Good coco grow guide, anyone?... anyone?

I'm really glad to see this forum happen. I'm just about to get started on my grow and I'm going straight Canna. Had surgery on both hands last Tuesday for carpal tunnel syndrome so, in order to conserve energy and eliminate some pain, I'm going to stop worrying about punctuation, grammer and spelling.

This is my 1st grow ever - in anything. Bought Canna brand coco medium, A+b, cannazyme, and PK 13/14. Also have Olivia's cloning solution and general hydro's pH up and down. Would someone mind posting a generic schedule starting at the point that the seedlings are put into veg at about two weeks post germ and maybe walk through nutes and transplant schedule. I saw a thread similar to what I'm asking on another forum site a while back but can't remember where and after finding ICM, i don't have much inclination to go anywhere else. I intended to be up and running by now but surgery set me back a few days so i've got a few more days to learn, hehe.

Any and all help would be appreciated. And thanks to the many who helped me with my grow closet setup. I don't want to be a bother to any here so if I'm asking for too much, just let me know and I'll understand.

http://www.canna-uk.com/dhtml/products_coco_ab.php

Canna website coco schedule ^^

I dont usually follow guides but i stuck rigidly to that one last grow (from a seed) to see how it would work out, using the lower figure nute dose, and it worked a treat

That guide recommends a 12/12 hour vegging schedule... Won't that lower the yield? I'm sticking with my 18/6, but to each his own.

stikky budz said:

http://www.canna-uk.com/dhtml/products_coco_ab.php

Canna website coco schedule ^^

I dont usually follow guides but i stuck rigidly to that one last grow (from a seed) to see how it would work out, using the lower figure nute dose, and it worked a treat

Click to expand...

Thanks for the link. Posted the following in another thread but since a question has come up concerning light schedules...

Found this at another forum (WF)and saved it, I thought it was so good. It was posted by a very knowledgeable and experienced grower. I appreciate it when very experienced growers share their knowledge, saves time, money and frustration. Hope it helps! I did a little editing to fix some spelling errors and I tried to clarify some of his abbreviations because they made this guide a little hard to read. But the numbers are there and I didn't touch those. Everything from "Lighting Schedule" on down was written by the grower.

Lighting Schedule

We did a lot of experiments with light times a few years back using known sativa and sativa dominant clone lines.

With Vegging under HID lights.

20/4 produced the sturdiest growth and the most bulk. Best final yield, taken as 100%
22/2 Less of both growth and bulk. Yield 88%
18/6 Sturdier than 22/2 but slightly less bulk. Yield 87%
24/0 Much lighter in all aspects than 18/6. Yield 79%
16/8 The weediest plants. Yield 67%

Plants vegged to final pots under fluorescents at 20w per sq ft on 18/6 yield 49%

Have not tried 36 hrs dark but did try 48 hrs from 18/6 veg. The final yield was down between 15% and 20% by varying the pure sativas with the biggest loss in final weight and caused the odd herm, [sativas] it did reduce the flowering time by 5 to 8 days.

For the mum lines we have 20/4 to 12/12 gives the best crop weight and bud quality, really that’s all I’m interested in.

Hi mojo

i wish you a speedy recovery.

the canna nutrients and supplements are very easy to use successfully with coco coir.

for the lowest maintenance an automated drip set up would be ideal. but it takes some strength in the fingers to setup a drip system.

hand watering is also a very easy way to get your desired results. just takes a bit more discipline.

here is my fert plan. starting the day the new clones are planted in a rw cube.

rooting in rw phase, 7 to 10 days: rhizotonic full dose, a+b 1 to 1.25 ml per litter ec around 0.8 to 1.2 ph 5.7

veg phase in the coco slabs: A+B at ec 1.2 to 1.5 ph 5.7 and up to 2ml per litter, rhizo full dose for first 3 days of veg, then down to half a ml per lt till week 5 of 12/12 when you stop it.

first 2 weeks of 12/12: up your nutes as much as the plants will take it, but not over 2.0 ec. ph 5.9

after 2 weeks of 12/12 add a booster, either pk 13/14 or bioboost, or even another brand of flowering stimulator. at this point start adding the cannazym or other zym product, specially if you plan to reuse the medium.

from this point on you want to give your plants just as much as they can use, so you watch carefully that the fan leaves don't get too dark green and try and avoid burning the tips. ph 6.0 to 6.1

once you have only 5 days to go till harvest, you start a flush with plain phed water. it's very important not to start the flush too early, as a lot of growth and ripening takes place in the last days. so with a new strain it's best to wait till you start seeing amber trichome heads till you start the flush.

cool is that you can do a massive flush at once and leave the plants another few days with just water and they will have that really tasty smelly aspect that we want as soon as they are dry. only getting better as they are allowed to cure.

this also means your coco will be nicely flushed for the next batch.

if you flush for 14 days in coco, your plants will get so starved that it's no longer positive taste wise.

some pk questions

some pk questions

gaiusmarius said:

after 2 weeks of 12/12 add a booster, either pk 13/14 or bioboost, or even another brand of flowering stimulator. at this point start adding the cannazym or other zym product, specially if you plan to reuse the medium.

Click to expand...

just to mention, canna's bioboost is to be used together with the rest of their products, including pk13/14.
Also, gaiusmarius, what dosage of pk do you recommend from 2nd week? Hesi recommends from 4th week, but to me it seems most logical to start with it once flowering production really starts (i mean once they have passed the pre flower stage, if they didnt already in veg). i know Canna recommends a dose of (ml/10) 15ml at 4th week, Hesi recommends starting with (ml/10) 2ml at 4th, 5ml 5th 7.5ml next 15ml at 7th week and then flush at 8th. i suppose a dose of 2ml at week 2 would be okay?
and finally (alot of questions i know lol), do you have a good plan for pk addition for sativa's with long flowering? hesis and canna both make their fert plans for 8 week plants, and few finish in mere 8...

thanks as always,
cult

i am not using it exactly like the canna plan suggests. the bio boost is very expensive and i have found the effects are greatest at those two points in the 12/12. i have used it all the way through too. either way it's good stuff, just check the date before you buy and yes you can use it with the pk13/14 together..

nor do i use the nutrient levels the companies recommend. the above is my many times tried and proved way.

using pk after the first 14 days of 12/12 is a relatively new thing for me. since canna changed their recommendation for pk use, i decided to try it. as they always test these things well first. so what i do is reduce the ec level by 0.2 or 0.3 and make it up with the pk13/14. this has worked superbly well to give them a fruit making boost right as the first fruit (buds) appear. then again at week 5 the same thing but letting the pk up the ec a bit more this time. the bioboost can be added at the same time to help the plants make even better use of the boost of pk13/14. but running it for every tank fill is not really needed in my opinion. every other fill would be plenty to keep those beneficial's and additives active in the medium. remember a lot of this stuff is sold for money making purposes. you can get really good results using just the basics. in fact i recommend it until one has that way dialed in well all the additives will not do much.

also remember that each pk that is sold has slightly different instructions on it. the canna bottle actually still tells you to use it once 3 weeks before harvest as a final boost to tighten up that bud. but now the canna site tells you to use it after 14 days when the first flowers show in a 8 or 9 week strain. in a slow sativa you probably give it after 3 weeks. basically when the first pistil bushels are visible and not just single pistil hairs.

pray4pistils said:

That guide recommends a 12/12 hour vegging schedule... Won't that lower the yield? I'm sticking with my 18/6, but to each his own.

Click to expand...

To tell you the truth, i hadn't noticed the light times ...Sorry
I just took the first section (18hours) as germination and first week of vegging,,,and the next bit as the rest of the vegging period.
Like i said,, i dont usually follow guides...lol

Reading it carefully, it doesnt recommend a 12/12 veg cycle,,,it starts 12/12 at,,,quote,,,"vegative stage fast growth". The next stage after that is when flowers (buds) have started to show.
That 1- 3 weeks "veg stage fast growth" could be the period when you normally switch to 12/12,,, wait for buds to start froming,,,, and of course the stretch.

,,, but yes,,, 12/12 from the start would lead to a lower yield ~ a dam site lower.

that must be a mistake for sure. the only plants that will do well with 12/12 from the beginning are total sativas.

gaiusmarius said:

Hi mojo

i wish you a speedy recovery.

the canna nutrients and supplements are very easy to use successfully with coco coir.

for the lowest maintenance an automated drip set up would be ideal. but it takes some strength in the fingers to setup a drip system.

hand watering is also a very easy way to get your desired results. just takes a bit more discipline.

here is my fert plan. starting the day the new clones are planted in a rw cube.

rooting in rw phase, 7 to 10 days: rhizotonic full dose, a+b 1 to 1.25 ml per litter ec around 0.8 to 1.2 ph 5.7

veg phase in the coco slabs: A+B at ec 1.2 to 1.5 ph 5.7 and up to 2ml per litter, rhizo full dose for first 3 days of veg, then down to half a ml per lt till week 5 of 12/12 when you stop it.

first 2 weeks of 12/12: up your nutes as much as the plants will take it, but not over 2.0 ec. ph 5.9

after 2 weeks of 12/12 add a booster, either pk 13/14 or bioboost, or even another brand of flowering stimulator. at this point start adding the cannazym or other zym product, specially if you plan to reuse the medium.

from this point on you want to give your plants just as much as they can use, so you watch carefully that the fan leaves don't get too dark green and try and avoid burning the tips. ph 6.0 to 6.1

once you have only 5 days to go till harvest, you start a flush with plain phed water. it's very important not to start the flush too early, as a lot of growth and ripening takes place in the last days. so with a new strain it's best to wait till you start seeing amber trichome heads till you start the flush.

cool is that you can do a massive flush at once and leave the plants another few days with just water and they will have that really tasty smelly aspect that we want as soon as they are dry. only getting better as they are allowed to cure.

this also means your coco will be nicely flushed for the next batch.

if you flush for 14 days in coco, your plants will get so starved that it's no longer positive taste wise.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the well-wishes gaiusmarius. Hands are already feeling better. And thanks for the nute schedule - I mean it! I had planned to do my first grow with bag seed, but the seeds wouldn't germ, and I used the towel method. Immature seed is my guess. So I've got to use my good seed. I have bought 10 White Widow (rec'd 10 free with the purchase of 10, 10 Aurora Indica, and 10 Big Bud. I think I'll germ 4 (to improve odds of at least 1 female) of the White Widow to cut my teeth on. I plan to try cloning a decent female out of this grow and at some point down the line with another grow, I will probably fert a couple of buds and collect some seed for a rainy day.

Since I am using my good seed for my first grow, I really appreciate your sharing your schedule with me. I've learned that mistakes eat up both time and money as I'm in my mid fifties and have made my share of them. I live at the bottom of the US right in the middle and the closest place that has Canna nutes is on the west coast. Freight on the coco coir is expensive so I also appreciate you sharing your method on flushing so it can be re-used. I only bought two bags because my grow closet is 2'deep X 7.5'wide X 8' tall and I intend to grow to 5gal containers and maybe keep each grow at about 6 plants. Just growing for myself so I'm pretty easy to please as to initial quantity of yield. Would like the quality to be there though - quantity too if it happens. I know I'll get better at it as time goes by, especially with the help of generous growers like you and most of the others I've met here at ICM.

This first grow I'll probably cut the veg time a little just to speed up harvest time but I still plan to veg to at least 18" or so. Have both 600W and 400W HID lights that are digitally ballasted and are capable of running both MH and HPS lamps. Have a 200W CFL for the seedling stage. Gonna keep a close eye on pH and bought a window unit to cool the air to the room from which grow closet air will be supplied so I intend to be able to keep temp in the 75-78 degree range. Both light hoods are air coolable and sealed. One fan is rated at 440 cfm and will be used strictly to pull air through these hoods to keep temp down. Second fan is CanFan 275 cfm with a solid state speed controller wired inline. This fan will pull air from the closet through a can filter and exhaust it back into the room from which the air originally came. A/C vent will be open to outside air so as to keep co2 levels at natural level. I chose not to vent closet air to the outside so home's a/c wouldn't have to run in order to compensate for what's being pulled out by exhaust. Should all work, I hope. If not I'll go to plan B as soon as I develop a plan B, hehe.

Thanks again, man. I'll keep you posted on my efforts and if you don't mind, I may ask for help with problems as they arise.

it's my pleasure to help in anyway i can. with some pics once in a while it will be easy to advise you should you need it. one thing that came to mind right away, is that i have never used the cannazym in double or triple dose like they tell you on the bottle. it's expensive enough as it is, lol. i just use it all the time at the recommended rate. when i start with brand new slabs i will not use the zym for the first 4 or 5 weeks of 12/12, but from then on i always add it. as i say, i have gotten great harvests reusing the coco up to 4 times. the zym keeps it in shape, i also have to add some BTi based stuff to my tank once in a while on the third go round, which is the case right now, because i see a few gnats around. solbac the bacteria thurengis israelis (sp?) is naturally present in earth and in liquid form, it's great for adding to a tank in a dripper setup to kill the gnat larva in the medium. just make sure you only use it in 3 or 4 days worth of water at a time as the effectiveness decreases after that. in a bad case you might do 2 treatments a few days apart. as it's a naturally occurring bacteria it does no harm to the plants at all and can be used at any time. although i wouldn't bother in the last 4 weeks. but it's great to keep those things at bay and still get a normal kind of yield. nematodes are also a good way to fight gnat larva. this is where people have to make their own choice, spend money on treating the slabs and don't have to go through the whole conspicuous bringing in of new slabs. or for some, it's real easy to get new coco in to the grow, in such cases i would advise changing the coco as soon as you notice gnat larva, be it after 2 runs or 3. but if it's a big number to get new coco and get rid of the old, then the above treatments are a godsend lol.

peace out
gm

check out my coco grow it shows my nutes throughout and I am sure you will find coco to be great!

Something I copied a long time ago. I forget where it's from.


Installment 1:



Guide for growing on coco


Growing cannabis is a hobby that more and more people pursue. Everybody can have great
results if you adopt a professional attitude as grower. A good crop depends on the
commitment and cleverness of the caretaker.
This guide focuses on the growth of skunk and indica kinds, varying from 7 to 10 weeks
flowering phase.
There are various methods to grow professionally, but we have found that this is the simplest
method to yield results over the gram/watt. We know from experience that if the beginner is
serious and meticulous and visits the shop once every two weeks for half an hour to catch up
the first harvest will yield premium quality and premium production. Failed harvests due to
mistakes in the growing method are rare, but are caused by, for example, unreliable
equipment, low-quality products, nonchalance, and by insect plagues.
There are two differences:
1) Coco in pots
2) Coco in slabs
The advantage of growing in pots is that you can move the plants during the harvest. Since
one plant grows faster than the next it is easy to sort them according to length and order them
in such a way that they catch as much light as possible. Coco slabs only offer advantages such
as less work (primarily in larger areas) and less waste, and even higher yields if you use a
water system. This guide only discusses the first method. For growing on slabs, go to
www.growside.nl. We only explain the method of growing and not the layout of the room.
Visit the shop for advice on how to do this, because the layout requires special attention, for
example isolation, ventilation and power supply.
Coco in pots
In order to reduce the harvest time as much as possible to prevent the development of
problems we use a 4-litre pot of lxbxh is 15x15x20cm. Citral, Peacemaker, White Widow,
Snowball, Santa Maria or other white weeds barely need to be given growing time (18 hours
light or more) if the climate is really damp the first two weeks. A K2 or a Top-44 for example,
are slow growers that can take at least five days of growth.
Since the plants do not or barely get the time to grow, they will yield a maximum of 25 grams
on average. That means that at least 24 plants must be placed under every 600w lamp in order
to yield 600 grams per 600 watt HPS lamp. Because the artificial light is less powerful than
the sun the intensity of light greatly decreases if the distance between lamp and plant becomes
a bit bigger. For that reason a short plant usually has long full flowers from top to bottom and
a long plant may look deserted of flowers especially at the bottom. A larger plant (larger than
75cm) does not yield more than a smaller one and is unmanageable.
Ordering and comparing pots
A big advantage of growing with pots is that you can move the plants and can look per plant if
it needs water or not. Especially the first three weeks there can be large differences between
the plants, which are caused as follows:


The cuttings you start with are different. It is possible that one has grown 15 cm after 5 days
and has already used a lot of water while another is still as small and damp as in the
beginning. If you water all plants while some of them are still wet you drown the plants that
were already small while the cuttings that are big get watered at the correct moment. The
large plants will grow even harder and the small ones even slower and the differences will
keep getting bigger and bigger. For that reason you should only water plants that are dry.
The more often you select, the more evenly your plants grow. When your harvest progresses
you often see that the plants become more yellow in the centre than at the side, because the
plants in the centre receive more light energy and process the food more quickly and therefore
use more food. If you put a yellow plant on the outside you give it some time to take in food
and become greener again. This means that a plant that is green (a plant with much
unprocessed food) processes more food under the light than a plant that is already yellow
because it cannot supply the food quickly enough.
Moving lamps or moving the lamps somewhat is always better.

Installment 2:


Humidity
One of the most underestimated factors in indoor growing is the humidity.
It is important for the further course of the entire harvest especially the first three weeks.
A cutting is a sprig of a plant with a few leaves, which is cut from a large plant, the mother
plant. This mother plant is selected on quality, gender, and strength and each cutting from this
plant has exactly the same characteristics, the genetic factors. Since this cutting can vaporize
water via the leaves, but cannot absorb water (there are no leaves) it must be protected against
dehydration. This is where humidity comes into play. By increasing the humidity the water
will vaporize more slowly and the plant will loose less water than in dry air. You give the
plant more time to grow roots this way. With the help of the humidity you can actually
regulate the rate of water evaporation in the plant. Even if roots are already there it may be
that a young or sick plant cannot keep pace with the evaporation, for example if the amount of
light or warmth is increased. You can recognise it by more yellow leaves, dried out edges of
leaves, a stagnating growth and a decreasing humidity.
Most of the time when you turn on the light the room will get too dry quickly.
Since cuttings will usually take root under strip lights they are not used to really strong light.
Initially hang the lamp(s) as high as possible, start with a few lamps and add more lamps in
the course of the first two weeks. Much light means much warmth. Much warmth means
much extraction to lead away the warmth and all humid air is transported outside. Everyone
will see the similarity between a blow-drier and the warmth of the lamps in combination with
the extraction. The more lamps, the warmer it gets, the stronger the extraction so the lower the
humidity, or the dryer the air. In order to maintain a high level of humidity you must not use
too much light initially so that the extraction can be kept low. You can furthermore place
water reservoirs, spray water, hang wet laundry in your growing room or, even better, use a
humidifier. Be careful that the humidity is not more than 95% with reference to the electric
equipment. When the plants get bigger they will automatically use more water and give off
more moisture to the air and eventually the humidity will stay sufficiently high. When the
humidity gets too high you can turn on more lamps and/or increase ventilation.

The following values are advisable:
week 1 80 to 90%
week 2 70 to 80%
week 3 65 to 70%
week 4 through 8 60 to 65%
week 9
around the 55%
Nowadays there are various convenient climate controllers available that simplify the
controlling of your climate. Let someone inform you about the differences.
Bugs
When you grow you will be visited by uninvited insects now and again. The cleaner you
work, the better, but it still does not guarantee anything. There will be no flowers the first
three weeks of the harvest. During this period you can use insecticide, which you wash off
before flower formation, without problems. I prefer insecticides that degrade themselves
within a few weeks and are not poisonous after that period. Let someone inform you about
this because there are also dangerous products on the market. Always ask about a product that
is suitable for vegetables, fruit and other consumer crops. A safety term is usually also
indicated. I furthermore advise to work with two different insecticides, one general insecticide
against louse, thrips and other insects and a special insecticide against red spider mites (web).
If you spray once every three days with one of the two insecticides your crop will be clean
before the real bloom. Primarily spray under the leaves.
Once you have an actual flower (and not the first hairs) you stop spraying and wash the leaves
a few times with a lot of clean water. You can also release natural enemies such as predatory
mites (orius) and soil-predatory mites (hypoaspis miles). The first lives on all harmful insects
on the leaves, and the other on all harmful insects in the soil and for that reason they are
particular suited to use preventively. Only tenacious red spider mites might occur at the end of
the harvest, against which you should use predatory mites. It all seems a lot of work but it
might save you a lot of problems, and fighting a real plague is often more work and might
cost more with reference to yield and quality.
Soil humidity
Watering with coco is different than with soil. If you grow on soil you cannot give the plant
too much water because the plant will drown otherwise. Much water in the soil displaces all
oxygen, which is rare in the ground in any case. Pearlite is added to the soil to reduce this
problem. Coco on the other hand is so light that there will always be sufficient oxygen left
and the plant cannot drown. This means in general that you can give the plant so much water
that it drains from under the pot each time. You can let the pot become dryer the first week
only to stimulate root development. You can also water the plants on coco the soil-growing
way (without drainage), but coco is actually a hydrological medium and drainage yields better
and more constant results (750grams/600watt/9weeks/1.2m2 has been realised).
You furthermore compare the EC-values (see following chapter). If they are constant, flush
out a little and drain 20% nutrient solution. If you measure a higher EC-value you can drain
more (30%) and flush out more often. When the EC gets lower, you can give more nutrients.

Installment 3:Unfortunately I haven’t seen a professional soil humidity meter yet. The hydrological growingon coco always enables you to know if you have watered the plant sufficiently. From the 8thday you must find on average 25% of the water given each day in the waste water reservoirwhere your drain water flows back to. You can furthermore decide at all times to give morewater in order to regulate your pH- and EC- values.E.C.E.C. means Electric Conductivity, and is measured in ųS/cm.The dissolved salts in water determine the conductivity of the water. If no salts or minerals aredissolved in the water the conductivity is zero, just like rubber. The more salts, the better theconductivity. Tap water normally contains so many dissolved salts that it conducts electricitydangerously well. Since most salts are also nutrient the EC.-value is also a standard for thenutritional value of the water or the soil.The EC.-value of the tap water in the Netherlands lies approximately between the 0.1 and the0.7 ųS/cm. The EC in this area lies around 0.5. When we talk about an EC-value it is always acombination of the EC-value of the water and of the nutrient. The tap water has an EC-valueof 0.5. In case of an EC of 1.7 this is 0.5 of the water and 1.2 enriched with nutrient solution.In your case you must complement the EC of your tap water with 1.2 EC nutrient solution.When the plants are young you should work with an EC of 1.2, up to 1.7 in approximatelythree weeks.If everything goes as it should you determine by looking at the colour of the leaves if youshould give more or less nutrient. If the leaves are dark green this means that the plant hasmore than enough nutrients for now. You can give fewer nutrients. If the leaves turn moreyellow, you can give the plant more nutrient. Since there are also other factors that determinethe colour of the leaves you should measure the soil or the drainage water.Pay attention when measuring the pH and EC if you haven’t had constant drainage. Thevalues measured may be unreliable. You should flush a few days with extra drainage beforeyou start measuring (see Drainage).A normal EC-value near the roots for an adult plant lies around 1.6 and 2.4 ųS/cm.Try to give a nutrient concentration as low as possible, but as much nutrient solution aspossible. Work with Citral and white weeds with EC-values between 1.6 and 1.8 if you have20 to 30 % drainage water left.When you drain less, you must generally give more nutrients. With K2 or skunk kinds youcan often give more nutrients in any case.With constant drainage you can use the drainage water to determine after the 3rd/4th weekhow much nutrient you must give. We work with an EC between 1.6 and 1.8mS/cm.Since the plant absorbs a part of the nutrients the drain water (waste water) contains fewernutrients than the nutrient solution. If you give 1.8, you can expect back between 1.1 and 1.6.If you have given, for example, 1.8 the previous weeks and measured 1.5 in your drain wateryou can increase the nutrient solution 0.2 points when the EC-value of the drain water dropsto 1.3, for example. This is a sign that the plant develops well.If the condition of the plant deteriorates due to, for example, high temperatures the plant willalso absorb fewer nutrients and you will measure a higher EC of the drain water. This is a badsign, which is often noticeable before other symptoms such as discoloured or curly leaves.You must lower the EC of your nutrient solution, and also look for the cause (bad climate, badpH or bugs).On average you try to get an EC-value of 1.7 near the roots. The EC-value near the roots liesaround the EC of your nutrient solution and the drain water. All in all you can use thefollowing formula to determine the EC of your new nutrient solution:EC of the new nutrient solution = 2 x [1.7 – (½ EC drain water)]. Here the EC drain water isthe EC of the old drain water left behind after previous watering(s).Always watch the plant closely and never react rigorously. You should adjust your flush watersomewhat and use it to flush longer instead of flushing shorter with more extreme values.If you measure an EC-value of the drain water that is higher than you have indicated on thenutrient vessels you had too little drain or haven’t measured and adjusted often enough. Youcan flush your coco on this moment until the values are ok again (see flushing). If your plantstops growing due to stress it hardly uses nutrients. If you continue giving nutrients withoutmeasuring almost all the nutrients you give will remain in the coco and you will have an EC-value near the roots that will quickly get too high if you don’t drain.If the leaves are yellow, do not increase your EC-values rigorously. Give a bit more nutrients,but also water more often or give more water and during a longer period. If you measureregularly you will never find strongly deviating drain values, and you will only have to adjustminimally. Try to give a nutrient concentration that is as low as possible, but give as muchnutrient solution as possible.EC-meters cost approximately Euro 40,-.PHP.H. (Potentia Hydrogenica) is acidity. In plant breeding the pH determines the nutrientabsorption capacity. A pH that is too low (acid) causes certain elements to be absorbed tooquickly, which may cause poisoning. If you have a pH that is too high (basic) certain elementswill not be absorbed or with difficulty. A shortage is usually not caused by using too littlenutrients, but because the nutrients cannot be absorbed. You can have good nutrientabsorption on coco with a pH between 5.2 and 6.2 with a pH of 5.7 as ideal value.Plants adapt to circumstances. For that reason constant values are always better. So keep thepH constant!The acids we use are nitric acid and phosphoric acid. Nitric acid or pH-grow (pH-min-grow)is used in the growing phase and in the first week of the bloom, phosphoric acid or pH-bloom(pH-min-bloom) is used after that. If the pH of your water with nutrients is lower than 5.7 youneed pH-plus. This is not acid, but a base, usually caustic potash.Coco has, just like soil, the capacity to steer the pH, correct it and stabilise it. This is causedby minerals in the coco that correct the pH. This means you can have at least one harvestwithout regulating the pH of your nutrient solution. When you regulate, up to 5 harvests arepossible.EC and pH are closely linked. If you add more nutrient to a bucket of water the pH usuallydrops and if you add acid to the water the EC rises (a little). If you continuously give a bit toomuch nutrient or if the plants absorb less nutrient the EC-value in the coco builds up. The pHwill also become more acidic (=lower).If you grow hydrological on coco it is quite easy to maintain the correct pH-value by means ofthe following formulaH of the new nutrient solution = 2 x [5.8 – (½ pH drain water)]. Here the pH drain water isthe pH of the old drain water left behind after previous watering(s). Test your soil every threeweeks or let a growshop check it. You can buy a pH-meter from Euro 40.Good drainage prevents build up of acids and salts.

Installment 4: DrainageDrainage is the amount of nutrient solution that leaks from under a pot or slab after fertilizing.The purpose of drainage is that the EC-and pH-values can be controlled better andunnecessary salts are drained.If you give a plant nutrient you try to give it exactly enough. Since not all plants use similaramounts of nutrient and plants also secrete salts, there may be pots in which salts are buildingup. This surplus of nutrient makes the soil brackish and changes the pH. By means ofdrainage you flush the soil every time you give nutrient, which prevents the soil becomingbrackish.If you measure the drainage water or the coco you can see if the soil is polluted. If the EC ishigher than you have indicated you must flush. You can also bring your water or soil sampleto the growshop. We can teach you there how you can carry out a proper soil analysis andhow you can determine from the values measured how to proceed. If the values deviatestrongly you can also, for example, flush half a vessel of nutrient solution through the potsand measure again. If you still don’t have proper values you can flush again a few days later.You can also slightly increase the drainage. Try not to let the values fluctuate too much on 1day, but flush with intervals of a few days until the values are correct again. Too manyfluctuations in a short while can cause stress. Only measure drain water if you have regularlydrained the past few days, otherwise you measure unreliable values.Step by StepDay 1-Heat up the room to about 24 °C.-Regulate the humidity between 80 and 90%.-Turn on as few lights as possible (for example 1). Hang the lamp(s) as high as possible.-Minimise the extraction or turn it off (see chapter humidity).-Fill the pots completely, lightly press the soil.-Give half a litre of water per plant according to the “planting recipe”.-Give all plants, within 10 minutes after placing, water because the dry coco otherwise sucksthe cutting plug dry.-Spray water, so that the plants and the room are humid, but do not let the coco become wetterwith spray water because the pH of that water has not been regulated.- The blooming phase starts between now and 7 days depending on the kinds.Week 1-Keep the humidity over 80 % the first week.-From the 2nd day preventively spray insecticide, every three days up to flower formation andprimarily under the leaves. -When the plants have grown a few centimetres, you can select the plants on size. Place thelarge plants on the outside and the small ones in the centre.-The more often you do this the more equal the plants develop.-After about a week (between 5 and 10 days) the plants need water.-Use the “nutrient solution recipe 1”. Only water the plants that are dry and let the othersbecome dry first (see selecting and ordering plants).-You can turn on about 2/3 of the lamps usually after a week.This depends on:1) the regulation of the humidity and2) the development of the plants in the first week.Often these factors are connected.If the plants, for example, during planting or due to low humidity have sustained a shock itmay be that they cannot stand so much light yet. In that case wait with increasing the amountof light, all the more since this also complicates a high humidity.Week 2-Keep the humidity between 70 and 80%.-Keep spraying against insects.-Order and select, in this phase only water plants that are dry, but generally use a more humidpot for plants that do well. Water the plants with nutrient solution-recipe 1.-Slowly turn on and increase the air extractor (15 minutes/hour).-Turn on the last lamps.-Increase the extraction.Week 3-Keep the humidity between 65 and 70%.-Gradually lower the lamps, 600wat min. 50cm and 400wat min. 40 cm.-Give water according to nutrient solution-recipe 2.-Spray until the end of the week.-Increase the extraction.- Spray the plants at the end of the week for the last time.This depends on the kind and how fast the bloom starts.- At the end of week 3 the soil humidity may rise until drainage starts.If the plants are relatively big you can drain sooner, and the other way round,because if the root system has not been developed enough yet a drier pot is better since theplant sends out the roots for water.Build up the drainage in the coming 2 weeks to at least 20%.Also mind the drainage water; you might for example discover harmful soil insects you don’tsee usually. Of course you can also measure the water.The more the values (pH en EC) deviate from the nutrient solution, the more you must drainor flush. In case of large differences visit the growshop.-Order the natural enemies that you want to use preventively from the growshop.Assassin bugs and soil predatory mites are effective against practically all plagues.Only tenacious red spider mites may sometimes occur. In that case I use predatory mites,especially against the red spider miteWeek 4-Reduce the humidity from 65% to 60% in the course of 4 weeks.-Do not spray.-Collect insects ordered last week and use them-Maximum extraction.-Lamps at the minimum distance.-Water plants according to nutrient solution-recipe 3.- Look for harmful insects.Week 5-Humidity approximately 60%-Water according to nutrient solution-recipe 3.- Look for harmful insects.-Clear away all dead leaves that have fallen (and other mess).-Check the colour of the leaves and test the soil. When in doubt go to the growshop.Week 6– Humidity approximately 60%.- Water plants according to nutrient solution-recipe 3- Look for harmful insects.Week 7- Humidity approximately 60%.- Water plants according to nutrient solution-recipe 3.- Look for harmful insects.- Clear away all dead leaves that have fallen (and other mess).Week 8- Humidity approximately 60%.- Water plants according to nutrient solution-recipe 4.-Test the soil. If it contains a high concentration of salts the soil cannot be used for the nextcrop anymore, unless you flush out the salts. In this case flush with cannazym (until EC <1.6). This loosens the blocked nutrient and also breaks down dead roots. Correct the pH withyour flush water (if necessary).- Look for harmful insects.Week 9–Keep the humidity low to prevent fungus (=55%).- Water plants according to nutrient solution-recipe 4.-Check the biggest buds for fungus. Carefully bend a large bud open until you see the branch.Look for white or brown fungal hairs, brown and grey spots and slimy places. Usually amouldy top also has parched, yellow or brown leaves. Look for fungus near an ugly leaf in thelarge tops. When in doubt show an affected top at the growshop. If you find fungus, it’s bestto harvest at once since it might spread quickly.-If 2/3rdof the weed hairs are brown you can harvest.

And finally...

Watering the plants
• Water is the source of life of a plant. One must be very precise here too.
• A few pointers:
• Temperature of the water is equal to the temperature of the soil (approximately 23° C).
• If you put out the water a day sooner, harmful chemicals such as chlorine vaporize.
• If you intend to regulate the ph of the nutrient solution you must do this the entire
harvest, every time you give nutrient or don’t do it the entire harvest. Keep the pH
constant.
• Close the tap after you have finished!!!!
• Never mix A and B without water.
Planting recipe
• 1 ml/l Canna coco A and 1 ml/l Canna coco B
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz Root stimulator
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz Booster Indica
• CO2-tabs 1 pill/100 litres
• pH=5.7
Feed water recipe 1
• 2 ml/l Canna coco A and Canna coco B
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz Root stimulator
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz coco Booster Indica
• CO2-tabs 1 pill/100 litres
• PH=5.7
Nutrient solution recipe 2
• Dependent on the colour of the leaves and the values in the soil between 1 and 4 ml/l
Canna coco A and B
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz coco Booster Indica
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz coco Bloom stimulator
• CO2-tabs 1 pill/100 litres
• PH=5.7
Nutrient solution recipe 3
• Dependent on the colour of the leaves and the values in the soil between 1 and 4 ml/l
Canna coco A and B
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz coco Bloom stimulator
• CO2-taps 1 pill/100 litres.
• PH= average 5.7 unless you have to regulate from your measured drain soils.
Nutrient solution recipe 4
• Test the soil. If the EC is high and the pH is low the soil cannot be used for the next
harvest unless you flush away the accumulated salts and acids. Flush out the soil with
Cannazym (see flush water recipe).
If the values are good (EC<1.7 and ph=5.5-5.9), you don’t have to flush, but should
use Cannazym to break down dead roots.
Try to arrange that the coco is empty at the end of the harvest without there being a
nutrient shortage. You usually reduce the amount of nutrient in the last week until you
water the plants the last time(s) without it.
• Cannazym 2/5 ml/litre
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz coco Bloom stimulator
• CO2-tabs 1 pill/100 litres
• PH=average 5.7 unless you have to regulate from your measured drain soils.
Flush water recipe
• 1 ml/l Canna coco A and B
• 2.5 ml/l Cannazym
• pH= average 5.7 unless you have to regulate from your measured drain soils.
Spray water recipe
• Temperature of the water is equal to the temperature of the air
• no PH-regulation
• Add insecticide or anti-web agent according to label on product.



Explanation of products used
1) Canna coco A + B nutrient
This is a ready-to-use 2-component nutrient for grow and bloom on coco. The nutrient
regulates the pH a little so that it is unnecessary to regulate the pH yourself.
Dose: between 1 and 4 ml per litre.
EC- values between 1.2 and 2.4 cm/mS. dependent on the tap water and period.
2) B’cuzz Coco Booster Indica
This is a grow stimulator used in the first 4 weeks.
It contains vitamins, amino acids, and other substances that, among other things, improve the
metabolism and nutrient absorption via the roots.
Dose: 1ml/l during the first 4 weeks.

3) B’cuzz Root stimulator
This stimulator stimulates root growth and is given the first 10 days.
Dose: 1ml/l the first 10 days.
4) B’cuzz Coco Bloom stimulator
This bloom stimulator simplifies the production of bloom hormones and causes a quicker
bloom. A plant that grows fast can remain small because it stops growing sooner. You usually
use the bloom stimulator when you stop using the root stimulator.
Dose: 1ml/l from day 12.
5) pH - grow
This is an acid (nitric acid) with a base of nitrogen. Since nitrogen is used a lot during growth
it is the best acid to regulate the ph during growth.
Dose: by means of pH-meter (pH between 5.2 and 6.2).
6) pH –bloom
This acid has a base of phosphor (phosphoric acid). Since this is an important nutritious
element during bloom it can be used to regulate the pH during bloom.
Dose: by means of pH-meter (pH between 5.2 and 6.2).
7) Co2-tabs
This is a pill that gives additional CO2 to your nutrient solution. Each organic molecule
contains a carbon molecule (C) which the plant absorbs from the CO2.
Dose: 1 pill per 100 litres of water.
8) Masai Bayer anti-web for vegetables/fruit
Insecticide purely against web (red spider mites). Especially spray under the leaves
Dose: according to label
9) Buzz off
Biological insecticide against plant louse, thrips and other insects.
Only use before flower formation.
Dose: 1ml/litre preventive, up to 3 ml/litre maximum
10) Cannazym
This is a product to loosen the blocked nutrient in the coco with the intention to flush it out. It
also accelerates the break down of organic remains (dead roots) in the soil.
Dose: 2.5ml/litre
11) Super thrive
This product with a base of “growth hormone production stimulating” ingredients can be
given during the first 4 weeks to plants that develop slowly and stay behind.
Dose: daily 10 drops in 10 litres of water or 1/4ml / litre once only

that's pretty good info Shmokin. a good read for anyone who wants to start growing on coco.

Shmokin
===> 2 coco growing guide.


Guide for growing on coco in pot (EN)

and

Guide for growing on coco with slabs (EN)


http://www.growside.nl/index.asp?content=text&subj=7

gaiusmarius, I have been away for a little while and just looked at the thread again. Hands are doing better, still fairly numb but better. At any rate, I was in Home De Pot the other day and picked up a couple of trays. I knew I was going to need something to protect the floor from runoff and I found these (see pics). Originally, I planned to just set my pots in them to catch overflow but, then I started thinking about using them as some sort of passive hydro system in order to cut down on watering frequency.










Their dimentions are 19.5"W X 43"L X 6.5"D and they are on rollers.

So, what do you think I should use them for?

1. Set pots in them and use them to catch overflow from watering?
2. Cut holes in the tops and set pots into holes with about 2" of nute enriched water in the bottoms of the trays? This would cut down on evaporation rates I believe but might also cut down on available O2.
3. Put nute enriched water into bottom of trays, set pots on bricks and use a wick system to wick moisture into pots through the drain holes in the pots?
4. Take them back to Home of Pot and get my money back ($14.97 ea.)?
5. Save my gas money, throw some kerosene on them and light them on fire!?

Shmokin, thanks man for the grow information. That was quite a post - very informative. I'm going to be using strictly Canna nutes and Canna Coco. I figured the Canna nutes to be the purest for the grow medium. Of course as this is my first grow, this rationale is coming from an uneducated point of view and it may just turn out that I'm full of shit.

Laughing Buddha, thanks for the links. I'll study them.

24 hours ago I started germination of 15 seeds; 5 White Widow, 5 Aurora Indica, and 5 bag seed. Before I learned of ICM, I bought seed where I thought I stood the best chance of not getting found out. I have since learned of the "Seed Botique" and will be buying future strains through them (Gypsy Nirvana is looking good). I bought 10 White widow (and got 10 free) from Amsterdammarijuanaseeds.com, 10 Aurora Indica and 10 Big Bud from Weedfarmer. After seeing the thread on the quality issues at Weedfarmer, I opened the packaging for the Aurora Indica and Big Bud and found dry cracked seeds for a couple of them and a couple more that just felt light and were pale in color. Don't know if they'll germinate or not, that's why I'm trying to germinate 5 seeds each of 3 different sources.

Thanks again guys, I appreciate your help with information.

you don't want the pots of coco sitting in water the whole time.

i think if i was gonna set some thing up with those trys, i'd use them to catch run off. maybe have them at a slight slant and make a hole in the fron end bottom, which you plug up. this way when you water them, you can open the plug and let the return water collect in a bucket, to be chucked or reused depending on how regularly you are watering. you don't need the lids this way. it's important that the coco can drain freely.

As always, thanks GM. I'll use them just as you suggested. Now if only my seeds will pop! Did everything I knew to do.
- pH'd water to 6.5,
- placed 5 each of 3 varieties of seeds on three separate paper towels and placed on a large dinner plate
- sprayed with the water, folded towels over to cover the seeds and re-sprayed the towels
- stuck the suction cup of the temp probe for my heat mat temp controller to the bottom of the inside of the plate (next to the seeds), - covered the plate with tin foil
- placed plate in the bottom of propagation tray and covered with the tall dome lid
- set temp controller to 75 degrees and am checking them for signs of life once every 24h. Actual temp inside dome is less than 75 due to volume of air being warmed.

Jeeze, did I miss anything? Time will tell.

Thanks again all.

mojo