From clone to stone - Loafyboys (ScrOG?) grow log.

Well, it would seem that with the issues this forum suffered a while back a lot of threads and posts were lost. One of these was my grow log from my first ever grow (I was a bit gutted, but shit happens).

I have decided to start a grow log for my second grow (although my first grow is still in flower and has a 3 or 4 weeks left yet). But I am starting the next grow now so I can get the flower room back in action shortly after harvesting my first grow. I hope to ScrOG this grow to have an influence on the height of the plant as the current one is way too tall. It will be grown hydroponically in deep water culture (DWC).

I am only growing one plant at a time because it is for personal use (and so a few mates can try it), and I am not going to be selling any. So one plant at a time should be plenty for me.

I am taking clones from a mother plant and putting them in a home made bubbler. I used this bubbler to make these mother plants from clones taken from the original plant (that is now in flower). The bubbler is based on one in a thread by 'justanotherbozo'. That thread can be viewed HERE. Thanks for the info Bozo!

This log is starting with the mother plant, from which clones will be taken, rooted in the bubbler and the idea is to follow the grow all the way to harvest, with pics and info following the entire process.

So to start, here's a picture of the mother plant (growing in soil/perlite/vermiculite mix). She is a bit stretched and lanky because I had the 125w CFL envirolite too high for a few weeks (waiting for easy rollers to arrive).

So let the log begin........:thumbsup:

can't wait to see where the adventure goes lofa! subscribed.

-shake

First things first, I set about butchering the mother plant a bit. I removed about 6" off the top of the plant (Pic 1, quite a big clone), and then 5 more smaller cuttings (2 of which in pic 2).

Trimmed the base of the cuttings and put them in the bubbler. The water has a pH of 5.7 to start (this will rise a bit due to the airstones I would think), and an EC of 1.1 (~ 704ppm @ 640 conversion). I used Formulex to bring the EC to this level.

The bubbler is basically just a tub I bought from office world. It had a white translucent 'clip on' lid, so I sprayed it black.

I cut 6 holes in it with a hole saw (2 1/4"). It has two 6" air stones and a 2 outlet air pump (~300 l/h output) which gets the soup really bubbling! (Pic 3). I also have a 4 way valve which allows me to control the flow to each airstone individually, and in case I ever need more air stones, but that is unlikely.

I use pipe insulation (the foam type stuff) like stated in Bozo's bubbler thread to hold the clones in place. It does a great job!

Bubbler set up and ready to go! (Pic 4)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by headshake

can't wait to see where the adventure goes lofa! subscribed.

-shake

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Thanks Shake, I hope I can make it an interesting read for you (and anyone else that reads it), I am just loving growing my own. It's a great little hobby, and means I have something else to do while at home instead of just surfing dirty pics and films on the internet! :D

:jointsmile:

Looking good there bro. I have noticed with my bubble cloner that more often my roots grow out of the pipe insi then the part that is actually hanging over the water. I can only imagine because it is darker and I may have a slight light leak. IDK if your following me, maybe I'll post a pic later.

Just don't worry too much if you think that they are not rooting cause a root might just pop out of that insi. Peace

P.S. You may want to trim up them leaves on those cuttings. The big ones anyways. :thumbsup:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lit Up

Looking good there bro. I have noticed with my bubble cloner that more often my roots grow out of the pipe insi then the part that is actually hanging over the water. I can only imagine because it is darker and I may have a slight light leak. IDK if your following me, maybe I'll post a pic later.

Just don't worry too much if you think that they are not rooting cause a root might just pop out of that insi. Peace

P.S. You may want to trim up them leaves on those cuttings. The big ones anyways. :thumbsup:

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Hi Lit up,
The bubbler worked fine the last time I used it (with just plain pH'ed water), roots took about 10 days to start, but then got real long in no time, perfect to transplant to DWC bucket. I will pick the strongest clone once they are rooted, hopefully the biggest one!

Hope you follow this log man, I want to make it a good one! :jointsmile:

yo lit - i know exactly what you mean. at first i just watched the bottom of the stem for roots, then i noticed that most roots start up by where the insulation is wrapped. i'm not sure why either, but hey, roots are roots.

my clones respond much better to the bubble cloner when i trim their leaves down to 1/2". fastest so far was 3 days.

Mine take a little longer cause I need to invest in a heating pad. The basement gets chilly. It's not that I can't afford it, it's just that I don't drive right now....and it's cold....and I'm lazy.

Well, no sign of any roots yet, but the clones look incredibly healthy, so I guess I will have to wait a bit longer......

Just to keep the thread spinning I thought I would post a pic I just took of my current plant that is in flower at the moment, 5 1/2 weeks in... :thumbsup:

Stay tuned, more updates as soon as the roots are forming! :)

Well, 1 week in and still no roots, but the clones are looking fantastic and healthy. They actually look to have grown a bit even though they have no roots! No doubt the roots will show in the next 3-5 days. Can't wait to start vegging 1 of them in my spare DWC bucket!

I have learnt a lot from my first grow and intend to make this grow a real adventure for myself.....I will experiment with a few differnet techniques the main of which being the ScrOG technique. I have a few other ideas that I will reveal as and when I implement them!

Two weeks and no roots yet? Regardless, you said they're still growing. Have you seen signs of growth since your last update?

Well, just checked on the clones and they are exactly like they were 8 days ago when I last posted. Can't be much longer before roots start and I can get on with this grow log. Here are some up to date pictures...they look the same as the last ones! :(

Finally........over the last day or two roots have starting appearing on a couple of the clones! 2 weeks and 6 days (20 days) since they were put into the bubbler, only took about 11 days last time I used it!

The clones still look really healthy, so I guess I can't complain too much.

I gotta look on the bright side, it's progress and wont be long before I can transfer 1 to my DWC bucket....... so stay tuned, this thread will take off soon.

Thanks for looking! And check back soon......

:hippy:

Good to hear the loafy, I just finiahed up a batch of clones. Longest one took 16 days, shortest was 9. I'm playing with a few different techniques and getting to some different results. Oh botany is so fun isn't it?

So this is where things should start to speed up. :thumbsup:

I have transplanted 1 of the clones into a DWC bucket with a submersible air pump.

I pre soaked the clay pebbles for a while in pH 5.7 water. I then filled the bucket with tap water (quite hard ~ 500 ppm), added 10ml of Canna Aqua A and 10ml of Canna Aqua B (to around 775 ppm total. It's a little low but I will up it in a few days once the clone has settled in a bit). Then I adjusted the pH to 5.8.

I chose the clone with the strongest roots and put it in the net pot, ensuring the long root came through the bottom of the net pot. Clay pebbles were then carefully added around the clone (clone was as deep as possible in the clay pebbles for support, without burying the lower fan leaves).

The DWC bucket was then placed under a 125w 6400K envirolite. So with any luck we should see some crazy growth in the next few weeks!

I will shortly start to prepare for the ScrOG! So stay tuned, and hit me with those rep points if you like what you see!

:jointsmile:

While checking on the plant in the bucket earlier, I realised it was looking a little rough. I lifted the lid of the bucket and the roots are growing nicely, but there was a white frothy substance on the surface of the nute solution. :(

I think the nute temps are too high, as I have not done anything different from my last grow which never developed froth. The only difference is a warmer grow area.

So I have changed the solution and will see how it goes.

If anyone has a suggestion as to what could be causing the froth, please let me know.

Thanks all! :thumbsup:

Since getting the nute temps under control things have started moving nicely. The roots are starting to take off and I am seeing some good new growth. :thumbsup:

Because of the temp problems I had, I raised the light to give the plant a break. You can see some of the leaves near the middle are a bit blotchy and crappy, but the newer leaves are fine. Raising the light has meant the plant is stretching a bit, but this wont be a problem as I will be performing some low stress training and experimenting with the ScrOG technique.

I expect that over the next week or two the plant will grow like wild fire and will be ready to pur into flower in a few weeks.

Thanks for looking, let me know if you have any suggestions. Cheers all! :jointsmile:

i'm experiencing the same frothy action you speak of, loafy. and i use canna aqua veges/flores too. i haven't experienced any negativity from it though. my 2 opium strain clones are still going strong in the frothy bubbler.

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Originally Posted by GoldenGraham84

i'm experiencing the same frothy action you speak of, loafy. and i use canna aqua veges/flores too. i haven't experienced any negativity from it though. my 2 opium strain clones are still going strong in the frothy bubbler.

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Hi GG,

For some reason my plant ('Phsyco Donkey' is the strain) doesn't like the frothy stuff and the leaves started becoming discoloured and blotchy. I put it down to 'bad' bacteria in the solution upsetting the roots. But I guess different strains can tolerate different enviromental factors. Since I have added more ventilation, the froth has gone and the plant is much happier. I never noticed the froth in my first grow, so knew it must be something to do with the environment, most likely temperature.

You must have a good hardy strain there, or mine is just a big softy! :D

yeah that's the best thing about the bagseed i work with currently. root rot was the only thing that ever has been able to kill it, so yay. the opium clones i have though are usually finnicky, so i'm glad they like the froth. was the discoloration similar to a magnesium deficiency? like rust spots on your leaves?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by GoldenGraham84

yeah that's the best thing about the bagseed i work with currently. root rot was the only thing that ever has been able to kill it, so yay. the opium clones i have though are usually finnicky, so i'm glad they like the froth. was the discoloration similar to a magnesium deficiency? like rust spots on your leaves?

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I guess they are similar to rust spots I have seen from calcium deficiency, but bigger. Large patches of brown appeared on the leaves and the edges went crispy. After I cleaned the bucket out and gave it all a good scrub and reduced the temps it has been fine. Even the damaged leaves look to be semi useful still. It may have been an imbalance in the nute solution even, I guess I will never know for sure.

Just glad it is ok now! :thumbsup:

Wow! Has it been over a week since my last post with pics!

I will get some pics and info posted later............:stoned:

Ok then, the plant has started to do its thing, by which I mean grow quite quickly now. Since getting the issues under control it has started looking nice and healthy, all be it a bit lanky, but the LST I am going to subject it to will mean the lankiness won't be a problem.

It is nearing the point where I will start LST, so I will keep up to date with pics and info etc.

Below are some progress pics (above and below bucket lid), I am shocked at how big the fan leaves are compared to it's mother plant which is in soil, is it purely because of the fact it is being grown hydro? Well, stay tuned folks!

Go. Go. Go.

nice plants loafy boy, doing a lot better than mine :( keep up the good work! :thumbsup:

Peace,
Denial

Thanks for the comments guys! :thumbsup:

After posting the pics yesterday I starting the Low Stress Training, so thought I would update with a pic of what I have done, and how the plant has reacted.

It has already adjusted to it's new positioning, and is turning to the light, and I will be bringing it round the edge of the bucket until it meets itself again....at least that's the plan!

I have another pic which is a drawing of how I intend to perform the LST. I don't actually know where the drawing came from, but all credit to whoever drew it!

Any tips or comments are more than welcome!

That diagrams a great idea, very keen to see how you go. Subscribed :stoned:

Ok, it's been a while, but I didn't realise how long it would take for the plant to grow round the bucket rim. Plus my flowering closet is still in use (12 weeks and counting).

But I have some pics, although it is hard to make out how it is working because it is so damn bushy. I toyed with the idea of trimming some of the fan leaves, but decided against it as it may slow growth.

1st pic is the lid of the bucket, I have put 8 brass self tapping hooks through the plastic, equally spaced around the rim. This gives somewhere to cable tie the plant to. And means the plant and lid can be removed as one piece. :)

The next two pics are showing how the plant is reacting to the training, as I said it's difficult to make out what is happening, but it is going well! Still a good few weeks left yet though, before she goes into flower.

:jointsmile:

Been a few weeks since I last post. The plant is doing really well and I have just put it in flower. Instead of doing a ScrOG, I am going to keep tying the branches down to the hooks on the bucket lid each time a branch gets too long.

I pulled a total of 5 1/4 onces off the last grow (which was my first ever grow) under a 250w HPS, which I am very pleased with. I am aiming for 8 ounces from this grow (a bit optimistic maybe, but why not set high targets) which will be nearly a gram per watt. The second pic below shows about half of the yield. It appears to be (or so the guy who supplied the seed thinks after trying some) a cross between psychosis and chemdog double D (chemdog D x sour diesel) not psychosis and donk as I first thought.

Any comments or suggestions are more than welcome. :jointsmile:

Looking good loafyboy the plant looks great but the bud looks better I must say:thumbsup:. Well be watching this grow keep it updated:jointsmile:



~One~:rastasmoke:
~BudG~:rastasmoke::rastasmoke:

Been a few weeks again, but I haven't forgotten. Just no point updating until something is really worth mentioning.

Well, she has been in flower for about 2 1/2 weeks and is starting to take shape nicely. The flowers are coming through nicely as you can see from the pics. Her overall height has been controlled a lot better than my last grow, and the but sites are quite similar in height. I am hoping for an even bigger yield this time (although I will not be able to get through half of my previous yield before this is ready, will just have to store some long term).

The pics were taken yesterday, let me know what yo'all think!

Plant looking good can't wait to see them in a couple more weeks. :thumbsup:




~One~:rastasmoke:
~BudG~:rastasmoke::rastasmoke:

Looking good mate :)

I have my eye on this one. I am training one of my plants the same as you did.

Sorry it's been a while again. Quick update, all seems to be going well at the moment, plants height is well under control thanks to the LST. Had an issue a week or two ago, where a few of the leaves around the flowers started going brown and crispy. I put it down to high temps (especially in the nute solution), so I started putting ice in, and everything started running smooth again.

Pic was taken on the 4th of this month and she is about 6 weeks into 12/12 out of about 10/11 weeks. As you can see, she is coming on nicely.

Don't be shy, give me some feedback!

Peace. :jointsmile:

Looks great man. Your plants speak for themselves. Nice lookin buds. I hope you exceed your goal of 8 ounces. Thats a hell of a lot. ha

Things have gone from bad to worse! Due to high nute temps I have been encountering root rot. This in turn means lots of crap floating around the nute solution, which is clogging up my submersible air pumps, which create heat when they are clogged, heating the nute solution further, creating more root rot and more pump clogging etc etc. Vicious circle.

The plant is starting to look really shit now, and I have no way of keeping the nutes cool enough other than ice in a plastic bottle (which melts and warms up in no time at all). The leaves are mostly yellow or brown and crispy, so I may just have to cut short and harvest 3 weeks early.

Can't believe this grow is so fucked up after the success of my first grow. Damn hot British summer, normally we get rain and more rain!

Pics to follow soon, just for a laugh!

Quick update. The plant is looking a little worse for wear, but might just make it to the end.

It looks like a reasonable yield, although not as good as my last effort.

Well, we are nearing completion. She has been on pure water (pH 5.8) for a few days now, and it will be time to harvest in a few days. The buds really are soooo hard, much more than my last grow. I will post pics etc. when I start the harvest. Still struggling with heat and root problems, but it has basically made it to the end and I hope to achieve maybe 6 oz of it. Last time I changed the solution it was as warm as a jacuzzi bath!

As I say, pics to follow.... very nice pics they will be too!

Here is a harvest pic as promised, not a bad haul. After a bit of testing I can confirm that it is outstanding, can't talk type of stoned (unless you want to talk gobbledygook) :stoned::stoned::stoned:

The beer bottle is a half litre (500ml) bottle for scale. There is a lot more smaller buds that arent in the picture. After drying it weighs in at around 6 ounces total.

It's now been put in to cure, mmmmm! :D Can't wait!