1st DWC/Hempy Harlequin Joe - Pot of Gold - NYSD - BB - ATF '13

[runewulfsong]

Hey all, a question for you. I want to keep clones of the strains that are in flower, but a few were so shocked they were major runts. Would I be better off to take tops from these to clone (I flipped to 12/12 on the 6th of June) and will the tops still split and have colas? or should I wait another couple weeks until some of the small underbranches develop some more size, then take them?

Also, how soon does trichome start? I wasn't expecting any, but I had to pop a few fan leaves off of Harlequin Jo as the were shading a lot of sites. I noticed a texture change when I picked them up after plucking, so I held them up to the light at an angle and there were what looked like little "fuzzies", kind of like the nub on velvet and a couple had minor shimmer to some of them in an almost opalescent-pore looking way. Just curious as to if that would be early trichome development or just a texture change from being in flower?

Thanks for any insight.

 

[BigIrishDoode]

i have seen trichs on plants in veg,depends on maturity,strain and so on,gratz on the new toys,love the diy stuff reminds me of me! lol a pen is an important item if your doing hydro, i would have done the coco in small bits, it all has to be rinsed and flushed, till the ppms are about the same coming out as going in,water runs clear you can pour the coco into pillow cases to tea bag style rinse, what are you planning on doing for the calmag requirment? as for clones i like to take weak ones and glr them till they start exploding might take a week or a month then you can take lots of healthy clones, you will fall in love with the plugs i think they are the best thing since hps lights! they rock for seeds and clones i even reuse them sometimes if conditions allow, i will cut them in half and use em for seeds i swear they have something in them that makes seeds & clones go faster! thatsmy mf"in story!

 

[runewulfsong]

BID, sorry, I missed the calmag in the first comment, my bad... I'm using tap, which comes from a lake originally for this rural area. I did mix in some lime as well with the water. pillowcase is probably the route I'll go for draining. Fibro had kicked in so I put the block in the steralite bin in the bathtub and filled it to expand, didn't think about draining it.

Pic update for today, this time using my 4 year old Cyberpix:

Seedlings:

Tent:

And some closeups (trying to see how "macro" this old 12.1 megapix camera can go):

That's it for today

 

[BigIrishDoode]

cat or eyebrow hair in pic 10 good pics, good macros can be had with a few tweaks,from tripod,to manual focus,manual white balance, even shooting thru an eyeloupe,all tricks i use, you can shoot right at a cfl if your cam has manual wb to set the color,or a piece of white copy paper thats refelecting your lights, an important trick with hps to avoid the dreaded yellow

 

[runewulfsong]

Thanks BID. That camera doesn't have full manual white balance, just some preset options. I flip through to see which will work best on a given day at a given angle. I think I may need to clean the lens though because with macro enabled, I can't get too close while being zoomed in or it blurs and wont focus, but I know the lens has gotten wet so it may just need a good cleaning.

Update pics:
A seedling flyby... these folks are gonna need to be topped and tied in a few days, it looks like.

The flowering area:

As you can see, the Harlequin Jo went nuts and is almost touching the light. It's outgrowing everything and the Pot of Gold right in front of her is just a little ways behind. I flipped on 6/6, should I supercrop those high tops now to try and even out the canopy?

and a few random closeups:

 

[BigIrishDoode]

i am not a big fan of supercropping, i much prefer lst ,topping , what i would do if i wanted to slow her down is cut back on food, more lst, and possibly cut some clones/top,and defol, that should slow her down, but she looks good & happy its kinda a shame to inhibit her at this point, maybe you could build a screen/scrog and get the canopy even all the way across, or you could super crop hope that helps

 

[runewulfsong]

I'm not sure at this point. I do want clones off of all of them, but since they're in a prefab, 6 site DWC system, I can't really move them around right now. I'm not super fond of supercropping myself. I tried it on a few branches and they recovered just fine, but I have a hard time telling how much pressure I'm applying (fibro) and always feel like I'm going to crush them.

That said, I don't know if I have the supplies to cobble a screen together, I keep looking around but so far, nope. I'll keep looking on that one.

Since they're all flowering, is it still ok to top them? will it still have time to form a new cola and fully bud?

I'm leaning mostly towards cliping a clone or two and doing my best to LST the taller branches that I can, then if I have to, supercrop the ones I can't get to with LST without damage to surroundings.

This grow started really badly, lol. All the clones except Harlequin Jo were horribly rootbound, PoG and GSC were both severely nute def as well. Merde, the GSC still throws more single bladed leaves than 3 bladed, lol. That said, there are 6 strains in that system, which is going to make this... interesting to say the least. I'm kind of figuring at this point, let that closet go plant by plant, harvesting as they're done. I'll have the tent in a few weeks and another light a few weeks after that, so that's where new plants will go, with better planning, lol. I'm trying to let the seedlings get just a little taller so I can top them, clone the tops and flower to check sex, then start the mmj bondage (lst) on them after topping.

I knew it was going to be challenging setting up the outside and inside garden at the same time, but budgeting really hurt the inside grow, but the outside one is what supplements our food and provides better nutrition. So it made sense to spend there first and play catchup on the MMJ grow supplies.

 

[runewulfsong]

Ok, update pics time.

First, the seedlings:

I need to start training these guys this week. I think they're getting topped, then LST'd. That said, I want to be able to clone the tops and flower them for gender checking, so I think they might need another 1/2 - 1 inch in height, what do y'all think?

Next is the Emily's Garden unit:

As you can see, Harliquin Jo and Pot of Gold are growing faster by far than the other clones. I want to take a clone off of each of these for later, but I'm not sure yet if I need to take the buds (flowers) off when I make the cuttings.

And now, here's some closeup flower shots:

So if I take cuttings off the flowering girls, do I remove the flowers when prepping?

I did notice something weird yesterday. The girls drank about 200 oz water. I topped up the res with about 160 and the monitor said was still about a half gallon down after about 30 minutes, I figured I'd deal with it today if they drank a lot. Instead, I come in this morning and the water is at 100% full in the rez... wtf? I don't know if the hydroton was holding more water than I thought... I did top feed, as I usually do since all but one of these clones come to be badly rootbound, but I've never had that much extra show up later, usually not more than 16 - 32 oz. Just a little odd, lol.

 

[BigIrishDoode]

i cant really tell you about hydro im not good at it, not enough poop and micro organisims,lol i hate the sterile aspect i like my bacteria! plants do amazing in microbe loaded enviroments,so theres that,some would say no dont top,but they are not that far along so you could,what would likely happen is it would slow them down a week,so prolly not just lst them to hell, as for a screen i once did nylon string and cup hooks, i made a grid, did the same in a tent using the 4 corner poles, ,so thats an option, something throwing single fingers tells me its a stressed plant and needs veg time unless its a bubba kush line (3 fingers are common) i would not flower till i started getting 5 finger leaves, you run the risk of hermie if you dont wait, flowering clones are fine i rather like them for the bushy way they grow great for turning into mothers, i never take the flowers off i have several i took last night,a couple have pretty big buds but they will root and reveg ,i run cloner on 24/7, sometimes the flowering clones root faster than regular veg clones due to lower N ,and theres alot of energy stored in that little bud it will explode once it takes hold, on page 1 of my 1st journal i had my jerkey box full of flowering clones used to just be they way i did it since i dont keep mothers in general,theres a pic in the last page or 2 of my journal i was showing you guys the cloner,note the clones,also you might wanna check out the big pic update i posted, lots o snaps!

 

[runewulfsong]

Thanks BID... I was waiting for the updated pic post... and thanks for the reps... I haven't made up my mind yet if those will move to the tent in the next few weeks or stay where they are so no screen right now...

I will likely take cuts from Harlequin Jo and Pot of Gold tomorrow as well, I would like to keep them as mothers.

The single leaf... it was always like that, it was one of the real sickly clones. It's throwing 5 leafers now and buds. That's the Girlscout Cookies one... I'd like to get a cut off that too since my girl and I both liked the way that med worked when we got a small amount from the dispensary. Not sure yet about the ATF as I haven't had it before and it's been years since I've had blueberry or a Sour Diesel, so I'll likely want cuts from all as the side branches get longer.

And yeah, I did DIY humidity domes for other things, just wasn't sure about the prices for the base and dome made for them as I haven't seen the set, even at HD or our local Farm and Garden/Nurserys. I have seen the "mini greenhouse" sets with a similar base and dome, no inset for the rooters though and they're ridiculously priced, something like $30 and up. So, I'll likely jury rig something again and just follow the basic instructions for the rapid rooters. Presoak in 1/4 strength, PH'd nutes overnight, place cuts as normal, but make sure there's 1/4 " (I think that's what the package said) of water at the bottom of the rooters, then use a makeshift humidity dome... Though the first cuts will likely go into the bubble cloner... real hit and miss on that one, but I think it's how think the cuts were and how stressed they were when I got them.

I also added some disolved garden lime into the soaking coco... I was wondering, since B1 capsules can be used for shock, if powdered and disolved, can you use calcium supplements the same way? And would you recommend this for the coco? It was a thought as I picked up some B1 from the Dollar Tree today and noticed they also have calcium supplements.

I don't mind the Hydro so far, though I will do some more experimenting. My outside stuff is all organic and pretty much always has been since I was a kid. Inside I'm trying hydro because of it's efficiency and cleanliness for inside use. I'll be using that coco here in the next week or so as well to experiment as well. And I'll probably try some indoor soil growing as well.

I noticed some roughly 1 gallon plastic buckets for kids at the Dollar Tree today as well, their "summer fun for kids" stuff was going out today and I'm thinking... "hmmmm, cheap 1 gal. Hempy?" so I'll likely do that next month as well. Once I have the tents setup, I think I'd ideally like to run one with fewer, but larger plants and the other with more, but smaller plants, play with Scrog and Sog and such in there. I'm trying to keep it fairly within my allowable plant limits, give or take a few clones/moms or seedlings used for breeding, so I think that a mix of big plants and little would likely suit better, but that's just where my thoughts are now.

 

[Coloradical]

Sounding like you have a solid plan!

 

[runewulfsong]

Thanks, I usually try to. I find it means I tend to get less frusturated due to realizing "If I'd just thought this through ahead of time..._____" fill in the blank, lol.

 

[Hiker]

Plants look great rws

Gotta check out my fellow PNW growers journals.

Supercropping is bending, right? Why are you afraid of it? I use it often and find it a very useful tool in my training arsenal. I'm actually more reluctant to top of FIM.

 

[runewulfsong]

Thanks Hiker. I don't like it because sometimes with the Fibro I don't realize when I've increased pressure in my hands too much. I have done it successfully as a test and actually did it again the other day to the two HJ2 branches that were much taller than the others and I think I might have had one of those moments as the branch is still bent and the stem is brownish. I also was unsure about doing it at 2+ weeks into flower.

Yeah, the PNW is absolutely wonderful. In my opinion, most beautiful area of our country I've been in, which is everything except Alaska and Hawaii... I love northern New England, the Smokies and Rockies, but the PNW just beats all others for me in this country

 

[runewulfsong]

Ok, if the internet will cooperate and not drop for a little bit, here are the updated pics from yesterday, lol.

Seedlings:

The EmGarden/McGuyvered closet:

If you noticed, the seedlings look a bit shorter, that's cause of this:

The seedlings had to be rearranged the day before so they wouldn't touch the light, then yesterday they grew into the top of the desk, so it was time to top. I did the topping thing, which should work out better for LST anyway. I then soaked in water, cleaned, adjitated and split the stems (1/2 - 1"), dipped in cloning solution for 15 - 30 seconds, removed or trimmed most fan leaves, then plunked into presoaked rapid rooters. I also pulled a cutting from Harlequin Jo and from Pot of Gold and put them in as well.

Since I don't have the actual rapid rooter kit, just the plugs, I used a cheap walmart plastic tote put down left over hydroton, filled until 1/4 of the plug was covered with water, vit B and 1/8th strength nutes, then added more hydroton to fully cover water and support rapid rooters. I then used an old rubbermade clear tote with a broken lid as the humidity done. We'll see how it works, lol.

And finally, some close ups:

Those were all yesterday, there was more growth overnight, but I haven't take any pics yet. I might later in the day, not sure yet. I don't want to over upload pics, but I like having them myself for comparison and review. It does look like the bottom branch on blueberry will be clonable in a few days, not too sure about NYSD, maybe next week, same with ATF and GSC. They were just such runty and rootbound clones, but there's enough small branches on each I'm sure I'll get a decent cutting eventually, just may take longer to reveg if I have to wait a few more weeks, but that's all good. Their places are already setup by the other clones, just need to clip, clean, dip, plant and mark the label

I love seeing the trichomes develop on the buds and leaves each day. It's amazing to see these tiny little crystals growing out of the leaves, lol.

Well, that's it for now, off to try and play catch up while I seem to have internet.

 

[HomeMedGrower]

Hey run, looks like your crusing right along.

I'm going to join in to watch.

 

[greensmurf]

Looking great don't know how I missed this journal but I'm here now

 

[runewulfsong]

Hey run, looks like your crusing right along.

I'm going to join in to watch.

Thanks HMG and welcome to the ride, it's definitely going to continue to evolve as funds permit. Merde, I'm already runnin outta space, lol... and +reps for the PM, greatly appreciated.

 

[BigIrishDoode]

look at that! you have plants growing! like the ingenuity of the plugs &oton among many other things you've done, *sigh* space the bane of a growers existance the chant/mantra follow along "bigger n better! bigger n better!,bigger n better!" the tent will awaken a new level of control and you'll see plants respond by giving you explosive growth,the mylar all the away around is a huge bonus along with the climate control it adds, you will be thrilled...then you'll be wanting another,prolly bigger,i have aquired 4 now!

 

[runewulfsong]

Welcome as well GreenSmurf, for some reason, my browser didn't show me your post. I've been lurking on your grow as well

Thanks BID. I needed a solution and wanted to use the rooters, so "rooted around" for a bit (yeah, bad pun) and came up with the last of the salvage available for now for the clones. I scrapped to bags earlier and taped a "curtain" around the edge of the "done" to keep the himidity in. I didn't want to take a chance with the transpiration based on the amound of available airflow without the curtain.

And yeah, I already plan on 2 tents (guessing right now, but 2x4 and 3x3 likely) and a cabinet in there for mother and clones by the end of the year. 1HPS tent, 1 3W LED tent and 1 CFL tent/cab, CFL likely the cab, LED and HPS to compare and adjust later. I really want to play with breeding for my and my girl's specific issues, then move outward from there, so this winter will probably be one more cabinet, more long than high, for growing out seeds for selective breeding, but that's a long term plan, lol.

I figure a 400w HPS should be able to cover the majority of a 2x4, with maybe a little side lighting, so that is probably the first combo, then a 3x3 with some 3w LEDs over a couple months, will continue using CFLs in that tent until all LEDs are acquired, then the cab, probably a 2x3x6 ft or some such, a few 12v fans and CFLs for that one. That's the evolutionary plans as of now, with the addition of one tent being DWC for longer veg/flower and the other being more quick in and outs of clones, likely cocoa hempies of some sort. Also plant on a little tent or two, those mini 2x2x3 or 1.5x2.5x4 or so to move any males or for breeding, but that's supplemental, lol.
I had to rearrange today and snapped a couple of pics while the lights were raised higher than normal, so once I gank all the crappy pictures and optimize the decent ones, I'll upload them. The Harlequin Jo was the best of those 6 clones and it definitely shows in it's growth and development. I'm surprised Pot of Gold is in second place on development because in all honesty, I thought I'd lose that clone. It was stiff like dead wood and the leaves were mostly yellow, but she came back.

Question for anyone who has input. I have a couple of seedlings that are in veg now, well 1 veg on desk and 1 flower in cab. The both still have full cotaldyn leaves. Anyone else seen this before? All my other seedlings ate their cots as they were entering veg, these 2, the cots are still green, full, not ill at all. Just thought it was odd.