PART 2 OF 2
Week 9
–Keep the humidity low to prevent fungus (=55%).
- Water plants according to nutrient solution-recipe 4.
-Check the biggest buds for fungus. Carefully bend a large bud open until you see the branch. Look for white or brown fungal hairs, brown and grey spots and slimy places. Usually a mouldy top also has parched, yellow or brown leaves. Look for fungus near an ugly leaf in the large tops. When in doubt show an affected top at the growshop. If you find fungus, it’s best to harvest at once since it might spread quickly.
-If 2/3rd of the weed hairs are brown you can harvest.
SNS bank nr: 93.66.05.456 Website: Growside Maastricht V.O.F. E-mail: info@growside.nl K.v.K. Zuid-Limburg nr. 14635027
Hoogbrugstraat 32 6221 CR Maastricht Tel: +31 (0)43-3219727 Fax: +31 (0)43-3219702
Galjoenweg 81 6222 NT Maastricht Tel: +31 (0)43-3627990 Fax: +31 (0)43-3627651
Watering the plants
• Water is the source of life of a plant. One must be very precise here too.
• A few pointers:
• Temperature of the water is equal to the temperature of the soil (approximately 23° C).
• If you put out the water a day sooner, harmful chemicals such as chlorine vaporize.
• If you intend to regulate the ph of the nutrient solution you must do this the entire harvest, every time you give nutrient or don’t do it the entire harvest. Keep the pH constant.
• Close the tap after you have finished!!!
• Never mix A and B without water.
Planting recipe
• 1 ml/l Canna coco A and 1 ml/l Canna coco B
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz Root stimulator
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz Booster Indica
• CO2-tabs 1 pill/100 litres
• pH=5.7
Feed water recipe 1
• 2 ml/l Canna coco A and Canna coco B
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz Root stimulator
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz coco Booster Indica
• CO2-tabs 1 pill/100 litres
• PH=5.7
Nutrient solution recipe 2
• Dependent on the colour of the leaves and the values in the soil between 1 and 4 ml/l Canna coco A and B
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz coco Booster Indica
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz coco Bloom stimulator
• CO2-tabs 1 pill/100 litres
• PH=5.7
Nutrient solution recipe 3
• Dependent on the colour of the leaves and the values in the soil between 1 and 4 ml/l Canna coco A and B
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz coco Bloom stimulator
• CO2-taps 1 pill/100 litres.
• PH= average 5.7 unless you have to regulate from your measured drain soils.
Nutrient solution recipe 4
• Test the soil. If the EC is high and the pH is low the soil cannot be used for the next harvest unless you flush away the accumulated salts and acids. Flush out the soil with Cannazym (see flush water recipe).
If the values are good (EC<1.7 and ph=5.5-5.9), you don’t have to flush, but should use Cannazym to break down dead roots.
Try to arrange that the coco is empty at the end of the harvest without there being a nutrient shortage. You usually reduce the amount of nutrient in the last week until you water the plants the last time(s) without it.
• Cannazym 2/5 ml/litre
• 1 ml/l B’cuzz coco Bloom stimulator
• CO2-tabs 1 pill/100 litres
• PH=average 5.7 unless you have to regulate from your measured drain soils.
Flush water recipe
• 1 ml/l Canna coco A and B
• 2.5 ml/l Cannazym
• pH= average 5.7 unless you have to regulate from your measured drain soils.
Spray water recipe
• Temperature of the water is equal to the temperature of the air
• no PH-regulation
• Add insecticide or anti-web agent according to label on product.
Explanation of products used
-
Canna coco A + B nutrient
This is a ready-to-use 2-component nutrient for grow and bloom on coco. The nutrient regulates the pH a little so that it is unnecessary to regulate the pH yourself.
Dose: between 1 and 4 ml per litre.
EC- values between 1.2 and 2.4 cm/mS. dependent on the tap water and period. -
B’cuzz Coco Booster Indica
This is a grow stimulator used in the first 4 weeks.
It contains vitamins, amino acids, and other substances that, among other things, improve the metabolism and nutrient absorption via the roots.
Dose: 1ml/l during the first 4 weeks. -
B’cuzz Root stimulator
This stimulator stimulates root growth and is given the first 10 days.
Dose: 1ml/l the first 10 days. -
B’cuzz Coco Bloom stimulator
This bloom stimulator simplifies the production of bloom hormones and causes a quicker bloom. A plant that grows fast can remain small because it stops growing sooner. You usually use the bloom stimulator when you stop using the root stimulator.
Dose: 1ml/l from day 12. -
pH - grow
This is an acid (nitric acid) with a base of nitrogen. Since nitrogen is used a lot during growth it is the best acid to regulate the ph during growth.
Dose: by means of pH-meter (pH between 5.2 and 6.2). -
pH –bloom
This acid has a base of phosphor (phosphoric acid). Since this is an important nutritious element during bloom it can be used to regulate the pH during bloom.
Dose: by means of pH-meter (pH between 5.2 and 6.2). -
Co2-tabs
This is a pill that gives additional CO2 to your nutrient solution. Each organic molecule contains a carbon molecule (C) which the plant absorbs from the CO2.
Dose: 1 pill per 100 litres of water. -
Masai Bayer anti-web for vegetables/fruit
Insecticide purely against web (red spider mites). Especially spray under the leaves
Dose: according to label -
Buzz off
Biological insecticide against plant louse, thrips and other insects.
Only use before flower formation.
Dose: 1ml/litre preventive, up to 3 ml/litre maximum -
Cannazym
This is a product to loosen the blocked nutrient in the coco with the intention to flush it out. It also accelerates the break down of organic remains (dead roots) in the soil.
Dose: 2.5ml/litre -
Super thrive
This product with a base of “growth hormone production stimulating” ingredients can be given during the first 4 weeks to plants that develop slowly and stay behind.
Dose: daily 10 drops in 10 litres of water or 1/4ml / litre once only.
Cutting and drying
During the last days you must try and regulate the soil humidity in such a way that the soil is dry when you start cutting. If a lot of cutting is not a problem and if you want to have optimal smell and taste you now only need to cut the plants below the stem, and hang them upside down in the dark with a temperature of 18-20°C and some ventilation (do not aim at plants). Regularly check the flowers for dryness and fungus. Each bud with fungus must be removed from the room quickly and carefully. When the stems are dry 10 to 20 days later you cut the leaves of the tops and afterwards the tops from the stems. The buds must feel dry, but fatty now. Collect the leaves if you want to make skuff later on. The flowers are now ready to be used or to be packed.
In practise few people seem to be working this way, often the end product is dried within 10 days and sold. Due to ignorance during drying you may loose taste and smell, but if it’s dried the correct way this weed will also smell and taste great. Often the weed is dried and packed after 8 days and ripens further in the bag, which causes chlorophyll (leaf green) to break down in sugars, and the weed will taste optimally only after opening the bag or preserving jar a week later. Especially the big growers cut the weed immediately after harvest nowadays, and not after drying. The advantages are: less work, faster drying, less risk, and the possibility to use electric cutters. These are economical advantages as you can see, which are often more important to the bigger growers than optimum quality. Here too it is optimal to have dry soil at harvesting day. First strip the large leaves. These are the leaves without crystals and a long stem. Put the main bud in your hand and pull the large leaves downwards. This way they break off along the stem without leaving a stalk. You can throw away the leaves. The small leaves that are left are covered by crystals which you can use to make skuff (Dutch hash) later on.
You subsequently cut the plant near the stem and cut the little hash-rich leaves with small scissors (or electric cutter). Carefully collect these leaves and dry them in a dark and dust free room for three weeks with a humidity of <50%. Hang the cut plant upside down in the dark at a temperature of 18-20°C and a humidity of 55-60%.
Let the plants dry for 3 to 4 days, but do not let them become “crisp dry”. Cut the flowers from the stems and place them on drying racks. Let the flowers become “crisp dry” at the same conditions as before. Do not forget to turn the flowers now and again to prevent fungus. If you think the weed is almost ready you put the flowers in a bag or pot and check them every 12 hours. The remaining moisture spreads out equally through the weed and it may feel moister than when you put it in. In that case remove the weed from the jar or bag and dry it some more. You can repeat this process several times. Preferably put too moist weed in the bag too soon than putting too dry weed in the bag too late, because you can’t do anything then. You cannot make weed that is too dry moist again. If the inner stalk of a large bud is dry, and the weed did not feel moister after 24 hours in the bag the batch is usually ready to be packed. Try to prevent the flowers from becoming too dry because that affects the quality and the yield. Since the end product is a consumer product hygiene is not a luxury.
Making Skuff
The leaves you have dried for 3 weeks still contain many crystals which you can use to make top quality hash. You need a good sieve, or even better a shitshaker, skuffbuzzer or pollinator.
These are ready-to-use hash makers you can buy in the shop. You can easily and accurately separate the leaves from the crystals by sieving. Each machine shakes the leaves in a different way. When you buy a hash maker the shop employee can tell you how the machine works. For all three applies that the longer you sieve the leaves the more hash you have, but the poorer the quality (more leaves fall through the sieve).
In the end you have the sieved crystals that still have to be pressed. Sometimes the crystals need to be warmed during pressing. You can press in many ways, by hand, between a door or with a jack. In order to learn this it is best to make small batches, that way you can see differences between, for example, long and short sieving, hard and soft pressing or warm and cold pressing for yourself. Make bags of cellophane and tape, put the pollen in and press firmly. Tape the bag securely. Press the first bag without using warmth, the bigger the bag and the poorer the quality, the more pressure you need. You can press small plates of a few grams between a door. Larger plates must be pressed with a press, jack or car. The growshop sells special pressers with moulds.
If the cold pressed plate is whole after pressing and does not fall apart the quality is usually good. If the plate has a dark colour from the oils in the pollen you usually have top quality. If the plate falls apart or feels sandy you should use warmth and more pressure. Wrap the plate in a wet newspaper and bake it in an old frying pan (without butter). If the paper begins to smoke the plate is warm enough to be pressed. You will now get a more solid plate. If the powder still doesn’t stick the pollen is dehydrated or there is too much leaf powder mixed through the pollen (green, sieved too long) or your leaf material did not have the proper quality.
To conclude
There are many other good growing methods with even better results, but if you want to use this method please follow these instructions as precisely as possible. Different methods require different ways of thinking and to prevent misunderstandings you must follow the advice of one teacher only. You only need to follow these instructions precisely and that’s all.
Will
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