My New Double-Wide Grow

Tony Aroma · Feb 5, 2009

This is now my third grow in this cabinet. It's your basic double-wide wardrobe with 2 250-watt MH lights. For more details about the setup and my previous grow, check out my grow log.

Problems/Solutions

On my last grow I had several problems which I believe combined were responsible for the poor yield I got. Not to mention the one hermie. Here are the three main problems I had and what I’ve done to fix them.

Heat – I discovered I cannot grow with this setup in the summer. It was hard to keep temps below the low to mid-90s. On top of that, I left the exhaust fan off for a day and killed two plants. At this time of year the temps stay in the mid 80s.
Bad Nutes – A few plants showed some deficiencies and I finally discovered that my Metanaturals has settled and solidified. I bought some new nutes.
Two Plants Per Pot – Which resulted in one in each pot being much smaller than it's pot mate. This time I’m using 3-gal grow bags and can fit in twice as many as the buckets.

Seeds

I grow from bagseed given to me by various people. Sometimes I have a pretty good idea of what I’m getting and sometimes not. This time I’m growing three types of seeds. They all sprouted on Jan 1 and 2.

Type 1 are seeds that I’ve grown twice already and know what to expect. The guy that gave them to me was told they were White Widow, which I’m about 99% sure they’re not. But they’re still about my favorite in recent grows. They’re indica dominant, have a nice taste, and produce a very nice, balanced buzz. I have three of these that I’ll call type WW.
Type 2 are from a batch that I know nothing about. They look to be somewhat indica dominant. I have two of these that I’ll call type F.
Type 3 are seeds from my previous grow. It’s the first time I ever had a hermie and produced seeds. The “father” was indica dominant and one of the ones that showed what I think was a calcium deficiency. It’s a fairly decent couch lock smoke. The plant that the seeds came from was a sativa dominant that was very healthy and fast growing, but a mediocre smoke. I have three of these that I’ll call type AM.

Tony Aroma · Feb 5, 2009

Update at 33 Days

Update at 33 Days

The Amazing Colossal Plants

Remember that classic movie, The Amazing Colossal Man? This guy was exposed to atomic radiation and grew to enormous size. Well, I have some amazing colossal plants, minus the atomic radiation that is.

To bring you up to date, I've got three “strains” going. One is the alleged White Widow (WW), three of those (my recent favorite). One is some random beans of unknown source (F), two of those. And one from the seeds I generated last grow (AM) -- mother was a mid-grade sativa and father was a decent indica, three of those.

They are all progressing quite nicely, about the right size, give or take a little, for their age. All except for two of the three AM plants. They are growing like crazy, looking like they are at two months of age rather than one month. Take a look at the attached pict. The two biggies are on the left, and you can see the normal-sized WW one in the lower right. I've had to start tying them down way ahead of time. Those fan leaves are as big as my hand! Also note the very wide leaves -- they are indica dominant. The other one of the AM plants is slightly ahead of the crowd, but not much. And it is clearly sativa dominant. So I've ended up with two very different phenotypes from the seeds from one plant.

So now I'm a little stumped. I'm afraid the big ones are going to over grow the little ones and block the light. Which wouldn't be bad, if I knew they would be good. But I don't. The WW ones are my top priority, since I know what they will produce and that it will be good. And at the rate they're going, in another month when the others are the size the biggies are now and ready to flower, I'm afraid the amazing colossal plants will be 6 feet tall. And I only have about 4 feet of space.

These are the two monster AM plants on the left. You can see one of the smaller W plants on the lower right.

These are the three W plants. The one on the left is the one in the previous picture.

Tony Aroma · Feb 10, 2009

Update at 39 Days

Update at 39 Days

Well another week has gone by, and my two amazing colossal plants are still both amazing and colossal. I don't know much about genetics, so maybe somebody could explain to me how this works. Both parents were vigorous, healthy plants with above-average growth rates. But the offspring are growing at a rate far beyond either parent. How can that be? It's like the growth rates of the parents were added, rather than averaged, in the offspring. Might the same happen with potency? (I wish.)

The rest of the gang are coming along nicely, although dwarfed by their freakishly-large cabinet mates. It's getting harder to make sure all the smaller ones are receiving unshaded light. I've now topped all but the smallest plant, so that should stimulate some growth. It sure did with the two monsters.

Here are the two monster AM plants, still going strong.

Here are the two F plants. As you can see, the one in the front has very wide leaves. They are the smallest of the group.

And here are the three W plants. They are about in the middle size-wise. The one on the left in the back is a little hard to see -- it's getting shaded a bit and is stretching. I tucked some of the large leaves shading it, so hopefully it will get more light.

Tony Aroma · Feb 24, 2009

Update at 53 Days

Update at 53 Days

A couple of things I failed to mention about my current versus previous grow. Another factor that contributed to my yield last time being so poor was the relatively short veg time -- 38 days for some plants, 45 days for others. This time I'm going at least 8 weeks or until the screen is pretty much filled, whichever comes first.

One other thing of note is that my 3 AM plants are from seeds produced by a hermie. So I guess that means that those 3 should most likely be female. Cool!

Things are coming along quite nicely. The big plants are getting bigger and the smaller ones are trying to catch up. The screen is starting to fill up which means 12/12 isn't too far away. I'm guessing about another week, and that should do it.

It's getting so I can take individual plant picts anymore, so I'm including a group shot. Trouble is my space is so tight that I can't get far enough away to take a shot of the entire cabinet. So I took three picts and combined them into a collage of sorts. Not perfect, as the camera angle changes from shot to shot, but you get the idea.

You can see the two large AM plants on the left, completely filling the screen. The three WW plants are in the middle, and the two F and third AM are on the right. The middle and right areas are starting to fill in, and you can see I've already done a fair amount of bending, and tucking, and twisting (that's what she said). When the lower branches on the smaller plants reach the screen (and the light), I will flip to 12/12.

Tony Aroma · Mar 3, 2009

Update at 60 Days +3

Update at 60 Days +3

You knew it had to happen, and it finally did. On Sunday I flipped to 12/12. Light cycle that is. Swimming pools, movie stars...

It just so happens that my flip was at exactly 60 days of veg. Much longer than last time, and hopefully long enough to get a pretty decent yield. In the past I've averaged about 1 oz. per plant with this long of a veg period.

Notice in the pict I've labeled the various plants for your convenience, not that you can really tell them apart too much at this point. I'm afraid they are so tangled up I won't be able to tell which stalk to chop if/when I see any male parts on the tops. Also notice I've improved my picture stitching technique quite a bit. You can hardly even tell this is three picts stitched together.

So now there's nothing to do but wait for the fat lady to sing. And by that I mean I hope they are all ladies and they get very fat. And by sing, I mean sing with a fragrant aroma. I guess the analogy breaks down a bit there. And of course by doing nothing I mean give them let plenty of food, water, careful training, and some TLC. Oh yeah, and a fair amount of gazing in awe.

K.J · Mar 3, 2009

Hey Tony! Another really nice grow from you. Those mutant giant freak plants are awesome; can't wait to see what becomes of them. I'll be watching!

Tony Aroma · Mar 10, 2009

Update at 10 Days of 12/12

Update at 10 Days of 12/12

At day 10 of 12/12 all have now shown their sex, and I'm not too disappointed. I ended up with 6 females and only 2 males (who are now compost). Here's the final tally: All three of the AM plants (from my hermie seeds) are female, as expected. Two out of the three WW plants (my personal favorite) are female. And one of the two F plants (unknown) are female. Too bad the one F plant with the really wide leaves turned out to be male, as I was hoping for something a little different from that one.

The photo shows the current state of affairs, after the chop. You can see some open space in the canopy in the middle right. I'm trying to reroute some of the surrounding branches to fill in the space and give them a little more room.

Overall, I'd have to say I'm pleased. Given the number of females and their sizes (most of them), I think I should end up with a pretty good yield. Almost certain to far exceed my previous crop. And now comes the hardest part -- waiting for them to mature. Early May seems an awful long way away right now.

Tony Aroma · Mar 17, 2009

Update at 17 Days of 12/12

Update at 17 Days of 12/12

Flowering is now well under way. White hairs are a-poppin' out all over, although we haven't quite reached the "Q-Tip" stage. But it's right around the corner. There's nothing really new or exciting to report, which is what I hate about this stage. So without further ado, here are the girls:

And just to give you a better idea of the flowering situation, here's a close-up of a few buds on one of the WW plants.

Everybody is looking healthy and happy and well on their way to becoming fat young ladies, just how I like them.

Tony Aroma · Mar 24, 2009

Update at 23 Days of 12/12

Update at 23 Days of 12/12

We have achieved Q-Tips. You know, if you stand back and squint a bit, the canopy looks like it has a bunch of Q-Tips sticking out all over. Those cute, fuzzy, little white balls.

As you can see, my screen is pretty much filled, even after getting rid of the two male plants. Quite a contrast to my last grow. Other than that, everything seems to be right on track. Everybody is looking really healthy. Looks like I'm going to have well over 20, maybe over 30, big colas on these plants. My optimism grows with each passing day.

The two individual shots are both from my hybrid hermie seeds, group AM. No particular reason I shot just these two, just that they are fairly alone and easy for my camera to focus on. I didn't even realize which plants these were from till I went back and traced the tangled branches. It's going to be a huge mess when I start harvesting and try to figure out which colas go with which plant.

#1cheesebuds · Mar 24, 2009

wow wow wow wow wow wow wow wow wow wow wow wow wow wow wow wow wow.

oldschoolfarmer · Mar 24, 2009

lookin real good, here's hoping those buds fatten up nicely for ya!

K.J · Mar 25, 2009

Looking real good Tony! Ours are at about the same stage yours are...the Qtip stage...haha. We're a few days behind you.

Kif Kif · Mar 25, 2009

Looking impressive, hope everything goes to plan :joint:

Tony Aroma · Apr 1, 2009

Update at 31 Days of 12/12

Update at 31 Days of 12/12

Nothing new or exciting to report. The girls are still looking good. I think they are starting to hit their stride. They're getting to the point that I can see the buds getting bigger and fatter every day. Cool!

This is the tall one sticking up in the middle of the previous picture. It is an AM plant, from my hermie hybrid.

Notice the brown hairs on this, my lone F plant? I think that's because it's closest to the oscillating fan and getting a little too much wind. I've noticed the leaves close to the fan also tend to look a little imperfect too, even thought the rest of the plant looks fine.

Oh, and a Happy April 1st to you and yours.

Tony Aroma · Apr 7, 2009

Update at 37 Days of 12/12

Update at 37 Days of 12/12

It's getting frosty all up in here. Nome sayin?. These last few weeks are always my favorite time. The girls are a sight to behold. And a smell. I can see them growing taller and fatter each day. And at 37 days, that means we are getting close. Every time I fiddle with them now, my fingers come away all sticky with that wonderful, sweet, fresh smell like nothing else.

One not-so-good thing, I found a little male flower on one of my AM plants. That's the trouble with seeds from hermies. And where there's one male flower, there's bound to be more. No way I can find them now, what with there being so many buds so close together. Even last time when I looked carefully and thought I found them all, I still ended up with a few seeds.

Here's a group shot so you can see my sea of buds. Too many to count.

Here's an AM bud. It's the plant that I found a male flower on. Overall, it's buds look tall and skinny, much like its one parent. Starting to get a little frosty though.

Here's the one F plant. It is the smallest of the group with only 2 smallish colas. Not so frosty yet, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything. With my luck, it will be the best and I will only get a small yield from it.

And here's my favorite, the unlikely-but-possible White Widow. Now that's what I call some frost. Maybe it really is WW, and I just haven't gotten my environment dialed in until now.

And I've come to a decision, now that I believe my cabinet and everything is as good as I can get it. I'm definitely going to buy some good genetics next grow. I'm thinking I want to go with something from Mandala.

Tony Aroma · Apr 14, 2009

Update at 43 Days of 12/12

Update at 43 Days of 12/12

We are now at day 43, and I've discovered seeds. ARRRRRGH!!!! One plant looks to be pretty much fully seeded, and a couple of others have at least some seeds. And I still can't find any male flowers. But they are obviously there. Hiding. Those sum bitches. I knew those hermie seeds I accidently produced last time were too good to be true. They produced all females alright. Females with a little something extra. Well, nothing I can do about it now, except keep looking for those little buggers. And be pissed.

Other than that, things look great! And smell great. I love it after I've been fiddling with the plants and my hands are all sticky with that sweet smell. This is the fun time of the grow.

Here's a good side-by-side comparison. In the left foreground is a WW bud, and on the right is one of my AM hybrid buds. I'll leave it to you to compare and contrast.

The two monster AM plants are really big and have lots of branches and bud sites, but the buds are really small. Nothing that I would really call a main cola.

Here's another bud on the WW plant. Thick and frosty (that's what she said).

Here's a nice overview of my sea of buds. Beautiful!

And here is the F plant that appears to be fully seeded. Notice the seeds popping out of the tip of the bud? It's a little over exposed, so the seeds look white, although they are pretty light at this point as they are immature. All the buds on this plant look like this. That explains why the hairs started changing color so early and so fast. I guess once they are fertilized, the plants no longer need the sticky white hairs to catch pollen so the hairs start dying.

K.J · Apr 14, 2009

Tony Aroma said:
And here is the F plant that appears to be fully seeded. Notice the seeds popping out of the tip of the bud? It's a little over exposed, so the seeds look white, although they are pretty light at this point as they are immature. All the buds on this plant look like this. That explains why the hairs started changing color so early and so fast. I guess once they are fertilized, the plants no longer need the sticky white hairs to catch pollen so the hairs start dying.

That's a real bummer that they turned out getting seeded. I sure hope that our Pure's aren't showing signs of pollination; the pistils started changing colors around day 31 or so. I haven't seen any seeds, but I'm on the lookout.

I hope it still turns out satisfactory for you!

Tony Aroma · Apr 15, 2009

The Seed Mystery

The Seed Mystery

I've been thinking about the seeds a lot. OK, I've been obsessing about it. How could there be seeds, and so many of them? You see, the plant with seeds is right in front of the oscillating fan, so it is upwind of the rest of the plants. Here's a little diagram to show you what I'm talking about:

This diagram shows the pots labeled with the plants in them, and the gray areas show how those plants are spread out across the screen.

The F plant is the one with all the seeds, while the AM1 plant is the one I found a male flower on a couple of weeks ago. So it seems unlikely that AM1 pollinated F, because the direction of the air is backwards. I think it must be the AM3 plant that is to blame, since it is right next door and also in front of the fan. And it looks like it too has a few seeds. But I've looked and looked and cannot find a single nanner on AM3. I remain perplexed.

Pretty crazy, eh? (I mean the situation, not me.)

Core · Apr 15, 2009

pitty to hear about the seeded bud Tony....and i've had similar XP's...bud i always found that the plants with the most seeds are mostly the culprit....but its always hard to say when there's a fan on them...gotte look under the skirt my friend

ol briarhopper · Apr 15, 2009

Hey bro, did ya ever get a bag of real killer weed that just had 1 or 2 seeds in it?Chances are those are hermaphrodite seed.Do not ever...never, plant hermaphrodite seed.Too much work involved just to lose at the end.Great looking grow Tony.Bet it would be a lot better if you sprung for a MH to HPS conversion bulb.I guarantee they will increase your bud size by 30-40%.But anyway,looking good bro.....keep on keeping on.

My New Double-Wide Grow

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