Penguin's Micro Grow II- Aurora Indica

[Penguin59]

End of Flowering Week 3

End of Flowering Week 3

Hi everyone!

So a HUGE update this time for you all. This week the girls have almost doubled in size! Halfway through this week the hormones inside them must have just snapped and they've been throwing up hundreds of pistils everywhere! I wouldn't be surprised at all to see some trichomes form in the coming week but we'll see.
*Edit* I'm an idiot. Trichomes are already clearly visible in the fourth pic below! *Edit*

My intake ducting arrived this week also. Have connected it from the lower intake fan in the pics above and routed it around the back of the tent and to the front for fresher air. Thanks go to b00m and Bueno Time for their inspiration on this one. Since the installation, temps have dropped from 27c (81.5f) to an awesome 23c (73.5f). Very very happy with this improvement.

I have decided that a reasonable target I'm aiming for for this grow is 4 ounces all up; 2 zips per plant. That makes it 0.45g/watt which should be pretty achievable. Feel free to chime in with an early prediction yourselves as I'm keen to make it interesting

And now for the pics:

Sorry for the poor lighting in this pic but above the tent on the left hand side you can see the faint outline of the new intake ducting. All I need inside the tent now for internal circulation is one PC fan.

I'm not a big fan of pruning during flowering. As such, I've used a pack of pipe cleaners to LST all the growing tips down to spread the growth out evenly as I'm pressed for space.
I'm working on making a bit of a mid-air, green carpet between the two plants now!

Apical stem of the plant on the right leaning toward the light

She's really picked up the pace in a big way with throwing up pistils that's for sure!
Trichome coverage has started too

Apical stem of the plant on the left loving the HPS light

Penguin

 

[Lebniis]

Looking good! I sure did like Aurora and felt that same that it was a very stable strain. I popped 12 beans and all the plants were identical all the way through.

What kind of tent is that? Could you message me sometimes I forget to come back and check. If your too lazy posting here is cool too. Thanks

 

[Penguin59]

Hey Lebniis! Thanks for the support friend. Hope you can stick around for the finish!

Yeh there's nothing better than popping a bag of beans and pretty much knowing what you're gonna get. Must be the almost pure indica genes that are responsible for the minimal variation in phenos.

Will message you now bout the tent

Penguin

 

[Bueno Time]

Penguin glad the intake mod helped your temps out alot.

I will also make a conservative yield estimate at 2oz for those 2 ladies.

Looking good in there so far. 3 weeks in already too WOOO!

 

[Penguin59]

Cheers BT, took a leaf out of your book with the new intake and it's paid off in a big way.

Nice estimate there of 2 zips. If I got anything between 2 and 4 I would be stoked! Stay tuned for next week's update buddy

Penguin

 

[VerdantGreen]

hey there penguin things are looking good in there, and a wise choice of strain as NL types tend to stay short and stocky. the only thing i would add is:
1. when you blow through a can filter you are better to adapt the dust filter (thats currently on the outside of the fan) to go on the inside. fairly easily done if you make a couple of wire circles to hold it in place.
2. you might find a computer fan takes up less room than the one you have.

also what light are you using and does it have a reflector?

VG

 

[HyDroid]

Nice grow! Clean setup.

Don't think this was mentioned already, but I've heard that a 180 degree bend in ducting can cut the flow more than 50%... If you have the space and want more airflow you might consider leaving the scrubber pointed up to avoid that 180 degree bend at the top of the duct.

But maybe there's a good reason it's pointed down.

 

[Penguin59]

Hi there VerdantGreen! Cheers for stopping by and for the great suggestions mate. From now on, I will almost be forced to stick with the NL, pure indica-type strains to control height in this size tent I reckon.

1. I will definitely work on adapting the dust filter to sit on the inside of the can. It didn't even tick with me that that was a dust filter. I thought it was some sort of carbon protector haha! Lesson learned.

2. I think I will be ok for the time being using my current fan as the girls aren't growing anywhere near it at the moment. Have taken the advice on board for sure as a way to maximize space in future.

I'm using a 250w HPS bulb at the moment and it does indeed have a reflector too.

The main growing stems of each plant have about 2 inches to go before they grow taller than the reflector. That will become an issue soon. If they grow above the reflector they will be cut off from the light and it's too late for me to LST the main stems down as they've become too thick. Any suggestions on how to combat this would be greatly appreciated.



Penguin

 

[Penguin59]

Hi HyDroid, thanks for the kind words friend. I always try to be as neat and clean as possible in my setups.

Great point about the 180° turn reducing air flow, you're 100% correct. I've tried to do as much as I can in the small closet space I have but there's just no way I can see to hang the scrubber upside down

That being said though, it seems to be ok for the minute as the 250 CFM fans do a pretty good job of pulling air through the ducting. This may prove to be more of an issue as the girls continue to put out more and more odor though! This is the first time I have used this setup for a grow. Had a lot more space for my hobby in my last home.

Great suggestion though, you're asking the right questions

Penguin

 

[wildgrow]

Hey Penguin! Everythings looking real good. Nice clean, tidy set-up youve got going. Heres to a bountiful harvest.

 

[Penguin59]

Welcome to the show wildgrow! Cheers for the support hero, cleanliness is next to godliness hey???

Feel free to chime in with an early prediction yourself if you're feeling game

Penguin

 

[there goes edro]

Good luck with your grow! Dont forget a smoke report when ya wrapped up. Interested in doing a AI run in the future myself. Ill lurk around and check on your progress.

 

[El Bandito]

Hey everyone,

Your passive intake hole is looking awesome by the way.

Penguin

Get a room you two! Haha!

Beautiful happy and healthy plants, Penguin. It is a tragedy to see a grower of your enthusiasm and experience limited to such a small space. Thanks for your kind words on my thread- you seriously made my day. I will be watching your grow as I struggle to get my own tent and ventilation all sorted.

 

[Penguin59]

Hi there edro! Stay as long as you like buddy and thanks for the words of encouragement

Will definitely be giving you all final harvest weights, a detailed smoke report and too many pics to know what to do with! Don't worry about that

Have had nothing but success with Nirvana's stock so far. 100% germ rates, healthy plants and great smoke above all.

Penguin

 

[Penguin59]

Welcome aboard EB. Sounds like some good quality smoke you pulled off that outdoor run friend. Glad you could pull yourself off the ceiling for a few minutes to come check out my grow!!!

Thanks for the friendly comments, I'm quickly becoming the LST king with all these growing tips I have to tie down to keep the girls from outgrowing the tent. I'll be able to make animal sculptures out of cannabis plants by the end of the grow

Let us know how your indoor set up comes along and feel free to stick around.

Penguin

PS. Nothing but respect for Bueno Time. Just two micro growers sharin' the knowledge

 

[Penguin59]

End of Flowering Week 4

End of Flowering Week 4

Hi folks,

Well it's the end of week 4, just past the halfway point, and my how the girls have come alive! Trichome coverage is getting thicker and thicker by the day and the girls are putting on a bit of weight too. They've started to give off a beautiful hashy smell all of a sudden which is great as I love the smell of hash.

The girl on the left was already starting to put out trichomes at the end of week 3 and has continued to go crazy with them this week, whereas the girl on the right has only just started her crystal coverage a day or two ago. The Nirvana Aurora Indica packet says that this strain takes 7-9 weeks to mature so I'm guessing the plant on the left could be a 7 weeker and the one on the right might finish up around the 8 or 9 mark. So far this is seriously the only genetic trait difference that I can use to tell the girls apart, I love these stable genes! Will be exciting to see which plant crosses the finish line first.

Have made a small change to the hardware in the tent too. As the girls were growing taller, they started to grow around the outside of the light reflector at the top of the tent which was in turn cutting them off from the light. Have decided to take the reflector off the 250w HPS bulb and now the light reaches everywhere again.



Some more pics for your enjoyment (finally turned off the HPS light for some better pics):


Such a beautiful, majestic plant. Lovely deep green, healthy leaves

More and more pistils and trichomes form each day

Close up

Gave the girls a bit of a haircut this week, just some fan leaves that weren't getting any light.
They seem to have come back stronger as a result and are putting more attention into making buds

Starting to pack on the weight

Penguin

 

[Bueno Time]

Plants are looking hella nice Penguin!

 

[there goes edro]

They're coming along nicely!!!!

 

[Penguin59]

Hey BT & edro! Thanks for the compliments fellas, I'm very happy myself with how things are coming along. Your support means a lot

Gave the girls quite a large prune today and fed them some full strength nutes. With the limited space I have in the tent, it sure gets crowded quickly! Now they aren't being weighed down by large fan leaves anymore. It should also help the plants breathe a bit better too as there's more space for the air to circulate.

Can't wait to see how they will grow this week. Hoping they pack on a bit more weight! They might take a day or two to recover from the extensive pruning I gave them but I'm thinking the girls will thank me for it in the end.

End of week 5 update will be up on Friday


Penguin

 

[the_ginga_ninja]

awesome grow man. super inspiring. i just ordered my tent and am picking up a ballast and bulb tomorrow. few more pieces and everything will be ready!

can't wait till the next update! keep it up man!