frazzled looking skunk #1

[jashbery]

I'm currently growing three plants - two skunk #1, and one oasis. now, the one oasis and one of the skunks look just fine so far, but the 'frazzled looking skunk' is beginning to look, well, frazzled. it's taller than the other two, and yellowing around the edges at the top...currently in the first week of flowering, and want to save it if possible. temps in the water are an even 23C / 73F (thanks to an aquarium heater), and room temps are around 26C /78 F daytime, and an admittedly chilly 13C / 55F or so nighttime.

any advice, thoughts? dare i start bending the top of the frazzled skunk at this early stage to perhaps get it away from the light a bit and even out the canopy?

[LOC NAR on probation]

Looks like nute burn on tips of leave. Room temps can get pretty chilly but not the water. Way to go with the heaeters. are they in separate containers or the same res ? Hot spot from the light but I don't think so.

If they are separate containers, take some out and add PH water.

Let us know what happens.

[jashbery]

Thanks Loc Nar - I thought nute burn at first, but these plants are drinking up nutes like nobody's business! I use an EC meter, and yesterday adjusted it up to 1.2 - 24 hours later it was at .8! I forgot to add that these plants are in a basic NFT system, so I can't take one out...

...the frazzled skunk is the one closest to the pump...could that have anything to do with it maybe? like, it gets flooded with nutes before the others? doubt it, but....maybe?

[Weedhound]

If you are using hydroton did you presoak it? Unprepared hydroton and overnute are the two most common reasons for rapidly rising ph.

I'm afraid I don't quite understand what you mean by eating up the nutes. Is your ppm dropping?

[Weedhound]

I would agree with Loc Nar off the bat that the tips look burnt.....but without the troubleshooting form or at least some BASIC info.....ph, ppms, medium, types of nutes I can't really say.

[jashbery]

hey weedhound - ph is consistently btw. 5.5 and 6.1...i don't use a ppm meter, i use an EC meter, and the solution should be btw. 1.1 and 1.9 as I've been taught...have been keeping the solution at 1.3 or so, though it went down to .8 in 24 hours...i didn't think it was nute burn as the other two plants are absolutely fine...and they're getting the same water from the same NFT system...plants are growing in rockwool cubes...and the nutes are CANNA Aqua Vega A and B (instructions on the nutes tell me I should only switch to Aqua Flora at the first sign of flowers).

the mystery to me is that two of the plants look absolutely fine, but the tallest one doesn't, which is why i was thinking of bending down the top...

many thanks for your time and advice....

[Weedhound]

Sorry Jash......I misread the numbers completely. Yep, that's your ppms dropping all right so they are indeed eating things......how often are you changing out your res and making sure that the nute ratios are staying pretty correct? If it's more than once a week then I'd raise nute numbers......that's some pretty PIGGY plants.

How about flushing your res and medium? I used to have a LOT of problems with nute/salt buildup in my medium and would have to flush often to keep the roots happy.

Are you using anything for root health.....Cannazym or even H202?

[jashbery]

thanks weedhound...i bumped the nute numbers up just a tad from 1.3 to 1.5, so i'll give it 24 hours and see what happens...but yeah, the plants are hungry!

to be honest, i actually don't change the water that often...a mixture of laziness and a perhaps pollyana-ish faith in the EC meter letting me know all is well....and sorry for my ignorance (this is my fourth grow, so i'm still learning!), but by 'flushing' do you mean replacing solution with pure ph-adjust water?

and re: root health...i just use the nutes to tell you the truth. if i were to use h2o2, how much would you suggest putting in to a 20 liter reservoir?

...and almost forgot - do you think i can go ahead and bend the top of that frazzled looking skunk to even out the canopy?

all best and thanks as ever!
--jash

[LOC NAR on probation]

Raising your nutes should only burn it more. Why just one and not the others ? Keep an eye on it to see if it burns more. Being at the front by pump and in rockwool can cause it to hold too much water and nutes. more than the others.

Bend the top if you need to it won't hurt.

Your nutes shouldn't drop like that. I have never seen that much of a drop. Plants take in nutes and give off toxic waste. That's why you need to change rez every 10 to 14 days. Adding more nutes keeps the toxic waste. When your plant rez uses 20 litres of fresh PH water for topups it's time to change it.

Tell us about your water. R/O or distilled or well or tap.

I had a 6 plants that had worse tip burn from nutes and did about the best for me I had.

From the looks of it they will turn out fine. Mybe just one plant that's sensitive to the nutes.

[Weedhound]

or closest to your lighting perhaps? Over time my plants nearest the 1kw will take on some interesting lightburn patterns.

I think they ARE underfed which is why jash needs to A)replace his nutes with completely fresh nutes at LEAST once a week.

and B) Loc Nar is absolutely right about the ec.....it's seems fairly stable to you because you are only reading the TOTAL NUMBER......and if your plant eats one nute and not the other you simply are not going to know by checking e.c. Keeping your nute ratios balanced is pretty critical in hydro.....and the only way to do it properly is change out to fresh nutes every seven days. I personally do mine every 3-4 days.

by flushing I mean running pure RO or distilled water "(ph correct) through your system for about 24 hours. You can use a product like Clearex or Flora Kleen as well but the water will work too. Consider adding a good root product to your regimen......you'll thank me later.

I personally think your issues are soil/fert/salt buildup in your medium and poor general maintenance in general alongvwith the plants being underfed. fix those issues and I bet you'll grow some fine ganja.

[jashbery]

many thanks loc nar and weedhound for your excellent advice...much appreciated...i'm happy to say that, 24 hours after bumping up nutrients, the frazzled plant is not only looking better but - after just 6 days under 12/12 - has begun to show white hairs...i.e, i'm pretty sure it's a girl. i'll take pix tomorrow with an update, and certainly take out the water that's in there now and replace it with fresh...will also look into root product...

all best
--jash

[jashbery]

Well, as promised here are some updated pics - have replaced the water, added h202, and replaced nutes with CANNA Flora 1 and 2. As you'll see, the skunk in the middle (on the right) and the oasis in the back (on the left) are both looking fine as ever...indeed, you might detect some feminine traits in the healthy skunk already....the frazzled skunk is, despite my optimism yesterday, looking a bit worse for wear to some extent. I bent the top and the top leaves are yellowing in a nasty, shrivelled up kind of way, though feminine characteristics (i.e., white hairs) are strongest in this one , and, as you'll note in the pic with a human thumb in the frame, leaves just under the top look healthy enough...the frazzled skunk is also growing faster than the other two, shows her sex more clearly than the other two, and yet looks a lot more beaten up by comparison! i'll simply keep on following loc nar's and weedhound's advice and hope for the best.

something tells me these girls are all going to be OK, but of course any further advice is welcome.
best
jash

[LOC NAR on probation]

If you don't have a hot spot under your light then all I can say is let ur go. I have had some in hot spots when everything else was fine and I had a few that just didn't like something but did as well as the others.

Your stuff look very good just keep an eye on it. I bet it's the best smoke out of all three.

[stinkyattic]

The EC meter does not tell you 'all is well'.
The plants eat what they need, and leave behind what they don't.
After a while, unused fertilizer components build up in your res to the point where the EC can read in the desired range, but unbeknownst to you, there is virtually no USEABLE fertilizer left.

CHANGE YOUR RES! Your plants will thank you. Get on it, chop chop. Every 1-2 weeks do a full swap and guarantee yourself that the EC numbers actually MEAN something.

[jashbery]

Thanks as ever for the advice...as I wrote in my previous post, I 'have replaced the water, added h202'...in other words, I did empty the reservoir and filled it with fresh ph balanced water and nutes etc...the plant is already looking much better...so I will take all of your advice and change the res every ten days or so...and very good to know about the EC meter...
best,
-jash