Casual's 12-site BioBucket grow

[Caliweedman]

Diy

I love DIYer's! Most hydroponic stores are so overpriced for a decent system. Keep up the good work.

 

[UCMENOW]

Burn a bowl...not the roots ;)

That EC sounds a little too high....try cutting it to 1.0 and give them a few days to show you what they think of it....bet they blow up from the higher water absorbtion...IMO

 

[Casual]

Hi UC... I've been running it at about 1.4 and they've been doing pretty well. I was told full strength Lucas was 2.0EC, so was shooting for that...
I'll keep a close eye on them and if the tips look like they're starting to burn, I'll pull some water out and dilute with fresh RO and drop it down a ways.

Thanks for the input!

Caz

 

[kuz]

What are you using? The info i have is. ml per gallon
N - P - K - MG - CA

veg
Lucas flora 5 ml micro - 10 ml bloom 81 - 66 - 114 - 46 - 81 592 ppm .5 or 1.18 ec

flower
Lucas flora 8 ml micro - 16 ml bloom
130 - 106 - 183 - 73 - 130 947 ppm .5 or 1.89 ec

I thought you wanted to build up to the 1.89 ec. over a couple of weeks.

also read where people use floranova;
FN; 8 ml bloom, 3 ml grow 140 - 88 - 189 - 54 - 116
floranova would be about 1.8 EC at half strength, is that what your using?

 

[Casual]

Hi Kuz. At the moment, I'm not running any Mg of Ca.
Strictly GH FloraMicro and FloraBloom.
The girls had been in the system with 1/2 strength nutes for a week, EC of 1.2
About a week and a half ago, I bumped up the EC to 1.4, and then yesterday to the current 1.9, although when i bumped them, I didn't swap the ratio's of Micro and Bloom... DOH! Next week when I add back nutes, I'll make sure I get the Bloom bumped up.
Most of the advice I've been getting has come from a gentleman over at ICM who has quite a bit of experience with the BioBuckets.
I need to pick up some CalMag I think, since I'm using RO water.
What symptoms does the plant show with a lack of calcium and magnesium?

Thanks!!

Caz

 

[kuz]

Yes, micro not grow, i edited that.

I thought the ratio's stayed the same you just bumped it up
8ml micro and 16ml bloom per gallon or EC 1.89. Should give mg 73 and ca 130 ppm in r/o water. idk, i thought the lucas idea was to get enough ca and mg that you didnt need cal-mag.

Could be mg, but is it not enough or lockout?

 

[Casual]

Hmmmm... You got me there Kuz... I need to find that thread that Lucas posted all his info in and give it a good, solid reading.

Nutes seems to be the big 'arcane' secret that people work for awhile to really get down pat. I'm just scratching the surface. I believe I'm being very conservative with me approach. So far, they all look great today... I'm watching them closely!

Caz

 

[UCMENOW]

I always found good old fashion Epsom salts to be an excellent companion to GH....Lucas or other wise.....(1) teaspoon per 10 gallon dilution ratio. Not suggesting it's needed for you, just thought I'd drop 2 cents :)

 

[Casual]

UC, thanks for the tip! I've been meaning to pick some up just so I have it on hand. It's very cheap at the local store.
I've noticed my leaves aren't a deep green, but a light green... is this normal, or are they wanting something I'm not supplying them??

Thanks!!

Caz

 

[UCMENOW]

By reducing your EC you enable the plants to uptake more water....which in turn moves more nutes through the plants system.

Higher water uptake also promotes larger leaf development which gives the plants more surface area for photo synthesis.....that said, reducing nutes can often get your plants growing faster, then once they're growing more quickly you can up your nutrient dosages in response to the plants needs increasing.

 

[Casual]

UC, I believe I understand... Once the plants are drinking more, when you up the nutes, they'll continue to uptake at a higher rate and therefore take in even more nutes.
Makes sense, I think! ;)

What EC would you recommend I drop to at this point?
I can just start pulling water out of the rez, a gallon at a time, let the system top off with RO water, then pull out another gallon until I hit the right EC.

Caz

 

[UCMENOW]

Use the force Caz....but seriously though, it's tough to speculate EC levels, just continue to reduce EC until you see growth accelerate then you can begin to bump up from there.

You got it dialed already, just remember in the future to start low when plants are young cause it's a lot easier to correct a deficiency then to offset an excess.

 

[BOSSMAN88188]

Just read the whole thread.
Very nice setup. You are off to a great start.
And have some good company in here to help you out.
Good luck bro. I will be lurkin along.

 

[JACKMAYOFFER]

I have my moms at 650 to 750 ppm and I have never seen leaves this big even in the 30 k room. Jack

 

[Xceptional]

good shit man i love seeing someone jump in feet first on their first run! i did just like a ton of reading then opened my pocket book and had a successful first run. of course i had issues but i overcame all of them with the help of forum members and patients and research. this will pay off for you!

 

[Casual]

Thanks for all the kudos guys!! I really appreciate it!
I still have the fear at the back of my mind every morning when I go to check on them, that they'll all be dead when I walk in the room! ;)

Jack, is that a good thing that the leaves are so huge?? I'm not sure how to take that! ;)
I think it is. Because they're so close together, I'm considering thinning out the fan leaves, what do you all think?

Caz

 

[Casual]

Here are the latest pics... Very happy with the White Widows. Most of them are very hearty. A couple were on the young side to go in, and they show it now. The AH3's are hit and miss it seems... 2 of them have really started to take off. All in all though, I'm very please so far. I've learned a ton of stuff to do differently next go around. Being my first grow, I'd meant this to be a learning experience, and it has been... in spades!

Caz

 

[UCMENOW]

Looking great....nice work!

 

[sdgrower]

Looking nice man. Good job!

 

[FileError404]

Very nice set-up, Casual!

I would add another light, though. Your light mover has too far to travel. You will get major fox-tailing in late flower. I have a mover, too but just move it a foot to avoid hot-spots and to lower the lights more. Your lamp looks a bit high, too or is that for the pics?

Best of luck!