HELP! ROOTBOUND or JUST SLOW GROWING?

[Weedhound]

So my plants are 40 days into flowering and they look like complete wimps....usually at 40 days they are tons bigger than this. I took one down yesterday since they all seemed so stuck in hibernation and found the bottom 3 inches of the waterfarm solid roots. I drilled some extra holes in the bottom about 2 weeks ago which seemed to help for awhile but they have slowed back down. The yield is about 1/2 of what I normally get from my plants but I really supercropped them too. This morning I have drilled more holes but REALLY need opinions on whether the wiser souls think they have a couple more weeks growing to do or they just rootbound and wimped out. ???

Weedhound Reviewed by Weedhound on 02-22-2007. HELP! ROOTBOUND or JUST SLOW GROWING? So my plants are 40 days into flowering and they look like complete wimps....usually at 40 days they are tons bigger than this. I took one down yesterday since they all seemed so stuck in hibernation and found the bottom 3 inches of the waterfarm solid roots. I drilled some extra holes in the bottom about 2 weeks ago which seemed to help for awhile but they have slowed back down. The yield is about 1/2 of what I normally get from my plants but I really supercropped them too. This morning I Rating: 5

[Weedhound]

Like....you know....what people need to know.....I am using Botanicare, Cal Mag, hydroplex, pro bloom, Sweet and LK to 1300 ppms....this is the same as I always use. Temps are low 70's, no way to measure humidity. Lighting is 1kw HPS between two and three feet from the plants with a few extra regular 100w bulbs thrown in. I have been 100% religous about the ph....5.6 to 5.9 and checked two to three times a day. I did supercrop them within an inch of their lives but have also noticed the tons of "rootage" they have. Also unfortunately my trusty $5 RadioShack microscope went on the blink. I have ordered a new one but it hasnt arrived yet so I am completely unable to tell trichomes most likely for another several days (snowing here right now). I need to know whether to start flushing these wimps or give them some sort of bud-booster. Thanks for any help or advice!!

[Zandor]

it was the super cropping that has caused your issue you are describing.

Each time you crop you ad 10-14 days to the veg cycle just to get back to the point in the growth where you started the crop.

In other words if you cropped say at week 2 for example then week 3 is wasted time as the plant need to recover and spend time and energy on recovery rather then new aged growth and moving forward. so you can't really count the recovery time as part if the true veg cycle time.

And super cropping you cropped more then once most time or you cut it way to close. You have an older root system and a younger structure system so yes give it plenty of drainage and room for the roots to grow out even more. That is one of the major setbacks in doing cropping.

[Weedhound]

Bless you oh knowledgable Zandor. You have described me perfectly.....I do believe I have about loved them practically to death. I am getting my new super duper microscope today so will be able to check the trichomes again and have learned my lesson about "improving" things (well I say that but really .....) I may have to go out and buy some sort of "Owner Off" type spray for them to keep me from picking on them so much. Should I keep them on the flowering nutes? Somebody mentioned using Budswel and ph'd water. What is your knowledgable thought on that?

[MisterE]

What should you do now? Flower them for longer? Or is the end result going to be that they needed more Veg time, which it's too late for? And at this point if the tric's are ripe, you have to harvest regardless?
They sure look pretty anyway.

"Owner Off" spray, lol. You could rig up some pepper spray to a laser alarm system so that if you break the beam..... well, you wont make that mistake again, hehe.
:yippee:

[Weedhound]

Hey Mr E.....where you been? Good to see you back. I was actually thinking of something a little stronger...flamethrower etc where all you would see after it's all over is a little pile of dust and some bushy smiling plants. Or perhaps make a carniverous (finger eating) strain. I might be able to get rich! Grabbing onto big Z's advice I did drill a bunch more holes in it but also spoke to my hydro guy who suggested putting them on just Pro Bloom at 500ppms--no Cal Mag or anything else and just let them finish. I do seem to see some thickening around the nodes but at this point it could just be wishful thinking on my part.

[xcrispi]

Hey Weedhound ,
Really sorry your havin probs. sis . When we emptied out all the used hydroton -n- root systems from the last grow here the root systems were giant ass squares regardless of all the crazy roots hangin in the dwc club pics . When mine acted this way grow before last i thought it was from stress -n- being mean to em topping / super cropping , but it was because fool didn't go buy a p/h pen -n- got lazy w/ p/h -n- got nute lok out . lol . stuck in limbo sustaining - but not even trying to finish .
I really hope it was just from stress of super cropping -n- they bounce back for ya . 3gal . root sys. in my new style buckets might not be such a bad thing . Were gonna go back n drill even more holes in bottoms too .
Take care
Peace
The Crispis' :jointsmile:

[Weedhound]

Hi X-C!

Well this has been my grow from hell and it's all my own fault. I poked and pestered these poor plants no end. Thank god they are weeds or they'd have died off long ago. Everything else I try to grow just does that...croaks....even the ones I try to leave alone: Roses, fruit trees, whatever....just go.... That's why I love my hydro so much! I honestly did mean to drill those holes in the farms and completely forgot but they HAVE SOME HOLES IN THEM NOW BY GOD!! There are some pretty brown looking roots coming out of some of them but others look ok. My hydro guy mentioned some sort of "enzyme" to add to help keep the roots from dying off. We are having "weather issues" at the moment so can't get to buying some for a few days but will grabbing some when I can. My hubby and I both thought that perhaps they were starting to thicken but we could possibly be using our rose-colored glasses :jointsmile:

I did want to ask you about flowering your blueberries....you said nine weeks right and possibly ten? What were you seeing on your plants that made you wait and wait? Trich color? Bud size? About what would you expect to see about week six or so if you had....say.....taken a baseball bat to your plants?

[mackSwell]

I'm about to give you more ways to mess with your plant, so if you're really trying to leave it alone, don't read. *grin*

1) Although your cropping & roots are the major cause of stalled flowering, here's some food for thought on humidity:

I'm on my first hydro grow, and I, like you, have not invested in any humidity-measuring equipment yet. But early in flower, I noticed that flowering had stalled, and thought my humidity might be too low. I raised it, and the plant exploded with buds overnight. So you might try boosting your humidity.

No need to invest in anything hefty to do it... The first time I just put a layer of hydroton in a shallow Rubbermaid-like lid (about 1' x 2'), put it in the grow closet, and watered this "pebble tray" regularly. Then I hung a damp towel behind my fan & kept that damp, too.

Now I've kicked it up a notch: I've got one of those steam cleaner things that looks like a teakettle with a hose on the spout, and I use that to give the whole grow closet a blast of steam every couple of days. A drug-store vaporizer (like your mom used to put in your room when you were sick as a kid) is another good option, and you can get one for under $10. Just remember to run a fan at night after humidity blasts to help keep your buds from getting moldy in the dark hours.

2) As for your roots, I've not had that problem as I have one plant in a 10 gal tub, but have dealt with it in soil applications. If you can bear adding even more time till harvest, you can correct the rootbound sitch now, which will likely help growth.

Wet your fingers in rez solution, and then tease apart your clump of roots as best you can. Some will break, and that's what will stall your growth again, but once it recovers it will grow much more vigorously. (Besides, after cropping, you really have more roots than your plant needs to support the green growth it has.) Keep the roots under water while you're doing it, else your plant will probably wilt drastically. Then add 3% hydrogen peroxide to your rez, about a tsp per gallon, every 24 hours for a couple of days. This will help the roots that are still stiffled in the tangle to get the oxygen they need, and it will help prevent root rot by killing off any slimy stuff.

And if your rez temp feels vaguely warm, throw a few ice cubes in a few times a day. Roots like it cold, and the stuff that rots them doesn't.

Or just ignore everything I've said. As I mentioned, it's my first hydro grow. *wink*

[xcrispi]

Hi X-C!

Well this has been my grow from hell and it's all my own fault. I poked and pestered these poor plants no end. Thank god they are weeds or they'd have died off long ago. Everything else I try to grow just does that...croaks....even the ones I try to leave alone: Roses, fruit trees, whatever....just go.... That's why I love my hydro so much! I honestly did mean to drill those holes in the farms and completely forgot but they HAVE SOME HOLES IN THEM NOW BY GOD!! There are some pretty brown looking roots coming out of some of them but others look ok. My hydro guy mentioned some sort of "enzyme" to add to help keep the roots from dying off. We are having "weather issues" at the moment so can't get to buying some for a few days but will grabbing some when I can. My hubby and I both thought that perhaps they were starting to thicken but we could possibly be using our rose-colored glasses .

I did want to ask you about flowering your blueberries....you said nine weeks right and possibly ten? What were you seeing on your plants that made you wait and wait? Trich color? Bud size? About what would you expect to see about week six or so if you had....say.....taken a baseball bat to your plants?

Hey Weedhound ,
W/ blueberry - trich. color was deciding factor . I look at them now that they're cured and most of trichs. are milky , maybe less than 10% were amber . I think i should of waited even longer . The mongrel plant gets me much higher . I bred a bunch of feminised blueberry beans though so i'd never have to buy the strain again if your interested in doing that strain again ? There's a new thread on here already w/ the offspring seeds up -n- going by Markass .
My roots don't stay pretty white either , not brown though . I think it's the G/H 3 pt. staining the roots ? I really dont think more stress is the answer like Mackswell is talking though w/ pissing off the root sys. anymore . I think patience will be your cure , i hope . Keep a close eye on trich. color -n- watch see if they're getting any further along . If not , then i'll loan ya my Louisville slugger . lol .
Good luck sis . Keep me posted . Look in my thread on Burns , Amputations -n- Phantom pain -n- snag my contact info -n- holler via. Hotmail .
Take care
G/B to you -n- yours
The Crispis' :S5: