The Munki's Playground

Plants looking beautiful as always, Munki! Sorry to hear you are battling temp and PM issues, but seems like you're winning the battle overall. Sending positive vibes your way hoping that those buds fatten up big time for you. Don't blame you for ditching the moms - I haven't had to deal with PM yet, but I know I'd not want to either. Keep fighting the good fight, brother!

:cheertwo:
 
Morning Munki beautiful pics as always!

How late into flower would you be comfortable using the SNS?

"Flower day 43, starting week 8"

You mean week 7 right?

:peace:
 
Xlr8 said:
Plants looking beautiful as always, Munki! Sorry to hear you are battling temp and PM issues, but seems like you're winning the battle overall. Sending positive vibes your way hoping that those buds fatten up big time for you. Don't blame you for ditching the moms - I haven't had to deal with PM yet, but I know I'd not want to either. Keep fighting the good fight, brother!

:cheertwo:
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This strain just is highly susceptible to PM but is manageable. I will want to grow something different in the future though.

Temps are what they are. I didn't think 58 degrees F was too low, but maybe it is if it happens at critical points in the grow. I'm trusting Mr. Smith's advice here as he has much more experience than I.

BlueDog said:
Morning Munki beautiful pics as always!

How late into flower would you be comfortable using the SNS?

"Flower day 43, starting week 8"

You mean week 7 right?

:peace:
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Heh, I wasn't even :smokin2:! Yeah, you're right, they are starting week 7. Good catch.

With the SNS spray, it is labeled as food grade and not known to be harmful. It is derived from Thyme with thymol being the most likely primary ingredient. Look up Thymol on Wikipedia. It would appear to be safe to use right up to harvest, though may affect the plant's smell a bit. Hard to say for sure.
 
Was rereading your previous post and see that you add Silica. I don't think a lot of people do, but I have to say that it's one thing I'll never stop adding. Of all the things that don't work, Silica isn't one of them, imho. I've found that it really does a nice job of fattening and strengthening stems and branches. Have you always used it, or something you've added more recently?
 
Was away for a while. Glad you're still growing - I've enjoyed your journals here from the first one. Must have had 100 posts or more to read to get caught up. Looks like you've battled adversity here between the PM, the multiple PS failures on the LEDs, and the pump overrun. But you've handled everything in stride, and things look great.
 
Xlr8 said:
Was rereading your previous post and see that you add Silica. I don't think a lot of people do, but I have to say that it's one thing I'll never stop adding. Of all the things that don't work, Silica isn't one of them, imho. I've found that it really does a nice job of fattening and strengthening stems and branches. Have you always used it, or something you've added more recently?
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The silica is something new for me. Been using it throughout this whole grow. From seeing the pH drop after about a week after mixing up a nutrient batch, I figure the plants use it up. I'm thinking of adding it back to the reservoir instead of pH up to regulate the pH and further strengthen the plants.

TorturedSoul said:
Was away for a while. Glad you're still growing - I've enjoyed your journals here from the first one. Must have had 100 posts or more to read to get caught up. Looks like you've battled adversity here between the PM, the multiple PS failures on the LEDs, and the pump overrun. But you've handled everything in stride, and things look great.
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Glad to see you around TS! :party: Hope all is well with you in all areas of your life my friend.

Control bucket failure did happen once but I don't think it was simply a float valve going awry. It happened early in the grow and with new tubing, I noticed that a nutrient like skin would come out of the tubing. Figure it is residue from the tubing manufacturing process interacting with the nutrients and that skin/sludge interfered with the float valve. I don't see that stuff anymore and have had zero problems with the ebb and flow. :wood:
 
Flower day 47. Santa Ana winds have kept the temps up and humidity down the past few days. Nights are actually a bit colder without the usual morning cloud cover. The low temp would match with the high RH% readings and vice versa.

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I figure the wide temp swings mimic the conditions in the Mendocino Forest in Nor Cal during late fall. Too bad the buds did not fill out; the resin is getting dense where there is buds. The pics do not do them justice. They actually sparkle like diamonds! :rasta:

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By the way, the pH has been dropping over the past few days and more precipitously of late. Got down to 5.2 this morning. Decided to add back more Silica instead of pH up. Added 25 ml (1ml per gallon) to the reservoir which brought the pH to 5.6. Got back from work 9 hours later and the pH has already started its march back lower.

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Planning on using the silica for a while as I'm thinking that the plants are sucking it up.
 
Munki said:
Too bad the buds did not fill out
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Have you thought about raising your LEDs a fair bit (in a future grow) to see if it helps, possibly by allowing the various frequencies to more fully blend?

Regarding your pH - if the plants are indeed sucking up lots of silica, that would account for it. Have you been able to substantiate that hypothesis somewhat via EC & water consumption fluctuations? (Have you noticed if adding the product affects the EC, and if so how much so that you can infer its uptake by the reverse behavior?)

Is there any possibility that you've got some form of life sharing the reservoir?

My last experience with a silica product was a bad one, lol: I added GH's Rare Earth in its little bag to a multi-plant DWC reservoir and left for 2½ days. I returned to see that the bag had become disloged - and opened - probably by either one of the airstones or the massive action from the power head. pH had gone up like a rocket and the plants looked like they'd all been microwaved for 20 minutes. Completely gone, wilted. (But I don't blame the product.)
 
Morning guys! Plants are looking beautiful Munki, sorry they're not denser but I'd take them :)

I started using Silica this last grow to strengthen the stems, but at about half the recommended dosage. Does it have other benefits too? Should I bump up my usage? Thanks and take care :peace:
 
Blue, what exactly is the Silica supposed to be benefcial for ?
 
BlueDog said:
Hey naphtali how's things? I got it to strengthen the stems, the plants grow so fast in hydro/hempy that the stems/branches can lack the strength to hold up the buds. It's also supposed to help the plant retain water.
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all is well Blue, just wondered about that cause i had crazy trunks/stems on my plants in flood/drain...is it strain specific that may have issues in hydro?
 
naphtali5725 said:
all is well Blue, just wondered about that cause i had crazy trunks/stems on my plants in flood/drain...is it strain specific that may have issues in hydro?
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Glad all is well naphtali! Honestly I don't know much more about it, I've been using it this grow & haven't noticed anything different, but my clones are so small it's probably not a good test.

I think it's mostly used by hydro guys, but maybe Munki or someone else has better info for you.

Take care :peace:
 
TorturedSoul said:
Have you thought about raising your LEDs a fair bit (in a future grow) to see if it helps, possibly by allowing the various frequencies to more fully blend?

Regarding your pH - if the plants are indeed sucking up lots of silica, that would account for it. Have you been able to substantiate that hypothesis somewhat via EC & water consumption fluctuations? (Have you noticed if adding the product affects the EC, and if so how much so that you can infer its uptake by the reverse behavior?)

Is there any possibility that you've got some form of life sharing the reservoir?

My last experience with a silica product was a bad one, lol: I added GH's Rare Earth in its little bag to a multi-plant DWC reservoir and left for 2½ days. I returned to see that the bag had become disloged - and opened - probably by either one of the airstones or the massive action from the power head. pH had gone up like a rocket and the plants looked like they'd all been microwaved for 20 minutes. Completely gone, wilted. (But I don't blame the product.)
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LED height could go up a bit but they would be better if on a mover to spread the frequencies around.

The silica does not up the EC by an appreciable amount so it would be difficult to infer its usage by the plants in that manner. My thoughts was that it has such an impact on pH, that that would be the best indicator of usage.

My next post will mention what I've since discovered.

It is doubtful that I have life in the barrel. Area is dark much of the time and I keep a folded T-Shirt over the top hole. Solution looks good and does not have any funky smells so far in the grow.
 
Flower day 49, (Now completing week 7).

Well, I had a theory about the silica I've been adding but it does not appear to be true. The theory was the plants quickly took up the silica and with that the pH drops. Well after my initial add of 50 ml of silica at reservoir change, I added 25 ml more, and then yesterday noticing a pH drop, went ahead and added the rest of the bottle (36 ml). So, I added a total of 116 ml to 25 gallons which is a bit more than double the recommended level. No problem if the plants are absorbing the nutrient. Problem was that after adding the last 36 ml, I happened to notice that the fill pump plug was not plugged in!!! :whoa:

I must not have plugged it in after doing the reservoir change and that was a few days prior. Looking back, I'm surprised that I did not see any wilting as the temps were high and humidity very low over that period. Anyways, the plants have now had a couple of days with this nutrient batch. Well, I got some leaf crisping where the lights are close and bright. :rollingeyes: Not too bad, but I would just recommend sticking with the instructions and add pH up once the pH falls. Did that today with 10 ml pH up taking me from 5.5 to near 5.8.

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Hey Munki! Beautiful pics thank you! They're delicate but beautiful nugs.

Oops on the plug lol. One of the benefits of silica is supposed to be water retention and heat tolerence so maybe that's why they didn't wilt?

I got a cheapo ebay light mover from sunlighthydroponics, don't waste your time and money. Hopefully the more expensive ones are better built, but this one is just too small. It can't handle the tension of the thick power cord that goes to my light, and eventually gets pulled out of balance and stalls. You lower your light a bit to compensate for it being over the plant less, and if it stalls when you're not around that could be a real problem. If you don't lower it your plants are getting less net light. So IMO if the mover isn't close to 100% dependable I won't trust them.

:tokin:
 
BlueDog said:
Hey Munki! Beautiful pics thank you! They're delicate but beautiful nugs.

Oops on the plug lol. One of the benefits of silica is supposed to be water retention and heat tolerence so maybe that's why they didn't wilt?

I got a cheapo ebay light mover from sunlighthydroponics, don't waste your time and money. Hopefully the more expensive ones are better built, but this one is just too small. It can't handle the tension of the thick power cord that goes to my light, and eventually gets pulled out of balance and stalls. You lower your light a bit to compensate for it being over the plant less, and if it stalls when you're not around that could be a real problem. If you don't lower it your plants are getting less net light. So IMO if the mover isn't close to 100% dependable I won't trust them.

:tokin:
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If I got a light mover, it would be one from Gualala Robotics.
 
High Munki, looks like the plants are still doing well, despite the speedbumps :yummy:

What do you use for pH up? I've been using GH maxi dry nutes. In rain water they drop the pH to 4.3-4.6. I've tried the hydro store house brand, but it seemed it just took too much for any heathful activity going on in the buckets.

Baking Soda, lime, and/or wood ashes just didn't get the pH high enough (6.2- 6.5) no matter how much I added.

I just picked up some Earth Juice crystals that seem to do the trick with a small amount, and the pH stays stable.

I'm doing coco/dirt hempies, so I may not need to be as concerned with the pH, but after some previous issues, I just don't want to take a chance :rasta:
 
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