Good morning, fellow enthusiasts! Time for the bi-weekly update.
Today marks day 27 since emerging from the seed and exactly 3 weeks since going into the DWC bucket. Did a res change on Saturday. By Monday the numbers were so out of whack I dumped it and did a fresh batch. I've moved back to using Distilled water and it seems to have stabilized everything perfectly, so I'll stick to distilled water only from this point on. I'm going to do the res changes every 10 days unless my data tells me something is off again, but I think it's nailed down now for stability. Distilled water is only $1.25/4L and 16L leaves me about an inch below my net pot, so $5/10 days is more than doable. I spend that on coffee by noon most days!
Running an EC of 1.16 currently (ppm of 553) and my pH ranges from 5.8 when I made the solution, drifting up to 5.9 as of this morning. I'll let it rise to about 6.3 and then bring it back down to 5.8 to maximize nutrient uptake. Res temperatures are sticking right around 65.5F thanks to the Reflectix insulation I wrapped the bucket in. I did a double layer on the top (since my temps were hitting the low 70's) and it was too much. Res temps dropped to around 62-63, so I cut out triangles in the lid insulation, figuring it'd allow more heat to transfer in and I could always fill them back in if it raised it too much. It's been about 4 days now with the cut outs and as I said, it's a stable 65.5F now. Problem solved!
VPD is between 0.95 and 1.1 with a tent temp of 78F and a humidity of 71.5%. I'll start bumping it up a hair along with the EC after she's recovered from the topping this weekend. PPFD is running around 425 at canopy top and getting 335 PPFD at mid canopy. The roots have taken off!!! Getting that nice "beard" happening now, and the roots coming out the lower sides of the net pot are now sitting comfortably in the water. 4 air stones are generating a lot of aeration and small bubbles/fine mist is in abundance. The roots are very healthy, no signs of any issues at all. I'm thinking I'll stick with a sterile environment for this grow and try using something like Hydroguard next grow and clock the difference. I'm adding 16.5 ml of 3% H2O2 with the solution when mixing a new res, and adding 12.5 ml every 3 days. It seems to be working perfectly, so why fix what isn't broken, right?
Lights are at 45% sitting about 18" above the canopy and showing zero signs of light burn or stress. Nutrient mix seems perfect as the leaves are all showing very healthy colours, praying nicely and the stems are really starting to thicken up now that I've added Silica Blast to the mix.
I'm thinking I'll be doing my first topping this coming weekend. 6th node is emerging and growing in, and I'd like it to be fully developed before topping as I'd like to keep it as a clone. I have the seedling heating mat, the starter tray with the humidity down with LED lights built into the vent cap. I'll get a rockwool cube well soaked in 5.5pH distilled water prior to doing the topping and a shot glass of 5.8ph distilled water to drop the cutting into immediately. That way, I'm not stopping something half-way through to rush onto taking care of the cutting. This will be the first of 3 toppings, as I'm going to try an 8-cola manifold on this run. Should be interesting! I've been reading a ton on how to do it properly, safely, and with minimal risk of damage to the plant, so I'll stick to the method and trust the science.
Speaking of "trust the science"...
I've been keeping a written log of all data points for the last few weeks now. I check temp, humidity, VPD, PPFD, pH, PPM, EC, and water level drop in the morning with my coffee, then again when I get home from work, and finally before bed. Keeping this detailed report is letting me see trends in real time, so I can anticipate rather than react to problems. It's a bit more work, but the results are really starting to show. For a first time hydro grow, I'm honestly surprised how well it's progressing.
Anyway, enough of the novel, and on to the pictures. I've not done a root shot this time, as I'm trying to leave them alone except for res changes. When I do my next one, I'll take a shot of the roots, too. As usual, if anyone sees anything, please let me know. I'm still in the learning curve and it's quite possible I'll not see something that an experienced hydro grower glances at and says, "How the hell did you miss
this?" I'm here to learn, after all.
Here's a bird's eye view so you can see the leaves properly.
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Here's a level shot so you can see the nodal spacing and overall plant structure.
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And here's just an over all shot of her. This was about 45 minutes after lights on (all three shots).
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Once again, thanks to all who drop by and join me on this adventure of mine. I'm stoked at how she's grown over 3 weeks!
Cheers,
BA.
