Skywalker grow day 1

[babystarbud]

well heres my second grow,
im gonna keep a log of this after a sucsess with the first bagseed grow, ive gonne an purchased some skywalker and some nevilles haze x jack herer.
might try my hand at cloning and will be lst'ing the sativa a bit to see what i can do this time round. ill be using the same 400 grolux HPS light

ive heard mixed opinions on the skywalker, but its heritage and expensive price got the better of my curiosity....it should be a good powerfull bud

im also gonna use a slightly more sophisticated soil mix. the compost is just cheap stuff from B&Q, its called john innes No.2 and is made of loam, peat moss, sand and lime. ive also got some perlit and vermiculite, im thinking of a 75% compost. 12.5% perlite and 12.5% vermiculite?

fancied tryin a good indica and a good sativa.
first ups the skywalker, put 5 seeds in towels to germinate this afternoon.

any comments/suggestions welcome, more to follow as things happen

[babystarbud]

Day 3, approx 53 hours and we have 100% germination....result!

ive got to say that was quicker than previously, especially as the seeds looked smaller than average and quite pale...i was expecting atleast one faliure....but im certainly not complaining.
today they were transplanted into peat pots and put in a heated propigator, which i purchased earlier, as the weather has got a definate chill in the air now with the onset of winter.

they will rely on natural light for the next week or so, and once they have a reasonable set of "true" leaves, will go under the 400watt grolux HPS, which will be set at max height, about 6-7 feet above the plants.
at this point i will remove the lid on the propigator depending on the temp situation.
I was struggeling to keep heat down on my previous grow with the heatwave we had in the UK, but i think the heat from the HPS will be most welcome this time round.

my inline fan is quite powerfull, so if it starts sucking out too much warm air i may have to buy another slightly more sophisticated timer, so i can have one hour on, one off or what ever is suitable to maintain temps.

so far so good....more updates as they happen

[babystarbud]

just a quick update, soil ph is currently at a straight 7 and they are in plain compost for now.

[babystarbud]

another update,
i just noticed the pots were warm and soggy/sweating, so ive taken them out of the propigator ( talk about green house effect lol ) and put them back in the boiler cupboard where they were germinated, much less humidity there, but good room temp warmth.

the heat pad in the propigator was a bit more hardcore than i thought, lol.

cest la vie

[babystarbud]

in retrospect, the heated prop was a good idea, but combined with a plastic humidity dome resulted in too much damp...once theyve dried out a bit, i will put them back in the prop, but without the plastic cover.

[mrberrys]

ello there babystarbud.. i just looked through your thread.. sounds like your going to have a good time with your plants.. i saw how nice your first harvest came out.. so im sure this 1 will be even better;) ... i was tempted to get skywalker too.. but i went with blueberry instead:p .... i allso had a bastard of a time to say the least with my last grow coz the summer heat.. so this go my girls will apreciate the cooler weather... i must say tho when you put your plants under your 400hps.. start them at bout 20inches.. then work your way closer.. i get mine at bout 12inches in winter even like 7-9 inches to the canopy of the plants but i allways use a fan or 2.. im just saying as you mentioned you was going to have your light something like 4-6 feet away.. thats way to much.. anyways im gonna roll a joint b4 i take my dog for his night time walk... good luck on your grow:thumbsup:

[babystarbud]

thanks for the advice mr.berrys, i think your right about distance, im still in the mind frame of a hot summer! i think i will be able to put the light much closer as you said.... ive got a couple of thermometers so im planning on getting it as close as the temps allow me.....ive not fired the hps up in the cooler weather yet, it was running hot in summer so i guess it will be a pretty much perfect for winter....watch this space :)

cheers

[babystarbud]

day 5 and its sprout city down on skywalker farm :)

under the hps lamp now for about 10 mins, just seeing how the temps and humidity are.
they have quickly hit 25 degrees c without the fan on, or 28 degrees c with the humidity dome on, hopfully the temps will creep up a bit more so i can use the fan without having to mess about with extra timers. ive unplugged the propigator for now so the only heat source is the light.

[babystarbud]

temps have just crept up to 34 degrees c with the hunidity dome on, so now ive started the inline fan running and turned off the central heating for that room to see where that leaves me....hopefully it will drop to the low 20's

i think ill have to be carefull i dont dry those little pots out to fast.

[babystarbud]

still no joy, now tried killing the extractor fan and using a normal fan at plant level...

bingo! my three thermometers are reading an aveage of 26 degrees c! its only that low right next to the pots because of the of the fan position (pretty much direct), so i may have to have a re-think as they grow.

[mrberrys]

ello babystarbud sounds like you have things pretty much under control.. im sorta glad temps have droped my plants are very cool.. sept night times very cold n our heaters are playing up hmmmmmmm... but i have my babys on 20/4 so only 4 hours in cold.. i think the love i give them will pull them through;) .. just the fisrt few months seem to go very slow ... fuck it time for another spliff.. best of luck to your babys:thumbsup:

[babystarbud]

hi and thanks, but i do find the temps creeping up into the 30's after a few hours...
infact ive just had a thought...im gonna look for a small table with a glass inlay, kinda like those see-through coffe tables, but asmall one that you get in those nest sets, if i find one cheap i think it would help a bit as its not the ambient temps that are the problem, its the direct glare from the bulb. hopefully the glass might bounce enough heat back up to sort the problem

[babystarbud]

maybe somthing like this i found in argos, would help?

[babystarbud]

day 8 and things seem to have settled down a bit.
temps are good and plants slowly growing.
a slight hickup thismorning where one seedling wasnt shedding the remains of its seed shell, i gently pulled it off because thatplant was starting to fall behind the rest.
the baby leaves popped upen straihgt away, and aside from a plale tip from light depravation, is doing ok now.

currently taking about 25 ml of water twice per day per plant.
ive been rotating the pots a bit to try and keep the stalks straight...is about all there is to do for now...

[mrberrys]

day 8 and things seem to have settled down a bit.
temps are good and plants slowly growing.
a slight hickup thismorning where one seedling wasnt shedding the remains of its seed shell, i gently pulled it off because thatplant was starting to fall behind the rest.
the baby leaves popped upen straihgt away, and aside from a plale tip from light depravation, is doing ok now.

currently taking about 25 ml of water twice per day per plant.
ive been rotating the pots a bit to try and keep the stalks straight...is about all there is to do for now...

ello babystarbud.. your babys are looking good.. unlike mine lol.. i think you will find that your growrom getting alot cooler in the up and comin weeks due to the cold weather.. last 3 days has been freezing.. so your babys will be alot happier.. i wouldnt go with the glass thing if i was you.. ive read that it bounces heat back so wouldnt be too good.. anyways happy growing:thumbsup:

[smokeweederday]

look a lil stretched there

[babystarbud]

yeh the glass table thing was a bit silly, and it dosent look like ill need it now, temps have evened out and settled down to solid mid 20;s

yeh mine always look a bit streched before they get a good set of leaves,
once some have grown they'll fatten up cos they'l be able to catch a bit more light from the hps.

[mrberrys]

look a lil stretched there

brother welcome to world of the weeds haha.. shit i just noticed.. that was your first post on this fourm wow... 5 words.. hahaha:dance:

[babystarbud]

just a quick update, its now day twelve and looking healthy.
this is the boring bit...not much happening...waiting for growth...
damn things aint growing fast enough lol

they are starting to get the second set of leaves now. there is a nice purple tone to the bottoms of the leaves, shame about my crappy camera...should be getting a 3megapixel cam from a friend soon so hopfully better pix!

oh, and theyve just been watered in these pix incase anyone wondering why they are a bit soggy-looking:D

[babystarbud]

hi there peeps

nothing much to report, still growing (bloody fucking slowly):D
so this post is more for documentary puropses than to post anything interesting/relevant
is it me or are these growing slooooooooooow..
my last lot were grown under natural light for the first few weeks and seemed a bit (no, alot)faster (that was in summer, on a windowsill)
this lot has been uder artificial from the start, they have never even seen daylight.

the bong in the pics is some "skunk special" grown by a friend, and is a good smoke.

the next step for skywalkers young padawan's will be re-potting, which is a little while away yet, thank god because i hate getting soil all over my carpet.

the seedlings are currently listening to AC/DC's "kissin dynamite".

[Weed4Life]

Great start so far. Keep up the good work and that bud in the bong is making me fien, so stop it. lol I am currently on day 22 and I am using a 400w hps and I am growing Papaya and Bubblicious.

[babystarbud]

thanks for that, and good luck with yours...theres somthing about the word papaya....it just sounds really nice :)

[chicago_white_guy]

OH NO!
the reason your seedlings are going so slow is cause they know what you're going to do with them! :) looks great, though! i have 4 seedlings myself and i'm about a week or so behind ya! the "day 1" thread is mine for the first week, then we'll see which way it turns... KEEP IT UP

[babystarbud]

probably, lol, the poor little things.
thanks for the comments, i will look in on your grow...theres a few going on at the mo, its hard to keep track of who;s doing what!

here a quick update, nothing much to tell, so ill just post a few pics..

[EventHorizon]

Hi babystarbud,

I am currently growing the exact same strain as you are. Mine a little older and had a hard time, a friend of mine started the seeds on his window a few weeks back.

Using the same compost as you too, trouble is mine are gowing yellow :( Starting to think he over watered them, or they could be lacking N.

Hope yours turn out alright, I'll be watching this to try an compare mine...never done this before!

[smokin dope]

hey lookin good. im still waitin for my 10 dutch passions to arrive, and my flour and 1000 watt hps...for now i decided to start germinating 4 bc strains i had from qp of bud my friend harvested, decent seeds. first time germninating, just wondering did you just put them between a damp paper towel and cover, leaving on a warm object? i have mine sitting between damp paper towel, on a plate with one on top sitting on modem which stays nice and warm. just hoping these sprout nicely and give me a lil practice for the nice dutch passions coming. good luck

[babystarbud]

thats interesting to see event horizon, i hope its not the soil thats yellowing them!! thinking about it i should have probably got the no.1 compost, which is more for seeds...rather that the no.2 which is for re-potting.

what lights ferts etc. have you/plan to use....id like to know how you get on.

smokin dope, i put them on about 5 layers, with about 5 layers covering. kept in a dark cupboard thats slightly above room temp.

[EventHorizon]

I've got them under a 400 Watt Sylvania Grolux Dual Spectrum Lamp in a 1x1x1.8 BudBox.

As for ferts, I have no idea yet. Starting to think they are lacking Nitrogen rather than being overwatered, I got myself one of those moister probes and only water them when they are dry.

I have head that tomato food works well....not watered them today, hope they are ok when I get back home!

Mind you, at the moment they are drinking water from my mates water butt...good old fasioned English rain water.

I'll take some more pic tonight and post them up...almost up to 6" now, but too damn yellow :(

[crazywill]

Hello Eventhorizon
Have you checked the PH of the water?that could be given you the yellow leafs.dont use that tomate food it dosent have all the micros& trace elements a good 3 part nurts feeding formula dose.You may have too get some cal-mag plus for the water.Test the TDS ppm and the PH so you know
what kind of water you are useing.Let me know how thinks are doing.

[EventHorizon]

Erm??? :confused:

crazywill, thanks for the info....but I have to admit I am a little confused.

Testing the PH, easy. Not got the stuff to do it at the moment, but should not be too hard. What PH should I be aiming for?


micros& trace elements

Eh?


3 part nurts feeding formula

Any suggestions?


cal-mag plus

You really have lost me now :(


Test the TDS ppm

ppm = Parts Per Million. TDS? And how do I test?

Ok, I probably seem really stupid now....but I am very very new at this. Is there a dummies guide anybody can point me at?

[babystarbud]

freaky thats the exact same lamp ive got also:smokin:

you should be looking for a PH between 6 and 7.
by micronutes and trace nutes he means very small quantities of various minerals etc. that are in some specificly formulated plant feeds.
a 3 part formula is just that, you mix the three parts together to form a compleate feed. its in seperate parts because certain ingredients interfear with each other if mixed up, so you mix them right before you feed.

but get your ph checked before you start worrying about all that....my soil is actually acidic...see below

im on day 19 now and still groooowing sloooly.
got bored and mixed up my final pots ready for transplant, 20 liters of john innes no.2 compost, 10 liters of perlite and 10 liters of vermiculite.
in the bathtub.
made a bit of a mess.
girlfriend now not talking to me.
its a good job to because the PH reading of my new concoction is about 5.5...a bit too acid.

ill be doing a fush of the new medium and re-testing the soil shortly.
other than that im quite happy with the mixture....feels much more lose and airy...however, im not sure if there should be more actual soil in the mix....it looks good but only a 50% overall soil content sounds like not enough to me.

and....dunno if anyone can shed any light on this, but speaking of acid soil....

ive got one of those cheap PH probe things, and so does my friend ( his is a different make to mine) experimenting in cups with sodium bicarbonate and vinigar we came across a problem...

cup of tapwater, with a capfull of vinegar ...registered as acid on both meters....about PH 4-5 cant remember...great.

cup of tapwater with bicarb...registering neutral????? wtf....on both meters.
i was expecting like PH 8??
are both meters broken or am i missing somthing?:yippee:

anyway, without further adoo, here for your viewing pleasure, some pics of the sloppy muck that i created earlier!

[EventHorizon]

:stoned:

Ok, now I am scared....same strain, same compost, same light....

Anywho, cheers for clearing that up. My poor little mind was having a hard time. Any recommendations though as to where to get these from? We have loads of Garden Centers here...but TBH most are staffed by people who really have not got a clue.

Where did you get the PH tester from? I have only found a rather strange cartridge looking one, I have a moisture tester which you just stick in...that works really well. Want a PH tester like that.

As for the tap water, I was under the impression that it was slightly acidic anyway?

[babystarbud]

hiya, yeh the PH meter ive got was from a garden center, it looks the same as a moisture probe they are cheap, but im not sure how much confidence ive got in mine.

well ive had some good news and some stange news,
firstly, my PH of my soil mix has (if im to belive my meter) changed to about 6.5 PH, after a good flushing session.

also, my seedlings are looking a bit strange. generally they are looking quite healthy but they look a bit droopy, and theres purple bits on some of them....ive read its due to cold...but they are a bit warm if anything.
also there seems to be a bit of yellowing, but only on the ends of the most developed leafs:upsidedow
any ideas anyone?

[babystarbud]

and some pics showing the purple-ness:question:

[EventHorizon]

Hmmm,

the yellowing looks almost identical to mine...considering the similarities between our setups I would think that this is not a coinsidence. However mine do seem to be perking up a little.

As you the purple...no idea at all!

Have you started feeding them yet? I have still not got any nuts just yet, but have been watering them every two days now and not every day. Seems to have done the trick.

This is my strongest plant, still yellow at the bottom...but nice and green at the top. Anoying thing is though, it is quite a bit taller than the others :( Going to start feeding tomorrow...will pop to local gerden center(s) and find some good food for them.

Hope your plants pick up soon, I'll let you know if feeding them has any effect...(hope I don't kill mine!)

[babystarbud]

hi, i would hold off feeding just yet till you get the ph at a good level,
reason being is i re-potted mine last night, because the soil in the baby pots was acidic, and also the soil i was going to use for my main compost was acidic....
so i gave the new soil a good flush before i transplanted and got the ph somwhere between 6.5-6-9.....it was like 5.0-5.5 before.

my plants seem to have perked up a little bit overnight.

im sure somone will know better than me...but my guess is that the acidity of the soil is preventing uptake of nutes causing the yellowing, rather than there not being enough nutes as the soil does have some ferts in it. hopfully somone else can offer thier input on that one.....? anyone...

some pics of my plant in thier new home..

[mrberrys]

hi, i would hold off feeding just yet till you get the ph at a good level,
reason being is i re-potted mine last night, because the soil in the baby pots was acidic, and also the soil i was going to use for my main compost was acidic....
so i gave the new soil a good flush before i transplanted and got the ph somwhere between 6.5-6-9.....it was like 5.0-5.5 before.

my plants seem to have perked up a little bit overnight.

im sure somone will know better than me...but my guess is that the acidity of the soil is preventing uptake of nutes causing the yellowing, rather than there not being enough nutes as the soil does have some ferts in it. hopfully somone else can offer thier input on that one.....? anyone...

some pics of my plant in thier new home..

hi babystarbud.. well im no expert.. but your babys look just like mine did when they was in the too rich soil.. so mabe your soil was too rich ?? but seen as you have repotted and flushed got the ph right in ther new soil i think your babys will start to pick up... i have faith in your babys... heres 2 of my survivers for you too see how much they have improverd within 12days.. best of luck to you:thumbsup:

[BigStinky]

your plants died because you used those peat cups I promise.

[babystarbud]

they are transplanted into pots now, and not dead lol

[babystarbud]

day 23 and things are going well,
the re-pot was a sucsess, they have some healthy new growth now and are back on track.

looks like my problems were down to acidic soil.:D

some more piccies

[Von]

a quick question.. Did u re-pot them with the peat pots or without?

Good luck with ur grow

Von

[babystarbud]

i took them off, got them nice and wet and just kinda peeled them off.
i had to leave a little bit on the botton of one because a root had started growing through it.

[babystarbud]

hi peeps just a quick update, Day 25 and alls well.

the babies have taken to thier new soil well and are continuing to grow.
the only slight problem is drainage, i think ive mixed in too much vermiculite, as when i water them, i have to let them drain for a good hour till i can put em back in the room...im not sure if its worth re potting them again though as i can put up with the inconvienience....and hopfully it will improve as they grow.

[babystarbud]

also, ive lined the bottoms of the tubs with 2 layers of news paper, which isnt helping...bad idea.....should have used paper towels...but hey. ive had to rough up and tear it a bit, and re-poke some holes through the bottom to aid drainage.
seems to be working for now

[mrberrys]

hi peeps just a quick update, Day 25 and alls well.

the babies have taken to thier new soil well and are continuing to grow.
the only slight problem is drainage, i think ive mixed in too much vermiculite, as when i water them, i have to let them drain for a good hour till i can put em back in the room...im not sure if its worth re potting them again though as i can put up with the inconvienience....and hopfully it will improve as they grow.

hey there babystartbud... glad to see things looking much better for you:)
babys are looking very good-green and happy:thumbsup: but wouldnt it be a better idea to water the babys in your grow room and place them in a dish or bigger pot with no holes so the runoff would run out of your pots and straight into the dish/bucket.. then after x amout of time and all runoff has came out.. simply pick up the plant pot and tip away the runoff.. so you dont have to water outside your grow room.. as that sounds like a bit of a pain.. anyways hope you get the girls.. cant wait to see them flower;)

[babystarbud]

thanks for that mrberrys :) yeh thats an idea...will have a look for some trays next time i go past the garden shop.

[babystarbud]

on the subject of nutes...

im not planning on feeding for a good few weeks yet, but the leafs are looking kinda pale for an indica dominant strain...mrberrys bluberrys leafs lock nice and dark and waxy

ive got some bloom nutes left over from the last grow, so thats covered, but ive also purchased some other nutes for veg and was wondering what was most suitable...

first one i got was B&Q multipurpose 7-3-7

and the other is baby bio 10.6-1.9-1.4

my plan was to use the baby bio for a few feeds, then the B&Q for a couple....by which time they will be ready to flower...


opinions anyone? should i just keep it simple and stick with one or what??:confused:

[mrberrys]

hey babystarbud.. erm i used baby bio on my first grow.. i wouldnt say i noticed anything bad.. except the taste of my buds was a bit crap... i was advised to avoid baby bio like the plauge as it does no good for a cannabis plant... as for the bnq i duno about that.. but what i do know is that any ferts with blood meal bat guano shrimp meal fish.. ect is a good veg fert ... i use mother earth veg tea for veg its only like £9.50 for 1litre... its better to feed your babys something they are going to thrive on rather then somethin they wont...
pps did i mention mother earth is 100% organic.. thats the way to go .. chems fu$k off:D

[babystarbud]

i get what your saying about the organics, but surely nirogen is nitrogen, does it really matter weather it came from a rotting corpse or a laboratory?
its somthing thats been confusing me for a while cos chemicals just seem a more accurate way to do things...:(

[babystarbud]

day 28 just a quick update, getting slwly bigger...

[babystarbud]

day 31, no fert given yet but they seem to ok without it for now...i am thinking about it though, maybe in a few days...

[TheGreenFog]

Hey, Babystarbud...

Well, those things sure came back from the dead! :) Glad you got 'em goin' again. They look a bit droopy, though. Sure they aren't being overwatered? Maybe some heat stress? I'd even venture to say that they look a bit stunted. I know they had a rough beginning, and that could be the reason, but I'd almost want to say I'd try to put some light ferts on them at this point. I'm not a soil expert, but just by how the plant looks, it doesn't look happy (well, they).

Well, good luck. Keep us posted, man!

:rastasmoke:

TGF

[babystarbud]

thanks for the comments, yes i think they were put back a few weeks by earlier problems, temps are good so i think the soil mix i did maybe not ideal, i thing i put to much vermiculite in, and also, while the soil itself is ok, the texture i dont think is good, it goes muddy when its wet...im not sure if its worth re-potting...think ill just see how it goes

[TheGreenFog]

So it is possible overwatering...related...

I think it IS worth re-potting. Your plants are not so big that it is almost time to harvest or anything. You've got a long ways to go. It'd make it easier on ya. Good soil is worth it weight in gold, from what I hear. I'm sure it can 'survive' in that sandy slush, but it's not ideal. And isn't 'ideal' what we strive for here?

:rastasmoke:

TGF

[babystarbud]

yup, some good points, green frog, thanks:)
there was only one plant, the "runt" of the litter that was suffering, ive now r-potted it, with the same mix, and is showing good growth.

im guessing thats the same plant that i kinda "zoned out with" before potting, because i was really mixing the soil up in the pot when it was very wet,
( i was stoned at the time_) ;)
and enjoying the texture in my fingers, i guess i must have pressed all the air out in the process and turned the medium into a solid lump of mud, once dried...oh well, live and learn!!


now for the update, im really pleased with progress, i fed them for the first time about 24 hours ago, i used somwhere between 1/8th and 1/4 stregnth liquid baby bio 10.6--1.9--1.4, and so far doing great, more vigarous growth, and lots of strong looking secondary branches, i guess with skywalker being an indica dominant, this is to be expected...but it looks great:dance:

but i guess if they are gonna burn, it wont show for a few days yet....
heres hoping they wont!!

[babystarbud]

the main problem with the soil is that it really "holds" the water, i think ill cut out the vermiculite almost totally with my next grow, or at least down to about 10%

[Pezzo]

nice

[babystarbud]

thanks! im kinda flying blind because its only my second real grow,
they are slow starters but hopefully will bloom into beutiful butterflires lol

[Abattoir Dream]

i like what i see.... lol they are looking great! keep up the good work! as for nutes i say they should be ready for a weak feeding... unfortunately i think your out of luck if you want them to turn into butterflies but... you can hope, i guess lol - good luck...:)

[babystarbud]

thanks abbatoir :) theyve had a 1/4 stregnth feed of 10.6-1.9-1.4 and it seems to have gone down well, if all remains good i may up it to 1/2 or 3/4 stregnth in a couple of waterings time....

[Abattoir Dream]

yeh, do that, remember when you flower them youve gotta feed every watering...and if you can try to get a nute. with more phospherous when flowering, those nutes dont have nearly enough... sounds good so far tho ;) - good luck

[Bree1978]

Nice job making those babes turn around babystarbud! S

[babystarbud]

day 35,

thanks bree, pezo, abatoir and everyone for the comments, the little beasts have deffinatley enjoyed the addition of a bit of nitrogen, no burn at all and getting bigger!:) i guess i cant hope for more at the mo...


they are smelly little bleeders though, when i bought my inline fan, i got it as a kit which included a carbon filter...which is still in its plastic bag...my last plants hardly smelled at all...
..but i think im gonna need it for these beasts, theres only 5 plants and they arnt even a foot tall yet and you can smell them as soon as you walk in the house if the extractor hasnt been running for long...:thumbsup:
dont smell of weed, though...very hashy smell...

i guess with skywalker being bluberry x mazar, it has alot of afgani & thai in its bloodline hence the smell

[Pezzo]

thats exactly the same as mine cept mine has so much more growth on the internodes and undergrowth if u no what i mean. Mines 10 '' high and 18 '' wide, whats urs? ( and mines on the 8th node, urs?)

Yay i got a thanx just for sayin nice lol

[babystarbud]

the main one pictured is 7 inches high from soil to the highest part,
and 14 inches wide, from longest tip to tip.
if im counting right its got 10 nodes, but they are kinda double nodes, so maybe its classed as 5?

anyway, its one fat smelly little bitch!

[babystarbud]

pezo, have you got any pics? are you growing skywalker too? what light ETC. are you using?

[Pezzo]

sorry not skywalker, white widow

200 watt envirolite blue spec, 1 small fan, growing in shed in built grow room

[babystarbud]

Day 37


all going well, some slight fert burn, but only mild and on only 1 plant....so i think ive got lucky...

this ones just been watered...no more fert added yet, i dare not push my luck after last time, lol

[babystarbud]

day 40, second feeding today, for a change i gave them a half dose of 7-3-7 multipurpose, rather than the 10-2-1 i used to start with.

the one in the middle is the runt, but it looks ok, just a bit behind the rest.

check the bushyness! :rastasmoke:

[babystarbud]

day 41,

the food seems to have gone down well and the watering was needed, looking much more perky today

[babystarbud]

oops forgot pics

[Pezzo]

nice! looks like mine lol, why are ur leaves droopin? U over watering? thats what mine are doin.

[babystarbud]

the pics in post #69 need watering, post #71 shows them about a day later, about 18 hrs after watering

[babystarbud]

quick update, and slight problem, i belive this is lack of nitrogen but was hoping for some second opinions, ive read it could also be lack of magnesium.

ph is still good...

ive given them a half & half feeding today with the same nutes as previous, 10-2-1 and 7-3-7.....now im thinking i maybe should have given them a straight dose of 10-2-1.

i dont have any micro-nutes apart from my bloom fert, 10-9-19 which has a long list...but i guess its not worth using during veg.

[babystarbud]

day 47,

feed problems sorted, but what the hell!!!!! one of my plants has literally collapsed, ive never seen this before, the plant itself looks in great shape, theres no sign of physical trauma, its just gone all floppy:confused: :mad:

all the other plants are fine, just this one, what the hell!!!! any ideas anyone?????

ive propped it up on a stick.


please....:(

[babystarbud]

dutchlover was right, ive just watered and improvement already!

thanks!

i think its agrevated by my soil mix though, which is too dense, my moisture probe indicates that the bottom half of the pot is fine, but top half is (was) bone dry.

i live and learn.

might be a good LST method for fast sharp bends....every cloud has a silver lining.....what a rewarding plant :)

[EckyThump]

2 of my white idow did the same, healthy to floppy. couldnt put my hand onnit.so I took them out ther pots and the roots where potbound. Maybe bigger pots ? it seemed to sort my prob out. Hope you get this sorted and real soon love.

peace.

[babystarbud]

im thinking possible rootbound also, as ive read leaf tips curling under is a sign...the plants dont look very big for the pots though....but this s my first indica, so maybe they have more root structures...i dinno :( i hope not, as some of mine are. was hoping to flower in the next few weeks...

thanks..

[Bree1978]

I think they look ready to be repotted. Good Luck, I'm watching...boy that sounded creepy but you know what I mean. B

[babystarbud]

hmmmm......im kinda torn on this one....

i dont really wanna have to re-pot them as they are looking great again now,
but i think they could do with it.

thing is, the density of my soil means i would have to wash the root ball down quite severely as the soil will be caked up big-time around the roots,
( my soil is to dense really )dunno if i want to stress them that much...

i hope i can get away with it....opinions?

[Bree1978]

If you don't repot won't your plants be stunted and not be able to properly flower? I'm just asking, I don't know........B

[Pezzo]

shouldnt u have flowered them by now, how old are they? and if u can, repot then just before u flower

[babystarbud]

Day 48

funny you should mention that pezzo ( they are 48 days old ), with me only having 5 plants, i wanted to get them quite large and established before flowering for max yield, and on looking at my plants a few minits ago, they have started showing pre-flowers....some nice white hair pairs sprouting out....verticle growth has slowed right down from what it was....


so i think they are trying to tell me somthing:cool: its almost 5 am here in the uk now and still dark outside, and the lights are due to go out at about 10 am for 18/6.
im gonna knock the lights off at dusk tonight and set the on time back

im gonna chance it and not re-pot:greenthumb: :greenthumb:

let 12/12 commence!!!!!!!!!!

[babystarbud]

hang on a minit, im getting confused here....it dosent take much, lol

there dark cycle is 6 hours during daylight, so im thinking ill give them an 18 hour night tonight(today) so i can move the new 12hr dark cycle to night time....saves me putting up my black-out curtain...another advantage of long winter nights!

note to self: remember to change the central heating timer shedule!!!

[OldGrowerDude]

This is the best Grow guide for this strain on the net keep posting/updating :) I would have those monsters in at least a 3gal container, most likely a 5gal your gonna have to feed and water often good luck!

[Pezzo]

man urs is 7 weeks old and preflowering?! Mines 10 and only half way there, is that 7 weeks altogether or from sprout?

[Bree1978]

Mine are about five and half weeks old (39dys) and starting to show preflowers (just a little)...Congrats on the girls, babystarbud....your not going to repot?? Good Luck and great updating! B

[Pezzo]

mine have lots of green pistles all over the stem, i dont know what they are but there not white

[babystarbud]

thanks for the comments, its gonna be a long night tonight for them,
about 18 hrs so's i can shift the dark period across from daytime to nightime....its just easeyer for me that way.

pezo, the green "spurs" you see are a normal part of the plant, highlighted in red on the picture, the bits highlighted in black are the white hairs (pistils)
your growing WW arnt you? i guess ww just takes a bit longer...

thanks oldgrowerdude, and bree, i think your right about re-potting, but the fact is i just cant be bothered lol:jointsmile:

just hope it dosent slow them down too much:upsidedow

[OldGrowerDude]

This is really exciting your a month ahead of me with the same strain (except mine is Not feminised) so it's like a window into the future! Excellent diagram by the way, and good photography. And I Know you dont intend to do it, but I would estimate you could get nearly 2x the yeild per plant (ie plants trimmed down to grow single huge colas) if you upped the size of the containers to at least a 3 gal (thats assuming those are 1 gallons but I did not see you specify). Again it should be fine as long as you feed lightly with every watering it actually kind of simulates hydroponics growing. Original hydroponics were done moving the water manually hundreds of years ago :) good luck!

I think your going to look like this in just a few short weeks :stoned: Can not wait for a smoke report! And oh ya, how much do they smell so far at this point do you think i'll need to run the ozone generator much?

[Pezzo]

pezo, the green "spurs" you see are a normal part of the plant, highlighted in red on the picture, the bits highlighted in black are the white hairs (pistils)
your growing WW arnt you? i guess ww just takes a bit longer...


kl thz man

[babystarbud]

Day 50, flower day 1....well its almost 2 i think but ill call it one for ease of calculation.

they had a good flush yesterday, followed by a full dose of bloom fert.
im using a 10-9-19 which is called vita-link and is a two part fert with micro-nutes included. its actually a hydro-nute, but has a dosage for soil on the bottle also, which is basicly half the ammount, (2ml of each part per liter of water)

some slight signs of over watering, but they did get a bloody good flushing the other day, and i dont want them going all floppy on me again, so i think u got the right idea oldgrowerdude, little and more often.

no probs pezzo.

oldgrowerdude, the pots are 9 inch wide at the top by 7 inch high, which makes them approx 2 gallons i think. thanks for the complement, it dosent help having an old camera thats probably less than 1 megapixel, but hey it does the job. will try to get my mates at some point which is 3 megapixels....should be much better pics for some bud-shots.

as far as smell goes, they deffinatley smell more than my last crop, which was a bag-seed sativa dominant...but these smell more like nice rich hash than skunk/weed.
its kinda worrying because i get de-sensitised to the smell, so i have to be carefull to air-out the house every few days, which i uppose is also good for the plants.

i have a good inline fan sucking the air out of the closet, up into the loft but ive got it wired so it turns off when the lights go out, and when the lights go out, you can really smell them if your in the same room. other rooms are ok aslong as the doors shut.....i have got a carbon filter, but the smell hasnt reached the point where i think i need it yet, although i think it might do in a week or so.

[Pezzo]

one of ur fan leaves is doing the same as mine man! curling under, look in the second pic on the left.
Is that coz u overwatered it when u flushed it or was it doing that already?

[babystarbud]

yeh, theres a few doing that, it only on the darker coloured leaves so im hoping its over watering, next few days will tell...hope its not root-bound.
i just checked some of your posts, how of ten and how much do you water, what size pots are you using?

[Pezzo]

plants are at different stages, started em at different times...
used to have a spray thing, which i used to spray untill top was wet. plant grew well but kinda slow.

i read on a few grow guides and such that u have to water untill water comes out the bottom of the pot. did that, it grew at the same speed and a while later i got this problem.

now just making a puddle of water on the surface once every day or so.

200ml will saok the whole of my pot wiv a little water coming out the bottom so i dont use that much, somethin like, well to wet the top thats all. 25 ml?

i did water my big plant tho, left a puddle on the top, water went straight thro and poured out the bottom! the pot is 11 inch high and 9 inch diamiter so... The soil is like rock u cant push ur finger thro it!

[babystarbud]

sounds like you got the same soil troubles i have got...too dense...

the grow guides are assuming that your soil has good drainage properties....trouble is when the soils too thick, excess water is trapped and held in the soil, instead of running out the bottom, so... by watering untill you get run-off water is infact oversaturating the soil if your soil holds to much water.

which makes guessing ammounts and intervals for watering difficult.
the top few inches of soil appears bone dry and solid hard, but there is water locked away underneath.
its not ideal,

im gonna let them wilt slightly before i water next,

but i imagine ill be watering about 1 litre per plant every 3 days at the current rate they are drinking....but ill just have to play it by ear....watch this space....they were flushed goodstyle and fed bloom fert about mid-day on the 16th of december...so i predict next watering, when i see first signs of wilting either on 18th/19th.

sorry i cant be of much help, im kind of a beginner at this, its only my second real grow and i didnt have this drainage problem first time round (different soil)

[OldGrowerDude]

Oh those are 2 gal. you should be in great shape then! Check out this set of pictures on pruning methods and my favorite to use on Indica strains "pinching" or "supercropping". You just squeeze the main shoot with your fingers (until it gives a bit) and it stops vertical growth and the plant bushes straight out! Its the perfect time to try it to if you were interested.

The one near the bottom where the guy is squeezing the plant with his fingers is the supercropping method.

http://www.drugs-forum.com/growfaq/1270.htm

You sure are freaking out alot about the soil but they look really good regardless of the slight error I think you will pull this off just fine :smokin:

[babystarbud]

thanks for the link, thats interesting ive kinda been thinking...

from my previous grow i know that some of the secondary flowers dont quite breach the canopy of fan leafs, resulting in little shitty buds on them, so i just chop 'em off at the main stalk?

ive done a picture showing the bits to be removed in red, the light green squiggles represent the bulk of the leaves, does that look about right?

[OldGrowerDude]

That looks perfect dude another good diagram, I would make those pruning cuts EXACTLY 2 weeks in so you can appropriately decide what branches will grow the strongest buds (pruning bud plants is truly an art).

Man I'm so glad I came across this thread there really are no good pictures/guides for this strain so this is an Invaluable document to the cannabis communtity as a whole ;) . And by the way if you were to try the pinch method you would pinch right below where your main cola will form to improve side bud growth (ill try to get some good pics of it with mine.)

[babystarbud]

well yesterday, one of the plants flopped again, so they got another flush-type watering, but with no feed.
perked right back up again. these things can really drink!

so im having to step up my watering shedule, i think to every 48 hrs atleast.
im not sure if its good to use fert every time when watering this much, maybe a half dose, or a full dose every other watering.

im gonna fed then tonight, a liter of water each to damp down the soil, let it drain off, then a second liter with the fert added....see how it goes from there.

im not sure im gonna go chopping anything off, as most of the secondary flower site have streched and have thier heads in the main canopy.
that said, the primary flower hasnt streched yet, im not sure how dramatic this will be as its my first indica, hopefully it wont be as pronounced as it was in my last grow.

[babystarbud]

well i just watered, like i said in the above post and lifted the light up about 6inches, the tallest plant was just about touching the bottom edge of the reflector.

the below pics are the second smallest plant, but the best looking one, i think.

[Pezzo]

thats 3 times the size of mine! mines 10 weeks old.

one q, are the roots not at the bottom of the pot? that pot dosent look like the roots have a lot of room to breath, that mite be why it drinks so much and keeps flopping over

[babystarbud]

ive not noticed roots poking out the bottom, but i am under no illusions its getting pretty crowded in there!
i think these babies are gonna need pretty much daily attention till harvest....
if they make it that far.

i knew i should have got a puppy instead! lol

pezzo, dont dispare man, in a previous post you said your only running flourescent lights, they will get there, give them time....from what ive seen, yours look excellent for a 200watt cfl grow...keep the faith brother!

if mine make it to harvest, i will post some pics of the root ball, should be quite interesting lol:upsidedow

[Pezzo]

haha thanx man, what light u usin then?

hope urs works out, o and i know what u mean bout the puppy lmao

[babystarbud]

lol, puppies...

im using a 400 watt grolux HPS, with a power plant hood.

click here...http://www.aquaculture-hydroponics.co.uk/default.aspx

they do UK mail order, i got all my kit from them, i didnt get mail order though, i drove over to the shop, really helpfull and understanding people, i was gonna get a 600watt lamp but the guy convinced me to get a 400 because of my small space, and gave me some free vita-link nutes cos i spent over £150 or somthing.

[babystarbud]

5th day of flowering today:)

i think ive got the watering shedule just about right, im doing a 3 day plan on the watering, one day, a litre, next day half a litre, the day after, none.
the feed is given at full dose in the first litre watering....seems to be keeping them happy for now..

apart from that, not much to say, thares a few more hairs on it.
i am considering using another addetive to raise the "p" levels a bit, the fert its currently using is 10-9-19.....mind you, swapping for somthing like 2-10-10 might be better in 3 or 4 weeks, i dunno.:confused:

then again, if it aint broke dont try to fix it, i say...
i am thinking more P would be better though...

[OldGrowerDude]

I would switch to that 2-10-10 As soon as possible, 10-9-19 is heavy on the Nitrogen. Some varieties will grow with 0-10-10 all through flowering and not skip a beat. Looking forward to updates.

[babystarbud]

day 57 (fd7) update,

watering shedule is now every 48 hours, consisting of a 1litre flush, allowed to settle for 1/2 hour, and then a litre with a full dose of fert, allow to settle then back under the lights.

tallest plant is now 39 inches from soil to the grow-tip, the shortest is 29 inch
so much for an indica dominant! lol, i guess this growth is the result of the sativa genes showing thier faces.

none of the plants have been trimmed or trained in any way, although they are in very close proximity, 5 plants in a 2.5 by 2 foot closet, so secomdary bud site are encouraged to grow straight up rather than outward.

new growth of fan leaves displaying much more sativa/hybrid-like blades, but i guess thats normal with flowering, smaller thinner leaves.

branches and some side shoots have nice purple tones,although leaves for the main part remain a good solid green.

steady progresson of pistil growth.

soil ph has droped from an average of 7 (at the start of the grow) to an average of about 6.8, which is interesting, A, because i would have thought it would be more acid than that by now, i guess thats because of some of the very generous waterings (lol) its had.
and B, the ph of the soil direcly after feeding is more like 6.4, i guess the soil mix is helping to stabalize/buffer the ph over time.

the light has been lifted again, now ~43 inches from soil level to the bulb.
every time i raise it i keep thinking those little secondary buds are getting further away from the light souce. with the next 5 skywalkers im definatley going to try some training after seeing some of the other grows on here!!!!
itll also enable me to do a direct comparison between natural weight Vs trained weight under the same conditions with the same plant.

[babystarbud]

oh, and happy christmas to everybody, keep on keepin' on

big love :)

[Pasofol]

Nice log, I'm at day 15 with similar stage as yours. Some over heating in my case, hopefully not too much damage.

[doco]

Looking good Babystar! It's amazing how resilient cannabis is...I had similar beginnings to yours where my plants grew slowly and were stunted but they eventually came around and became healthy too.

[babystarbud]

thanks Pasfo and Doco :)

day 9 of flowering, these things are becoming little monsters, not that im complaining.
ive had to tie back the biggest one, and angle the reflector a bit in an attempt to get the best light coverage.

ive been moving them to my bath tub every 2 days to give them a good soaking...these things just keep on drinking, they have totally outgrown the pots but its to late to worry about that now lol:pimp:
theyve also been getting a full dose of fert every 2 days.

so much for indica, these things are monsters!!!!!

they now smell quite sweet, as in candy-floss rather than citrus....the afghan smell has pretty much gone, although slight under-tones remain, they smell fucking lush:stoned:

my bloom fert is higher in "N" than i would like, and i cant help thinking that its contributing to the unwanted verticle growth, im gonna go get some different (~zero"N")fert ASAP>

i just hope i can keep up with the constant care schedule and not let them down...

[babystarbud]

day 11 of flowering

well if its not one headache, its another...ive had to tie back my tallest plant to keep it from going to far above the main canopy,

trouble is, ive got no string to tie it down to its pot, so its just tie-clipped to a power cable at the moment...only did it thismorning and its reaching for the sky again!!! >>>runs off to find some string...:confused:

i wanted to try out some LST at some point, but this isnt quite what i had in mind lol

any suggestions anyone...:confused:

[babystarbud]

i knew i kept tht old roll of speaker cable for a reason....lol

look at the state of it:clap: :yippee: :error:

[babystarbud]

some better looking ones having a bath:D

they all just got a 1.5x dose of bloom fert...i thought id give em a bigger hit as they are just eating it up at the moment

[babystarbud]

a couple ,more quick pics to show the density of these things...
im really really pleased with them so far:pimp:

it is tempting to remove a few leafs to let the light into the inner parts, or pin them back or somthing

[OldGrowerDude]

Looking GREAT! DO NOT remove any healthy fan leaves!! Simply push them back or down with your hands below the bud sites you are trying to expose. Just a few more days and then your planning on pruning that scraggly growth at the bottom I guess.... Then a couple days more staring before harvest.... Then :stoned: Get stoned! Keep growing!

[babystarbud]

day 63 (fd13)

thanks man,

the tied down one is coming on well, they al got some of my new feed today and seem to have taken it well so far, the 10-25-25.
its my first time using a soluble powder type fert so i was a bit aprehensive but they seem a-ok

some more pics..:D

[OldGrowerDude]

They filled out your grow room in no time holy cow! I firmly believe that almost ANY fertilizer can work well if used properly (as instructed). Looking at your crop makes me want to top mine early in veg growth, or possibly supercrop them partway in. That would work well in my situation since I need to snag as many clones as possible off them before I flower them and choose a mother plant.

And whatever you put on them seems to have done the trick the leaves are perking straight up thats a good sign! And I cant get over how thick those Main Stalks are you could throw them on a lathe and make a baseball bat when your done I think :)

I'm guessing a yield around 5-6 oz (at the least) What kind of yields do you usually get from this set up with other strains?

[babystarbud]

well, if the buds grow as good as the rest of the plant, i will be a happy farmer, lol

ive only had one previous grow with this set up, 6 plants about 6 oz,

now ive got 5 plants because 6 gets a bit crowded...but they are quite a bit more bushy than the last lot, so its just (if not more) crowded.

so going by my last grow, about 5oz....but....
these plants are so much more vigarous than the last ones (an unknown but good quality bagseed), a total different league....so im secretly hoping for 8-10oz of this batch....i hope i havent just jinxed myself by saying that!

[babystarbud]

Day 65 (fd15)

a few more updates, gave them another very good flush type watering today followed by a one and-a-half dose of 10-25-25, i was feeling brave.

ive also pruned about 10-12 branches off, over all 5 plants, just little scraggely ones that wernt really getting any light....
the real estate in my grow room is at a premium at the mo, its a bit too dense in there....seem to be comming along ok....

a few more pics

[OldGrowerDude]

That main cola is gonna be off the hook!

You da weed pimp :pimp:

I can't thank you enough for documenting this grow, im 30 days into mine, and all 10 look healthy and strong and look exactly like yours (minus the problems) ;) . How many days in were you before you could identify the female parts? I'm in there with a magnifying glass and no luck yet, I need to tell which are female so I can transplant from 1 gal to 5 gal soon. Thanks in advance.

[babystarbud]

day 67 (fd17)

thanks for the comments, watered again today, this time with 2 litres per plant and a double dose of 10-25-25...ive got my trust shower-head and bath tub on standby in the event of burn, but theres nothing yet...they just keep drinkin that fert down.....
i really need to get out and find a low N fert.

they are taking thier time to fatten up, and some of the buds are looking way too mature for the ammount of bud there is.....on the other hand theres plenty of bud sites that are still in infancy.....
dunno if the problems genetic, or my fert ratios wrong.

looks like it will be a staggared harvest....i was hoping to chop em all at once, but whatever.

on the up side, there absolutly no sign of hermies yet, which is great....but my temps this time round have been nice and stable.
i did read on another forum that the yield on skywalker is not huge...maybe im hoping for too much.

some bud shots...

[babystarbud]

oldgrowerdude, i noticed definate pistil growth on every plant by day 48,
and switched the lights to 12 the day after..
they may have been developing for a few days but i didnt notice as i was pre-occupied with other things.

a few more pics.....the one i tied down is doing very nicely:rastasmoke:

[OldGrowerDude]

Don't be discouraged, your only on Flower day 17 and those buds will keep bulking in size all the way to week 6, then they will fatten with crystals for the last 2 weeks.

I would describe the natural progression of bud development as wave after wave of calyx growth, fresh and also dying as more new calyxes grow around the older growth so they seem to be maturing at a perfectly normal rate from what I can determine from the pics/description.

And a good way to determine if you are over fertilizing is if you get "greenhouse burn" on the tips of the newer leaves. Once you notice the new growth growing exceptionally lush green with discolored, brown or wrinkled leaf tips you have maxed out how much fert the plant can absorb. One thing you could do is to add some PH up to your water to maximize the amount of nutrient availability for the roots while not burning the plant with highly acidic feedings (Super size tip :cool: ).

I am curious concerning what you will discover about the one that is tied down, I usually do something like that or simply remove the main shoot all together to get alot of smaller main buds to grow for more growth, but it is not guaranteed to increase yield with all strains. Your continued documentation and scientific analysis will help to answer that question in the final weeks of this exciting/informative grow.

[babystarbud]

well, i watered & fed 2x again today, and noticed some slight burn on the lower growth on two of the plants, so i think ive found the ceiling, so im gonna flush em in a mo and fert again in two/3 days but just with single dose

[OldGrowerDude]

Always good to catch that stuff early so you know when to back off the dosage, don't forget some bud shots in your next update :p Im pretty amazed that they are 100% female so far, I had heard that people often got hermies from feminized but it must be a pretty stable strain.

[babystarbud]

:jointsmile: day 21 of flower...some bud-tastic pics....

[babystarbud]

have yours shown sex yet, oldgrower dude?
i will be backing off the ferts a bit, back to single dose i think, for the rest of the grow...i think i could get away with a 1x5x dose, but i want to wind down the ferts toward the end, i think ive probably only got another 3-4 weeks to go.

[OldGrowerDude]

Holy F$%k those got huge!! And to think they gain most of the weight in the last 2 weeks wow, they still got lots to go I can't wait! I like the one that is a 2 foot long Cola now, wow! Dont back off the ferts too much they will grow like crazy for a bit longer still :rasta:

30 Days in for me and No signs yet of either gender. Im checking close every day, and I would like to throw down some pictures too to add to the documentation here, I have some photos on my comp but every time I click "Manage attachments" it just sorta goes "error" :(

[OldGrowerDude]

Hey I think I figured it out here goes! I can't wait to find out which one will make the leet-ist cloning stock ;)

[OldGrowerDude]

Nice I got the hang of it heres another :) :

[babystarbud]

thanks for the comments :), just to put your mind at rest, time scale aside...my plants were quite a bit bigger before they showed sex under 18/6 lighting...just keep em goin aslong as you have enough height to play with,
mine are now averaging 46inch from soil to tip.

what light are you using oldgrowerdude/

[babystarbud]

you might notice the two outer plants are leaning out, thats because ive used zip-ties in an attemt to keep them from growing into the lamp, the plant at the back shes also had her main cola tied down to its pot using some old speaker cable, resulting in more horizontal growth.

[babystarbud]

good point about the ferts, oldgrowerdude, i am raming them back up to 1.5x dose, but if i fail to mention it in future replies, i wil be phasing it down toward the end, especsially as is got a high "N" content (10-25-25)

[babystarbud]

i did manage to buy some pretty much pure "P" and pure "K" powder nutes, but they arnt the soluble type, more the type that you would mix into the soil to start with, so im just going to carry on with what ive got...

if it aint broke, dont fix it...lol

[OldGrowerDude]

It looks like the ones you tied back might be a bit easier to manage, I'm thinking about just topping mine early and making bushes, thats how I usually do it.

I have plenty of vertical, and horizontal room. I have a 100W flourescent tray for clones, a 250W mh for seedlings and moms, a 600W hps for vegging crops, and My Flower room is a 1000W mh and a 1000W hps all under Daystar reflector hoods.

Obviously looking at your plant pics they are massively heavy on the Nitrogen, and show lush green growth..... As far as your nutes go I would have to submit that they are broke, well wounded at the least. It's hard to imagine a nutrient that is not water soluble, it has to dissolve eventually for the plant to absorb it.... I am curious what the pure P and K nutes you have are, if you can make a Tea out of it, or soak it in warm water for a few minutes before feeding your plants you would be much better off that what you are using now. Toss in a pic or discription of those powder nutes you might just be better off with them.

[babystarbud]

hi, ones called potash ( 0-0-49 ), and the other is called superphosphate( 0-17-0 )

ive tried mixing a little with some warm water, but its just settles to the bottom so im a bit wary of it just sitting on top of the soil...
mind you, i only used a cup of water with a spoonfull of firt to test, so maybe with a full litre of water it will disolve better..will have to try..

and then theres the dosage to figure out, i guess the potash will be 1/2 or 3/4 a teaspoon per litre per plant, and thesuperphosphate 1 - 1.5teaspoon...should give me about what im currently giving, but without the N?

thanks for the interest and advice..

[OldGrowerDude]

If that stuff will dissolve (even partially) overnight at the correct ratio per litre I would go with it for sure. You could even add a drop or two of your other Nutes in for just a smidgen of Nitrogen to balance things out (not recommended on this case you have N overdose). Just remember not to mix concentrates straight together, add water first :)

If you don't feel comfortable with that do whatever you think you must, but I'm a big fan of mixing small amounts of various nutrients together (especially organic) to cover the spectrum of micronutrients.

Another option is to try diluting your tea and water just one plant and see how it responds, if it does well do the same to the others next feeding (I would always suggest using this method as opposed to risking an entire crop).

Here are my Best skywalkers, and a shot of the HPS in flower room (With about 24 misty clones right now, 12 get harvested every 2 weeks perpetually :pimp: ) where they will be budding in a few weeks. I cant wait to flower these Skys especially after seeing that fat cola close up pic you took please please please post more dank bud shots when you get a chance! And Have you pinched any off to see if it makes good smoke yet im literally salivating over here waiting to taste some of this Gear!!!

[babystarbud]

thats quite an army your rasing there!! looking nice :)

ive still got some ground bud left over from the last crop, so ive been able to refrain, though its hard... they smell really sweet:D

[babystarbud]

oh, day 24 of flowering btw

[OldGrowerDude]

Whats the thin dangling wire behind that Quarter Pound (114 grams for people from normal countries) bud pic?

[babystarbud]

that just the probe bit from one of my thermometers, i use 3 or 4 and move them around a bit, two probe type ones ( they are actually aquarium thermo's but they have a switch o them for water temp/air temp ) and two regular ones

[Jedi Hash]

babystarbud, i've been lurking in this one since the beginning, don't think i've posted anything in it yet, though. BEAUTIFUL PLANTS!

[OldGrowerDude]

It's looking like this x10 because they are just unbelievably huge.

[OldGrowerDude]

And that is a Skywalker picture above by the way ;) . I can't wait to see how your planties finish up BabyStarBud your killing me with suspense! Mine are not even showing the females yet and I'm checking obsessively :mad: Well I guess I might have spotted a male or two so they are close to showing. The sooner the better so I can toss them into some 5 gal grow bags for another week or two of fast veg.

[babystarbud]

looking good oldgrowerdude :D

thanks jedi hash, use the dark side of the force!:vader1:

some new pics today, i finaly managed to pry my mates 6 magapixel cam from his clamy mits, what a difference a good camera makes!!!:cool:

check the trichomes out, after these pics were taken ive mixed in these new nutes, lets see how they go...

[babystarbud]

well ive put the new nutes in the pots now,
ive worked out that one scoop (1dose) of the previous fert ( 12-25-25 )
is equivelant to a round teaspoon, so by that measurement,

ive used a heaped teaspoon of 0-17-0...should be equivelant to 0-20ish-0

and half a teaspoon of 0-0-49, which should be equvelant to 0-0-25ish

per plant.

i just hope the nutes are available to the plant immediatley, as its the kind of nute that you would mix in to the soil before planting according to the instructions...:confused:

the nutes do settle aswell, they dont really disolve, so each feeding of 1 litre will be followed by another plain litre once the origeonal water has drained.

[OldGrowerDude]

Totally worth the wait on those pictures, very very impressive. I never would have imagined you could get a crop like that, from seed, off a 400 watt light on your second grow :). I keep trying to take close ups of buds but either my 5 mega pixel camera is no good or Im doing something wrong because your close ups are astounding and mine are coming out blurry (I dont have a camera with lenses that can switch or anything so that could be my problem).

As far as those nutes go they wont work as well not being mixed in from start, but they will work better than the N filled stuff you were pumping them with as your grow finishes up I can assure you (I like the plan you came up with).

They don't really look like blueberry plants, and they dont look like Mazar they look like a mix (what a suprise). Do they at least smell like blueberry? For a strain that costs a days wage for the 10 seed pack, I'm expecting some top notch Quality tasting smoke. I have no clue as to how you have not smoked a sample of that yet I would have already gotten fully baked (but I'm highly impatient ;) ).

P.S. Watch TerrorStorm on Google video catch ya later!
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=786048453686176230&q=terror+storm&hl=en

[babystarbud]

day 79 ( flower day 29)

thenks:o im quite surprised at the quality of the buds myself....they are not huge or anything...but perfectly formed:) mind you it takes me almost an hours work to pay for 1 seed, so they had better be bloody good!!!

i have read elsewhere that skywalkers arnt the biggest yielders, but are a very good quality smoke, which is what im after really, ive only ever smoked blueberry in amsterdam, and found it to be to strong for my tastes, and not a particulary paletable smoke.....maybe it was just the unfamilliar surroundings that prevented me from full enjoyment i dunno....but saying that im not a massive smoker anyway, half a joint is normaly the most ill ever smoke in one sitting if its strong weed...my mind gets too bent if i smoke to much lol

it was tricky taking the close ups....i found it was better to move the camera in close rather than zoom in....it wouldnt focus proprely if i use the zoom. i also have to hold my breath to prevent blur from my own movement and rest my arms/shoulders against somthing to prevent movement also...even then only about 1 in 3 pics came out ok, i guess thats the beauty of a digital cam..no worriies about wasting film lol i probably take about 20 pics for every 5 i post and just select the best ones.

the cam im using only has 2 quality settings, normal and fine, i used the fine setting.

im still a bit concerned about the nutes not penetrating the soil properly..time will tell

the smell his hard to pin down, they seem to smell stronger some days...and the smell seems to be evolving...at the mo they kinda smell like sweet pine with a hint of spice....they deffo smell very good.

ive been ble to resist because my first grow i chopped one plant early but it was a bit of a let down, and plus there always a bit of somthing or other floating around anyways, so its been quite easy to resist temptation. although i am getting more anxious to try some as time goes on...im gonna let these run the full course and harvest a little late maybe

[Abattoir Dream]

wow, they look great..:) if you have a magnifying glass, take a macro shot with that, you can get nice, clear close-ups. my camera is a peice of shit, but i have got some good photos out of it recently, so im not complainin..
your pics are great anyway, keep up the good work :)

just lettin u know, (if you didnt already) harvesting a plant late can mean you end up with less THC, as it will change into CBNs and stuff.. i would still harvest some late though, always let the pots dry right out just before you cut them down, as that will stress the plant a little, and increase the resin a tiny bit...

good luck... :)

[babystarbud]

thanks abattoir, i have a microscope that i use for looking at small samples ive cut, but its pretty much impossible to take pics through it, i can get ok results with a cam...but nothing worth looking at really.

by harvesting late, i thought with it being an indica it would be better...
late-ish that is, i dont wanna wait till they are to far gone

[brookerosebud]

i harvest my couchers when the trichs are 50-50. the difference between amber trichs and degrading trichs is:

amber is mature and beginning to degrade, but still standing.
amber trichs that are degraded and dying are laying down (dead looking)

[babystarbud]

thanks for the info, ive always harvested on the early side...impatient i guess lol
i always assumed they woud just just go dark and drop off or somthing, kinda like frost bite lol

know i know to look for droopey ones as a sighn they are past-best...cheers:):)

ive changed the fert yet again today, ive gone back to the vita-link 10-9-19 for one feeding (2xdose)as there are a few blemishes on som leafs that look like some kind of deficiancy, these nute have a long list of micro-nutes so im hoping a good infusion they will do the trick,
next feeds will be back to the zero-N-25P-25K concoction that i invented before,

its re-assuring to know that i can fall back on a good all-rounder fert if i feel the need.

note to slef: it would be good to find a micro formula with no major nutes included

[Bree1978]

note to slef: it would be good to find a micro formula with no major nutes included

That is an excellent point...please let me know if you find one worthy mentioning. B

[OldGrowerDude]

Seaweed and Kelp are great organic nutes and are LOADED with micro elements, so many in fact that science is still trying to figure them all out/reproduce them in a lab (0-0-1 seaweed is common in garden stores). My favorite is Fox Farm bloom enhancer (Big Bloom) with micro nutes from rock phosphate potash and worm castings (worth the few extra dollars).

Thanks for the camera advice those are good tips I'll have to do some more experimenting with the cameras' settings and trying to nullify movement also:)

As far as harvesting goes don't listen to anyone unless your totally clueless on when to harvest. Just let a bud dry out every couple of days and harvest when the % THC and CBD are the most palatable to you. Earlier harvest will result in lighter "social" high and the longer you let the triches ripen the more "couch-lock" you will get. There's no rule its all preference ;) .

You should include a pic of the "blemish" your referring to (if you can) its not likely its from under fertilization, but more likely from nutrient lock-up. This happens when you add multiple types of fertilizer that do not go well together, and they bind in the soil locking out valuable micro nutes or worse toxifying the soil in a salty ph imbalanced sludge. To much Mg for example can lock out N immediately to the rest of the plant. With no pic its impossible to say exactly whats going on, just be careful what you start dumping on now, I mean hey your almost done :smokin: don't over do it!

The most dangerous part about nutrient lock up is that the symptoms resemble that of a deficiency because a certain nute is not available to the plant, yet the cause of the problem is an over abundunce of one or more nutes or ph imbalance and NOT a lack of that specific nutrient (whew what a mouthfull :) ).

Catch you later Babystarbud, and p.s. My skywalker is still not showing sex still at 46 days in but they are under 24 hrs light pretty much and its also not HPS so that might have something to do with it. And I just topped them the other day so they can start to bush out so I can snag clones off each one and put them to flower, I'll add some pics down the road if your interested.

[invision]

That is an excellent point...please let me know if you find one worthy mentioning. B

calmag is what you want, not calmag plus as that has 2% nitrogen added to it, i use calmag plus through veg and add no nutes at all ever during this time as the calmag plus has nitrogen everywater.

[babystarbud]

Day 83 fd33

thanks for the tips OGD your a real font of knowledge:cool: ....i will get some pics in a day or so...i just havent got time at the mo.
the problem dosent seem to be getting much worse anyway so im not overly concerned....
the feeding before last i did go back to the 2part hydro feed 10-9-19 purely for the micro nutes...but they are back on straight P and K now.

some pics would be good....not showing yet...im quite suprised...but hey its only a matter of time i guess.

cheers

[babystarbud]

heresa few pics of the "blemishes"
thinking about it, they are very local and only on the bottoms of a few plants, and its not getting worse so im thinking it might be where ive splashed the feed a bit...

[babystarbud]

Day 85 fd35

some better quality pics...

[babystarbud]

a couple through the microscope:D

[mrberrys]

ello babystarbud.. thought i would pop by.. looking amazing.. last time i saw your plants they was like 20 odd days old.. now they are monsters.. hope they taste as good as they look;) very nice tasty pics allso m8 nice :rastasmoke:

[babystarbud]

Day87 fd37

all is still stinky down on skywalker farm:D :D

got a bit of browning off on some of the pistils, so theres no going back from here....buds are steadily bulking up :rastasmoke:
so i figured i would give them one last hardcore BOOST of feed for a few days before i start winding down the doseges ready for harvest:pimp:

i decided to get a bit silly with the fert today, i put two litres of plain water through each pot, then added a litre of water two each pot with half a dose of the two powders i have, 0-0-49 and 0-17-0.

once that had drained i added a full dose of the two part hydro feed (with micro nutes) 10-9-19 to each pot.

reckless...maybe, but they have been VERY tollerant with fert so far, i would be very surprised if they keel over and die.

i must add here that my wartering shedule is pretty hardcore, ive been feeding/watering every two days with a litre or two of plain water followed by a litre of water containing the feed, so each watering is like a mini-flush...im guessing thats why ive been able to fert them as much as i have.

some new pics at "bath time" lol

[OldGrowerDude]

Freakin sweet buds babystar good job. Impressive microscope pics too thats really neat! I can't wait to try that now lol! Just a lil update on my situation... out of 10 skywalker from seed I have exactly one female :mad: . So I guess to get my moneys worth ill have to save two males, make my own seeds and try again to get more specimins to choose from. I know to spend the extra cash on feminized now so it's a lesson well learned I guess. I also have some PPP started so ill see if a pure sativa does better than the indica.

Your fert schedule seems to be working, and now is the time to put on that bud weight so grow weed grow lol! I'm still anxiously looking forward to that smoke report, and good luck finishing up your beautiful crop :smokin:

[klup]

absolutely amazing. how about a sample

[babystarbud]

thanks for the comments, im getting real anxious to try them now....

heres a pic of the slightly trained one,
now known as "cannasaurus-rex":jointsmile:

[babystarbud]

day 98, fd 48

some lastest pics, harvest date is now set for a total of 61 days flowering.
buds are getting to heavy for the trained plant now, its starting to buckle under its own weight!!!!

i used to dream about growing plants that were so heavy they couldnt support themselves...well thats one dream accomplished:S3:

that plant is however suffering a bit from heat stress, its at the back of the closet where circulation is lowest....but with litterally 12/13 days to go im not too concerned:lovestruck:

the smell is not too strong to be honest, but if i gently squeeze a bud, the smell on my fingers just makes me sigh out loud...im soo exited!!!!!!

ive decided on a harvest plan, four days of a 2 litre flush per plant each day, followed by 2 days of drought still under 12/12, then a 48 hour period of drought & darkness, then CHOP the bitches are commin down

this is only my second real grow, and by my estimates yield and quality has improved 100%, so too all first timers out there, read, learn, work through your problems and keep at it.....you will get there i promise you

my next update will be harvest pics, and a few of the rootballs, cos im sure they will make interesting pics given the size of the plants compared to the little pots ive got them in....
my lesson for next time.....BIGGER POTS!!! im sure i would have yielded even more with properly sized pots....not that im complaining with how these turned out for a second.

[smokin dope]

whoa! those look so lovly! i have 3 girls at 2 weeks flower right now under 1000 watt hps. first timer here, hope i can get some big buds like you :cool:

[babystarbud]

im sure they wil smokindope :)

final feed yesterday and flushed today

[babystarbud]

...

[babystarbud]

last pics before the chop, they've been flushed good and been having a litre of plain water each per day...

[babystarbud]

harvested last night, got very sticky!

havent smaoked any yet but made some space muffins last night that did the trick lol, heres some pics

[Mrs. Greenjeans]

Holy crap BSB! Gooood job! Mmmmm. :greenthumb:

[bong_man]

very very veryyyyy nice!

[TheGreenFog]

Excellent looking harvest, BSB...AWESOME. I'm curious to know if you weighed it wet? And will you weigh it dry?

CONGRATS on the harvest, man. What's up next? :D:D:D:D

Sent some rep your way. :)


The Fog :rastasmoke:

[MULLETMAN]

That shit looks bomb as hell. Curious as to how much that stuffs gonna dry out to. I'm using a 400 w so grows like yours are inspiring. Great Grow.;)

[babystarbud]

cheers :)

have not weighed it yet, not much point really when its fresh :(

im gonna pack up for a month or two, but next up is 5 more skywalkers, this time all with have horizontal 90 degree top colas because the bud on the trained one was like twice the thickness of the rest.

unfortunatly, i had to break the biggest cola up into smaller bits as i didnt want it going bad in the middle, thats the kind of problem i dont mind having though, lol

[Pezzo]

sweet m8 n thx 4 the comment.. u harvested at 54 days? mine arnt growin that fast! My day 22 is like ur day 9 lol

[bluntmaster430]

great log