Airavata's Continuous 2-Tent Grow - Soil - 600W HPS
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turttle
New Member
Them are some purdy buds man
What kind of water are you using.well or city water.I have well water and my ph is around 6.8 which is good for soil.If your growing soil you normaly dont ph your water unless your ph is way up there.A good quality soil is allready ph.Your run off should ph around 6.3- 6.5 give or a take a few tenths really not a big deal if ph is constant I dont bother to check it for soil been using regular water since I found out they grow wild just like a weed I think I herd that from a rocket scientist lol Just kidding.But any way looking good.As for some of your problems things may be a little root bound for soil I would go with larger planter pots.5 gallon.And also double check to see if your nutes have the added calcium and magnesium.I have started using maxsea all purpose dry(15$) with cal mag and thats it threw the whole grow works pretty well and simple as adding 1/4 dose for every watering and a lot of other guys are using scotts osmocote plus time release ferts in there soil and hempys with great results.If your having any problems with them bugs tmac has some good advice I think she has been at it for a while and tried many tekniques and products.
What kind of water are you using.well or city water.I have well water and my ph is around 6.8 which is good for soil.If your growing soil you normaly dont ph your water unless your ph is way up there.A good quality soil is allready ph.Your run off should ph around 6.3- 6.5 give or a take a few tenths really not a big deal if ph is constant I dont bother to check it for soil been using regular water since I found out they grow wild just like a weed I think I herd that from a rocket scientist lol Just kidding.But any way looking good.As for some of your problems things may be a little root bound for soil I would go with larger planter pots.5 gallon.And also double check to see if your nutes have the added calcium and magnesium.I have started using maxsea all purpose dry(15$) with cal mag and thats it threw the whole grow works pretty well and simple as adding 1/4 dose for every watering and a lot of other guys are using scotts osmocote plus time release ferts in there soil and hempys with great results.If your having any problems with them bugs tmac has some good advice I think she has been at it for a while and tried many tekniques and products.
Saturn
New Member
Cool crazy stuff you got going. 
I've seen recommendations for the PH using soil and they vary from 5.8 to 7.2 so my opinion 6.5 and you're good.
The gnats? I've seen a product from microblift intended for mosquito control that works seemingly very well. No gnats. One drop per gallon.
The Neem oil is only a deterrent it doesn't kill them. Ants don't like it because it softens the exoskeleton but ants aren't the problem. It just makes it un desirable for them as far as I know.
I think that MG is pretty unstable and almost certain the gnats came with it.
I would encourage you to do another grow with a better soil before you go hydro. I'm a firm believer that many different systems work if you know how that particular system works best and the only way to get that down is to continue on and eliminate suspect problems until you got it dialed.
Soil is much more forgiving IMO and you can get some outstanding results from soil grows.
It takes a good sized pot and the right ratio of soil and perlite and or whatever else you might mix in there. Too much perlite of coco fiber and they become very thirsty and you'll be feeding them every day sometimes twice depending on temps and size of plant.
Anyways. Try the microblift or the azamax but I think those gnats are fully infested and you gotta hustle to get things back on track.
The microblift I use in every gallon and it's not a major deal. Not like an emergency treatment or such.
I'm pulling for your girls to get green and bushy!
I've seen recommendations for the PH using soil and they vary from 5.8 to 7.2 so my opinion 6.5 and you're good.
The gnats? I've seen a product from microblift intended for mosquito control that works seemingly very well. No gnats. One drop per gallon.
The Neem oil is only a deterrent it doesn't kill them. Ants don't like it because it softens the exoskeleton but ants aren't the problem. It just makes it un desirable for them as far as I know.
I think that MG is pretty unstable and almost certain the gnats came with it.
I would encourage you to do another grow with a better soil before you go hydro. I'm a firm believer that many different systems work if you know how that particular system works best and the only way to get that down is to continue on and eliminate suspect problems until you got it dialed.
Soil is much more forgiving IMO and you can get some outstanding results from soil grows.
It takes a good sized pot and the right ratio of soil and perlite and or whatever else you might mix in there. Too much perlite of coco fiber and they become very thirsty and you'll be feeding them every day sometimes twice depending on temps and size of plant.
Anyways. Try the microblift or the azamax but I think those gnats are fully infested and you gotta hustle to get things back on track.
The microblift I use in every gallon and it's not a major deal. Not like an emergency treatment or such.
I'm pulling for your girls to get green and bushy!
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- #44
airavata
New Member
Thanks, Tmac. Yeah, it took a little trial and error but eventually I realized that the big problem with the gnats was the larvae. They deff. were doing a number on my grow for a while. What I found is that, while the neem doesn't kill the adults outright, it pisses them off, which makes me happy.
Also, I believe it kills the larvae but leaves the eggs based on my experiments and observations. Still, it's time-consuming and not thorough enough to use neem alone so I started using nematodes also. Up until today I wasn't sure the nematodes I received were viable (even the 2nd shipment) but when I flushed my plants today I found tons of wiggling nematodes and no fly larvae in my runoff. This tells me that the majority of the problems I'm experiencing, past and present, are not attributable to gnats because even with GREATLY reduced populations of gnats and larvae, I'm seeing, in same-sized pots, the exact same problems I observed last cycle. Interestingly, symptoms exhibited in plants in larger pots seem to be setting in more slowly. So, taking into account that a) I'm watching and seeing a great reduction in gnat/larvae populations while seeing identical negative symptoms, and b) I've used the same soil and fertilizers in the past, but with RO water, without seeing the negative symptoms I'm seeing now, I'm deducing that my problem is largely, if not all, due to toxic salt buildup from my tap water. I've been filtering it but that only removes chlorine and flouride (I think) while, apparently, leaving behind a wide spectrum of other contaminants and, presumably, high ppm tds. I think that flushing thoroughly and watering exclusively with reverse osmosis water is going to make a huge difference. Quick side note: I actually plugged measurements for my pots into a volume calculator online to determine the exact amount of water I needed to flush with (3x the volume of your pot, minimum) and found that I had been guessing low even though I had been flushing more than I thought I needed to. So it's probably worth the effort to anybody in the same boat to go the extra mile and do the math. Here's a link I found helpful:
https://grapevine.abe.msstate.edu/~ft.../vol/cone.html
Anyway, all that aside, I will continue to monitor the gnats and if they don't disappear soon, I think I'll be taking your advice, Tmac, and giving the Azamax a whirl. So far the nematodes seem to be doing the trick though.
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- #45
airavata
New Member
Them are some purdy buds man
What kind of water are you using.well or city water.I have well water and my ph is around 6.8 which is good for soil.If your growing soil you normaly dont ph your water unless your ph is way up there.A good quality soil is allready ph.Your run off should ph around 6.3- 6.5 give or a take a few tenths really not a big deal if ph is constant I dont bother to check it for soil been using regular water since I found out they grow wild just like a weed I think I herd that from a rocket scientist lol Just kidding.But any way looking good.As for some of your problems things may be a little root bound for soil I would go with larger planter pots.5 gallon.And also double check to see if your nutes have the added calcium and magnesium.I have started using maxsea all purpose dry(15$) with cal mag and thats it threw the whole grow works pretty well and simple as adding 1/4 dose for every watering and a lot of other guys are using scotts osmocote plus time release ferts in there soil and hempys with great results.If your having any problems with them bugs tmac has some good advice I think she has been at it for a while and tried many tekniques and products.
Hey, Turtle, thanks for the compliment. I wasn't sure I'd see them plump up this well a few weeks ago. I upgraded from a cfl in a closet to a HPS, good hood, and mylar walls this grow and I'm liking the results. More bud even in a grow that is turning out worse in every other way. I can't wait to see what'll happen when I keep 'em green for 3 months. As far as PH, I tried messing with it just because it was the easiest thing for me to toy with at the time and the plants were looking like they were on their death bed. As I mentioned earlier though, I use lime in my soil. It does a really good job of stabilizing the PH, just like Cervantes says it does. In fact it makes adjusting the PH almost impossible, even after all the flushing and root drenches I've done with this grow. I also noticed what look like cal/mag issues, like you said, but the lime provides plenty of magnesium and my fertilizer has plenty of calcium. More reasons that I believe I'm looking at toxic salt buildup. I am glad you mentioned Maxsea b/c I'd been looking at that and have been seriously considering using that with my next grow, hempy style, instead of Osmocote. I also agree about the bigger pots. Don't think they're necessary but I've noticed that 1-3 gal. pots are easier to grow in than what I'm using now. Anyway, lots of insightful advice and good info, man. I appreciate the response. +reps
- Thread starter
- #46
airavata
New Member
Cool crazy stuff you got going.
I've seen recommendations for the PH using soil and they vary from 5.8 to 7.2 so my opinion 6.5 and you're good.
The gnats? I've seen a product from microblift intended for mosquito control that works seemingly very well. No gnats. One drop per gallon.
The Neem oil is only a deterrent it doesn't kill them. Ants don't like it because it softens the exoskeleton but ants aren't the problem. It just makes it un desirable for them as far as I know.
I think that MG is pretty unstable and almost certain the gnats came with it.
I would encourage you to do another grow with a better soil before you go hydro. I'm a firm believer that many different systems work if you know how that particular system works best and the only way to get that down is to continue on and eliminate suspect problems until you got it dialed.
Soil is much more forgiving IMO and you can get some outstanding results from soil grows.
It takes a good sized pot and the right ratio of soil and perlite and or whatever else you might mix in there. Too much perlite of coco fiber and they become very thirsty and you'll be feeding them every day sometimes twice depending on temps and size of plant.
Anyways. Try the microblift or the azamax but I think those gnats are fully infested and you gotta hustle to get things back on track.
The microblift I use in every gallon and it's not a major deal. Not like an emergency treatment or such.
I'm pulling for your girls to get green and bushy!
Hey, Saturn. Thanks for stopping by. More good advice, I can't disagree with anything you've said. I will deff. look into microblift. first I've heard of it but I'll probably try it out sometime in addition to Azamax, although I think I've got it under control finally, in this grow at least.
I hear you on soil grows, there are definitely pros and cons to each approach. I'm stubborn though, I've dabbled in both methods and I want to go to something that's lower maintenance, even if it is more touchy. I'm going to transition to hempy buckets first and I'm going to play it by ear from there...but definitely leaning toward hydro.
Anyway, thanks again. I definitely need all the people pulling for me that I can get! +reps!
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- #48
airavata
New Member
@ Tmac and Saturn, I decided to take your advice and hit everything with azamax. I've heard nothing but good things and I want to be extra certain gnats don't continue to give me trouble. I also picked up some fox farm nutrients to take the guesswork out of fertilizing. I'm expecting my plants to be nutrient deprived and not make much progress overnight. Tomorrow morning I'll take a look and probably fertilize. The Blackberry has developed what looks like a lone pollen sack at the top of a cola.....but it has pistils coming out of it. Maybe it's just a very swollen calyx? Anyway, I'll be watching that closely and probably giving her/him/it the axe soon. It's probably gone hermi on me but I'm kind of surprised it didn't happen sooner. Not ideal, but at this point I've done everything I can so I don't think I'll have too many surprises from here on out. *Knock on wood*
Thanks, Staffy. Now if only I can get them to plump up, I'll be stoked.
Thanks, Staffy. Now if only I can get them to plump up, I'll be stoked.
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- #49
airavata
New Member
I fertilized the plants I have flowering today. Now I'm going to let them dry out a couple days. they're looking water-logged.
I also tweaked my setup to improve circulation by putting my window fan at the top of my room, using zip-ties, with my table fan oscilating on the floor. Circulation is way better and now I don't have to worry about knocking the fan over when I'm messing around behind the tent.
I tried photographing that possible male flower, but I couldn't quite capture it with my camera. I'll keep you guys posted though.
I also tweaked my setup to improve circulation by putting my window fan at the top of my room, using zip-ties, with my table fan oscilating on the floor. Circulation is way better and now I don't have to worry about knocking the fan over when I'm messing around behind the tent.
I tried photographing that possible male flower, but I couldn't quite capture it with my camera. I'll keep you guys posted though.
Sonzor
New Member
Looks good, congrats on the water filter, I got to get one of those, just have not pulled the trigger just yet. A little pricey but looks like you are well on your way. Great job..
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- #52
airavata
New Member
No, I've been trying various fertilizers throughout. Probably less than they need, ideally, because my leaves seem to burn easily with the root damage from the gnats. I'm getting better results with Fox Farm than with any of the other stuff I've used.
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- #53
airavata
New Member
My top leaves have greened back up a little and my buds are growing a little again. The gnat infestation is back in force even with the azamax and I'm still losing many leaves every day. The newer plants are now showing severe deficiencies. I took bad water, improper fertilizing, and toxic salt buildup out of the equation and symptoms are progressing just as fast as they did last cycle. Unless I'm overlooking something, and I don't think I am, it's got to be the gnats. I think after I harvest the first batch I'm just going to kill the other three I have flowering so I can clean the room throroughly and get some clones in hempys in there instead. Start fresh with no gnats....But maybe it will turn out that the Azamax worked and they'll all be dead by then. That doesn't seem to be the case but we'll see. Here are some pics.
Kush 2 @ 6.5 weeks
Here is my effed up High Planes in 1.5 weeks in
Kush 2 @ 6.5 weeks
Here is my effed up High Planes in 1.5 weeks in
turttle
New Member
Are you using the MG soil..I have been hearing a lot of complaints with bugs in there soil.
With the azamax or what not I think its a timely process.I cant be possitive as I have not had bug problems.
If its real bad I would transplant and knock off as much soil as safely possible and swich to bigger pots so the roots can grow and heal.I am thinking of doing soil/hempy next go around I have 2 10 gallon storage containers that were at first ment for hydro but I think they will fit nicely in a 2x4 tent filled with soil/perlight.
With the azamax or what not I think its a timely process.I cant be possitive as I have not had bug problems.
If its real bad I would transplant and knock off as much soil as safely possible and swich to bigger pots so the roots can grow and heal.I am thinking of doing soil/hempy next go around I have 2 10 gallon storage containers that were at first ment for hydro but I think they will fit nicely in a 2x4 tent filled with soil/perlight.
Saturn
New Member
They're looking better.
I had a gnat problem way back when and a lady at the hydro shop told me about the microblift and I was ready to try anything.
No more gnats.
One thing I believe to be true is that if you have sickly plants it will attract more bugs. I trim off the unhealthy leaves to get that stuff out of the room.
If you have a real bad problem you could also close up all the access to the dirt by putting a panty hose over the entire bucket.
It can be a helluva war with the bugs. :twoguns:
I had a gnat problem way back when and a lady at the hydro shop told me about the microblift and I was ready to try anything.
No more gnats.
One thing I believe to be true is that if you have sickly plants it will attract more bugs. I trim off the unhealthy leaves to get that stuff out of the room.
If you have a real bad problem you could also close up all the access to the dirt by putting a panty hose over the entire bucket.
It can be a helluva war with the bugs. :twoguns:
Sonzor
New Member
Ouch, it suck when you cant get rid of those critters. I us azamax for my worm issues and have found I have to apply every couple days, the stuff seems to wear off pretty quick, any hope you get some good smoke off those ladies you worked so hard for, good luck...
- Thread starter
- #57
airavata
New Member
Hey, thanks, everybody. My plants went two weeks with little to no growth. My largest main cola was still probably only 3". So I just cut 'em. I can't justify putting this much work into plants that won't grow. I also decided to spare myself a headache and cut down the newer plants in the flowering room. I will post pics and final weights when my buds have cured. The finger hash I got from manicuring those puppies is amazing. I need only smoke the tiniest little bit and I am LIT with No couch-lock.
HashAssassin
New Member
Sucks you had to cut them early. Are you going to try again with new soil?
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- #59
airavata
New Member
Yeah, i could have kept babying them but i'm just sick of the hassle. i'm going to take cuttings from my 2 mothers before long. i'm going to give hempy buckets a try. Was going to try MaxSea nutes but now i have these leftover fox farm soil nutes so i'm thinking about using those but don't know...PH might become an issue then....
HashAssassin
New Member
Are you going to do soil or coco hempy buckets? If I wasn't doing full blown hydro I would go with the coco hempy.
In regards to the nutrients, why would you consider MaxSea? If you're going to use that stuff you might as well use MiracleGro. Are you looking for a value conscious one part nutrient? If so there are plenty of other options out there (i.e. Botanicare CNS-17 Series, BC Technaflora Series, etc.).
In regards to the nutrients, why would you consider MaxSea? If you're going to use that stuff you might as well use MiracleGro. Are you looking for a value conscious one part nutrient? If so there are plenty of other options out there (i.e. Botanicare CNS-17 Series, BC Technaflora Series, etc.).