High Brix Refractometer Results Log & Data Thread - Post Your Brix Levels Here

Icemud

Icemud

Well-Known Member
Nug of the Month
July 2012 2 Member of the Month
June 2014
Hey Everyone,

I decided to start a thread for everyone who is testing there plant's Brix levels with refractometers (Digital or Optical).

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Please save brix questions for other threads and let's keep this one strictly related to your brix test's, results and related details.
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Now why is this Thread/Log/Data resource important you may ask.......

Well since here at 420 Magazine we are creating the VERY 1ST BRIX CHART FOR MARIJUANA STRAINS on the internet...(Woohoo!!!) We need Brix readings from all types of grows, not just high brix focused grows but all types including soil, hydro, and also including organic and synthetic grows. In order to rate quality of different strains, we need to know what "ranges" of brix that a particular strain has.

For example, If 5 people all grow the same cut of OG kush, but we get 5 different brix readings from that same cut... then we know that environment played a factor... Lets say we had brix ranges 3, 6, 12,15, and 23 for that OG kush cutting... Then by knowing that generally a higher brix plant has gotten closer to its genetic potential... then we can safely say that Og Kush(based on my example) has a brix range of 3-23, so when you test your OG Kush, you know where you rate..and what number to aim for.

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Now in addition to brix ratings and test results... DETAILS are very important... what I would like to see with each test result posted is this...

DETAILS are important so that if you happen to be growing a strain that already has been tested, you can compare your results and see what was done differently to achieve a higher brix..it may just be a foliar spray adjustment, or a different topdressing on your soil... the more data we have, the more we can notice trends and make adjustments to this process :)


Now IF YOU HAVE A GROW JOURNAL HERE, instead of copying all the details, post a link to your journal where the refractometer tests are being taken, post the strain names you are growing, and the brix ratings you are getting, the rest can be discovered within your grow journal. :)

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Photos (one of the test leaf, and one of the brix test result, and possibly one of the plant)
Type of strain:
How long in veg/bloom?
What time of day was sample taken? (morning, mid day, evening)
What area of the plant was sampled? (top, middle, new growth?)(leaf, bud)
What growing method or medium?
What nutrients are being used? and whats feeding schedule?
Are foliar sprays being used, what kind and feeding schedule?

If soil, what is the mixture, ratios, amendments etc...
What Lighting is being used?
CO2?? yes, no, and PPM if you have readouts..

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This should be the format of the refractometer results and posts... feel free to copy and paste these questions on your postings to make it easier...The more details, the better so that eventually we will have a good sized databank which will help us explore and pioneer the High Brix growing method into perfection..

Like I mentioned before, PLEASE KEEP THIS THREAD STRICTLY FOR REFRACTOMETER TEST RESULTS, LEAVE QUESTIONS IN ANOTHER THREAD, I WOULD LIKE TO KEEP THIS FOR ONLY TEST RESULTS AND NOT JUNK IT UP
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

For example...

Strains Tested and Brix%
Silverback OG 19-22% brix
Holy Grail OG 20-22% brix
Platinum Bubba Kush 17-20% brix
Sour Bubble 12-18%brix
Blackberry Kush 10-15% brix


All 5 strains are being treated the exact same way, same environment, soil, nutrients etc...
These tests were taken around day 15 flowering..

Platinum Bubba
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Holy Grail OG
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Silverback OG
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Sour Bubble
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Blackberry Kush
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Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

Ice,

I just got my meter today and it looks exactly like yours, even the case. It was spot on zeroed right out of the box when I calibrated.

I hadn't watered for a week and it was very difficult to squeeze out a few drops, but I managed to get a reading of 5 from a medium sized fan leaf. It was my own strain of WW x Querkle.

I didn't have time to take readings after the heavy feeding they got, but I will try tomorrow or Saturday.
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

just started using my refrac, was wondering are people tracking brix readings during veg. If so what numbers have been recorded. I am aware of what good readings are in bloom but was wondering do you also think readings in veg are as important. Mine are outdoors 8-10 full sun and in veg all plants are 5-6 feet tall in 100 % compost medium from the Earthwormsoilfactory chico,ca.
Strains Of mine are;
1. Mulah Belladonna x Sensi Star x og
2. Bluecheese
3. Greenribbon GC x trainwreck x afgoo
4. LA cheese
5. Herojuana x pre 98 OG from a seed
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

took a reading yesterday of a mid size fan leaf and it was 6

It was before watering and hadn't been watered for 4 days.

I rarely have a chance to hang around long after a watering to get a 2 hr post water reading.

tried a small bud, but couldn't even get a drop out of it.
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

Harvested the other day and forgot to take a reading. The next day I balled up a nice wad of trim and kept working it until it was about the size of a dice. I squeezed with all I the strength I could muster up with my arthritic hands and managed to get the required 3 drops for the tester.

viola' ,,, 13.5

not sure which strain, most likely was from my WW x Q cross since it was last trimmed and on top of the trim pile.
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

that's a great reading 13.5, my LA Cheese is at 13 its in about week 4 outdoors. most readings i took in veg were between 3.5 -7 more info on my girls later
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

I just took tested a friends brix on some plants he was harvesting I will try to do the best I can following the your format.
Type of strain: Wonder Women
How long in veg/bloom? It was in bloom for 8 weeks
What time of day was sample taken? (morning, mid day, evening) Evening
What area of the plant was sampled? (top, middle, new growth?)(leaf, bud) Middle Bud
What growing method or medium? soil
What nutrients are being used? and whats feeding schedule? Amended Soil just water
Are foliar sprays being used, what kind and feeding schedule? No foliar sprays

If soil, what is the mixture, ratios, amendments etc...
What Lighting is being used? 3 - 1k lights
CO2?? yes, no, and PPM if you have readouts.. 1300 ppm

Brix was 11 which I thought was pretty good considering he had not been trying to achieve high brix
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

Got some more brix readings:

I decided to standardize to a 5 leaf fan and 1 inch of petiole. IIRC from reading about brix, it's not clear that it matters which leaf you take, but a 5 leaf is usually in the middle part of the plant. I took reading from three plants, and I did like last time - took 2 separate readings of the same wad. I took each plant one at a time, and went back and read the wad again, one at a time.

Hawaiian Snow - 37 days - 21 days 12/12 - brix 9/9

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Kerala x Skunk #1 - 37 days - 7 days since pistils - brix 9/10

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And I decided what the heck, check the NL Autos - 64 days - brix 10/11

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The NL Autos are in FFOF with OC+, but I did topdress them with 6-5-3 and azomite - interesting readings. You'd think the high K in the OC+ would ruin brix.
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

I'll be starting a journal soon, but for the time being, I'll post my brix readings here. Since the last readings, I fed Doc's Transplant and Tea to the Jamaican Dream and Indian Skunk 2, and Energy/Tea to the Hawaiian Snow, the Super Lemon Have and the Indian Skunk 1. They've all had Stress twice and Brix once.

Hawaiian Snow - 51 days - 35 days 12/12 - 2 days since pistils (YAY! Pistils, finally!)- BRIX 15/18

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Jamaican Dream - 51 days - 13 days since pistils - BRIX 9/11

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Super Lemon Haze - 50 days - 21 days since pistils - BRIX 14/15

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Kerala x Skunk #1(1) - 51 days - 21 days since pistils - BRIX 9/11

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Kerala x Skunk #1(2) - 49 days - 13 days since pistils - BRIX 10/11

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My NL Autos read:
#1 - 78 days - 8/12
#2 - 77 days - 8/10
#3 - 70 days - 12/16

Here's what's left of NL Auto#1 with the others in the background. I've been smoking it from the bottom up for 3 weeks now. It's 78 days old and almost ready - still mostly clear trichs. I'm kinda impressed. I go through about a quarter a week and looks what's left! I think I'm gonna end up getting an ounce and a half from my first auto.

DSCN11934.JPG
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

I've been continuing to take Brix readdings weekly, and I'm still having a hard time determining what's accurate. I'm saving each wad and retesting it another 1-3 times. The value nearly always rises for each additional reading. A couple weeks ago I took two leaves from each plant and did as many as 4 readings on each one. The wads sat for about 10 minutes between readings. Here are the results - 2 leaves from a single plant:

Jamaican Dream - 10/12/14/20
Jamaican Dream - 11/10/11/14
Silver Lemon Haze - 12/13/15/19
Silver Lemon Haze - 11/12/14/16
Indian Skunk1 - 10/11/13
Indian Skunk1 - 10/10/12
Indian Skunk2 - 10/10/11
Indian Skunk2 - 11/9/10
Hawaiian Snow - 13/15
Hawaiian Snow 15/16

The Indian Skunks 9-13 and the Hawaiian Snow 13-16 have consistantly had very little variation between leaves and over time, especially the Skunks, but the others have a much broader range. Over 5 weeks, the Jamaican Dream has varied between 9 and 20 and the SLH between 10 and 19. The highest reading I've gotten was 25 from the Hawaiian on a 3rd pressing.

What conclusions do we draw from this evidence and has anyone else tried this? Doc Bud has referred to using tinning pliers to press his leaves and also mortar and pestle to grind them, and he says his highest reading was 18 - seems to me the grinding would produce a higher reading than 18. I could probably produce an 18 from any of my plants. I got an 18 from the 3rd pressing of a NL Auto on the day I harvested it - it was grown in FFOF with OC+. I see others providing what seem to be definitive readings. Why would a wad read higher on each successive pressing and what are the implications for accuracy?

I'd even settle for the first reading of any given plant, except that on some leaves Brix rises dramatically on the 2nd and 3rd pressing. We also can be sure that the 1st pressing ruptures fewer cells and is less likely to include all the plant matter - some remains uncrushed the first time. On the other hand, it seems ridiculous to keep taking a reading until the leaf runs out of juice. I've seen some groovy stainless mortar and pestle sets, which is probably the best method, but that's clumsier and messier than just squeezing some fluid out of a leaf.

Dunno. I'm confused.
 
Graytail said:
I've been continuing to take Brix readdings weekly, and I'm still having a hard time determining what's accurate. I'm saving each wad and retesting it another 1-3 times. The value nearly always rises for each additional reading. A couple weeks ago I took two leaves from each plant and did as many as 4 readings on each one. The wads sat for about 10 minutes between readings. Here are the results - 2 leaves from a single plant:

Jamaican Dream - 10/12/14/20
Jamaican Dream - 11/10/11/14
Silver Lemon Haze - 12/13/15/19
Silver Lemon Haze - 11/12/14/16
Indian Skunk1 - 10/11/13
Indian Skunk1 - 10/10/12
Indian Skunk2 - 10/10/11
Indian Skunk2 - 11/9/10
Hawaiian Snow - 13/15
Hawaiian Snow 15/16

The Indian Skunks 9-13 and the Hawaiian Snow 13-16 have consistantly had very little variation between leaves and over time, especially the Skunks, but the others have a much broader range. Over 5 weeks, the Jamaican Dream has varied between 9 and 20 and the SLH between 10 and 19. The highest reading I've gotten was 25 from the Hawaiian on a 3rd pressing.

What conclusions do we draw from this evidence and has anyone else tried this? Doc Bud has referred to using tinning pliers to press his leaves and also mortar and pestle to grind them, and he says his highest reading was 18 - seems to me the grinding would produce a higher reading than 18. I could probably produce an 18 from any of my plants. I got an 18 from the 3rd pressing of a NL Auto on the day I harvested it - it was grown in FFOF with OC+. I see others providing what seem to be definitive readings. Why would a wad read higher on each successive pressing and what are the implications for accuracy?

I'd even settle for the first reading of any given plant, except that on some leaves Brix rises dramatically on the 2nd and 3rd pressing. We also can be sure that the 1st pressing ruptures fewer cells and is less likely to include all the plant matter - some remains uncrushed the first time. On the other hand, it seems ridiculous to keep taking a reading until the leaf runs out of juice. I've seen some groovy stainless mortar and pestle sets, which is probably the best method, but that's clumsier and messier than just squeezing some fluid out of a leaf.

Dunno. I'm confused.
Click to expand...

I'm confused as well as to how we can benefit from this data. I think testing is all we can do and for this I appreciate your research. Indeed it seems there's variables. Many.
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

It's been awhile so it's pretty vague, but I think I added a quarter cup of the mineral mix and appropriate ratio of azomite. I remember the measuring cup in my hand. I run 6 gallon pots. Is that close? I don't remember the 6-5-3 soil dosage.

I added some granular mychos, too.
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

I think there needs to be a Sticky just for 6-5-3:reading420magazine:
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

VonDankenhoek said:
Thanks. Im 'remineralizing' an organic grow in progress and wondered how to dose my plants. I think doc says 1.5 cups of 6-5-3 per 7 gal....not sure though.
Click to expand...

I found the recipe for 60 gallons of soil in Doc's Strawberry Cough thread.

Doc Bud's High Brix - Strawberry Cough - Pineapple Express

On page 12 he says this:

My most recent soil recipe is working very well....the best so far:

Promix HP
20 lbs worm castings
2.5 bags Ancient Forest
4 cups 6-5-3
2 cups Azomite
4 cups Rock n Chicken (composted chicken manure pellitized with soft rock phosphate.)
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

I see the majority of sizes online are 0.5 cubic foot, and that sounds about right for 60 gallons. So, that would be 10.5 gallons per bale of Pro-Mix. But I'm not sure it's necessary - Doc may have later decided it added too much potassium - my memory fails me. I didn't use that. 30 lbs of worm poop instead of 20 is probably more important. The primary failure I had with the mineralized soil was a shortage of available nitrogen in bloom.
 
Re: High Brix refractometer results log and data thread.. post your Brix levels here.

Good info gray. Thanks

I'm starting with a soil I mixed back in Aug or sept. It doesn't follow the high brix rules ...contains DE and compost. It does have a good amount of peat and EWC. I'm thinking that doc's technique is legit and I wanna try and get partially there on this grow.

Did you go high brix just one time?

I'm wondering if overdoing it on top dressing gypsum is maybe no big deal because of the slowish availability. Any thoughts?
 
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