Tale of two Afghans (full-term fluorescent grow)

[Lynk]

Not sure what I want to do about the height difference. Prior to the start of bloom cycle, the two plants were quite evenly matched. I'll post a photo a little later today, after I shove a few books under the girl on the right, and pose any question of public opinion then.

 

[Green81]

not sure you saw this bro, as it was the last post on the prior page.

Looking very good Lynk, how about a little training for those girls, why don't you super-crop the main leaders and raise the pots a few inches? , this will then give more of an even spread of light to both of your girls.

peace

g81

 

[Lynk]

Oh, yuppers. My comment was a reply to yours.

 

[JohnGalt]

Amazing to see individuals grow beautiful plants with fluros. Keep up the astounding work.

 

[Lynk]

Starting to run out of room with the light. As you can see by this next photo, I placed the shorter plant on top of the blow-molded case for a hand drill. While both plants are close to the same top height, I really hope the stretch is almost over.

As for super-cropping, I am inclined to continue without alteration. Still got to think about it. See below the photo for the question.

Day 8 flowering (11 Jan 2012):

If this was your grow, what would you do as a next step? You've got about a maximum of one foot left, before the plants grow too close to the light. The top of the Day 8 photo (above) is where the light tops out.

 

[The Frost]

Everything looking great so far. Those t5's really are under rated.
In your situ I would be super cropping the high reachers so they end up laying equal with the other tips.
Don't be scared of hurting them from it, if done cleanly will only benefit in more ways then one.You still have a few days of stretch, so the sooner you even those tops the better. keeping that canopy even at this very time is the most crucial point to even cola height and size, and with the flouro only means good things getting the light beating evenly on up to 16 heads rather than just 2.
The other softer option which is a little more fiddly is tying with string to the pots.
Either way up to you.
Keep up the good growing.

 

[Lynk]

Here are some from today. The Ace of Spades has already gotten to 42" total height. The Afghan Kush has gotten quite bushy, but it's not growing nearly as much vertically. I swapped sides with the fan, just in case the Kush has been starved for circulation, or stunted from the magnetic field of the fan. Decision time has come... I need to do something later today or early tomorrow about the Ace's height.

Day 9 flowering (12 Jan 2012):

Top cola - Ace of Spades:

Top cola - Afghan Kush:

 

[kes5480]

Hmmm... I guess nobody cares! ... 'cept me, of course. I'm rather looking forward to the next few weeks. :animal0057:

End of flowering day 1:

we care...look at view#'s not replies

i did a t5 grow from seed to bud and was satisfied for my first grow. just switched bulbs out for veg and flower.

i couldnt use a hps due to heat and i was happy with the 4bulb 4ft t5 i have.
peace ya'll
Kes

 

[kes5480]

sorry i commented on such a old post..

anyways i would just super crop the tall plant or you can tie it down with string or just plain ole' top it, ur only 9 days into flower so u should be ok.
Kes

 

[Lynk]

Been away for a few days, and discovered that I've been underwatering my plants, just a tad! My watering schedule has been on alternating days for some time now. I fed the girls on Wednesday, 11 January. On Thursday, the plants looked fantastic! Friday rolled around, and I had some business that kept me away from the closet all day. So, by yesterday morning, I had sad looking ladies. I mean, they were pouting!

Come to find out, I was able to give each pot a full gallon and a pint of fluids at midday, and the run-off had been absorbed by lights-out. Whoops! Sorry, gals.

Here are some photos from the last three days:

Day 10 flowering (13 Jan 2012):

Day 11 flowering (14 Jan 2012):

Day 12 flowering (15 Jan 2012):

 

[Lynk]

Time to conquer the bush! Now that the gals have been fed, it's time for some defoliation. While the Ace of Spades has stretched like crazy, the Afghan Kush decided to get fat. When I flipped the lights, both of these plants were approximately 24" tall. As you can see by the photos, there's about a foot difference in height now.

Day 13 flowering (16 Jan 2012):

Day 14 flowering (17 Jan 2012):

I'm not going to crop any of the main shoots; however, I will be defoliating, adjusting elevation, and using a little coercion on the Ace, today. Should be some more photos posted within the next few hours.

 

[Lynk]

Okay, I took care of the defoliation. I'm going to hold-off on the training until either end of day, after I've gotten the height adjusted on the Afghan Kush, or tomorrow morning. After all, we don't want to put too much stress on the ladies.

Day 14 flowering (17 Jan 2012):

Essentially, I trimmed all of the lower branches and fan leaves on the Ace of Spades, removed the upper-middle fan leaves from the Afghan Kush, and generally tidied the bottoms of both plants. What do you think?

 

[Lynk]

I've adjusted the height of the Afghan Kush to that of the Ace of Spades, but the tops are still quite close to the light. In other words, I don't think that this setup will last very long until the plants want to grow into the tubes. The light fixture is at its highest position.

Day 14 flowering (17 Jan 2012):

Oh well. At least the bottoms have been tidied. I'll welcome any thoughts; otherwise, the next update will come in sometime tomorrow!

 

[Lynk]

Such a beautiful stalk. :sick0018: It was a beautiful stalk, until I screwed it up! I just hope she survives...

I hamfisted a couple of the ties, which caused the main stem to break in not one, but two places. As you can see by the first photo, which has a four-foot straight-edge on the left, the Ace of Spades had been 52" tall.

Day 15 flowering (18 Jan 2012):

 

[Lynk]

Talk about a resilient plant! By the time I woke this morning, the Ace of Spades had its top cola pointed at the lights. Not only that... the buds on it are developing nicely. :pimp:

I think I'll be giving this one another go in the future, because I'm betting that a single plant and screen will fill this 2'x4' cabinet nicely.

Day 16 flowering (19 Jan 2012):

 

[Lynk]

The Ace of Spades has rebounded, turned into a "screen," and started to develop some very nice looking flowers. I went to work with the jute in the afternoon, because I didn't want too many leaves stuck against the walls overnight. The results should speak for themselves.

Each of the plants got water yesterday, so the cabinet will stay closed most of the day. Enjoy today's pictures.

Day 17 flowering (20 Jan 2012):

From the front:

Close-up of the Ace's canopy:

Random bud site on the Ace:

 

[Lynk]

If anyone is enjoying this diary, or has any questions or comments, please feel free to shout; I feel a bit like I'm writing to myself.

No significant signs of changes since yesterday. The gals just got fed. I expect to see more perkiness tomorrow. I'll spare the full-cab shot today; here are some pretty flowers.

Day 18 flowering (21 Jan 2012):

Top cola - Afghan Kush

Main group - Ace of Spades

Top cola - Afghan Kush

 

[vaporedout]

wow, now im wondering how much your electric bill has gone up?? i doubt much during the 12/12 but what did you have for veg times 24/0 or 18/6.... either way, im thinkin about doing 2 plants just with some floros just in this closet that is takin up space. seeing how nice things look already. very nice!

-vape

 

[Lynk]

I started with a pair of healthy six-inch clones on 1 Dec, after which I kept them under 40W T12 (16/8) for 10 days. The two gals then spent three weeks under 96W T5HO (18/6). Now, we're 18 days into flowering (12/12) under 432W T5HO. Simply put, that's about 136KWh; my electricity is billed at around US$0.10/KWh on second tier. Could you afford $13.60? ... should take another $20 off the wall to finish.

Glad you like it! I'm tickled by the productivity of these fluorescent tubes.

 

[Mogrow]

flo run

Great work Lynk.. Your plants are lookin great.. Whats the temps and humidity in your cab. I'm running 2 t-5's 4 foot 6 bulb and they will get my 24 wide by 30 inch high area hot in a hurry. My space is about 12 foot long . With all 12 bulbs on and the doors shut it got to 93 degrees in a hurry..
peace mogrow