Whats up everyone, new grower here. I'm so stoked I stumbled upon this community, i've been reading everything and taking notes. I'm just finishing up my first grow and I'd have to say I'm pretty happy overall. I've got 16 thc bomb plants about a week away from harvest and they look great. I've got 2 mothers finally ready to take cuttings. Buts been a a really bumpy ride with ph issues, nutrient lockouts and other assorted mayhem thats expected from a new grower. My local shop is full of really great dudes who obviously know much more than I do cause I always left more confused than when I arrived. I really want to get off that train and I'm hoping that organics might be my solution. I'm used to growing 20 plants in 2 gallon smart pots in a 5.5x4 foot "room" with 5.5 feet from the light to the floor. I've been using roots 707 and pure blend pro for soil. I flower under a 600w hps and keep the moms in a 4x2.5 foot cabinet with a space for clones at the top of the cabinet. Temps are about 75 day and in the mid 60's at night. RH is about 50%. THC bomb spends about 75 days in flower. I flower with no veg time and harvest about 3/4 ounce per plant. I'd like to continue using 2 gallon smart pots and use the swicking method I read about here. I plan on following the beginners soil formula with all the amendments suggested. Will a 2 gallon pot provide for the plants till harvest using only water and perhaps a top dressing or tea? Can I transplant rooted clones that spend a week in veg directly into smart pots with living soil? With all other environmental variables remaining the same can I expect roughly the same harvest? What if Gwen Stacy hadn't died? After so many hours online and then with so many conflicting bits of advice from the local shop I really don't know who to trust or what to believe! I really just want to stick my hands in some soil and kick back and read a good book with the doors to my cabinet wide open basking in the "sunlight" I don't wanna chase 6.4 anymore. I'm absolutely willing to try a different method, I'm not stuck with 20 plants in 2 gallons but I do love my single cola plants! I can't wait to hear everyones suggestions!!
Hey where'd everybody go? Perhaps I posted this in the wrong section? Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum mobile app
Use 2-4, 15-20gal pots for a much larger harvest than all those small pots. It will grow larger, healthier plants with much higher yield at harvest A 2gal pot will not get you to finish without additional amendments. PW
I don't thing Large pots like that won't work for me would they, i only have 5 feet of ceiling which only leaves me space for 3 feet of plant. I wish I had a larger space but I had to be really creative!
Kahzmoe, you've certainly come to the right place. Welcome to GCO. Yes, you will need larger pots. You will be able to train your plants, though, and make it work. Go to the No Till gardening thread and read the first dozen or more pages, start soaking up what we do and find the soil recipe you will find in the beginning of that thread and follow the recipe. Don't change anything and keep it simple. Then start asking questions. We can help you get to where you want to be. J
Thanks jerry, I'm a little bummed no one picked up on the Spider-Man reference. Well, after a few weeks of reading teeming with microbes and watching a ton of videos and lectures I now have a tremendous sense of guilt. Thanks a lot! All those poor bacteria and fungi I've killed over the years. The soil food web certainly is fascinating and somewhat complex. I'm certainly excited to get started mixing up some soil. In the meantime I've inoculated my soil with photosynthesis plus and switched to an all organic fertilizer. Once this next cycle is completed I should hopefully have some soil ready and teeming with microbes! Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum mobile app
The best thing you could ever do is stop listening to the advice from a salesman. Organics is easy as hell. No mixing, no pH ing, straight water with a few teas here and there ( not 100% neccesary, and many use no teas with great success). 2 gallon pots are way too small for organics. 7 gallon minimum. And that's going small. Like everyone has stated, read through the first 20 pages of no till thread. Once you understand that keeping the soil alive and creating a solid enviroment, the plants practically grow theirselves. Seriously. And most things needed for a "organic" grow can be sourced from your local nursery and big box hardware store. For reasonable prices. So definitely STOP listening to the saleman, and soak up all the wonderful knowledge we all contribute to this forum. Our goal here at GC is a smile on your face and some prime smoke in your stash, not big fat pockets full of money. Jerry has very good advice and anything he says should be taken to the bank. He is a good guy. Lots of knowledge. Only bad thing about jerry111165 is he is one of those dam dirty hippies! Lol. A true organic grower will spend more time on their soil than their plants. Just saying Sent from my SM-G530T using Grasscity Forum mobile app
What the heck is "Photosynthesis Plus"?? I would also suggest reading the first dozen (or more) pages of the No-Till thread for help with soil construction. I'm sure you've seen time and again by now that your compost &/or vermicompost is what you will base your soil on and needs to be quality. There shouldn't be a reason to step foot back into the hydro store - you simply don't need what they're selling. Period. With the exception of a light bulb. J
I'm thinking maybe wider yet shorter pots might be what you're looking for? Perhaps a 7 gallon smart pot with the top edge rolled down a couple times? J
I was thinking the same thing. Photosynthesis plus to inoculate soil don't even sound right... photosynthesis happens in the leaves, would be a good name for some snake oil foliar spray, but what a fucked off name for a soil inoculant. Sent from my SM-G530T using Grasscity Forum mobile app
the msds says: De-ionized water 96.35% Bacterial culture and Fungal strains 3.65% (the question is, are they modern or oldschool?) and the sds says: Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) number and unique identifiers: This product is a highly concentrated liquid extracted from humified organic peat. so a fulvic microbe and myco mix, sounds like. 29$ a quart on amazon (full power for comparison is 17$)
Good homework. Even more likely Humic acids derived from Leonardite. Can fungal spores stay submerged in solution and live? Either way. I'm in. J Edit: "concentrated liquid extracted from humified organic peat" Wait - it's just a compost tea...for $28. a quart.