Norcal Outdoor Medical, Organic Forest Grow. First Grow Log

[Orcaman]

Hey BudBogart, I'm glad that you liked my soil PH pen. But I want to show you another very cheap way to keep track of water and soil PH. This simple fish water tester does the same thing with in reason. The nice thing about this test strip is besides PH it also shows general hardness, carbonate hardness, nitrites, and nitrates in PPM's.

 

[BudBogart]

Nice scenery BudBogart.

Lol, thanks. That was a little bit of gratuitous forest porn in the background. I do love my surroundings.

 

[BudBogart]

Hey BudBogart, I'm glad that you liked my soil PH pen. But I want to show you another very cheap way to keep track of water and soil PH. This simple fish water tester does the same thing with in reason. The nice thing about this test strip is besides PH it also shows general hardness, carbonate hardness, nitrites, and nitrates in PPM's.
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Thank you so much for caring about our grow. It really brings a level of comfort knowing you have my back. I appreciate all of you people who have helped to date, @Orcaman you've inspired me to back up my desire to build my soil with compost and other products from our forest with some of the new fangled scientifical gizmos to let me know what's going on.
Remember, I've pretty much just discovered my first hydro store. On the flip side, I recently found pictures of pot I grew taken with a Polaroid camera, lol. Circa 1980, when it was easy to tell the difference between an indica and a sativa growing side by side. I remember thinking that the gawd awful skunk smell of the indica would never catch on! Peace, and thanks!

 

[BudBogart]

Okay, week 3, 21 days since sprouting. Got watered today after drying out several days. Got its first feeding of Peru gold liquid copal, .07/.0057/.2258. Also a bit of worm castings scratched into the surface a few days ago finally watered in.
Roots continue to impress me, esp. compared to the modest top growth.
Starting to consider the need to up pot before planting in another month. Raining today, 50 f.

 

[BudBogart]

View inside the box.

 

[Orcaman]

I've been thinking about your time frame with right at 30 more days before they go outside for good. Two transplants in 30 days will defeat all of your great progression and is not a good thing in my opinion. If I was in your position right now I would slow the plants growth down in a few ways. First is you stated that they currently get 5 hours of darkness. I would go to seven hours of no light. Second is let them stay a little more cooler day and night, and very little sun exposure for now to slow the Photosynthesis down. Third is less feeding for now to. I would wait another ten days to feed with water only as needed in between, and so on with the feeding in till they are replanted. I really wish that I could do outdoor growing as well as my indoor.

 

[BudBogart]

I've been thinking about your time frame with right at 30 more days before they go outside for good. Two transplants in 30 days will defeat all of your great progression and is not a good thing in my opinion. If I was in your position right now I would slow the plants growth down in a few ways. First is you stated that they currently get 5 hours of darkness. I would go to seven hours of no light. Second is let them stay a little more cooler day and night, and very little sun exposure for now to slow the Photosynthesis down. Third is less feeding for now to. I would wait another ten days to feed with water only as needed in between, and so on with the feeding in till they are replanted. I really wish that I could do outdoor growing as well as my indoor.

Thanks for thinking of us, you've got me thinking better about our situation. I changed from 5 to 6 hours about a week ago, forgot to log the change.
I would say I want to transplant and get them growing in a 3 or 5 gallon pot. They could be under the sheltered covering in the orchard and get a good grow on for a month. Then I realized I don't have electricity ran to the barn n orchard, about 200'.

Supplemental lighting would be a problem in the short term. I could get a ditch dug, etc., but you point out only one month to go.

Today 14 hours of light including civil dusk. May 8 th, 15 hours of light. I need to adjust close to three hours by May 8, or almost four hours before their " first" up potting.
Please, what is a safe rate to reduce the hours of light over a given period?

To further along the lines of your suggestion, please note, there was virtually no fertilizer in the potting soil and at three weeks several plants are showing signs of nitrogen deficiency in lighter green lower leaves, small top growth. I hope they will show improvement on top with their recent worm and llama ferting, one day ago.
I was hoping that they will stop putting so much energy into root production and give me some top growth by adding the ferts.

At your suggestion, and my realization I have no electricity, lol, I will roll back to 7 hours now. I will turn off the heating element under the plants (at 75 f), and heat only from the top.
Do you think there is a way we can slow the roots while letting the top grow? Sorry for rambling, thanks.

 

[Orcaman]

I would stay at seven hours darkness for the next week. I think an hour a week is a nice adjustment with each day adding a minute of sun right now. No heating pad and cooler temps should really help slow down root growth. Your pots are plenty big enough to contain a nice root system. I completely veg in a four inch pot before going to a gallon and a half rose bucket. Sometime up to three months in a four inch pot. Always feed them as needed. Just try to keep it to a minimum for now.

 

[BudBogart]

Went to 7 darks few days back. Most plants are getting ugly lower leaves and seem to be stalling. I probably should have mixed some organic fert in the unferted potting mix, now waiting for worm mulch to soak in.
Posting pics of plants. Am I mis diagnosing as nitro deficient?
(Also posted in infirm). The lil black specs are just soil.

 

[BudBogart]

I have been checking ph levels. I got some test strips that show ph, chlorine, total alkalinity, total hardness and cyanuric acid.
No chlorine in well water or pond water.
PH level was about 7.5-7.8 of the well water, just slightly lower with pond water.
The water mixed with the soil consistently show ph with range, 6.2-6.6 even after sitting a few days.
I had half a bucket of pond water sitting on the porch for a couple of days. When I looked inside the bucket I saw we had hatched about 2 dozen tadpoles, tiny lil things. I took the bucket back to the pond and let the lil swimmers back into the pond. Like Free Willie only lots smaller. Makes me wonder about the nutrient properties of frog shit and tiny tadpole meal in the water. I quit using the pond water until I could figure out the ph, esp. What with the plants looking bad.
I think I should have added organic frets into the soil so they could be broken down and ready for use by now. I am hoping that is the trouble, cuz that's what I am trying to fix. In addition to some worm cast top dress, a light topping of blood meal for the next watering.

 

[BudBogart]

Catch 22. I need to get some food to the girls but they like to hold water for days.
I decided to transplant a few smaller plants into a mix of orchard soil from some of "the holes" adding some perlite, worm castings, azomite, home made oak bio char I made last year.
Hoping that will help dry out the mix and supply nutes as the roots grow out.
The roots from the 3 " plants were like 9 inches long so I transplanted to larger pots than otherwise would have used.
These transplants will need to get light from sunlight, then I can leave porch lights on so they don't try and flower.
I am really hoping my orchard soil has turned out well. Wish us luck! We should know in a few days.

 

[NCascadeSolo]

Went to 7 darks few days back. Most plants are getting ugly lower leaves and seem to be stalling. I probably should have mixed some organic fert in the unferted potting mix, now waiting for worm mulch to soak in.
Posting pics of plants. Am I mis diagnosing as nitro deficient?
(Also posted in infirm). The lil black specs are just soil.

pH sounds good , It looks like your on it now. They need a little food boost about 3-4 weeks depending on what u start them in. All the goodies in the pond water could be eating up some of nitrogen, or maybe other micro-nutes? .. ya until they're bigger I'd use regular water. Good job checking PH soil and dirt first! hang in there..:smoking:

 

[Orcaman]

That's a great idea using your orchard soil to transplant in. I think NCascadeSolo, has a great thought on your pond water and possibly its lack of nitrogen. Hope your weather is maintaining for you. We have a powerful storm just getting going through the next few days here. Up to four feet above 7000 feet and 10 to 15 inches here in Denver. I had to cover a lot of fresh blooms Thursday afternoon for this storm and will have to stay covered in till at least Tuesday.

 

[BudBogart]

Ncascadesolo and orcaman thank you. I will not use the pond water on the lil girls. No use taking chances, and it hasn't proven itself any magic elixir. Thanks for the guidance.
On a beautiful morning like it is here today it's hard to imagine anything but clear sailing, but more rain in the forecast.
The girls seem to be starting to green up, still holding off watering, pots still moist at the bottom where the roots are.
Bought a couple of 3 gallon smart pots just to see if I notice growth difference.
The weeds are blowing up in the orchard but the area around the holes is still pretty clear due to our earlier weedin efforts.
Good work on covering the blooming plants. We have some bulbs that pop up, but pretty much everything else is au natural.
Helping the pots dry out this morning warming them in the 70 f sun. Again, true thankfulness for your help.

 

[BudBogart]

Glad you found us srenots. Thanks.
Watered the food starved girls, first time in a week they were dry enough. Very nice temps today. Made it to the orchard to do some work. Screened our composting forest goodies left over from last years hole prepping. Holes are looking good, weeds going nuts.

 

[BudBogart]

pH sounds good , It looks like your on it now. They need a little food boost about 3-4 weeks depending on what u start them in. All the goodies in the pond water could be eating up some of nitrogen, or maybe other micro-nutes? .. ya until they're bigger I'd use regular water. Good job checking PH soil and dirt first! hang in there..:smoking:
Hadn't thought the water might be eating instead of feeding. Things seem better since we changed the water and started adding ferts. Thank for you help.

 

[BudBogart]

From days gone by. Built the lil lean to in order to comply. Planted the nice plants under the covering, just let the unused plants sit out under the hot sun. Watched the discarded plants remain squat but then throw out a ton of bud. The lean to plants including buds grew completely different from the sun plants but we're still very nice.
Of course I was watering and feeding the discards throughout. I am thinking my squat plants didn't fade due to too much (non organic) fertilizer too late in the grow?

 

[BudBogart]

Yesterday finished prepping holes with reforking, removed six shovelfuls from the hole, mix it with homemade forest compost, aged homemade bio char, chicken, steer and worm, Gardners and Bloome 8-4-2 organic granulates and a bit of blood meal. Leveled the hole and then spread this approx 3 inches of top mulch back over holes to start leaching into grow holes. Oh, and I added azomite to the mix as well.
Some beautiful worms in the soil. As committed as I am to these holes, I do love dangling worms, lol. It's like the devil on one shoulder, etc.

 

[BudBogart]

The worm

 

[BudBogart]

The girls dried out very nicely only 4 days since last watering. First full dose 4 tbls. Per gal of .07 llama in water and a micro builder on the leaves.
Also, I gave some G and B 8-4-2 in a higher dose to some test plants to See if they can handle it. Thanks for reading!