These two Epsilon cultivars are 47 days old, near end of/beginning of what I reckon is 3rd week of flower. I’ve been watering them sparingly throughout. But as they grow, I find they naturally require more and more water. Today’s Saturday evening. I watered them on Wednesday, just 750ml/25 oz each. And I watered them again, 1.5 litres/50oz each on Friday morning… before doing so, I lifted the pots, and they felt really light. Hence the watering.
At same time, I also turned the SF1000 EVO 100W Full Spectrum LED Grow Light up to 90%… it was at 70% before… But then on Friday evening just before lights out on 18/6, they looked droopy and sad. sat morning I turned the light down to 80%. The attached photo is still how they (still) look. They seem to me otherwise healthy.
I’m assuming I’ve either watered them too much or given them too much light. But is that right?
Light is 15-16" (about 40cm) from main canopy. Soil is moist to touch but by no means drenched. It never is/was. The latest watering mentioned above still had hardly any run-off. Is the droopiness about the water or the lights? And should the plant, maybe counter to my feeling, have more rather than less of both?
Epslion!! I have one about 2 weeks old right now great looking plant. Maybe do they lights 24" away at the 80%.i dont think its the watering. I water my big girls every 2 days so
Plants learn the light cycle and begin drooping as lights-out time approaches. Check them an hour or so after lights-on and see if they’re still droopy.
I agree on dense flowering with that lamp. Can do what you can to tighten the footprint by lowering it till it only covers plant area no spillover. As long as canopy heat permits. You wont over power the plant. That lamp cant but tighter lit area stops a lot of the photons wasted outside the plants footprint. Just my thoughts on maximizing all it puts out.
If you can provide a little more information we can analyze the situation much better.
Could tent temperature, root system or various other issues.
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-What strain, Seed bank, or bag seed (photo or auto)
-Age of plant
-Method: Soil w/salt, Organic soil, Hydroponics, Aquaponics, KNF
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If growing Hydro some additional questions:
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Mmm, ok. I bought this light because it was especially compatible with the tent–the smallest Spider Farmer had (2 wide, x 2 deep, x 4 feet high). This was the light sold with / recommended by the vendor. I suppose I imagined/thought/read somewhere that newest LED lights could, I dunno, be more than the sum of their wattage. I guess with tools I have at disposal at this time, I’ll see it through and then evaluate. But it begs the question still: if my light is not strong enough, then the plants can’t have drooped because of the light… unless, again (and this is my main question), it’s because the light is not strong enough, as opposed to too bright? This light runs really cool, and the temp / relative humidity in the tent is about 21-22c/70-72 Fahrenheit / 55% in the day and 18-20c / 60% at night. The light’s been at about 16" above canopy. Spider Farmer instructions say during flowering, I want light 12-18" above canopy and 75-100%. I’m worried about going closer-more intense, but maybe that’s the ticket?
Use the back of your hand (not palm). If it gets hot to your exposed bare skin, lights are too close. HLG’s recommend 15-25inches above (depending upon stage). At 20-25 inches I have grown. I should try lower and closer.
I think your watering practices are the culprit. I think your girls are showing thirst droop. Cannabis does not like frequent fertigation in soil. Flood to drought. I would think a gallon every 3-4 days is where you should be. The soil needs to dry out so she can get oxygen to the roots.
Thanks @Bonjoyle! I was actually about to ask about watering…
In your view, I’m watering too frequently, too little? I should be watering more? I’ve been erring on side of caution.
Normally, I water 2x week, (only 750ml-1.5lt / 0.2-0.4 gallons per plant at a time). I certainly don’t water anywhere close to 1 gallon (per plant you think?) at one time.
You are recommending flood to drought?
If I gave them each 1 gallon each I’d need to take them out of the tent because of all the run-off, wouldn’t I?
Also, re: NUTES:
I’ve been giving the plants recommended doses of BioBizz Bio Bloom, Bio Grow, and Top Max). But I’ve been doing this every time I water them… oops? I’ve been reading recently that one doesn’t given nutes every time one waters.
This morning I noticed a few leaves displaying this discoloration (see first pic). Only like 3-4 leaves have this, but it’s def. something, maybe nute burn…? explicable given how I’ve been (mis)watering them?
Plants look mostly healthy otherwise; the “droop” makes them look distinctly “under-whelmed” (see second pic).
We as cannabis caretakers do not do things by rote.
Yes, I think you are watering way too little. Salt builds up if you do not water to runoff. Salts will completely screw up your rootzone pH and if it gets out of range 6.0-6.8, even if you had food in the soil, she would not be able to eat and thus creates another batch of problems.
A few questions for you.
Do you know how much your girls eat? Do you measure ppms or pH?
Feeding is only offered when she is hungry and you cannot know that unless you measure run off out and ppms.
The gallon reference was not specific to your grow just that in that size pot, I would be watering about a gallon. Actually what we want is about 20% runoff out the bottom so whatever amount of water will get you there is what you should be doing. You also water slowly. You should grab anything that can catch this run off, a drip tray or whatever you have on hand.
Ok, nice one, thanks! I think I read that overwatering was the newbie error, so I obviously went too hard the other direction. The plants are not tall, but have looked (to me) pretty healthy otherwise. Maybe their shortness (aside from being a trait of the cultivar) is also a function of under-watering? As I say, the fact they didn’t look like they were literally dying felt to me to be an okay thing! I’ll def. water them more.
For someone without the nous or experience (yet) of knowing when a plant looks hungry, does feeding every time seem too much? Maybe every OTHER time is better? I don’t even know what PPMS are… (Later): Does that refer to TDS (Total Dissolved Solids)? Not that I know what that is. And I’m also not measuring PH either… Eeek. my wife’s gonna love all this new kit I need! I appreciate the response, @Bonjoyle, and the patience… It’ amateur hour round here!
We do not feed on a schedule. Every time, every other time, Do not do this. We feed when she is hungry and the only way to know without doubt is to measure what is left in the soil when we catch the run off.
Yes, PPMS/TDS same. Parts Per Million/Total Dissolved Solids.
All you need is a pH pen and PPM pen and they have combos so you would only need to buy 1 thing.
Without measuring pH, again you have no way of knowing if the pH is where it needs to be for her to eat what is available.
Thanks @Bonjoyle! So I’ve ordered a device to measure PPMS and PH. But now it begs for me the even more BASIC question: if I’m to measure the run off for PPMS and PH, i.e., if I measure what the levels are only after the next watering (which I now feel needs to happen pronto), what do I water with now, in order to get the the run off I need for the readings?
I’m presuming that I should water with what I feel should be the ideal PH (6.5?) but without nutrients… but maybe with recommended “preventive” dose of Calmag, which I’ve also just read about think I might also need)), and then just see, based on that, how much or little to feed with nutes next time? Interim I’m going to get some PH+/- today as well.
So I watered the plants and measured the run off water with a TDS/EC tester (a decent one I think, 4+ star rating on site from 1,000s of reviews). It shows some surprising numbers. Run-off water = 370 ppm, μm/cm = 740. I’ve taken a quick look around and that seems radically low. So these plants are starving?
But the weird thing is, I tested some of the nuted-water I used to feed the plants last time, and it’s values are LOWER than what came out as in 20-30% run-off… which I can’t get my head round. If I’m not giving the plants enough food, why does the run off read higher than what I put in? But in either case, this is way too low for plants in mid flower, right?
My partner’s actually, just now accidentally, thrown out the water I was testing before I could check it for PH, in case that’s an issue. I’ve been using filtered water that runs about 7.0 ph, or I’ve read. BioBizz, the company that makes the nutes I’m using, say their products bring ph down a bit. So I should be ok?
Plants are still looking broadly content, but newer fan leaves nearer the bud sites are distinctly less green than elsewhere. And slowly, slowly, some of the leaves are starting to show signs of… some unhappiness. Any ideas what that is?
But the moral of story is, assuming my TDS/PPM tester is not telling me lies, that I need to significantly up the nutrients at this point, right? Like to 1000-1250ppm range? Pictures attached for reference. Thanks for any comments or advice.
Yea i would up the nutes a bit… try to get it to 1000ppm. I would slso still test ph of water, yeah the nute ph down a bit but wanna make sure its not down too much
MAintain about 1000ppms. When you test runoff, if it is lets say 550, then you need to add the balance of 450 on your next watering of course ph’d to 6.5.
