AfricanGrower's 1st Hydro Journal - Ebb&Flow - Bubblelicious 2013

wow. it's been a few days since I visited Bubb. She's a banshee. She's a chonger.

Congrats on the GH nutrients. I hope you like them. Let me know how the florakleen does. I used it once, just like you did. A week later I got a bunch of yellow leaves. I don't fully understand how it works but it seems to break the bond so the plant can't absorb nutrients. I would make sure you have flushed it out well with about 5 gallons of straight water after using it.

I don't want to scare you, I just don't want the same thing to happen to you. Maybe I used to much? Maybe I didn't rinse will with water afterwards? It was over a year ago, but I'm pretty sure I followed the instructions. Maybe the yellow leaves weren't related? I'm not sure. After that I only used it for final flushing. To wash down salts, I use a VERY diluted nutrient mix, or heisenberg tea once a week ;-)

If anyone else has knowledge about this stuff, please chime in!

She has really taken off. So how much water is she using per day at this stage?

>>>Imagine this, your tent/closet/room is outfitted with water control via your RO filter and a solenoid valve, you have a zoomable/omni-directional security cam inside, all lights, fans, pumps are controlled via this app on your phone, you have all your nute bottle opened and upside down on a metering valve (each bottle) so you could add any measure of ml of that liquid to your res which means you could dose your res in ml or even drops

Man, Sky, you get creative when you're bent, yeah? :hippy: tee hee! You should work for iponic or one of those controller companies. They just put you in an office with a doobee and out comes tons of ideas for new products. I think you would like that job!
 
Hey guys, I was preparing for a rearrangement of the grow room today when I found this little larva in one of my feeding trays. I hope to god that it is just a Ladybug larva as a couple have died, but I still have not found an eggsac yet. I feel its weird only seeing one and not expecting there to be more somewhere. I'm going back in....hopefully I will find its origins.

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7/11/13

Flower Day 8

Okay so not the BIG update I was expecting to give, but I had to make a few tough decisions regarding the trellis and the Bubb. Due to poor communication between the retailer and I, my 5 gallon nursery pots still have not arrived in the mail. I really was expecting them at the beginning of the week, but unfortunately not.

So I ended up taking the plants out for some scheduled maintenance and cleanup and found a little larva creeping around near my bagseed drainage. I posted a pic above. Well after about 40mins of a thorough inspection of both plants, I have yet to find the source of the larva. I did some research and did find that it slightly resembles ladybug larvae in size and shape, but the colors are totally off. I ended up putting it in a sealed container in my grow room...lets see if it will attract any brothers or sisters, maybe parents? Anyway it seems to large to be anything pest related. If it does end up being something pest-related than I'm sure the ladybugs that are remaining will be able to take care of it. No real worries here.

Here is a pic of the 'Hermonia Axyridis' species of ladybug larva that most closely resembles the adults I currently have. What do you guys think?

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Now since the Bubb was out and about I decided to take a few measurements. She comes in at around 45 inches in width and just over 2 feet in height. She has grown into what I hoped for at the beginning of this grow.

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As you can see below the Bubb is DEFINITELY root bound and I can't help but thank the 'Live' environment I chose to go with at the beginning of this grow. GUYS GO LIVE IF YOU WANT ROOTS LIKE THESE :)

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And finally, I decided to put up the trellis today as my Bubb was really starting to stretch. My thought backing this decision on a root bound plant was that if I had place the trellis any later, I ran the risk of breaking branches in order to lower the canopy to where I want it. I need at least 2 feet of space between the trellis and the HPS in order to avoid them growing into the heat! I have a bout a 10 degree drop in temps 2 feet below the HPS!

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The neat thing about my placement design of the trellis is that it is easily adjustable, and can be moved up/down as required. My plan is to slowly bend the plant until the weekend by lowering this and getting the branches used to the position.

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Now you may ask why I put the trellis up if I still need to transplant...well that's where my decision came in. I figured if the 5gal transplant pot doesn't make it by tomorrow then I will have to go with a root bound plant for the rest of the grow as lifting the trellis with too much foliage already invested in it WILL damage some part of the plant.

So the question for me was, "having a rootbound plant that might affect the overall rate of growth and size of the plant" or "having an even canopy and having it low enough to avoid heat stress late in flowering"? AND have gone with the latter!

Here is a pic of what the Bubb is doing to the poor bagseed. Completely overshadowing it, but once it goes into the Ebb&Flow bucket it will finally be on even grounds with the Bubb!

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Until next time friends! Stay green ;)

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Man, I really dig that crane system you have setup for your trellis. Question, is a 5 gallon bucket out of the question? Capn says he had great results from his. Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. Maybe even carefully cut away the pot as best you can with scissors to expose at least the entire circumference of the root ball leaving only the bottom of the pot tangled in the root mass, then transplanting will be more rewarding?
 
Sky, I was thinking the same thing...about using the 5 gal as the actual pot. Meaning just filling the bucket with the grodan cubes and ditching the nursey pot all together. Now I am not sure if this will ruin the flow of water as it floods the bucket as there is no gaps between the medium and the bucket housing. The other thing about just cutting the bottom part out of the nursey pot, wouldn't this just lead to the root mass and what ever loose medium to fall THROUGH the nursey pot? I know the pot is angled to get thinner towards the bottom, but with the sheer weight of 3.5gallons of wet grodan cubes it might just do the trick ;)

I like the ideas though, its getting me thinking about all my options. Keep them coming as I still have a few days before a transplant is out of the question!

>>>Going rootbound is not so bad in flower, I think.

I hope not Rico! I have never had experience with roots THIS big, let alone a plant of this magnitude. AS a true microgrower in this world of hydro, THIS is the first time I am feeling overwhelmed by what I have going on, I suppose it's a good thing ;)
 
What I was saying was to remove the side of the net pot only and leave the bottom disc part in the roots. Being as though they have holes that the roots grow through, so too would the water. When I take my WW/sk from the solo cup, b/c I poked holes in it, there will be resistance if I tried to pull the mass out, so I will just cut away the solo cup carefully so not to damage a root.
 
Ahh I get you now. To avoid damaging roots when transplanting right? I'll see if there is any resistance when pulling the plant out. When I transplanted this Bubb twice before, the same thing happened. Roots got caught in the plastic holes I drilled and broke off, quite a few actually!

Too bad I have lost my pet peeve of caring TOO much for my plants :laughtwo: It was making me grey!
 
Another possible solution is to leave the potted plant out in the air for a few days to air prune those roots, but ask around before doing this as there may be too many roots to consider air pruning, but the process itself is natural so there's that.
 
TheCapn said:
wow. it's been a few days since I visited Bubb. She's a banshee. She's a chonger.

Congrats on the GH nutrients. I hope you like them. Let me know how the florakleen does. I used it once, just like you did. A week later I got a bunch of yellow leaves. I don't fully understand how it works but it seems to break the bond so the plant can't absorb nutrients. I would make sure you have flushed it out well with about 5 gallons of straight water after using it.

I don't want to scare you, I just don't want the same thing to happen to you. Maybe I used to much? Maybe I didn't rinse will with water afterwards? It was over a year ago, but I'm pretty sure I followed the instructions. Maybe the yellow leaves weren't related? I'm not sure. After that I only used it for final flushing. To wash down salts, I use a VERY diluted nutrient mix, or heisenberg tea once a week ;-)

If anyone else has knowledge about this stuff, please chime in!

She has really taken off. So how much water is she using per day at this stage?
Click to expand...

I completely missed this post...STONED :bong:

I haven't noticed any yellowing or spotting that wasn't already there, as for the procedure after the flush, I just flooded the bucket with the scheduled nutrients for that week. I also did the same to the bagseed, and so far no ill affects. I'll keep you posted if I do come across anything related.

Currently she drinks around 1/2 a gallon a day from the look of my res level, not to shabby for a plant her size, eh?

BTW do you have any advice on the whole transplant dilemma I've come across. I know we have discussed previously to WAIT until my final transplant before I put the trellis up, BUT I just couldn't risk it, as I will be taking one of my longest trips away from the Bubb a week before harvest!
 
Skybound said:
Another possible solution is to leave the potted plant out in the air for a few days to air prune those roots, but ask around before doing this as there may be too many roots to consider air pruning, but the process itself is natural so there's that.
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I would estimate it will require a few days of exposure to prune that mass off. I think it would be a little bit too drastic than just pulling out and loosing a few roots, no?
 
My concern really is the edges along the holes that were punched out of the pot might lacerate your roots literally opening them up to possible problems. If you feel comfortable gently pulling the roots through those holes, I'd say go for it since you use the bennies anyway.
 
After a more personal inspection of the pot's drainage holes, it looks like they are cut from the outside and pushed in, creating a sort of beveled edge. Was it the manufactures intention...I don't know? But do you think this beveled edge would do some damage in your opinion bro?

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I would just pull out the mass if cubes as gently as you can. Some roots will break but they will be perfectly fine. Cut roots are more prone to disease in dwc than in cubes.

Did you order that 5 gal pot from china? If it doesn't get here soon, use a poor man's air pot! I ended up with 6zips from mine, and it was only 13" tall when I started flower. I would not flower in the pot it's in now.

Damn those are some nice roots. Gotta love the beneficial tea. Good job on this grow. How's your PH?
 
>>>Did you order that 5 gal pot from china?

Haha...but no, not this time! Its actually two states away from me! I ordered from them twice last week, 4 days apart, and I got my most recent on Monday, but still waiting on the first order I placed. They have been great so far, but tomoroow morning they are going to get a very stubborn phonecall!

6 zips with a starting height of 13"....I NEED to surpass that number bro...double digits are calling my name;)

As for the poorman's airpot, how long would you give me before I MUST transplant? I am currently starting my second week of flower.

My pH is the same inconsistency as always. It still moves UP about .1-.2 daily, and with the GH nutes I started to notice that stringy film on the surface of my water I showed you in a PM. It even develops quicker with the GH products than with the FF line. I'm going to try putting some airstones again in this nutrient solution...new airstones...
 
I can honestly say I was pretty stressed over that larvae I found. But after some more intense research I am more inclined to believe that this is a ladybug larvae! Now the reason why there is only 1 around that I found, is good sign in this case. When ladybugs lay their eggs, they find a plant with enough food to sustain the larva until they are ready to go through metamorphosis. A ladybug will always choose a plant that is infested with aphids, or gnats, etc. If no food is available, the mother usually is on top of her game and lays infertile eggs in order for the surving larvae to thrive. And yes they are ruthless cannibals.

So my theory is that this little guy ate his siblings and was on the hunt for some tasty aphids and such. With no luck finding anything on the plant, it found itself crawling into unknown territory in search for food! I almost feel bad I locked it in a test tube with 2 dead ladybugs overnight. I'll release the larvae in the morning to continue the cycle!

Here is an excerpt from one of the sites I was reading up on:

Scientists believe ladybugs lay both fertile and infertile eggs in the cluster. When aphids are in limited supply, the newly hatched larvae will feed on the infertile eggs.

Larvae typically emerge from their eggs in about 4 days, although species and environmental variables such as temperature may shorten or lengthen this time frame.

Larva – Larval Stage:

Ladybug larvae look somewhat like tiny alligators, with elongate bodies and bumpy exoskeletons. In many species, the ladybug larvae are black with brightly colored spots or bands.

In the larval stage, ladybugs feed voraciously. A single larva can consume dozens of aphids per day. Larvae feed on other soft-bodied plant pests as well, including scale insects, adelgids, mites, and insect eggs. Ladybug larvae don't discriminate when feeding, and will sometimes eat ladybug eggs, too.
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