The Gee Spot - You Finally Found It

[JiggiLotus]

It is likely the entire issue. Compost should be used like EWC. Mulch needs to be chunky and carbon, like bark mulch. I would take it off.

Thats ok, thats how sips were originally intended to work. They used to be called plant saucers when I was a kid.

Who? More to the point, was it me? If so we likely got our wires crossed. I can't see any advantage to biochar unless it's used like it was in the amazon, to carbonize SHITTY soil. Good soil already has carbon.

5% or less, sure if it makes you happy, and thats very important, but it holds water, thats it's job.

Or cut it into a huge batch to water it down.

8 hours max and the res needs to be dry, less is better. 15 minutes is best.

Thats how I evolved to drippers. I'm lazy like that

The 2 being top and bottom watering?

I never bottom water unless I'm pot drenching to fix calcium or dry spots.

Good soil carbon IS a reservoir, you don't need 2 of them. You saw how the roots grew into wood in my rootball dissection, SIPS can't compete with that.

Those roots are drilled right into the CEC, exactly where they need to be in organics.

Bark mulch will promote that too, and very well.

Don't use cedar or walnut or dyed bark. All 3 are toxic to vegetables.

I use a product called Seasoil. Google it and see if you can find or make something similar.

I despise mulch, I see people use it often, I think it's just a better way to create fungus and molds. Cedar is definitely toxic stuff. Alive or dead.
Makes for cool home decor tho.

 

[Gee64]

I despise mulch, I see people use it often, I think it's just a better way to create fungus and molds. Cedar is definitely toxic stuff. Alive or dead.
Makes for cool home decor tho.

I strive for fungus and molds. It is the LOS manager. Fungus is my most expensive input. $100/lb.

You use a lot of liquid feeds if I recall correctly? I think? Thats a different style that works really well also. Myco likes the mulch and it brings roots up to the surface so that part of your soil gets eaten too.

 

[Keffka]

I despise mulch, I see people use it often, I think it's just a better way to create fungus and molds. Cedar is definitely toxic stuff. Alive or dead.
Makes for cool home decor tho.

Ill soapbox a bit

Fungus is the single most important aspect of terrestrial plants. Without it, nothing would’ve left the ocean and we’d all be fish. Nature usually mulches herself with grass or canopy cover. When that’s not available it’s on us humans to provide it. We were born of this planet, as part of this web. We’ve allowed religion and capitalism to distort our perspectives and believe we are masters of this domain when we’re really just players.

 

[Azimuth]

Who? More to the point, was it me? If so we likely got our wires crossed. I can't see any advantage to biochar unless it's used like it was in the amazon, to carbonize SHITTY soil. Good soil already has carbon.

5% or less, sure if it makes you happy, and thats very important, but it holds water, thats it's job.

"WAS IT ME?"

YES IT WAS YOU!


I said...

The first change is swapping one part of the organics for one more part perlite. I have been researching and the standard recommended max level of organics from many of the soil scientists seems to be about 25% so I would be under that and,

Second I am going to move the biochar part over to the amendments section and treat it similarly. So, rather than a full liter in the soil I would add 2-4 tablespoons. I still want it in there for its benefits (good cec input, good microbe habitat, good moisture storing), but want to decrease its affect on water retention.

Both of these adjustments should help with the aeration and drainage of the soil which i think we both agree is likely the majority of my issues. I could just let the mix be and try it in subsequent rounds but I think I'd prefer being too dry for a change rather than too wet.

All of the inputs would remain the same, I'd just put them together in a slightly different way to improve aeration.

Any objections?

And you said...

Yes, don't change anything until brix stalls.
You have no baseline yet. Patience is the fastest way.

So, I mixed up another batch with the same recipe as the last one.

But, it's all good. This will allow me to make the changes, and see any reactions, one at a time.

First change was with watering, everything else stayed the same. That one change alone got brix moving up smartly. That's with Plant 1.

Plant 2 got the 'old is new again' design with the much smaller footer, so more of a mechanical SIP inner working change.

Plant three will get the same mix, same old is new design, but this time with a large Net Pot holding the mix and hopefully allowing much improved air infusion sides and bottom, much like is seen with fabric pots. This will be the plant the most recent soil was mixed for and is for a player to be named later.

Assuming that round goes well Plant 4 will get a slightly different mix where I exchange the one part (of 10) of biochar for one part more of aeration (perlite most likely). I still may add a couple of tablespoons of biochar, but will treat it like I do my amendments.

That will still put me at 30% organics and above the 25% maximum I hear soil scientists preach about, but that's something I can play around with once these more mechanical changes are evaluated.

Compost should be used like EWC. Mulch needs to be chunky and carbon, like bark mulch. I would take it off.

I'll compromise and band it up in a ring between the stock and the pot edge, exposing soil surface directly to the air.

Or cut it into a huge batch to water it down.

That's not going to happen. I'm happy enough living with it at the moment and I want to see what I learn from the changes already in the hopper to better inform future mods.

8 hours max and the res needs to be dry, less is better. 15 minutes is best.

I mis-spoke. The reservoir on that plant was empty almost immediately as the soil quickly absorbed the drippings. It was the other, newer plant that hasn't quite caught yet that has a small reservoir level. That's the one with the smaller footer.

 

[Azimuth]

Just tried out the new single pole moisture meters. Wow, what a difference. Actually both in ease of use and results. Curious.

I think what's happening is if the probe is touching a piece of hydroton, the reading gets skewed higher. And, with double probes on my old meter and the 30% hydroton in my mix, it's nearly impossible to probe deeply without hitting a few of the clay balls.

That would make sense since those balls hold onto moisture pretty well. I'm not sure yet and I'll have to see if it is consistent with the new single probe meter I'm using now, but that's what it seems like at first blush.

So, my soil has been too wet for sure, but I was also probably getting skewed results making it look wetter than it really was.

I also took a new brix reading and got an 11, so a little better but really not much different from yesterday. I did push the compost mulch up into a ring around the middle of the pot, so the soil is exposed both at the outer edge as well as around the plant stem. I'll probably take another reading tomorrow.

And, maybe it's just with more practice but getting that blasted drop of sap out went quite a bit easier this time. The changes were I rolled the wad around in my fingers for a few minutes until the color turned a much darker green suggesting the moisture was being liberated, and then I used a larger pair of pliers to squeeze the wad between a couple of coins.

My grandfather used to say something like "If what you're doing is hard to do, you're either not hitting it hard enough or using a big enough hammer."

Seems he's right again.

 

[Gee64]

"WAS IT ME?"

YES IT WAS YOU!


I said...


And you said...

lol what I meant was don't do anything until you see what this mix can do, as in don't go making a new mix until you know how this mix does. But I think this mix will do well with more tweaks, or maybe none at all if you can get it to a nice steady 5.

The plants (4 weeks since flip) are ready for a steady moisture content now. Steady air content actually.

The race is over, they aren't growing for the sky anymore, they are now fortifying what they have, and time is limited so they need a steady supply of proper air so the plant can use the rootball that wet/dry built.

This is where they put on weight without cycling. They need constance to get lazy and fatten up. Minerals and microbes and steady O2. They need to build sugars to fatten up now. The microbes can't afford any suffocation or your weight will suffer.

And in my defence, I did say patience is key

So, I mixed up another batch with the same recipe as the last one.

Didn't Einstein say something about this?

But, it's all good. This will allow me to make the changes, and see any reactions, one at a time.

First change was with watering, everything else stayed the same. That one change alone got brix moving up smartly. That's with Plant 1.

Plant 2 got the 'old is new again' design with the much smaller footer, so more of a mechanical SIP inner working change.

Plant three will get the same mix, same old is new design, but this time with a large Net Pot holding the mix and hopefully allowing much improved air infusion sides and bottom, much like is seen with fabric pots. This will be the plant the most recent soil was mixed for and is for a player to be named later.

Assuming that round goes well Plant 4 will get a slightly different mix where I exchange the one part (of 10) of biochar for one part more of aeration (perlite most likely). I still may add a couple of tablespoons of biochar, but will treat it like I do my amendments.

I like a few tbsp

That will still put me at 30% organics and above the 25% maximum I hear soil scientists preach about, but that's something I can play around with once these more mechanical changes are evaluated.

You can get it down to 25% by adding more perlite in.

I'll compromise and band it up in a ring between the stock and the pot edge, exposing soil surface directly to the air.

I would remove it.

That's not going to happen. I'm happy enough living with it at the moment and I want to see what I learn from the changes in the hopper to better inform future mods.

Can't arguecwith that

I mis-spoke. The reservoir on that plant was empty almost immediately as the soil quickly absorbed the drippings. It was the other, newer plant that hasn't quite caught yet that has a small reservoir level. That's the one with the smaller footer.

Ok good, it should absorb in quickly.

After it absorbed in was it evenly moist, with a gradient of course, but without dry spots?

 

[Azimuth]

After it absorbed in was it evenly moist, with a gradient of course, but without dry spots?

I'd say mostly yes but, new meter so...

 

[Gee64]

I'd say mostly yes but, new meter so...

You would know if there were dry spots, so I would say your soil is good

So on your plants that have finished stretch, you need to treat them a bit differently.

You really need to strive to keep them in the green zone PLUS, and this is important to dial the strain in, look up the original seed description and see if it says anything about liking drier or wetter, or drought tolerance, or anything like that at all that pertains to moisture.

If it likes drier, or is more drought tolerant, you should aim for a bit to the drier side of green, and if it says not very drought hardy, or wetter, you should lean to the wetter side of the green, but never, other than right after watering, get out of the green. What it is really telling you is how much air the roots like.

Now that's getting a bit finicky, but once you get watering figured in general, thats how you go from pretty nice to show quality. It's huge for getting the terpenes the seed company claims are there.

The seed descriptions are usually quite generous if you speak the lingo.

 

[Azimuth]

The seed descriptions are usually quite generous if you speak the lingo.

Growing With Wedding Cake Feminized Seeds (Indoors And Outdoors)

Growing Wedding Cake marijuana seeds is easy as pie. This highly forgiving strain can be grown in most indoor and outdoor environments.

Due to her landrace heritage and strong genetic lineage, Wedding Cake is resistant to virtually anything that may influence your grow. Temperature fluctuations, mold, diseases, and pests are no issue for plants grown from feminized Wedding Cake seeds.

Wedding Cake weed plants have that quintessential indica-like appearance: short and bushy with thick foliage. Her buds are large, spring-green tinged with red and pink hues. Due to their sunset orange hairs, the dense buds stand out even more. Furthermore, Wedding Cake buds are covered under a thick layer of glistening THC crystals.

When you grow Wedding Cake seeds you don't have to worry about any males since these feminized seeds have been cultivated in such a manner that they contain no male chromosomes.

 

[Gee64]

Growing With Wedding Cake Feminized Seeds (Indoors And Outdoors)

Growing Wedding Cake marijuana seeds is easy as pie. This highly forgiving strain can be grown in most indoor and outdoor environments.

Due to her landrace heritage and strong genetic lineage, Wedding Cake is resistant to virtually anything that may influence your grow. Temperature fluctuations, mold, diseases, and pests are no issue for plants grown from feminized Wedding Cake seeds.

Wedding Cake weed plants have that quintessential indica-like appearance: short and bushy with thick foliage. Her buds are large, spring-green tinged with red and pink hues. Due to their sunset orange hairs, the dense buds stand out even more. Furthermore, Wedding Cake buds are covered under a thick layer of glistening THC crystals.

When you grow Wedding Cake seeds you don't have to worry about any males since these feminized seeds have been cultivated in such a manner that they contain no male chromosomes.

Sounds like anywhere in the green will work. Forgiving is excellent

 

[Azimuth]

Now that's getting a bit finicky, but once you get watering figured in general, thats how you go from pretty nice to show quality. It's huge for getting the terpenes the seed company claims are there.

I've never really had good terps so I'm looking forward to that. I get hints of what the write-ups say is there but nothing dramatic so this will be a big improvement. Better terps mean better medicine .

 

[Gee64]

I've never really had good terps so I'm looking forward to that. I get hints of what the write-ups say is there but nothing dramatic so this will be a big improvement. Better terps mean better medicine .

It does. Higher potency is probable too.

I noticed with my swick experiment that terps were about half and the skunky smell completely disappeared.

The potency was far lower however weed being weed and never ceasing to amaze you, the buzz was fantastic.

Better than normal but you needed more so the lungs paid the price, and yield was small so it was a double whammy of negative.

 

[Gee64]

Yesterday was really busy but today should be the last of that, at least for a day or two. I need to finish trimming, clean the tent, dissect both rootballs, and finish my premix.

Once I get the last of the used soil and dolomite in it will sit for 1 more week, then the ammendments next week and cooking can begin.

It should work great with the timing of the current grow.

I may sprout in solos just to speed the overall process up by a couple weeks.

I need to uppot the Tortured Souls too.

 

[Azimuth]

It does. Higher potency is probable too.

I noticed with my swick experiment that terps were about half and the skunky smell completely disappeared.

The potency was far lower however weed being weed and never ceasing to amaze you, the buzz was fantastic.

Better than normal but you needed more so the lungs paid the price, and yield was small so it was a double whammy of negative.

Hard to believe I've been so close to the answer for so long. The meter is an interesting tool. My definition of a light pot that needs watering is apparently different from the meter's.

And now that it's easier to check with the single probe, and I've figured out an easier way to get a drop of sap to check brix, watching those two interact will be more of a fun experience than a chore that I dreaded, so I'm apt to be checking more frequently.

And both of those will help me better dial in my mix so I appreciate you working with me on this.


Kind of feels like therapy sessions open to the world to watch. Probably should have done it via dm Lol.

 

[Carmen Ray]

Hard to believe I've been so close to the answer for so long. The meter is an interesting tool. My definition of a light pot that needs watering is apparently different from the meter's.

And now that it's easier to check with the single probe, and I've figured out an easier way to get a drop of sap to check brix, watching those two interact will be more of a fun experience than a chore that I dreaded, so I'm apt to be checking more frequently.

And both of those will help me better dial in my mix so I appreciate you working with me on this.


Kind of feels like therapy sessions open to the world to watch. Probably should have done it via dm Lol.

If you had, we wouldn't have the benefit of learning too.

 

[Gidorah]

If you had, we wouldn't have the benefit of learning too.

I agree with Carmen, thanks to you and Gee

 

[StoneOtter]

Thank you guys!

 

[Gee64]

Hard to believe I've been so close to the answer for so long. The meter is an interesting tool. My definition of a light pot that needs watering is apparently different from the meter's.

And now that it's easier to check with the single probe, and I've figured out an easier way to get a drop of sap to check brix, watching those two interact will be more of a fun experience than a chore that I dreaded, so I'm apt to be checking more frequently.

And both of those will help me better dial in my mix so I appreciate you working with me on this.

No thanks Azi... recipes...envelope...I know leg breakers...jus sayin...

Kind of feels like therapy sessions open to the world to watch. Probably should have done it via dm Lol.

No here is best, It's why I started Gee Spot.

It keeps other threads cleaner and all the mumbo jumble ends up in here instead. Otherwise I have to repeat myself even more than I already do.

I knew you were close when I 1st met you in the Sips room, but change takes time. They don't work in a persons mind until they see the process up to the point of contention. Synergy.

If you always top water on your future grows that haven't started yet and let the sips deal with the runoff you will get another notch up out of the deal.

And then start your sprouts in the final containers and you get the last notch up, but wait on that one, you will need to water Emilya style there.

Seeds in final containers are a PITA but worth it. You don't need that hassle yet. Trust me on that one.

Get this watering into a natural habit 1st, and enjoy sipping for awhile.

 

[Gee64]

You are all very welcome, of course and as always

 

[KeyFinger]

Hey guys! How it's going?