Wanna Ask The Old Farts A Question?

[[THC]DM420]

WASSAUP HK!!

WASSAUP HK!!

Hey everyone and hows it been hk?


Well anyway i've got a huge problems on my hands right now as both of my friends hydro tanks are almost dead.

He's been out of town and recently asked me to come over and check on the babies.. WELL... i get here and they're all dead goners looking.. i watered them but he doesnt have a ph kit anywhere anyway that was last week.. right now im sitting right next to them and they look alot worse this week.

I'm thinking it's a ph problem, possibly combined with heat problems?

I spent some money putting together a nice fluoro lighting hood with about 250 watts which he has sitting over his plants right now as i'm not in a situation where i can grow currently Anyway i think he has them too close but he refuses to let me move 'em.. they are about 10-12 inches above the plant tops, but in addition to my lighting hood with remote ballasts he has 2 T-12 shoplights hanging right there also (my rack is packed together T-8) These shoplights are not modified though and i think the ballasts are creating a big heat problem... his house has no A/C right now and this room feels around 85 at the moment, a little more around the lights. It's 8:30 PM right now, i and this is florida so i doubt its any cooler during the day.


This is my problem, i think... i'm just asking for a second opinion on what to do... i'm thinking screw the electric bill and it needs some AC in here, and that i should also balance the PH in the tanks.. Yes? No?

Another thing is, should i flush the tanks out?
He's using a soil medium above the hydro and the tank water is looking pretty gnarley at the moment, there's fungicide so its not as bad as having algae at least, but i dont think the tanks have been cleaned out yet... this is important as well right?

Well thanks in advance OF's Peace out nuggas :bong:

 

[HempKat]

Thanks Hemp, just trying to figure out how to up yield a little, without a new strain, which is in a few months.

Well if you usually go to flower in one gallon, you'll definately get more yield (provided you have good lighting for big plants) if you flower in a 3 gallon just be prepared to make more headroom available. I start in 1 gallon, transplant to 3, and then transplant to a 5 gallon pot before 12/12 and my plants usually end up around 6 feet or so tall. By harvest I wouldn't say the pot is root bound but the roots are down to the bottom and up the sides.

 

[HempKat]

thanks for all the answers and info, gang. i am still planning out my first grow so the only thing , so far, that has been decided is the size of my cabinet (it's 20" x 27" x 51").
i would have liked more height but that is the absolute maximum height of the space i am growing in. i am leaning towards vegging under some home depot floros, but i may just go with hps all the way. by the way, i am growing a sativa. i am told they are a lot more finicky but i like the sativa high.
it's great to have so many experienced growers to turn to advice; i thank you.

Well that;s the purpose of this thread, to put experience at people's fingertips :smile: I wouldn't say sativas are more finicky though. Sativa's are consider equatorial strains, so the are used to warmer weather and are used to less variation in light/dark times. This likely has to do with why sativa's tend to take about a month longer to finish then the average plant.

If you like the sativa high but don't want the sativa length of flowering or need for different conditions then I would encourage you to try C-99. It's not really a true sativa but rather a hybrid designed to get the sativa like high in less then 90 days.

 

[HempKat]

Hey everyone and hows it been hk?


Well anyway i've got a huge problems on my hands right now as both of my friends hydro tanks are almost dead.

He's been out of town and recently asked me to come over and check on the babies.. WELL... i get here and they're all dead goners looking.. i watered them but he doesnt have a ph kit anywhere anyway that was last week.. right now im sitting right next to them and they look alot worse this week.

I'm thinking it's a ph problem, possibly combined with heat problems?

I spent some money putting together a nice fluoro lighting hood with about 250 watts which he has sitting over his plants right now as i'm not in a situation where i can grow currently Anyway i think he has them too close but he refuses to let me move 'em.. they are about 10-12 inches above the plant tops, but in addition to my lighting hood with remote ballasts he has 2 T-12 shoplights hanging right there also (my rack is packed together T-8) These shoplights are not modified though and i think the ballasts are creating a big heat problem... his house has no A/C right now and this room feels around 85 at the moment, a little more around the lights. It's 8:30 PM right now, i and this is florida so i doubt its any cooler during the day.


This is my problem, i think... i'm just asking for a second opinion on what to do... i'm thinking screw the electric bill and it needs some AC in here, and that i should also balance the PH in the tanks.. Yes? No?

Another thing is, should i flush the tanks out?
He's using a soil medium above the hydro and the tank water is looking pretty gnarley at the moment, there's fungicide so its not as bad as having algae at least, but i dont think the tanks have been cleaned out yet... this is important as well right?

Well thanks in advance OF's Peace out nuggas :bong:

Well alas having virtually no hydro experience I can't help you. I'd say definately the temps need to be under control and since you don't know for sure where things are at, if you are supposed to take care of them you would need to get them to a point where you do know what's going on which I think would include flushing things a starting with fresh water and nutes. I'd also recommend that after this grow if the guy doesn't want to use it properly then don't let him use your equipment.

 

[green_grow]

thanks, hemp.
i should have mentioned that i already have the seeds and they are reefermans nigerian nightmare. 50/50 sativa/indica if i remember correctly. the c99 sounds like my type though. will note that as a strain to try in the future. as for the sativas liking warmer weather, that wont be an issue (i dont think). i expect to have to deal with excess heat, rather than too little.
i dont mind the extra flowering time at all, just want a safe, successful grow.

 

[Babbabud]

nice to see you back on the job hempkat !
nam myoho renge kyo

 

[Makavellian]

HEllo old farts. can i have some tips on raising ph? im thinkin of usin some baking soda.. or is it vinegar? im pretty sure its bakin soda. can someone tell me the amount i would use and how i would apply it to my soil plant. and how often i would use it. thanks

 

[Protostele]

If you haven't planted yet then adding dolimitic lime to your soil would be better as it also provides magnesium for the plants. Vinegar is acidic and baking soda is alkaline.

If you are trying to bring up the ph of your water/nutrients before watering your plants then you would be wise to invest in a ph meter. When I add Pure Blend or most any of my additives the ph of my RO water drops to about 2.8 or less. I find adding a bubbling stone to the bucket for 24-48 hours brings the ph up naturally to at least ph 5.

I have no experince using baking soda so I can't suggest amounts to add other than to use the ph meter and add a little at a time to bring it up to what you want. I use the ph up I had left over from when I did hydro. It isn't organic but I'm not using a lot so I am not worried. I'm not looking for OMRI certification. LOL

I had to bring down my coco mix as the lab said it was 7.2 and my leachate test confirmed this reading. By keeping all water and nutrients a bit on the acidic side I managed to bring it down to 6.8 the last time I checked.

That ph meter has come in handy.

Protostele

 

[[THC]DM420]

thanks anyway hemp not bad advice.

Well i guess i'll be heading on over to da hydro section

Peace

 

[Makavellian]

hey protostele thanks for sharing the info and experience.
i have a lot more questions i want to get off my chest.
1. i have about 2 weeks left until i harvest.. and i just found out my pH is a problem.. should i still try to fix this? or is it not worth the hassle since im so close to harvest?
2. ive read that the plant packs on the most weight in the last 2 weeks.. is this somehow connected to the "give plants only water in the last 2 weeks" saying?
3. im going to stop feeding my plants from here on out.. since im going to be watering without nutes .. my question is does the plant stop bulking up since im not feeding it nutes anymore.. or can the plant still pack on weight with just water?
4. how can you detect mold? how do you know your plant has gotten mold.. what do es it look like, or is there type of smell? today when i went to check on my plant i detected a faint moldy-tangerine smell here and there.. and kinda got worried about possible mold problems.

ill have more questions later on when i need some more help.. thanks for listening

 

[kenslick]

Yo hemp cat I do the same thing on the lights out I keep it at around 60 with the hoods running to keep air moving, check out my girls

 

[bigjayworks]

Whats your set up, what do you have for veg and flo lights. What kind of growing are you doing? Do you have two cabs. If you only have the one hps and some floro's and doing perpetual you have no choice, but to use flo for veg and hps for flo, the hps will stretch them a bit. If you only have one cab, just use the floro's to veg for a few weeks, then hps.
Veg cab, floro's on the left 150 x 2 HPS on the right. Clones and stuff on bottom with 3x20watt 2 foot tubes

nice ass ghetto cab dude. lol i love it

 

[HempKat]

thanks, hemp.
i should have mentioned that i already have the seeds and they are reefermans nigerian nightmare. 50/50 sativa/indica if i remember correctly. the c99 sounds like my type though. will note that as a strain to try in the future. as for the sativas liking warmer weather, that wont be an issue (i dont think). i expect to have to deal with excess heat, rather than too little.
i dont mind the extra flowering time at all, just want a safe, successful grow.

Well I should probably clarify that about sativa's liking warmer temps. That's not to say they do poorly in more traditional temps, just that they're less likely to do bad with warm temps.

 

[HempKat]

nice to see you back on the job hempkat !
nam myoho renge kyo

Yeah some habits are just hard to break

 

[HempKat]

If you haven't planted yet then adding dolimitic lime to your soil would be better as it also provides magnesium for the plants. Vinegar is acidic and baking soda is alkaline.

If you are trying to bring up the ph of your water/nutrients before watering your plants then you would be wise to invest in a ph meter. When I add Pure Blend or most any of my additives the ph of my RO water drops to about 2.8 or less. I find adding a bubbling stone to the bucket for 24-48 hours brings the ph up naturally to at least ph 5.

I have no experince using baking soda so I can't suggest amounts to add other than to use the ph meter and add a little at a time to bring it up to what you want. I use the ph up I had left over from when I did hydro. It isn't organic but I'm not using a lot so I am not worried. I'm not looking for OMRI certification. LOL

I had to bring down my coco mix as the lab said it was 7.2 and my leachate test confirmed this reading. By keeping all water and nutrients a bit on the acidic side I managed to bring it down to 6.8 the last time I checked.

That ph meter has come in handy.

Protostele

So Proto, can I officially call you an old fart and welcome you to the team? ]

 

[bostrom155]

nice ass ghetto cab dude. lol i love it

Thanks bigjayworks: This use to be my flower cab, It's a veg cab now cause I bought a C-22 and a 400HPS. I'm looking for an amoire right now to convert into a veg with the lights i have and a good fan. This thing is built into the closet of my apt, but it's cool, they never been in for 2 years. But i'd feel better with an amoire and a c22, moving into a house by the end of the year anyway.

 

[larry badiner]

i got a few questions:
1. im growing in these small, maybe 2 quart? they're pretty regular sized pots, but when the plants become rootbound, will they stop growing? i want to get em to show sex and weed out the males before i move em to a 5 gallon pot
2. im growing outdoors on a farm plot, my question is if i leave them unattended until aug or sept, will i come back to find good bud? i figure the rain will water em, but what do i do about nutes?
3. i dont have a ph control kit, so im using tap water for now. my waters tds is around 700, my question is if i keep watering them and they get sick, will i end up with less potent buds? or even worse, will they die?

 

[HempKat]

hey protostele thanks for sharing the info and experience.
i have a lot more questions i want to get off my chest.
1. i have about 2 weeks left until i harvest.. and i just found out my pH is a problem.. should i still try to fix this? or is it not worth the hassle since im so close to harvest?
2. ive read that the plant packs on the most weight in the last 2 weeks.. is this somehow connected to the "give plants only water in the last 2 weeks" saying?
3. im going to stop feeding my plants from here on out.. since im going to be watering without nutes .. my question is does the plant stop bulking up since im not feeding it nutes anymore.. or can the plant still pack on weight with just water?
4. how can you detect mold? how do you know your plant has gotten mold.. what do es it look like, or is there type of smell? today when i went to check on my plant i detected a faint moldy-tangerine smell here and there.. and kinda got worried about possible mold problems.

ill have more questions later on when i need some more help.. thanks for listening

I know you directed this to Proto but I'll take a stab at your questions if you don't mind?

1) Yes, a problem is a problem, if you're plant isn't done then you need to make sure it makes it to being done. However, the way you worded it I have my doubts it is pH. pH imbalance is a very serious condition that will kill a plant if not fixed. You say after all this time, now that you are two weeks from harvest, you have figured out it's pH. This would suggest a very long time, like since the beginning of flower maybe? Usually plants with a ph issue die in a few weeks if the problem isn't corrected. Basically it blocks uptake of key nutrients. This in turn causes a toxic build up which then can affwct other nutrient uptake. The result is your plant will likely show you multiple types of deficiencies. The first reaction is to add whatever you feel is deficient, this tends to make things even more toxic. If you were to just simply correct the pH at this point the plants would get a very hot dose of ferts and burn up. Therefore the usual treatment for such a condition is to flush or leech the medium by pouring 2 to 3 times the normal amount of just water thru the medium. This will wash out the excess nutrient buildup. So growers will also use things like clearex to help draw out the buildup, this is called cheleting I believe. Below are some pics showing the effect of pH on nutrient availability.

​

Since your problem is so close to harvest though, if the plants aren't too bad off you might as well just flush and give plain water from here on out, that should take care of any pH issues provided the water you use has a good pH. I figure you plants will be okay but not do so great since normally they would have been growing well and have a nice pool of pH balanced nutrients to draw from. If you did lose alot of growth but your plant seems on track maturity wise then you are probably not goin to be able to make up for what it lost out on.

2) Yes buds do pack on alot of weight in the last couple of weeks. It's unrelated to the flushing though as it happens whether you flush or not. It's a plants natural response to it's life cycle and the conditions around it nearing harvest. Basically the plant is sensing that the end is near and it's pumpint out new flowers like crazy to try to get pollinated behore it dies. Some plants will even hermie around this time in an attempt to pollinate itself. At the same time, seasonal conditions in the plants natural environment are growing less friendly. Night time temps are cooler, humidity is lower. These conditions can be hard on the flowers so plants pump out resin to insulate the flowers from cold and moisture loss. The combination of the extra flowers and resin is what is giving the buds their fatter condition. Actually, if you think about it logically, this is the worst time to be cutting off sources of nutrition as their is so much growth going on, but no the weight gain is not a result of flushing.

3) Well since you plan on stopping nutes, then it won't help, but it shouldn't stop it, not at first anyway. In a deficiency situation when the plant has need for nutrients the first thing it does if it can find any in the root zone is it turns to it's backup storage which are the leaves. That is why when you see a deficiency it shows up in the leaves, the plant is feeding off itself. This is also one reason why trimming off healthy leaves is a bad idea. In so doing you decrease a plant's ability to survive a deficiency. A plant stores excess nutrients in leaves much like we store excess energy in fat. All that nutritional good ness helps to give the leaves that deep rich health green color. People in favor of flushing feel that if those nutrients stay stored in the leaves then the plants will have a bad flavor, especially if the fert was chemical in nature such as miracle grow or Peter's for example. This kind of ferts some feel definately need to be flushed to avoid a bad taste and an inability to burn properly. So they flush forcing the plant to feed off itself during the final weeks. This is why you often see plants near harvest with less then perfectly healthy leaves.

So to answer you question, they should still continue to fatten up by feeding off it's leaves. However, if you have had a ph problem your plant might not have enough stored nutrients to sustain optimal developement. If this is the case your plant will probably take a sharp turn for the worse in appearence as it quickly goes thru it's leaf supplies.

4) Basically site and smell. You may get faint smells which could be from a small insignificant developement but it's usually pretty noticeable if it's serious. The main treatment though is preventative in nature, if you have sufficient ventilation and circulation and keep your grow in the proper temp and humdity range, especially during lights out (temps 60 to 65 degrees F and humidity below 45% any mold and mildew should not survive. The likeliest areas for mold is deep in the canopy or anywhere that the air might be trapped, stagnent and moist. Misting in flower before lights out often leads to mod and mildew as the water gets trapped deep in the bud and without the heat from the lamp to dry that moisture up mold can develope. In bad cases there are fungicides and the like but their use is usually not good near harvest.

 

[HempKat]

Yo hemp cat I do the same thing on the lights out I keep it at around 60 with the hoods running to keep air moving, check out my girls

Very nice looking girls indeed

 

[HempKat]

Thanks bigjayworks: This use to be my flower cab, It's a veg cab now cause I bought a C-22 and a 400HPS. I'm looking for an amoire right now to convert into a veg with the lights i have and a good fan. This thing is built into the closet of my apt, but it's cool, they never been in for 2 years. But i'd feel better with an amoire and a c22, moving into a house by the end of the year anyway.

Ah the good old hurricane lamp cool tube, how's that working out for you?