THE WoW THREAD.

[Marlo]

its really hard to believe those leaves are still so green after a full flower cycle, impressed indeed, if we were smart we would invest in frank and get this shit on the open market,

I know this is because of the size of these beds. No way these things are anywhere near rootbound.
My 1st time using NSPB, I tried to grow trees in 3.4g airpots. Veg in those pot for 2-3 week before flipping to flower. Around week 5 of flower the plants started fading. My next grow, I went up to around 9 or 10 gallons and the girls were happy all the way til chop.

 

[CARE giver]

Tagged.

And I'd buy the soil mix in an instant frank! Would make my life easier that's for sure. How could other Soil companies compete lol? Maybe price wise... But count me in.

 

[dank.frank]

^^^ What Marlo is saying is right on point...and holds true for any organic soil...

People used to think if you did small plants it would work, sure...but what about big plants? My answer was the same as it was then - bigger plants (larger containers) actually makes it that much easier to get a perfect run.

I tried many times to do a water only SOG - by that I mean TRUE SOG, as in 4 plants per sq ft, 6" square containers - but I'd see the plants fade at 4wks. Then tried to make a stronger mix and found it to stunt growth as the soil was too "hot"...

The revised NSPB made some very important improvements to the general balance of things - provided better pest resistance, water retention - and improved the growth of things in smaller containers. But I'd still not really consider flowering in anything less that 3 gallons for that balance of yield / effort, etc.

HOWEVER, if you put a freshly rooted into a 1 gallon bag and flip to 12/12 with zero veg time - THAT does work - and can be quite useful when just testing a new cut or running new seed for the first time...


----

And on a side note - I want to thank everyone for the encouragement and kind words. It's heartwarming in a way I can't really express....inspiring even. Thank you, sincerely.



dank.Frank

 

[CARE giver]

Are you planning on anything in the future?

 

[dank.frank]

I'm always planning...but I've done so much cart before the horse type of things - I just try to bite my tongue these days. (Super Glue ring any bells....)



dank.Frank

 

[CARE giver]

Gorilla glue em

We'll I hope you get nice few horses gettin things goin for ya eventually. You'd make a great quality product .

 

[dank.frank]

I'm just looking forward to Marlo putting up some harvest shots for now...

Only a couple people have posted pics with the Glue showing some purple hues (Krustallos comes to mind immediately) - and Marlo is letting his go the distance, so I expect the next pics to be quite stunning for sure.

@ Marlo - how deep did you say you made those beds? 15" I believe it was? One of the main reasons people like to put cover crops (companion planting) is to source those deeper nutrient reserves and bring them up to the rhizosphere. If you are following Bobblehead's thread - you'll see this sort of conversation taking place currently.

People want to think that nutrients are lost by growing something, but the reality is, nutrients are lost by HARVESTING. If a plant is cut down and returned to the soil, any nutrients it took with it are also returned.

Having beds that are "too deep" is not really something to think of as an issue - as much as you should be thinking how do I maintain these beds to get the most from them...

I'd LOVE to see you continue EXACTLY as you are - and NOT split the beds up. In your next run you have discussed using less plants - with a slightly longer veg time. You may find in this scenario that you would prefer the deeper beds...as the roots will spread out a bit differently.

Right now - you are set pH wise, microbial wise, etc - I'd hate to see you upset that balance by ripping it apart. I truly think if you stick with this even ONE more round - you will find you it improved from your current run. The TRUE benefit of beds is seen more in the long term, as they improve with time, just like a field...

As far as re-amending the soil for another round - we can discuss that here or in PM - whatever you prefer. ULTIMATELY, I know you are going to do what you personally feel suits you best...so just consider this some friendly chatter. I don't exactly "care" either way - I just want to see your garden be in a state of constant progression - and sticking with something a bit longer vs going back to the drawing board - can feel as if you are being stagnant, but that simply is not the case when utilizing beds...

Might I ask - specifically, in what way (in regards to the PLANT) are you unsatisfied with the current run? - that way we can focus on those factors. I know having a setup which is ideal for person and plant is desired - but sometimes you make some sacrifices in regards to comfort / ease of operation to ensure a better crop...



dank.Frank

 

[DIDM]

so I'd assume the bigger you go the more you want to transplant?

so instead of cups to 1's to 3's to 10's you might add 5's and 7's?


we run Royal Gold Tupur, with a bunch of hydroton and #4 perlite, Drain to waste, can water 2 times a day. add in teas and it's like roids, of course not all organic, but is anything you give em rellaly pollutant free?

Organic is cool and all, but it is no where near as regulated as salt based nutes, at least here in OR. No telling what you get, and a lot of it is ocean based things,which, um, the ocean is nasty, I don't even like to eat seafood a lot today

the age old debate, I say use em all in a balance

anyways, we just set up a new tea brewer, come monday it will be a mess to clean the air stones and manifold,but we will have 4 feet of shit foam and tea will be served

 

[dank.frank]

Only thing I read there that makes sense to me is the consideration of up-potting differently...

The rest just sounds like a guy who doesn't quite get "it" when it comes to organics.

No offense - you know I like ya.

But I've NEVER smoked a flower that has as much distinctive, specific, unique, individual flavor - as when produced in a garden where the plant is in control of what, when and how much it feeds...everything else remains a some skewed product of what who ever designed the bottle decided things were supposed to taste like...

And I'm not knocking anyone - I've smoked some AMAZING flowers that weren't grown water only / organic soil, etc. However, there is a loss of uniqueness between various strains.

I can also honestly say, that I personally have yet to grow cannabis as STRONG as some other people are able to produce...however, I don't attribute that to specific feeding methodologies as much as I equate it to me not having as controlled / dialed an environment (surrounding the foliage) as they did...

It very well may just come down to a personal preference - but I stand by the opinion that organic outshines chemical at the end of the day. Much like I stand by the opinion that there is something special about the cannabinoid profiles (high) of plants grown under the sun that just can't be replicated indoors.

I also want to say - I ABHOR the whole "mine is better than yours" mentality. Not to suggest this is the nature of your post DIDM, but to highlight it isn't the intent behind my own. This is to say: I've never met a bong load I didn't like when it all settles at the end of a long day...



dank.Frank

 

[DIDM]

I'm just trying to learn, much like you,maybe it came off weird,but my whole thing is

regulation

not even bottled nutes, just a real what is what

have experimented with amending coco before growing, can't really say I saw a lot, even with teas to keep it alive.

granted we are in coco and you are in soil,but we also try and keep the coco alive as much we can with teh teas

we strive to find the perfect balance of taste and yield, no one wants to smoke nasty pot.

I'm curious to see what this method does in coco, life would be a bit easier if all you had to do was PH water and run

keep it Dank Frank

 

[CARE giver]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]I likw this pic right here. It really shows how u can get nice buds from top to bottom.

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This was the only bud that had a flat top. not sure why, but it looks cool

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Diggin that last one. Can't wait for harvest .

 

[Marlo]

Might I ask - specifically, in what way (in regards to the PLANT) are you unsatisfied with the current run?

Thanks for all all the good info Frank!

I'm actually very pleased with this run. Just always striving for perfection.

The only negatives, or real changes I see necessary are, (1) the over crowding issue. This will be easily helpled by going down to 6 or even 4 plants. I know GG4 is capable of bigger buds than I currently have. Especially in the mid section. She would definitely appreciate the elbow room.
(2) the size of the beds does not allow me to get my drum stool in the room, which means no comfortable way to get in there work on the plants. Although it worked for this run, it was killing my back trying to stand hunched over in the room. Thats why the back was neglected. So much easier with my stool. So instead of 2 40+ gallon beds, I'm looking to do 4 20-25 gallons. This will give me the extra lil space i need to fit the legs of my stool, and stilll be more soil per plant.

(3) The soil came out alot more dense than I was planning. I think there are 2 reasons for this. My old base consisted of FFOF/COCO/EWC. This time i replaced the coco for promix, mainly bcus Phillthy had great results doing the same thing. Phillthy also used to add 10 gallons of perlite, which I didn't do. (Not a fan of perlite) Although the plants look very very happy, and show no ill affects... these beds took forever to soak up their daily water. Water would pool up on the top of the bed, and take its sweet time gettting into the soil. Not a big deal at all, but something I noticed.

I have a large veggie bed in the backyard that I was thinking about using this soil for. Do u think that is wise? This soil doesn't look depleted at all, and the veggies don't require much food IME.
I'd have to do alot more research on 'no till growing' before I feel comfortable trying it. This method has become too easy with great results for me to switch up now.



Definitely gonna take alot of harvest pics when its time. It hasn't been easy to take good shots so far. I'll be happy when I can really show how these buds look. Excellent for a 1st run in my room. Even with the spring temps...

 

[Marlo]

Diggin that last one. Can't wait for harvest .

Me too!

I'm curious to see what this method does in coco, life would be a bit easier if all you had to do was PH water and run

Wsup DIDM.

Are you tied to the coco for any reason? Or is that just your preferred method?
I was very against the switch when D.F first mentioned it. I used to run bottled nutes for years. Flora Nova.... then GH... the Rezipe... and all the additives in a 50/50 FFOF/COC mix. I can honesty say, I will never go back! I haven't looked at a PH pen, measuring cup, or anything of the sort. Much less time (and $$) spent at the hydro store too. When I add my Budswel, I just drop however much I feel like that day. Same for the molasses.

And believe it or not, my yields went up! Taste went thru the roof too.I've always had happy healthy plants since my 2nd grow. This just makes it that much easier to grow dank shit.
I am a total believer. Work smarter, not harder.

 

[budman678]

Frank, you should run a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for the soil mix. Even though I have the space to make my own ammended soil, I would support it. I am sure a bunch of folks on ICmag would support it. Just a thought

 

[tleaf jr.]

the ''no till'' thing has really been raking my brain lately , I feel its so much convient and natural , I get very tired of mixing nutes , chasing res ph and checking runoff of unhappy plants. I plan on just transplanting right into 40 gal tubeerware containers going for the "no till method", is it only feasible with smartpots?

 

[bobblehead]

I'm just trying to learn, much like you,maybe it came off weird,but my whole thing is

regulation

not even bottled nutes, just a real what is what

have experimented with amending coco before growing, can't really say I saw a lot, even with teas to keep it alive.

granted we are in coco and you are in soil,but we also try and keep the coco alive as much we can with teh teas

we strive to find the perfect balance of taste and yield, no one wants to smoke nasty pot.

I'm curious to see what this method does in coco, life would be a bit easier if all you had to do was PH water and run

keep it Dank Frank

if you want to keep your coco alive then stop dumping synthetic ferts through it. Why would you need to pH your water with balanced soil? I use straight tap, and I think my soil pH came back around 6.7 on my soil test.

nice show marlo. Stick with the beds. Get a soil test at the end of the grow and amend accordingly.

 

[Ichabod Crane]

Phillthy also used to add 10 gallons of perlite, which I didn't do. (Not a fan of perlite)

You could try using NAPA floor dry. It will not float like perlite does. My plants love it better than the coco. I have my best roots in the top 2 inches of my pot where I top dress with the floor dry. Cost me about $7 a bag and the bag is 6 gallon.

 

[atk7]

Subbed

 

[CARE giver]

Frank, you should run a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for the soil mix. Even though I have the space to make my own ammended soil, I would support it. I am sure a bunch of folks on ICmag would support it. Just a thought

Either way it would make it easier for people who cant source alot of these amendments locally.

Cant wait for harvest pics Marlo .

 

[dank.frank]

but my whole thing is

regulation

I hear you on this front. Being familiar with aseptic environments in general, I know for a fact if Rx companies were to produce cannabis, based on federal regulation you'd never be able to produce "medicine" in soil - as the risk of "airborne contaminants" would be too high. (dust particles, etc)...

I find that very hard to swallow in the general sense - as the best cannabis I've ever had comes from organic soil (thus the reason I began pursuing it in my own garden years ago)...

I'd hate to think that a highly regulated product produced in the utmost of controlled environments would fall short of my personal expectations...



dank.Frank