i fancy a change can you help

hello mates, i would like to ask a question about different growing tecniques, i currently grow in a small cubard ( see pic) it measures apx 7 ft long by 18 inches, it is also about 8ft high, i have allways grow in soil, in large pots and done quite well, i know there are different growing methods that produce large or fast crops, i can get up to 12 plants flowering at any one time, max if i grow in big pots and put 2 plants per pot, ( i have tried smaller pots and more plants but the yeild is lower on average, dry bud weight is around 9 and 11 onzes, apon finishing, in around 65 days, is there another method that will speed this up a little, i am running a 600w hps, my room is very well vented and the temperature is very stable at all times, i grow at the moment my own crosses of white widow and brain damage, i am thinking about changing my strain as i have been smoking it for a long time now and would like a change of flavour, so a different strain would be ok, as long as it had the med qualities i am looking for, as i am disabled and smoke cannabis medically, i am quite interested in the growing in a tube method, any ideas how this could compare, i.e. is it poss to get a larger grow or a faster grow, or a more medicinal plant that grows better like this, i have read the books and seen the videos so i have an idea, but i have no knowledge from first hand experience, ...... any ideas .... thanks and peace

Howdy Happy,

I did some lookng at one of the hydroponics places online,and the closest I could find to growing in a tube method,is the aeroponic set-ups..is that what you're talking about ? If so,you may have trouble finding a retail unit,that will fit into your 18 inch width,however..you may be able to construct your own unit,that will fit in the space that you have..or git someone to help ya.

I was hoping that some of the hydro guys here,would help you more..but if they don't,you should pose this question at Overgrow and at Cannabis World,or Treatingyourself..there should be folks there,that can help you.

I want to try the DWC method(deep water culture),myself,but in order for it to work well for me,I'll have to buy a somewhat expensive ,pump,to change out the solution..so that I won't have to lug around heavy buckets of water.

I'm rootin for ya man ! If you succeed-I succeed too..we're both in need of a low-stress way to grow our own medicine,and trying to find the strain that suits our needs.

Have a good one ! :D

man thats a nice frosty bud
had to say
YUMMY looking

Are you using a light mover to cover the 7' long room you are trying to grow in? If you are not you may need to study about light penetration and do some calculations. One of the reasons your yield is not up to par for all your work is environment. You may only have 1/2 of the proper environment required to grow bigger buds. What is the RH (Relative humidity) of your grow room? Just observed a few things to start you thinking about

hi, torog, nowhereman, zandor, the method i was thinking about was like a drain pipe with holes in, about every 8 inches, water and nutes are constantly pumped through it via a holding tank, i have never heard of the dwc method but then again i aint realy ever gone into any other method, i sort of stuck with a method that worked, i was just concidering my options, and looking for comparesons, i might not change from growing in soil, in answer to zandor, i dont use a moving track for my light, my room is 7ft the light is central to it, i dont think a moving track would make that much of a difference, sure the plants at each end would get more light as it moved over them, but there not that starved of light when the doors are closed light reflex and is far more intensive, my yeild is not that bad any thing on average from 9 to 11 ounces dry bud weight, i dont know the humidity of my room, i can say that its very very well vented and it has fresh air pumped or drawn in 24/7 i would say its dry rather than humid, they drink about 5 gallons of water a week, i have never had bud mould in this room, the only prob i had once was the cat got in the cubard when it was open and shite in a pot, it did not realy hurt the plants it just made me feel sick to clean it up lol, what i am looking for on this post is comparisons, soil verses other grow methods, thanks for your comments

Right on then...what works for you works and they look very good too. I thought you were looking to get more yield out of the same grow area. Your plants look healthy enough I was not inferring there was a problem at all; no offence was meant if any were taken.

hello zandor
there is no probs mate, it is proberly my spelling lol, i was just a little surprised that you think its possible to achive a higher yield than 9 to 11 ounzes per crop out of a room as small as mine, i dont need to grow more than this so its not a prob there, but i would love to know your ideas on this, if i did not have to visit my growroom as often as i do that would be a great help as getting up stairs is a nightmare, my timing sytem is great i dont have do any thing with the lights, air intake ,circulation, or extraction, my plants sit in trays that hold water, but still need to be topped up every other day, at the moment i have to check them daily as there coming to the end and i dont want things to go wrong now, i have posted elsewhere that i would like a change of plant as i have smoked this strain for a long time, i would also concider changing my growing method if i thought i could make things better in some way, so please let me know your ideas, i aint got a lot of money so how much it cost is also a concideration, thanks mate i look forword to your reply peace to you

Chappie is that all the information about what you have available to you. I will write up a plan for you that will increase your yield and the quality too using the same space. I understand you do not want to spend lots of money but some time there is no choice for max yield. Save the information and implement it over time. I think I remember you are in the UK right? So I have a better idea of what is available in your market area. I have mentored over 50 medical users in my area on growing indoors in the last 2 years alone. They are all growing great crops and often share their pride with me to show off their skills. Give me a few days and you will have something to read. I am happy to help you and anyone else they may benefit

wow thanks zandor,
thats realy cool mate, thanks, i do grow some plants outside in the summer months, this is when i do my crossing and any other experiments, i have another very small room that i keep my mothers in, but i will have to lose that soon as kids need the space for there clothes, so at the moment i dont know where i am gonna stick my mums, i will have to find some where else, thanks for all your help mate, yes i am in the uk, and i would also love to share my wonderfull girls with you lol, peace man and thanks

Are you good with hand tools and have a power saw and drill I hope. Most of my friends save lots of money by building their own equipment. Modifying other equipment use in different industries can save you lots of money too.

hi zandor
yes mate i have no probs working with my hands i also have my own workshop that has been designed to suit my disabilitys, i also have every tool for a carpenter, bricklayer, plasterer, decorator, plumber, as i used to be a proffessional builder before my disability, i look forword to your reply thanks and peace

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zandor

Chappie is that all the information about what you have available to you. I will write up a plan for you that will increase your yield and the quality too using the same space. I understand you do not want to spend lots of money but some time there is no choice for max yield. Save the information and implement it over time. I think I remember you are in the UK right? So I have a better idea of what is available in your market area. I have mentored over 50 medical users in my area on growing indoors in the last 2 years alone. They are all growing great crops and often share their pride with me to show off their skills. Give me a few days and you will have something to read. I am happy to help you and anyone else they may benefit

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Howdy Zandor,

I think it's great,that you've helped so many,to be able to grow their own medicine,and grow it well. Like Happy Chappie,I too,am disabled and seek to grow my own medicine..your helping him..is helping me-Thanx !

I am fairly knowledgable,in regards to indoor growing,but I feel that there's alot to learn,as well..I ain't too proud to learn more.

I was wondering,have you used or reccomend,the use of mychorrizal fungi ?

I have the unique opportunity,to be able to grow indoors and out,at the same time,I'm using a 1kwatt mh,and it seems that there's little difference between it and the Sun. All of my plants have been started outdoors,believe it or not,in an old wheelbarrow filled with dirt from outside,and I have brought them inside under the mh,and they love it,their internodal space is short,the stems are stout,and they seem just as happy-as being outside. I realise the danger of contaminating the growroom,but it doesn't seem to be occuring. I'm in Texas,and the grow season has just begun here. It seems that I could easily start my seeds outside,bring em indoors to give em the benefits of shorter internodal space and stout stems,then put them outside to finish out. Once I git some good females to clone from,it appears that I could harden the clones inside,then put them outdoors,it will save on electrical costs.

What say you ?

Have a good one ! :D

Hey Trog
Right now they are both about the same in terms of spectrum. I would think when they reached a little taller moving them would break the stock. You know shit happens but you may not have my luck. I do use Dr. Hornby's Piranha so yes I use mycorrhizal fungi for the full vegetation growth cycle and only for the first 2 weeks of flowering.

You may want to try a green house in Texas I think Harbor Freight Tools sells a cheep 8 x 10 size.

You are running the risk of major commendation but you know that already so just be careful. I grow 100% indoors over 9000 watts total there is no way I can grow outside here. I wish I could but that is not going to happen in my lifetime I feel. California is progressive but not that progressive. Not in the city anyway.

Chappie
Glad to here you are handy with tools so I will dig up more homemade ideas and even be more creative. Itâ??s easy of you have money but where is the fun in thatâ?¦lolâ?¦You may need to dig up a few bucks some of the electronics you will need cost about 500 bucks or so total. Then after you grow more in the same space you can sell a little to friends to but the rest of the equipment to grow even more. You see itâ??s a cycle you grow moreâ?¦.sell moreâ?¦.buy more equipment so you can grow even more. In fact you are helping the world economy with this logicâ?¦I do not grow for a living, I own a computer software company just to set the record straight and only do this as a hobby and because I love the challenge and reward too of growing the very best I can, just like the rest of you. Peace

hello zandor
i look forword to those ideas, like torog i have a fairly good knowledge of indoor and outdoor growing, i also aint to proud to learn more, so any ideas that would give me a better harvest will be most welcome, i am coming up on harvest time now so its now decision time on what i grow next, i think i will use my white widow x northern lights, these i have not staberlised yet and i will have to start these from seed as i have no mothers, at least i will get the change of flavour, these are also my crosses, this time the mother was a the best plant from a pack northern lights special mix and the father was a very fast white widow that i selected from my own strain, i did smoke some of it last year and it was a nice smoke, it just took a little more time to finish thats all, i checked the price of the hash plant x kush seeds that you talked of and they was coming out at £90 uk pounds for 15 seeds that were not even feminised, eeeeeeek i thought i would give them a try when my budjet will stretch that far, hehehe i have hundreds of seeds here i will try these this time, i am not affraid to spend a little money on my growing, i must just do it a little at a time, .... but most importently i must keep the med qualitys of my plants ......... peace to you mate

Well if you are good with tools then how aboutâ?¦.you go full hydro and do a screen of green method. Pick up a climate controller for temperature/humidity & Co2. Install Mylar in your grow area to increase side lighting to the canopy and increase bud size. Pick up a Co2 tank, timer and regulator to start but you really need a PPM controller for max efficiency (1500 ppm) and bud production. A home mister will handle the humidity in that small of an area. The controller will turn it on and off and maintain the required level of 70-80% during vegetation and lower it to 60% when you flower. Always keep the temperature between 72-80 F even if you need to use a portable AC unit. Temperature control is very important to maintain a stress free growing environment. Air needs to be provided to the lower part of the plants too not just the tops.

There are some other things too but in your small area I donâ??t think they will be a problem, but you still should exchange the air in your room twice a day minimum. I bet youâ??re now thinking how can I grow more in Hydro?

Well I will try my best to explain. If the whole area is square I mean 18â?� top 18â?� bottom and 7â?? top and 7â?? bottom then this works. If not just look at the area where it squares off and put up a back wall.


First you build a wood box holding tank that will fill from wall to wall 18â?� and is 36â?� long up to 40â?� long depending on how far back you can reach to work the plant. For the sake of argument I will use 36â?� here but just know you can play with the dimensions of course. You can install low caster wheels or use a heavy-duty 36â?� cabinet drawer roller. Just make sure you can push it in and pull it out with little effort. Here and I assume there you can purchase pond liner there too. Itâ??s thick plastic so you can use one whole piece to make the tub to hold the water. Run it over the top and down the side so you can staple it to keep it in place. Waterbed liner will work too about the same thing. Now you have how you are going to hold your water and change it so nextâ?¦..

Make sure you save enough liner to make 2 coverâ??s about 18â?� wide by 36â?� long.

You install 2x2x2 all the way round about 8â?� above the top of the holding tank you just built and installed.

Install one of the liner sheets at the back of the frame and let it hang into the holding tank itâ??s like a splashguard.

Making the deck lidâ?¦.
This is not a hard as it sounds. You need some marine plywood (if you canâ??t get any thatâ??s fine) ½â?� is ok to use. Now here we can purchase plastic tub sheets that are just flat sheets of plastic and again I assume you can find something like that there. The deck lid dimensions are only from wall to wall and 36â?� deep. You need to make a plastic sandwich with the plywood. You do that using contact glue once it dries you are good to start making your holes and plumbing. The ends just cover with glue and let it dry you can and should use plastic to make a full sandwich but you donâ??t really need to.

You can use 24 3â?� net pots in that area and they just hang through over the reservoir so when the dripâ?¦.drips it goes back in the reservoir and the capillary action will help to oxygenate the water.

You can use ½ â?? PVC and attach it to the deck lid on topside and just drill the ¼â?� drip fittings into the PVC and use a 90 to kick it into place. This way if you need to take a pot out you only need to deal with one feeding tube, just swing it out of the way and you are free to work. No emitters are needed they just clog up anyway and get in the way. Now I said you could use 3â?� net pots when you get those donâ??t forget to get the covers too. You can use them at the start and then later to help keep the waste from collecting on the grow rocks and light out too. If it were me building this I would put the PVC on the bottom and make a 1â?� standoff with PVC and just poke the ¼â?� tube through the top and then use the 90 and another little piece of tubing to swing it into place. You cap off the end of the PVC of course so the pressure builds up to feed all the tubes. By using a good power head you can use the diverter that is supplied to both circulate the nutrients around in the tub and feed the plants. Something like the Via Aqua 526 GPH. would work or the Rio Pumps 692 GPH. You can use a soft hose to connect to the PVC attached to the deck lid because you will be pulling out the holding tank to change the nutrients and clean it every 10 dayâ??s a few feet. You can use the same pump you feed the plants with to also drain the old nutrients into buckets for disposal. Wash out the holding thank with each water/nutrient change and use a flusher in between cycles and every 30 dayâ??s to flush the system and keep it clean. You place the second plastic sheet like the one you made in the back of the holding tank now you place it the front. It staples to the front of deck lid to cover the holding tank and keep light out.

About 24â?� above the deck lid install 2x2 to hold the screen this is just the holding frame so you only need 2 sides and the back firmly attached. Build a full frame to attach the chicken wire or I use 3x3 steel concert wire itâ??s stronger but most use chicken wire. Stretch it tight and use strong staples to keep it in place. One carriage bolt installed from the underside and acting like a stud bold on each of the 2 sides will hold the screen in place using a fender washer and wing nut. This way it can be removed until you need the screen so the light can get closer. Once the light is raised above the height of the screen you can then install it and should start the Flower cycle.

Thatâ??s about it, Mylar, Hydro drip 24/7, temperature and environment control along with Co2 will grow you better then 1.5 ounce per plant to 2 ounces per plant. Keep the canopy an even height by bending and tying down when you need to and crop them twice in the first 30-dayâ??s this will make them bushy and short. There is not much room for side growth so just keep the long shouts pointing to the light. The idea of this type of grow is short bushy and poke just the buds through the screen to maximize the lightâ??s effectiveness. After all you are only using top lighting so this is the best I can think of. Another thing is itâ??s a good idea if you have extra pond liner you line the sides from the bottom to the deck lid down into the holding tank. Just remember to put them back into place when you role in and out after each service to protect the walls.

I donâ??t have a working digital camera so I canâ??t show you pictures but if I can borrow one I can show you more detail.

I will be on and off over the next month or so. We are selling our house and moving. Itâ??s time to downsize with the kids grown and gone and get out of the city and move into the mountains. So lots to do around here but I will check back as often as I can.

thanks so much zandor, i will deffinatley be changing my grow technics, it will take time and money so i will implement it a bit at a time, i all ready have some of the stuff mentioned, after reading your post i think i understand what you mean, yes photos would be handy, i dont know if i could do sea of green in this room, the room is quite high about 7ft 6 to 8ft but becourse the top 2ft 6 is above the door opening, this leaves about 6ft high of accsessable area, is hydro the grow in a tube method, i am not sure but i think i can get two tubes 7ft long side by side in there, and have the holding tanks with pump under under the tubes, what i dont know is how far apart have the plants got to be if grown like this, i understand they would have to be single stalk buds, i have a small room that i keep two mothers for cuttings or seedlings, but i will be losing this soon as like you my kids are growing up and need the cubard space, thanks again for your help and may i wish you all the best with your move, be luckey

Well I was not talking about that. You could not reach the back of the room to tend to those plants and your existing light would not cover them either. I was just talking about expanding the same technique used in seek closets where you would grow lost of plants in a small area and the screen us used to train them. But thanks for the wishes and I will try to get pictures of some of the closets so you can have a better idea.

hello zandor
thanks mate i look forword to your pics, sorry its taken a long time to get back but things have been hectic here, i actauly spent 7 hours yesterday trimming, i am interested in your ideas mate they seem very interesting, have you any ideas for a medicinal plant that would work well with this technique, thanks mate and peace

hallo dude well done 4 geting best results in pots .nft is the wow! factor after that it will blow ur mind .try and get a look at a nft set up u will be buzzin.u might want 2 put a lightmover witjh ur 600hps .stay slippery

hello bonker,
thanks mate, i have listend to zandor and everybody else who has advised me, i am about to make some big changes to my room, firstley i think i can increase the amount of plants i have in there, the base of my g/room is all ready lined with a pond liner and comes up the wall about 8 inches, my real prob is that the width of my room is around 17 inches,at the moment i can only get 6 big pots in there, if i were to make one big pot that was the intire lengh and width of the base so there was no wasted space in between pots then i recon i could get at least another 6 to 8 plants in there, my room is quite high about 7ft 6 of grow hight, so i could easily make the huge pot 18 inches deep even more if needed, that would give the plants excelent root growth space, sure they would be single stalk buds but they will have good space for roots,

Q... for zandor could i implement the wire mesh above this to increase the amount of bud still further, i am begining to think about a moving light track do you think it will make that much difference,
thanks again and peace to you

hello zandor and bonker
i am if i can afford gonna get the moving trac for my room, i now think it will make all the difference,
question 1/ what is the NFT SET UP i have never heard of this ?

question 2/ zandor i think you told me about puting a wire mesh above my plants across the entire lengh of the room, i think i understand what you mean but i am in need of a little clarifacation as i want to implement this on my next grow, at what hight should this be above my plants and is there a perticular mesh size that would work best,
........... peace ...........

Chicken wire is used more then most and is fine. I build units that use a 2" square steel mesh and fine that works the best. I use the non galvanize wire and paint it white with an anti-rust type of paint. The galvanized steel may leave behind led because itâ??s used in the galvanized process as a bonding agent in most countries. You donâ??t want to smoke that shit it will kill you over time. Make a wooden frame and use staples to pull it tight. The idea of a see of green grow is lots of small plants growing in Hydroponics and you flower them from clones once they reach about 12â?� tall. The screen is placed about 6 to 8â?� and no more then 12â?� above the canopy. I got my camera fixed I hope so I will try to get you some pictures when I make my rounds later and check up on some of my friends.

Zandor... to what end are you putting the screen in place?.. whats the use of it?.. is it to force the plants to stay small?

In a screen of green method the idea is the same as see of green except you use a screen to manipulate the plants into place by poking the buds through the screen and keeping the leafs under it. You do need to have air moving at all times under the screen it will keep out any mold or other problems. The idea is still the same with a screen you can grow closer then you can without. All the light is top light and you use a lot of it as well as top air circulation. Co2 will make it grow even faster. You grow from clones and only need to veg them for 21-30 dayâ??s. This method does require a mother btw and you need to think a little different then most but itâ??s fast and can grow quit a lot of pot in a very short time.

thanks zandor
i will impliment this on my next grow, i have done something simular in my green house with leda uno plants, so i am quite confident in your idea,, i to will show pics when i am ready, i have not yet got my next grow going as my grow room has to double as a dry room, and some of those fat heads are still a little moist to put into curing.
now got new seeds 2x strawberry cough, 2x chronic, 2x ak47, 6x wwxbd
i think i will post a step by step photo guide when i start to help anyone who is interested
thanks again............... peace...............

fuck the screen dude .yes 4 a light mover .let them grow only a few main colons will give u a problem.elastic band pice of garding wire tie them up problem solved.keep plants short u dont get this problem a net is used when u are growing a warehouse full.cause its to mutch to do the way i just said. using a net on a normal garden gets in theway.stayslippery.

thanks bonker,
thats an interesting point, i will deffinatly try some kind of different method.