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SYK's Killer Bucket System (KBS) Suggestion/Discussion Thread

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purpledomgoddes

Thanks but this thread is about growing big trees with vertical lighting in big containers.

yes, this is what am speaking of. not necessarily big containers. kbs only ever used 5 gal.

have only used vert 1k's for over 9 yrs. minmum plant 3 feet by 3 feet by 3 feet. biggest 5 feet by 5 feet, by 6 feet.

they will get huge in 5 gal bucket, 4 gal, or 3 gal. important thing is knowing strain. i.e.g., when to top, re-pot prior to fruiting, thin, re-top, tied down, etc. whatever method of growiong that is used.

a plant that has been topped+thinned+re-potted+vegged over 30 days, in low light, will triple in size during 1 st week of flower, if done right.

enjoy your garden!
 

whodi

Active member
Veteran
that's true pdg about pot size.. why do some use 10-15 gallons when 5 can yield as much or what?
 
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purpledomgoddes

Can i ask why you use low light during the veg?

begin seedling/cuttings in 2-3" pots/containers. am in no rush, +want to observe characteristics of f1's/f2's, so want to see how they grow w/ out providing too much light/space/time.
if seedlings/clones dont make the cut, they are destroyed w/ out wasting time/energy getting them big.
am ruthless w/ selection of cultivars. take them thru lots of tests b4 they remain in garden.

during 30 days or so prior to being placed in 3k flower, are topped @ least 3 times, thinned down, to 3-4 branches, growth traits noted.

by the time they are in 4 inch square pots, @~ 30 days, the entire container is filled w/ roots.
they are root pruned slightly (snip off the root hair tips to promote lateral growth), then transplanted into 4-5 gal buckets.

a 6-8" plant, whether clone or seedling, can/will (given right conditions/influences) grow to 18" in a week of fruiting. plants usually double-triple in size (mass) within a week, under 3k. the root mass is the key, not so much physical appearance of plant.

if plant is 1 foot when placed into flower, can be 2 1/2 within a week. no need for big veg lights. they are more influenced by pruning, making them get dry in hunger for water, and thinning, than bright lights, in this garden.

whodi:
"that's true pdg about pot size.. why do some use 10-15 gallons when 5 can yield as much or what?" (havnt figured out how to do multiple quotes...)

in a 10-15 gallon tote/container/bucket, would be shooting for a 5x5x6-7x7x8 foot plant. serious trees w/ pots like that. would put them into the pot when they were like 2 feet tall and get an oak tree in 9 weeks. in a 10x10 room, would only do 2-4 in 10-15 gallon pots. they'll easily get to 5 feet around. plan ahead for initial+mid-flower stretch.

most important factor in tree growing is knowing strain/when to flip/how big plant will get.

w/ lil 6" inch plants going into flower last week, now being 18-24" under 3k, in 4 gal; in 10-15 gal, flowering would never end and would have 6x6x8 plant by week 4.

am really not familiar w/ 10-15 gal containers. there is thread on ic about pot/container size, believe.

have never had to go beyond 5 gal for tree here.

there was article in cc called 'my tour of a huge 130 light m........ garden', by marc emery, c....... c...... magazine, issue 71, summer 2008, in which guy had warehouse full of 10 foot trees, using same old krusty method in 5 gal buckets. old sold out issue; but may be somewhere on net. may be worth checking out if interested in kbs method(s). same guy/garden, in canada, was later on nat.geo's m........ nation, circa 2009.

point is to max-out plant using minimum amount of space/time/energy. a 3 gal bucket will grow a tree... just know strain, top, prune, root prune, etc.

hope this helps. enjoy your garden!
 
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purpledomgoddes

alright, found the video. hope this link posts and mods dont remove link. have not really posted links b4, so new to this.

important minutes of this video are from 6:00 thru around 10:00.

http://vodpod.com/watch/1569080-national-geographic-marijuana-nation-%C2%AB-patients-for-medical-marijuana

same indv./garden as sold out cc # 71, summer 2008...

this is a 5 gal kbs system to the extreme. his plants are 10-12 feet tall, in 5 gallon buckets, in lava rock, top drip feed. sitting on styrofoam raisers, and that yellow drain line from old og/cw threads...

classic kbs...

hope this helps. enjoy your garden!
 

100PoundHarvest

New member
If someone was to set up a 10x10 room with the 5 lights and 4 plants, could you achieve the same yields with say 20 gallon garbage cans filled with soil as krusty buckets? It would be the same room design, 24k btu ductless AC, CO2, 5 vertical 1000 watt hps lights in an X, except vegged a little big longer to make up for the slower growth of soil vs hydro.
 
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purpledomgoddes

If someone was to set up a 10x10 room with the 5 lights and 4 plants, could you achieve the same yields with say 20 gallon garbage cans filled with soil as krusty buckets? It would be the same room design, 24k btu ductless AC, CO2, 5 vertical 1000 watt hps lights in an X, except vegged a little big longer to make up for the slower growth of soil vs hydro.

yes, there would be comparable amounts of edible fruit @ the end of the season.

the 20 gallon containers may be a bit much though, unless vegged for 30-45 days, and re-potted a couple times.
they can get 10 feet tall in 5 gallon containers. @ the close of the season, the roots should entirely fill the container; re-doubling over into its own web.
a good project would be to use a 5 gal, 10 gal, 15 gal, and 20 gal containers. see if amount of fruit varies due solely to container size.

in experience, they can be vegged in 2 inch pots, topped @~ 4th-5th node. both ensuing top shoots topped. thinned down to around 6 branches initially.

@ around 30 days veg, repot to 4" pot. root system should be dominant in smaller pot; filling it up, little to no media left to colonize.

the 6 branches are kept to take 1-3 lower/less noded branches during week 1-2 of flower. ideally, want 3-4 main branches, w/ numerous shoots forming bowl shape - like hughe bonsai. spacing/training is important because want air flow to get thru foliage. if too tightly packed, huge fruits cannot develop.

a 6 inch plant in a 4 inch pot, should double, or triple in size, during weeks 1-2 of flowering. dont know if container size can/will increase the total mass of the plant.

have done trees in 3, 4, and 5 gal containers. if vegged until 12"+, they will easily get to be 4-5 feet around+tall after 56-70 days.

interested to see how/if larger container size increases final fruit quantity?

there is thread here on icmag about container (pot) size.
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=101772&highlight=container+size
may be helpful.

all of this depends on cultivar too. should be familiar w/ stretch/growth+flowering characteristics of specific plant(s).

enjoy your garden!
 
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~SYK~

Member
LOTS of good input here.

Sorry I haven't been around.

Life gets a person busy sometimes.

SYK
 

localhero

Member
nice one PDG! have you or anyone else growing trees here noticed any difference with quality in tree style growing vs smaller plants. I went to a grow seminar one of the dispensaries out here put on, and the guy running the show had the opinion that bigger plants = less quality. i wonder if that rumor started from outdoor vs indoor?
 
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purpledomgoddes

nice one PDG! have you or anyone else growing trees here noticed any difference with quality in tree style growing vs smaller plants. I went to a grow seminar one of the dispensaries out here put on, and the guy running the show had the opinion that bigger plants = less quality. i wonder if that rumor started from outdoor vs indoor?

size is relative. depends on the control, or demo of what "bigger plants" are.

what is a "smaller plant". kind of subjective.

assuming a particular plant species requires approximately 3 weeks to reach the level of maturity need for sexual expression/reproduction; fruiting can commence any time after that.

or, before that, as the 12/12 from seed folks do.

really gets to preference. scientifically/physically, the species in question is a genetic annual of the mulberry family. in nature, they have 1 long season - and attempt to grow as large as possible during that season. no evidence that large vs. small plant has different chem compounds; maturity of phenotype would seem to be most important factor of size vs. chem properties @ harvest.

they want to produce as many seeds as possible, so they grow as large as possible, because in nature they die after seeding.

really depends on preference/specific cultivar+needs of garden(er).

hope this helps.
 

~SYK~

Member
Hey Guys,

Sorry that I havent been adding and creating this thread to be what I originally hoped for.

Been having a REAL busy month - which is the reason for the lack of updates.

July will be a better month.

Anyone have any questions in specific you are looking to have answered? I can try.

Take Care and Best of Luck!

SYK
 

00420

full time daddy
Veteran
Anyone have any questions in specific you are looking to have answered? I can try.

yep...... has smaller buckets (1-2 gal) been used with smaller light, say 250's and 400's?


and for the few of you that dont know ...... this is why it's called a KBS.....lol
 
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localhero

Member
whats up syk, hope you can get some free time to keep this thread alive. Im about to start my first kb system and could really use your updated version. hope everythings all good...
 

Albireo

Member
pots.jpg

i found these 11.5 gallon buckets with the five gallon round lids and had an idea - your chunky perlite mix 40 60 in a 10 inch net pot. they only come in white so id have to tape em up but cheaper than buying two brute 10 gal and square sides for easier fitting connecting.


where did you find these buckets?
 

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