My second grow in coco under CFL (White Widow x Big Bud)

[Creswell]

I’ve got 400w (split blue/red) CFL 12inches from my little plant. It’s 3 weeks old today. I posted in another THCFarmer forum and Aqua Man suggested I come here and start a diary to get advice and share.

I put my seedling straight into a fabric 10L pot (dumb move I realise) raised up 2 inches on a mesh to be clear of run-off.

I built a double walled insulated cabinet with carbon filtered intakes and outflow. The main fan is powerful but currently at half speed. I’ve got a little fan circulating air inside.

I’m using canna coco professional (pre-buffered) and canna nutes (A/B and Rhizotic). Currently 8/8/8ml of each. I have some CalMag on order. My final nute solution is EC 800, pH 6.0. Tap water is soft. Temp is steady 22-24C except when I water when it drops to 17C for 10 mins.

I water everyday to 20% run off.
I have some deformed (3 finger) leaves (see pics) so I thought I’d come here for some advice. I had such a bad experience with my first grow (see posts from 2018) that it has taken me this long to try again!

All comments/advice appreciated- cheers!

 

[oldskol4evr]

no no no,drop that ppm down to 250 mate that a baby,running 6 ph is ideal,you have soft water,ok what is soft
what is ph and ppm from tap?

 

[oldskol4evr]

you already know you went to big on pot so work with it,concentrate around the plant about 4inch ,you want the coco wet at all times,so you will have to live with a lot of waste,no big deal but concentrate around the plant as it takes off and roots expand you will be able to flush the built up salts ,that down the road though only if you have to,more like you will,no big deal folk around here glad to help ,but get them ppm down or you gonna kill that baby

 

[Creswell]

you already know you went to big on pot so work with it,concentrate around the plant about 4inch ,you want the coco wet at all times,so you will have to live with a lot of waste,no big deal but concentrate around the plant as it takes off and roots expand you will be able to flush the built up salts ,that down the road though only if you have to,more like you will,no big deal folk around here glad to help ,but get them ppm down or you gonna kill that baby

Hey man- thanks. Tap water EC is 350 and pH 7.4 or so.
I’m surprised you’re saying nutes ppm is high. It’s 780μs/cm I’m not getting confused with my units am I?

 

[oldskol4evr]

makes sure your on the 500 scale,if not remeber that no matter what scale you use the ec is always the same,that is considered hard water so,if you can take your tap water dilute it with ro water until your ph is 6,then check to see were your ppm is.
also check this out when you drop the ph by usint ph down your ppm is gonna go up from the mineral base in the ph down ,so you have to work the ph down and ph ,if you dig what i mean,believe me when i say it is best to use ro or distilled water until you get to the stage were y

ou up your ppm for stage of growth,
read this note and you see what i mean ,it is also in ec ,like i said ec doesnt change no matter what scale

 

[Creswell]

Thanks oldskol4ever,
I double checked and my final nutes solution has an EC of 738μs/cm2
so that makes PPM(500) about 360 or something. Still higher than your 250 rec but not miles away. I’ll tweak it down a bit tonight. I’d like to get a RO filter but can’t afford it.

 

[Burned Haze]

Not trying to argue with ya oldskol but for coco that’s way too high in flower( good chart 4 soil thou)

your feed settings are good in veg

seedlings/clones And “1st stage 150ppm-250ppm
early veg 250-500ppm
mid-late veg( you can still stay at 500ppm rest Of time till flower) 500-700ppm
flower 500-700ppm

if under Led’s, and co2 enrichment and higher temps
+15%-25% of nutes + micros

led :
co2 900-1500ppm
Temps 80-85f max
follow vpd few graph with your temps to get proper intakes in leafs and your plants will love you for that, so many people def neglect the vpd side of things and want to go low on humidity or play god, well plants have evolved to a certain environment ( just like us). Environment is 30%+ of the end result of your yeilds and quality and many growers want to neglect that part.

here’s a good guide for vpd and explaining what vpd is and even a vpd calculator:

The Ultimate Vapor Pressure Deficit (VPD) Guide

"Why devote an entire guide to VPD?" you might ask. The answer is that the vapor pressure deficit (VPD) is extremely important for growing plants. VPD helps you identify the correct range of temperature and humidity to aim for in your grow space. With VPD you can achieve the best results while...

pulsegrow.com

 

[oldskol4evr]

Thanks oldskol4ever,
I double checked and my final nutes solution has an EC of 738μs/cm2
so that makes PPM(500) about 360 or something. Still higher than your 250 rec but not miles away. I’ll tweak it down a bit tonight. I’d like to get a RO filter but can’t afford it.

i dont think a ro fitering system would help me,i have to many plants in difrent areas indoor and out that no way i can feed ro water too,plus i dont like the idea of how much waste is involved,i take my 5 gal bottle right up there to wal mart and fill them for 29 cents a gallon.
i only use the ro water until i get were i can i use my tap water,then when i start to drop my ec value closer to harvet which im doing now i start the ro water again,im 7 weeks in and im dropping down to 500 ppm right now,next week i drop to 400 and so on to harvest,,throw a pic of your meter up for me,there should be a button on there were you can swith scales

 

[oldskol4evr]

agree i never go past 1000 soil or coco,hydro 1200 is my limit ,usally around 900 your plants will show you what they can take,i had a melon growing last year taking 1600 ppm never missing a lick was weird as hell too ,growing outside in a trash can ,i just kept topping it off with 5 gal water every other day,kept on ticking until,oi went for a tune up,when i got out it had died and had ate the feed inside to 1/4 of 33 gal can left hahah,deer ate the shit out of the melon was sweet.
i have taken 1 sativa plant of mine and gone to 1200 ppm but that was 16 weeks to harvest also

 

[Creswell]

3 weeks tomorrow (got confused with dates before). Lowering nutes EC to 0.6 when I mix next batch tonight.

 

[Creswell]

4 weeks old today. Looking much healthier and growing fast. Roots are out sides and bottom of 10L fabric pots. I’ve been creeping up the nutes with no ill effects. Currently tap water EC 0.32. I’m adding CalMag to EC 0.45 then canna A/B/Rhizotic 5/5/5ml in 10L water. Final pH 6.1 EC 0.75
Looks healthy although maybe on light green side..?

 

[Creswell]

She’s 5 weeks in a few days. Some of the older leaves have what looks like start of Mg deficiency? My pH meter was playing up- got a new one. I’ve upped CaMg so will keep an eye on it. Planning to start 12/12 tomorrow. Yield not big issue for me, just want quality this grow.

 

[Creswell]

Six weeks old in a few days and 12/12 for nearly a week. I’m worried about high humidity so I buying a second hand dehumidifier to put in the cabinet. RH peaks at over 70 at lights off. I’m having to vary my extraction fan speed to keep temps in 20-30C range.
It’s wet and cool here so cold temps during lights out (day time) mean I have to reduce airflow to retain heat. I’m taking in air and extracting to my garage which is damp when rainy so not ideal!
I still have signs of something..? on my leaves (see pics).
On the positive side she’s starting to develop a real nice smell!