cjsbabygirl313
Well-Known Member
Looking good!
1st Grow: Jumping Into The Deep End, DWC
- Thread starter LKABudMan
- Start date
- Thread starter
- #82
Update 11/19/20, Week 8/9, Day 28 of 12/12:
Happy 4:20 everyone
It has been a week since I've done an update on the girls. Life has a way of getting busy like that. They are starting on the fourth week of 12/12, and the flowers are looking great. I have to admit that the Advanced Nutrients pH perfect has worked really well. I had a couple of brown spots on Alice a day before she was due for a bucket change, but upping her nutes solved the issue. Other than that my only issue has been too many leaves.
My plan was to stay at 30% of recommended AN nutrients and let the plants tell me when they wanted more. They have! Lorraine and Kini, the two Hindu Kushs, are up to 85% of the AN recommended dosage. That is around 1500ppm, or 3.0EC! Alice and Demeter, the two White Widows, are up to 75% or 2.8EC. If you had told me I would be up at 3.0EC six weeks ago I would not have believed you. pH is staying where it needs to be, which seems different for the plants. The kushs seem to stay from 6.1-6.4, and the white widows stay from 5.9-6.3. However, the pH perfect must be doing it's job, because I have not had to adjust anything.
Here is what the feeding schedule looks like for Lorraine. You can see how it has ramped up since going into flower.
Lorraine has stretched more in the last week than anyone else. She was at least two inches taller than everyone else. I tried to tuck her in the net, but there was no way I was getting her flowers down to the level of everyone else. So, what to do? I bought everyone else up. I had some old paving stones, so I power-washed and baked them at 350f for an hour to sterilize them. It is not perfect, but it helps bring them up close to the same level. I am getting around 650 PPFD average throughout the canopy now, with peaks of 950.
I have gone through several rounds of defoliation with these girls, and I still think they are too full in the middle.
At this point, I am ready to leave them alone and let them grow, but I do not want to end up with powdery mildew or bud rot. I feel pretty good, though, as I am controlling the humidity to 45% and will lower it 5% every two weeks to harvest. Luckily, my dehumidifier pumps directly into the drain so I don't have to empty it twice a day. I have three fans in the tent, a floor fan circulating air in the tent, and two oscillating fans blowing down on the plants. I am also lucky that my basement stays in the mid 60s by default, so temps in the tent have been between 64f-78f consistently, and I am able to manipulate fairly easily if needed. Water temps have stayed between 68-71f without having to do anything. Between the temps, the beneficial bacteria, and two air stones in each bucket, I have not had any issues with the roots.
I put the net up to help support the plants as they grow and to space out the buds as much as possible. Now I see why people build the nets to the top of the DWC bucket! It is a pain to check and change the buckets with the net up, so I will do something different for next time. Thankfully, I have a small pump to do bucket switches. Just slide the lid over a bit and pump it clean. I can pump the new nutes right back in the same way. It should not be an issue to finish these plants with the net.
Right now, I mostly feel this is too good to be true for my first grow. All the ladies are healthy and putting out buds, and I have not had any major issues. Part of me expects to go down there and see it all withered and brown any morning now. The other part of me is starting to feel that I can get to the end of this with some decent buds to show for it. Right now, I am just going to continue to listen to the plants and try not to get ahead of myself. If anyone has any suggestions I am open. Thanks for reading and gave a great Friday everyone.
Happy 4:20 everyone
It has been a week since I've done an update on the girls. Life has a way of getting busy like that. They are starting on the fourth week of 12/12, and the flowers are looking great. I have to admit that the Advanced Nutrients pH perfect has worked really well. I had a couple of brown spots on Alice a day before she was due for a bucket change, but upping her nutes solved the issue. Other than that my only issue has been too many leaves. My plan was to stay at 30% of recommended AN nutrients and let the plants tell me when they wanted more. They have! Lorraine and Kini, the two Hindu Kushs, are up to 85% of the AN recommended dosage. That is around 1500ppm, or 3.0EC! Alice and Demeter, the two White Widows, are up to 75% or 2.8EC. If you had told me I would be up at 3.0EC six weeks ago I would not have believed you. pH is staying where it needs to be, which seems different for the plants. The kushs seem to stay from 6.1-6.4, and the white widows stay from 5.9-6.3. However, the pH perfect must be doing it's job, because I have not had to adjust anything.Here is what the feeding schedule looks like for Lorraine. You can see how it has ramped up since going into flower.
Lorraine has stretched more in the last week than anyone else. She was at least two inches taller than everyone else. I tried to tuck her in the net, but there was no way I was getting her flowers down to the level of everyone else. So, what to do? I bought everyone else up. I had some old paving stones, so I power-washed and baked them at 350f for an hour to sterilize them. It is not perfect, but it helps bring them up close to the same level. I am getting around 650 PPFD average throughout the canopy now, with peaks of 950.
I have gone through several rounds of defoliation with these girls, and I still think they are too full in the middle.
At this point, I am ready to leave them alone and let them grow, but I do not want to end up with powdery mildew or bud rot. I feel pretty good, though, as I am controlling the humidity to 45% and will lower it 5% every two weeks to harvest. Luckily, my dehumidifier pumps directly into the drain so I don't have to empty it twice a day. I have three fans in the tent, a floor fan circulating air in the tent, and two oscillating fans blowing down on the plants. I am also lucky that my basement stays in the mid 60s by default, so temps in the tent have been between 64f-78f consistently, and I am able to manipulate fairly easily if needed. Water temps have stayed between 68-71f without having to do anything. Between the temps, the beneficial bacteria, and two air stones in each bucket, I have not had any issues with the roots.
I put the net up to help support the plants as they grow and to space out the buds as much as possible. Now I see why people build the nets to the top of the DWC bucket! It is a pain to check and change the buckets with the net up, so I will do something different for next time. Thankfully, I have a small pump to do bucket switches. Just slide the lid over a bit and pump it clean. I can pump the new nutes right back in the same way. It should not be an issue to finish these plants with the net.
Right now, I mostly feel this is too good to be true for my first grow. All the ladies are healthy and putting out buds, and I have not had any major issues. Part of me expects to go down there and see it all withered and brown any morning now. The other part of me is starting to feel that I can get to the end of this with some decent buds to show for it. Right now, I am just going to continue to listen to the plants and try not to get ahead of myself. If anyone has any suggestions I am open. Thanks for reading and gave a great Friday everyone.
- Thread starter
- #83
Ok so maybe one more fan wouldn't hurt.
- Thread starter
- #84
I caught a picture right after lights-out. I love how the flowers sparkle like jewels.
cjsbabygirl313
Well-Known Member
Looks like a clear green starry night !I caught a picture right after lights-out. I love how the flowers sparkle like jewels.
- Thread starter
- #86
Bucket change time under the net. Thankfully, I purchased this battery powered gas transfer pump, so I can pump the old nutrients out and pump the new nutrients back in.
Now that's a back saving hack!
@West Hippie might like that Idea!
@West Hippie might like that Idea!
- Thread starter
- #88
So the paving stones were not enough. Lorraine has outgrown everyone else and is making it hard to keep an even canopy.
So, I made some lifts. I made a 5" lift for Alice and a 4" for Kini. Demeter is good on 2x paving stones (3"). For now, the canopy is even and looking great. Now I just hope Lorraine is done growing.
So, I made some lifts. I made a 5" lift for Alice and a 4" for Kini. Demeter is good on 2x paving stones (3"). For now, the canopy is even and looking great. Now I just hope Lorraine is done growing.
- Thread starter
- #89
Journal Update - Day 35 of flower
Buds are stacking and growing! The canopy is fairly even, and I am getting an average of 700 ppfd, with a peak of 1100. Temps are getting up to 76-77 during the day, and down to 65 at night.
Lorraine (back-right) is drinking, eating, and growing more than the others right now. She is up to 100% or the AN nutrient schedule, with a small tweak. AN calls for 4/4/4 micro/grow/bloom through the entire grow. I moved to 4/2/4 for now, cutting down on the nitrogen since I am in the fourth week of flower. Lorraine has responded well, and I may follow suit with the others. Right now, she is drinking about 2.5 liters/day.
Alice is showing a couple of brown spots on some of her upper leaves. She is due for a bucket change today, and I will add a bit of cal-mag to see if it solves her problem. Kini and Demeter are chugging along nicely.
All of the plants are growing well, if a little bushy. I can see now how I should have spread them out and cleaned them up better, but that will need to wait for the next girls. For this first grow, I am just watching amazed as the flowers grow. Can I already be over half way through flower???
Enjoy the rest of the long holiday weekend.
Buds are stacking and growing! The canopy is fairly even, and I am getting an average of 700 ppfd, with a peak of 1100. Temps are getting up to 76-77 during the day, and down to 65 at night.
Lorraine (back-right) is drinking, eating, and growing more than the others right now. She is up to 100% or the AN nutrient schedule, with a small tweak. AN calls for 4/4/4 micro/grow/bloom through the entire grow. I moved to 4/2/4 for now, cutting down on the nitrogen since I am in the fourth week of flower. Lorraine has responded well, and I may follow suit with the others. Right now, she is drinking about 2.5 liters/day.
Alice is showing a couple of brown spots on some of her upper leaves. She is due for a bucket change today, and I will add a bit of cal-mag to see if it solves her problem. Kini and Demeter are chugging along nicely.
All of the plants are growing well, if a little bushy. I can see now how I should have spread them out and cleaned them up better, but that will need to wait for the next girls. For this first grow, I am just watching amazed as the flowers grow. Can I already be over half way through flower???
Enjoy the rest of the long holiday weekend.
- Thread starter
- #90
Update 11/20/21, Week 10/11 from seed, Day 39 of 12/12:
I can't believe I am in the 6th week of flower. Everyone is finally done stretching, and with the risers on the buckets I ended up with a fairly even canopy. Now I am just watching the flowers get bigger and frostier. The light is between 13-17 inches from the canopy, and I am averaging 750 PPFD across the canopy, with peaks of 1100.
Lorraine is up to 100% of Advanced Nutrients recommended schedule, albeit with lowered GROW (Nitrogen). I am just topping off with water, and she is doing great. She is drinking over 2 liters a day now!
Alice (White Widow) is starting to show some issues on her older leaves. She has brown spotting on the leaves, and it appears to be spreading.
I gave her a bucket change on Sunday (11/28), added some cal-mag, and cut down on the GROW (Nitrogen). I am hoping that will solve the problem, but I will keep an eye on her.
All of the plants are stacking on flowers, and they all look nice and frosty. I am surprised at the amount of trichomes on some of the fan leaves. I still think I could have trimmed a LOT more, but even the buds in the back are growing.
I am starting to think through the end of this grow and on to my first harvest/drying/curing. I helped by dad harvest his first grow last weekend, and it gave me several ideas. I will be doing some wet trimming and some dry trimming, based on the drying method.
I have not decided whether to wash the buds or not. From everything I have read, I am leaning toward washing the buds. Even though they are grown inside with carbon filters on the tent intakes, I still see hairs/dust/etc on the buds. Also, it seems like the buds dry better.
For the drying, I am going to experiment and try several different ways. I would like to dry some the traditional way, although I am still thinking about where I will find a dark place at 60f/60%. I would like to try drying some in a frost-free fridge (Lotus Cure). Both of these will be dry-trimmed after the drying process.
Finally, since I have access to a freeze dryer, I will be freeze drying part of the harvest. I am really looking forward to this, as everything I have read says that freeze dried cannabis maintains high cannabinoid and terpene content in addition to keeping its initial taste, color, and shape. It will also be ready about 48 hours after harvest! I think I need to wet trim the freeze dried bud, though, as it will be very brittle coming out of the freeze dryer.
For curing, I started looking into canning jars and hygrometers, but then started reading about Grove bags. These things seem too good to be true. I placed an initial order and have been playing around with them. They do a FANTASTIC job of locking in the smell. They are easy to open/close, and are reusable. They keep out UV light and are anti static. Most of all, they keep my weed at around 62% in the bag. I think I may put a little bit of the harvest into a canning jar with a hygrometer (to test), and the rest will go into Grove bags.
Well, these are my best laid plans as a beginner. Of course, I don't know what I don't know. If you have any questions or suggestions then I would love to hear them. I would hate to go through this whole grow only to mess it up in the drying/curing phase. Thank you for any help/suggestions and for dropping by.
I can't believe I am in the 6th week of flower. Everyone is finally done stretching, and with the risers on the buckets I ended up with a fairly even canopy. Now I am just watching the flowers get bigger and frostier. The light is between 13-17 inches from the canopy, and I am averaging 750 PPFD across the canopy, with peaks of 1100.
Lorraine is up to 100% of Advanced Nutrients recommended schedule, albeit with lowered GROW (Nitrogen). I am just topping off with water, and she is doing great. She is drinking over 2 liters a day now!
Alice (White Widow) is starting to show some issues on her older leaves. She has brown spotting on the leaves, and it appears to be spreading.
I gave her a bucket change on Sunday (11/28), added some cal-mag, and cut down on the GROW (Nitrogen). I am hoping that will solve the problem, but I will keep an eye on her.
All of the plants are stacking on flowers, and they all look nice and frosty. I am surprised at the amount of trichomes on some of the fan leaves. I still think I could have trimmed a LOT more, but even the buds in the back are growing.
I am starting to think through the end of this grow and on to my first harvest/drying/curing. I helped by dad harvest his first grow last weekend, and it gave me several ideas. I will be doing some wet trimming and some dry trimming, based on the drying method.
I have not decided whether to wash the buds or not. From everything I have read, I am leaning toward washing the buds. Even though they are grown inside with carbon filters on the tent intakes, I still see hairs/dust/etc on the buds. Also, it seems like the buds dry better.
For the drying, I am going to experiment and try several different ways. I would like to dry some the traditional way, although I am still thinking about where I will find a dark place at 60f/60%. I would like to try drying some in a frost-free fridge (Lotus Cure). Both of these will be dry-trimmed after the drying process.
Finally, since I have access to a freeze dryer, I will be freeze drying part of the harvest. I am really looking forward to this, as everything I have read says that freeze dried cannabis maintains high cannabinoid and terpene content in addition to keeping its initial taste, color, and shape. It will also be ready about 48 hours after harvest! I think I need to wet trim the freeze dried bud, though, as it will be very brittle coming out of the freeze dryer.
For curing, I started looking into canning jars and hygrometers, but then started reading about Grove bags. These things seem too good to be true. I placed an initial order and have been playing around with them. They do a FANTASTIC job of locking in the smell. They are easy to open/close, and are reusable. They keep out UV light and are anti static. Most of all, they keep my weed at around 62% in the bag. I think I may put a little bit of the harvest into a canning jar with a hygrometer (to test), and the rest will go into Grove bags.
Well, these are my best laid plans as a beginner. Of course, I don't know what I don't know. If you have any questions or suggestions then I would love to hear them. I would hate to go through this whole grow only to mess it up in the drying/curing phase. Thank you for any help/suggestions and for dropping by.
- Thread starter
- #91
Looking pretty just after lights-out.
Looking good in here
- Thread starter
- #93
Thanks @Jack420 I am hoping for a nice Christmas present this year. Any tips for a beginner heading into the final stretch?
Keep light as close as u can !
cjsbabygirl313
Well-Known Member
Wow @LKABudMan - seriously nice jungle there!
Beautiful.Looking pretty just after lights-out.
Jumangi, hehe.
Nice work.
Stay safe
Bill
- Thread starter
- #97
Thanks guys. I know there is too much vegetation in there, but I am afraid to pluck much more at this point. Should I be removing more fans in week 6?
Good morning my friend.
Hope you are well today.
I personally don't like to fek with my leaves.
Imo they are there for a reason, photosynthesis.
Buds don't absorb light, fans do.
I do a cleanup underneath after stretch, larf and crap.
Then I don't touch the leaves after that.
Even ugly ones they are there until they fall off naturally.
Just my method.
Stay safe
Bill
- Thread starter
- #99
Thanks Bill. I have a few more weeks to go, so right now I am.just hanging on and hoping for the best.
- Thread starter
- #100
These plants are loving the 80f day in the light.
