Sqwheels' Perpetual 2L Hempy + Moms

[Cultivator]

Yeah light as close as poss. Thats why i find it best to use cfl's, led's or t5's for seedlings. very little heat to damage or stress. add small fan as soon as first set real leaves appear to make stems nice and fat.

 

[sqwheels]

Looking great, Sqwheels!

The Bonsais won't get too big while they're being kept in small containers. You can still prune & trim fan leaves which will also slow the growth.

I'm finding it takes a LONG time to get the Bonsais to really grow out with regular pruning.

Hi Mr.K,

Thanks...I've only pinched the growing tips of her branches, she's got about 20 possible clones on her right now...I won't need them for another 10 weeks.

I wish I could get a better picture of her...she doesn't look at all like your bonsai's...you've done a better job of pinching and pruning yours. They look like a real bonsai.

Still learning...will just keep experimenting until I get it.

 

[sqwheels]

Looks good sqwheels!

Move the light close to the OG as possible...without burning her...that will slow down her stretching. Ad soil to the cup...that will make her grow more roots and slow her down too.

Thanks OMM, will probably have to rethink the way I have them setting in the veg room...it's only 2x2 with a door I can only get my feet into...almost did a summersault in there earlier by leaning/reaching just a wee bit too far in. I think I'm determined to fall out eventually.

Like OMM said, real close to light to slow seedlings growth. The moms will benefit from regular pruning, even if you just pitch the cuttings. You will learn to encourage a growth pattern that favors multiple tops for later clones. Think apple tree pruning, they encourage a nice round shape w/ open center for easier picking, lets light penetrate the canopy as well.

Hi OG, I've got lots of tops, that's not the issue, keeping those tops small is. In Bonsai, your not suppose to let them get woody, Not sure how to avoid that. The center is open but filling in...it's new and an experiment, I'll have to pinch some more I guess...throw away MJ...seems like sacrelig, but I don't have any use for them right now.

What was the real veg time? When did you see new growth on the clones (means roots finally took)? Around 10-14 days? Then one week of veg.... Or how tall were they when they went to 12/12....

I cut them 12-2, didn't see any real change until a couple days before I put them into the flower room...but they definately have little flowers growing now, I was surprised this morning by what I saw, they're really growing now. Next update will show noticable difference. Even the littlest one has nearly doubled in size. I didn't measure when I moved them in but today I did, the biggest 3 are 11-12" and the littlest is 8" the rest fall somewhere in between. I included pics of them in my recent updates when they were still in the veg room, they were much smaller.

Yeah light as close as poss. Thats why i find it best to use cfl's, led's or t5's for seedlings. very little heat to damage or stress. add small fan as soon as first set real leaves appear to make stems nice and fat.

Hi Cultivator, yep, using cfl's 2x23w in aluminum dome with Y socket. My veg room is really small so I have all of those plants crowded in under that one dome...Like I said to OMM, I'll have to rearrange things in there so they all get the best light.

I'll try to post a better pic of the room next update.


Little update now...I don't think the PE is gonna make it. Her 1st set of true leaves don't look good today, not opening/kinda shrivelled up, but the OG is taking right off, 1st set of true leaves are 1/2" long and look healthy.

 

[Twelve12]

I don't think the PE is gonna make it. Her 1st set of true leaves don't look good today, not opening/kinda shrivelled up

Flush it with 1-2 gal of plain water through the pot and let it drain for few hours, then feed light and leave it alone for few more. Should help bring back the plant. Hope that helps. PE is one of my fav strain can't bare seeing it dying in your garden.

 

[sqwheels]

T12,
Thanks for the suggestion. I'll try it, give it a couple days, if she doesn't improve I'll just pop another.

 

[Cona]

Heres what I do to keep the seedlings manageable. Keep em close to the light...when in jiffy plugs or just potting soil I will grow them till they are kinda tall like 3 inches then transplant the seedling into a 1 gallon pot but only fill the pot 1/2 full. Place the seedling in and then bury very very carefully the entire plant except the leaves and 1/4 inch of stock. The roots will take hold then and the seedling should be done stretching if she is kept close to the light.

 

[Vapedogg223]

Hi Folks,
I'm new to growing seeds too...so, here's the question...How do you keep them from getting too tall before they start growing leaves? As you can see the OG is really tall already, I think this may become a problem. I don't think the White Widow seeds I planted grew like this.

I use 18 watt daylight CFLs for $1 a six-pack from Costco. I keep them 1 maybe 2 inches away from the tops at the very most. I end up with the nodes stacked nice and tight...something like this:

Like OMM said, real close to light to slow seedlings growth. The moms will benefit from regular pruning, even if you just pitch the cuttings. You will learn to encourage a growth pattern that favors multiple tops for later clones. Think apple tree pruning, they encourage a nice round shape w/ open center for easier picking, lets light penetrate the canopy as well.

Hi OG, I've got lots of tops, that's not the issue, keeping those tops small is. In Bonsai, your not suppose to let them get woody, Not sure how to avoid that. The center is open but filling in...it's new and an experiment, I'll have to pinch some more I guess...throw away MJ...seems like sacrelig, but I don't have any use for them right now.

Sacrilege or not, I agree with OG13. With moms you need to take cuttings whether you need them or not! I don't have anything flowering right now because I'm trying to get a new grow room up and running and wanted to wait for that.

Anyway, if you remember my bonsai mom I entered in the POM contest a couple months back...well, I almost lost her when we had no power for almost two weeks from that freak Halloween storm. I've been trying to nurse her back, so I had been going real light on the trimming. Well, I had finally had to thin her out pretty good today. Here's what I cut off her:

...and it's going right in the trash!

As far as not letting them get woody, I'm not sure. It seems to me the larger branches will get that way as the plant gets older.

 

[OG13]

The stems get woody as they get older. That's why you keep pruning, to keep fresh new shoots growing out. When they get a couple nodes, prune each branch back to leave one node for the new shoot to grow out. You can "design" your mother to have as many or few shoots as you want by religious pruning. If you only want 2 clones at a time, you prune/shape your mother to have only 2 branches. Cut them back to one node each a few weeks before you plan to take clones (say, 5 weeks before your current batch is done flowering). That gives 2 weeks for the branch to grow out the new "clone" and 3 weeks for the clone to be ready to flower. (using your 21 days on the last batch, that's why I asked your real days). You may have to adjust the time to grow the new branch based on genetics and light, CFLs are slower. Basically, cut a branch back to one node and time how long it takes till you can cut it off.

 

[sqwheels]

Hi Cona,

Thanks for the input...i rearranged things and they are much closer to the light now...yes, I think that will help keep them short

Thanks for visiting my journal

 

[sqwheels]

Hi Fratdogg,

Thanks for looking in...Wow, great visual, but there's nothing for reference, how big was that pile? And what does mom look like now?

seems so extreme to chop that much off.

I've fixed things in the veg room...seedlings are about 4" from the lights now, that should help them

I'll be posting an update and new pics later today...

 

[sqwheels]

Hi OG,

I'm afraid I'm way beyond the one node thing...I can't quite picture what you're talking about. I have not been pruning as much as I should have, obviously...you're gonna see what I mean in a bit...update and pics in a little while

I think I need to find a youtube vid on bonsai...I'll go look later.

Thanks for checkin on me regular, I appreciate the help

 

[sqwheels]

Hi All,

It's monday and time for an update... 17 days of 12/12, 8 days since I saw the first signs of flowers

various flower sites, I got a little snap happy...hope you like pictures. If you look closely you can just see the trics starting to grow and glisten

this time I think I vegged for just the right amount of time...no long branches forming, most of the buds will be tight against the main stalk

This is still concerning me...not sure if I've got the nutes and pH under control

all of the girls have a few leaves that look like this...all in the middle to lower leaves...I've adjusted nute ppm's and pH...all the new growth looks good, I hope I have it under control now.

Most recent feedings have been in the 1000ppm range with a pH of 5.8. I've included, but not all together the following... GH floranova Bloom, Canna PK 13/14, Molasses, and Epsom

Here's the Veg room, I've rearranged things, now the seedlings are about 4" from the light, hopefully this will keep them short for a while.

It's kind of a crappy pic, but this shows just how many clones are available on this girl, for bonsai, she's overgrown

from below the canopy

This is Wonder Woman mom II

I was trying to bonsai these two plants but I think I've managed to LST them instead...if I was to put the bigger one into 12/12 now, she'd produce mega buds, she has so many nodes I can't count them all

And the newest babies...cable boxed on 12-26, cubed on 12-28, popped on 12-30...they are now about 10 days old

OG kush x ultimate

Pineapple Express

for a while I thought PE wasn't going to make it...but she's improving and now has a good looking 2nd set of leaves.

I've been feeding Miracle Grow in the range of 400ppm with 6.0 pH, the GH floranova Grow wasn't giving them enough, since I've been feeding the MG they have improved considerably

That's it for now, hope you enjoy



Happy Growing Everybody

 

[420fied]

Now THAT group photo is the way a 2 Liter SOG should look. You're definitely getting the hang of it Sqwheels! You'll find that those single cola'd SOG plants are much easier to trim and work with. You're on your way and I LOVE seeing it! Your garden has really shaped up and your plants are looking delicious. You've came a long way. I'm proud of you...and you should be proud of yourself.

I'd rep you but it says I have to spread some love first... lol.

 

[Vapedogg223]

Hi Fratdogg,

Thanks for looking in...Wow, great visual, but there's nothing for reference, how big was that pile? And what does mom look like now?

seems so extreme to chop that much off.

I've fixed things in the veg room...seedlings are about 4" from the lights now, that should help them

I'll be posting an update and new pics later today...

Sorry about that, I wasn't thinking about exactly how much, just wanted to help you get over tossing out potential clones...here's a pic with the chair as a better reference:

The table is 24x48 inches... Much of what's there would be too small, but I would guess there was probably 50 clones worth in the pile. Maybe it's a bit extreme, but she was getting bigger than her roots could support. Trust me, root bound or not, plants will outgrow their container!

I also cut her way back because I'm thinking it's time for a root pruning. She's definitely looking a bit rough right now, but I had to downsize her now that I'll be adding mothers for four more strains. I just don't need to take 30-40 cuttings at a time from her anymore. Thought I'd give her another run in POTM with some new pics of her previous self this month since she'll have a makeover for next time.

I really need to pick up some books on the art of bonsai. I know that much won't apply for our purposes, but I would like to learn the correct way to shape branches, etc. So far I've just been going with my gut, but I guess it's worked out okay.

Great photo update! It looks like you have the size right where you wanted them this time, and the look super healthy!

Your moms are looking great too! Just be careful tying them down like that as they get bigger. Once they start to get woody, the branches don't want to bend as easily and the plant will literally pull itself apart at the joints as it tries to grow. I've had good luck using wire wrapped around the branches so I could bend a branch at any point without putting stress on the joints. Now is definitely the time to get them in what ever shape you want them in.

 

[sqwheels]

Now THAT group photo is the way a 2 Liter SOG should look. You're definitely getting the hang of it Sqwheels! You'll find that those single cola'd SOG plants are much easier to trim and work with. You're on your way and I LOVE seeing it! Your garden has really shaped up and your plants are looking delicious. You've came a long way. I'm proud of you...and you should be proud of yourself.

I'd rep you but it says I have to spread some love first... lol.

Hi 420fied,

It's so nice of you to say all that...it put a huge smile on my face. I am proud of my garden...but could not have done it without all the help and guidance I've gotten here @ 420... so much

Defoliate on Friday then I'll see them put on some weight...thanks for looking in on my journal.

 

[sqwheels]

Hey Frat,

Wow...amazing. I did not think there was so much there from the original pic you posted, wow. Can't wait to see her pic in the POTM contest. For not having a book on bonsai you've done a great job at it... I've only been pinching the growing tips back as her arms get a bit long for the space, and try to keep the middle open enough to let in light. I'll need clones in about 6-7 weeks, she'll be more than ready... then she'll get a good chop job.

When are you gonna get that journal up on bonsai?

I'm looking for a tutorial

 

[Mr. Krip]

When the "pro bonsai guys" do a bonsai, they wrap the branches in copper wire/banding, and can then bend the branch into any shape they want. After a while, they remove the wire and the branches retain the shape.

IMHO, that would be a lot of fun, but a little to much work for our purposes. I'm finding a combination of pruning and LST let's me get the branches where I want them. Of course, I'm doing it less for the esthetics and more for trying to maximize growth shoots in the smaller footprint.

Here's a quick video that gives you an idea on Bonsai, but I believe he's using a Juniper bush:

How to make a Bonsai Tree - YouTube

 

[Vapedogg223]

Hey Frat,

Wow...amazing. I did not think there was so much there from the original pic you posted, wow. Can't wait to see her pic in the POTM contest. For not having a book on bonsai you've done a great job at it... I've only been pinching the growing tips back as her arms get a bit long for the space, and try to keep the middle open enough to let in light. I'll need clones in about 6-7 weeks, she'll be more than ready... then she'll get a good chop job.

When are you gonna get that journal up on bonsai?

I'm looking for a tutorial

for the kind words!

I also tossed a bunch of cuttings from my new plants today. For quite a while I would always root maybe 5-10 of the cuttings I was throwing away, just to try and perfect my technique, then I would toss the clones. It was that experimentation that had me abandon a couple different DIY cloners and switch to rooting directly in soil...for my setup it was easier, and I average pretty close to 100% success now. Although, I will probably splurge and pick up a TurboKlone if I ever get my new grow room up and running...

6-7 Weeks is plenty of time! You can take some cuttings now and in 7 weeks you'll be able to take twice as many! I'm just kidding with you, don't stress, you're getting everything dialed in, just follow your instincts, the plants will let you know what is best, you just need to be listening.

I still want to start a journal on my moms, thing's around here have been a bit crazy for the past 3 months, but I have had some time lately...and I do have a bunch of potential bonsai moms going now... Possibly some day soon... I could never call it a tutorial though... I'm still learning myself.

 

[OldMedMan]

420fied said it all sqwheels. If you didn't say a thing.....your girls and the set up look professional. Well done, my friend!

 

[Vapedogg223]

When the "pro bonsai guys" do a bonsai, they wrap the branches in copper wire/banding, and can then bend the branch into any shape they want. After a while, they remove the wire and the branches retain the shape.

IMHO, that would be a lot of fun, but a little to much work for our purposes. I'm finding a combination of pruning and LST let's me get the branches where I want them. Of course, I'm doing it less for the esthetics and more for trying to maximize growth shoots in the smaller footprint.

Cool little video! I didn't think to check YouTube to get some ideas. That's pretty much what I did with mine... Once you get the wire on it there's not too much else to do. I would love to see if there are different techniques to doing it, what gauge wire is used for what, if there are specific bonsai tools to make the job easier, etc. I was just flying by the seat of my pants and got lucky!