How do you get dense bud? Dwc indoors

[Loc Dog]

Hard to say, California Prop 65 list of natural and synthetic chemicals that cause cancer or birth defects includes almost everything from aspirin to Riedel Crystal stemware.

https://oehha.ca.gov/proposition-65/chemicals/aspirin

https://www.riedel.com/fileadmin/page_content/flip/warning65/files/assets/basic-html/page5.html

I realize CA is very strict. Was going to buy it, and saw cancer warning on label. I do not know for sure if that is the chemical. It was hearsay from this or another site.

 

[DocTim420]

Derived from Phosphoric Acid Copper Sulfate & Seaweed Extract (Ascophyllum Nodosum) and contains Thaiamine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B-1).

 

[bobert]

I think I might connect another 5gal to the rez. Without a plant in the second bucket, I'll be able to fill the entire bucket with freezable ice packs or frozen bottles. I wouldn't have to lift the lid of the one I would be growing in to check the pH/ppm. And frozen things directly on the roots, sounds kinda bad to me.

The one on the left looks like it may have dense little buds, but they look as if they never filled out. the one on the right looks like it didnt get much light/ didnt fill out.

are you seeing anything other than healthy green growth during flower? any yellowing or nute burn?

What e.c are you feeding? sometimes feeding high ec will discourage growth.

Feeding the right amount or slightly less can make the plant a little hungry and you will see vigorus growth, the plant taking advantage of what little nutrients it does have.

you said you were using GH series. I think the standard formula runs high N, that can inhibit flower production. Look up Lucas formula 6:9 it uses the GH nutrients in different ratios more in tune with the cannabis requirements.

Also it sounds like you have a large plant with a large deep canopy.

600's arent really known for light penetration and tend to work better with a well managed trained canopy/SOG/SCROG.

to take advantage of the light your canopy should be no more than 15-20" deep.


Also you mentioned lollipopping the plants, in most scenarios this shouldnt be a problem but if you are doing it in flower or right before you flip it can stunt the growth pretty drastically.

make sure you do most of your training in veg, once you get to flower you treat her like a princess, dont stress her out.

hope this helps. Stay positive and focus on healthy plants, everything else will come in time.

Thank you. I appreciate your advice.

Yea, the one on the right I purposely picked out just to show the fluffy structure. The plant had over 30 tops on it, I lst'd a lot during veg. Then it started falling over when flowering, so I made a little frame out of thin steel to tie it up to.

This was on a clone I took from the previous grow. I was feeding lucas formula but not the 'traditional' way he wrote it, I got up to around 2000 ppm @ .5 conversion using 1:2 ratio of micro:bloom. I just top off with pre-mixed nutrients as I see fit. (by ph-ppm readings) No yellowing or nute burn, all lush green.

The strain was unknown bagseed but sativa dominant so I think that contributed to it's lanky-ness. I knew how it would grow somewhat from the previous run so I tried to trim most of the lower stems bare in veg. Shit kept growing down there so I kept cutting.

DWC water should be 65 to 72 degrees. Nasty stuff will grow over 72, and DO goes down drastically below 65.

This is a VPD chart. STaying in the gold zone will produce the best plants -

[URL=https://www.icmag.com/ic/picture.php?albumid=51120&pictureid=1650202&thumb=1]View Image[/url]

Thank you!

That's a nice chart, I'll try to keep it in check

Yeah agree on using iced water bottles for ur Rez. Done it myself worked. I used the GH 3 part flora series and it is high in N and my buds were held back until I changed to Lucas formula with powdered Koolbloom and silica. Buds were dense easy trimming. Urs definitely have a nice sugar coating on them

Thank you for the compliment.
I'm actually using silica too with lucas.

I'll definitely try the frozen bottles.

 

[Douglas.Curtis]

15 years with DWC and Lucas and everything is dense, due to a few things I make sure of. This works with all strains and I've primarily grown Sativa-dom hybrids.

#1 I use the Lucas Formula AND Reservoir management methods, with the magnesium difference between strains being handled with varying amounts of epsom salt. The two go hand in hand and you'll get sub-par results (and deficiencies) if you skip the management. Lucas is low in nitrogen, keeping the extra stem and plant content to a minimum, this variable keeps buds denser.

#2 I use 72F as the maximum canopy temp, while keeping the humidity ultra low at 15-20%. You'll have to veg longer, for the same yield as higher temp/RH, since there's less plant matter being pumped out. This creates denser flowers.

#3 At week 2 of flower, trim off any bud sites which are growing a stem to reach for higher light levels. Anything not growing a flower right off the branch is going to be fluffier. Keep all your flower production within the optimal light density zone for dense cannabis.

#4 Stay away from all additives and bottled magic products, until you know how your strains/phenos respond to *Just* NPK and micros. The bottled stuff will increase density, at the cost of quality and cleanliness. Leave it at the growshop.

#5 Feed at a strength which is just enough to support full and vigorous growth. Overfeeding cannabis is too easy, doesn't increase yield and decreases quality. Keep things level and consistent and well below overfeeding.

You'll save yourself a ton of money and aggravation, while enjoying significantly higher quality cannabis.

 

[810FireFarm]

colder drying room can help dried density

 

[bobert]

15 years with DWC and Lucas and everything is dense, due to a few things I make sure of. This works with all strains and I've primarily grown Sativa-dom hybrids.

#1 I use the Lucas Formula AND Reservoir management methods, with the magnesium difference between strains being handled with varying amounts of epsom salt. The two go hand in hand and you'll get sub-par results (and deficiencies) if you skip the management. Lucas is low in nitrogen, keeping the extra stem and plant content to a minimum, this variable keeps buds denser.

Thanks for that extremely informative post. I appreciate your advice.

I've had it around 75-85f and 60% humidity the entire grow. With a very long veg.

I've never used epsom salt before, could you say how much I should use per gallon? From what you said it'll differ from different strains but a general guide or rule of thumb would be helpful.

Thanks

colder drying room can help dried density

Thanks, I'll try that and see how it helps

 

[Cpt00tbk]

Watch ec at least 3 to 4 time a day.
Ph to small system are really unstable

 

[Noonin NorCal]

sock them with nasty nutes lol

 

[troutman]

I imagine having the light as close as possible with an air-cooled reflector
may be the way to get the thickest buds. Keeping things a little on the dry
side will probably help in reducing the internode length a well.

 

[Douglas.Curtis]

Thanks for that extremely informative post. I appreciate your advice.

I've had it around 75-85f and 60% humidity the entire grow. With a very long veg.

I've never used epsom salt before, could you say how much I should use per gallon? From what you said it'll differ from different strains but a general guide or rule of thumb would be helpful.

Thanks

My pleasure.

Start with half a gram per gallon, mixed in the first res for flowering. I don't add any the rest of the flowering period unless mag deficiency shows. Cutting flower at any time during the grow and quick drying should not sparkle when burned. If it does, you're using too much.

As the plants eat nutes from the res, your pH will slowly rise. Your res size should be large enough to make a pH rise from 5.4 up to 5.8 in about 7-10 days. Faster and the res is too small, slower and it's too large.

I top off with pure r/o once a day and add nutes when the pH reaches 5.8. I rarely spend more than a few minutes daily with the hydro. The majority of the time I spend checking the plants over for potential issues, as any grower should.

Again, read up on the res management methods Lucas recommends, because it'll make your life significantly easier. There's a thread called "Ask Lucas" on the web, read it a few dozen times.

 

[bobert]

Watch ec at least 3 to 4 time a day.
Ph to small system are really unstable

Cool. I'll try to keep an eye on it. I usually check it once in the morning and once at night

sock them with nasty nutes lol

yeah I'd rather not!

I imagine having the light as close as possible with ab air-cooled reflector
may be the way to get the thickest buds. Keeping things a little on the dry
side will probably help in reducing the internode length a well.

I appreciate your reply.

I usually can't get the light too close because it's only cooled with a little computer fan. But I'll see what I can do.

My pleasure.

Start with half a gram per gallon, mixed in the first res for flowering. I don't add any the rest of the flowering period unless mag deficiency shows. Cutting flower at any time during the grow and quick drying should not sparkle when burned. If it does, you're using too much.

As the plants eat nutes from the res, your pH will slowly rise. Your res size should be large enough to make a pH rise from 5.4 up to 5.8 in about 7-10 days. Faster and the res is too small, slower and it's too large.

I top off with pure r/o once a day and add nutes when the pH reaches 5.8. I rarely spend more than a few minutes daily with the hydro. The majority of the time I spend checking the plants over for potential issues, as any grower should.

Again, read up on the res management methods Lucas recommends, because it'll make your life significantly easier. There's a thread called "Ask Lucas" on the web, read it a few dozen times.

Awesome, that makes perfect sense.

The 5 gal bucket is more like 3 gallons once the roots fill it up, then the pH swings every few days. So I think connecting it to another full 5 gal should help that situation too.

I'll make sure to look into the thread you mentioned. I know I've seen the 'ask lucas' name before, just never really took the time to read through it.

Again, I appreciate your assistance