Random Growing Tips I Honestly Never Thought About

[Ninjadogma]

I've been leaning into AI lately to deep dive into things and better understand cannabis horticulture. I've explored so many topics of growing that I began to wonder, "what do I not know that I don't know?" And so, I decided to ask a question:

What cannabis growing tip of the day can you offer up that we have not previously discussed?

I've only asked the question twice and twice now it threw some great tips I hadn't even thought about.

So, I've decided to start this thread where I will drop any cool new tips I stumble upon that I think are worth sharing.

But please, I don't want this to be an echo chamber. Come visit this thread and drop some of your cool grow tips and hacks too!

 

[Ninjadogma]

Micro Defoliation

Instead of lollipopping or creating a canopy, this is a micro pruning strategy to manipulate growth through hormonal disruption.

Goal: Improving lateral node branching on a specific branch

Strategy: Pick the largest fan leaf highest up on the branch and pluck it.

Why it works: Removing that dominant fan reduces that branch's auxin output, which is what limits the branching. It carries a signal directing it to grow on top. Removing it sends a signal, top isn't most viable, grow sides as backup. So plucking that single leaf triggers a hormal disruption that works in your favor.

 

[Ninjadogma]

Micro Pulse Watering

This tip isn't for everyone, but it's exactly what the doctor ordered for the coco and peat blend I use.

Strategy: Do a light mist of only about 3-4 ounces of water over the top of the pot to prevent soil hydrophobia and channeling, keep roots exploring and branching around the upper zone and keep microbes at the top vibrant.

Frequency: In between full drybacks; remoisten just the top layer as it dries

Why it works: Plants read the soil and react to what's going on. The micro pulse watering sends a weather signal to the plant that it has rained, and triggers the roots to respond by exploring. It lends to a more even soil moisture and especially with peat blends, prevents the top layer from becoming hydrophobic.

*If you have fungus gnat issues, this isn't the tip for you.

 

[Florida_Mike]

DISSOLVED OXYGEN IN RESERVOIRS

In most real systems, circulation and strong surface movement put more dissolved oxygen (DO) into water than air stones do.

The reason comes down to gas exchange physics. Oxygen enters water mainly at the air–water interface. The faster that interface is refreshed and mixed, the faster oxygen dissolves. Surface turbulence continually replaces oxygen-depleted water with fresh water at the surface.

Air stones mainly help by moving water, not by dissolving much oxygen directly.

Important points:

• The bubbles themselves transfer relatively little oxygen.
• Most bubbles reach the surface before dissolving much O₂.
• Their real value is circulation and surface agitation created by rising bubbles.

Fine-bubble diffusers improve transfer somewhat, but the effect is still modest compared with aggressive surface mixing.

What actually gives the highest DO?

In descending order of effectiveness (generally):

1. Waterfalls / strong surface turbulence
2. Venturi injectors or spray bars
3. Strong circulation pumps aimed at the surface
4. Air stones / bubble diffusers

Important limit

Water can only hold oxygen up to saturation, which depends mostly on temperature.

Approximate maximum DO at sea level:

Water temp	Max dissolved O₂
68°F (20°C)	~9 mg/L
77°F (25°C)	~8.3 mg/L
86°F (30°C)	~7.5 mg/L

Warmer water holds less oxygen, which matters for hydroponics and reservoirs.

I run both a circulation pump and a big air stone for backup, plus my 1/2" feeder line returns back to the res, pushing a good stream.

 

[carlosescobar]

Micro Pulse Watering

This tip isn't for everyone, but it's exactly what the doctor ordered for the coco and peat blend I use.

Strategy: Do a light mist of only about 3-4 ounces of water over the top of the pot to prevent soil hydrophobia and channeling, keep roots exploring and branching around the upper zone and keep microbes at the top vibrant.

Frequency: In between full drybacks; remoisten just the top layer as it dries

Why it works: Plants read the soil and react to what's going on. The micro pulse watering sends a weather signal to the plant that it has rained, and triggers the roots to respond by exploring. It lends to a more even soil moisture and especially with peat blends, prevents the top layer from becoming hydrophobic.

*If you have fungus gnat issues, this isn't the tip for you.

I read once that a plant will detect the electrical charge in the air just before a storm and 'open up' to be ready for the water which is coming. I think it was an article about electroculture...sticking copper wire in the soil and all that palava.
my best tip for growers outside is to hang a fake dragonfly over your plants, it will keep all the aphids away and probably the moths as well..i tried it last year and the aphids laid on my lilly pads in the pond because that was the only real plants that didnt have dragonflies over them , ive never seen that before.

 

[Ninjadogma]

RH Pulsing in your Clone Environment

Traditional advice says to start clones under high humidity and gradually taper down to a lower, stable RH that supports root initiation. But sometimes clones stall even when the environment seems perfect. When that happens, a gentle humidity‑pulsing strategy can restart the rooting process.

Action: Introduce a daily humidity fluctuation that gently dips RH into the 60–62% range, then allows it to return to 70–75%.

Why It Works: Mild RH swings mimic natural day–night rhythms. When RH dips slightly, the temporary increase in VPD encourages the cutting to pull water from the stem rather than relying solely on leaf‑surface moisture. This subtle “pull” helps drive auxin downward and supports root initiation.

Plants respond strongly to predictable environmental rhythms. By creating a consistent, gentle oscillation, you give the cutting a pattern it can “lean into,” helping it transition from passive hydration to actively drawing water — the physiological shift required for rooting to begin.

 

[cpurola]

That's what the instructions say with the clone covers with vents. Open them up a little longer each day.
I surmise that the lower humidity for longer periods encourages new root growth without depleting fluids too much.

Oh, my random observation. Septoria and Alternia (leaf spot) outdoors, will calm down when the temperature drops. Keep the plants alive and as disease free near the buds as you can and wait 'till October to harvest.

(southeast michigan)

 

[Brother_Antioch]

While it's probably something that most already know about, one suggestion AI had for me was to get an IR thermometer and calculate the Leaf VPD instead of the air VPD when dialing in the tent environment. Once I started doing that, I did notice an improvement in her health (although she was quite healthy to begin with). Seems the deeper we dig, the more we find out.

Cheers,

BA.

 

[Galgrows]

RH Pulsing in your Clone Environment

Traditional advice says to start clones under high humidity and gradually taper down to a lower, stable RH that supports root initiation. But sometimes clones stall even when the environment seems perfect. When that happens, a gentle humidity‑pulsing strategy can restart the rooting process.

Action: Introduce a daily humidity fluctuation that gently dips RH into the 60–62% range, then allows it to return to 70–75%.

Why It Works: Mild RH swings mimic natural day–night rhythms. When RH dips slightly, the temporary increase in VPD encourages the cutting to pull water from the stem rather than relying solely on leaf‑surface moisture. This subtle “pull” helps drive auxin downward and supports root initiation.

Plants respond strongly to predictable environmental rhythms. By creating a consistent, gentle oscillation, you give the cutting a pattern it can “lean into,” helping it transition from passive hydration to actively drawing water — the physiological shift required for rooting to begin.

This is all great stuff

 

[Galgrows]

That's what the instructions say with the clone covers with vents. Open them up a little longer each day.
I surmise that the lower humidity for longer periods encourages new root growth without depleting fluids too much.

Oh, my random observation. Septoria and Alternia (leaf spot) outdoors, will calm down when the temperature drops. Keep the plants alive and as disease free near the buds as you can and wait 'till October to harvest.

(southeast michigan)

Very interesting and makes sense to me.

 

[Ninjadogma]

While it's probably something that most already know about, one suggestion AI had for me was to get an IR thermometer and calculate the Leaf VPD instead of the air VPD when dialing in the tent environment. Once I started doing that, I did notice an improvement in her health (although she was quite healthy to begin with). Seems the deeper we dig, the more we find out.

Cheers,

BA.

I think the only reason I really love this one is my new phone has an IR surface temp sensor, and you've finally given me a practical application for using it!

 

[cpurola]

While it's probably something that most already know about, one suggestion AI had for me was to get an IR thermometer and calculate the Leaf VPD instead of the air VPD when dialing in the tent environment. Once I started doing that, I did notice an improvement in her health (although she was quite healthy to begin with). Seems the deeper we dig, the more we find out.

Cheers,

BA.

I just watched a video by Dr. Bugbee and he mentioned this very thing.

 

[Brother_Antioch]

I just watched a video by Dr. Bugbee and he mentioned this very thing.

I was quite surprised how much of a difference there is between air and leaf VPD considering it's generally only a couple of degrees F difference. It's those tiny details that all add up.

 

[Ninjadogma]

Completing Veg With Just Soil

If you’re working with a well‑built soil, there’s a simple alternative to bottled nutrients or heavy top‑dressing: leave the top 6 inches of your pot unfilled and add a thin layer of fresh amended soil each week.

This creates a slow, steady nutrient runway that can carry a plant through the entire veg phase without liquid feeding.

Why It Works
Adding small amounts of fresh soil weekly provides:

- A gentle, continuous nutrient supply; Nutrients migrate downward gradually with each watering, matching the plant’s natural uptake rate.

- Stable EC and pH; You avoid the spikes that come from liquid feeds or large dry amendments.

- No “time‑release surprises” Because you’re adding mild, predictable layers, there are no hot pockets or delayed nutrient dumps that can shock the plant.

- A fresh rooting horizon
Cannabis roots actively colonize the top few inches of soil. Regularly refreshing that zone keeps the plant vigorous.

This approach essentially turns your pot into a manual slow‑release system that you control.

---

Continuing the Strategy Through Flower

You can carry the same method into flower with one adjustment:
switch the weekly layer to a bloom‑amended soil mix.

Use your bloom nutrient at a mild, consistent rate, mix it into a small amount of fresh soil, and top‑dress with a thin layer each week — just like you did in veg.

This keeps the nutrient profile aligned with flower demands (lower N, steady Ca/Mg, higher K) without overwhelming the plant or creating late‑flower imbalances.


Final Notes

- Keep each weekly layer thin and gentle — consistency matters more than strength.
- Avoid heavy P sources; cannabis needs far less phosphorus than most bloom products imply.
- Taper amendments in the final weeks so the plant can finish cleanly.

This strategy is simple, stable, and highly effective for growers who prefer soil‑driven nutrition without the volatility of liquid feeding.

 

[Ninjadogma]

Reusing Your Soil

Soil can get expensive if you have to keep buying it every new run you do. Since soil is mostly just for structure that will support biologicals and can be reloaded with nutrients, buffers and microbes, there's no reason to throw it out unless it's contaminated with something like a root pathogen or virus.

Steps for reusing

1). Flush out salts and biological waste. Rinse the soil until runoff EC drops to 1.0 or lower. This is to remove accumulated salts, excess nutrients and anaerobic byproducts. Afterward, let it dry up some.

2). Add structural and mineral amendments: Fresh perlite, biochar, gypsum, and your vegging dry amend (balanced NPK + mocros).

Optional: If slurry ph is coming back higher than 6.9, finish with a very modest amount of elemental sulfer mixed in to the top 2 inches only. This gently corrects upward ph drift over time.

3). Activate the soil with a pre-feed. Add your liquid veg nute along with seaweed extract, molasses, Epsom salt and humic acid. Water it in and let it rest for 24-48 hours to stabilize the nutrients and wake the microbes up. (Target EC 1.4-1.6)

Your used soil is ready for reuse, and in most cases it will be even better than when you first bought it because the structure, carbon content and microbial life are more developed.

Additional notes: If you need help with how much perlite/biochar to add or any questions about the supporting additives, DM me or feel free to ask in this thread.

 

[cpurola]

Additional notes: If you need help with how much perlite/biochar to add or any questions about the supporting additives, DM me or feel free to ask in this thread.

Actually, I need help freeing the 'soil' from the roots. I planted in 20 gallon pots. I cut them out last fall and today, the lumps look just the same. Thought the winter would wear them down at least a little.

 

[Ninjadogma]

Actually, I need help freeing the 'soil' from the roots. I planted in 20 gallon pots. I cut them out last fall and today, the lumps look just the same. Thought the winter would wear them down at least a little.

A 20 gallon is too big for the technique, but with pots up to 7 gallon what I do is let it dry/shrink a little so the bag can slip off. I take the whole mass and start tapping at it over the wheellbarrel so the dirt falls from the connected roots. I keep tapping and shaking and then throw the root mass away. It leaves very little remaining to pick through.

Since you've got that much dirt and the ball wasn't removed in a manner I described, you can make yourself a screen out of 1/4" galvanized mesh and just sift your dirt through it. It will catch most of the roots but you'll also have any larger chunks of perlite get screened out too.

But you know really, if you break the roots up in the dirt and leave them, it might even be better. They lend additional fibrous structure to the soil and as they break down they release nutrients. So unless you had some soil pathogens - and if you did you don't want to reuse any of the dirt anyway - it might be better to just leave them.

 

[cpurola]

A 20 gallon is too big for the technique, but with pots up to 7 gallon what I do is let it dry/shrink a little so the bag can slip off. I take the whole mass and start tapping at it over the wheellbarrel so the dirt falls from the connected roots. I keep tapping and shaking and then throw the root mass away. It leaves very little remaining to pick through.

Since you've got that much dirt and the ball wasn't removed in a manner I described, you can make yourself a screen out of 1/4" galvanized mesh and just sift your dirt through it. It will catch most of the roots but you'll also have any larger chunks of perlite get screened out too.

But you know really, if you break the roots up in the dirt and leave them, it might even be better. They lend additional fibrous structure to the soil and as they break down they release nutrients. So unless you had some soil pathogens - and if you did you don't want to reuse any of the dirt anyway - it might be better to just leave them.

Thanks, I'm still not sure, think I'll look around for someone to rototill the garden. The only problem there is that the roots are gonna wrap up in the tines. hmmm. Maybe I'll just haul them to the back.

 

[Grownsince95]

Actually, I need help freeing the 'soil' from the roots. I planted in 20 gallon pots. I cut them out last fall and today, the lumps look just the same. Thought the winter would wear them down at least a little.

Once freed from the container, I hold mine by the root nub inside a garbage bag and just keep spanking the root ball until the medium falls away and I'm left holding bare roots. You have to keep turning it around as you do it but it eventually all falls off. It has to be on the dry-ish side but not brittle so the roots don't break up too much. There's always going to be some that make it through however.

 

[Grownsince95]

Something I learned today that I thought applied here:

If you're growing synthetic in coco or DWC and add a humic/fulvic acid supplement like diamond nectar or ancient earth to the reservoir, it adds organic matter that can increase bacterial blooms, root rot, etc.

For a more sterile rez stay away from any humic/fulvic acids, sugar/complex carb and kelp/seaweed extracts. They may be marketed as straight hydroponic nutrients but they change the synthetic/organic profile of your reservoir and can cause extra challenges if proper temperature etc. is not maintained.