4x4 Auto Apple Fritter grow

[JIMKSI64]

Hello THC farmers.
Starting my first grow journal for documentation. I am a new grower for Cannabis but have grown for for 30 years.

First grow was small tent White Widow Photo. That grow is in cure jars with 7.5 oz useable buds and trim. Went with Autos for the time frame I have.
Popped 6 Apple fritter that a web site had listed as fire but the forum said If you can get them to pop. I had no trouble other that expecting trouble so I only had soil for 4 5 gallon fabric pots. Ran to a local provider and got some more.
4x4 tent with 3 lights. Biggest is a 400 watt panel mounted to the ceiling but I do have tethers. 2 smaller lights at 150 each giving me 700 watts. 6 inch exhaust set up for top extraction and 4 inch mounted for bottom extraction. I also have a moveable floor I can set up 18, 11, and 7 inches from tent floor. This 3 door tent with raised floor is the only way I can maintain plants as I have a long history of back problems.
Soil is fox farms HF/OF at 75/25 mix with added perlite. Watered from bottom first and let settle. I use a divot of seedling mix and place popped seeds directly in pots.
Environment is controlled by both Vivosun app and an ACI app. Vivosun runs lights and fans ACI runs the thermoforge and the cloudforge boxes as well as handling alerts to my phone when grow goes out of specs. Tent is in a basement bedroom that has a direct exchange with rest of basement on demand. I had trouble modifying the whole basement and humidity gave me problems so new location.
Tools I use include apera 60 pH kit but I do not PH water during Organic grows until I add stuff. Light meter is a lux meter and I use that as a benchmark not as a goal or target. The plant will tell me what it wants and can stand. I did make several lux maps so I can pick a couple of areas for data and not have to visit every top.
I will top dress week 3 with EWC and a soil conditioner that I have used for years that hits all the marks with poop from every corner of the planet. For flower nutes I use foop bloom nutes which are a pour fish poop and sugar 3 part kit. Expensive but the top dressing liquids were so smelly I choose this due to natural mint as a cover.
Ipm is a 3 zone system I found in a journal during research. Outer band includes honey traps to attract bugs and chemicals to kill them. Medium IPM is a self closing door and all holes in this room have been sealed or on a filter. All walls both side have been hosed with defender insect crap that is pet friendly for my buddies. Inside protection is sticky traps and insect screens on any entry. Fruit fly attractors on top of tent and glowing flying traps on 2 walls.
I am a data hound and if you follow me I will bore you if you do not like numbers. I maintain my PH tools with calibration but I also calibrate my environmental tools. Temp and humidity sensors have 2 problems. Accuracy and drift. Out of the box I mean right on the box they tell you this is +-2 degrees. And +-1% RH. I zero my temp and humidity sensors (5 app and 3 growee cubes ) and once the comparative math shows a reduction from zero of more than 10% I calibrate my sensors again.
Plan on the fritters is 18-6 the whole grow. Only change will be spectrum. I am hoping the stretch will match the WW grow as these nutes really delivered.

 

[Galgrows]

Hello and welcome. Well planned grow there. Here come my questions........are the pots sitting on risers? Am i understanding correctly that the seeds sprouted and you've buried them?

 

[JIMKSI64]

Hello and welcome. Well planned grow there. Here come my questions........are the pots sitting on risers? Am i understanding correctly that the seeds sprouted and you've buried them?

The pots are on the floor with nothing underneath. This will change when watering is to the point where I have drainage. I use raised 13 inch wicking bases without the wicking action. I do bottom feed if required but the bases are used just to keep the post dry.
I germinate using the paper towel and a baggie system. Once I see a tail I put into a seed starter mix in a small hollowed out divot in the pot. Transplant shock is a thing and I do not do things that slow the plant. In addition by soaking the pot I placed a new seedling in moist soil but just below it is a huge humidity pool calling the roots down.

 

[Galgrows]

Got it good plans. I also pre dampen soil containers to settle soil. I use the same as you germination system. Best of luck with the grow, lots of well experienced growers here who are way more techie than myself. I'll be watching for updates.

 

[Gmix]

Expensive but the top dressing liquids were so smelly I choose this due to natural mint as a cover.

two way benefit as some bugs avoid mint

Total opposite in the numbers area or following vpn ect however my mantra is grow how you like as long as your enjoining it witch you obviously are.

Hope you get a nice yield

 

[Bobcat.Branch]

I'm along for the ride... Fellow data slut, reporting for duty.

 

[JIMKSI64]

Am check one seedling 1 inch tall, 2 hulls being pushed through the dirt and a coly sticking up.
Also a real problem. I explained that I had to get a bag of soil so now my sticky traps have 4 gnats. Seedling stage is a good time for diatom clay as I can cover most of the pot top and leave a ring for watering.
Replaced trap with new to check for any more.

Lights 5k to 6200 lux at dirt level. Numbers today

 

[OGKallday1981]

The pots are on the floor with nothing underneath. This will change when watering is to the point where I have drainage. I use raised 13 inch wicking bases without the wicking action. I do bottom feed if required but the bases are used just to keep the post dry.
I germinate using the paper towel and a baggie system. Once I see a tail I put into a seed starter mix in a small hollowed out divot in the pot. Transplant shock is a thing and I do not do things that slow the plant. In addition by soaking the pot I placed a new seedling in moist soil but just below it is a huge humidity pool calling the roots down.

I don't understand the paper towel method seems a little stressful for a freshly popped seed to be handled and stuff. I just plop it in a small fabric 1/4gal transplanter and little water and vpd around .8 usually 3 days later they say hello lol

 

[Galgrows]

I don't understand the paper towel method seems a little stressful for a freshly popped seed to be handled and stuff. I just plop it in a small fabric 1/4gal transplanter and little water and vpd around .8 usually 3 days later they say hello lol

Whatever works for you. I've never had a fail yet using this method and transfering to a pot.

 

[JIMKSI64]

I totally agree OGK. Like when does a seed come in contact with paper towels in nature? Come on that's silly.
But not really.
When a seed splits in nature a portion of the seeds fail due to orientation of the tap root. If the root is up it fails. But I nature there are dozens and dozens of seeds so it does not matter.
I want to ensure the tap root is facing down and that the depth is appropriate. I can only do this by germinating outside of dirt and placing it in dirt.
There are many ways to get here and if they work all are valid

 

[OGKallday1981]

I totally agree OGK. Like when does a seed come in contact with paper towels in nature? Come on that's silly.
But not really.
When a seed splits in nature a portion of the seeds fail due to orientation of the tap root. If the root is up it fails. But I nature there are dozens and dozens of seeds so it does not matter.
I want to ensure the tap root is facing down and that the depth is appropriate. I can only do this by germinating outside of dirt and placing it in dirt.
There are many ways to get here and if they work all are valid


View attachment 2419632

Not knocking your method just never understood, also the tap root will naturally grow down like nature intended it's kinda like an animal's instinct lol that's probably what happens when they take 7 days longer to sprout than their sisters lol finding their way up. I am convinced that if you just put it in dirt without watering it and just had the RH right it would take a bit, but it would probably sprout eventually.

 

[Bobcat.Branch]

I totally agree OGK. Like when does a seed come in contact with paper towels in nature? Come on that's silly.
But not really.
When a seed splits in nature a portion of the seeds fail due to orientation of the tap root. If the root is up it fails.

Are you sure about this?

 

[JIMKSI64]

Having grown food on a semi industrial scale in the past I have a bit of experience in germinating seeds. I have seen seeds dead that looked perfect and a tail and some without. I planted an acre of popcorn for the boy scouts ( they helped ) and we planted by hand casting. This always requires culling plants close together and when these plants are pulled a lot of times sprouted seeds are dead in the dirt.
Perhaps I mostly do it this way because I have always done it this way.

 

[Bobcat.Branch]

Having grown food on a semi industrial scale in the past I have a bit of experience in germinating seeds. I have seen seeds dead that looked perfect and a tail and some without. I planted an acre of popcorn for the boy scouts ( they helped ) and we planted by hand casting. This always requires culling plants close together and when these plants are pulled a lot of times sprouted seeds are dead in the dirt.

But, seed orientation was the cause? Or is this an observational hypothesis? I'm thinking back (way back!) to my Botany studies in college and learning about gravitropism.

 

[JIMKSI64]

Well the apple fritter have broken through the dirt and I have 4 above ground now. 3 of these have helmet head. Will give it a day but may have to take the hulls off.

 

[JIMKSI64]

Yes gravitropism will steer a root downward but starting with the root at the bottom of the seed is more efficient. It also removes one more random event in a tent with multiple plants. If a plant is behind due to emergence issues it will effect canopy and perhaps nutrition and flowering timing in autos.
Thank you for this discussion, it has me thinking of how I developed this idea and weather it was completely observational supposition or if I did any research or study when I started growing food.
Perhaps the act of ensuring the pointy end of the seed was always down had me thinking about why a seed would develop with an orientation. God and nature do not play dice, there is a reason things are the way they are.

 

[Bobcat.Branch]

Yes gravitropism will steer a root downward but starting with the root at the bottom of the seed is more efficient. It also removes one more random event in a tent with multiple plants. If a plant is behind due to emergence issues it will effect canopy and perhaps nutrition and flowering timing in autos.
Thank you for this discussion, it has me thinking of how I developed this idea and weather it was completely observational supposition or if I did any research or study when I started growing food.
Perhaps the act of ensuring the pointy end of the seed was always down had me thinking about why a seed would develop with an orientation. God and nature do not play dice, there is a reason things are the way they are.

The biggest thing, to me at least, about putting a cannabis seed "upside down" is that it will expend more energy for having the radicle reverse course to grow down. And, also greater chance for helmet head, which I see you're experiencing the joys of that at the moment!

 

[Bobcat.Branch]

Well the apple fritter have broken through the dirt and I have 4 above ground now. 3 of these have helmet head. Will give it a day but may have to take the hulls off.

A delicate hand is prudent...

 

[JIMKSI64]

Update.
Girls are removing head gear on their own. One hull on dirt one almost open like a clam and hanging on by some weird plant need to create anxiety in the guy with the water can.
Seems counter productive to me.
Last one above dirt is splitting open and has another 90 degrees to go

Slower seedlings are close to breach.

Clean sticky traps have not attracted any more gnats in 36 hours. I think gnats are a 10 day cycle so still got a while to call clear.

If 6 gets to veg I really did not expect 6 plants even autos. More of a spacing issue plants stuck in the middle of the tent can not be reached by me due to limitations. I had planned on 4 each withing 24 inches of a door and reachable from the seated position.
I do not have a secure area for outside and have no intention of breaking the adult use rules. A lot of people have permission to fish with kids and sometimes I still do scouting events.
Might have to gift it.

 

[Galgrows]

Update.
Girls are removing head gear on their own. One hull on dirt one almost open like a clam and hanging on by some weird plant need to create anxiety in the guy with the water can.
Seems counter productive to me.
Last one above dirt is splitting open and has another 90 degrees to go

Slower seedlings are close to breach.

Clean sticky traps have not attracted any more gnats in 36 hours. I think gnats are a 10 day cycle so still got a while to call clear.

If 6 gets to veg I really did not expect 6 plants even autos. More of a spacing issue plants stuck in the middle of the tent can not be reached by me due to limitations. I had planned on 4 each withing 24 inches of a door and reachable from the seated position.
I do not have a secure area for outside and have no intention of breaking the adult use rules. A lot of people have permission to fish with kids and sometimes I still do scouting events.
Might have to gift it.

Yes i go clone crazy and give all of them away. This grow i'm doing now i took zero clones. I'm only allowed 4 adult plants and really that's all i can handle outdoors or indoors. I use a eye dropper and drop water on the helmet heads they shed quicker.