mangojones grows Seeds Mafia!!

[mangojones]

Finally got my seeds in after some USPS shenanigans. I can't see which seeds I requested, but I am pretty sure I requested autoflowers. It's not a huge problem, I just might flip them to flower a little early so they finish in time for the contest. I've got two autopots ready for this contest and three seeds of each strain, so my plan is to sprout them all and sow them in solo cups. The best of either strain will get moved to an autopot, the others I will grow out in solo cups under the same lights.

The seeds:
3x Banana Punch
3x Critical Jack

Germination:
Germinating in warm water with a drop of peroxide in each tube. They will go into root riot cubes once they sprout and be kept in a humidity dome until they are big enough for solo cups.

Media + Nutrients:
I use a mix of FFOF, coco coir, and perlite at a ratio of 2:2:1. I mix growdots into the media right before I pot it up. All transplants get a generous dose of Great White myco too.

Realizing right now that Seeds Mafia is a European company and my US-style date is going to look confusing.

 

[mangojones]

A few hours later, two of the BP seeds have sunk and are just starting to crack open!

 

[mangojones]

All three Banana Punch seeds have taproots 20h later. The three Critical Jack have juuuuuuuust barely started to crack. There's a visible white line of eventual taproot, but nothing actually outside the shell yet.

 

[mangojones]

All six seeds had some visible taproot, so they all went into Root Riot cubes, with a little sprinkle of Great White myco in the hole before they got very light watering.

Ignore the clone, I accidentally broke off a node while doing some LST on one of my autoflowers, so I stuck it in a prepped cube to see if it roots.

 

[mangojones]

We've got babies! No sprouts were visible yesterday afternoon, went down this morning and five of six have sprouted!

All three Banana Punch had taproots sticking out the bottom of the cubes, and one of the Critical Jacks did as well, so I potted them all up in solo cups. The taproots were all fuzzy with myco - yay! Each plug got another sprinkle of Great White myco before going into their cups.

The media was pretty dry, so I poured a bit of water in the saucer so they could all have a little drink while still encouraging the roots to spread. Gave the clear cups a spritz from the sprayer (dechlorinated and pHed tap water) and popped the babies back under the lights. These saucers are a great size to be nice and stable perched atop the autopots.

 

[mangojones]

No progress worth a pic, but all the sprouts are doing well. The third Critical Jack seed hasn't sprouted yet. The CJ seeds were pretty small and light-colored, so I won't be surprised if they don't 100% germinate, but 5 of 6 seeds isn't bad, especially when they didn't cost me anything! If I end up with only 2 CJ plants, then I will probably end up giving both a proper pot to make sure at least one of them looks nice for the results photos.

 

[mangojones]

Critical Jack seed 3 is officially dead. Honestly, the seeds spent 2 weeks on a shelf at the hot & humid local post office, so 5 of 6 popping is fine by me. The Banana Punch seedlings are quite vigorous! 5 days since the seed cracked and they are all healthy seedlings.

The two remaining Critical Jack seeds are also sprouted and doing well, they are just a bit behind the BPs. I am more interested in smoking the Critical Jack, and I have an available autopot, so both of the CJ seedlings will get an autopot.

The humidity domes were dripping on the seedlings, so I wiped them down and punched holes in the tops. They are grown enough that they don't need super high humidity, but I want to give them the little extra protection from the light.

 

[mangojones]

Day 8 since rooted seeds went in root riot cubes.

Banana Punch seedlings are thriving and putting out their first real leaves. They looked a touch too close to the light, so I ditched the tray they were on and put them down in the pots, pretty much at the exact height they will be when planted.

Critical Jack is lagging behind but they are definitely growing! I'm trying to treat them the same as the Banana Punch, but I'll be checking them an extra time today and tomorrow in case they look like they need the humidity domes back.

This is the whole setup, and the three autopots into which they will eventually be planted. Each tray has its own tap, so the water is not flowing to these two trays yet. The roommate plant for Banana Punch is a weird bagseed I might end up killing. The grow is so slow and weird, it will probably get replaced by the first good clone I take from my sativa mom.

 

[mangojones]

Weekly check-in! I've been taking pictures almost daily, but I've been really into a video game of late and hadn't gotten around to posting them.

Banana Punch September 27 - 29

Also for some pet tax, my lovely dog Stella visited the grow tent while I was taking pictures.

I took a *lot* of measurements, but didn't want to clog up the forum with a dozen pictures. The full set is on grow diaries. [Banana Punch] [Critical Jack]

Critical Jack September 29

October 1

Continuing the trend, Banana Punch is thriving and Critical Jack is struggling. The Critical Jack is the strain I'm more excited about smoking, so I need these guys to perk up! That said, the Banana Punch is really impressing me. All three of the plants are doing so well and putting out very nice and tight growth. They were all doing so well that I felt bad condemning two of them to solo cups for their whole lives. I prepped some 3 gal cloth pots I happened to have and I'll stick them next to the autopots.

I'd really like to get all the autopots going sooner rather than later, so I've prepped up the pots for Critical Jack, even if it's likely going to be another week before they are ready to go into them. I could put them in now, but I don't want to risk killing them off when they are so small and weak still. I'm going to wait for them to get to where their leaves reach the edges of the cup or I see roots coming out the bottom.

One last update - the most robust Banana Punch had roots sticking out the bottom of the cup this afternoon, so she is now officially planted! Her autopot roommate is going to be a clone, which is not quite ready for transplant, but I won't turn on the tray for 2 weeks anyway, so I'll just plant it whenever it's ready and it can live on the BP's schedule. Check out those roots!

 

[mangojones]

These plants are healthy and thriving! I've been documenting the grow but haven't had the time to update this, but I will start posting the pics and commentary soon. Probably going to veg for another 3 weeks.

 

[mangojones]

Week 3 Update

The Banana Punch is going gangbusters as usual. Once it gets larger, I will have to take some clones to share with my dad. These grow so effortlessly that I know they will be a good strain for him to start with now that he has retired.

Critical Jack is not doing as well as the BP but it isn't having a specific problem. I checked the roots at the end of the week hoping to get them into their autopots, but I want to see the roots travel back up the cup a bit more. I'm determined to get a good yield out of these plants! The contest does have me on a schedule though, and these gotta go into flower by mid-December, so I really want to nurture them.

Banana Punch on October 7:

Critical Jack on October 7:

And a photobomb from my adorable dog, Liam! He rarely enters the tent, jumping over the flap makes him nervous, but he was a brave boy today.