Re: AfricanGrower's 1st Hydro Journal-Ebb&Flow/Bubblelicious 2013
just build a simple system with a maxijet 1000 pump (actually hang with me here cos i dont live in states, so prob diff brands and fittings.) and some 1/2" pipe work then fit a few spray nozzles. depends how big u want to clone. i have a smaller 36 site cloner that i rarely if ever use so i'll take pic of that set up and u can just mimic it and adapt how u like. Dont mess with enzymes just yet, do a few runs with just water so u can see the results, which are great. once u have seen that then u can start messing with a living res. that way u can compare and see what is better for u.
But here is the best part, once u've seen that aerocloner go, u will start asking urself all sorts of questions about the simplicity of hydro. Then u will switch to DWC or RDWC and the world is a brighter place hahahaha.
Ha you consider 36 a 'smaller' cloner! That's why I still continue to grow, because until I can get to a level where I have the ability to grow 30+ plants at a time of different strains, all conducting and undergoing individual experimentation, I will ALWAYS strive for that goal, but for now I would only need a 'smaller' 4 site cloner, maybe with just a 5 gallon container or even a 'Skygrower' inspired 3gal tote design, incorperating one of these 12v submersible pumps.
12v water pump-$12
I'm pretty sure they are about 1/2" fittings so I just need to find a good dozen mister nozzles. But I really am looking for a good quality set of nozzles, something that won't get clogged up for future use of tea!
As for completely switching over to a RDWC setup or similar, I don't think I will ever burden myself with the hassle of MORE plumbing than I already have here. This journal is mainly focusing on the potential of a flood and drain system with rockwool based medium, as I have never used a hydroponic system before this one,l I figured I would test the positive claims I have read so much about, but has received very little attention considering the wealth of information there is on this type of growing. My goals for this journal, if unclear before, are to test this SIMPLE form of hydroponics, test the theory of 'vegetative growth time VS. yield', and to potentially get 10oz+ out of this grow. And doing so using what I already have gained in the past years of growing and applying all these 'new' techniques that are out there! Hopefully my future journals will be flat out experiments with different training techniques and flushing methods. But for now I need to establish a the best (fastest with the least maintenance) medium for hydroponics before applying other peoples techniques in the hope to find a 'Frankenstein' grow method of sorts
30/09/13
Alright, time for an update everyone. This is sort of going to be a picture drop because I felt obliged to give a thorough update of what's going on in the grow tent
I have done quite a few things since a couple of days ago, especially with the bagseed seedling!. These little ladies might mean more to me than I once thought! First I gift you with pictures of the preflowers of both Bubb plants, and one is making me think I may be replacing it with a bagseed quite soon!
Bubb A Preflowers; where I topped main growth
Bubb A Preflowers; uppermost node growth
Bubb B Preflowers; uppermost node growth
As I have almost concluded that Bubb A might in fact be leaning more on the male side, I really want to give 'her' a few more days (weeks) to show 'her' true colors! I have more of a confirmation of female calyx's on Bubb B, however! I believe that this lady WILL actually turn out to be a lady! So one of these bagseed may have to replace Bubb A, depending on how things go. I will try and go with tricking a single branch into flowering on Bubb A starting tonight with the use of an opaque bag tied over
one branch.
Now for the the experiment I left with on here last time I posted. To refresh your memory, I was suggested not to start training my plants at this stage due to lower branches tendancy to stretch more when shaded from direct light. As for now the test is inconclusive since Bubb A, the canindate I chose not to train in order to see if it could catch up in lower growth with an alraedy bushy Bubb B. Since Bubb A may be a male, it could contribute to why it is not as bushy as Bubb B, which is more than likely a female.
Bubb A-
LEFT; Bubb B-
RIGHT
As you can see Bubb B is still is showing signs of more rapid lower growth, but keep in mind it may only be competing with a male! I untied a couple of fan leaves and focused most of the training on upper branches and getting them lower and more equal with lower growth. In the picture below (Bubb B on the right) the
RED and
PINK indicate top most growth that has been pulled down and the
BLUEs represent the lower nodal branches that are going to grow up and out of the canopy.
As for the bagseed, I transplanted the 3 most healthy of the 4 into 1 pint clay pots, only slightly bigger than their mountain dew can counterparts. I then transplanted the weakest looking of the 4 into a 1/2 gal pot. I decided to preform a mini test on how quickly root bounded seedlings slow in growth. These results can give me the most optimal time to transplant in order to smoothly transition grow time.
3 Healthy Seedlings; the last shot really took me away
The weakest of the 4 bagseed
