easy, but is an excellent buzz. Love the secret passage to the grow room! Can't wait too hear about your grow.[/quote]

Super pumped for the Cindy. The og kush is just a contingency plan, so hopefully won't need to grow it this time around

 

Mods: would it be possible to move this to the indoor grow journal section? Meant to put it there to begin with but mis-clicked.

 

[quote name='"Olde School"']Hey Shiva, welcome back online. I had to take a pause toward the end of summer with a central air problem, just getting back online myself over the next few weeks. Your grow room expansion is looking really sweet!!!
Funny you selected C-99, Skunk Patronus just talked me into that strain as well. Think I saw you visiting that thread as well? The C-99 / Matanuska cross I grew out my last grow was simply unbelievable. Heavy, solid nugs, heavy frost, awesome tropical scent, great producer (over 2 oz / one plant!!!) amazing high... got me dying to see if it was all C-99 or the Matanuska that contributed the most. Got to run down my seed safe house to let them know an order's getting shipped

BTW, I linked a first time grower to one of your old posts about GH Maxibloom and gave you props for the idea. Take a peek & give her a word of encouragement if you have time, she's got a really cute snake wrapped around her neck:
http://forum.grasscity.com/absolute-beginners/1123009-new-l-2.html#post16080768

Now, the screen name, is my dyslexia coming back (joking) or were you formerly Shova Blaster?

Be seeing you around, and as usual, bestaluck to ya.[/quote]

Glad to hear all is well. I've yet to read a bad thing about C99, and yes I also read skunkpatronous' recommendations as well. For someone looking for fruity/citrus taste and a sativa high in a smaller/faster flowering package like I am, it was a total no-brainer. My c99 seeds have been germed and I just planted them....they will be 2 weeks behind my Bubblegummer which are doing great and on their 4th set of true leaves. I'll be topping them in a few days to begin my 4-way lst.

I'll upload some pics in the next day or two with a proper update, thanks to everyone that has joined my journal

 

[quote name='"Chip killer"']Gonna be a great time. I'm in till the end.[/quote]

Welcome, thanks for subbing!

 

Here's a quick update. My 3 Bubblegummer and 1 OG Kush are a little over 2-weeks in. Today they were all topped at the 5th node in preparation for 4-way lst. The 4 C-99 and 2 WWxBB are just a couple of days old. The plan is to veg until the Bubblegummer and OG Kush are 6 weeks and the C-99 is 4 weeks, with the thought that this will help to compensate for the height difference between the strains. I'm going to fairly aggressive with the LST and I'm hoping to have 4 bushy plants for each of my two 600 W lights for a total of 8. I will be keeping all of the Bubblegummer and C-99 (assuming they are healthy and female), the OG Kush and WWxBB are just extras to round out my 8 plants should something happen.

I also fed my Bubblegummer and OG Kush for the first time today, they got a 1/4 dose of Maxi-bloom. I waited a full 3 weeks last grow until I noticed a mild deficiency, so I tried to be pro-active this time around.

I have also done some work on my secret grow room set-up and have refined it a bit. I finally set-up a workshop area and dressed up the closet entrance a bit more to further disguise it. I'm extremely happy with the results...combined with all the soundproofing I've done, I can easily have house guests and no one would ever know there was a secret room in my basement.

 

Here are the pics

 

Thanks man, I quite like my set-up. I own my home and have no plans on moving, so hopefully it will serve me well for years to come