The Gee Spot - You Finally Found It

[Gee64]

This is the rootball of the swick pot that was pulled from a large swick when it started to really hurt the plant, and placed into a 3-4 gallons of perlite smaller swick and top watered for about the last 6 weeks of flower. All the water roots were outside the pot hanging into the perlite and once top watering started the bag quickly filled with feeder roots very typical of what I get when I only top water.

This is the other clone that was removed from its large swick at the same time as the above one, but I immefiately shaved all water roots off the bottom of the pot and then only topwatered it without it being put into a swick of any size.

Here it is lightly shaken out

It had better feeder roots but the shock of being shaved (I'm assuming here) stunted it for a couple weeks and its yield was considerably less.

I think that if I had only top watered one and had used a swick reservoir of perlite the same size as the amount of perlite in the pot on the other, and filled that reservoir via top watering runoff wothout filling to the point of having standing water in the reservoir, the only top watered one would have still done better but I don't definitively know.

My next venture in swicking sometime later down the road of life will start there with a side by side cloned comparison. If anyone is interested in starting that test now please tag me as I would love to tag along.

 

[Azimuth]

If anyone is interested in starting that test now please tag me as I would love to tag along.

What, like the rest of us don't have enough experiments going on at the moment? Sheesh...

 

[StoneOtter]

I'm sorry for your family's loss Gee. Take good care please.

 

[Gee64]

I'm sorry for your family's loss Gee. Take good care please.

Thanks Stone. We are getting there. Time.

 

[Jon]

This is the rootball of the swick pot that was pulled from a large swick when it started to really hurt the plant, and placed into a 3-4 gallons of perlite smaller swick and top watered for about the last 6 weeks of flower. All the water roots were outside the pot hanging into the perlite and once top watering started the bag quickly filled with feeder roots very typical of what I get when I only top water.

This is the other clone that was removed from its large swick at the same time as the above one, but I immefiately shaved all water roots off the bottom of the pot and then only topwatered it without it being put into a swick of any size.

Here it is lightly shaken out

It had better feeder roots but the shock of being shaved (I'm assuming here) stunted it for a couple weeks and its yield was considerably less.

I think that if I had only top watered one and had used a swick reservoir of perlite the same size as the amount of perlite in the pot on the other, and filled that reservoir via top watering runoff wothout filling to the point of having standing water in the reservoir, the only top watered one would have still done better but I don't definitively know.

My next venture in swicking sometime later down the road of life will start there with a side by side cloned comparison. If anyone is interested in starting that test now please tag me as I would love to tag along.

They’re still sexy as hell. Maybe not up to your standards but that’s a sweet rootball for soil to my inexperienced eyes.

 

[Gee64]

They’re still sexy as hell. Maybe not up to your standards but that’s a sweet rootball for soil to my inexperienced eyes.

Thanks Jon

The rootballs actually made an amazing turn around. Far better than I ever would have imagined for being in full bloom already.

I have always chose to feed my way out of deficiencies once in flower but moving forward I won't hesitate to do an uppotting if I still have a few weeks to go before harvest.

I see now that roots never stop growing.

 

[Jon]

Thanks Jon

The rootballs actually made an amazing turn around. Far better than I ever would have imagined for being in full bloom already.

I have always chose to feed my way out of deficiencies once in flower but moving forward I won't hesitate to do an uppotting if I still have a few weeks to go before harvest.

I see now that roots never stop growing.

Did you think they had a limit before or something? That doesn’t seem possible. I mean, why would they ever stop growing?

 

[Jon]

Did you think they had a limit before or something? That doesn’t seem possible. I mean, why would they ever stop growing?

I used that exact setup with Prescription Blend on my go to yield auto and got roots that would blow your mind. My auto record from that at 13.8 jarred and trimmed. The roots filled the whole lower res (mine was 30 gallon as that appears to be?). But every other time I tried it it didn’t work the same.

 

[Jon]

I used that exact setup with Prescription Blend on my go to yield auto and got roots that would blow your mind. My auto record from that at 13.8 jarred and trimmed. The roots filled the whole lower res (mine was 30 gallon as that appears to be?). But every other time I tried it it didn’t work the same.

Not swick though, just water res after coco pot top.

 

[Jon]

Do you think a root ball as well formed as that is possible with a Geo/RGR grow like I’m doing, or do roots like that depend on your own soil mix? The soil part up top I mean. Or is it entirely a function of watering?

 

[StoneOtter]

Did you think they had a limit before or something? That doesn’t seem possible. I mean, why would they ever stop growing?

I think it was kind of general knowledge that they slowed a lot at flip. p\Probably not true.

 

[Gee64]

Did you think they had a limit before or something? That doesn’t seem possible. I mean, why would they ever stop growing?

No I didn't think they had a limit but I did think that once a plant flips from vegetative to reproductive that roots wouldn't grow that prolifically. I thunked wrong apparently

It's a good day when you learn something new.

Once I find the sweet spot on my new light and get my style dialed in to it, I will try an uppotting right after stretch vs a feeding of a sister clone in a smaller pot and see which harvests better, and compare both of those to sprouting in the final container.

And I want to try out my 40 gallon cloth pot.

And I want to increase calcium yet again and find it's limit.

and......

and.....

 

[Gee64]

Actually, now that I ponder it, @Keffka would be the perfect guy to compare feeding a small pot to harvest vs uppotting right after stretch seeing that he's about to start messing with clones and definitely knows how to feed a small pot.....

Jus sayin Keff.....

 

[Carmen Ray]

The rootballs actually made an amazing turn around. Far better than I ever would have imagined for being in full bloom already.

I was very surprised at the health of my root balls too after removing them from the swick. Yours grew more into the res but you were using a perlite res, so it happens more easily. On top the wicking pad I used, the roots did grow through but must have been air pruned because not to the same extent. I can't help thinking that the swick method did something right because I don't usually get a pot full of roots similar to this from top feeding alone.

 

[Gee64]

Day 42 of veg. 14 more days minimum to flower.

I released all restraints yesterday afternoon. Plant #1 in the bottom left is almost there. #2 in the top left and #4 in the bottom right are getting there but still a ways to go, #3 in the top right is a much smaller pheno and actually closer to being shaped than it looks.

Do you think a root ball as well formed as that is possible with a Geo/RGR grow like I’m doing, or do roots like that depend on your own soil mix? The soil part up top I mean. Or is it entirely a function of watering?

I'm not sure to be honest Jon, I have used a commercial blend called Bluesky Organics Supersoil, which works well and builds great roots, and then I have used my own mix which I have experimented a lot with but keep coming back to Rev's mix more or less, and have always had good rootballs.

I started getting big feather dusters when I switched to cloth pots.

I also ran into @Emilya Green about the same time and she corrected my watering practices which may have (and likely were) a big contributor to better roots.

I have since switched to dripper lines which have really dialed it in.

Also when I sprout in final pots I get fuller rootballs sooner.

So it's likely a combination of those things, and then there is my odd way of sprouting, which has upped everything across the board.

Now this grow has 25% more calcium added right at planting so it will be fun to see if that effected the roots.

I mainly put my effort into my soil/microbiome and watering to build roots, training to get good light penetration, and then whatever plants I get are a by-product of that.

I really don't put much effort into the plants themselves.

I'm not sure what a Geo/RGR grow is and this month has been so distracting I apologize for not following, I have so many journals to catch up on.

I just finished reading @Lerugged 's Table Mountain journal. Wow thats a great one, and have caught up on @StoneOtter 's.

I have kept up with @Carmen Ray 's, @Azimuth 's and @Keffka 's and I know I have popped in and out of yours but I need to do a full read. @InTheShed 's too.

Can you clue me in please to what Geo/RGR is?

 

[Gee64]

I was very surprised at the health of my root balls too after removing them from the swick. Yours grew more into the res but you were using a perlite res, so it happens more easily. On top the wicking pad I used, the roots did grow through but must have been air pruned because not to the same extent. I can't help thinking that the swick method did something right because I don't usually get a pot full of roots similar to this from top feeding alone.

Different strains grow different rootballs too Carmen. I mainly grow Durban so I expect what I get. You also grow auto's, of which I have never tried, but from what I hear and read they can be very hit and miss. I guess you will just have to keep the science rolling Girl! Find that repeatable path that gets them big rootballs. I think EWC and generous amounts of reputable myco helps too. Dang I loved those colors you just harvested

 

[Gee64]

Today was the 1st day since the heavy pruning that I could spare a leaf. It brixed at 12 so in 2 weeks when it's flip time things should be fine.

 

[StoneOtter]

Day 42 of veg. 14 more days minimum to flower.

I released all restraints yesterday afternoon. Plant #1 in the bottom left is almost there. #2 in the top left and #4 in the bottom right are getting there but still a ways to go, #3 in the top right is a much smaller pheno and actually closer to being shaped than it looks.

I'm not sure to be honest Jon, I have used a commercial blend called Bluesky Organics Supersoil, which works well and builds great roots, and then I have used my own mix which I have experimented a lot with but keep coming back to Rev's mix more or less, and have always had good rootballs.

I started getting big feather dusters when I switched to cloth pots.

I also ran into @Emilya Green about the same time and she corrected my watering practices which may have (and likely were) a big contributor to better roots.

I have since switched to dripper lines which have really dialed it in.

Also when I sprout in final pots I get fuller rootballs sooner.

So it's likely a combination of those things, and then there is my odd way of sprouting, which has upped everything across the board.

Now this grow has 25% more calcium added right at planting so it will be fun to see if that effected the roots.

I mainly put my effort into my soil/microbiome and watering to build roots, training to get good light penetration, and then whatever plants I get are a by-product of that.

I really don't put much effort into the plants themselves.

I'm not sure what a Geo/RGR grow is and this month has been so distracting I apologize for not following, I have so many journals to catch up on.

I just finished reading @Lerugged 's Table Mountain journal. Wow thats a great one, and have caught up on @StoneOtter 's.

I have kept up with @Carmen Ray 's, @Azimuth 's and @Keffka 's and I know I have popped in and out of yours but I need to do a full read. @InTheShed 's too.

Can you clue me in please to what Geo/RGR is?

Love the training technique Gee! Two weeks to blastoff!

 

[Gee64]

Love the training technique Gee! Two weeks to blastoff!

Hopefully they are ready right on day 56

 

[Gee64]

Day 43 of veg

A view from the front door. Plant #1 front left and plant #4 front right are the 2 bushier phenos.

A view from the back door where plant #2 front right and plant #3 front left are the lankier phenos.

The training is still ongoing but most tops are in place. As stretch happens they will get flexed from above into a more equal pattern.

I upped the light to 70% a few days ago and the gals are loving it. Today it went to 75% and I am 38" from the light, 16 inches tall from the soil. At 21 inches from the soil I only have enough room left for them to double in height at stretch, but I can still flex every top downwards at least 2 more inches on the manifold so that will be what I start working on now for the remaining 13 days of veg.

I also topdressed each pot with 1/4 tablespoon of flower topdressing to start getting ahead and pretty soon the mulch will go on to allow the roots to move upwards into the top 2" of the pots, but not yet.

Thats where all the goodies are and I want that to power stretch so the piggies can't have it quite yet. They can have the calcium and whatever else trickles down but the main course gets reserved for stretch. Tomorrow they get fish for dinner.

Today auto watering starts. I have been manually activating the drippers but it's time to go for constant steady sauna-like soil so they get 6 minutes of dripper twice a day. Soon that won't be enough but for now it will be.

Plant #2 brixed at 17 with a very fuzzy calcium line from a lower leaf.

The odd node is starting to stagger but still no pre-flowers.