Just a daily driver,nothing special it's a 2010 model but looks like it just rolled off the showroom.
No kidding!
RatZilla
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Turning 75
- Thread starter Ratzilla
- Start date
Just a daily driver,nothing special it's a 2010 model but looks like it just rolled off the showroom.
No kidding!
RatZilla
Today was day7 of veg. They got their inoculation of beasties, WC and molasses,a weak solution.
I selected another 6 to go by the wayside.I am looking for athlete's.
Now down to 40,still have 16 to pick by the looks of it i'll be giving up some nice looking plants.
Culling out what i determine bad keeping what my eye tells me too.
This is also one of the baton passing event about ready to be getting near.
Over the Years i have determine that from day 10-16 is when they show hunger.
Their cotyledons will begin to fade and then they will start cannibalizing the first real set of leaves to tell us growers that they want more.
I waste no time in transplanting knowing what happens if i'am not on time.
Any time lost here will never be gotten back,gone forever!
A true baton passing moment.
RatZilla
I selected another 6 to go by the wayside.I am looking for athlete's.
Now down to 40,still have 16 to pick by the looks of it i'll be giving up some nice looking plants.
Culling out what i determine bad keeping what my eye tells me too.
This is also one of the baton passing event about ready to be getting near.
Over the Years i have determine that from day 10-16 is when they show hunger.
Their cotyledons will begin to fade and then they will start cannibalizing the first real set of leaves to tell us growers that they want more.
I waste no time in transplanting knowing what happens if i'am not on time.
Any time lost here will never be gotten back,gone forever!
A true baton passing moment.
RatZilla
Day 11
I have now culled down to 24 plants,still babies in my eye.
They all look happy starting their 3rd node.
I THINK that I am seeing more of a Indica thing with 1/2 of these little ones,their leaves look fatter the usual.
I think that is a good thing for some unknown reason,intuition?
Gave them another inoculation ,using Worm casting and cow manure for the biology and molasses for the food source.
I am disappointed in how little roots they were growing in looking at the ones that I culled.
I got fresh Mikos to use at the transplant.
So thinking 3-4 days for their hunger to start to show.
It is at that point that I treat them as vegging plants and not babies.
Truly a transition about to take place,baton pass coming up!
RatZilla
I have now culled down to 24 plants,still babies in my eye.
They all look happy starting their 3rd node.
I THINK that I am seeing more of a Indica thing with 1/2 of these little ones,their leaves look fatter the usual.
I think that is a good thing for some unknown reason,intuition?
Gave them another inoculation ,using Worm casting and cow manure for the biology and molasses for the food source.
I am disappointed in how little roots they were growing in looking at the ones that I culled.
I got fresh Mikos to use at the transplant.
So thinking 3-4 days for their hunger to start to show.
It is at that point that I treat them as vegging plants and not babies.
Truly a transition about to take place,baton pass coming up!
RatZilla
Thank You!
Went to the DMV got a personalized licence plate.
It says GNG CRZ How many get this it looks easy?
It takes 2.5-3 months to get this plate from the state.
Nov.7th is my birthday,a big one for me.
Turning 70 was big but the next 4 were not now another big one.
So is The Rev still around? No body knows?
I don't want to go to the stinky to find out.
Is he per·so·na non gra·ta???
RatZilla
OkieSmokie
Member
GNG CRZ
Going Crazy? Or Growing Crazy?
Going Crazy? Or Growing Crazy?
Going but Growing works also.
Was gonna put GON CRZ but i am hoping i still have a ways to go.
I got all my babies into their vegging pots and already i can see the green centers coming from the apical meristem.
I dusted the holes that the little ones went into with Mykos & Azos.
All 24 plants took but 1 hour from start to finish for most of the work went into pre building the pots before hand.
One mistake i made is in building the vegging pots i ran out of cups to make the holes to fit the cups the babies were in and i failed to put drainage holes in the new cups,so after watering them in I had that sewer smell (bad beasties) the water just sat in those cups for 14 days.
Thinking fresh air and a fresh tea that i watered them all in with will override the bad for the good.
It was only in 2-4 of the cups and i dump the water and did not use any soil that was in those sewer smelling cups.
I only have 1 log book left,after my new carpet (many things were tossed in favor of getting rid of weight in moving cabinets and such)it goes back to 2014 and almost every grow of Skunk A Rella i mentioned how Indica they were looking ,I say 60% indica -40% sativa.
I will allow these new pots to dry down well which usually takes anywhere from 9-14 days before the next watering.
These plants will get 24-30" tall before sexing and transplanting into their flowering pots.So 4-6 weeks of vegging.
I also want to mention that SAR don't take to topping to well.
They take forever to get over it and they also take on some mutation when topped,so I stopped any topping.
I will now get a top dressing down in the next week or so with more food for the many surface roots that i want filling these pots.
I have a special way of laying it down.
I also get much fulfillment when i water these top dressing in.
I also will pre-build my 10, 12" sq. flowering pots.
Much work to get done.
I also need to check on the 4' fluorescence that i will be seed making under I think it's not working,bulbs or ballasts,it is a tight space for me to get in and out of only like 3' tall.
In the meantime my birthday is a creeping up on me ,Oh Yea Baby!
RatZilla
Plants are now 20 days old and most starting their 6th node.
I got 10 flowering pots built with airy bottoms and buried treasures.
I also got a top dressing down in my vegging pots so buried treasures on the bottoms and plenty for the beastie's to munch on up top.
Here is what i did
I first lay down 1 ts of powdered oyster shell.
I do this for any ph diving that might try to take place for the amendments to follow.
I then lay down 1 tbsp of green sand, i know it takes a long time to break down but i recycle my medium so i feel like plenty of trace minerals come from this green sand over time.
Then some worm castings to set the stage so to speak.
I lay down some alfalfa and kelp for both are great food sources for the microbes.
I also put more Zeolite and calcium bentonite clay for their positive ion holding power.
I then cover all this with pine bark nuggets and sprinkle some blood meal on top again to keep the micro-life happy.
I grow thick roots on top by doing this and it is just the first top dressing of many more to follow.
I favor Alfalfa during veg and kelp during flowering.
I am one peep that believes that the plant is in charge and will take up what it's wants.
I opine that it gives the roots choices with layers and zones.
I love watering in these dressing and so does the plants.
Now to fix my 4' T-12 florescence fixtures that I'll be making seed under.
Thinking they just needs bulbs?
RatZilla
I got 10 flowering pots built with airy bottoms and buried treasures.
I also got a top dressing down in my vegging pots so buried treasures on the bottoms and plenty for the beastie's to munch on up top.
Here is what i did
I first lay down 1 ts of powdered oyster shell.
I do this for any ph diving that might try to take place for the amendments to follow.
I then lay down 1 tbsp of green sand, i know it takes a long time to break down but i recycle my medium so i feel like plenty of trace minerals come from this green sand over time.
Then some worm castings to set the stage so to speak.
I lay down some alfalfa and kelp for both are great food sources for the microbes.
I also put more Zeolite and calcium bentonite clay for their positive ion holding power.
I then cover all this with pine bark nuggets and sprinkle some blood meal on top again to keep the micro-life happy.
I grow thick roots on top by doing this and it is just the first top dressing of many more to follow.
I favor Alfalfa during veg and kelp during flowering.
I am one peep that believes that the plant is in charge and will take up what it's wants.
I opine that it gives the roots choices with layers and zones.
I love watering in these dressing and so does the plants.
Now to fix my 4' T-12 florescence fixtures that I'll be making seed under.
Thinking they just needs bulbs?
RatZilla
OkieSmokie
Member
Fingers crossed its just bulbs. But a new ballast for the t5s shouldnt break the bank. My odds on bulbs.
Im still learning the whole organics thing. Im certain its the way i want to go. Your layering thing is pretty cool. Most of the other mixes are just that.
Im still learning the whole organics thing. Im certain its the way i want to go. Your layering thing is pretty cool. Most of the other mixes are just that.
OkieSmokie
Member
I also got some Ace gear the other day. Im looking forward to growing out some of their Sativa Hybrids .
I opine that organics using the help of the microbe life makes for real tasty smoke.
The thing about mix'es is to not make them HEAVY .
I think anything over 20% worm castings make for a soggy mix.
If you notice how i go out of my way to make a well draining airy bottom,soggy bottoms retard much growth!
You want lots of voids to hold O2. Bigger particles laying on each other creates these voids.
This is where the majority of the beasties live!
Coco coir, perlite, rice hulls and diatomachous earth added to your base mix and used on the bottom of your pots are some of the things that i employ.
In the buried treasures and zones it gives the roots the choice if it wants whats laid down for it.
I believe that the plant conducts the show and i am but the stage manager.
Giving you thoughts?
RatZilla
Today was day 7 since being transplanted into their vegging pots.
Lets talk about watering given that there is a lot of different thoughts on such a simple thing as watering podded plants.
I am going to stick with how I do it.
No soggy bottoms!!!
First off I use nothing but collected rain water to this i add a small amount of a surfactant, yucca is my choice.
A surfactant loosen water adhesion properties, i think of it as making my water wetter.
It stops any dry spots in the pot of being missed.
I also double water ,I water a smaller amount of plain rain water with a small amount of yucca in it first to a small amount of run off.
I then come back 1/2 hour or more later and give them any tea or feed that i might be inclined on doing to a larger amount of run off.
I have been saying to look at your growing pot and think of it as having three layers,a top, middle and the bottom.
I use a water meter that i stick in my pots to tell me when to water.
Contrary to many i'll let the top 1/3 of the medium dry down completely,the middle will be going from the moist to dry and the bottom i wait until it is just beginning to go off of wet into moist.
I know beasties will die when the medium drys down but I just think of the dead beasties as more fodder for the fresh batch of the beasties that was applied in the newest tea.
I know it takes some commitment but the plants respond well to this technique!
RatZilla keeping it real!
I love watering in the first top dressing
Lets talk about watering given that there is a lot of different thoughts on such a simple thing as watering podded plants.
I am going to stick with how I do it.
No soggy bottoms!!!
First off I use nothing but collected rain water to this i add a small amount of a surfactant, yucca is my choice.
A surfactant loosen water adhesion properties, i think of it as making my water wetter.
It stops any dry spots in the pot of being missed.
I also double water ,I water a smaller amount of plain rain water with a small amount of yucca in it first to a small amount of run off.
I then come back 1/2 hour or more later and give them any tea or feed that i might be inclined on doing to a larger amount of run off.
I have been saying to look at your growing pot and think of it as having three layers,a top, middle and the bottom.
I use a water meter that i stick in my pots to tell me when to water.
Contrary to many i'll let the top 1/3 of the medium dry down completely,the middle will be going from the moist to dry and the bottom i wait until it is just beginning to go off of wet into moist.
I know beasties will die when the medium drys down but I just think of the dead beasties as more fodder for the fresh batch of the beasties that was applied in the newest tea.
I know it takes some commitment but the plants respond well to this technique!
RatZilla keeping it real!
I love watering in the first top dressing
Today @ their 27 day they were dbl watered again @ the 6 th day.So the second watering in their vegging pots.
Happy ,happy ,happy is what they are saying they tell me this by their transpiration rate,on their tippy toe's they are reaching big.
Another top dressing is in the works being the last one was 8 days ago.
I think of a dressing as lasting but 7-10 days if the microbe populations are booming and the plants are looking happy you know the beastie's are getting fat!
Do you know that up to %70 of what they eat is returned ready for immediate uptake by the plant through their roots.
Next top dressing will be 3 parts WC, 2 parts alfalfa, 1 part High N bat 10-2-1 and 1 part Agricola's best 4-3-4. Like each pot will get like 3 TBL
Agricoloas best is considered a complete fertilizer so i like using this.
I should begin sexing in another week .
The part of the grow that i find the most tedious i mean the thrill of finding a lady takes a lot of looking
I sometimes start to run out of head room before i find 10 ladies,so sometimes i'll flip them into flower to find my 10.
I prefer sexing them and getting them transplanted for a week or so before flipping but that doesn't always happen.
The tallest i veg them to is 28-29 in. and they stretch to 47-48 in.
This is about the absolute how tall i want my plants.
This Skunk A Rella does not seem to like toppings whether its done early or late.
When top it slows big and then the first new growth seems mutated.Lots of lost time!
I have also seen no difference in yield in top or untopped plants so i quit this pratice.
The plant does take to training well in bending the tops over they continually grow back to the light but i try and not veg them over 28 inches.
By the way I got new seed making light a couple of T-8 day light.
It cost me about $30 more for new fixture over repairing the 15 year old T-12 so i went that route.
RatZilla
Sticky Sat
Active member
Hello Ratzilla ! 
Thanks a lot for sharing your lifetime experience in such well written posts. They're always a real pleasure to read
I'm 20 years behind you and, although growing outdoor in a tropical island, i'm doing lots of things just like you. And it sure works ! Our main problems here are the super high rh due to the almost year long monsoon, and the pests, virus and fongi proliferation that go with it... Well, i almost forgot the law...
Take care and have a great week end !
Thanks a lot for sharing your lifetime experience in such well written posts. They're always a real pleasure to read
I'm 20 years behind you and, although growing outdoor in a tropical island, i'm doing lots of things just like you. And it sure works !
Our main problems here are the super high rh due to the almost year long monsoon, and the pests, virus and fongi proliferation that go with it... Well, i almost forgot the law... Take care and have a great week end !
Last edited:
OkieSmokie
Member
Hey Rat, can you talk some more about your top dressings and Worm Castings? Do you keep worms? If so, what do you feed them? What type of housing etc?
Thank you again for sharing the old school wisdom.
Thank you again for sharing the old school wisdom.
Your the only one who's stooping by so thank you for that.
I have thought of disappearing because no one seems interested.
Then think that I am.
I always felt that i had enough to do and space is limited so i buy my worm castings,
Mostly from hydroponic stores but off and on found peeps that had worm farms mostly for supporting horticulture business that were raising worms to feed their plants.
I look at these castings as the bringer of the microbe life.
Much depends on what the worms are fed.
Also I like to provide old soil humus like Ancient forest for the bacteria they provide.
Plant roots take readily to this WC and humus,i use it as a bed to introduce things that i want my plants to uptake,
I like using Alfalfa 2.5-0.5-2.5 its organic matter provides much in the way of food for the beasties.
I'll use Alfalfa all the way to like 1.5-2 weeks into flower before switching over to KELP.
One must mention that Alfalfa also contains a natural growth hormone called triaconatol it is a fatty acid growth hormone found in alfalfa . . . it is especially good for increasing growth rates during vegetative growth.
It also has many trace elements.
Sometimes when laying down a top dressing i see schools of beasties breaking the soil like fish feeding .Not micro but macro.
I always use WC and humus to mix what i want to introduce using mostly Alfalfa during vegetative cycle then switching over to kelp during flowering.
I mix in what i think i see what the plant is wanting.
I am a firm believer that i am but setting the state and that the plant is truly in charge by releasing hormones and exudes to fulfill it's destiny.
I am working WITH the plant.
I also make tea's and love watering in these dressing.
These tea's have the same thing in most cases as what is in the dressing.
After all i am brewing beasties that like to eat these same things.
RatZilla
DrDee
Member
Hey Ratz...just because we don't post doesn't mean that we aren't watching. I appreciate your old school style so carry on...
Peace,
JD
AgentPothead
Just this guy, ya know?
I try to throw rep up when I have any left, but yeah definitely lurking. 
Hello Ratzilla !
Take care and have a great week end !
Having constant high humidity stops much transpiration in that the stomata closes up.
I think lol
RatZ
