My First Grow: Aeroponics, LED veg, Super HPS flower, CO2 sealed room [Archive] - Green Grass Forums

Apollonia

09-30-2009, 11:47 AM

Group 2's strains are the remaining C99, C99 X A11 (Apollo 11), and C99 X BB (Blueberry)

Currently, they're in a 14 unit flowering aero/NFT chamber and I'm waiting for clones I've taken from some of them to show sex.

7/20/09: Seedlings germed and transplanted into conditioned rockwool cubes and placed under a fluorescent light. C99 X A11 had a germ rate pf 50%, C99: 90%, C99 X BB, 90%. Seedlings were fed PH adjusted (5.8) water for two weeks, but started to show signs of yellowing leaves far more drastically than the plants in Group 1 did so I introduced a light seedling mixture (as per General Hydroponics' online nutrient calculator: GENERAL HYDROPONICS (http://www.genhydro.com/calculator/index.html)) in the 3rd week. With the exception of adding nutrients in the 3rd week, seedlings were treated the same and subjected to the same conditions and environment as Group 1.

I have heard C99 takes up quite a bit of Magnesium and I've also heard that General Hydroponics is slightly deficient in Magnesium, hence my purchase of the CalMag+ which I've yet to use. My tap water also has a low PPM of 90 which makes me think I may have Magnesium issues in the future when the plants will be taking up more nutrients as they flower - I just hope I can spot it. Perhaps this early sign at 3 weeks of needing nutrients was due to the Magnesium issue, I'm not sure. I don't think the plants were overly weakened by it.

8/10/09: Plants now 3 weeks old and past the seedling stage. Plants were moved into 2" net pots and placed in 2 aeroponic flower units and situated under a Procyon. They were started on 1/4 strength mild growth solution of nutrients (again, as per the instructions from GH's nutrient calculator) - they handled it better than Group 1 which showed some mild nutrient tip burn/leaf edge curling and had to be titrated back all the way to 1/8 strength growth solution and kept there for quite a few weeks. Group 2 showed none of that and grew vigorously. After a week the solution was changed from 1/4 strength mild growth to 1/2 strength regular growth solution again as per the nutrient calculator. No bad reaction. The plants grew very well.

In the aero unit, the plants were put on a cycle timer which ultimately was set to pump nutrient solution for 1 minute and to switch off for 5 minutes before resuming for another cycle of 1 on and 5 off to run in this pattern continuously. In the early stages I was a little unnecessarily over-protective and ran the timer at varying times with longer periods off and shorter ones on, gradually working up to 1 on/ 5 off over the course of a month, until lots of roots showed. I did this because was afraid of saturating the rockwool and drowning the plants. I also put coco liner in the net pots to help act as a barrier and help prevent over-saturation. As you'll see later on with Group 3, this was totally unnecessary and, I think, may have slowed root/plant growth, but not in a way that caused permanent damage, just in a way that caused me some extra stress & worry. Group 3 were put on a 1 min ON/ 5 min OFF immediately and showed no adverse effects - I think they grew faster than Group 2 did during the time I had them on a longer dry out/ shorter watering schedule.

I should note here that in the following weeks plants really started to distinguish themselves. Those that were healthy & strong grew healthier & stronger whereas the weaker plants mostly fell to the wayside. I noticed this with Group 1, but having more plants this time around really brought the point across. I understand why it is generally recommended to pick only a few plants and focus on them. In general, the C99 X A11 seems to be the most sensitive of the three to changes with the C99 X BB the darkest & hardiest (and the one with the most scent - although none of these are high odor). C99 X BB produced a smell in the room which caused me to buy some ONA; before, with Group 1 there was no smell. The ONA cleared up the situation.

These pics were taken standing in front of the reservoir (see Key in following post):

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3067-group-2-shot-taken-side-reservoir-notice-how-small-weaker-plants-compared-strong-ones.jpghttp://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3062-group-2-notice-cinderella-bravo-has-been-chopped-9-24-09-shot-taken-side-ith-reservoir.jpghttp://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3061-group-2-strains-c99-c99-x-a11-c99-x-bb-plants-aero-unit-intended-flowering-later-date-9-29-09-group-2-10-weeks-day-old.jpg

8/22/09: As I mentioned before, the plants that were strongest really started to stick out so I weeded out the ones that looked weakest leaving me with 4 C99 X A11, 7 C99, and 8 C99 X BB.

The plants were moved into a vegetation unit for logistical & space reasons. Group 2 is now 31 days old (4 weeks, 3 days).

9/11/09: Group 2 was moved from it's Veg unit into a Flower Unit & thinned further. The final tally being 4 C99 X A11, 7 C99 X BB and 3 C99 (less one more just recently as it was a male). Group 2 now 7 weeks and 4 days old (35 days total).

9/17/09: All plants that I was able to take a cutting from were cloned for sex. 2 cuttings were taken from each plant as usual. The cloning process was the same as Group 1. I was not able to take cuttings from all as some plants were too small - like I said before - the weak ones seem to be very weak and the strong very strong.

9/25/09: Cinderella 'Bravo' showed sex - male. It was chopped & it remains put with the other males of Group 1 in a brown paper bag of clippings for has later.

9/29/09: Changed Group 2's reservoir and gave them a 3/4 strength solution of Growth formula, I'm upping the does to find the "sweet spot" - the right amount of nutrients for the plants. I'll be watching them very closely for any signs of nutrient burn or stress. Group 2 is now 2 months, 1 week and 2 days old (10 weeks on the dot) or (70 days old).

If the plants I wasn't able to take clones from due to their small size don't grow any further, and I get some confirmed females from the ones I could clone - I may just chop them instead of flowering them out.

That just about brings Group 2 up to date.

General grow note: Although usually not mentioned unless there is a change in nutrient solution made, reservoirs are changed every 2 - 3 weeks and cleaned, in between times PH is adjusted, PPM is tested and adjusted as needed and reservoirs are topped off when needed with PH adjusted water.

I'm keeping & flowering out all females that look like they'd be worth flowering, even if the yield isn't going to be tremendous just because of the investment already placed in the plants up until now and to get some practice.

*Note: With LEDs - at least these Procyon LEDs and in my particular experience, if they come closer than 24" to the canopy the plants start to exhibit signs of heat stress in the form of twisting their leaves and making "ram's horns" to escape the light. This doesn't seem to have left any permanent damage and always subsides when the light is raised.

**Note: During flower I will be adding 4 48" UVB bulbs (10.0 Reptisun) to the grow as I'm using the Magnum xxxl sealed hoods which has glass that blocks much of the blue/UV end of the spectrum. The UVB will be run for 5 hours every day (with a kill switch on the outside of the room right next to the entrance because hey, who wants skin cancer?) and will be kept at a distance of at least 20" from the plants so as not to damage them. I'm adding the UVB b/c it aids in the production of flavonoids, trichomes, etc as a protective mechanism by the plant. Also I've read many reports of people saying that their bud is more potent with the addition of UVB.

Apollonia

09-30-2009, 11:55 AM

Group 2 Key:

This is the lay out of plants in the flower unit so you can easily identify them when I post pictures. Now that Cinderella 'Bravo" has been chopped, orienting where everything is will be much easier.

Bc Ca

Bd Ba

Bf Bb

Bg Aa

Bh Ab

Cb Ac

Cc Ad

Reservoir

Facing the reservoir on this unit's right is Group 1 in the dutch bucket system, to it's left is a wall of visqueen plastic and behind the unit is Group 3.

*Note - Cb (Cinderella 'Bravo') was a male and was chopped at the time the pictures were taken - so that should help.

Strain Key:

C99 X A11 = A

C99 X BB = B

Cinderella 99 = C

Individual Plant identifiers:

a = 'alpha'

b = 'bravo'

c = 'charlie'

d = 'delta'

e = 'echo'

f = 'foxtrot'

g = 'golf'

h = 'hotel'

All strain names are in capital letters - the unique identifiers (their "names") assigned to each plant are in small caps.

Strain always precedes individual name.

So Aa is C99 X A11 'alpha', Bg is C99 X Blueberry 'golf' and Cb is C99 'Bravo' - the one that got snipped.

As you can see, I'm using the phonetic alphabet. The benefits of doing that don't quite translate here in written form, but it's just easier and less error prone to do it this way. For example:

(Person in Veg room checking clones, shouts) "Hey, B's a male - chop it."

(Person in flower room with the snippers) "E's male?"

"B!"

"C?"

"B!!!"

"Okay, I heard you, you don't have to shout. D it is." <chop> Whoops.

I know it's only an off chance happening and maybe I'm just being over cautious, but people are less likely to mishear 'Charlie' and confuse it with 'Foxtrot' for example. That and the fact these plants are so nursed and fretted over (I've noticed I have a certain affection and pride for them as well) - they've become something like a pet and a pet deserves a name, don't you think?

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3063-group-2-shot-side-without-reservoir.jpg http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3064-group-2-canopy.jpg

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3058-group-2.jpg http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3065-group-2-shot-side-without-reservoir-perspective.jpg

Apollonia

10-05-2009, 04:30 PM

A note on measuring Lux/Foot Candles with LEDs. When measuring what is the proper amount of light for plants using LEDs, your number will be necessarily lower than if you were measuring with a less restricted spectrum light source. To find the optimum level without any adverse effects but still providing maximum light energy, I placed my light meter at the top of the canopy of Group 1 where the leaves were thriving & healthy - any closer and they exhibit heat stress/light overload. As plants get older, it seems they are more able to withstand closer distances.

The tops of the canopy of Group 1 produced a range of 8500 Lux - 9000 Lux. As they are the oldest they are able to tolerate more light.

For Group 2 , the light distance was adjusted to be closer by a few inches and the light was made more even. Initial readings were in the range of 2000 Lux - 5000 Lux, decreasing as it neared the edges. New readings after adjustment were 3500's - 6000 Lux. The light was considerably improved in terms of evenness and intensity.

Group 3, Units 1 & 2 had the Procyon height adjusted closer and had initial readings ranging from 1500 - 5000 Lux. After adjustment the range was high 2000 - 5000 Lux. Unit 3 as put under 3 T5 lights at a distance of 1 inch away.

It's a lot of trial and error and not much consistency to go by as the plants do tolerate more light as they age. Your only guide is the approximate height given by the manufacturer (24" - 36" with the Procyons which has proven true) and watching for inverted leaves. However the values I have gathered seem to be where the plants absorb the most light without getting heat stressed.

oldmac

10-05-2009, 06:30 PM

Apollonia

10-06-2009, 10:42 AM

Hi Apollonia,

First let me say what a very nice grow you have going there. Looks like you put a lot of time and effort, and probably a lot of research and thinking into building a very nice aero system. Nice work! :thumbsup:

I also mark my plants when I'm growing out larger plants but I put a plastic nursery tag around the stalks, and that follows the plant right thru trimming.
You are absolutely right about trying to avoid confusion, I go so far as color coded 5 gallon jugs we mix nutrients in. I use blue for grow nutes, red for bloom nutes, white for RO water and yellow as a waste jug. (I do aero/fog to waste) Nobody gets an excuse (not even me) for using the wrong item at the right time.

I had a pair of Procyon's for almost a year doing veg and mothers, mounted on a light rail and they worked extremely well. Like you point out the height above the canopy makes a big difference in performance, too close and you can stop growth and too hi creates weak plants that stretch. But get that sweet spot and the coverage vs. penertration is good. I also love that you are quantifing the light levels, that is a very nice touch.

Continued success and good growing.
:)

Hey there OM! So glad you stopped by - I've been reading your posts before I even joined the site, I'm honored to have you here.

Yeah, I'm an animal with research. I don't think anyone with no real prior experience (me) would have a chance of pulling off a grow like this with all these separate, unknown & difficult elements unless they put a ton of research and preparation into every little aspect and know their shit backwards & forwards and even then they'd have to keep observant as the plans hit reality. Outside the research I've done, a few simple backyard vegetable/flower plantings is the extent of my growing experience. I never even used hydroponics before this - but I take this seriously and I am going to try to make the very best of what I have.

About the Procyons - I plan on trying to get more & better numbers/data on the light readings as I haven't seen anything like that out there really. Well I've seen it at greenpinelane.com but again, he's growing cherry tomatoes.

I'm happy with what my lights are doing for me - to my untrained eye, the plants look very healthy & green and I think they look like they're in near optimal health (please, anyone, give me your opinion on this esp if you think I'm wrong). I credit this to the fact that heat isn't an issue and the LED is a "gentler" light in ways, plants grow a little different under them - it's a very subtle thing, but I've noticed they're a different shade of green - more yellow-green than the gray-green you get under an HID. There's also less of a sheen on plants grown under LEDs which I believe means they are not building up protective wax (not the proper term, I know) on their leaves to block intensity & certain frequencies that can "damage" them - but this is all conjecture from me.

I'd say the "worst" thing about my LEDs is the penetration issue - it goes not much farther down than 3 feet - but I have heard HID isn't that much more effective after 3 feet either so, not a biggie. I'm not growing anything I want to get larger than 3 ft anyway. If I may ask, why did you stop using your Procyons? Do you remember where the "sweet spot" was above the canopy for you? What would you say the biggest difference is in terms of Procyon veg/growth vs. HID grown plants?

It's funny - categorizing/organizing the nutes, the plants, etc is one of my favorite things to do. Maybe weird, maybe a little OCD, whatever, I'm happy. I like to color code too. There's something satisfying about the process. Plus I think I'd lose it if I were confronted with 50 odd "mystery" plants of indeterminate parentage/strain b/c they weren't properly labeled.

I thought I'd included this in my grow description but if not, now's a good time to say it. My system is largely modeled after Stinkbud's generously provided plans. Just giving the credit where it is due - the only reason my grow is where it is is b/c I get the privilege of standing on the shoulders of giants who came before me and slogged it out for the first time, like you & Stink & everyone else on these forums who made their own additions to this huge community resource. So I'd just like to take a little break in the journal to acknowledge all those folks - I am sincerely grateful. Now let me stop myself before this gets too shmaltzy & I start thanking my parents & god like it's the Academy Awards. :D

Apollonia

10-06-2009, 10:49 AM

I come across a lot of people dying to get their hands on some C99, since it is one of the plants in my grow, I thought I'd provide current links to places that are selling C99 seeds.

I found 2 reputable, solid sites currently offering C99 if anyone is interested:

Marijuana Cannabis seeds at Hemp Depot Shipped Worldwide (http://www.hempdepot.ca/seeds/joeyweed/Cinderella99.html)

Actual C99 Cinderella Weed Seeds - Hanfsamen - Pot Seeds Ã¢â?¬â?? Feminized - Cannabis Strain Ã¢â?¬â?? Marihuanasamen Ã¢â?¬â?? Cannabissamen Ã¢â?¬â?? Hempseeds Ã¢â?¬â?? Hanfshop (http://www.hemcy.at/oscommerce/product_info.php?cPath=1_43&products_id=660&osCsid=250f09fa0af243e23d1986129dadf0e1)

I've done business with Hemp Depot & I'm growing Joey Weed seeds so i can personally vouch for them and their products. If anyone cares, the C99 I'm growing now was available through Hemp Depot as a limited run offer from Kingdom seed company however all the other plants I'm growing are from Joey Weed and can be found at the link provided. The second website & company,

Hempy & Actual Seeds appear to be legit w/many posts reporting having ordered successfully from them, also Actual Seeds gave an interested buyer excellent feedback about the Cinderella 99 they're offering.

I'd say both are very solid options.

oldmac

10-08-2009, 07:05 PM

About the Procyons - I plan on trying to get more & better numbers/data on the light readings as I haven't seen anything like that out there really. Well I've seen it at greenpinelane.com but again, he's growing cherry tomatoes.

I'm happy with what my lights are doing for me - to my untrained eye, the plants look very healthy & green and I think they look like they're in near optimal health (please, anyone, give me your opinion on this esp if you think I'm wrong). I credit this to the fact that heat isn't an issue and the LED is a "gentler" light in ways, plants grow a little different under them - it's a very subtle thing, but I've noticed they're a different shade of green - more yellow-green than the gray-green you get under an HID. There's also less of a sheen on plants grown under LEDs which I believe means they are not building up protective wax (not the proper term, I know) on their leaves to block intensity & certain frequencies that can "damage" them - but this is all conjecture from me.

I'd say the "worst" thing about my LEDs is the penetration issue - it goes not much farther down than 3 feet - but I have heard HID isn't that much more effective after 3 feet either so, not a biggie. I'm not growing anything I want to get larger than 3 ft anyway. If I may ask, why did you stop using your Procyons? Do you remember where the "sweet spot" was above the canopy for you? What would you say the biggest difference is in terms of Procyon veg/growth vs. HID grown plants?

A favorite subject, those Procyon's. I think you are being a little generous saying 3' penertration, I've found 2'+, not quite to 3'. I got 2 when they where first introduced to use in my mom/veg room. They did a good job tho I did put them on a light rail and found that helped with penertration, when they move the angle of the light to the plant changes constantly. Parts shadowed get un-shadowed in a few moments. I never considered them for flowering till I saw SnStealth's (1/2 of which is WhiskeyTango) grow log. The only reason I stopped using them is I sold them (I needed money bad last year) as part of a small aero grow tray set-up in a tent for a group setting up a small mmj grow. They have worked very well for them, and are growing from cuts to finish with the Procyons' plus a small amount of supplemental light.

I found that 18" above the mom's kept them from growing upwards and kept them bushy while 24" above plants vegging worked well for growth vs. node spacing. The biggest difference I guess is the color of the plants (but you need to move them under some different light to notice). I found I could control the growth better with the Procyon's then with the MH, simply by adjusting hgt up or down. That might just be a product of the MHs having more "oomph" or the ability of the Procyon's to get closer but either way the Pro's worked better.

Keep up the nice work, good growing to you.
:D oldmac

Apollonia

10-09-2009, 04:36 AM

A favorite subject, those Procyon's. I think you are being a little generous saying 3' penertration, I've found 2'+, not quite to 3'.

You know, you're right on that - I eyeballed it to 3' (and the manufacturer says 3' - which is likely to be the more generous assumption) but I'd like to agree with you here and say yes - esp with MJ, you're getting 2'+ penetration from the Procyon. Thanks for bringing that up - I'm not usually that sloppy.

Also, thank you for the info on plant height control and Procyon distance - I'm adjusting mine now as per your instructions. I'd like to +rep ya for it... but I can't find the little button on your post to do it. :wtf:

Apollonia

10-09-2009, 05:12 AM

Group 3 is the youngest and final group.

Strains: Apollo 11, Blueberry, Sugar Blossoms, Sugar Berry, Blue Apollo

8/19/09: Seeds Germed. Transplanted into conditioned RW cubes - all done exactly as before with groups 1 & 2. Very good rate of germination - lowest rate was 80% (Sugar Blossoms & Blueberry). Germ rate 90% (Blue Apollo). Germ Rate 100% (Sugar Berry, Apollo 11).

9/02/09: Seedlings given light seedling nutrient mixture mentioned before for the 3rd week of seedling stage.

9/09/09: End of Seedling stage. Plants now 3 weeks old. Transplanted into a Veg unit & a cloner unit. Both units had a cloner lids (23 spaces for plants) instead of veg unit lids (17 spaces). Plants were given 1/2 strength growth solution and placed under a single Procyon 100.

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3110-group-3-3-weeks-old-9-09-09-unit-1-apollo-11-sugar-blossoms-blue-apollo.jpg
Group 3 Unit 1 (Blue Apollo, Sugar Blossoms, Apollo 11)

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3112-group-3-3-weeks-old-9-09-09-unit-2-apollo-11-sugar-berry-blueberry.jpg
Group 3 Unit 2 (Sugar Berry, Blueberry, Apollo 11)

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3114-group-3-under-led-lighting-canopy.jpghttp://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3113-group-3-under-led-lighting-vertical-shot.jpg

9/30/09: 6 weeks old. Plants were spread out into 3 units. Unit 1 containing Blue Apollo & Apollo 11, Unit 2: Sugar Berry & Apollo 11, & Unit 3: Blueberry & Sugar Blossoms. This should prevent some of the smaller plants getting crowded out (Blueberry, Sugar Blossoms) and provide better air circulation and access to light over all.

Plants BEFORE transfer into 3 units, 6 weeks:
http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3068-group-3-9-29-09-all-group-3-together-6-weeks-group-3-strains-apollo-11-sugar-blossoms-blueberry-sugar-berry-blue-apollo.jpg

Group 3 Unit 1 BEFORE transplant, canopy & vertical shot:
http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3074-group-3-9-29-09-6-weeks-old-apollo-11-sugar-blossoms-blue-apollo-canopy.jpghttp://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3071-group-3-9-29-09-plants-6-weeks-old-42-days-strains-unit-apollo-11-sugar-blossoms-blue-apollo.jpg

Group 3 Unit 2 BEFORE transplant, canopy & vertical shot:
http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3072-group-3-9-29-09-apollo-11-blueberry-sugar-berry-canopy-6-weeks.jpghttp://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3073-group-3-9-29-09-plants-now-exactly-6-weeks-old-strains-unit-apollo-11-blueberry-sugar-berry.jpg

Group 3 AFTER Transfer into 3 Units:

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3098-group-3-after-transplant-spreading-out-3-units-6-weeks-back-left-unit-unit-1-contains-apollo-11-front-row-blue-apollo-middle-back-rows-back-right-unit-unit-2-has-apollo-11-front-row-sugar-berry-middle-back-rows-unit-front-unit-3-blueberry-rows-2-4-counting-back-front-sugar-blossoms-rows-1-3-5-again-counting-back-front-should-improve-circulation-give-them-more-light.jpg
Unit 1: back left (Blue Apollo & Apollo 11) Unit 2: back right (Sugar Berry & Apollo 11) Unit 3: front (Sugar Blossoms & Blueberry)

Group 3, Unit 1 AFTER transfer:
http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3101-group-3-after-transplant-spreading-out-3-units-6-weeks-back-left-unit-unit-1-contains-apollo-11-front-row-blue-apollo-middle-back-rows.jpg

Group 3, Unit 2 AFTER transfer:
http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3102-group-3-after-transplant-spreading-out-3-units-6-weeks-back-right-unit-unit-2-has-apollo-11-front-row-sugar-berry-middle-back-rows.jpg

Group 3, Unit 3 AFTER transfer:
http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3103-group-3-after-transplant-spreading-out-3-units-6-weeks-unit-front-unit-3-blueberry-rows-2-4-counting-back-front-sugar-blossoms-rows-1-3-5-again-counting-back-front-should-improve-circulation-give-them-more-light.jpg

10/03/09: Unit 3 was put under 3 T5 lights at a distance of 1" from the canopy. Units 1 & 2 were left under the Procyon but adjusted to a shorter distance.

Apollonia

10-09-2009, 05:14 AM

Here is the layout of the strains in Group 3, first BEFORE the transfer from 2 units to 3:

Unit 1 (Blue Apollo, Sugar Blossom, Apollo 11):

BA BA BA BA BA

BA BA BA BA

SBL SBL SBL SBL SBL

SBL SBL SBL SBL

A11 A11 A11 A11 A11

front

Apollo 11 = A11
Sugar Blossoms = SBL
Blue Apollo = BA

Unit 2 (Sugar Berry, Blueberry, Apollo 11):

SB SB SB SB SB

BB BB BB BB

SB SB SB SB SB

BB BB BB BB

A11 A11 A11 A11 A11

front

Apollo 11 = A11
Blueberry = BB
Sugar Berry = SB

Key to Units AFTER transfer into 3 units:

*Strain Key is same as above

Unit 1 (Blue Apollo & Apollo 11):

BA BA BA BA BA

X X X X

BA BA X BA BA

X X X X

A11 A11 A11 A11 A11

front

Unit 2 (Sugar Berry & Apollo 11):

SB SB SB SB SB

X X X X

SB SB SB SB SB

X X X X

A11 A11 A11 A11 A11

front

Unit 3 (Sugar Blossoms & Blueberry):

BB BB BB BB

SBL SBL SBL

BB BB BB BB

SBL SBL SBL

SBL X SBL X

front

Apollonia

10-09-2009, 05:18 AM

Most, a good 80%, of the Blueberry seedlings I've sprouted show deformities such as variegated leaves & stunted growth ranging from moderate to severe. I know that comes with the territory when dealing with blue strains and especially DJ Short's famous Blueberry. I feel like I should pull them as they're hopeless, but I keep them b/c if I pulled the ones that were deformed it would leave me with only 2 plants at the most. I've heard that it can take a few tries with several packets of seeds to get a good blueberry mother. As of now, that is the strain that is most in danger of not producing a viable mother plant.

Examples of the deformed leaves:
http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3100-group-3-exception-1-possibly-2-plants-all-my-blueberry-plants-have-displayed-stunted-grow-variegated-leaf-formation-i-ought-toss-them-out-but-theres-so-many-them-i-heard-comes-territory-when-finding-real-blueberry-mom-so-i-may-not-get-one-out-batch-due-high-rate-mutated-leaves-not-only-they-deformed-but-they-also-much-smaller-than-all-other-plants-group-3-exception-1-2-blueberry-plants-seem-more-normal.jpghttp://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3069-group-3-more-pictures-variegated-blueberry-plants.jpghttp://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3070-group-3-ive-noticed-lot-variegated-leaves-my-blueberry-plants-i-hear-thats-common-strain.jpg

All the blueberries together:
http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3108-group-3-blueberry-plants-6-weeks.jpg

Apollonia

10-14-2009, 12:36 PM

The clones have sexed and I now know which mothers I want from groups 1 & 2:

C99 - 'Grapefruit'
C99 - 'Pineapple'
A11 X C99 'Alpha'
C99 X BB 'Bravo'

Everything has been in the flower room with the exception of one cloner used to sex the plants - that's in the veg room. My plan is to hang the veg lights (Procyons, any T5s I may want) in the veg room, move Group 3 there and take cuttings from the mothers in groups 1 & 2 to clone and ultimately use as mothers. These clones (2 for each mother) are to be placed in rockwool cubes for ease of transplant into the dutch buckets & put into the cloner unit where if all goes well they will sprout roots & be transfered into the permanent home of the mothers: the dutch bucket system.

There's a ton of construction that must be done - manifolds for the chiller/icebox units, hanging the ducting, the HPS lights, etc. but it should not take too long before "Phase Two" will be up and running. Right now It's about making some space in the flower room, getting clones that will eventually serve as mother plants and setting up the veg room. Stay tuned.

Plants as of 10/05/09:
http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3219-10-05-09-group-1-notice-plant-has-been-removed-due-small-size-10-weeks-1-day.jpg
Group 1 - notice the plant removed for small size. Plants are now 14 weeks & 3 days old.

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3220-10-05-09-group-2-more-plants-removed-due-very-small-stature-6-weeks-5-days.jpg
Group 2 - smaller plants were also removed here. Plants are 11 weeks old.

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3222-10-05-09-group-3-units-1-2-6-weeks-5-days-old.jpg
Group 3 Units 1 & 2. Plants are 6 weeks, 5 days old.

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3221-10-05-09-group-3-unit-3-sugar-blossoms-blueberry-put-under-t5s-10-03-09-6-weeks-5-days.jpg
Group 3 Unit 3. Plants are 6 weeks, 5 days old.

Apollonia

10-14-2009, 12:54 PM

Here are some pictures and some info about where the plants are as of today.

Group 1 is now 15 weeks + 1 day old (3 1/2 months). Mother plants 'Grapefruit' & 'Pineapple' are looking bushy and healthy. I removed one plant from the system that was between the two as it was very, very small and not worth flowering in my opinion.

Group 2 is 11 weeks + 5 days old (2 1/2 months). As you can see, several plants have been culled: A 'delta', B 'delta', B 'golf', C 'alpha', C 'bravo', C 'charlie'. Again b/c they were just too small to even consider flowering out (or they sexed male). Plants that are female are: A 'alpha', A 'bravo', B 'bravo', B 'foxtrot'. The others are likely females - but have taken a while to sex and the plants I wanted most as mothers have proven to be female. Group 2's mothers are A 'alpha' & B 'bravo'. They stand out heads and shoulders above the rest. The others will be kept to flower out, the new Key for Group 2 no looks like this:

Bc X

X Ba

Be Bb*

Bf Aa*

X Ab

X Ac

X X

reservoir

* connotes the plants slated to be used as mother plants.

Group 3 is 7 weeks + 3 days old (1 3/4 months) and shooting us like, well, weeds. The deformed blueberries have not improved, however there are about 3 acceptable specimens in the group. This group is to be moved into the veg room while the other 2 groups (1 & 2) will be kept in the flower room & flowered out very shortly. They are too young to take cuttings from to sex them just yet & I may need to move them into flower units to give them more space to grow. I should mention that in addition to spacing them out to 3 units, group 3, unit 3 was put under 3 T5s on 10/3/09 and appears not to have suffered for it & is thriving.

Here is a last look at the plants as they are in the flower room:

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3223-10-11-09-group-1-15-weeks-4-days-old.jpg
Group 1: 15 weeks, 4 days.

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3224-10-11-09-group-2-11-weeks-6-days.jpg
Group 2: 11 weeks, 6 days.

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3226-10-11-09-group-3-units-1-2-7-weeks-4-days.jpg
Group 3 Units 1 & 2: 7 weeks, 4 days.

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3225-10-11-09-group-3-unit-3-7-weeks-4-days.jpg
Group 3 Unit 3: 7 weeks, 4 days.

oldmac

10-14-2009, 06:31 PM

Apollonia

10-15-2009, 02:44 PM

Looking vey nice Apollonia! :thumbsup: And again I compliment you on your organizational skills. Very well done.

As to your leaf deformities with your Blueberries', I ususally refer to plants like that as " 'tards" (not pc correct I know) and they can be surprising sometimes. If they are real runts, I'll trash them. But if they come out of my clonner with good healthy roots and are growing, I just put them into flower. Keep in mind that in both of my grows I never veg very long, usually 7-10 days, tho there are some exceptions like making future moms. Sometimes these 'tards form picture perfect buds other times they are slightly deformed or undersize but I gave them a fair shot at life.:D

Continued good growing and success to you.
:)

You nailed it, without being seriously organized, let's just say this would not be possible for me to do at all!

The messed up plants - they're VERY runty as in still only showing 1-2 sets of leaves and 2 1/2 inches tall compared to their siblings which are 6 inches tightly stacked with several nodes. I'm keeping them around just out of curiosity and like you said - it's more bud than you would have if you didn't flower them! Have you personally noticed if these 'tard plants (and their growth is retarded, so it's technically correct, right?) are more common under certain conditions or with certain strains? I'm just going to remove the really ridiculously small ones, like the 2 inchers - I'm not even sure they're going to survive long. I tried to take a picture for you, but it wasn't showing up so good against all the other greenery. Good to hear from you again as always, OM!

Apollonia

10-21-2009, 07:04 PM

10/18/09 Update:

Begin flowering of Groups 1 & 2:

The flower room has been set-up in it's final form with three exceptions - I'm using a portable air-conditioner as a dehumidifier, as my little dehumidifier has not arrived yet. Two: the icebox cooler is now attached to the can filter instead of to the vented hood system where it will ultimately go - as the lights are being cooled by drawing cool air from outside the house, I thought this was a better use of the icebox. Three: The second lighting set up hasn't been hung yet as it is not needed at the moment.

The 1/3 HP chiller is running, cooling the 50 gallon reservoir which contain 2 pumps: one 1800 GPH MagDrive Pump directing water to the Co2 generator & the icebox (soon to be iceboxes) and a 1200 GPH MagDrive Pump directing water to the chiller. The Co2 maintains a constant concentration of 1500 parts per million per cubic square foot of Co2 during the day time & shuts off at night. There is also a kill switch attached to the UVB light circuit located outside the grow room so I need not expose myself to excessive UVB. There are circulating fans about to circulate the Co2 - the Can fan also pulls air up from the floor (Co2 is heavy & tends to sink) & jets it up into the air.

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3276-flower-room-set-up-co2-generator-icebox-attached-can-50-can-fan-50-gal-reservoir-underneath-table-manifolds-above-manifolds-connect-2-pumps-reservoir-one-1800-gph-magdrive-pump-goes-cooling-apparatus-co2-generator-icebox-soon-iceboxes-1200-gph-pump-pumps-water-out-chiller.jpg

The light for this area of space is one 1000 Watt Super HPS Solarmax confined in a Magnum xxxl 6" vented hood, flanked on one side by a Procyon and on both sides by a 3 foot UVB bulb which are about 25" - 30" away from the canopy - the UVB only goes on for 5 hours each day. I will be monitoring the effects of the UVB on the foliage to avert possible damages.

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3271-flower-room-lighting-set-up-groups-1-2-underneath-lights-hich-1-1000-watt-super-hps-solarmax-encased-magnum-xxxl-vented-hood-one-procyon-trained-highest-level-canopy-help-control-stretch-plus-2-30-watt-10-0-reptisun-bulbs-uvb-either-side-go-5-hours-everyday-always-20-minimum-distance-plants.jpg

Both reservoirs for Groups 1 & 2 were changed & a full strength Transitional Expert Recirculating formula of 10 gallons each was added to the reservoir - PH adjusted to be around 5.5 - 5.8 (my PH pen which was supposed to be a replacement for my first defective PH pen has proved to be, well unreliable to say the least & I'm back to the color dropper method). I added a root drench of 1/4 strength SubCulture M to all the plants by pouring the mixture directly onto their roots & into their pots as was suggested by the makers of the product. I'm giving the mycorrhizal fungi a week's head start to establish themselves as the bacteria in SubCulture B can out compete them if added to the system at the same time as the fungi. The SubCulture B will be added next week. Bio balls, 45 in each reservoir have been added to provide access to oxygen & surface area for the beneficial micro-organisms to live on - this will also prevent the beneficial bacteria & fungi from forming a thick, clear slime on the surface of the water which has the potential to clog the sprayers and the pumps. Signs of clogging or over-population will be monitored closely.

The plants in Groups 1 & 2, with the mothers being selected, cloned & the clones showing signs of viability, plus the plants getting rather large were put into 12/12 on 10/18/09. Group 1 was 4 months, 3 weeks old (16 weeks & 1 day) at the time of flowering. Group 2 was 2 months, 3 weeks, 5 days old (12 weeks 5 days).

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3277-10-18-09-groups-1-2-first-day-flower-group-1-3-months-3-weeks-1-day-old-16-weeks-2-days-old-group-2-2-months-4-weeks-old-12-weeks-6-days.jpg

Group 1:
To deal with height issues, I've applied several techniques: the Group 1 mothers are large and quite thick stemmed - too thick to bend. For now, I'm training the Procyon on them in the hopes the added blue wavelength will retard stretching. As they begin to grow & stretch, I plan on first bending down the side branches and if possible, slowly & incrementally bend/ or very lightly break the main stem to get the plant to grow in a more horizontal fashion. As a last resort - I may have to top them. I'm considering doing it now, but would rather take my chances & hopefully not have to do it. As it stands now, they are about 1 foot away from the glass of the vented hood. The other 2 plants in Group 1 were flexible enough that I was able to bend them nearly to container level. I had not anticipated using LST or other training/ bending methods - so this should be interesting - I'm excited to see what comes of it.

Group 2:
The plants in Group 2, being younger than the plants in Group 1 were more flexible and bent far easier - with some bending right down to the "ground." The larger, less flexible plants have been tilted horizontally and had their branches tied down. One plant I decided to try a more severe training method on - I bent the meristem until it broke - it did not separate from the plant, it just became pliable, I trained this in the direction I wanted to it go & waited to see if it would survive - low and behold it did! The plant remained in the position I put it in and the top, the area above the break continued to grow and turn up towards the light in 2 days. As the flowering of the plants grown from seed is a secondary grow to the establishment of the perpetual grow system, I'm taking this opportunity to try some things that are challenging.

Example of the LST/bending I've been doing on Groups 1 & 2:

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3278-10-18-09-groups-1-2-lst-bending-general-canopy-height-control.jpg

There are still some plants in Group 2 whose sex is undetermined - they will be watched closely & males will obviously be removed quickly.

Note - I was told you cannot remove plants from the flower units as their remaining dead roots will cause the remaining plants to die - so far this had not happened. I've removed as much of the roots as possible, but the washing action of the water flow may be removing the remaining dead roots where they are eventually fished out & removed from the reservoir which would explain the lack of problems from the removal of plants.

I should also mention here that I've had issues with roots hanging out of the end of the flower chamber - I just hack these off with scissors - the plants don't seem to mind at all. I've done the same thing with roots in the veg units & cloners that have grown too long or wrapped themselves around the sprayer apparatus - as they are long thick taproots & plentiful, the plants do not seem to mind.

All in all, this week or phase has a few unknowns and things that could go either way - this should be the beginning of an interesting part of the grow. It doesn't show in my notes - but I am seriously running around excited & happy!

Apollonia

10-21-2009, 07:07 PM

10/18/09

My gamble on mycorrhizae

This scenario applies to all beneficial organisms I will add and have already added. The Floralicious Plus contains beneficial bacteria and has caused no problems yet, but it is nowhere near as concentrated as SubCulture M or SubCulture B. The SubCulture M & B may prove to be either a nightmare, a blessing or a nothing.

Nightmare scenario: the mycorrhizae fungi & the beneficial bacteria explode in numbers clogging my sprayers & possibly clogging my pumps. The Bio balls prove inadequate in containing them and they form a thick slime on the surface of the water in the reservoir. Removing them by cleaning the system proves to be extremely difficult as they are stubborn, microscopic & get into and on every little part of your apparatus. Alternate nightmare scenario: the mycorrhizae & beneficial bacteria don't survive or are too small in number & enemy pathogens collect on the root system harming & possibly killing my plants.

Blessing scenario: The mycorrhizae & beneficial bacteria establish themselves on my plants roots, protecting them from enemy pathogens, aid in nutrient uptake which lead to overall better plant health, less use of nutrients & bigger buds w/o over reproducing themselves & sliming my system. They contain themselves to the root system & the bio balls I've provided in the reservoirs.

Nothing scenario: The mycorrhizae & beneficial bacteria don't survive and no enemy pathogens take hold. Or the mycorrhizae & bacteria do survive, but are too insignificant in number to substantially effect the health of the plants. Or the beneficials establish themselves just fine, but due to various reasons, perhaps the type of nutrients I'm using or the systems I'm running (aeroponic/NFT & Hydroton in dutch buckets), they provide no observable benefit.

Why I chose to do what I did:

I decided to inoculate my plant's root system with a root drench of SubCulture M at quarter strength b/c of several reasons. One being I had added a carbohydrate supplement, FloraNectar: Pineapple Rush!, and felt insecure leaving it to chance that the bad bacteria & pathogens could use this as an ideal breeding ground with a plentiful food source. My thinking being that the mycorrhizae would at least protect the plants from harm by establishing themselves before the bad guys had a chance to establish themselves.

I chose to do it at quarter strength b/c that was recommended to me by more than one user of mycorrhizal fungi, but in particular a poster by the name of Rocky Mtn Squid, who has used mycorrhizae in his aeroponic system & was kind enough to give me the lowdown on his experience and what to expect. You can always add more, it's more difficult to reduce what's already been added.

In addition to all this I thought about my system - many people use highly oxygenated DWC systems which can "super-charge" beneficial organisms causing them to sometimes become more of a hinderance than a help. My thinking is I do not have aerated reservoirs, the oxygen the organisms have available to them comes from 2 primary places - for the beneficial bacteria it's primarily on the bio balls that float on the surface of the reservoir, for the mycorrhizal fungi, it's on the plant roots themselves & in the aerated sprays of water. I'm hoping this relatively limited amount of oxygen access will curb population size to a manageable levels.

Finally, if I have this dialed in right there are some pretty strong benefits to having these little guys around I refer you to this study which rather impressed me on the benefits of adding SubCulture to your grow: SubCulture Report (http://209.85.135.132/search?q=cache:EeC5AFyHs-EJ:lieth.ucdavis.edu/RepLim/RepLim221%2520GH_2006_SubCulture_Report.pdf+subcul ture+study+general+hydroponics&cd=9&hl=en&ct=clnk)
So, if ll goes well - this could be a big benefit to my system. If not, I'll clear it out with some FloraShield.

Apollonia

10-21-2009, 08:18 PM

10/18/09 Update of the other units:

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3269-10-18-09-group-3-veg-room-all-units.jpg

Group 3 in the flowering chamber, Blue Apollo, Apollo 11, Sugar Berry. Plants are 8 weeks, 4 days:
http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3286-10-18-09-group-3-flower-unit-blue-apollo-apollo-11-sugar-berry-plants-8-weeks-4-days-date.jpg

Group 3 Veg Unit 1: Blue Apollo, Apollo 11, Sugar Berry. Plants are 8 weeks, 4 days:
http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3285-10-18-09-group-3-veg-unit-1-blue-apollo-apollo-11-sugar-berry-plants-8-weeks-4-days-date.jpg

Group 3 Veg Unit 2: Sugar Blossoms & Blueberry. Plants are 8 weeks 4 days:
http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3287-10-18-09-group-3-veg-unit-2-sugar-blossoms-blueberry-plants-8-weeks-4-days-date.jpg

Here are some pictures of the plants in Group 3 not in flower. I as able to take 23 clones from them which are now in the flower room to determine sex.

I've already decided on my Blueberry mom & my Sugar Blossom mom if they turn out to be girls. Apologies in advance as I found I was unable to rotate the leaf pictures.

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3274-10-18-09-favorite-sugar-blossom-plant-plant-8-weeks-4-days-here.jpg

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3283-10-18-09-favorite-sugar-blossoms-hand-leaf.jpg

The Sugar Blossom is a beautiful, tightly stacked plant with fan leaves larger than my hand! She's a beautiful indica pheno - she's actually a 50/50 indica-sativa mix. She's also a delightful yellow-green with long, strong, plentiful roots like her Blueberry counterpart. Very uniform phenotype, and there were many perfectly good girls to choose from, again - praised be Joey of Joey Weed!

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3270-10-18-09-plants-8-weeks-4-days-old-my-favorite-blueberry-hope-shes-lady.jpg

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3288-10-18-09-my-favorite-blueberry-vertical-shot-plant-8-weeks-4-days-date.jpg

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3282-10-18-09-favorite-blueberry-hand-leaf.jpg

The Blueberry - after all the runts, I had resigned myself to either not getting a mom - there were only 3 passable plants - only 2 which were 'good' and one that turned out to be outstanding. The pictures absolutely do not do her justice. She has dark purple leaves and lovely red-purple stems. Her leaves are large and she exhibits the same tight inter-nodal spacing as the Sugar Blossom girl. There is some bleaching on her top leaves due to her growing so fast & into the T5's, but I'm not terribly concerned about that. I'm working on finding a way to photograph her & capture what's so special about her. Again - good job Joey!

Now, these plants have not sexed under the 12/12 yet - they could conceivably be males - although they do have those large bubble swellings were the side branches connect to the main stem - I've heard that is an indicator of female sex, but I don't know if this is reliable. Also, the have very prominent side branching & are short and stocky compared to others whose side branches are nearly nonexistent & exhibit a lankier body. I like these 2 so much, I'm cloning them and putting them under the cloner with the 24 hour lights as soon as I get those first mother clones out of the cloner. I'm excited! On an irrelevant personal note, just looking at them makes me happy - I think they are beautiful and I've become quite fond of them already. What do you all think? Are they little ladies or gents?

Apollonia

10-21-2009, 08:20 PM

Some of you may have wondered who does that hairy arm holding up my prized Sugar Blossom & Blueberry plants as it is clearly not of the feminine persuasion. The arm that doesn't match the little white hand you've seen once or twice in my previous pictures. No, it's not my arm (but that is my little hand)! That's my friend, larryshomework. So now I think is a great time to introduce him & say a few words about my friend larryshomework, whose assistance in times of need has been a key element to the success of this grow.

larryshomework's a man, a man with a van :D Seriously, that van has been a lifesaver (and a back-saver). larryshomework is a person I know in real life & who is a member on these forums. As some of you may know - I have some chronic health issues that every so often debilitate me for days and are very painful to boot - most times, things can wait: reservoirs can be changed later, walls can be erected next week, plants can be flowered somewhere further into the future to accommodate the inevitable "downtime." However as you all know sometimes a deadline comes up and mother nature waits for no man, during those times, larryshomework has helped me when to move when something needed to be done that very day. He's been there to save my grow when I 've been helpless, at a sensitive time in the life of the plants. He's made runs to Home Depot, the hydrostore & Lowe's when I've been too in pain to move or even tolerate weak daylight without feeling like I had a knife in my eye - these runs could have waited & been done on my own when I was well again, but he generously offered to do them so I could remain on schedule. He's also been there when I've been feeling good - helping out here and there while I worked on the construction & planning of the project. He took direction & assisted me, I couldn't ask for a better assistant. But just as important - he was good company - it's fun to work with a friend at your side, and he never ever gave me any grief and always did his best which was always excellent work.

He's also very computer savvy & has hooked me up great by walking me through the installation of this wonderful proxy server, JAP/JonDo, which I highly recommend to everyone for their anonymity & security over the internet - I've persuaded larryshomework to put up a tutorial on how to get it up and running & how to use it to access sensitive sites such as these - if you're interested I highly suggest you check it out.

The only folks who know about this grow are me, larryshomework & my little brother - the two people I've known for at least a decade & the only people in the world I know I can trust with my life or a secret as dangerous as this one. So on that note I'd like to pay special thanks & praise to my old friend: a helpful assistant, an occasional savior, a hard worker, a fascinating conversationalist, a generous soul, a brilliant mind & an all around decent human being - to larryshomework!

Oh and it goes without saying - larryshomework will be given any fruits of this labor that he wishes to have - absolutely gratis & given gladly with my gratitude.

Apollonia

10-21-2009, 08:22 PM

10/19/09

Transplanting mothers to Rockwool:

2 cuttings were taken on 10/11/09 from the 4 plants I want to use as mother plants, making them 8 day old clones as of today. Today they showed enough yellowing of the leaves, white root bumps & one or two small root branches to convince me it was time to move them to the rockwool cubes.

Some of the cuttings had to be taken further up the plant - predictably the plants that had less available matter towards the bottom (C99 'grapefruit' & 'pineapple') showed less advanced development than the plants with cuttings taken closer to the base - C99 X BB being the standout.

For the guidance & confidence to embark on this latest phase: credit must be paid to Al B. Fuct and his Rockwool Cloning Guide for providing a reference for me to work from as an earlier test run on clones I had taken & put directly into rockwool didn't take b/c, I believe I left too much leaf surface. I've been trimming off & cutting large leaves in halved ever since.

The rockwool starter plugs were soaked in plain PH 5.5 water & shaken out to remove excess water. Then they were placed on a tray of wetted perlite underneath the fluorescents (T-12s) in the unit previously used to nurture the seedlings and kept under 24 hour lighting on a heat mat. Prior to placement in the cubes, they were dipped in Olivia's cloning gel for good measure.

The mother plants chosen were C99 'grapefruit', C99 'pineapple', C99 X A11 'alpha', C99 X BB 'bravo'

Additionally, I took 2 cuttings each from the most desirable Blueberry plant & Sugar Blossom as they have a clear stand out in each case, as for the Blue Apollo, Sugar Berry & Apollo 11, I'm still waiting for one to catch my eye above the others and waiting on the results of the cloning for sex. I also took two back-up cuttings from each of the plants I ad moved into rockwool cubes, plus one other C99 X BB I had not cloned before: 'echo' she was a runner up to 'bravo' & since I had the space I thought, what the hell, why not? Maybe her smoke/yield/wahtever will be better than the one originally selected. These were placed in the aerocloner where the clones I just removed came from. I changed the water to 150 ml Clonex & adjusted the PH to approximately 5.8 (my PH meter finally became so unreliable I had to break out the old color drops - a new meter is on it's way) to see if the addition of a small amount of seedling fertilizer impeded the sprouting of roots at all.

I will be watching them like a hawk in the coming days. Fingers crossed here, people. The mamas have just entered flowering, even though C99 & C99 crosses tend to clone well, even from flowering plants, I'd prefer not having that extra, difficult complication.

Update 10/20/09: Rockwool clones look no worse for wear, but the cubes had become dry - I soaked them in PH adjusted water (5.8) - a little less than I normally do, but still wet. And the watch continues, albeit with less anxiety as there are backups in deck should it turns out I loused up this batch.

Apollonia

10-21-2009, 08:26 PM

The bottoms of my plants - the Cinderellas & Cinderella crosses in groups 1 & 2 specifically - haven't looked so great, I thought it was solely due to lack of light penetration, but 3 days after the 1000W HPS was turned on, the condition seemed to worsen - given C99's reputation as a magnesium hound, I think it's time for me to add my cal-mag + to the regimen.

After examining the dying growth, the inter veinal chlorosis - turning papery & white in the worst cases. The teeth of the leaves curling up - which I've had a problem with since early in the grow (you can see it in the pictures) - I attributed this toheat/nutrient stress and the stress reactions of the plants when the LEDs were too close to them and thought this would resolve itself once the specifics had been dialed in. However while those issues have been dealt with - this particular condition has been a stubborn constant, which furthers me to suspect a cause I had not previously considered. The "dryness" and crinkly quality of some of the leaves - I'm thinking it's a Mg deficiency. Since I changed the reservoirs yesterday and I hear that you should mix cal-mag + in BEFORE you mix your other nutrients I will foliar feed a 2% solution of cal-mag+ until I change the reservoir next week - if the condition improves it will confirm that this indeed was a magnesium deficiency.

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3272-magnesium-deficiency-lower-canopy-group-1-plants-note-inter-veinal-chlorosis-small-shriveled-leaves.jpg

http://boards.cannabis.com/members/apollonia-albums-first-grow-picture3284-10-20-09-magnesium-deficiency-lower-canopy-note-white-papery-leaves-green-veins.jpg

The pictures included show various degrees of damage to the lower canopy of Group 1 - the most severely effected group. Note the shriveled, claw-like small clusters of leaves. One picture is a picture of a leaf with one blade turned that papery texture & white - but still retaining it's green veins even in this state, making me rule out Nitrogen. Most of all note the inter veinal yellowing & the smallness of the old growth. All thoughts are welcome - but the more I see, the more I think Mg deficiency. Just for your information, in the other pictures I've posted - especially the new ones of Groups 1 & 2 and even Group 3 (some of the teeth are pointing up on them), you can see the damage I'm talking about b/c the plants have been bent & trained, exposing their undersides much more than before - I mistakenly thought the symptoms were due to lack of light and the natural dying off of older tissue.

Update: 10/21/09 - plants are looking better after the spraying, so I guess it was Mg deficiency - I guess I just underestimated how much Mg this plant/strain needed or ho low the Mg content of the GH was. The loss of the lower canopy should stop now. From here on in I'll be adding Cal-Mag + 5ml/gal to all the reservoirs on their next change. For now I'll continue to foliar feed up to the next reservoir changes. It's probably a good idea to note here that my water has a PPM of around 90, which I believe is considered a bit low, plus the micronutrients already present in the tap water sometimes aren't in the most readily available form - my guess is that would vary region to region.

Apollonia

10-31-2009, 07:33 PM

Update 10/25/09 - End of first week of flowering

Not too much to report here, just a few pictures. Since there is little to report - I thought I'd break from the format I'd decided on of one update per week and show some extra pictures & some side by side comparisons of the plants just with two days difference between them b/c the growth is quite pronounced - I didn't even realize how much until I looked over the pictures myself.

I hung the second 1000 Watt light & uvb supplemental lights & set up the ventilation.

Since I added the SubCulture M last week at quarter strength, this week I added the bacteria supplement SubCulture B at 1/4 the recommended strength.

I'm using the aggressive bloom expert recirculating formula from GH's calculator page - I changed both Group 1 & Group 2's reservoirs to this on 10/25/09 - the previous week, they were given the Transitional formula & I probably should have added the cal-mag+ then, but decided to foliar feed instead as I thought adding it after the fact would just cause lockout. I figure what with using 2 1000 Watt lights, the uvb and the supplemental Co2, if there ever was a time to push flowering, it is under conditions such as these.

In all units I'm adding 5ml/gal of Cal-Mag + with every reservoir change.

By the way - I got a new PH meter and it is working great.

I've been tying down branches as they get too close to the light. The largest C99 plant is now touching the glass of the reflector. I'm not too concerned, it's only warm to the touch, but I will likely be dealing with this either one of 2 ways: by tying down the up-stretched branches or by gently making little breaks in the meristem to bend the plant over. Perhaps this last technique can be accomplished by merely pulling at the top of the plant with a slipknot, for example, and gradually increasing the bending over time. There will need to be steps taken as it looks like the plants, in Group 1 especially, has jumped nearly a foot in length in one week!

Several plants in Group 3 have sexed, the males were discarded. Group 3 is on a full growth schedule (not the aggressive growth formula). A single plant in Group 2 showed it was male and was removed as thoroughly as could be in the flower unit. 'm adding Hygrozyme (10ml/gal) to deal with any potential ill-effects of removing plants from units whose roots get tangled with each other & may leave dead organic matter behind. I've checked and there is no negative interactions with anything I have already put in my reservoir, I was worried in particular about the beneficial fungi & bacteria, but it explicitly states that it is safe to use in conjunction with them.

I'm watching the Blue Apollos, Apollo 11s, and Sugar Berrys for one plant (or more) to assert itself. Curiously - the Sugar Berry - which is described a real couch-lock indica & is 1/2 Blueberry, shows a predominantly sativa-ish phenotype. Actually, the three strains mentioned all look rather the same. Only the Sugar Blossoms & Blueberrys have shown that typical squat indica look - and Sugar Blossoms is my half indica, half sativa girl.

As this is a set-up in progress, I've added some elements that will only be temporary & am waiting on others. One notable addition is a fan I've ducted to the window to pull in cold air to the general area outside the grow rooms, dissipating the heat the rooms expel. This will likely have an effect on the requirements & function of the environmental controls operating in the rooms. The fan is attached to a speed control set to 68 degrees - when the temperature sensor reaches 68 the fan slows down, when it goes up the fan resumes at a higher speed. At least the basement is now more comfortable for me.

In addition to the fan added to the general area - a Can 50 filer & fan has been added to the general basement area, just to catch any stray odors. Can't wait to see how it all performs in week 4 of flower.

Here are some pretty shots of the canopy where you can see the first baby flowers, the largest plants have been FIMed & topped, shots taken on 10/25/09:

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=66D0_4AEC8C52&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=66D0_4AEC8C52)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=C5F8_4AEC8C52&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=C5F8_4AEC8C52)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=0247_4AEC8E81&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=0247_4AEC8E81)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=7B19_4AEC88A9&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=7B19_4AEC88A9)

Apollonia

10-31-2009, 07:47 PM

10/25/09 Flower Room:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=4043_4AEC8E81&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=4043_4AEC8E81)

10/27/09 Flower Room:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=2AE2_4AEC9396&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=2AE2_4AEC9396)

10/25/09 Group 1:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=C129_4AEC8E81&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=C129_4AEC8E81)

10/27/09 Group 1:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=266B_4AEC9396&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=266B_4AEC9396)

Apollonia

10-31-2009, 07:59 PM

10/25/09 Group 2:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=B9B6_4AEC9396&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=B9B6_4AEC9396)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=AC61_4AEC96C0&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=AC61_4AEC96C0)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=7723_4AEC96C0&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=7723_4AEC96C0)

10/27/09 Group 2:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=DA8C_4AEC96C0&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=DA8C_4AEC96C0)

Apollonia

10-31-2009, 08:51 PM

10/25/09 Group 3 Flower Unit, Center, Veg Unit 2:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=90DC_4AEC9B19&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=90DC_4AEC9B19)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=BE9D_4AEC9B19&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=BE9D_4AEC9B19)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=680F_4AEC9B19&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=680F_4AEC9B19)

10/27/09 Group 3 Flower Unit, Veg Unit 1, Center, Veg Unit 2 & Veg Room:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=F427_4AECA25B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=F427_4AECA25B)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=7490_4AECA10B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=7490_4AECA10B)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=BD88_4AECA10B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=BD88_4AECA10B)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=8263_4AECA25B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=8263_4AECA25B)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=CDD2_4AECA25B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=CDD2_4AECA25B)

Apollonia

10-31-2009, 08:59 PM

10/27/09 Mother Clones

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=C7EF_4AECA485&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=C7EF_4AECA485)

All mother clones have been transplanted into rockwool. In some cases there were only root bumps - in these cases I was able to swirl that portion of the stem in Olivia's coning gel & place into cubes. In cases where the roots were more developed I gently "painted" the roots with the rooting hormone and placed them carefully inside a split RW cube which I then bound together with twist ties - this has been successful for me in the past when I've had to place large sprouted seeds into RW cubes. I added Clonex in the recommended dosage to the water I'm feeding the mother clones & they look much healthier & are retaining more of their green coloring & in some cases getting it back. I want the plants strong for obvious reasons.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=EFEA_4AECA485&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=EFEA_4AECA485)

Some of the clones were taken 10/19/09 and have roots popping out the bottoms of the cubes, but not as much as I'd like before I transfer them into the dutch buckets. I've added 2 more cuttings of each original cloned plant plus two cuttings of the favorite Sugar Blossoms and Blueberry plant. Pray for pistils. Luck be a Lady tonight, luck be a Lady tonight, stick with me baby, I'm the fella you came in with, luck be a Lady tonight. I'm willing them into femaleness, with this song running through my head.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=A97C_4AECA485&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=A97C_4AECA485)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=0D44_4AECA503&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=0D44_4AECA503)

Apollonia

10-31-2009, 09:00 PM

10/30/09 Update! - Sugar Blossom 'charlie' - the object of my affection has sprung a white hair or two - it's a girl! Blueberry 'bravo' is still playing hard to get.

Sexed a bunch of plants by pre-flowers today, I only pull plants that I wouldn't want even if it was a female or that have shown ball clusters in the sexing cloner. Pre-flowers are just too tricky, I'm only certain of them when they sprout hairs or show more than one pre-flower in a cluster like I mentioned before.

Since I'm pulling plants that have had large root masses intertwine with those of their neighbors I added 10 ml per gallon of Hygrozyme to each reservoir. I topped off all the reservoirs to 10 gallons, added the Hygrozyme (100ml/reservoir)) & adjusted the PHs to 5.8 - I know, boring standard stuff - but it's good to mention every now and then.

The addition of Hygrozyme alone may not be enough to ward off pathogens associated with the dead organic matter left behind since it is a lot. So, I'm contemplating moving the plants in the veg room into flower units. This way the debris from their root system will be left behind and all they will have is fresh new roots.

MerryPrankstr

11-01-2009, 05:43 PM

Apollonia,
I must say that I am absolutely humbled by your abilities.
Your grow is vibrant, lush and happy. Not to mention your top notch genetics. The Breeders you mentioned in another thread are "bottled in bond" af far as I'm concerned.

M.P.

MerryPrankstr

11-01-2009, 05:47 PM

Damn me to hell...:mad:
I tried to give you rep, but ended up subtracting it!
May I ask why negative rep is the default choice?

Many, many apologies my friend.

arrrrrggggg.............

M.P.

Apollonia

11-10-2009, 02:20 PM

Merry, your compliments mean so much to me and made my day (I'm just sorry about asking the mods to fix our reputation mishap, I didn't want you to think I took it badly - I'm just over "tidy" that way :( ) What you wrote absolutely made my day. I wish I could send you a PM. Your words mean much more than a silly rep button. :hippy:

11/1/09 Update - End of second week of flowering, first day of third week

Hi again. A few things to show this week: a lot of moving around was done, plus I put an emergency flush through my dutch bucket system - the pics will explain why. But overall, things seem to be on track as we move forward into the next phases of the grow. Also I got an eyeclops! There will be trichome pics in the future!

I've got my usual weekly update pics of the different groups, but I want to devote most of this week's update to problems I've been having with one plant: my Cinderella 99 'grapefruit'. So here is a quick Update of Group 1 plus some random pretty photos from Group 1.

Group 1 General Update Photos:

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=51C9_4AF8EE58&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=51C9_4AF8EE58)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=B19D_4AF8EE58&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=B19D_4AF8EE58)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=A9AA_4AF974A6&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=A9AA_4AF974A6)
Pineapple Canopy

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=9DE8_4AF9757B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=9DE8_4AF9757B)
Pineapple Greenery

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=9731_4AF9757B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=9731_4AF9757B)
The smaller plants in group 1

Apollonia

11-10-2009, 02:34 PM

11/1/09 Update Group 1 C99 'grapefruit' woes

I realize this could be over reaction of an over-anxious "parent," the place where the perceived damage is is also the part of the plant that faced away from the vegging light - but it could be something more...

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=6511_4AF974A6&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=6511_4AF974A6)
This is C99 'grapefruit' in full, I separated her from the others with a cardboard divider to show a clearer picture of the plant

As to the health of C99 'grapefruit' from Group 1, I couldn't say what is happening for certain and it is curious because whatever is effecting her is only effecting her and not the other plants in the system.

The best way to start to describe it is I noticed she was getting sparser than her sisters and that her leaves, seemingly from the middle were turning yellow - oddly not really dying, but going very, very yellow. New growth is green, but seems small which could indicate something specific or just be a reflection of. There is also a whole side to the plant that is lush and dark green and appears unaffected.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=E6D6_4AF8F0EC&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=E6D6_4AF8F0EC)
Close up of a leaf typical of the ones making me worry about the health of 'grapefruit'

This will surely effect yield but I wonder what it could possibly be - she's certainly getting enough nutrients, the highest PPM is 1500 and I'm using and if it were a fungus or bacterial problem, I'd imagine I would see something from the others - so I went with what I thought was my best option - I flushed the entire dutch bucket system (Group 1) for 24 hours using FloraKleen at the higher end of the recommended concentration of 2 tsp FloraKleen per gallon of plain water. I was nervous about taking away nutrients for too long while flowering, but figured 36 hours was an acceptable period especially as 24 of those hours were during the night cycle. I even let her bucket "flood" a little so as to clear as much of the hydroton as possible.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=0E38_4AF977B2&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=0E38_4AF977B2)
A troubling center shot of C99 'grapefruit' where the problem seems to emanate from. I took it under a different light to get a "truer" less yellow picture.

I'm torn between several deficiencies, lockout & overferting! Another thing to note - I've also noticed similar but far less extensive chlorosis on some of the fan leaves of grapefruit's sister plant, pineapple. C99 'grapefruit' could be slowly dying - I'm not too concerned, except as it effects the other healthy plants in the system as I have rooted cuttings of her - the plants from seed were more of a bonus harvest & a practice run before commencing the perpetual grow, so no whining here. But I'm very curious as to what is up with this plant. I'm going with Mg lockout for now - but I diagnose nothing with confidence - I've seen things that could indicate possible iron deficiency, over-nuting, nutrient lockout, potassium deficiency, nitrogen deficiency... so who knows and I am sure part of this is over analyzing the situation. I hesitate to say it is PH issues, as I am very on top of the PH and the fluctuation only goes up a point on average. I also don't think that over-concentration of nutrients are causing nutrient burn as I've been topping off the reservoirs frequently which keeps the PPMs low.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=C151_4AF974A6&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=C151_4AF974A6)
A picture of some of the healthy parts of the troublesome plant.

Hopefully the flush will have removed whatever was causing the trouble. As I've mentioned, I've started to supplement the plants with 5ml/gal of Cal-Mag+ and everyone seems to be loving it except our C99 'grapefruit' who is getting yellow. Perhaps I did not add it fast enough? Curiouser & curiouser... If anyone has any ideas - I'd love to hear them. Also, I should mention that the dutch buckets with the largest plants (grapefruit & pineapple) have occasionally flooded - I didn't know that this was a complication of dutch buckets when I went for the system - I resolved the issue each time, but maybe the flooding has something to do with it.

I took a bunch of pictures from different angles & under different lighting. One thing that occurred to me is it may have looked worse than it is b/c the yellow light of the Super HPS may have looked like more yellow leaves than there actually were.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=9C8E_4AF8F82A&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=9C8E_4AF8F82A)
The plant as it appeared under a brighter flash

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=EE66_4AF97965&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=EE66_4AF97965)
The plant as it appeared under the HPS lighting.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=EAD6_4AF97092&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=EAD6_4AF97092)
This is a picture of C99 'pineapple', C99 'grapefruit's sister - she has some leaves exhibiting chlorosis but appears to not be suffering to the extend that 'grapefruit' is. Hopefully this is normal and not a sign of degeneration to come.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=4A74_4AF8F0EC&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=4A74_4AF8F0EC)
Additional leaves off of 'grapefruit' in various states of chlorosis.

Apollonia

11-10-2009, 02:41 PM

Group 2 & Mother Clones in Rockwool

Group 2 pictures:

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=A96F_4AF8F2B3&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=A96F_4AF8F2B3)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=205E_4AF9757B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=205E_4AF9757B)

Group 2's Root system:

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=906B_4AF97D0C&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=906B_4AF97D0C)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=5E4C_4AF97D0C&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=5E4C_4AF97D0C)

My Apollo 11 X C99 has really taken off and surprised me, she burst her neoprene collar (!) and is growing... like a weed. Long arms & lots of blooms, she's a lovely girl. I thought because of some bad luck early on - I'd end up with a lesser mother, but it looks as if with this strain, I've struck the jackpot. As you can see from the pictures, the Cal-Mag+ has turned these guys a deep green. Speaking of mothers - they are doing very well and ready for transplant, check out the new growth.

Mother Clones in Rockwool:

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=A378_4AF977B2&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=A378_4AF977B2)

These guys are basically ready to plant into their hydroton buckets and will be very soon. The transition from the aerocloner to the rockwool wasn't as traumatic as I thought it would be & they have a nice survival rate - they're already throwing out new growth.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=C609_4AF977B2&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=C609_4AF977B2)

Apollonia

11-10-2009, 02:47 PM

Group 3

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=50D9_4AF8F2B3&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=50D9_4AF8F2B3)

The next big event was moving the plants of Group 3 in the veg room into flower units - I pulled quite a few males and put my strongest plants & desired mothers into flower units to give them more space. My 'duds' are in the last remaining veg unit - and they are duds, some of them cannot even stand up on their own. Cuttings for mothers were taken of the Blue Apollo, Sugar Berry & Apollo 11 strains. The cloned strains already transplanted to rockwool are ready and rooted. They will make the transition to the dutch bucket mother system soon as I make room by putting the plants in the veg unit into a flower unit & move it to the flower room - this will likely happen this coming Sunday. We'll see what the duds can produce in terms of bud.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=D1C3_4AF8F2B3&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=D1C3_4AF8F2B3)
Group 3's 'duds', these plants were not good enough to preserve as clones for mothers, but moved to a flower unit & placed in the flower room, they may produce some nice extra harvest.

I think I've eradicated the last of the males. Interesting note, the Blueberrys turned out to be the most difficult to sex, producing pre-flowers & even early regular flowers that are quite spherical, usually an indicator of male sex. Making it more difficult is the females only throw out a tiny white hair which is very hard to spot. And they all showed indicators of sex far later than all the other strains - in vegetative growth and even under the 12/12 lighting. I'd incorrectly identified Blueberry 'foxtrot' as a female, but when I checked the cutting I put in the sex cloner - I found out that foxtrot was in fact a male! I don't know if I hermied him/her or just read a stipule as the white hair of a pistil, as they were so tiny on the others - but the clone cutting had balls - two of them in each crevice, so I pulled it from the system.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=2778_4AF8F82A&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=2778_4AF8F82A)
This is flower unit 1, it holds several mothers & second bests - I've taken clones of more than one of the strains Blue Apollo, Apollo 11, and Sugar Berry as there was no one plant that greatly out-shined all others as was the case with Blueberry & Sugar Blossoms. With Sugar Berry there were two top runners, so close in quality I had to take cuttings from both & determine who will be the mother based on the final results of flowering out the seeded plants.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=318C_4AF8F82A&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=318C_4AF8F82A)
Flower Unit 2 - this holds the mothers of Blueberry & Sugar Blossoms, as their clones have rooted (plus I have additional cuttings in the aerocloner just in case) I may flower them out along with the runners up in the unit instead of transferring them into flower unit 1 with the rest of the mothers, we shall see.

Farmer Rich

11-11-2009, 10:29 PM

Nice.

The one comment I noticed when scanning your thread was that you run your nutes to 1500ppm. I also grow aero, though I keep my mothers in soilless mix. I've been experimenting with topping out nutrients 800ppm at the high point during flower and it's working great for me. My systems are VERY similar to yours.. constructed with 5" vinyl fence posts, and 3" General Hydroponic net pots (aeroflow parts), but I used in adjustable drains where I can maintain a little bit of water in the channels. For veg, I have one 2x6 system, that feeds three 2x3 systems (6 plants) used for flower, where I try to harvest one every three weeks. I typically get about 12 oz dried bud from one 6 plant system and enough trim/trash for about 15g killer hash.

For the one plant in your photos that was loosing leaves.. From the top, it kind of looked like you may have developed a root rot problem. Did your roots start turning brown and smelling bad? I know I have real issues when the reservoirs start getting above 68 degrees F. I lost a system over the summer due to root rot, looked just like that. Suffered through August using H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide) to combat it, though once it cooled off, all of that kind of issue went away. I'm going to bite the bullet for next year and get 4 chillers, 1 for each of my systems.

Have you harvested from your aero systems yet?

Peace,

Farmer Rich

Apollonia

11-15-2009, 03:55 AM

The one comment I noticed when scanning your thread was that you run your nutes to 1500ppm. I also grow aero, though I keep my mothers in soilless mix. I've been experimenting with topping out nutrients 800ppm at the high point during flower and it's working great for me. My systems are VERY similar to yours.. constructed with 5" vinyl fence posts, and 3" General Hydroponic net pots (aeroflow parts), but I used in adjustable drains where I can maintain a little bit of water in the channels. For veg, I have one 2x6 system, that feeds three 2x3 systems (6 plants) used for flower, where I try to harvest one every three weeks. I typically get about 12 oz dried bud from one 6 plant system and enough trim/trash for about 15g killer hash.

....

Have you harvested from your aero systems yet?

Whew, that's a mighty fine haul! You've got me reaming now of hat I might pull down of this haul. :dance: Thanks for coming by - it's good to have someone using a similar system to yours to speak with. You know I heard another poster on this board (an old hand w/a lot of respect) state that a plant can't use more than 800 PPM nutrients... and now your post, I will surely look into it. Right now I'm going strictly by the book & I thought I'd learn from this grow and adjust & your sharing your experience helps. Just thought I'd add, I'm running the PPMs initially at around 1300, dropping as I top it off - (I always wondered how that effects the plants, if it's bad to dilute it too much - my current thinking is the recommended PPM the starting number for that week or that reservoir & as the plant uses nutrients it should drop, but if you know more, please tell me)

And I've yet to harvest anything from anything - this is my very first grow.:D

For the one plant in your photos that was loosing leaves.. From the top, it kind of looked like you may have developed a root rot problem. Did your roots start turning brown and smelling bad? I know I have real issues when the reservoirs start getting above 68 degrees F. I lost a system over the summer due to root rot, looked just like that. Suffered through August using H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide) to combat it, though once it cooled off, all of that kind of issue went away. I'm going to bite the bullet for next year and get 4 chillers, 1 for each of my systems.

You'll see it in my next update if you read it, but I incorporated this comment o yours into my thinking. It's happening in the dutch bucket, not the aero system. The stink is what gives away the root rot? As of now, I think I eliminated whatever the problem was. The badly damaged leaves were lost, but the new growth is developing and the buds are just as big as her sister plants'... <crosses herself, eyes to the heavens> I hope I've done enough. What did the roots look like when they rotted? Unfortunately I'm using several products that make the roots brown, so coloring isn't necessarily a key for me. I worry b/c I've moved the plants around causing damage and leaving some dead matter around. But the roots smell clean.

It's (as of today) about the start of the fifth week of flower and in Unit 2 (the aerosystem) I've noticed some fan leaves beginning to yellow! If that OK or normal given my high nutrient levels & such? I'm afraid that whatever error I was making or disease is now coming to fruition in the second unit as it did in the first with grapefruit :( So I'm fretting. The amount of leaves yellowing are small, but after what happened to grapefruit I'm scared. Got my hand on my FloraShield (it's sort of like H2O2, it'll kill bacteria/fungus/root troubles & "clean" your roots - but I wonder if it would have some undesirable effect - It would kill any beneficial bacteria/fungi, but if you got root rot or whatever you might as well sterilize & start again (re-inoculate after the cleansing) I don't know why I'm not doing it... maybe this is the thing I'll look back on and regret. I'm so freaked about my roots, even the little hairy roots I thought was fungus for a brief, panic-y second when it was actually a sign of recovery (unless I was totally wrong - but the plants look healthy and the roots do not smell..) See? I'm a totally crazy over-protective parent, any advice, any at all would be so appreciated - I don't want to act too late. :tin foil hat:

As for the chillers, I say go for it, you won't be sorry - one bit of advice I'd give is if you want to not have to use AC, go for the larger chiller. I'm thinking of buying a second one, then I'll really be rolling. The thing with a chiller is, if you get just below the HP needed - you're shooting yourself in the foot as it can only drop the temperature of the res to a level that's lower, but still too high for you & it's a great expense - all the while running at full tilt expelling hot air all around, where as a more powerful unit would run less, emit less heat and handle the temperature you need - and it's versatile, you can use it to cool your rooms if you find you wish to do that. You can ask me about them should you decide on making the jump - I'm no expert, but I've done my shopping around.

Apollonia

11-15-2009, 04:08 AM

11/8/09 Update - End of the third week of flowering & beginning of the fourth. This is the first day of flower for unit 3.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=DBF7_4AFF2A7A&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=DBF7_4AFF2A7A)
The flowering room after the new flower unit was added

In the flowering room: Buds have really started to turn up at this point. Major changes are I've moved the "duds" of group 3 plus the favorite Sugar Blossoms & Blueberry plant grown from seed into a flowering unit & placed into the flower room. All reservoirs were changed, Groups 1 & 2 were given the Aggressive Bloom General Hydroponics formula with Hygrozyme & Cal-Mag+ added.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=59EE_4AFF29EE&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=59EE_4AFF29EE)
Groups 1 & 2 canopy

The newly transplanted Group 3 flower unit was given the Transitional formula plus the Hygrozyme and the Cal-Mag+, the Transitional formula will be changed out in a week and replaced with Aggressive Bloom formula. Bioballs were added to the reservoir and it as given a 1/4 strength root drench of SubCulture M. I'm changing the reservoirs every 2 weeks, I hope that's enough, I wouldn't want to be wasteful changing it every week.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=034E_4AFF2F77&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=034E_4AFF2F77)
New Flower Unit

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The new flowering unit contains Blue Apollos, Sugar Berrys, Sugar blossoms, Blueberrys & Apollo 11s - including the desired Blueberry & sugar Blossom mother plants, but since their cuttings took well and there are back up cuttings, I thought it best to flower them out.

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Group 1 before buckets were rearranged & the second half removed

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Groups 1 & 2 after both units moved to the wall

Some people have noticed how bushy Group 1 is - they were so big that I took quite a bit off the top - not the usual 1 - 2 node down cut, but further to control height. I anticipate a longer manicure time, but since it'll be my first, it shouldn't bother me too much as it's all so new. But I think they are giving me a very bush like, multiple "main" bud sites plant. Group 2 was topped also, but fimmed, not chopped several nodes down like Group 1 was and you can see all the long branches & multiple cola formations - part of that its down to genes as I hear C99 X A11 is long & branchy by nature. But you can see the difference in effect when you hack well down.

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Group 2 before tie down

I've done quite a bit of tying of the plants in Groups 1 & 2 and continue to do so. Just to note - PPMs for flower room reservoirs generally start at 1300-1400 gross total (my tap water is about 90 PPM on it's own) and it decreases as time goes by and it gets topped off. Plants seem happy. The PPM of the Veg units are usually gross 1100. The PPMs in the Transitional formula units are 1250 gross. As always, remember to subtract about 100 PPM to get the net - just thought I'd throw that out there.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=9865_4AFF2B35&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=9865_4AFF2B35)
Group 2 after tie downs

Apollonia

11-15-2009, 04:15 AM

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=BD31_4AFF29EE&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=BD31_4AFF29EE)
C99 'pineapple' bud close-up in purple

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=C128_4AFF2CB3&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=C128_4AFF2CB3)
Group 2 "clover field"

Since the buds have started to show, I've been overcome with taking pictures of them - they look like clover. Unit 2 especially looks like a clover field. I haven't been able to get a good enough picture to really show you this clover field effect, but I'm trying - it's down to the lighting & the camera at this point. I'm a sucker for flowers. Hopefully these pictures will give the impression.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=7912_4AFF2F77&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=7912_4AFF2F77)
C99 'pineapple' close-up

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=BABD_4AFF2B35&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=BABD_4AFF2B35)
Group 2 Canopy

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=44CD_4AFF328B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=44CD_4AFF328B)
C99 'grapefruit' in a sorry state

In the dutch bucket system, as the Hydroton wasn't washed (my first and rather big newb mistake) the PH rises a bit faster (and a lot faster than the thoroughly washed & PH conditioned Hydroton of the mother system) so I've had to keep on top of that. But, in the aeroponic flowering systems, the PH actually tends to go down, but occasionally will rise. Just an observation, and this goes for the units in the flower room and in the vegetation room.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=D4C8_4AFF2CB3&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=D4C8_4AFF2CB3)
Groups 1 & 3, you can really see the C99 'grapefruit'

Just a thought: my woes with C99 'grapefruit' may be due in part to the debris in the system from the unwashed Hydroton. The old damaged growth on the plant is likely not going to recover - but the new growth remains green & it is still putting out new. Perhaps this is a phenotype that cannot take the PPM level her sisters can, we shall find out. My suspicion, and it's just my suspicion, is that b/c the Hydroton was unwashed it left this very clay-y residue which might have coated the roots and left them oxygen starved which in turn lead to dead roots, root rot = no nutrient uptake. But I think that's passed... the buds and new green growth are there although the plant itself is a sorry sight - I was tempted just to take her out of the system, but as it appears to have abated, I'm likely going to see this through to completion. Big thanks to poster Farmer Rich for sharing his experiences & pointing me in that direction, as I read more, it seemed the likeliest. I also think the FloraKleen may have whisked enough Hydroton debris away to enable the roots to somewhat re-establish themselves plus the Hygrozyme must have eaten away at enough dead matter to at lest keep my other plants in the system from falling vulnerable to the ever present pythium et al. I don't like to speak in so much conjecture, but it's all I got right now. It's interesting to note that after peeling away some Hydroton from poor 'grapefruit' I've noticed a whole lot of white fuzzy where before there was none - so I'm giving the girl a chance - I think she has come back from whatever it is that was ailing her, but the 'haul' from her harvest will be meager.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=C994_4AFF2A7A&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=C994_4AFF2A7A)
Group 1, 'grapefruit' is on the left

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Groups 1 & 2 before the new flowering unit was added - 'grapefruit' is very visible at the end

Apollonia

11-15-2009, 04:20 AM

11/8/09 Update - Veg Room

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Before transplant & relocation

In the Vegetation Room: The second major event was the transplanting of mother clones into the dutch bucket system just put into the veg room. There are some other left over mother clone cuttings standing by should anything go wrong with these clones. The Mother Dutch Bucket System was fed with Hygrozyme, Cal-Mag+ and regular Vegetative growth formula - I hope it isn't too strong, but I'm treating the clones as if they are the age of the plants they were taken from, as they are not seedlings. The strongest specimens of each strain/sub-strain were taken and put into the dutch buckets from the seedling trays where they sat in rockwool on perlite. The dutch bucket mothers are: C99 'grapefruit', C99 'pineapple', C99 X BB 'bravo', Sugar Blossoms, Blueberry, and C99 X A11.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=BBEE_4AFF2944&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=BBEE_4AFF2944)
The permanent mother system

The flower unit still in the veg room holds all plants that were cloned as possible mothers for Apollo 11, Blue Apollo & Sugar Berry. They were either very alike, equal in quality & I'm waiting to see how they flower before choosing a mother or I haven't decided which qualities I would find more desirable in that strain for a mother ie. a shorter, thinner bushier plant or a taller, stronger one for example. This unit was also changed and given the Hygrozyme, Cal-Mag+ and General Hydroponics Vegetative Growth formula.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=5279_4AFF28BF&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=5279_4AFF28BF)
Last flower Unit left in the veg room

The only plant not added to the Dutch Bucket Mother System was C99 x BB 'echo' because the cutting had not rooted yet. I recut the cutting, split it down the middle & put it back into the aerocloner. Hopefully I can stimulate it to root again - it does have white root bumps. If it doesn't work out, I'm very happy having only C99 X BB 'bravo' which looks like a true cross between C99 and Blueberry vs 'echo' which is a big, strong plant with lots of bud sites, but looks as if it inherited more C99 than Blueberry as it looks very similar to the C99 X A11 mother. I'll try my best to preserve C99 X BB 'echo's genetics as much as I can, I'd even go so far as to try to re-veg the plant if it came down to it as my focus now is genetics - not this particular harvest. This harvest is a nice bonus & informational. Main goal is the perpetual system.

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Veg Room after changes as it is now

Apollonia

11-15-2009, 04:30 AM

11/8/09 Update - Unit 2 Pics: C99 X BB 'bravo', C99 x BB 'echo', C99 x A11

As a first time grower, I'm in awe of the beauty and the thrill of the plants coming into bloom so I'm sure these pictures are quite redundant in some ways - but not totally useless at all. Here you can really get a sense of the different phenotypes & characters of the strains I got going here.

Just a note about what you're looking at with the Group 2 pictures: I took a lot of shots of them as they are the most accessible but if you want a layout - those spinachy stalks in the left hand back are C99 X BB 'bravo' - directly in front of that and leaning over towards Group 1 is C99 X BB 'echo' who looks very much like the plant that really dominates the whole of Group 2 which is my C99 x A11 'alpha' - when you look from left and even across the center into the Blueberry crosses territory - that canopy, those branches are all being flung out largely by that one plant. This is observable in all pictures taken head on of Unit 2, so you can go back to those pictures to see what I mean and where certain plants are.

C99 x BB 'bravo'
This particular plant from this strain, to me, shows the more indica, blueberry, genes of the two (bravo & echo) Notice her dark greenery & the leafy abundance around her buds (hash, ahoy!) ow, he's beautiful (I know this plant's a 'he' despite being technically female - & he's definitely the more macho of the two. 'Bravo's unique looking.

Here is 'bravo':
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=9C20_4AFF3CE4&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=9C20_4AFF3CE4)
Bud cluster

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Three stalks of 'bravo'

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=FEE3_4AFF53DE&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=FEE3_4AFF53DE)
Leaves & Buds

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Stalk & flower cluster, notice the abundance of dark leaves

C99 X BB 'echo'
This specimen of the Cinderella Blueberry cross is so similar looking to my C99 Apollo 11 cross, I'd have thought I accidentally mislabeled the strain (I know I didn't, I was very careful) He's big & branchy, though not as large as his brother 'bravo' I don't think. He also has many bud sites, more than his brother I think. He responded well to training via breaking & redirecting growth, so he's strong. He tends towards the more C99/sativa side of the family it seems. He's a fine plant & I am working hard to preserve a clone of him, initially taken on somewhat of a lark, it may prove too similar to C99 X A11or not enough of a yielder compared to 'bravo' to be worth keeping if I can revive it at all, we shall see.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=B6FE_4AFF5544&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=B6FE_4AFF5544)
Some echo branches

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=D9DD_4AFF5620&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=D9DD_4AFF5620)
Looking down a long stalk of echo

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Echo bud close-up

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=243A_4AFF5620&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=243A_4AFF5620)
Echo view from the top down

C99 X A11 'alpha'
What can I say about this plant that the pictures don't? She's a veritable monster, she takes up 75% of the unit space & has multiple bud sites. Cannot wait to see what happens with this one, she's all arms, it's true what Joey Weed said, she looks like she'd be great for SCROG. I love the prettiness of it all, I have a ton of picture of her.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=2AA7_4AFF338E&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=2AA7_4AFF338E)
C99 X A11 Canopy tied

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=0444_4AFF338E&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=0444_4AFF338E)
She's a huge plant

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=0D68_4AFF3314&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=0D68_4AFF3314)
Close-up of bud frond

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Bud & greenery jungle

deleafer2220

11-15-2009, 03:03 PM

Great Work :thumbsup:

Apollonia

11-20-2009, 02:30 PM

11/15/09 Update

Beginning of fifth week of flower for Groups 1 & 2
Beginning of second week of flower for Flower Unit 3
Beginning of the first Week of Flower for Flower Unit 4

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Before Unit 4 was added

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=0AB7_4B03B616&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=0AB7_4B03B616)
Flower Room After Unit Four Added

Major changes this week:

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=516D_4B03B7DC&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=516D_4B03B7DC)
Flower Unit 4

The last flower unit has been transferred into the flower room. This is the unit that contains the last three strains to be cut & chosen - Blue Apollo, Apollo 11 & Sugar Berry. Extra cuttings for back up mothers were taken (2 from each plant) before hand.

Another major change - I've decided to add FloraShield as a mainstay in all reservoir - those yellow leaves got me worried. It's like H2O2. In Groups 1 & 2 I drained the reservoir and ran FloraShield & water at the recommended dilution (changed & cleaned all the part of the 2 systems) for the recommended time (1-2 hours, I did a little over 2) Just incase I am dealing with a case of root rot. The plants in the dutch buckets are quite root bound which has caused drainage problems & overflow & I've mentioned the unwashed Hydroton before, I just don't see why I'd take the chance especially as I observed yellowing leaves starting on my second unit - that's what did it for me. I can't have this spread around the whole room. The only thing I sacrifice is the beneficial bacteria/organisms & I guess if they had established themselves, I wouldn't be having this problem, so my choice was clear.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=922A_4B03BDB6&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=922A_4B03BDB6)
Unit 2

As there isn't much to tell now, I'm mostly looking toward the future. My worries are so far: when to add the Dry KoolBloom (Ripen)? Shall I do it for 3 weeks prior to harvest? 2 or only 1? I hear that stressing w/products like that can cause hermaphrodites, but vastly increase bud size so I'll do a little experimenting. As I'm using the aggressive bloom strength formula, might as well go the whole 9.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=4B39_4B03B7DC&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=4B39_4B03B7DC)
Units 1 & 3

Another worry is circulation, budrot. I'm thinking of adding several fans & really blow those plants around - humidity has been good, 47% last I checked. But, The vegetation is dense & the plant are stacked on top of each other. I've ordered more fans to mount on the walls just to rattle each leaf & stalk. I've also cut the lower third
side stems & leaves off of the plants in units 3 & 4.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=1960_4B03BDB6&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=1960_4B03BDB6)
Units 2 & 4

I've taken readings with my Lux meter above the canopies of all my flower units - they range at the darkest points 50,000 Lux - to the brightest being 600,000 Lux. I plan on addressing the issue of the plants getting the lesser amount of light by adding perhaps an LED over them as it worked for my Flower Unit 3. It doesn't jump the Lux reading - LEDs give lower readings, but due to their more specific spectrum, give more useable light with the added benefit of using blue light to keep the stretch down.

One observation - the plants in Groups 1 & 2 are low odor strains, but are finally starting to show odor now if you go up to them - they smell sweet. Some smell like candy, I put that up to the Pineapple!Rush FloraNectar sweetener I'm using, just my guess.

Apollonia

11-20-2009, 02:43 PM

End of fourth week, beginning of fifth week of flower Unit 2 pics, canopy, colas, buds:

Bud Canopy (Unit 2):
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=C588_4B03B3CA&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=C588_4B03B3CA)

Cola (Unit 2):
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=8356_4B03B616&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=8356_4B03B616)

Canopy & Colas Unit 2 (C99 X BB 'bravo' featured prominently center)
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=B5C9_4B03B501&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=B5C9_4B03B501)

C99 X BB 'bravo' Colas close-up
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=43CF_4B03B501&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=43CF_4B03B501)

C99 X A11 Canopy
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=5CE1_4B03B501&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=5CE1_4B03B501)

Cola C99 X A11
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=6725_4B03B43F&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=6725_4B03B43F)

C99 X A11 Canopy:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=B68E_4B03B3CA&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=B68E_4B03B3CA)

Bud close-up:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=4CAB_4B03B43F&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=4CAB_4B03B43F)

Bud Chain (C99 X A11):
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=65C3_4B03B3CA&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=65C3_4B03B3CA)

Bud 'arm' (C99 X A11):
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=74D2_4B03B43F&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=74D2_4B03B43F)

Apollonia

11-20-2009, 02:53 PM

Trichomes

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Got some close up pics of trichomes to show everyone just for laughs - took them with the Eyeclops. Most are at 200X magnification and a few are 400X. I took a little bud off C99 X A11 for observation (which was dutifully chopped, dried and smoked by those who shall remain nameless - they got all happy, giggly & chatty, proclaiming it "definitely good shit" - happily when questioned they confirmed hat the seedmakers said it would do - a head/psychedelic high with euphoria but also a decent light body high, it's more than I expected given the small quantity, early harvest & knowledge of their smoking habits, so hooray!)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=C37F_4B03B9AD&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=C37F_4B03B9AD)

All comments and observation are welcome & wanted as I'm totally new to reading trichomes. As it is 5 weeks, I'm reading them as all clear. Perhaps someone with more experience can let me know if I'm right. I'm using UVB and I know that often accelerates trich maturation & degradation, so perhaps the trichs really are part cloudy.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=3A89_4B03BA65&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=3A89_4B03BA65)

When taking pictures of the trichs, you can often only get a few into focus as they are often on a curved surface. I am considering only the ones in clear focus for accuracy.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=C5EF_4B03BA65&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=C5EF_4B03BA65)
Even though in the pictures there appears to be cloudy heads, I think that is b/c they are out of focus or in front of other objects that make them appear coudy - with this picture at the bottom it even looks like there are 2 broken amber heads, but I doubt that. I don't know, first grow and all, but I think early week 5 is too early to see anything but clear heads. Correct me if I'm wrong. And if any of you old timers have any tricks to share regarding how to tell when plants are indeed cloudy, don't be afraid to shout.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=2B64_4B03B9AD&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=2B64_4B03B9AD)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=2284_4B03BA65&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=2284_4B03BA65)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=F320_4B03B9AD&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=F320_4B03B9AD)

Apollonia

11-20-2009, 02:57 PM

Clones of the last remaining strains taken

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=A68C_4B03B8B1&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=A68C_4B03B8B1)
Second set of clones (new clones) taken in front - older clones in back tray

Regarding this last crop of mother plant cuttings I kept 4 Apollo 11's, 2 Blue Apollos and 2 Sugar Berrys. At first glance, the Sugar Berrys are twins, however, I have noticed Sugar Berry 'hotel' is taller & sparser than Sugar Berry 'india' which is a little less tall, but much bushier. I think 'india' will win out in the end and become a permanent mother.

With Blue Apollo we have 2 plants very much alike, again one taller than the other, but still bushy which is 'bravo'. The other is slightly smaller & less thick branched but is very bushy all around, 'echo'. What might throw this to 'bravo' though is while it is not as bushy as 'echo' - it has a very large, circular, bushy canopy that I can imagine would produce many large buds.

I kept 4 potential mothers for Apollo 11 b/c I think she's going to be a real standout. As of now, 'golf' is the clear front runner - she's by far the bushiest & decently tall. 'delta' is the tallest, fairly bushy itself and like most of the taller ones is sturdy. Then comes 'echo' and 'bravo' - they are both smaller but very bushy, 'echo' being a little more so. I have faith in the strain so I'm willing to devote the time & the space to find out which is best. In the other cases - the choices were very clear and luckily are bearing themselves out in the flower room now.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=8852_4B03BDB6&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=8852_4B03BDB6)
New Veg Room Set-up, permanent set-up still in progress

Another thing: I've got my mothers up and running in the dutch bucket mother system in the veg room. The final mothers, I took one of each clone - one I put in rockwool and one I put directly into the Hydroton, bare roots. It looks like they're doing fine. Plus I have The other clone in rockwool & 2 more cuttings in the cloner unit for backup should it not work. The clones I had taken earlier & rooted first in rockwool & placed in Hydroton are doing great & growing. Regarding the clones I took bare rooted & placed directly into hydroton, first off I was very gently, secondly they had a lot of roots. I just held the plant up where I wanted it & rolled the hydroton balls under & through the roots and gently around them, trying to leave not much space to collapse. Then I took the emitter and watered the area where the roots were. I then just left them with the others, it's been 3 days & they haven't died so I'm optimistic.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=EDD7_4B03B7DC&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=EDD7_4B03B7DC)
Permanent mother plant system in veg room

I'm concentrating on establishing my mothers. I've topped the established plants just above the third node on each in the hopes of getting a bushy, short plant that will quickly provide cuttings for the perpetual harvest system.

Anyway another piece of good news - my little C99 X BB 'echo' cutting has rooted! I'm going to be very careful with him and let him sprout a few more before I o putting him into rockwool as I only have the one. Even thought I was successful with the other mothers, transplanting them with bare roots, I only have the one and it is such a different pheno than it's brother 'bravo'

Apollonia

11-20-2009, 03:09 PM

One last try on the yellowing leaves situation: Normal N loss during flower, disease or both?

*All pictures are of the C99 'grapefruit' plant on two particular bud sections: http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=5A78_4B067D3F&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=5A78_4B067D3F)
C99 'grapefruit' bud, interveinal chlorosis, chlorotic leaves - this is typical of all the branches on this plant.

I had mentioned before that some leaves were yellowing - nearly all of C99 'grapefruit's and quite a few of C99 'pineapple' - with the two smaller plants in group 1 showing absolutely no signs of this disorder whatsoever despite them being farther from the lights. I cannot say for sure - but it is useful to note that C99 'grapefruit' and C99 'pineapple' are much larger than their two sisters, causing problems due to being heavily root bound - also these two plants reside in the uncleaned Hydroton where as the other two are in cleaned Hydtoton. This leads me to conclude that the dying from the inside of the branch to the outside is a sign of some form of root rot or damage, hence the FloraShield cleansing and it's addition to the system as a regular staple.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=33AE_4B065270&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=33AE_4B065270)
Same bud shot and leaves but shown in perspective with the rest of 'grapefruit'

What has me most worried now is the progression of yellow fan leaves amongst the larger plants in Unit 2. It started with C99 X BB 'bravo' & appears to be showing up in C99 X A11 'alpha.' Now, these plants could have caught whatever it is making the sick plants in unit 1 ill, but then why haven't the others in the same units gotten ill as well? This is only occurring amongst the largest plants in each unit. Perhaps it's due to an inadequate amount of root space. I really do not know. It's also worth mentioning that it is later in flower (middle of week 5) so perhaps this is a normal loss of N as I am using an Aggressive Bloom formula. I've heard it can happen. I wonder though. And it must be said - the plants are putting out nice buds.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=10CE_4B065270&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=10CE_4B065270)
A different grapefruit bud close up with more pronounced chlorosis - the tips are curled and burnt on some sections.

Here are the symptoms one last time. It begins on the larger fan leaves - they turn bright yellow and can stay that way for a while. When they are fully yellow their veins and stems take on a purple color although there is purpleness present in the healthy plants too. In the final phases, the leaves dry, turning brown along the edges and curling upwards at the tips and along the edges. The leaves to go last are the ones closest to the ends/buds. I realize that I may have to harvest early if this situation progresses and the plant starts to die - especially the 'grapefruit' plant.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=5DA5_4B067D3F&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=5DA5_4B067D3F)
Here is a picture of a leaf on grapefruit in mid-chlorosis

As I read more, maybe I'm having a little hysteria (in the case of unit 2 at least) over what naturally happens - nitrogen loss during flower. Perhaps that is also the case with Unit 1 to a degree, but I have to think it got too bare too soon, at least 'grapefruit' did. I know C99 loves Mg, but I am supplementing, it couldn't be lacking Mg save for lockout, which worries me. I don't know. I'm showing this to show what the problem looks like on the plant - this is the best illustration of the problem thus far, it's all there in a nutshell.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=432D_4B065270&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=432D_4B065270)
Same 'grapefruit' leaf as the first plant pictures above but in close-up. Notice the complete yellowness, the curled up brown edges.

Unit 2, I'm thinking might be experiencing a natural yellowing during flower. The yellowing is primarily large fan leaves, most of the growth remains dark and lush. Not like the bare branches of the C99 'grapefruit' plant. Any ideas are welcome as I'm stumped. I am fairly certain that the two large plants in Unit 1 have problems due to complications that I'm not entirely sure what they are, but that have left them with diminished functioning root mass. There will be a 'root autopsy' which I will post after harvest if this isn't figured out to a near certainty.

Here are some details on what most of these yellow leaves look like.

Here's a picture of a progression from mottled green to yellow to yellow with brown fringed tips:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=0BF0_4B067D3F&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=0BF0_4B067D3F)

Close up of typical yellow leaf:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=3224_4B06A5FB&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=3224_4B06A5FB)
This leaf has gone beyond any green remaining in it's veins & is totally yellow. Notice the brown tips and the purple stem.

Farmer Rich

11-20-2009, 05:27 PM

Apollonia

11-22-2009, 02:22 AM

Hey Apollina,

Looking good!

I tend to start losing water leaves during flower that look similar to your pics. Don\'t sweat it too much, just keep an eye on the sugar leaves on the buds.. I\'ve also found this is strain dependent too.. I have one that loses leaves quickly, but always produces.. This one, generally around week 4 it starts yellowing and less the buds, they\'re all about gone by harvest.

You say this is your first grow? You did a lot of homework and bought/built a lot of equipment.

Some thoughts your mothers.. What I do is keep mine in soil-less mix in #2 containers and regenerate them when necessary. This allows me to use rooted clones from my clone bucket in either system (aeroponic or mix) without having to screw with rockwool. The other advantage is I can totally tear down and clean the veg system between cycles without impacting any mother plants.

That\'s quite the jungle you have in flower!!! I noticed in some earlier pics you were skipping plant sites in the flower system. Was this by plan? You must have a fairly large light footprint with 4 systems. I designed mine based on a HPS lighting foot print of 4\' x 10\', which gave me enough room for a 6 x 3 plant grid on 15\" centers, hence the 3 individual 2 x 3 systems.

Peace,

Farmer Rich

Hi there Farmer! Thanks for the info about the leaves - big exhale over here.

Yes I did do my homework! I researched for about 6 months and I built all the systems you see w/specs provided by StinkBud and a hydro book for the dutch bucket system. That part wasn't that hard & was fun, building the PVC structures & all. The every other thing, I moved the plants in group 1 to optimize light as it's moveable. The others in the aero-units was at first less by design - Unit 2 had the males pulled and units 3 & 4 were placed that way prior to addition to the moving into the flower room.

I think I see what you're saying about the mother plants - crazily enough those plants I rooted by hand - just took from the aerocloner & put them into the Hydroton carefully are alive! Every last one! Now I have successfully regenerated a cutting of C99 X BB 'echo' that had not taken before so I only have the one. Now I'm scared, despite the success I've had with the others & think I may put it into rockwool first even though I'd rather just put it right into the system.

I got the Magnum xxxl reflector which should give me a 5' X 5' foot print. My plant systems in the final set up will be 4 units 4' X 8' and a little over, I'm guessing.

You're right about the jungle part:D - I'll be checking out your journals when I get a chance to crawl out sometime!

Apollonia

11-28-2009, 07:35 AM

11/22/09 Update

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=5AAE_4B0B133D&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=5AAE_4B0B133D)

End of fifth week of flowering, beginning of sixth week of flower for Units 1 & 2
End of second week of flowering, beginning of third week of flower for Unit 3
End of first week of flowering, beginning of second week of flower for Unit 4

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=0858_4B0B133D&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=0858_4B0B133D)

Well let me say first off, now I don't have a knot in my stomach anymore regarding the density of the bud - it got fat this week, swollen and feels hard. It's also very sticky, even after casual handling I have to wash my hands. The smell is very sweet and fruity. I don't know if this is due to the flavored sweetener I'm using or just the strains themselves which do boast low & fruity odors, but marijuana smell hasn't been a problem yet due in part to the strains and the ONA & Can Filters.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=306A_4B0B0E35&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=306A_4B0B0E35)

As scheduled I have started the Ripen formula using KoolBloom Dry in the oldest 2 units. The calyxes have begun to swell so now would definitely be the time, I think. I'm using it at a strength of 1/4 tsp per gallon as per the company's recommendation. I'm a little concerned as there was some problem in Unit 1 that may have stressed them enough already (KoolBloom induces ripening & bud swelling in part by stressing the plant - it appears to be a P & K bomb, the guaranteed analysis is 2-45-28)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=8CE1_4B0B0E35&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=8CE1_4B0B0E35)

I'm really starting to appreciate the strengths of the genetics I've chosen and believe me, it was a painstaking choice - a lot of research went into picking these particular strains/breeders. I hope the genetics prove strong & resistant (and please don't hermie on me w/the KoolBloom!) - they already are producing distinctive, and in my opinion, handsome plants.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=0351_4B0B179F&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=0351_4B0B179F)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=9DAE_4B0B0E35&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=9DAE_4B0B0E35)

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http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=001C_4B0B2C2B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=001C_4B0B2C2B)

Apollonia

11-28-2009, 07:43 AM

Unit 3:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=78DA_4B0B2D3E&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=78DA_4B0B2D3E)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=5C91_4B10D42C&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=5C91_4B10D42C)

Unit 3 is at the start of the third week as of this day. All plants are doing well and drinking a lot of water at this time in their lives. I took cuttings for clones from one plant in the unit despite it being 2 weeks into flower because it had a thick meristem & so far, what I've seen is the best plants have the thickest meristems stems. It's not the best specimen of Apollo 11, but may turn out to be very good. I took 4 cuttings from Apollo 11 'hotel.' I know Cinderella 99 has had clones taken from it successfully 2 weeks into flower, as Apollo 11 is Cinderella 99's descendant, I'm hopeful one may take root giving me the option of another specimen as a mother. I took so many cuttings of Apollo 11 because out of all the strains, it has been the smallest by far offering only one stand out and that plant is smaller than the other strains, so I want to give myself the best possible chance for picking the right mother. Also, I've notice that Apollo 'delta' which I had taken cuttings of before is not a good rooter, which would be a problem when running a perpetual harvest system that relies on clones.

Unit 4:

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=D0B0_4B10D42C&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=D0B0_4B10D42C)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=DC37_4B0B2D3E&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=DC37_4B0B2D3E)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=D044_4B0B2D3E&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=D044_4B0B2D3E)

Unit 4 is very large & seems to keep getting larger exponentially - they are showing their superiority to the plants in Unit 3 that I didn't select for mothers, same for the Blueberry mother & Sugar Blossom mother. The plants are quite tall and I think appear to be getting enough light, as are the plants in Unit 3. The Magnum xxxl reflector has a rather wide footprint. As you can see from the pictures, you can no longer anything but the top of Unit 2 when viewed from the front. This reservoir as also changed today from the Transitional formula to the Aggressive Bloom.

Dutch Pimp

11-28-2009, 07:44 AM

OMG...:jumphappy:...what a grow!...:thumbsup:..good genetics is always the first step

Apollonia

11-28-2009, 07:47 AM

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=78E1_4B10D42C&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=78E1_4B10D42C)

Not much to tell in the Veg room, all the mothers, save C99 X BB 'echo' - the newest transplant have been topped above their third node in the hopes of producing bushy plants. I thought it was risky to transplant from the aerocloner directly into the Hydroton with no Rockwool intermediary step, but it worked fine for all of the plants I tried this with so I was very pleasantly surprised. The success rate of the previous transfers are what changed my mind about putting my only surviving, rooted clone of C99 X BB 'echo' into rockwool first & instead I decided to just put it directly into the Hydroton as I felt now that the Rockwool may even present an unnecessary extra step with its own complications.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=BC53_4B0B133D&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=BC53_4B0B133D)

I transplanted my one cutting of C99 X BB 'echo' that lived & I successfully re-rooted directly into the Hydroton from bare roots in the aerocloner. It's been 2 days, the leaves are perked up. I hope the little guy survives - I think it will. I hope so, as I don't want to re-veg the C99 X BB 'echo.'

Apollonia

11-28-2009, 07:57 AM

Trichomes

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=EF60_4B0B179F&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=EF60_4B0B179F)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=1268_4B0B179F&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=1268_4B0B179F)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=318C_4B0B186C&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=318C_4B0B186C)

Initially I was thrown by the appearance of amber heads this early in groups 1 & 2. I didn't expect that. The first place I'd look for the cause would be at the UVB. One thing I know, the trichomes I've gotten into clear focus look very clear to me. There also appears to be some true clouding starting. The amberish heads all appear smaller than their brothers or damaged and probably not representative of the "true" ambering I expect to see later. I'm going to hope and assume we're on schedule. Before this, I was worried that I hadn't used enough UVB or put it close and the trichomes wouldn't mature fast enough. But this reassures me somewhat on this point, plus light at that end of the spectrum is powerful and does carry, so more plants than I think may be getting the UVB light. Just to remind, I added the supplemental UVB b/c I am using very red Super HPS Solarmax in addition to having them put behind glass in vented hoods, blocking any UVB I would be getting from an HID.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=BAFE_4B0B186C&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=BAFE_4B0B186C)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=B311_4B0B186C&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=B311_4B0B186C)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=F589_4B0B242E&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=F589_4B0B242E)

A small bud was taken off C99 X BB 'bravo' and my "lab rats" smoked it. The report was similar to last week's test of C99 X A11 tiny sample, but a bit more potent this time - a good clear "up" high but needing to mature (obviously) as you could feel it as immature & not "all there" yet - but still potent. The bud was sacrificed for the trichome pictures, but I am finding it helpful to get this feedback, it's relaxed my worries about the trichomes' maturity & if they are too ripe for their age.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=43DC_4B0B242E&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=43DC_4B0B242E)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=C5C2_4B0B2B18&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=C5C2_4B0B2B18)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=908E_4B0B2BA6&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=908E_4B0B2BA6)

A small bud of Cinderella 99 'pineapple' was taken to observe the trichome development. Like the C99 crosses taken before her, she was smoked after being thoroughly examined & photographed. The reaction from the "lab rats" were much more pronounced this time. The sample got them much more high than the previous samples and had a very clear, very bright, very happy up head high and although it was very young - it was pretty potent, so I'd caution anyone smoking C99 to take it slowly at first because one small bud of this 5 week old sample got two somewhat-heavy/heavy smokers stoned with mostly clear trichomes that appear to be just starting to turn cloudy.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=CFFF_4B0B2BA6&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=CFFF_4B0B2BA6)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=4B3E_4B0B242E&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=4B3E_4B0B242E)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=0A2C_4B0B2B18&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=0A2C_4B0B2B18)

As these are sativa dominant strains and I'd rather harvest when mostly cloudy up to 25% amber the farthest for most of the strains and 50% cloudy 50% Amber for the C99 X BB maybe. I read a post that I found reassuring; it said that basically, you do start to see ambering here & there at weeks 5 - 6 sometimes, but it levels off and maturation goes much slower after that, ambering in earnest around week 8 and later (I notice that my all or mostly indica strains give a week or two longer of projected harvesting time, perhaps this is why), so if that holds true I won't have to pull the plants early. I also see that there are quite a few clear heads and most of the amber heads appear to be smaller or damaged. I'm looking at a 50 day harvest schedule for the 2 units, all trichome dependent, of course. I am totally new to this so if anyone has a better read/interpretation of these trichome pictures, please say so.

Apollonia

11-28-2009, 08:11 AM

Here are some pictures of the trichomes of the C99 'pineapple' plant that was smoked by the "lab rats" that they recorded as being quite potent. Watch for the pictures at the end - I managed to snag them at 400X magnification, all others including those up until now have only been 200X as the higher resolution is a bit tricky.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends here at cannabis forums.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=45AE_4B10CEC2&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=45AE_4B10CEC2)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=D619_4B10CF07&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=D619_4B10CF07)

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http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=60BF_4B10CF07&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=60BF_4B10CF07)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=1717_4B10CF82&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=1717_4B10CF82)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=2A92_4B10CFEA&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=2A92_4B10CFEA)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=2884_4B10CFEA&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=2884_4B10CFEA)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=834F_4B10CFEA&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=834F_4B10CFEA)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=4CA1_4B10D05F&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=4CA1_4B10D05F)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=8F4F_4B10D05F&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=8F4F_4B10D05F)

400X magnified:
http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=558F_4B10D0CC&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=558F_4B10D0CC)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=BB1A_4B10D0CC&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=BB1A_4B10D0CC)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=691E_4B10D0FA&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=691E_4B10D0FA)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=1615_4B10D0FA&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=1615_4B10D0FA)

Weezard

11-28-2009, 09:24 AM

Apollonia

11-28-2009, 09:36 AM

OMG...:jumphappy:...what a grow!...:thumbsup:..good genetics is always the first step

High praise indeed coming from you, Dutch. Yes, I am finding the genetics to be key. I'm not unaware of the fact that the errors & weaknesses I've had in my grow have been bolstered and weathered considerably b/c of the superiority inherent to the plants. Alas, the next week update I will have to confess to a rotten Co2 timer causing a chain reaction of inability to handle the higher temperatures which lead to a case of classic heat stress in my lovely C99 x BB 'bravo' especially. Mercifully I have a new timer - the old one had a mechanical error - I will be showing pictures of the damage done after two, possibly three days of higher temperatures at canopy level (around 90) without Co2. At first I thought it was brown algae (which is actually a misnomer; it is a cyanobacteria - an organism previously classified as algae b/c they shared similarities in food uptake, but cyanobacteria are prokaryotic cells as opposed to other forms of algae which are eukaryotic hence the re-classification. I wonder why they are called [I]cyano[I]bacteria. Are they blue? Anyway, back to the grow: I do believe I had a tad case of the slime, as it is also called, but I think I managed to beat it back with Hygrozyme and FloraShield and it has been contained. I think I got to it early and it was only really effecting the plants in units 1 & 2 - all those pictures of damaged leaves & such.

Apollonia

11-28-2009, 02:12 PM

"I also see that there are quite a few clear heads and most of the amber heads appear to be smaller or damaged. I'm looking at a 50 day harvest schedule for the 2 units, all trichome dependent, of course. I am totally new to this so if anyone has a better read/interpretation of these trichome pictures, please say so. "

Aloha Appolonia.
(Patron saint of dentists)

I may have an explaination of what you are seeing.

The resin glands start clear and the plant makes new ones at a steady rate
The clear ones are hardly affected by the UVb.
Goes right through them.

As the plants mature, the first blush begins to ripen and cloud-up.
A cloudy cap IS affected by UVb in direct proportion to it's opacity.
A cloudy cap can darken, then shrivel, then fall off, in a single 8 hour exposure to UV.!

It's a continuous process.
Timing outdoor harvest can be tricky depending on lattitude and cloud cover.
You want to try to catch the last big burst of coudy trichs before they fry.

It's an ill wind, that gathers no moss...;)

So, I deprive my girls of UV during veg. and flower.

The buds continue to produce resin glands and the caps ripen and cloud without shrivel or drop offs.

They really pile up under LEDs.
[attachment=o232154]
[attachment=o232153]
Almost every trich is still capped too!

Then, I hit them with measured amounts of UVb and "tan" them to a turn.
1 hour exposure is noticeable in it's effect.
[attachment=o232155]
And 4 hours, near the equator, makes for some couchlock-tanglefoot.
[attachment=o232152]
[attachment=o232151]

I have no lab-rats but the wife and I.

So, testing has been a problem.:stoned:
One hit, and we lose the pipe.

Should we find it and dare a second hit we lose track of what we were supposed to be testing for.:stoned::stoned::stoned:
It's a major cause of dangling participles.:jointsmile:
And don't get me started on what it's done to my chess game.:o

I may be wrong, but so far, it's not so much if, you use UVb as it is when, and for how long you use it.

Hermie's doing a test on fresh cut LED grown buds to see if they need to be alive for the toasting.

I'm betting that uniform exposure to UV will be more difficult, but that exposure WILL let you tailor the character of the "side effects".
Time and curing will tell.

Does this get ya thinkin?:cool:

Weezard

I love the Canna forums. Look at this post, what a great and knowledgeable community we've got here.

Weezard, again thank you for sharing your advanced knowledge of growing with me. The clear trichomes not being effected... wow, you sure gave me something to chew on (thank you thank you thank you!)

I've been running my UVB through out the flowering session, believing that b/c of my use of a Super HPS w/tempered glass reflector, I wouldn't be getting any of that lower frequency which would lead to lack of potency & ripening. But you're telling me the trichomes will cloud on their own, yes? And if they do so when the UVB is on them, they will amber & degrade rapidly, I take it.

The UVB is at a distance of no less than 24" away from the plants and are on 5 hours a day. Since I am growing sativa dominant strains at the moment - I think I will shut my UVB for now & only turn it on at the last or second to last day for one hour if I think they need ripening up. So UVB does not cloud the trichomes, they cloud as they mature... They will cloud on their own, am I correct in my reading of your post?

May I ask how far away you place your UVB lights when you shine them on your plants? My UVB lights are T8's, 3 foot long, 36 Watts each & there are 4 of them. I imagine UVB, being at the lower end of the spectrum does not dissipate the way red light does & is able to penetrate from greater distances.

I do want these plant to have a more head high with only the C99, Blueberry cross having much body in it, so my need for amber is not the same as that of a person growing indicas for pain management, for example, there more UVB exposure might be required.

Just 2 things - wow those LEDs produce amazing trichomes, no wonder everyone raves about the potency of LED grown bud. 2- I'm amazed at how little amber causes a couchlock stone! Thanks for the heads up, as I'd have ruined my plant's high going for a 50/50 mix of on the sativa-indica crosses!

I'm off to hermie's thread - thanks!

MonkeyBone

11-28-2009, 06:39 PM

This grow is completely crazy! I love it!

:thumbsup:

Weezard

11-28-2009, 07:49 PM

I love the Canna forums. Look at this post, what a great and knowledgeable community we've got here.

Weezard, again thank you for sharing your advanced knowledge of growing with me. The clear trichomes not being effected... wow, you sure gave me something to chew on (thank you thank you thank you!)

I've been running my UVB through out the flowering session, believing that b/c of my use of a Super HPS w/tempered glass reflector, I wouldn't be getting any of that lower frequency which would lead to lack of potency & ripening. But you're telling me the trichomes will cloud on their own, yes? And if they do so when the UVB is on them, they will amber & degrade rapidly, I take it.

Or, so it seems.
So far, it's theory backed by observation and science.

The UVB is at a distance of no less than 24" away from the plants and are on 5 hours a day. Since I am growing sativa dominant strains at the moment - I think I will shut my UVB for now & only turn it on at the last or second to last day for one hour if I think they need ripening up. So UVB does not cloud the trichomes, they cloud as they mature... They will cloud on their own, am I correct in my reading of your post?

Yes, but they do take a while under LEDs.
As they pile up they cloud but seldom brown.

May I ask how far away you place your UVB lights when you shine them on your plants? My UVB lights are T8's, 3 foot long, 36 Watts each & there are 4 of them. I imagine UVB, being at the lower end of the spectrum does not dissipate the way red light does & is able to penetrate from greater distances.

Approximately 93,000,000 miles, give or take a furlong.:D

I have a 4' germicidal UV tube that I use to erase e-proms that I planned to use for the "tanning", but, tropical sunshine is free., yah?

I do want these plant to have a more head high with only the C99, Blueberry cross having much body in it, so my need for amber is not the same as that of a person growing indicas for pain management, for example, there more UVB exposure might be required.

Just 2 things - wow those LEDs produce amazing trichomes, no wonder everyone raves about the potency of LED grown bud. 2- I'm amazed at how little amber causes a couchlock stone!

There were about twice as many ambers as the pictures show.
You know how hard it is to get a good snap.
I'm guessing that the thumpiness starts while the caps are still cloudy and begins to degrade when they start to "cook" and brown.

Thanks for the heads up, as I'd have ruined my plant's high going for a 50/50 mix of on the sativa-indica crosses!

I'm off to hermie's thread - thanks!

You are quite welcome.
I like your work.

Aloha
Weeze

Apollonia

12-03-2009, 11:00 PM

11/29/09 Update

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=91CD_4B183623&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=91CD_4B183623)
Unit 2 Canopy shot from front

End of week 6 for Units 1 & 2, first day of 7th week
End of week 3 for Unit 3, first day of 4th week
End of week 2 for Unit 4, first day of 3rd week

Today Unit 3 and the unit in the veg room had their reservoirs changed, unit 3 to aggressive bloom, mother reservoir to regular growth formula.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=A3FA_4B182A7B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=A3FA_4B182A7B)
C99 'grapefruit' cola

This week, trichome willing and if the plants keep to the schedule recommended by the breeder, should be the last week for our first 2 units before harvest day on the 6th of December at day 50. I hope I don't have to pull them early as I've noticed that after the addition of the Ripen one week ago, they have put on considerable weight. However, they have also been through a rough patch & I'm not just referring to the KoolBloom Dry.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=1FA8_4B183C34&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=1FA8_4B183C34)
C99 'pineapple' with C99 x BB at the far right edge

At first I thought I was being over run by brown algae which I thought was choking/smothering the roots & eating their food which caused those pictures of damage I showed you before. I do believe that was a problem earlier on, but now as new growth is dandy & the yellowing is not continuing. Plus the PH is no longer climbing as it was when the algae was bit more of a problem - I believe the flushing out with FloraShield combined with the addition of Hygrozyme & FloraShield to the biweekly nutrient regiment either killed it off or at least kept it at bay from wreaking anymore havoc than it already had. Just to mention, "brown algae" is a misnomer - it belongs to a group of organisms previously classified as algae due to similarities in nutrient uptake, it is actually a cyanobacteria.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=61C3_4B182946&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=61C3_4B182946)
C99 'grapefruit'

All seemed well, plants were improving, the yellowing had stopped, when quite suddenly midweek I noticed a more severe browning/crisping of the leaves at the top of unit 2. Naturally I thought the brown algae was back again, but the steady PH readings didn't seem to bear that out, they were holding steady and if anything, dropping a tad in Unit 3 - when you're dealing with brown algae, your PH swings up. What also convinced me was it wasn't just yellowing as it had before, it was browning & crisping and all the plants below the canopy weren't effected - all green. Plus, the leaves on the plants in the unit directly to the front of Unit 2 (Unit 4) were showing the same speckled browning & crisping as well on the side closest to the HPS - more importantly they were not yellowing as the older units had. I looked at a few pictures and it was clear the damage was heat stress. But why now? The canopy was at 90 degrees at it's highest but that should be no trouble for a plant room fully supplemented with Co2 and why the sudden sensitivity? It seems there was a broken timer, mechanical error, which lead to my Co2 burner not turning on for what I can gather must have been 2 or 3 days. This appears to be what caused the sudden heat damage. C99 X BB 'bravo' as the plant most effected, but basically, the plants directly below the HPS at the highest level of the canopy had their fan leaves burned. Especially those in Unit 2 as they were closer to the lights than the plants in Unit 1. Needless to say I replaced the timer & the Co2 is running on time again.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=EC78_4B182E83&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=EC78_4B182E83)
C99 X A11 mid-level canopy

I hope the strain of it hasn't significantly damaged the plants in units 1 & 2 - the Ripen has significantly added weight to the blooms & they're drinking water like a champ. But a case of brown algae, no matter if it was contained, coupled with a spot of heat stress may have been too much for them, we shall see. I'll not cry as others have suffered far worse, a few days early harvest plus the favorable smoke reports will ease whatever sadness I will have over the lack of extra weight if an early harvest is needed.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=4601_4B182C3A&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=4601_4B182C3A)
C99 X BB 'bravo' cola - this is the very highest point of the canopy, note the severest heat stress damage

I've decided the plants will be taken early if it appears that either the plant is just dying, or the buds are being damaged. Temporarily I am of the mind that if the sweet leaves start to yellow, I'll sacrifice them for a few more days of weight if it comes down to it, just to see what kind of weight I'd have sacrificed had I saved the "sweet leaves" to be used for hash. If the plants leaves yellowing progresses to shriveling and dying en masse, I think I have no choice but to harvest in that case - I have to remember that this is an annual & that it is natural for it to die after it has pushed forth it's final reproductive effort. Plants don't harvest on a set schedule & there are any factors that contribute, got to remember that too. I do not think the plants have been damaged enough to warrant an early harvest as the two older units are drinking their water like mad. The one I'm keeping my eye on is the C99 X A11 - the phenotype is very Apollo 11 and it's got an earlier flowering time than the others by one week and it is coincidentally this plant that is looking like it may be ready very, very soon despite being the least damaged plant of unit 2. I also want to harvest in stages b/c it's an experimental grow, taking the buds just as they start to turn cloudy, a 50/50 clear-cloudy, & a 100% cloudy harvest to compare, maybe also a harvest with 10-25% amber for the C99s crossed with Blueberry (as these 2 units are sativa dominant I think their best expression is in the THC/cerebral high)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=226D_4B182946&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=226D_4B182946)
Unit 2 C99 X A11, the lower part of the canopy

Another less depressing thought is this: Units 1 & 2 suffered some heat burn, Units 1 & 2 also suffered an early but brief bout of what was likely brown algae which caused an interruption in nutrient uptake causing a deficiency, but I believe it was successfully handled and is no longer present. The yellowing & crinkling leaves I have seen before in many grows here people flush the last week or two, it's a deficit of nutrients but primarily Nitrogen. I used the Aggressive Bloom formula which, unlike regular Bloom, uses no FloraGro - the main source of Nitrogen. Given all in all, I'm inclined to think this explains the dramatic (to my newbie eyes) yellowing without a flush and the reports on the nice taste of sampled buds from the lab rats, plus the plants being annuals and are ending their life cycle naturally. Had the plants not had to deal with the microbial issue, the surrounding leaves likely would have stayed greener up to now. That's my present thought on the subject.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=B254_4B182A7B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=B254_4B182A7B)
C99 'grapefruit' the lower part of the canopy - these buds were shielded by higher vegetation too

Another thought regarding the possible brown algae - I took a reservoir and filled it with "tainted" equipment, the reservoir would have been tainted with the algae as well - I added to it the recommended Physan 20 dilution. When Physan 20 hits microbes, it fizzes like crazy. Here it didn't. However, the much used measuring bucket which surely had some bacteria on it did react with the Physan 20 mixture & fizzed up as it killed whatever microbes were there. As I even threw in some of the brown roots, they did not fizz. Perhaps after treating the unit for so long with Hygrozyme & FloraShield the algae disappeared along with any other significant amounts of microbes.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=7BA2_4B182C3A&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=7BA2_4B182C3A)
C99 x BB 'echo cola

I think I may add here that I'm likely not going to flush this crop. Nitrogen has the biggest effect on taste and as you can tell from the leaves, it's not got much if any Nitrogen (or other minerals) left in it. I will of course flush the Hydroton after harvest.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=9EC2_4B182A7B&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=9EC2_4B182A7B)
C99 X A11 bud - I'm keeping a close eye on this plant as it's showing signs of being a faster finisher than the others

I've added extra fans on the floors & mounted on the walls to increase circulation. In light of some information from Weezard & others on Canna forums about the effects of UVB I will be shutting off my UVB for the rest of the grow & just let them cloud & hit them with a bit of UVB for an hour or four to amber the desired amount of trichomes.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=71DA_4B182946&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=71DA_4B182946)
C99 x A11 bud arm

Apollonia

12-04-2009, 01:29 AM

Units 3 & 4

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Unit 3

Units 3 and 4, in their 3rd and 4th week respectively, have shot up considerably. I bent the stems down - sideways really, of some of the tallest plants that did not seem controllable by tying alone. I did this with C99 X BB 'echo' & other plants in Unit 2 early in flower and it healed quickly and went on to be one of my biggest plants.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=8D13_4B183623&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=8D13_4B183623)
Unit 3 canopy

To my eye, the flowers seem to be developing well and on time. The PH in the reservoirs either stays steady or drops a few points, about 5.5, but they need to be topped of regularly as they are drinking a lot of water.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=7BCF_4B183BBA&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=7BCF_4B183BBA)
Unit 4

As I'd mentioned in earlier posts, I'd pruned all the lower 1/3 growth, and I'm glad I did as the HPS is not properly centered and the lowest leaves & branches have been dropping off from lack of light - nothing drastic, but I am anxious to re-center the light and get them under the HPS proper. Of course I've been diligently removing all growth that is obviously dead or comes of very easily on all units to stave off bud rot.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=CCF4_4B183BBA&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=CCF4_4B183BBA)

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=9B53_4B183BBA&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=9B53_4B183BBA)
Unit 4 Blossoms

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Unit 3 Blueberry mother

I am mulling over the question of whether or not to "nuke" Units 3 and 4 with a dose of Physan 20 in a risky attempt to remove significant amounts of the brown algae that is present, but kept at bay by Hygrozyme and FloraShield. On one hand, I started these plants on Hygrozyme & FloraShield much earlier than the 2 older units so perhaps that will be enough to overpower it. In either case - Physan 20 or not - I might be adding some "bio-soup" I'm creating as a culture for my reservoirs as I explain below. The idea is to get a reservoir, fill it will water, bio-balls & an air stone, SubCultures M & B, FloraNectar & FloraBlend and use this mixture as a "tea" of beneficial microbials to start off reservoirs with before the algae or other nasties can take hold. If I due use the Physan 20, adding this tea will be essential or the algae will just grow back again. If I decide to continue without the Physan 20 routing, then the question is is it better to continue with the FloraShield - which is the sterile route or swap it out for the SubCulture bacterial soup - the organic control route. The decision whether or not to run even a small dose of Physan 20 through my plant's systems for a short while - no more than a few hours - is a heavy one as Physan 20 can kill plants very easily, even at recommended doses and below. I think perhaps it is wisest now to continue letting the Hygrozyme and the FloraShield do their work as I continually remove as many browned roots by hand as I can reach.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=C9E0_4B183A06&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=C9E0_4B183A06)
Unit 3 Sugar Blossoms mother

The only thing "wrong" with either of the two younger units is the dropping off of lower canopy leaves and that very much appears to be due to their being out of the light - Unit 4 displays this more and it is the unit covered least, Unit 3 has a supplemental light (a Procyon 100) over it's canopy. Still, Lux readings are not bad at all - in the 100,000 - 300,000 range at the top and at the very lowest 56,000 - but those spots are small and at the very end. It will be remedied soon as Units 1 & 2 will be ready to be removed from the room & to be harvested. In light of this I'm inclined to go the way I have been unless I start to see signs of the nutrient deficiencies I saw before, which would mean the algae is now taking over and causing harm.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=4E2E_4B18380E&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=4E2E_4B18380E)
Unit 3 Blueberry mother blossom

On another note, the Blueberry and Sugar Blossom mothers I chose are living up to their promise - they are vigorish, full of bud sites, strong & stocky. As I've been bending and tying the plants in Units 3 and 4, due to this uneven distribution of stressors during flowering I won't be picking a definitive mother directly based on the results I get in the end. If a plant becomes monster like C99 X A11 'alpha' did, then that's a different story, but as of now, they all look either weak or fine but too alike to make a choice.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=5B73_4B183A06&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=5B73_4B183A06)
Unit 3 Blueberry mother blossoms

Apollonia

12-04-2009, 01:33 AM

Veg Room & mother plants

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Veg Room

In the veg room all mothers have been topped to 3 nodes & are bushing out wonderfully - even little C99 x BB 'echo' was topped & has survived the chop so far (thankfully - he's the one I had to re-root) Since it is just as easy for me to keep 15 mothers as it is to keep 10, I may run a few grows to determine my favorites in the strains I had not previously selected for: Blue Apollo 'bravo' & 'echo', Sugar Berry 'hotel' & 'india', and Apollo 11 'bravo', 'delta', 'echo' & 'golf', if no real standouts occur as they did in units 1 and 2.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=47B1_4B182C3A&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=47B1_4B182C3A)
Mother plants

Apollonia

12-04-2009, 01:45 AM

Trichomes & Harvest:

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All pictures are of plants from Units 1 and 2. This is at 100x magnification

It appears that the trichomes on our plants in Units 1 and 2 have turned cloudier making me think I may be harvesting those two units on schedule around day 50 as I think a few more days would be all that's needed to turn them all mostly cloudy and add the extra weight. Another indicator is the hairs have been turning red to one degree or another and recommended flowering times are helpful to guide you. All these things taken into account will steer me in the right direction, I believe.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=5358_4B182DA2&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=5358_4B182DA2)
200x magnification

I've included pictures taken at 100X magnification as this is the magnification many people use and are familiar with in the hope they'd share their insights.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=71E4_4B182D03&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=71E4_4B182D03)
200X - this is a shot of C99 X BB 'bravo' - I've heard that blueberry strains don't exactly amber but turn purplish-blue. I wonder if that's what's being seen here at the base of the trichomes

To my eye, it could go either way - they either look clear or cloudy from this vantage (100X). It is probably a combination of both - which hints to me they have at least a few days to go before getting yanked. To ensure I'm seeing cloudy trichomes for certain, I may allow a small few to go amber just to see what trichomes look like at the latest stage of cloudiness. With the exception of C99 x BB, I wish to harvest the plants when they are showing mostly clouded trichomes, the C99-Blueberry cross I think I will harvest with 25% ambering. This I will accomplish by exposing the plant to UVB lighting for anywhere between 1-4 hours, checking the effects of exposure as I go.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=A425_4B182D03&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=A425_4B182D03)
200x magnification

Improvements to grow:

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=3E2C_4B182DF6&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=3E2C_4B182DF6)
100x magnification

I've been able to determine what improvements I'd like to make to the room for fine tuning. First off, as I'd mentioned, I would center the HPSes and make the UVB lights more easily adjustable. Secondly, I'm going to add another chiller to eliminate the need for any supplemental cooling with an air-conditioner to make the room truly sealed (and I can cut down on the cost of refilling propane tanks so often). As per a tip from Weezard & dependent on the grow results - I think I may be removing the UVB from my grow as a constant presence & only using it at the last to "ripen up" in the last few days a few hours or one hour in one go or remove it entirely as the far red in the light may be enough to ripen the plant sufficiently.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=D690_4B182E83&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=D690_4B182E83)
100x magnification

I'm also adding a reservoir of beneficial bacteria & mycorrhizae which will be maintained with an air-stone for oxygen & bio-balls for a livable substrate which will be used to add a few cups of it as water to start off reservoirs and for reservoir changes & toppings off to colonize the plant's roots & the reservoir itself - this is to head off the brown algae that did the damage to the grow in the first place. It will be replenished with standing water when needed.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=BFDD_4B182DF6&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=BFDD_4B182DF6)
100x magnification

I may get a RO machine with UV to use to clear the replenishing water, but I'm reluctant as they seem to use a lot of water themselves. I'm less reluctant to do so as the water I'd be putting through reverse osmosis wouldn't be for all the reservoirs, just for the little colony I'd have going. I may also, in addition to adding a portion of this water to every reservoir, run each new unit through for about a week or two to establish the beneficials on the apparatus & plants (if I chose to do so with plants. I feel this will ensure and make clogged sprayers & overgrowth unlikely. Since I have it at hand, I'd probably use SubCulture M at full strength with some FloraBlend & FloraNectar added for food and run it for a week before adding the SubCulture B at full strength. Currently I'll be running a test of this new addition to see if it takes & if the bacteria become "gummy" & how likely it will be that the mixture will possibly be a source of clogged sprayers. Alternatively, if the bio-soup I'm thinking of concocting proves to be ineffective or a hindrance to the system in some way, my second option is to install UV filters in the reservoirs.

http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=133E_4B182DF6&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=133E_4B182DF6)
100x magnification

I'd have rather the first method work out as the UV can interfere with the chelated metals in the nutrients causing problems specifically with iron, manganese & magnesium, off the top of my head. I don't know how to deal with such problems & I haven't found any resources on the subject, so option one looks the best right now. This is to fend off further outbreaks of brown algae & other microbial enemies, I got the inspiration from a thread at IC Mag - it's stickied & if you type brown algae, you can find it. It appears the solution the posters with brown algae in their systems came up with the solution of mixing in 3 cups or so of earthworm casings tea to their reservoirs - or using UV light sanitizers, but all after a thorough cleaning of all parts of their systems with the nuclear bomb of sanitizers - Physan 20. Which I may use myself after this grow as I did have to deal with the brown algae. I'd rather not and just clean with FloraShield or bleach & try to grow with the beneficials from there, but if it comes to it I may have to break out the biggest gun of all in our horticultural cache.

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http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/image.php?id=EC44_4B182DA2&jpg (http://www.imagehut.eu/pro/share.php?id=EC44_4B182DA2)
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