One_bell's first grow (F1 Epsilon auto, RDWC)

[One_Bell]

I also made a comparison between the full expert Coinnoisseur line vs the complete line up of General Hydroponics aka Terra Aquatica: https://www.thcfarmer.com/threads/w...oking-for-cheaper-nutrients-for-hydro.166158/

Bottomline: AN would cost me around 585 euro's for the full line, while GH comes in at 115 euro's for the 9 part line. What would you do?

 

[THC_AeroGrower]

@THC_AeroGrower when would you transplant these to the Growrilla RDWC system with bigger netpots?

Based on the root pictures, you could transplant them any time. The roots are long enough that they'll be able to pull up nutrients. You don't want to wait to long or the roots will start to get tangled and cause a lot more stress when you go to move them.

As for the nutrients, I use the 3 part GH Flora line without a problem. Have on several other grows as well. Then I pick maybe 1 or 2 of the additives. For example I added CaliMagic to my current grow because I've run into cal deficiencies with Mother Earth Coco Coir in the past. I'll usually add the Armor Si early in Veg as well (though I didn't this time because I was out). I'll add a Flower Booster for the last 2 weeks of Flower before the flush. Then I flush with FloraKleen and then distilled water for the last 10 days or so. If you add in an integrated pest management (IPM) thats pretty much everything you'll need.
Then in a future grow, you can try investing in the more expensive nutrient lines (AN, Athena, Etc.) and see if you notice the difference and if it's worth the cost difference to you.

 

[One_Bell]

@THC_AeroGrower thanks for your reply, really appreciate it. I started out with five seeds because I wanted to minimize the risk one of the seeds would not sprout, and I was also interested to see if there would variations among the surviving seedlings.

Well all five are alive and kicking, however, the one that sprouted first looks the best to me. From the other four, two of them are more looking like the best one, and the other two are a little behind in terms of leave- and rootdevelopment.

The nutrient solution has been in the X-stream for the 8th day now, and the waterlevel inside is slowly lowering. However, I don't really see evidence that they take in nutrients. The waterlevel drops and EC stays stable at 8.0, while PPM rose to 560 and the TDS to 400. Should I keep within this range while do a reservoir change?

Also, is the seedling over by now and should I switch to early flower conditions? This is how they looked an hour ago:

 

[Gtglicky3]

looking good I’ll be following along

 

[One_Bell]

I just swapped the reservoir of the X-stream since it has been seven days and I got some pointers the plants are in early veg. I am still using the AN starter pack, and added Grow A+B, Voodoo Juice, B52 and Bud Candy. The advised ml's for 10 liters are all 20ml portions. For starters I went with half of it(so 10ml portions instead of 20ml) and came down to 5.85ph, 926uS and 652ppm:






However, the EC value is still 0.8. Should I add some more nutrients? Or should I keep it like this for at least a day or two?

I am also increasing the VPD, former goal was 0.8, the new goal is 0.9. What do my fellow farmers think?

 

[THC_AeroGrower]

You're doing an excellent job monitoring your setup, especially as a new grower. It’s great to see you paying close attention to the water level, EC, PPM, and TDS—it shows you’re committed to understanding the process, which is half the battle. Keep up the awesome work!

Now, regarding your nute situation, a stable EC and rising PPM/TDS suggest that water is evaporating but the plants may not be taking up nutrients at a significant rate just yet. This is pretty common with young seedlings in an aero system, as they tend to focus on root development initially. When you transplant them, start with a diluted nutrient solution at about 500–600 PPM (So you're within range at the same PPM), depending on this strain's nutrient tolerance. Continue to keep the pH in the 5.8–6.2 range, as before.

is the seedling over by now and should I switch to early flower conditions?

These are autos, right? If so, there’s no need to stress about manually switching them. They’ll transition to flower on their own when they’re ready. I couldn’t find specific details about the Epsilon F1 auto version on the RQS site, but most autos typically veg for around 3-4 weeks. Since they’ve already developed their first set of true leaves, you can go ahead and start counting their veg time.

You’re definitely on the right track—just keep observing and adjusting, and your plants will reward you!
Let me know if you have more questions—I’m happy to help!

 

[One_Bell]

You're doing an excellent job monitoring your setup, especially as a new grower. It’s great to see you paying close attention to the water level, EC, PPM, and TDS—it shows you’re committed to understanding the process, which is half the battle. Keep up the awesome work!

Now, regarding your nute situation, a stable EC and rising PPM/TDS suggest that water is evaporating but the plants may not be taking up nutrients at a significant rate just yet. This is pretty common with young seedlings in an aero system, as they tend to focus on root development initially. When you transplant them, start with a diluted nutrient solution at about 500–600 PPM (So you're within range at the same PPM), depending on this strain's nutrient tolerance. Continue to keep the pH in the 5.8–6.2 range, as before.


These are autos, right? If so, there’s no need to stress about manually switching them. They’ll transition to flower on their own when they’re ready. I couldn’t find specific details about the Epsilon F1 auto version on the RQS site, but most autos typically veg for around 3-4 weeks. Since they’ve already developed their first set of true leaves, you can go ahead and start counting their veg time.

You’re definitely on the right track—just keep observing and adjusting, and your plants will reward you!
Let me know if you have more questions—I’m happy to help!

Thanks for your reply and all the helpfull pointers and explanation, really appreciate it. I made a mistake and ment to mean from seedling to early veg instead of flower. These RQS's are auto's indeed.

 

[Gizmo_gardener]

@THC_AeroGrower when would you transplant these to the Growrilla RDWC system with bigger netpots?

Seedling stage is 2-3 weeks. As of a growth chart for cannabis. Once the first set of seven leaves form you are in the veg stage. Now I am also a new grower so I may have just been reading some horse shit when I found that. Hopefully someone else can chime in on this.

 

[THC_AeroGrower]

Seedling stage is 2-3 weeks. As of a growth chart for cannabis. Once the first set of seven leaves form you are in the veg stage. Now I am also a new grower so I may have just been reading some horse shit when I found that. Hopefully someone else can chime in on this.

If I had to guess (without seeing the chart you're referencing) I would say that refers to an average or possibly outdoor where everything takes a little longer. Also, this depends on if you count from the tap root emerging (common for indoor) or from the Cotyledon leaves popping up above the soil (common for outdoor).

The thing about 7-fingered leaves is also an old school piece of advice. There are 4 types of leaves you should know and use to determine the stage of growth and general health of the plants.

1. Cotyledon Leaves:
   • These are the first little rounded leaves after your seed pops. They’re there to give the plant its initial energy boost but don’t stick around long.
2. First Leaves:
   • Right after the cotyledons, you’ll see the first set of serrated leaves (usually 1-2 blades). These are the start of real photosynthesis, but are still part of the seedling phase.
3. True Leaves:
   • As the plant grows, you’ll get leaves with 3, 5, and eventually 7 blades. Once these start coming in consistently, your plant is shifting into veg growth. For autoflowers, this transition happens fast because they’re on a fixed timeline. In the pictures from @One_Bell you can see they've got their first true leaves
4. Fan Leaves:
   • These are the big, classic cannabis leaves. When the plant is pushing these out regularly, you’re solidly in the veg phase. For most autos, veg doesn’t last long (3-4 weeks) before they start pre-flowering.

 

[Gizmo_gardener]

Thank you for that info aero I knew there was differences in the time lines and so forth. I am new to this and I chose to grow autos my first go around also. I have a thread posted up in grow diaries. I have been trying to figure out the same info for a better knowledge also. This is one of my GDP auto from seed supreme

 

[Gizmo_gardener]

If I had to guess (without seeing the chart you're referencing) I would say that refers to an average or possibly outdoor where everything takes a little longer. Also, this depends on if you count from the tap root emerging (common for indoor) or from the Cotyledon leaves popping up above the soil (common for outdoor).

The thing about 7-fingered leaves is also an old school piece of advice. There are 4 types of leaves you should know and use to determine the stage of growth and general health of the plants.

1. Cotyledon Leaves:
   • These are the first little rounded leaves after your seed pops. They’re there to give the plant its initial energy boost but don’t stick around long.
2. First Leaves:
   • Right after the cotyledons, you’ll see the first set of serrated leaves (usually 1-2 blades). These are the start of real photosynthesis, but are still part of the seedling phase.
3. True Leaves:
   • As the plant grows, you’ll get leaves with 3, 5, and eventually 7 blades. Once these start coming in consistently, your plant is shifting into veg growth. For autoflowers, this transition happens fast because they’re on a fixed timeline. In the pictures from @One_Bell you can see they've got their first true leaves
4. Fan Leaves:
   • These are the big, classic cannabis leaves. When the plant is pushing these out regularly, you’re solidly in the veg phase. For most autos, veg doesn’t last long (3-4 weeks) before they start pre-flowering.

As for the chart I was referring to https://cleanleaf.com/the-stages-of-cannabis-growth.php

 

[One_Bell]

Thanks for the comments guys, the more knowledge shared the better!

Today was a rather disappointing day for me, while I tried to setup the Growrilla RDWC. Watching the setup instruction movie I noticed several things (holes in the bucket where not there), one of them was how to connect the waterpump.
This waterpump Hailea HX-2500, has on the outlet a second smaller outlet to act as a venturi. The hole for this was also missing. Luckely I anticipeted this from early on this project and bought some tools (like a drill). You can see the little venturi outlet pointing backwards.

Since I also ordered al rubber parts double, I had enough material to make some holes and seal them off with a proper rubber ring.
I added water to the system, let it sit for a while to check for leaks. I did perform this test in the bathroom, in cases there would be any leaks. Luckily no leaks, but unfortunately a real fountain spraying from aside the bucket. As soon as I powered on the system the water started to spray from out of venturi ventile
I also noticed not very much movement, like the pump was taking water from the rservoir it sits in, instead of the buckets.
So this made the pump useless for this project, with the venturi outlet water gets pushed back into the reservoir...

Below two pictures of the Hailea HX2500, with the odd piece of hard plastic between it, with twice a 90 degree corner in it.



Since I can't do much without an waterpump, I already had bought a spare one (bought allmost everything twice, from lighting to heaters etc. in case of faillure); (Alien Jetstream) and it did not fit because of the hard plastic parts to connect. Since a had enough tubing a cut a piece off and replaced the plastic part. This pump has no venturi, but at least I can transfer the plants now.



Which is hardly needed since especially the roots are growing really fast.

 

[Florida_Mike]

Thanks for the comments guys, the more knowledge shared the better!

Today was a rather disappointing day for me, while I tried to setup the Growrilla RDWC. Watching the setup instruction movie I noticed several things (holes in the bucket where not there), one of them was how to connect the waterpump.
This waterpump Hailea HX-2500, has on the outlet a second smaller outlet to act as a venturi. The hole for this was also missing. Luckely I anticipeted this from early on this project and bought some tools (like a drill). You can see the little venturi outlet pointing backwards.

Since I also ordered al rubber parts double, I had enough material to make some holes and seal them off with a proper rubber ring.
I added water to the system, let it sit for a while to check for leaks. I did perform this test in the bathroom, in cases there would be any leaks. Luckily no leaks, but unfortunately a real fountain spraying from aside the bucket. As soon as I powered on the system the water started to spray from out of venturi ventile
I also noticed not very much movement, like the pump was taking water from the rservoir it sits in, instead of the buckets.
So this made the pump useless for this project, with the venturi outlet water gets pushed back into the reservoir...

Below two pictures of the Hailea HX2500, with the odd piece of hard plastic between it, with twice a 90 degree corner in it.



Since I can't do much without an waterpump, I already had bought a spare one (bought allmost everything twice, from lighting to heaters etc. in case of faillure); (Alien Jetstream) and it did not fit because of the hard plastic parts to connect. Since a had enough tubing a cut a piece off and replaced the plastic part. This pump has no venturi, but at least I can transfer the plants now.



Which is hardly needed since especially the roots are growing really fast.

looks way too overly complicated for my chemo addled pea brain,
i hope you get all the gremlins taken care of.

are the roots turning brownish already or is that just the lighting?

babies are looking good.

 

[One_Bell]

looks way too overly complicated for my chemo addled pea brain,
i hope you get all the gremlins taken care of.

are the roots turning brownish already or is that just the lighting?

babies are looking good.

Thanks @FloridaMike ! The ladies are being monitored 24/7 and I kept everything in check, EC still 0.8, pH between 5.8 and 6.1 (average 6.0) and temperature between 66F/19C and 73,4F/23 (average 71,5F/22C). Light has been bumped ffrom 300PPFD the day before yesterday, 350PPFD yesterday en 400PPFD today 24 hours on now. I might switch to 18/6 tomorrow to give them some rest.

The roots are not slimy but do look a bit brownish, just like the nutrient solution. I don't know if that is already rootrot, which would be strange since I am using Great White and the temperatur on average for the whole week has been 71,5F/22C. Not enough airation maybe? What do you think?

 

[Florida_Mike]

Thanks @FloridaMike ! The ladies are being monitored 24/7 and I kept everything in check, EC still 0.8, pH between 5.8 and 6.1 (average 6.0) and temperature between 66F/19C and 73,4F/23 (average 71,5F/22C). Light has been bumped ffrom 300PPFD the day before yesterday, 350PPFD yesterday en 400PPFD today 24 hours on now. I might switch to 18/6 tomorrow to give them some rest.

The roots are not slimy but do look a bit brownish, just like the nutrient solution. I don't know if that is already rootrot, which would be strange since I am using Great White and the temperatur on average for the whole week has been 71,5F/22C. Not enough airation maybe? What do you think?

in hydro i'd recommend orca and or hydrogaurd instead of the great white,
that stuff is great when transplanting, but not so good in hydro imo

the brownish is probably just the nutes and nothing to worry about, just make
sure they have a few inches of air space.

from the interweb:

Orca and Hydroguard are compatible and can be used together in a hydroponic setup. Here's why they work well together:
What They Are:

Orca: Orca is a liquid mycorrhizae product that introduces beneficial fungi (including mycorrhizal fungi) to the root zone, enhancing nutrient uptake and promoting root health.
Hydroguard: Hydroguard contains a specific strain of beneficial bacteria (Bacillus amyloliquefaciens) that helps to protect roots from harmful pathogens, particularly in hydroponic systems.

Compatibility:

No Competition: Orca and Hydroguard focus on different microbial species that perform complementary roles. Orca's fungi work with plant roots to improve nutrient uptake, while Hydroguard's bacteria suppress root pathogens like Pythium (root rot).
Synergistic Effects: When used together, they can create a diverse and balanced microbial environment in your hydroponic system, leading to healthier plants and stronger root systems.

 

[One_Bell]

in hydro i'd recommend orca and or hydrogaurd instead of the great white,
that stuff is great when transplanting, but not so good in hydro imo

the brownish is probably just the nutes and nothing to worry about, just make
sure they have a few inches of air space.

from the interweb:

Orca and Hydroguard are compatible and can be used together in a hydroponic setup. Here's why they work well together:
What They Are:

Orca: Orca is a liquid mycorrhizae product that introduces beneficial fungi (including mycorrhizal fungi) to the root zone, enhancing nutrient uptake and promoting root health.
Hydroguard: Hydroguard contains a specific strain of beneficial bacteria (Bacillus amyloliquefaciens) that helps to protect roots from harmful pathogens, particularly in hydroponic systems.

Compatibility:

No Competition: Orca and Hydroguard focus on different microbial species that perform complementary roles. Orca's fungi work with plant roots to improve nutrient uptake, while Hydroguard's bacteria suppress root pathogens like Pythium (root rot).
Synergistic Effects: When used together, they can create a diverse and balanced microbial environment in your hydroponic system, leading to healthier plants and stronger root systems.

Thank you for the recommendation, really appreciate it. Would you also use King Crab and Myco Chum together with Orca? I will probably buy Orca and Hydroguard nevertheless.

 

[Gtglicky3]

As for the chart I was referring to https://cleanleaf.com/the-stages-of-cannabis-growth.php

They all have a lot of good info for any and all things just type in what you looking for in google then put one of those site names at the end. Hope that helps y’all a bit best of luck an happy growing

Learn How To Grow Autoflowers: Week-By-Week Guide - RQS Blog

Autoflowering cannabis strains grow fast, remain compact, and offer great results. Use this guide to learn how to cultivate them week by week!

www.royalqueenseeds.com

The Lifecycle of the Autoflowering Cannabis Plant | Fast Buds

Wanting to adventure with autoflowering strains? Here's all you need to know about the whole lifecycle of autoflowering strains and the most important stag

2fast4buds.com

How To Grow Autoflowering Cannabis

If you’re interested in growing cannabis, chances are you’ve heard of autoflowering strains. We’re introducing the following guide to growing autoflowering cannabis that will leave no questions unanswered

herbiesheadshop.com

 

[One_Bell]

Day 15 (from sowing seeds, day 12 since sprouting): Time to setup the RDWC in the tent.

I did a test between the airstones I have got (flat ones and balls), the flat ones create the nicest bubbles in mine opinion:





I did a third leak test after placing everything inside the tent. I did not pour the entire bucket in it, some went next to it, so it looked like I had a leak lol. I tried to find out where it was coming from, and the small amount of water did not increase. I let it sit for a while and started proparing everything else.

In the meantime the plants where sitting outside the tent, still in the X-stream, not waiting soon to lucky girls will be transplanted. The other three I will try to keep alive in case something happens with the other two.



Before transplanting I made two holes in the bottem of the Growrilla netcup, so the roots will go through more easy:






And now two weeks after planting the first seeds two ladies are finally in the RDWC system:



I hope they will adapt quickly to their new home.

 

[One_Bell]

One of the plants seem to have minor burn on the leave:



I wonder if this is because of lightning, or maybe nutrients. I filled up the system with 30 liters in total, pH between 5.8-6.0, temp now steady on 65F/18C and EC1.0 now. They also get some rest now as I will introduce the 18/6 light schedule.

 

[Florida_Mike]

Thank you for the recommendation, really appreciate it. Would you also use King Crab and Myco Chum together with Orca? I will probably buy Orca and Hydroguard nevertheless.

I have never heard of King Crab nor Myco Chum. However, looking them up, they both look like some good stuff. Skip the Orca if you're using the King Crab (i may start using the King Crab myself). The Myco Chum feeds the beneficial bacteria.

Be sure to follow the directions & not overdo it on the beneficial bacteria