Rosetta Stone - 2x4 Tent - 220 Watt - Soil / When to Flip to Flower?

[Donald U]

Pleased to join the conversation on this site. First timer who did a lot of reading and got this far - everything riding on one plant. I'd like to maximize the quality of the flower I’ll harvest from this plant. It is 36" high so half the tent height. Defoliating every other day to expose flower sites.

Leaves look a bit lime colored. I've been judicious with nutrients but I feel improvements are needed - I need some suggestions

.

Been in Vegetative state for about 72 days
Seedling April 29th. Repotted into 5 gallon May 4th. Started defoliating and added net June 16th.

Strain/s: Rosetta Stone
Genetic Makeup: Hybrid
Fabric Pot: 5Gallon
Tent Size: 2' x 4'
How Many Plants: 1
Environment: Indoor
Stage: Vegetative - late
Medium: Started in Fox Farm Happy Frog and added Ocean soil when transplanted to larger pot.
Lights: 220 Watt LED - AC Infinity IONBOARD S24
Nutrients: Using self watering fabric pot base with Hydroponics flora series running 1200-1500 ppm with 5.8-6pH consistently. Adding Alaska Fish Fertilizer 5-1-1 a couple times a week as a top water.
Room/Tent Temperature: Temperature at 70 degrees with light and 65-60 without light. Basement grow and the air conditioning keeps that area frosty.
Relative Humidity: 60-65%
Media/Res PH: 5.8-6
Pests: None
Watering: Once Daily - constant feed

 

[Janluna]

I would first try to raise the temperature in the basement to 75 at least and keep it there if possible. The room is too cold.

 

[Donald U]

I would first try to raise the temperature in the basement to 75 at least and keep it there if possible. The room is too cold.

Thanks for the quick response. Should have thought of that earlier. Added a thermostat controlled portable heater just now. Cheers

 

[Donald U]

adjustment made

 

[Janluna]

Colder temps can come in handy near the end of flower. I mentioned 75 because that’s a comfortable threshold that the plant work with. The temperature can reach all the way to 82 during lights on and the plant will be okay given that the humidity stays relatively high, around 70 or so. This could be challenging to achieve with a space heater in the mix, but as long as you’re aware of this I believe you’ll be okay. Look up VPD for cannabis.

My concern is the really cold temps at night. I wouldn’t go lower than 70 during lights off.

Once you get temperature straighten out, then we can look at feeding, cause it’s starting to look like N and possible K issues.

 

[Sativa1970]

My concern is your size limit? When you flip to flower it will double in size over the first 2 weeks. If it's 36" now it will stretch to around 6 foot tall. Add the pot, light hanger and minimum distance from light to tops on to that. You may need around a 9 foot celling. You can lay the branches over but then you need a lot more floor space and lighting coverage to match.

We have all outgrown our space at least once. That's where multiple and bigger grow spaces start from. Now you can grow more, bigger, plants and the cycle continues until the family intervention says you are out of control.

 

[Donald U]

My concern is your size limit? When you flip to flower it will double in size over the first 2 weeks. If it's 36" now it will stretch to around 6 foot tall. Add the pot, light hanger and minimum distance from light to tops on to that. You may need around a 9 foot celling. You can lay the branches over but then you need a lot more floor space and lighting coverage to match.

We have all outgrown our space at least once. That's where multiple and bigger grow spaces start from. Now you can grow more, bigger, plants and the cycle continues until the family intervention says you are out of control.

Sounds like I should stabilize my tent environment and then flip to flower because of the expected growth jump?

 

[Janluna]

Sounds like we’re gonna have to super crop in a couple of weeks. Good point @Sativa1970

 

[Sativa1970]

Supper cropping will reduce some of the stretch but convert what's left into horizontal growth. I also wouldn't recommend supper cropping a whole plant if this is your first grow. let the lower branches grow up, tie down the mid length branches, and try supper cropping some of the tall branches. You will gain some experience experimenting with each method and all your eggs aren't in one basket. Just give it a week to recover before flipping the lighting. If it is 3 foot wide now it will be 5 foot wide in flower, for scale.

Good luck. Just ask if you have any questions.

 

[Donald U]

Thanks Again, Janluna and Sativa1970 for your valuable input. I have stabilized the tent environment to average 74 with light on and a humidity level 72-70% resulting in 0.7 average VPD. This is the best I can do before the AC Infinity heater gets here in about 7 days.

I'm wondering with the plant in Veg can I run the light for longer times to keep the temperature consistent. This is my improvised solution. What do you think about running the light say 20 hours a day? The plant already looks better with reduced 'lights out' time and no change in nutrients.

Oh and I am down with super cropping since things will get crowded but I know this can work. Cheers

 

[Janluna]

Running the lights longer may shock the plant, but it is doable; it still wont help the temperature dip during lights off. If the heater does not activate on it’s own then I would consider getting a timer or an automatic switch so the heater turns on and off within a threshold that can be set.

 

[Sativa1970]

Now that I see a picture I see a miscommunication. Plant size is measured from the media to the base of the tallest leaf. That 36 inches looks like it included the pot and stand. I would say you are vary close but not oversized for that tent quite yet. Set your light to it's highest position. Measure from the light to where the media height will be at flower. Take that number and subtract whatever the light to plant top distance is recommended, normally around a foot. Now take that new number and divide by 2. That will be your maximum veg height for Indica plants. Pure sativa you divide by 3. It is amazing how fast these plants grow in the first 2 weeks of flower.

Bellow 55deg you could potentially start damaging the plant. 65deg is when growth stops. 75 to 83deg is the optimal range based on humidity and growth stage. High side for veg and low side for flower. Over 83 growth slows and you start heat stressing if the humidity is not correct. Yes, you should go up by a few deg but your bigger issue is the humidity. I am assuming the air being drawn into the room is high humidity. More air movement will help the plant in high humidity. The plant will grow in your environment, you aren't in a danger zone, it is just not optimal for growth.

There are optimal ranges for everything with these plants. Getting outside those ranges can slow the plant and increase your odds of having issues. It isn't a guaranty that you will or won't have issues. Just safer to keep the odds in your favor whenever possible.

 

[Donald U]

Sativa1960 - Thanks for the detailed information. I have stabilized the tent environment and can maintain proper temperature and VPD across all day parts. A heater is on its way that will work with my systems control unit. I have noticed the plant responding to the warmer temps which is nice.
Now it’s just a matter of bringing it all home. I’ve been defoliating to expose buds sites and open up the lower and interior leaves of the plant.
Stay in touch I’m sure I’ll need some tips to have a fruitful harvest. Cheers

 

[Donald U]

Reporting back that I am flipping to flower - little choice because the tent will become crowded. Tent environment is stable and consistent. The plant/evaporation is consuming about a gallon a day.
How aggressive can I get removing fan leave to expose bud sites in this flowering stage? As always, what improvements can I make going forward? Thanks very much.

 

[Hafta]

You are doing extremely well for your first time.
I grow a single plant in a 24" x 36" x 72" cabinet.
If it were me, I would raise your trellis (or add another) and spread the plant horizontally as much as possible, trying to get within 6" of the end walls. Your light map looks good out to about 36" (at 12 - 18" above the canopy). I would try to achieve a canopy of 24" x 36".
I would then continue to defoliate the interior fan leaves. This will allow more light to the bud sites and reduce the possibility of mold and mildew on the buds, especially considering the high humidity. I always leave the perimeter fan leaves until the plant decides they are not needed and they turn yellow or brown. Leaving these leaves provides a consistent supply of nutrients when required.
Once three weeks into flower I cease regular defoliation and only remove problem leaves.

I call this Skirted CST, the average yield is 10 - 14 ounces dried and cured, and it looks like this:

 

[Donald U]

You are doing extremely well for your first time.
I grow a single plant in a 24" x 36" x 72" cabinet.
If it were me, I would raise your trellis (or add another) and spread the plant horizontally as much as possible, trying to get within 6" of the end walls. Your light map looks good out to about 36" (at 12 - 18" above the canopy). I would try to achieve a canopy of 24" x 36".
I would then continue to defoliate the interior fan leaves. This will allow more light to the bud sites and reduce the possibility of mold and mildew on the buds, especially considering the high humidity. I always leave the perimeter fan leaves until the plant decides they are not needed and they turn yellow or brown. Leaving these leaves provides a consistent supply of nutrients when required.
Once three weeks into flower I cease regular defoliation and only remove problem leaves.

I call this Skirted CST, the average yield is 10 - 14 ounces dried and cured, and it looks like this:

Wow your plants look amazing. Thanks for the insights. I’ll work on getting another net or moving this one to be more effective. Thanks

 

[Sativa1970]

There are 2 primary goals in pruning. Light hitting a leaf creates growth hormone, feeding where the leaf meets the stem. Shade can also be controlled by tucking leaves down to allow light to past. The second part is resources. You don't want the plant wasting energy and resources on low production bud sights.

Lower leaves that have no light produce vary little of the growth hormone. The plant will naturally abandon nonproductive leaves, draw the gluten and minerals it needs from the lower leaves turning them yellow. So it is a balance of throwing away resources vs wasting resources on low production sights. NPK and mag are mobile, so they will move from nonproductive leaves to feed the productive leaves and bud sights. On some of my heavy eaters I will pluck the lower bud sights but leave the leaf as future food storage.

 

[Hafta]

There are 2 primary goals in pruning. Light hitting a leaf creates growth hormone, feeding where the leaf meets the stem. Shade can also be controlled by tucking leaves down to allow light to past. The second part is resources. You don't want the plant wasting energy and resources on low production bud sights.

Lower leaves that have no light produce vary little of the growth hormone. The plant will naturally abandon nonproductive leaves, draw the gluten and minerals it needs from the lower leaves turning them yellow. So it is a balance of throwing away resources vs wasting resources on low production sights. NPK and mag are mobile, so they will move from nonproductive leaves to feed the productive leaves and bud sights. On some of my heavy eaters I will pluck the lower bud sights but leave the leaf as future food storage.

I agree that lower leaves without light are relatively unproductive. However, the addition of side lighting can turn them into productive leaves. The removal of interior leaves allows better light penetration to the lower leaves as well.

The side lighting can also turn non-productive lower buds into the beginning of colas. These colas start less than six inches from the trunk. Little to no "larf". This photo was taken on harvest day following final defoliation.

 

[Donald U]

Sativa1970 / Hafta​

Thanks for continuing the conversation I'm learning a lot from you two. I have transitioned to 12/12 lighting and have the tent numbers in a decent range - while burning lots of electricity since my basement is a meat locker. Lower plant cleanup accomplished as much as I dare. Tucking and plucking leaves to expose bud sites.
A second net coming tomorrow will help me manipulate the plant toward the edges of the tent.
Nutrients have been adjusted to lean toward bloom.
The plant looks healthy so I resist adding much in the way of nutrients except for the fish fertilizer as an occasional topper. I have liquid CalMag on standby and Big Bud as a potential addition in weeks 2-4 of flower. This is where things get hazy for me because I read too much. Nutrients moving into and finishing in flower is a bit of an unknown for me.
Onward through the fog. Cheers guys

​

 

[Sativa1970]

Pruning is an art as much as it is a science. It takes practice and experimentation to fully control a plants growth. It will become second nature with time. Be patient and observe how it reacts to your controls.

She will be sucking up tons of N and K during the stretch. After that you can reduce but not eliminate nitrogen. Do not reduce K. Once she gets 4-6 pistols per node you can start to increase P.

N for healthy leaves to make glucose. P for healthy flowers and roots. K for healthy stems and circulation.