Help?

[DanKiller]

So this is the first grow in the winter so maybe Temps but before the tent was 75 to 82 in summer time. I do feel like the soil takes forever to dry out I water typically say Monday and then again on Friday so 3 whole days inbetween....typically.... I check the weight and stick my index finger all the way in the soil to make sure it's dry because I have overwatered one before and I was watering every say on Monday and again at that time typically on thursday....

This is why I add the pearlite and I add the ewc because I had an n deficiency the first grow so I assumed add a little and as I type this maybe I need to cut out the ewc because it was my first ever grow and just use the nutes I am 99% sure I probably fuxked up feeding them. Anyways back to the pearlite .... I meant to put an inch at the bottom of my pots this time (cloth pots) but I forgot. I do set them on a towel after watering to soak up some from the bottom so it doesn't sit there sopping wet and also so it don't drip in my tent. I like it very clean. Could no inch or 2 layer of pearlite at the bottom be causing issues?

First, raise your pots from the ground if you have cloth pots.
2nd, don't mix more then 20% ewc in your mix.
Also don't mix more then 30-40% perlite in your mix.
If you grow with ewc, don't add any nutes (salts anyway) until the plant has grown or show signs that it needs more nutrients.

i've also noticed that the parts of the plant in direct light are a different shade in color, including the buds, compared to the parts that my be farther down. As you can see on this one the growth in the middle/bottom is still green. so i think you're correct however it just blows my mind i should have my light at 25% ....... or less...

It's because different parts of the plant gets different qty of lights, so some ripe better and some don't.
You most def don't need to put your lights at 25% or lower, not in flower anyway.
Leds are known to hurt plants if they get too close, not all of them but it's a symptom that shows often under them..
So keep your lights at 80-100% but raise them if they cause trouble.

About your new plants, just keep it simple, quality soil with ewc, water when 50-70% dry, keep the humidity above 60 when vegging and your good to go

 

[Orin190]

First, raise your pots from the ground if you have cloth pots.
2nd, don't mix more then 20% ewc in your mix.
Also don't mix more then 30-40% perlite in your mix.
If you grow with ewc, don't add any nutes (salts anyway) until the plant has grown or show signs that it needs more nutrients.



It's because different parts of the plant gets different qty of lights, so some ripe better and some don't.
You most def don't need to put your lights at 25% or lower, not in flower anyway.
Leds are known to hurt plants if they get too close, not all of them but it's a symptom that shows often under them..
So keep your lights at 80-100% but raise them if they cause trouble.

About your new plants, just keep it simple, quality soil with ewc, water when 50-70% dry, keep the humidity above 60 when vegging and your good to go

thank you!

I do set them on metal grates so they get airflow beneath tey're heavy duty but it's more of a cookie drying rack. What i am getting at is it doesn't sag and sit on the ground.

definitely no more than 20% EWC .... i think i have mis-understood EWC i thought it was straight nitrogen and I assumed it would like go away or dissipate or the plant would use all the N from it by the time flower hit......

definitely less than 30% pearlite

I think i need to do more research or just flat out cut out EWC....

 

[DanKiller]

Don't cut the ewc, I use 10-15% in all my pots, it's bulletproof, no toxicity.
The thing is that people tend to think it needs more...
Add ewc and look at your plants as they progress, you can always add more on top of the pot (ewc) and give water, that will give nutes without burning them.
As you go you can start learning and trying to add salts if needed or you are tired of handling ewc.
The most important thing is, water makes plants grow, not nutes.
Think about it like your body, you need all the vitamins and minerals but you eat and drink water not vitamins only, so go easy with the salts.

 

[MtRainDog]

Keep a large fan blowing over the pots at all times to encourage faster drying. You don't want hard dry backs, but you do want a fast wet/dry cycle, almost like flood/drain. This is easy for me in 1 gal pots, but it is a little tougher for an auto just starting out in a large 3 or 5 gal pot.

The big thing to avoid is a wet root ball stuck in the middle of your fabric pot. I don't run autos, so I can up-pot. I usually go solo cup > 1/2 gallon nursery pot > 1 gal fabric pot.

When they're starting out, watering should be as minimal as you can get away with in a large pot like that.

I see a lot of temps/humidity numbers flashed around these threads. Yes, vpd and all that is great, but it is a theoretical chart, and not every plant is the same. It's a great guideline to follow, but weed grows fine outside of the ideal range too. Winter in my parts is dry. Humidity in the 20-30% range. My temps will vary from 60-80F. I don't notice any problems, I don't run a humidifier. Not saying those things are pointless, but they aren't necessary either imo.

 

[MtRainDog]

I wouldn't add the perlite to the bottom of your pot, but I would get the pot off the floor. You can put an inch or perlite or clay balls in a tray and put your pot on top of that.

 

[DanKiller]

I found most species like sunny rain forest mode
Xplosive growth as they say
85+ RH, 30-32C, watch the magic happen.