First Grow In Over 20 Years! Northern Lights Under 600W LED

[Homer Simpson]

My suggestion is to get lots of jars Homer!

Thank you, buddy... That is the best advice I have received. lol...

 

[MrSauga]

Good morning Homer and Merry Christmas! I hope you and yours have a wonderful day! Be well!

 

[Pennywise]

Merry Christmas to you and yours Homer!

 

[Homer Simpson]

Good morning Homer and Merry Christmas! I hope you and yours have a wonderful day! Be well!

Merry Christmas to you and yours Homer!

Hey guys!!! Thank you very much for the well wishes. Merry Christmas to you and yours too Mr Sauga and Pennywise. And Merry Christmas to you too Birdie!!

 

[Homer Simpson]

Day 76 Total, Day 37 of Flower

I haven’t done much posting the last few days due to being busy socializing with the holidays so I thought I would give a little update. I hope everyone is enjoying their holidays too.

Here are some of my best buds and how they are progressing. I guess I am pretty happy with them but I am not quite sure how close I am to the end so it’s hard to judge how much more budding time they have. I just assumed that my Northern Lights photos from Canuk would be about 10 weeks but I looked at some of their literature and it says these need only 6 to 7 weeks and 1 January which is only five days away will be the six-week mark. I’m hoping they need a little longer so I get more bud because as things stand now I think I only have a couple ounces in total like maybe 3 to 4 if I am lucky but that is just a wild guess.

I seem to be having some browning with some of my leaves around the top of my colas and I am not sure why? I have seen photos of mature plants and the leaves seemed to be dying so I was thinking it’s just that my plant is coming to the end of its life cycle maybe? It’s only the one plant so I doubt it would be nutes but I have been giving full doses of Mega Crop and Calmag so I’m thinking I might be overdoing it with the nutes but my leaf tips aren’t burning so I doubt that is it? Hopefully the plant stays healthy enough to finish budding whatever it is unless anyone has any suggestions?

Here is the next generation under 18/6. I have three clones of Northern Lights photos I took last Tuesday that successfully rooted I think because I was able to take them out of the dome last night and they haven’t wilted. One of the seedlings is a Cannatonic from Resin Seeds which is high in CBD for my knees and the other is a free seed I got from Resin Seeds which is a Yummy when I ordered my Cannatonic seeds.

Anyway, things seem to be going pretty good other than my leaf browning and hopefully my plants will bud up a little more before harvest. I have just been using the Mega Crop and Calmag and I kind of wanted to do this grow just with that to use this as a standard to compare against future grows where I experiment. I did order 250g of Sweet Candy and Bud Explosion from Greenleaf and they were only seven dollars each so I will try them on my next grow to see if they make any difference. On this grow last week I did snip the tips of half my buds to see if back building does any good. That’s it for now; thanks for dropping by anybody who has a look. And a hearty thanks to everyone who has helped me get this far; I definitely would not be doing this well without it.

 

[Pennywise]

They look like they have a ways to go yet. Plenty of time to bulk up. The brown spots appear to be calcium deficiency. Make sure your ph is around 6.0-6.2 and they will take up what they need.

 

[Homer Simpson]

They look like they have a ways to go yet. Plenty of time to bulk up. The brown spots appear to be calcium deficiency. Make sure your ph is around 6.0-6.2 and they will take up what they need.

That is surprising to me that it is a calcium deficiency because I am giving them full doses of Calmag and from what I have read the Mega Crop has a fair bit of calcium and magnesium in it also but I take your word for it. I do have a pH meter and I have been trying to keep between 6.0 and 6.5 pH but the darn thing is pretty cheap and the reading bounces around a bit so I might not be where I think I am so I might as well pick up a better one to make sure I am in the 6.0 to 6.2 range.

I think you are right also about them having a ways to go because I did look at the trichomes under a 40 times magnification and they all look perfectly clear. Hopefully they take a fair bit longer than just 6 to 7 weeks. Anyways, thanks a lot, again, for the help.

 

[Pennywise]

Yes they still have a long ways to go, no worries.

 

[MrSauga]

I do have a pH meter and I have been trying to keep between 6.0 and 6.5 pH but the darn thing is pretty cheap and the reading bounces around a bit so I might not be where I think I am so I might as well pick up a better one to make sure I am in the 6.0 to 6.2 range.

Hiya Homer...
are you calibrating your pen regularly? Almost all pens on the low end price scale need calibrating. I do mine each feeding. It can be .1 out one day and that could be .2 out the next day. Always keep checking the calibration. I'm sure the meter will read OK, but get yourself some buffer solutions, pH 7.0 and pH 4.0 work well for both sides of the spectrum. I switch 'em around.

 

[Homer Simpson]

Yes they still have a long ways to go, no worries.

That’s what I originally figured but I was pretty uncertain when I read the literature that came with the seeds last week that says this strain of Northern Lights only takes 6 to 7 weeks to bud because most Northern Lights from other seed companies seem to be in the 10 week range. So thanks for the good news.

 

[Homer Simpson]

Hiya Homer...
are you calibrating your pen regularly? Almost all pens on the low end price scale need calibrating. I do mine each feeding. It can be .1 out one day and that could be .2 out the next day. Always keep checking the calibration. I'm sure the meter will read OK, but get yourself some buffer solutions, pH 7.0 and pH 4.0 work well for both sides of the spectrum. I switch 'em around.

I couldn’t find my buffering solution that came with the darn thing so I bought some distilled water assuming it was 7.0 pH and calibrated it that way but that was about a month ago so my system may be flawed, LOL.

This thing I have is a piece of junk. Today I adjusted a gallon of water and I was reading about 6.8 pH and I added more and more acid and it didn’t change and then all of a sudden it was about 5.2 pH so I don’t trust it anyways. I think it’s a good idea to get a better one.

I called the local hydroponics store that I have been getting stuff from and they seem pretty clued in and reliable and they have one for $40 which I assume will be pretty accurate so tomorrow I’m going to pick one up and I will calibrate it regularly like you suggest. Hopefully it comes with some buffer solutions.

Thanks for the info Sauga. Hope you have been well and enjoying your holidays.

 

[MrSauga]

Ya I use the liquid, only because it's convenient, but I hear you can make a batch from the powder and store it in a dark cool location and it will keep. If it doesn't come with one ask the boys and girls there at the shop and I'm sure they have one kicking around.

 

[Homer Simpson]

Ya I use the liquid, only because it's convenient, but I hear you can make a batch from the powder and store it in a dark cool location and it will keep. If it doesn't come with one ask the boys and girls there at the shop and I'm sure they have one kicking around.

I never thought of actually getting buffer solution besides what comes with the tester but I will look into it. I am curious how my old one will compare in readings and how out I have been.

 

[MrSauga]

Well since you are spending the money on a good pen, you want to treat it right. Storing in distilled water is a no-no. Always store it in a buffer solution if possible. My cap has a sponge in it, so I rinse it with distilled then dip it in buffer solution. The sponge keeps it moist when the cap is closed.
My understanding is they get finicky if they continue to dry out. I dunno for sure but it's working for me.

 

[Homer Simpson]

Well since you are spending the money on a good pen, you want to treat it right. Storing in distilled water is a no-no. Always store it in a buffer solution if possible. My cap has a sponge in it, so I rinse it with distilled then dip it in buffer solution. The sponge keeps it moist when the cap is closed.
My understanding is they get finicky if they continue to dry out. I dunno for sure but it's working for me.

It had crossed my mind that things would build up on the sensors or elements or whatever they are called from drying out after each use so I do rinse my them after each use but it does make more sense to not let them dry out at all using your method. I will do some research and see what the guy at the store has to say about it also. I appreciate the information because it looks like I really am having problems with my pH.

As I said in my earlier post today I ordered some Suite Candy and Bud Explosion from Greenleaf and I wonder if you have ever used those? Since their Mega Crop works so well I figured I would give them a try.

 

[MrSauga]

No I never purchased those...when they go amazon canada then I'll most likely grab it. I do use their kelp extract through veg stage which allows the roots to absorb the nutrients better, amongst other things.

 

[Homer Simpson]

No I never purchased those...when they go amazon canada then I'll most likely grab it. I do use their kelp extract through veg stage which allows the roots to absorb the nutrients better, amongst other things.

That is so classic I can only laugh because here I am a day late and a dollar short again, LOL. I was thinking of buying the kelp extract but I decided on just the other two and here I am having a problem with nute absorption. I think it is more funny than frustrating. Hopefully correcting my pH with take care of it.

 

[MrSauga]

That is so classic I can only laugh because here I am a day late and a dollar short again, LOL. I was thinking of buying the kelp extract but I decided on just the other two and here I am having a problem with nute absorption. I think it is more funny than frustrating. Hopefully correcting my pH with take care of it.

Well definately don't feel bad about it. It's not really a neccessity if you maintain a good pH, a good growing medium, good root growth through proper watering and pots and the rest takes care of itself. I wouldn't go out and buy some right away, lets put it that way.

 

[Homer Simpson]

Well definately don't feel bad about it. It's not really a neccessity if you maintain a good pH, a good growing medium, good root growth through proper watering and pots and the rest takes care of itself. I wouldn't go out and buy some right away, lets put it that way.

That is really nice of you to take the time to try and put my mind at ease about not having the kelp extract and yes I think you are right if I can get my pH under control I should be ok without it. Thanks again.

 

[Homer Simpson]

I picked up a, HM PH-80, pH meter today and calibration solution and storage solution so I should be all set. I calibrated it and checked it against my old one and the old one was drifting all over the place and this thing is rock solid so I am really glad I got it.

On further examination of my brown leaf problem I noticed that only the colas closer to the light were browning and the ones farther away seemed fine so I think maybe my light was too close to it. Other plants the same distance from the light seemed fine but maybe it is more sensitive or maybe it is a problem with pH. Either way I raised my light up to 18” from 15” to be safe and with the improved pH meter hopefully I have solved the problem.

No matter what the problem is I’m glad I got a better meter because now I’m not guessing about what the pH is. Thanks Sauga and Pennywise for the info.