My Disappointing, even PATHETIC Grow!

[Kampbe1l]

PRE-NOTE: Take 2 on writing this thread...so, paraphrasing what I might have written before. I am suspecting the downtime last night wiped my new thread, which I swear I wrote in this 'Grow Diaries' section.

Maybe I am going crazy? I imagined writing my thread and its responses. I definitely uploaded a 'before' and 'after' photos. it's not a double post, is it? I think i was talking about my own credibility.

------------------

Yup, it's been a struggle this year. This struggle all stemmed from my visit to the store several months ago, when they didn't have the regular potting mix I had used in past grows. I made a wrong decision on-the-spot in the choice of 'premium' potting mix.

Kicking myself for making this silly mistake, getting the fundamentals wrong doesn't help. I read the bag's label closely, before purchasing! Made sure no slow-release fertiliser time-bomb, right balance of NPK,etc.

Other reason for kicking myself was not correcting this silly mistake quicker. I let it go for about a month, when I knew immediately what the issue was, unsuitable potting mix causing poor root development.

On the flip side, i learned some lessons. I found a better soil/potting mix, which i may use in future grows. i learned to tackle the issue immediately, and properly.

hey, those who never stuff up, never have the joy of figuring it out, finally. maybe, its more a relief.

i could have germinated seeds, sown it, and it would have been more developed (in the new potting mix), than rescuing these babies. But happy that i got these babies back from the dead, and i didn't burn any more seeds.

Onto the next challenge....

This is why I'm writing this grow diary here, to show others the stuffups and its fixes (or not) - rather than tellling ya all how big & beautiful my dick is.

 

[Kampbe1l]

oh, let me describe my grow setup.

it's mid-summer, here in Sydney, Australia.

the grow 'sites' currently are our apartment balconies, and several sunny spots within our apartment.

when at home, i shift the pots, to follow the sun - but otherwise, during the workweek's days, the plants are left in one of these sunny spots. overnight, these plants are placed under T5 fluorescent in a grow tent, to supplement the natural sunlight during daytime.

if its rough weather (windy, rain, cloudy, cold) then the plants are placed under the fluorescent - otherwise, the plants are left in their sunny spots in the apartment to take advantage of the natural sunlight.

fluorescent are to supplement the natural sunlight, to essentially give it 24/7, to keep the plants in their vegetative state.

presently, these patients are been nursed back to their full health, in 3-gallon fabric pot with soil mix. the 'before' and 'after' photos in post above are 12 days apart.

the plan is to leave these plants in the natural sunlight, letting mother nature do her job, when i decide to flip 'em. this timetable is kinda set by the seasons, as I want to take advantage of the warmer and brighter outdoor weather conditions.

first thing first, tend to the immediate tasks....walk, before running, get these 'twins' stronger & bigger.

how's that sound as a general plan?

 

[Ezlyfe]

Plants don't require 24 light to stay in veg. U can drop the lighting to 20 on and 4 off or 18 on and 6 off. I keep my indoor girls at 16 and 8 for outdoor transplant with no issues of flowering. Imo plants benefit only from 24 hrs light when being cloned or sprouting seeds for first week or so. Hope ur grow goes great good luck

 

[Kampbe1l]

Plants don't require 24 light to stay in veg. U can drop the lighting to 20 on and 4 off or 18 on and 6 off. I keep my indoor girls at 16 and 8 for outdoor transplant with no issues of flowering. Imo plants benefit only from 24 hrs light when being cloned or sprouting seeds for first week or so. Hope ur grow goes great good luck

yup, indeed. and thank you!

i'm just lazy with the timer.

would there be benefits of 18/6, instead of 24/7, apart from electricity costs? i was thinking the plants deserve a little rest. i might have to figure out that timer!

i do leave them after sunset for a couple of hours, when and after i do let the plants out of the tent to soak the natural sunlight during the day, when weather permits. for instance, today, the plants were left under the fluoro, as its either overcast or smoke haze, i can't tell anymore other than smell.

agh, you have also touched on topics which i am working towards - cloning.

introducing another gal in my DISAPPOINTING & PATHETIC grow...the 'before' shot codename BBK10, where she is one sick patient, 16 days ago, poor root development as result of unsuitable potting mix.

'After' shot - 16 days after its transplant & repot, BBK10 is doing alright, now.

I forgot what strains, but these 3 plants are of 2 varieties, both feminised.

My thoughts are floating to FIM or topping or LST or combination - but allowing it to grow one more node, before re-assessing those options. Also, planning just to water again towards the end of this week, but thoughts are floating towards feeding them.

 

[oldskol4evr]

yup, indeed. and thank you!

i'm just lazy with the timer.

would there be benefits of 18/6, instead of 24/7, apart from electricity costs? i was thinking the plants deserve a little rest. i might have to figure out that timer!

i do leave them after sunset for a couple of hours, when and after i do let the plants out of the tent to soak the natural sunlight during the day, when weather permits. for instance, today, the plants were left under the fluoro, as its either overcast or smoke haze, i can't tell anymore other than smell.

agh, you have also touched on topics which i am working towards - cloning.

introducing another gal in my DISAPPOINTING & PATHETIC grow...the 'before' shot codename BBK10, where she is one sick patient, 16 days ago, poor root development as result of unsuitable potting mix.

View attachment 927706

'After' shot - 16 days after its transplant & repot, BBK10 is doing alright, now.

View attachment 927708

I forgot what strains, but these 3 plants are of 2 varieties, both feminised.

My thoughts are floating to FIM or topping or LST or combination - but allowing it to grow one more node, before re-assessing those options. Also, planning just to water again towards the end of this week, but thoughts are floating towards feeding them.,

if that soil alredy has feed in it,iwould feed water only,or better yet tea

 

[BigCube]

If these are indoor plants. I suggest not bringing them outside. That's a quick way to get pests.

 

[Jimster]

I think I replied to the old thread prior to it getting lost, but I agree with Oldschool... if you are going to use a medium that already has nutrients in it, I wouldn't supplement them for at least 2 months unless something obvious is discovered. I'm from a minimalist position, using Promix (a Peat based mix w/ vermiculite and carbonate to aid in buffering) and it drains very well, but is pretty empty as far as nutrients go. I mix in some compost/manure and a handfull of time release general fertilizer... all in 5 gallon buckets. By using just 20-20-20 fertilizer and a regular generic blooming mix during flowering, I get great results despite only feeding every 12 days and giving a gallon/day of water. This eliminates issues with nute lockout and Ph problems in general, and the gallon of water keeps salts from accumulating.
It is much easier to add deficient nutrients than to flush them out or untangle the nute lock puzzle. Your plant look much happier and I'm sure they are grateful in their own way! Good job with the rescue and good luck in future grows. All education costs something... either money or time, but is rewarded with experience. This is a lesson learned and you won't stumble on this problem again! Keep up the good work!

 

[Kampbe1l]

I think I replied to the old thread prior to it getting lost, but I agree with Oldschool... if you are going to use a medium that already has nutrients in it, I wouldn't supplement them for at least 2 months unless something obvious is discovered......I get great results despite only feeding every 12 days and giving a gallon/day of water. This eliminates issues with nute lockout and Ph problems in general, and the gallon of water keeps salts from accumulating...

everything is quite new to me, thus the struggles and challenges i had endured. for instance, i bought unsuitable potting mix, which i was unfamiliar with. replaced that potting mix, but again i have never used it before, unfamiliar with that. so, it's making it all up as we go.

i have misplaced the bag, which I kept it aside to read its label/contents, find it later. i remember it had black peat, granulated peat moss and perlite. It had no slow release timebomb in it. i added about 10% more perlite to this soil mix.

i'm grateful that the plants have responded well, so now a little more confident about the choice of soil/potting mix. i need to get to know this soil mix and the plants better by observation of their growth.

And thank you!

if that soil alredy has feed in it,iwould feed water only,or better yet tea

yeah, i'm gonna water this weekend, and then have a think about its feed or not. i want to base my decisions dictated by the plant's condition, rather than what I think it may need.

totally unfamiliar with tea. what do you use?

If these are indoor plants. I suggest not bringing them outside. That's a quick way to get pests.

Noted!

Okay, it's a chance i might have to take. This decision of 'planting out' is to be made over a month's time, so plenty of time to ponder and re-consider.

oh, something i forgot to photograph - the old unsuitable potting mix had gnats. gnats were another indication of poor soil condition, where it wasn't drying out evenly. now, i have not seen a gnat for the last 2 weeks, since its transplant/re-pot.

 

[Kampbe1l]

the tap water presently is around 7.3 pH, left sitting outside for at least 24 hours lower its reading closer to 7.0 pH. a few drops of diluted pH Down solution, and water adjusted to around 6.5 pH. i am watering so that there is <20% run-off.

i use a 1-litre measuring cup with its small beak, when watering. and then throw a small paddle-pop stick on top of the soil, with the day of the week when it was watered. roughly 6/7 days between watering, depending on the plant's conditions and outdoor weather.

keeping it simple.

i haven't yet bothered doing a slurry test or run-off test - as to me, these plants seem happier, mostly because of its new soil mix. maybe i should, just for curiosity sake.

 

[Beachwalker]

everything is quite new to me, thus the struggles and challenges i had endured. for instance, i bought unsuitable potting mix, which i was unfamiliar with. replaced that potting mix, but again i have never used it before, unfamiliar with that. so, it's making it all up as we go.

i have misplaced the bag, which I kept it aside to read its label/contents, find it later. i remember it had black peat, granulated peat moss and perlite. It had no slow release timebomb in it. i added about 10% more perlite to this soil mix.

i'm grateful that the plants have responded well, so now a little more confident about the choice of soil/potting mix. i need to get to know this soil mix and the plants better by observation of their growth.

And thank you!



yeah, i'm gonna water this weekend, and then have a think about its feed or not. i want to base my decisions dictated by the plant's condition, rather than what I think it may need.

totally unfamiliar with tea. what do you use?



Noted!

Okay, it's a chance i might have to take. This decision of 'planting out' is to be made over a month's time, so plenty of time to ponder and re-consider.

oh, something i forgot to photograph - the old unsuitable potting mix had gnats. gnats were another indication of poor soil condition, where it wasn't drying out evenly. now, i have not seen a gnat for the last 2 weeks, since its transplant/re-pot.

I don't know what your soil is it may well be poor soil as you say but if your watering till 20% runoff every time you might be keeping it too wet & I suspect you are, that would also explain the fungus gnats

If you're interested in a quick trick to learn to water using a wet/dry cycle properly tag me back in, either way good luck!

 

[Smoking Gun]

That transplant definitely helped, the plant looks much better afterwards. If you are now in a better soil I would start applying food after week 3 of being in the pot. The soil is going to take in those nutrients before the plants do and then will release them when conditions are right within the soil environment; so it does take some time for the plant to be able to use those nutrients. I would personally,start with very low doses of nutrients and slowly increase the strength. You could also use dry amendments like bat guano, seabird guano, insect crass, alfalfa meal, or any other organic time release amendments. Typically applications of these amendments would be every two to three weeks as they take time to break down and become available to the plants. Personally I prefer to use organic nutrients in soil, even when using bottled nutrients; I feel organic nutrients are tough to overdose and salts won’t build up to dangerous levels, though you can still knock things out of whack with over feeding.

 

[Kampbe1l]

I don't know what your soil is it may well be poor soil as you say but if your watering till 20% runoff every time you might be keeping it too wet & I suspect you are, that would also explain the fungus gnats

If you're interested in a quick trick to learn to water using a wet/dry cycle properly tag me back in, either way good luck!

gnats were in the older unsuitable potting mix. no gnats with the new soil mix.

about to water 'em, tomorrow morning.

tomorrow's forecast is for a hot 30c (86F?), partly cloudy, smoke haze. so, i am going to let 'em out of the grow tent, to soak whatever sun offered tomorrow - after i water 'em tomorrow morning before my work. let the kids out to play outside tomorrow (on balconies).

the transplant certainly addressed many issues. lessons learned, juveniles are happy at this moment.

That transplant definitely helped, the plant looks much better afterwards. If you are now in a better soil I would start applying food after week 3 of being in the pot. The soil is going to take in those nutrients before the plants do and then will release them when conditions are right within the soil environment; so it does take some time for the plant to be able to use those nutrients. I would personally,start with very low doses of nutrients and slowly increase the strength. You could also use dry amendments like bat guano, seabird guano, insect crass, alfalfa meal, or any other organic time release amendments. Typically applications of these amendments would be every two to three weeks as they take time to break down and become available to the plants. Personally I prefer to use organic nutrients in soil, even when using bottled nutrients; I feel organic nutrients are tough to overdose and salts won’t build up to dangerous levels, though you can still knock things out of whack with over feeding.

dry amendments at moment is not feasible, i feel. i want to get into so many other subject matters, however realistic in terms of apartment city living conditions and what limited space/knowledge i have. i always wanted a large sunny backyard!

Already got bottles of Canna Terra Vega and Flores!

transplant & re-pot into the new soil mix has turned this grow around, it's a long way to harvest. it seems we're on the right path.

not planning to feed them yet - another fortnight (4th week since transplant), before revisiting this matter. if/when i feed them, i will start with weak nutrient solution.

i am holding off on a few things i have in mind, gotta wait for these babies to grow bigger. So, no point in speculating about what might happen.

 

[CosmoGrows]

the tap water presently is around 7.3 pH, left sitting outside for at least 24 hours lower its reading closer to 7.0 pH. a few drops of diluted pH Down solution, and water adjusted to around 6.5 pH. i am watering so that there is <20% run-off.

i use a 1-litre measuring cup with its small beak, when watering. and then throw a small paddle-pop stick on top of the soil, with the day of the week when it was watered. roughly 6/7 days between watering, depending on the plant's conditions and outdoor weather.

keeping it simple.

i haven't yet bothered doing a slurry test or run-off test - as to me, these plants seem happier, mostly because of its new soil mix. maybe i should, just for curiosity sake.

You water with one litre? what size pot?

 

[Kampbe1l]

nuh, using a 1 litre jug, to water - its little beak allows a gentle flow, and i twist the pot around as i water/pour.

these plants were sick & tiny when i potted into these 3-gallons, so you adapt the watering technique as the plant gets bigger & roots develop. these plants are over-potted, at present, small plant in large pot, and this is something not really recommended..

i watered maybe 300 mls each plant in the 1st week when they were like sprouts, just around the stem. in 2nd week, i poured more on each pot, probably 500 mls on young seedlings. tomorrow, i will play by ear as to how much they each need, but it'll be more in volume (600/700 mls maybe) and more of these young juveniles' pot itself.

how much to water is difficult to compare - as growing conditions, humidity, soil condition, plant size, temperature, etc - are different for each grower.

 

[CosmoGrows]

nuh, using a 1 litre jug, to water - its little beak allows a gentle flow, and i twist the pot around as i water/pour.

these plants were sick & tiny when i potted into these 3-gallons, so you adapt the watering technique as the plant gets bigger & roots develop. i watered maybe 300 mls each plant in the 1st week when they were like sprouts, just around the stem. in 2nd week, i poured more on each pot, probably 500 mls on young seedlings. tomorrow, i will play by ear as to how much they each need, but it'll be more in volume (600/700 mls maybe) and more of these young juveniles' pot itself.

how much to water is difficult to compare - as growing conditions, humidity, soil condition, plant size, temperature, etc - are different for each grower.

Ahhh okay thanks, i should read up more in your post and i could have probably got that info, but its late after work, i dont feel like reading much, just figured id ask as you know im battling the watering issue lol. appreciate it though, im trying to gather as much info on the watering part as possible lmao.

 

[Kampbe1l]

progress report on BBK10. she's about to get a watering tomorrow morning, before i go to work.

promising growth, including strong lower offshoots. this is where my thoughts are floating towards FIM and LST.

 

[Beachwalker]

gnats were in the older unsuitable potting mix. no gnats with the new soil mix.

about to water 'em, tomorrow morning.

tomorrow's forecast is for a hot 30c (86F?), partly cloudy, smoke haze. so, i am going to let 'em out of the grow tent, to soak whatever sun offered tomorrow - after i water 'em tomorrow morning before my work. let the kids out to play outside tomorrow (on balconies).

the transplant certainly addressed many issues. lessons learned, juveniles are happy at this moment.



dry amendments at moment is not feasible, i feel. i want to get into so many other subject matters, however realistic in terms of apartment city living conditions and what limited space/knowledge i have. i always wanted a large sunny backyard!

Already got bottles of Canna Terra Vega and Flores!

transplant & re-pot into the new soil mix has turned this grow around, it's a long way to harvest. it seems we're on the right path.

not planning to feed them yet - another fortnight (4th week since transplant), before revisiting this matter. if/when i feed them, i will start with weak nutrient solution.

i am holding off on a few things i have in mind, gotta wait for these babies to grow bigger. So, no point in speculating about what might happen.

I've had gnats in every bag of Fox farm I've purchased. Proper watering and Pest Management is what most of us do to control them I think someone mentioned BT (mosquito dunks or bits) above hope that helps, good luck

Ps. I agree with Mr Cube, big mistake putting indoor plants outside, if you think you have pest issues now just wait till you bring them back inside!

 

[Kampbe1l]

re-iterate, no pest issues now. nudah.

happy, now. the last 3 weeks growth should have been earlier. meh, it is what it is. it's not regret, because it got corrected, still a little down on myself. time will heal that hurt.

my initial target is to get to day 60 from this transplant - 20th February, then see where its at.

 

[CosmoGrows]

I've had gnats in every bag of Fox farm I've purchased. Proper watering and Pest Management is what most of us do to control them I think someone mentioned BT (mosquito dunks or bits) above hope that helps, good luck

Ps. I agree with Mr Cube, big mistake putting indoor plants outside, if you think you have pest issues now just wait till you bring them back inside!

Beachwalker, what kind of medium do you use?

 

[Kampbe1l]

watered, about 1.5 litres of water adjusted to around 6.4 pH. watered this morning, then left on the apartment's balcony, when i went to work.

came home and then shifted it to the other favourite spot within the apartment, the second sunny bedroom window (pictured above), which catches all the afternoon sun. sun sets about 7:30 pm. nice warm 30c day today, partly sunny. protected from the winds.

i like this spot - i can see you all, but you can't really see me. i do keep my movements around the plants to a minimum, and try to only move during night/dark.

these plants are left there, until after dinner, after a couple of hours of darkness, gets shifted back into the grow tent, under the fluorescent.