coco+wick+gh flora nova=never dump run-off|pdg’s imaginary/enjoyable garden

[*mistress*]

gland/fruit development:

*molasses @ 15ml/1 tbspn per gal, w/ regular feeding regime.

*foliar spray molasses @ 5ml/1 tsp per 32oz spray bottle. ph adjusted to 7.0+. repeat every 3 days for @ least 3 applications.

*0-10-10 kool bloom & 1-1-1 floralicious bloom as foliar feeding. 7.0+ ph. every 3-7 days.

until week 6...

 

[MIGHTYMITE]

humic acid easily buffers any high ppms that accumulate in the bottom container (res).

an example of this would be what..

so basically what happens to the salt if its not flushed away.??



if im top feeding a coco plant with 5.8
and on runn off the ppm dont change but the
ph is changed to say 6.4..
what would that indicate??


( insert intelligent answer here)

and then you say the plant will start to bottom feed as the top
drys out

so its sucking on nutes with excessive salt content??

im leaning toward bonecarver on this issue but would like to be swayed

 

[krunchbubble]

true that. every time i read one of her posts, i cringe in pain. ive never, ever, ever seen or heard anyone give more misinformation in my life!

i swear the reason she shows no pictures is because she dosent grow, has no idea how to grow and pulls info out of her ass, notice its always completely opposite of tried, tested and known practices?

 

[MIGHTYMITE]

true that. every time i read one of her posts, i cringe in pain. ive never, ever, ever seen or heard anyone give more misinformation in my life!

i swear the reason she shows no pictures is because she dosent grow, has no idea how to grow and pulls info out of her ass, notice its always completely opposite of tried, tested and known practices?

even in hydro a lot of floks will do a sytem flush usally before flower....IIRC
love the principal..but are we talkin straight coco here ..
or some kind of perlite coco mix..

either way of it works great ..i would do a weeklymayby bi weekly flush with good ph water..RO cal mag.or whatever floats yer boat..
,,but also i think you could leave these plants for quite a while with this wick system then flush when ya get a chance



edit krunchbubble

mikeoldschool - yup, hand water, no runoff. yields and quality way improve with no runoff in coco. keep coco moist and not wet.

are you being sarcastic in above posts..or is the drip clean the answer to any woes here

 

[*mistress*]

humic acid easily buffers any high ppms that accumulate in the bottom container (res).

an example of this would be what..

15ml per gal fnb. bottom fed w/ 15ml kool bloom. humic acid is a buffer.

humic acids increase electric permeability of of cells, hold iron & phosphates, ready for plant uptake & encourage beneficial orgs in media.

humic acids chelate metallic ions (salts) & allows them to be readily transportable by water. the chelating process permits movement into & out of cell walls. this is commonly referred to as cation exchange capacity. or, the ability of plants' roots to exchange electrical charges.

another example of a chelating agent is edta, which is how iron usually is supplied in hydro solutions. chelates are molecular rings of carbon. hydrogen & nitrogen.

so basically what happens to the salt if its not flushed away.??

the plant uses it. when the plant is watered, either top or bottom fed, the run-off is simply not dumped. the plant draws it up thru the wick.

no different than a recirculating system that constantly recirculates the same water+nutes that go thru the media. goes to res, & back to plants...

w/ wick system, pumps are eliminated & the capillary effect of the wick effectively recirculates the run-off that resides in the lower container.

if im top feeding a coco plant with 5.8
and on runn off the ppm dont change but the
ph is changed to say 6.4..
what would that indicate??

your media is changing your ph & your plants are not assimilating nutes... @ least not the nutes that went thru the media so swiftly... your media is altering your ph.

ph usually rises due to nutes being assimilated by plant, which would lead to higher ph, as hydrogen molecules are released to replaces ca, mg, etc...

and then you say the plant will start to bottom feed as the top
drys out

so its sucking on nutes with excessive salt content??

yes... the salt content is only as high as the input...

if feed @ 1000 ppm, does not turn into 2000 ppm just by letting the run-off reside in the bottom res. should be same, or less ppms...

the plant will be drinking whatever you feed it. dont understand the concept/idea of excessive salt build-up w/ passive hydro & wicks... is no different than an ebb & flow system re-using the 'run-off' that is the 'ebb' (drain) after the 'flow' (watering).

will a plant grown in ebb & flow be exposed to 'excessive salts' because it is re-using the run-off that is in the res?

either way of it works great ..i would do a weeklymayby bi weekly flush with good ph water..RO cal mag.or whatever floats yer boat..
,,but also i think you could leave these plants for quite a while with this wick system then flush when ya get a chance

maybe in post 1 or 2, make it clear that only water 2-3 times per week. feed, water, feed...
there is 'mini-flush' every other watering. not necessary though...

 

[krunchbubble]

oh, the examples i could and should pull up! but, i HAVE gardens to attend to and dont have the time to point out everything. i would have to go back to damn near every post you made.

i just think everyone who reads your posts should also know that your full of sh!t........

 

[Mister Postman]

I use wicks with coco... Though the wicks are only implemented on those few days a grow I'm not able to tend to the garden as I'd like too. Rest of the time the wicks r tucked up under the containers.. Most of the time it's top fed, drain to waste with 5ml fnb + 2.5ml cal-mag which puts me close to rez/heads 6/9 flora feeding (worked great for me in the past). Peak flower I'll throw some liquid koolbloom at em at 5-7ml per gallon. On the days I use the wicks I'm feeding half dosage and am putting that right into the bottom catch pan. IMO there is no escaping the fact that salts build up in coco over time without flushing. I think in a system such as this I thought you'd need to feed lighter, and depend on the fact that it will eventually build up in the medium.

I gotta say what scares me most is the 15ml per gallon of both fnb, and koolbloom your feeding at.. I use both those products. I dont know many, maybe one other (good burn he called it) who claimed to push the plants like that with such a high doasge in pure coco especially. I'd honestly need to see some pics before I'd try. I respect your choice, so will have to pass as to much is going against what already been tried n tested thoroughly.

I really dont mind, if not I incurage others to think out side the box.. I was confident that whodi would be able to pull off a no flush grow due to the low concentration of nutes he was using (rez/Heads modified lucus). But the high dosages you feed, on top of the no flush style really makes me scratch my head, and wonder.. Maybe I just need to use my imagination a lil more I'm almost possitive I'd burn them at those dosages though in my current set-up. I'd sure as hell would like to see someone else give a plant to experimentation.. In my garden of 5, I feel I cant spare 1 to experiment right now..

Mistress I din't see it mentioned, but do you always feed at those dosages, or do you at times use pure water feedings inbetween?

Edit: Never mind my question Mistress^^ I read through once more, and found the answer You do infact alternate with pure water feedings.. Gained me a lil more confidence in the system, though the dosage still seems on the higher end imo..

 

[*mistress*]

100% in compliance with my own rules, values and morals.

thx for stopping by Mister Postman. nice standards you abide by...

I use wicks with coco... Though the wicks are only implemented on those few days a grow I'm not able to tend to the garden as I'd like too. Rest of the time the wicks r tucked up under the containers.. Most of the time it's top fed, drain to waste with 5ml fnb + 2.5ml cal-mag which puts me close to rez/heads 6/9 flora feeding (worked great for me in the past). Peak flower I'll throw some liquid koolbloom at em at 5-7ml per gallon. On the days I use the wicks I'm feeding half dosage and am putting that right into the bottom catch pan. IMO there is no escaping the fact that salts build up in coco over time without flushing. I think in a system such as this I thought you'd need to feed lighter, and depend on the fact that it will eventually build up in the medium.

yes, salts build up in coco. this build up is used to the advantage of the gardener. stop feeding entirely @ wk 6. reserves diluted by h20+h202 only for final 3-4 weeks.
want plants to always be growing rapidly & use max strength - that mfg recommends...

I gotta say what scares me most is the 15ml per gallon of both fnb, and koolbloom your feeding at.. I use both those products. I dont know many, maybe one other (good burn he called it) who claimed to push the plants like that with such a high doasge in pure coco especially. I'd honestly need to see some pics before I'd try. I respect your choice, so will have to pass as to much is going against what already been tried n tested thoroughly.

flora nova bloom bottle

3.75ml/L - 3 tsp/gal* - 1350 ppm** - 2.6 ec - max strength for rapidly growing plants

*3 teaspoons = 1 tablespoon = 15ml = 1/2 oz.
**see below thread for calculating ppms by hand, by several formulas, & conclusively by molecular weight; millimho to ec to ppm conversion formulas, etc. also, take note of different ec/ppm/tds meters & scales used. gh uses nacl scale, or hanna scale:

calculating npk/nutrient profile
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=134356

while lucas, h3ad, rez, & other formulas are generally excellent, every plant, environment & garden/er is different. even in the original lucas threads there was lots of debate & many manners of growing.

1 example that can never really be 'settled' are the old bubbler (dwc) threads in which some gardeners dumped the res every 7-10 days, while others simply added-back to the res @ 33%, 50%, &/or 100% strength nutes... when those individual results are reviewed objectively, either method works to bring quality fruit to harvest. the key w/ ea seems to be controlling ph... ran dwc when w/ strong supernatural nutes. full strength - add back water to double volume - full strength. repeat. end.

yes, there are tried & tested formulas for kiss grows... it should be noted that the original lucas formula was for k.i.s.s....

the formula was not created to push plants... dont really know how, over the 360's, the lucas formula has turned into a maximum strength formula???

the original lucas threads pointed out that higher light levels increased need of plants for npk... under a 400, in a 2x2 area, lucas may be ok for seedlings/cuttings. but if vegging for 4-8 weeks under multiple 1ks, not so good... why? math... the exponential increase in foliage necessitates increase in total electrical charges to permeate root cells walls, that have also increased in volume (total mass). growth increases consumption...

your nutrient profile & ec for full strength flowering:

flora nova bloom @ 5ml/gal:
n=52 ppm
p=45
k=75
ca=52
mg=15
s=15

kool bloom @ 5ml/gal:
n=0
p=56
k=108

cal-mag+ @ 2.5ml/gal:
n=13
ca=20
mg=7

total full strength ppm:
458

~.65 ec...

depending on the meter used, this will give an ec of between 0.6-0.9... w/ the remainder of the micronutrients & the ballast (filler) of the nutes, total ec may reach 1... max...

if that is working for you, excellent!

here, 2.0+ ec is reached during peak flowering...

I really dont mind, if not I incurage others to think out side the box.. I was confident that whodi would be able to pull off a no flush grow due to the low concentration of nutes he was using (rez/Heads modified lucus). But the high dosages you feed, on top of the no flush style really makes me scratch my head, and wonder.. Maybe I just need to use my imagination a lil more I'm almost possitive I'd burn them at those dosages though in my current set-up. I'd sure as hell would like to see someone else give a plant to experimentation.. In my garden of 5, I feel I cant spare 1 to experiment right now..

not really experimenting... just doing passive hydro w/ bottle instructions... may be that gardeners are simply used to 'hydro', 'coco', or 'aero' & have neglected the simple config's...

Mistress I din't see it mentioned, but do you always feed at those dosages, or do you at times use pure water feedings inbetween?

Edit: Never mind my question Mistress^^ I read through once more, and found the answer You do infact alternate with pure water feedings.. Gained me a lil more confidence in the system, though the dosage still seems on the higher end imo..

the dosages are not really that high... they actually get higher than that! probably close to 2.5-3 ec - as they are foliar fed weekly w/ the same root-fed solution - diluted to ~250ppm/ph 7.0+... up until week 6...

developed method over few moons... a little bit of trial+error & this/that occurred before posting...

there are a few innovations that could be detailed to improve method. simple mods that help; will post if interested...

enjoy your garden!

 

[Mister Postman]

Those calculations you've come up with are way lower from those of which I obtained from the calculator on the angelfire nute calculator (cannastats) for some reason.. When I get the time to read through, I'll have to look into the link you posted for calculating ppm. I'm rather new to growing hydro with bottled nutes though, everything prior was organic in soil, so this infact is very new, and much different approach for me..

This is what I obtained using the calculator they offer

Heads/Rez's modified lucus formula. For coco, drain to waste daily feeding. gh flora 6micro/9bloom
N 97
p 60
k 105
mg 40
S 27
ca 97

floranova bloom 5mil + 2.5mil of cal/mag+ per gallon
N 92
P 69
K 115
mg 48
S 40
Ca 101

floranova bloom at 5mil per gallon
N 79
P 69
k 115
mg 40
s 40
ca 79

Honestly I've never been one to push my plants very much.. I always felt I obtained better results/qualities when I fed moderate daily feedings, and with good flushing at the end of flower. Switching to the F-nova bloom was actually an order mistake on my part. I really enjoyed the control I had with the gh flora the last few runs in coco. either way it seems to be working wonderfully so far in my garden, and in the end that's all that really matters right I don't use a couple 1000watters though.. Just 1 600w hps
a tent full of ecsd and heads trainwreckbx1

Thanks for your time Mistress..

 

[*mistress*]

nice garden, Mister Postman!

did those calcs using a hand-formula. [10*fert %/.768=ppm using teaspoon per gal & (10*fert %/.768)*.437=elemental p ppm & (10*fert %/.768)*.833=elemental k ppm].

c.stats #'s you provide are same as came up w/, using that calculator...

lots of stretch between internodes...
400w?
600?
hps?
is light normally kept @ that distance?
night temps?
day temps?
rh?
in veg?

nice geneetics. do they elongate naturally like that? lots of stem between nodes... are those from seed? in selection process?

mixing some blue light may shorten nodal 'stretch'. also, increasing night temps to ~5*f from day temps & decreasing rh to 30-40%, especially if watering daily...

could also lower the light, since it is air cooled... or is this how they are suppossed to be?

far greater density of nodes per cubic footage of plant mass is needed, in imaginary garden, for cultivar to remain. even pure s tomatoes that demand 80+ days have to have clusters of closely spaced nodes. environment influences this much...

there may methods/techniques that you could employ - w/out many/or any coins, to influence tightening up (increasing proximal distance between nodes on stems, shoots & branches, etc...) those internodes & decrease energy used to produce stalk... & produce more terminal flowers & do so tightly...

they are healthy though!

enjoy your garden!

 

[Mister Postman]

nice garden, Mister Postman!

did those calcs using a hand-formula. [10*fert %/.768=ppm using teaspoon per gal & (10*fert %/.768)*.437=elemental p ppm & (10*fert %/.768)*.833=elemental k ppm].

c.stats #'s you provide are same as came up w/, using that calculator...

lots of stretch between internodes...
400w?
600?
hps?
is light normally kept @ that distance?
night temps?
day temps?
rh?
in veg?

nice geneetics. do they elongate naturally like that? lots of stem between nodes... are those from seed? in selection process?

mixing some blue light may shorten nodal 'stretch'. also, increasing night temps to ~5*f from day temps & decreasing rh to 30-40%, especially if watering daily...

could also lower the light, since it is air cooled... or is this how they are suppossed to be?

far greater density of nodes per cubic footage of plant mass is needed, in imaginary garden, for cultivar to remain. even pure s tomatoes that demand 80+ days have to have clusters of closely spaced nodes. environment influences this much...

there may methods/techniques that you could employ - w/out many/or any coins, to influence tightening up (increasing proximal distance between nodes on stems, shoots & branches, etc...) those internodes & decrease energy used to produce stalk... & produce more terminal flowers & do so tightly...

they are healthy though!

enjoy your garden!

I'm using a 600watt hortilux super hps throughout veg/flower.. I moved the light up slightly to capture the whole tent in the pic.. With the cooltube I can actually keep it within inches of the tops of the plants, though doing so doesn't allow for total coverage of my space.. My night time temps match those of the house which I tend to keep at toasty 70degress.. Daylight hours it varies from 80-85degrees. These plants as pictured are 10 or so days into flower, and going through their stretch period..

This is my First run with the east coast sour diesel clone through flower, but the twbx1 which I have run before is actually much tighter noded then passed runs using floranova bloom throughout veg compared to Rez's 2part flora regimen I've used previously with great success. Those who grew the ecsd before, and stopped by my grow show seemed to be very surprised with how bushy, and tight she's growing in my garden.. Yes, she tends to grow VERY lanky compared to other plants that have graced my garden so far.. I actually assumed it was due to using the floranovabloom through veg with it's slightly higher pk dosages. I've vegged the mother for months before I was able to flower a few cuts, and in fact shes never looked so good through veg IMO.. Always much more lanky and stretched out IME.

IF you have any suggestions on making it even more productive.. Hell yeah, Of course I'm all ears LOL.. I know for a fact I'd do better with a reflector which provides better coverage though in the summer I'm pretty much stuck with the cooltube as it gets rather hot here.. I'm kinda limitted finnacially with the holidays around the corner, though would certainly consider making changes for my next run.. I was already thinking about switching over to something called smart pots for my next grow which some on here have noted a 20-50% increase in yields with their use..

Here is my grow show if your inteersted.. It's a group grow show with three of my friends here who are running the same genetics only with different nutes/mediums/sytems etc.. http://icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=140645

 

[MediScrogs]

Hi Mistress, I'm new here. I've been reading this thread cover to cover, and want to thank you for taking the time to share. It is really a bonus to be able to learn from the experiences of others.

Trying it for yourself seems like the only fair way to evaluate anything. And in fairness, no two gardeners would get the same result even if everything were done the same.

Are you familiar, by chance, with the work of Dr. Masaru Emoto aka "The Hidden Messages of Water" ? It has to do with how personal intention and thoughts can affect the vibration of water. Plants can also sense intention, according to "The Secret Language of Plants" (I think that's the title), a paperback I read once about how plants have been demonstrated, scientifically, to respond "psychically" to thoughts, emotion, prayer, intention, etc, in controlled experiments.

I saw Soma giving a keynote for Cannabis Cup once, and he was absolutely firm that, from his experience, even with perfect nute EVERYTHING, environment EVERYTHING, ad nauseum..., that no flowering top will reach it's full potential without love. The conviction in the way he said it made me feel that it was more than just some kind of philosophy trallfrazzle, but that it was what he had learned in his experience.

Your article made me think more about the spiritual side of gardening, the simplicity, lack of machines, and your emphasis on enjoying your garden. Enjoyment is love. I believe Soma. Love does not come in a bottle and has no EC measurement.

I'd be willing to try your imaginative method just for the learning experience. I would not be afraid of either failing or succeeding because I enjoy the process of learning.

To summarize the hotpoint of the EC question, this is what I am taking away:
I like the idea that the plants don't need a lot of food, and ever increasing salts, to grow, unless they are fully vigorous adult feeders under high intensity light and optimal growth conditions -- in which case, they will be able to utilize the higher strength nutrients without leaving extra salt behind. Then, you are adding just h2o/h2o2 the next watering anyway. Always flushing. I didn't understand where all the salts came from, unless people were overfeeding them continually from the start. I am just learning. I understand from this thread that you have to be careful with coco. Did I understand the main point of the boxing match ok?

It sounds like it works for you. I doubt you would post the thread and waste your own time detailing a system that will lead us all to disaster. I am not threatened by the fact that this system may work for you but not for others. I would be willing to try it as a learning experience sometime, for my own knowledge. I can't really judge any information without doing it myself. Right now I am doing SCROG because I have read a lot about it, and seen a couple others doing it, but I don't have any other way to judge or comment about it without trying to do it myself, so that's what I'm trying right now. Whether the result ends up good or bad, I know that I will be learning a lot in the process, so I am really stoked about that.

Peace

 

[*mistress*]

MediScrogs...

media? coco/perlite(/other amendments) ratios? 100% coco?

fertilizers?

volume of water given per feeding?

w/ or w/out wick?

enjoy your garden!

 

[MediScrogs]

Media is roots organics, with no extra ammendments. I am open to ammending it if I knew what might work better.

Ferts: I started with some compost tea in a bag from the grow store, and some AN Nirvana. I didn't really get to the npk's until 3 or 4 weeks (seedlings here), and when I did start, I started very very light. I used Techniflora Pura Vida Grow, which seems to have worked fine, but the plants don't look perfect so they have probably been deficient at times, I don't really know how to diagnose yet. I have tried to err on the light side of feeding, I haven't gone over EC 1 or 1.1 as of yet.

Additionally, I have been adding a little sucanat, occasional OregonismXL, and some SensiZyme. About 4 days ago I tried out some AN Iguana Juice Bloom on a couple of them, and the led on my EC stick just about shot out the end like a roman candle, despite my cautious dosing. I ended up diluting that gallon down to 3 1/2 gallons. There was a little of everything else in it which must have contributed to the strength. Jeepers !

I foliar feed once or twice a week with the compost tea/nirvana/Pura Vida at an EC of about .4 or .5, is that ok? The growing tips of the branches seem to lighten up in color and then I think they need to be sprayed and greened up. I don't really keep track of how often I water or feed each individual strain, but I think I'm gonna start keeping a notebook rather than winging it like I am.

There is no wick at this time. The plants get 2/3 to 1 whole gallon of nutrient water when I feed. Smartpot 5's and 7's. The water drains through the medium very well, maybe too well and I worry about dry spots around the roots, so I am trying to soak em good without drowning, watering in slowly. The leaves droop slightly after watering but recover within a couple hours.

A buddy tells me to only fertilize the plant once at the start of bloom, and then half strength after 3 weeks and THAT's IT, and his herb tasted so sweet and nice, that's why I am afraid to feed my plants. (Plants eat CO2 anyways right, and npk's are like salt and pepper with that meal, no?) Of course, my friend has grown very small little plants under low intensity light, so I don't think I can totally deprive mine of npk's.

I really don't know what I'm doing and would welcome any words of wisdom. I'll see about updating a photo of them, if you'd look em over and tell me what they need I would surely appreciate it.

Mistress, thanks for your interest, I have much to learn. Photos forthcoming.

 

[*mistress*]

There is no wick at this time. The plants get 2/3 to 1 whole gallon of nutrient water when I feed. Smartpot 5's and 7's. The water drains through the medium very well, maybe too well and I worry about dry spots around the roots, so I am trying to soak em good without drowning, watering in slowly. The leaves droop slightly after watering but recover within a couple hours.

how much volume (ieg, 3 gal, 4 gal, etc) are the 4 & 7 smart p*ts?
how often do you feed the plant(s) the 2/3-1gal of water? per plant?

do you feed when the drainage holes are still wet?

they look healthy & cared for.

enjoy your garden!

 

[MediScrogs]

Ok, here's how they look tonight. It is 9 weeks veg from seed to the day. I need to install the 2nd light on Monday, then I'll rearrange and give them some discipline before flipping. The Red Diesel in the tote has been screened about 2 weeks longer than the others, it has been the frontrunner since sprouting. The branches are now growing 8 to 11 inches above the screen and need training. I've overgrown the tote on that one.

Any feedback, honored cannaphiles? Mucho appreciato.....






That's the Red D and the Church on right in that third photo. Growing tips look slightly yellow, so I'm thinking... ready for some more nutes?









These two pics are Strawberry C and Purple Lady. notice the large older fan leaves have some yellowing on the margins. I had foliar fed, they responded well, then I did it again a few days later, it was maybe too much, the leaves really greened up, but it looked almost like ink running, and left some yellow there. I decided to back off a little, the Strawberry doesn't seem to need as much nutes. The Purple Lady looks like she needs something, I'm going to water her tonight. btw, I have been watering about every 4 or 5 days. Should I be trying to water more often to "pump" the plant?

I've tried to avoid overwatering because everyone warns against it, but I think I left the SuperSkunk too long this week. In the next photos you'll see the top shoot browned up the new growth, what does this mean? The plant really started looking sickly yesterday, but then I watered in some Nirvana and a weak dash of compost tea, and it looks respectable again. Is the brown on the leaf from not watering? Last photo is my Big Bang jungle project.

I'm all ears here, any input?

Thanks again for your interest, not wanting to hijack this very interesting coco thread at all, but hoped it would revive so more folks might see it and benefit from all the info presented from all sources. Lots in there.

Peace

 

[MediScrogs]

how much volume (ieg, 3 gal, 4 gal, etc) are the 4 & 7 smart p*ts?
how often do you feed the plant(s) the 2/3-1gal of water? per plant?

do you feed when the drainage holes are still wet?

they look healthy & cared for.

enjoy your garden!

about 80% volume? I left 1 1/2 or 2 inches at the top. I am watering about every 4 or 5 days, waiting to see if they'll droop and ask for it. My Superskunk showed displeasure finally, but perked up after watering. I am thinking to start watering every 3-4 days now that they are getting bigger and going to start flowering phase. Yes..?

The smartpots don't have drainage holes in them; it's hard for me to tell how much moisture is in the lower half of the container.

i think I have to start writing everything down when i do it because i tend to forget how many times and with what solution I've been giving them. I don't do them all at once, but individually when I think the time is right, then I gaze at them and try to imagine what they might like. It's all guesswork to me right now, and trying to decipher clues in the tea leaves.

 

[*mistress*]

btw, I have been watering about every 4 or 5 days. Should I be trying to water more often to "pump" the plant?

I've tried to avoid overwatering because everyone warns against it, but I think I left the SuperSkunk too long this week. In the next photos you'll see the top shoot browned up the new growth, what does this mean? The plant really started looking sickly yesterday, but then I watered in some Nirvana and a weak dash of compost tea, and it looks respectable again. Is the brown on the leaf from not watering?

could be underwatering... the drainage holes should never be absolutely dry.
depends on size of container... still dont get how much media your container holds?
3 gals ea? do the plants share a single trough?

they look like maybe ~2-3 days, if no wick... basically, want media to dry evenly. if does so, let top 1-2" dry to sight as dirt... then water, immediately. depending on size of container (how much volume held) could be 1-5 days... in flowering, could be daily... or 1-3 days. 1 gal every 5 days maybe too little for flowering plants...

what is ph of in & out solutions?

they look good, whatever you are doing/not doing...
a littleadditional n & fe wouldnt hurt

enjoy your garden!

 

[MediScrogs]

Thanks Mistress, maybe needs n and iron? So stronger dose of Pura Vida, or do I need a separate CalMagFe supp? More sucanat (does it have iron?) or the blackstrap Molasses, that has iron, yes?

Sorry vague on soil volume.

5 gal pots have probably 4 gals of mix in them. the 7's probably have around 6, not sure.

Probably underwatering... I see the top layer dry out but imagining there is still moisture down there. I'm waiting to see the plant show me it's thirsty. I am reading that the further into the cycle they go, the more they are gonna need the water.

I'll try watering more often and keeping a notebook so I remember what I've been doing for each individual.

ph of the in and out, there's a question ! No idea whatsoever.

I use a fish tank ph test kit from Wallyworld to test, using vinegar to balance the tap water to around 6.2 - 6.4, then i add nutes and pray that it's ok. Om Shiva Shankara Hari Hari Ganga.

I don't know if the nutes are raising or lowering the ph. Was trying to avoid another expense to buy a better meter. Sounds like not everyone likes/needs to use one. i probably go pay the piper and eliminate all doubt.....

with the h202 foliar, good for clones while rooting, yes? I want to start incorporating some after reading your post.

 

[*mistress*]

plant in 5 gal container may need more water than 1 gal every 5 days... especially if flowering - & no wick to re-use run-off...

dont have to guess (or, imagine) the moisture content of the coco... cheapo soil moisture meter (like 1-2 coins) will check moisture deeper than fingers can dig... every 2-3 days seems very reliable & plenty of water. that may be a good base time-line to work from... really, can check by weight of container... difference between right after watering & 2-3 days hence. can nudge, see-saw, or rocks containers to feel for lightness - as water generally holds weight. 1 gal weighs ~7#'s... so can surmise how much water remains by weight...

molasses should provide fe, ca, mg... however, mag-i-cal, cal-mag, or gh's new ca-mg+ may work... nothing like dose of straight 'grow' or 'veg', high n nute, during flowering, to make entire plant lush & green. most cut n off too soon or discontinue altogether. plant needs n for entire life cycle, just in decreasing amounts - depending on stage of flowering...

maybe ph down to 5.5-5.8... make sure; even though if start out @ 6.2, ph should be dropping once nutes added... though compost teas can do things in solution that soluble salts dont...may be able to squeeze more electrical charges thru the little window of ph they have... it will (should) drift up. or, run-off should be higher ph than input...

things look ... youll develop your own methods & standards as moments go along...

yes, h202 good for foliar & seedlings. will keep pests & root pests away, generally. if 3% solution, tbsp per quart/liter good. 1 per week. lightly... spray also drainage holes of container; basin container sits in (root fungus gnat, root rot, sludge prevention) & around inner edges of container. should oxidize unwanted anaerobic organic matter.

enjoy your garden!