Asked 3 sites got 3 different answers

[Aqua Man]

Well for now I’ve flushed each pot with 10 gallons of ro water with FloraKleen. My ro systems and shop vac got a workout. I’ve reduced ppm in the res to ~400. I don’t have a water softener and I use a ro/di unit to make my water. While I don’t doubt and I’m beginning to learn that bottom feeding coco can be tricky. The forums are full of success stories using the same exact media that I’m using in the same exact system without flushing until the last week of their lives. Root rot could potentially be an issue but I am using about 2 inches of clay pellets in the bottom in conjunction with air domes constantly blowing air over the roots so I feel pretty confident that it’s not an issue. I really have no way to check it anyway until the plant is gone past the point of no return and I pull the whole pot from the tent. I’ve heard pho’s deficiency and that was the first thing that I concluded when all this began but then I got to thinking... would they even really show a P deficiency in veg? Anyway thanks for the advice guys I’ll keep ya all posted on how they are doing in a few days. Oh one last thing, should I remove some of those extra brown and crispy leaves or just them fall off on their own?

Each system is different I don't doubt that it's possible to not flush however common sense tells me it's not ideal.

The need to flush and frequency will be largely impacted by the nutrients used and the concentrations it's fed at.

Feeding is not something you can just go by a schedule unless you are running the exact same environment, lights (model, intensity height, bulb etc.), humidity, temps day/night, medium and a clone of the same plant it was developed on.

Less is always easier to fix than more. Flushing is just good practice and eliminates possible issues in the future. Just because it can be done does not mean it's ideal. Hell I even top flush my RDWC plants once a week just to clear the hydroton of any build up. I don't think many bother and have no issues but it's one less thing for me to worry about and take 1 min.

Just a few things I've learned along the way.

 

[FatManatee]

It's definite calcium deficiency caused by improper PH. The dark green leaves suggest that the plant is getting too much nitrogen, nitrogen is absorbed in a medium that has a high alkalinity. You need to flush with PH'd water to increase acidity of the soil, so calcium becomes available to the plants, and the plant absorbs less nitrogen.

 

[Beachwalker]

It's definite calcium deficiency caused by improper PH. The dark green leaves suggest that the plant is getting too much nitrogen, nitrogen is absorbed in a medium that has a high alkalinity. You need to flush with PH'd water to increase acidity of the soil, so calcium becomes available to the plants, and the plant absorbs less nitrogen.

this ^ ..likely pH related, change your pH to 6.0 - 6.2 for better results with coco.

Don't know about Auto Pots but I should think you'd have to flush it once in awhile and definitely check the roots, both of which were already recommended, good luck

 

[Dirtbag]

I still think the reason you're seeing calcium and phosphorus deficiency, is because you've got calcium phosphate forming from overfeeding, which would also explain the excess N.. think about it. If ph was the cause you would see all sorts of other deficiencies I think. The difference between 5.8 and 6-6.2 isnt enough to cause lockouts and deficiencies.

 

[Rdub]

In any case whether it be lockout from ph or nutrient burn. I’ve flushed with ph 5.8 water. 10 gallons per plant. Hope that was enough? If the flush helps correct a ph problem and washes excess nutes from the pot how soon will these girls respond? A day? A week?

 

[Aqua Man]

Should see signs of improvement within few days. Pay attention to new growth. Not the existing damaged leaves they won't get better and may die but should not spread to new leaves

 

[PlumberSoCal]

In any case whether it be lockout from ph or nutrient burn. I’ve flushed with ph 5.8 water. 10 gallons per plant. Hope that was enough? If the flush helps correct a ph problem and washes excess nutes from the pot how soon will these girls respond? A day? A week?

So, get any better answers here over the other sites?

 

[Rdub]

So, get any better answers here over the other sites?

This has been the most helpful site

 

[PlumberSoCal]

This has been the most helpful site

Yeah, these folks are not only knowledgeable but share freely. Awesome site. Glad you're getting some help!

 

[Rdub]

Ok quick update. After flushing plants with 10 gallons of fresh water and dropping feed to 390 ppm the plants still seem to be getting worse. Not a lot but slightly. Here are some new pictures that may help. I’m kind of leaning forwards a mag deficiency at this point but not sure

 

[Rdub]

Regardless of whatever the issue is they are growing like crazy still so I’m hoping that’s a good thing?

 

[Jimster]

Your new growth looks much better. The old damaged leaves won't recover and should be removed to allow better light penetration. The new growth looks much better, IMHO.

 

[Rdub]

Your new growth looks much better. The old damaged leaves won't recover and should be removed to allow better light penetration. The new growth looks much better, IMHO.

Should I just cut it back to the main branch with a pair of sharp pruning scissors?

 

[Jimster]

Should I just cut it back to the main branch with a pair of sharp pruning scissors?

Yes, just snip off the leaf at the stem. It doesn't really matter if it is at the leaf side of the main branch side. It will probably die and fall off on it's own, but that might take a week or two and it is just blocking light. If most of the leaf looks decent, you might just try to cut off the damaged parts of the leaf, but if most of the leaf looks bad, you will probably be better off removing it. Don't cut any of the newer, bright green growth, as that is the good stuff, just the brown areas or the leaf if it is dying. If you are unsure, leave it on for a day or two extra to see if it gets better or worse, then make your decision based on what you see.

 

[Rdub]

Yes, just snip off the leaf at the stem. It doesn't really matter if it is at the leaf side of the main branch side. It will probably die and fall off on it's own, but that might take a week or two and it is just blocking light. If most of the leaf looks decent, you might just try to cut off the damaged parts of the leaf, but if most of the leaf looks bad, you will probably be better off removing it. Don't cut any of the newer, bright green growth, as that is the good stuff, just the brown areas or the leaf if it is dying. If you are unsure, leave it on for a day or two extra to see if it gets better or worse, then make your decision based on what you see.

Thanks brotha man. I’ll get on it

 

[visajoe1]

Regardless of whatever the issue is they are growing like crazy still so I’m hoping that’s a good thing?

Great news! The new growth looks good, nice bright green. When recovering from any feed/ph issue, the key is watching the new growth. The damaged stuff wont ever recover, so dont worry about it. Keep doing what you're doing

 

[Rdub]

I’m thinking about topping the 2 bigger healthy ones to slow them down a week or so for the other 2 to catch up. I’m going to flip to flower in a couple weeks but I want to make sure those other 2 plants are healthy enough to handle a lollipop. Does this sound like a good idea. Here is a pic so you guys have an ideas of how much netting is left to fill up. The strain is trainwreck and the tent is a 5x5 for reference

 

[OldManRiver]

Plumbersocal, aquaman, and dirtbag have the answers here. Shes overfed/locked out, heed their advice and she'll turn around rdub, good luck

A little late to the party, but I concur. The pics show symptoms of overwatering and overfeeding. The overwatering symptoms really mean inadequate oxygen, yes, oxygen to the roots. I am not familiar with the autopot system, but I will conjecture that the roots are always wet, in un-oxygenated water, which is harsh on the root hairs. The plant loses ability to take in water, and what water it does taken in is heavily laden with nutes, which, because the water intake is low, causes high solution concentration in the plant --> over feeding/burn. It's a guess, but that's all fact based.

Is it possible to add an airstone to the pot, so that the solution is oxygenated? Most hydro growers, including me, use aquarium pumps and a big airstone to each pot. I would reduce the nutes to 60% of where you're at, and add air. A pump and stone won't cost $40. You might also consider adding hydroguard to the solution, which adds beneficial bateria to combat root rot, which might also be happening, again because of the air situation.

My two cents. I've been growing hydro since about 1978.

[Edit] . I see you're doing better, but I still recommend adding air and hydroguard.

 

[BloodShot]

A little late to the party, but I concur. The pics show symptoms of overwatering and overfeeding. The overwatering symptoms really mean inadequate oxygen, yes, oxygen to the roots. I am not familiar with the autopot system, but I will conjecture that the roots are always wet, in un-oxygenated water, which is harsh on the root hairs. The plant loses ability to take in water, and what water it does taken in is heavily laden with nutes, which, because the water intake is low, causes high solution concentration in the plant --> over feeding/burn. It's a guess, but that's all fact based.

Is it possible to add an airstone to the pot, so that the solution is oxygenated? Most hydro growers, including me, use aquarium pumps and a big airstone to each pot. I would reduce the nutes to 60% of where you're at, and add air. A pump and stone won't cost $40. You might also consider adding hydroguard to the solution, which adds beneficial bateria to combat root rot, which might also be happening, again because of the air situation.

My two cents. I've been growing hydro since about 1978.

[Edit] . I see you're doing better, but I still recommend adding air and hydroguard.

I believe Rdub, is using the air domes in the bottom of each autopot as there is an air pump inside the tent. I bet it's running hot also as mine was before I extended the air lines and used my own air pump outside of my tent.

 

[BloodShot]

I’m thinking about topping the 2 bigger healthy ones to slow them down a week or so for the other 2 to catch up. I’m going to flip to flower in a couple weeks but I want to make sure those other 2 plants are healthy enough to handle a lollipop. Does this sound like a good idea. Here is a pic so you guys have an ideas of how much netting is left to fill up. The strain is trainwreck and the tent is a 5x5 for reference

Did you figure out why one of your autopots wasn't wicking water in through the hydroton you used to cover the bottoms of the pots?
https://www.thcfarmer.com/threads/calling-all-autopot-users.105463/#post-2276583