So I’ve bounced around this forum for a while and made a few posts but I believe that a grow journal may help me the most, as they seem to generate a lot of great advice. I have grown for personal consumption outside for a number of years with decent success but this is a whole new game. I actually have my first ever indoor grow almost completed and feel I have the basics down but I definitely had some issues and could still use and would appreciate a lot of help.
EQUIPMENT
10 X10 Gorilla tent
Two 6” 442 CFM fans with 6” charcoal filters
Inkbird IHC200 humidity controller
Inkbird ITC310T temperature controller
Two BC Blondes Game Changer 340 watt LED’s
One Iluminar il8 670 watt LED
One Spectrum King Closet Case 140 watt LED
Four 4 gallon Autopots and reservoir
Four 6.6 gallon XL Autopots and reservoir
8 airdomes
One 50 watt aeration compressor with 8 way splitter
Aquarium heater for reservoir
Small pump on timer for reservoir
HydroGardener TMA-HGPro Reverse Osmosis system
Eight 6” clip fans
One 18” pedestal fan
Large humidifier and de-humidifier
Canna Coco Coir mixed with perlite
GH Flora series nutrients
CalMag
Two 4x4 rolling homemade SCROG tables
Looks like you’re off to a good start. If you can move some of the equipment outside of the tent, you’ll reduce temperatures inside. Fans can stay obviously.
So for my first attempt I just used some random bag seeds as I figured I would screw things up anyways but this time around I will be using feminized Green Crack and Blue Dream.
Out of the 8 original seeds I started I ended up with 3 females one of which I ended up killing early on when I accidentally crushed it. Of the two survivors One plant was a cross from a green crack mother that I grew outside that got heavily seeded when it got inadvertently pollinated by someone else’s weed and one was a granddaddy purple bag seed.
Oddly the green crack went into flower while still under 18/6 light and the GD Purple is currently finishing week 2 of a straight water flush. The GD Purple has suffered with deficiencies from very early on that I was never able to fix and although it looks rough it does have some decent looking buds.
Here are a few pictures from that first attempt.
Heat actually isn’t a problem yet as its still cold here, in fact I had to keep a small heater in the tent to keep temps up. It will get warmer though especially since I ended up having just the two quantum board lights on for most of the grow.
I am also considering taking down the SCROG frame I built this time as it was a pain in the ass to get around and work on or move the plants . I think I could get away with LST or manifolding without the nets and frame.
From your pictures I see potassium/phosphorus deficiencies, as well as nutrient burn into flowering. That’s the best I can do with out a support ticket and knowing what you’re feeding it and when.
This best improvement is proper NPK ratios as well as timing of primary nutrients. Proper TDS/PPM measuring of nutrient solutions going in, and checking run off, will give you a better understanding of what the plant is asking for, and not asking for.
I’m not hydro grower so probably not a lot of help there, but 5.5 to 6.2 seems like night swing. I know some play the swing to make more nutrients available over course of adjustments, but could easily show some deficiencies too.
Second grow has officially started.
I soaked 4 Blue Dream and 4 Green Crack from one seed bank and 4 Green Crack from another and will eventually clone the best example of each for future grows. I did a 16 hr soak in spring water then transferred to paper towels on a plate.
I feel this is the biggest learning curve for me growing with hydroponics as I didn’t even fertilize my outdoor grows other than some bone and blood meal and a bit of time release. Can you suggest a good chart or guide for these ratios and timing ? I am using GH Flora series nutrients.
Also I have read about and think I understand the principle of checking run off but I am unsure how to do this with Autopots as they technically don’t have runoff, they just constantly have water in the tray. I have checked ppm in the tray and the reservoir before and they both seemed to be the same.
General Hydroponics has a schedule on their website.
As far as the basic principles of timing, I assure you that it’s something everyone has a challenge with to a point. The Nutrient schedule will be your guide for the most part.
Please feel free to tag anyone that may be either interested in following or helping. I do not know a lot of the members in this community so I just tagged a couple that I saw making posts about Autopots. Thanks
So I got busy for a day and didn’t get my seeds under a light soon enough after they popped and they really stretched looking for light. Because of this I transplanted up to the next size nursery bag sooner than I wanted too but it allowed me to bury them deeper and get them under a light. I cleaned out the tent and harvested my GrandDaddy Purple plant that was part of my “experimental “ run. I also decided to remove my scrog setup as I found it to be more hindering than helpful. It made it impossible to lift and move the Autopots once the plants had entered the net and I felt it really wasn’t necessary for the amount of plants and type of grow I plan on.
