On humidity. Open discussion.

[Crazy Composer]

Humidity over 60% can begin to cause serious issues with pot plants.

Our garden always experienced humidity problems during the moist winter months, and I finally took care of it. :smile: We bought a de-humidifier.

In high humidity, our plants were showing lessened vigor, and spots were appearing on the surfaces of some sun leaves. Mildew began growing on the ceiling. It was inevitable.

The buds themselves stall in growth and in overall vigor.

The resin production is quelled, and not at potential.

The plant's metabolism is stalled.

We plugged in the new de-humidifier this afternoon (a few hours ago), and already the difference is obvious. The resin production has increased, and would be obvious even to an amateur gardener.

The leaves are standing up again, and the buds seem to have swelled with vigor and excitement.

I liken it to a human on an oppressively hot, humid day, stepping into an air conditioned store. They look relieved of their stress.

It's steady now at about 50%. It got to 87% humidity in the garden last night, and that was the last draw.

Here's a lady at 50%.

 

[OHenry]

Nice Pic!

 

[Dr.Feelgood]

That plant looks like a$$.

Yeah right! Lookin' good!

 

[Crazy Composer]

And I haven't even begun to use the nice camera yet OH :wink:

 

[Guest]

hey, uh, whaddya do with the leftover 37% ?

hey, uh, whaddya do with the leftover 37% ?

It's steady now at about 50%. It got to 87% humidity in the garden last night, and that was the last draw.

my clones want to make you an offer that you can't refuse, for that spare 37%



open discussion, ok, i'll bite...

clones/seedlings prefer a higher humidity than mature plants.

in the same light, vegging plants can endure/sometimes PREFER a relatively high relative humidity

a too low rH can hinder growth as well.
this can cause almost as many problems as a muggy 90% rH in crispy, dried foliage/calyxs, discoloration/legions resulting in eventual necrosis of leaf tissue.. grrrr , not to mention the fact that some garden pests such as mites :GRRRRRRRRRRR: perfer a dry climate to thrive.

great post CC i agree that proper environmental conditions not only make the grower's life easier, but meeting ideal conditions (replicating the plant's natural environment-in the wild) is the only way a plant can perform at it's full potential.

lately i haven't given much effort to maintaining ideal environmental conditions in my nursery OR veg/flower areas, even though i should (practice what you preach) ..

1 last thing is that if growing in a residential house turning the baseboard heat up will dry the air out, also an air conditioning unit in the room will give you full control.. if buying the dehumidifier aint in the cards, that is.
the a/c unit is a blessing in the summer months as well.


to raise humidity use a humidifier from the pharmacy (ultrasonic, coolmist, warm mist, dont matter) hooked up to a timer (requires some tinkering/time to get right)
OR
purchase a humidistat (ebay has 'em at modest prices)

that there plant looks gorgeous,CC,what are we lookin' at? a Strawberry Cough?

 

[Guest]

1 thing i would like to add regarding rH is when rooting cuttings or germinating/sowing seeds and humi-doming them...

If using a humidity dome or shell to cover your babies please be sure to remove it at least once a day and fan with FRESH, CLEAN, AIR!

if domed any longer the 2-3 days without being uncovered damp-off is innevitable (sp?)

lower fungi/bacterium thrive best in this high humidity (it'll be close to or at 100% under the dome if it's been misted) so keep air exchanges up and rot/damping-off at bay.

ok,i'm done..

 

[GMT]

What's the best method for getting the mildew off the ceiling CC?
Looks like there's something blue in that plant to me if were adding the guessing game to the discussion.

 

[Crazy Composer]

Good info Cap'n :smile:

I like my cloning dome humid, but not too warm. We have clones living in there that are several months old... Sort of like in reserve. They like it humid, and like the Cap'n said, lift the hood every day to exchange the air.

And good to point out that younger plants require a higher humidity than flowering plants.

 

[Crazy Composer]

Mildew? I like spraying it with a 1/2 hydrogen peroxide, 1/2 water solution. That kills it. Then paint it with a paint called KILZ. KILZ is great for painting over and preventing the recurrence of mildew. That's what I'm painting on my ceiling tomorrow morning. The H202 spray was today, painting tomorrow. That should fix it. Usually does.

The strain is LUI x Bogglegum.

 

[Guest]

hey here's some good disinfectants.

not to undermind you CC but a diluted H2o2 is NOT neccesarry and too weak IMVHO, use it STRAIGHT

isopropyl alchohol [str8]

h2o2 [str8] (for weaker species, wont do shit to mature/sporulated green mold this i promise you)

STEAM - get a steam cleaner, professional or hand held, they're cheap at walmart etc. and will truly irradicate any mo0lds/mildews on contact

BLEACH DILUTION - Mix 1 part bleach to 20 parts water in a bucket.. get some sponges/rags, and go to town.

again, not trying to downplay anything CC said but these are the best ways to rid your area of mildew.

for your plants you can use the h2o2 sprayed str8 onto foliage/iso works too if used modestly wont dry tissue, original non-flavored listerine (nasty yellow kind), milk, cinnamon will keep it away, as well as neem will prevent mold/mildew/lower fungi from growing on a leaf surface treated with it.

i'm truly surprised the mildew dies with a watered down h2o2, its only water and oxygen.

speaking of oxygen, KEEPING FRESH AIR EXCHAGE UP AFTER TREATMENT WILL OFFER YOU BEST PROTECTION FROM A RELAPSE OF THE MEANIES.

 

[Crazy Composer]

It works fine, and I don't mind being in the same room with it either, which is why it IS a good idea. I've used bleach, it kills it, bleaches it to white, H202 seems to keep it at bay for longer. What sucks about H202 compared to bleach is that H202 won't take away the dark color, as will bleach. Straight H202 would be better, but I have no problems with it 1/2 1/2 either. Seriously. Besides, H202 over the counter is watered down already anyhow, so it seems that as long as there's enough, there's enough. And that's all we need.

With bleach, I don't like having to be in there spraying it, and that's form plenty of experience with spraying mold with bleach. The H202 works fine, but doesn't bleach it all white. The other types of molds must be tougher than what I have historically gotten in my gardens, because what I encounter is usually fairly easy to fight back.

Oh yeah, humidity... Humid conditions promote mildew and mold, so try not to let the air get humid. :smile:

 

[Guest]

to each his own
the bleach dilution i listed is HOSPITAL STANDARD
...i'm not crazy

 

[Crazy Composer]

Who's telling you you're crazy? Are you sure you're not crazy? :smile:

 

[GMT]

thanks guys, I'm gonna go down the list of least smell until it looks dead, then repaint. Now to judge what dead mildew looks like compared to the olympiad mildew I seem to have going on now.

 

[Crazy Composer]

Why do you think you have it in the first place GMT?

 

[GMT]

because on the ceiling over the window that the grow is in, there looks like someone took a black can of spray paint to my ceiling. Also around the window sill, is the same speckled black stuff that I havent brought myself to tackle yet. Been there a while I reckon, but only recently noticed it (weekend).

 

[Crazy Composer]

Oh, that's not the same stuff we have on our garden ceiling. I have the problem you have too, but not in the grow room.

That's the type of stuff you DO want to nuke. I get it on my windows frames too. Black, slimy. The stuff on my garden ceiling is a black, spotty dust. Fairly easy stuff to kill. The window mold is nastier.

 

[Crazy Composer]

We grew Gonzo #1 in the last crop.
This be the rose-scented phenotype... She could have done so much better at the right RH :smile: We'll soon see what our current strains think about it. :wink:

I just burned this bud to the head.
Trance music in the headphones, Gonzo on the brain, another good night. :smile:

good night :smile: cc

 

[truecannabliss]

I had the same problem untill i added a little 65w dehumidifier, it only holds a small amount of water but it can run for around 3 days before needing emptying and it keeps the humidity around the 50% mark.......i consider it probably the most vital addition to my garden since i began.
Peace

 

[omega7]

Do you have a Windchaser dehumidifier TC? I too have been having some problems with humidity. I have been eyeing smaller dehumidifiers trying to find one exactly the right size. The windchaser looks nice, but doesnt exactly pull out enough water per 24 hours for me. I found one that was almost perfect and decided to wait and keep searching. Well you know how that goes, it was gone when I went back for it.