Wanted to try a grow, so here we go... C99

[Kite High]

IMO high P foods are not desired at ANY TIME when growing in containers. The practice of high P foods for flower/bloom is a bleed over from Agriculture to Outdoor Gardening and very mistakenly applied to indoor/container gardening. The reason for the high P in Ag is P binds very regularly to organic materials and leaches away quickly causing deficiencies. So farmers combat this by upping the P and it worked. For a while. Then they found that they would have to do all sorts of extra work later after years as the soil was now P contaminated and leaching into ground water. Now they employ much smarter practices. But it's foothd is strong as it was the way for so long.

Now this was also caressed by indoor growers. And cannibis growers in complete error. First the P does not leech off in containers like in outdoor soil and it does bind at near the degree it does in outdoor soil. Even more interesting is that of all the Macros Cannabis uses P the least even in flower. It uses three times more calcium in flower than it does P! This all from plant tissue analysis. Most of the time it is this mistaken practice of high P foods which causes the premature leaf loss in flower that so many think is normal. In actuality if cannabis is properly fed and grown the leaf drop signals that it is past it's prime and sesanence or annual death after anthesis is occurring.

 

[GreatDane]

Haven't been able to get on for a few days so a little update. Flipped 14 days ago and things are still nice and green and growing. Fed yesterday with Gro and Micro (7-1-7) and the runoff PH was between 6.0 and 6.2. The biggest has stretched to 29" and the runt is 16". Some flowers are forming and all 4 are female. I need to do some trimming as I only have 430 watts and a lot of shade is going on. I know that my yield won't be stellar with this amount of light, but it's what I have. I will post some photos of day 20 to compare with the other C'99 day 20 pics on here. Some tough acts to follow for sure.

 

[Thundercat]

You may consider some Lst to spread the plants out just a bit to get better light penetration I'm not sure how your looking on space or light coverage, but that will get it down a bit deeper without cutting anything off.

 

[LeafGnosis]

You will be one happy camper GD. I agree, though I chopped at 52.5 keeping the girls in extended darkness, that the 52 to 55 day window is cool. I was ready for my girls to come down, just wished I would have started their dark period longer (though smell control would have been an issue) so it seems to have worked out right. I have NO problems with the potency of the 2 girls that are now in mason jars curing away. Yesterday was the first time I could take some of my stuff to a friend of mine who has grown and smoked weed all his life, my quality tester lol. He loved it! (to quote him "I'm high as fuck") I do see the remaining trichome maturation just making the product a little more potent. The plants do appear to not be 'quite' done when chopping at 52, but wow, they are really that fast of finishers as Puff pointed out above.

 

[GreatDane]

OK, I watered yesterday with some added cal/mag+ (5ml per gallon). These girls are green and healthy; my 4'x4' grow space is filled up. I trimmed a few fan leaves that were all the way at the bottom at the first node and totally shaded. It will make it easier to get the water to them for sure. The fans at the top and middle I tucked under the true leaves where I could and it has exposed the bud sites a lot more. I think that with some gentle persuasion and some gardeners twine I'll be able to keep the light where it needs to be. Not much else to report, just passing the days.

TC, appreciate the suggestion. I wasn't going to cut anything near the top for sure.

LeafG, your report sounds great and I will do the dark period as Kite suggests. Thanks for the +Rep too.

 

[Kite High]

Flowers don't need light. Leaves do

 

[GreatDane]

Flowers don't need light. Leaves do

I get that Kite. The fan leaves that are as big as dinner plates are really shading some of the smaller fan leaves that are associated with several bud sites. I'm getting light to those so that the top colas aren't the only ones that are getting it. Basically ensuring that as many fan leaves as possible are getting light.

 

[GreatDane]

Well, today is day 20 of flower, and I can say that I'm a little disappointed. Comparing mine to other C'99 grows going on, especially Puff's, I'm not even close to where you guys were at this point. I have been feeding with nutes once a week at only a 7-1-7 to control the stretch and the largest is up to 42" and you can see that the node spacing is pretty wide. The smallest is stretched to 20" and is definitely more compact. The other two are around 38" and 30". I was hoping for more pronounced bud filling in, and I hope that the stretch is going to stop soon. I fed today and went with the GH recommended rate of FloraGro (1ml), FloraMicro (4ml), and FloraBloom (5ml) which is an N-P-K of 7-6-11. Since flipping, I have been feeding with Gro and Micro only and no Bloom to keep the P at 1%. I am going to give nutes every 5 days at the GH rates, Gro stays at 1 ml and Micro stays at 4 ml. The Bloom will increase to 6ml then 8ml towards the end. I will water in between feedings with cal/mag+ on day 3. They have been drying out a lot every 2 days, so I am going to give them a drink on day 2 and 4 and cal/mag and a soak on day 3. Maybe they were getting too dry, maybe they needed more K. Hopefully, the next 32 days will see some big changes. I tried to cool the color and green up the photos as best I could. I'm not as good at it as Kite.



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[Thundercat]

Well I think they all look beautiful, the 2 taller ones seem to be a very different pheno from the 2 smaller ones. Looks like those 2 got a bigger dose of the sativa in them, prolly why they stretched more between nodes. Had you noticed any preflowers before you flipped the lights, I really wonder if the genetics just weren't as mature on these girls as some of the other guys. That isn't a bad thing, I think it has just lead to them stretching more, and taking longer to start budding. I'm not gonna get all back into it, cus I know I've expressed my opinions onit, but I think you'd be much happier at day 20 if you turned your clock back to when they started showing flowers, or a day or 2 before if you wanted. Either way they are gorgeous plants, and very happy. They just won't be done at day 52 at the current rate I don't think. Peace man

 

[Mechanical]

Well, today is day 20 of flower, and I can say that I'm a little disappointed. Comparing mine to other C'99 grows going on, especially Puff's, I'm not even close to where you guys were at this point. I have been feeding with nutes once a week at only a 7-1-7 to control the stretch and the largest is up to 42" and you can see that the node spacing is pretty wide. The smallest is stretched to 20" and is definitely more compact. The other two are around 38" and 30". I was hoping for more pronounced bud filling in, and I hope that the stretch is going to stop soon. I fed today and went with the GH recommended rate of FloraGro (1ml), FloraMicro (4ml), and FloraBloom (5ml) which is an N-P-K of 7-6-11. Since flipping, I have been feeding with Gro and Micro only and no Bloom to keep the P at 1%. I am going to give nutes every 5 days at the GH rates, Gro stays at 1 ml and Micro stays at 4 ml. The Bloom will increase to 6ml then 8ml towards the end. I will water in between feedings with cal/mag+ on day 3. They have been drying out a lot every 2 days, so I am going to give them a drink on day 2 and 4 and cal/mag and a soak on day 3. Maybe they were getting too dry, maybe they needed more K. Hopefully, the next 32 days will see some big changes. I tried to cool the color and green up the photos as best I could. I'm not as good at it as Kite.



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Its hard to compare man. Puff only has one plant using 250 watts off cmh. You have 4 sharing 400 watts of hps. What matters is they look healthy and bushy so worry not. Good job and keep it up
On a side note.. Do they make a 600watt CMH yet? I want one!!

 

[Clink78]

I'm also growing a C99, day 10 flower and she's just the skinniest stretchy bitch I've ever seen. I'm hoping things will turn around because right now I'm not feeling the holy grail at all.

 

[puffdatchronic]

clink, it will.. it will

GD yours looks great, no 2 plants are the same remember ,but I noticed when things start happening they start happening quick... around the 28 day mark expect to have colas.. I am betting on it.

 

[GreatDane]

Thanks guys for the encouragement. TC, they are beautiful and it's all good. Maybe envious is a better word than disappointed. They are healthy, don't show any deficiencies, and have lots of flowers. I knew better than to run 4 under a 400w light but wasn't sure of the germination rate and dropped all 4 beans. In hindsight, I would only drop 2. Anyways, I knew PD had a 250w but forgot or didn't remember that it was cmh. His results were so amazing along with A&C, LG, and Mechanical that I was just expecting more perhaps. This morning they seem to have a lot more pistils so lets give it another couple of weeks and see how we're doing then. As for flipping, I was running into a time problem. I had to flip them when I did or wait until like day 50 something which would have been impossible. They were 12" tall when I switched and I did not see any preflowers. I knew that PD's went to 38" or so and he flipped at day 25 I think, so it's all good. Tomorrow will be 3 weeks of 12/12 so I think we are pretty much done; I hope. I really like Mechanicals scrog and may try that next time. Looks like a great way to keep things under control. I agree with your opinion on the phenotypes. The 2 on the left stretched like crazy and the 2 on the right stayed more compact. They stayed a little behind during veg too. Mechanical, I can't answer your question, but if PD can get those results with a 250W, imagine what you could do with a 600W!

 

[Thundercat]

I think a scrog in your tent would prolly be sweet man, I really like them. The only reason I havn't ran a real scrog is just the fact that I run perpetual. If your just running out one harvest at a time, I personally think a scrog is an awesome way to improve your yield and light usage. I think you're gonna be really happy in a few weeks man. And just think if you hadn't popped all 4 you might not have gotten to enough both phenos! Do you have any where you could stick a couple little clones to save the genetics. My bro just uses a cardboard box with like 3 cfls and a computer fan in it 2 keep 2-4 clones at a time. Keeps em small and just gets them started and saved for the next go around. I don't know it if could be too late, but it prolly wouldn't hurt they seem big enough to grab a cutting off the bottom.

 

[Adam & Cola]

You will be rewarded GD. It certainly looks like you have a couple different Pheno's in there. The ones on the left would be great candidates for a scrog.. well they all would be. And all of them look fantastic. How far away is your light? And how much of a difference is the temperature when lights are on to when they are off. just curious cause all could factor the amount off stretch to an extent. Something I found that might be useful for future grows.

Strong light and low temperatures slow growth and decrease stem elongation. Conversely, when plants are given high temperatures and only moderate light, the stems elongate.

During dark periods, the temperature can be kept as much as 10˚ F (-12˚ C) cooler than the lit period without any negative effects. Wider temperature differences cause slower growth, stem elongation and delayed flower ripening.

This is where I found it.. Good reading material. Ed Rosenthal's Marijauna Grower's Handbook.. bookmark!!
http://www.mjgrowers.com/book_marijuana.htm

 

[Kite High]

a 3 hours lights on temp dip below the lights off temps by 5-10F GREATLY MINIMIZES STRETCH

 

[GreatDane]

Stick with it Clink. All of the guys posting here have a lot more experience with this strain than I do and their advise is valuable. Check out Puff's grow for some great bud porn. It's hard I know but, patience...

 

[LeafGnosis]

Well, today is day 20 of flower, and I can say that I'm a little disappointed. Comparing mine to other C'99 grows going on, especially Puff's, I'm not even close to where you guys were at this point. I have been feeding with nutes once a week at only a 7-1-7 to control the stretch and the largest is up to 42" and you can see that the node spacing is pretty wide. The smallest is stretched to 20" and is definitely more compact. The other two are around 38" and 30". I was hoping for more pronounced bud filling in, and I hope that the stretch is going to stop soon. I fed today and went with the GH recommended rate of FloraGro (1ml), FloraMicro (4ml), and FloraBloom (5ml) which is an N-P-K of 7-6-11. Since flipping, I have been feeding with Gro and Micro only and no Bloom to keep the P at 1%. I am going to give nutes every 5 days at the GH rates, Gro stays at 1 ml and Micro stays at 4 ml. The Bloom will increase to 6ml then 8ml towards the end. I will water in between feedings with cal/mag+ on day 3. They have been drying out a lot every 2 days, so I am going to give them a drink on day 2 and 4 and cal/mag and a soak on day 3. Maybe they were getting too dry, maybe they needed more K. Hopefully, the next 32 days will see some big changes. I tried to cool the color and green up the photos as best I could. I'm not as good at it as Kite.



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Hey GD, Looking at the 2 girls side by side, they look a lot like my two girls. One had almost all main branches (I topped once) stretchy like yours and the second one looked like your second one where one branch seems to be stretchy. I ran 600 watt with 2 cindy and 2 blueberry gum... all plants seemed to average about 3 ounces and some change (13 or 14 grams). I think you will be pleasantly surprised!

 

[GreatDane]

TC: I think that I will try a scrog next time. I don't have a perpetual grow and think that the ability to keep things controlled and even with that is something that I want to try. As for clones, I really don't have the need or desire to keep that going. It would tie me down year round too much and I am one who will close up shop so to speak and start again when it's time. Besides, I really have enjoyed the process from bean to now and watching the entire life cycle is fun for me. Thanks for the Rep too.

Adam: I actually have that book. I have gotten some good information from it for sure. My light has been kept around 13-15" from the top of the canopy and the temps have been 73-75 degrees. I have room to raise it so that's not a problem. I don't have a cool hood and use fans for temperature control. I have a small one blowing at the bottom, another blowing into the middle, and an oscillating one blowing the tops and the hood. It seems to work well and the lights out temps drop to 66-68 degrees. If I lower the hood a little the temps go to 77 degrees but I was afraid to keep them that high. I know up to 80 is ok without CO2, but I was afraid of burning the leaves. Probably cost myself some light on light off temp difference by a couple of degrees.

Kite: Your earlier post about calcium vs potassium need was very informative as usual and I never got around to saying so. I have been using my cal/mag + in my between feed waterings so thanks again. I'm curious as to how you would lower the lights on temps for three hours from lights off temps. Unless you had an air conditioner blowing on them when the lights first come on. With my fan setup, it would be impossible.

Leaf: Thanks for the info. I'm not sure that I will yield that with my 400watt setup, but I'll get something and that's fine. Whatever I get will be because I grew it and that will be very satisfying.

 

[Kite High]

TC: I think that I will try a scrog next time. I don't have a perpetual grow and think that the ability to keep things controlled and even with that is something that I want to try. As for clones, I really don't have the need or desire to keep that going. It would tie me down year round too much and I am one who will close up shop so to speak and start again when it's time. Besides, I really have enjoyed the process from bean to now and watching the entire life cycle is fun for me. Thanks for the Rep too.

Adam: I actually have that book. I have gotten some good information from it for sure. My light has been kept around 13-15" from the top of the canopy and the temps have been 73-75 degrees. I have room to raise it so that's not a problem. I don't have a cool hood and use fans for temperature control. I have a small one blowing at the bottom, another blowing into the middle, and an oscillating one blowing the tops and the hood. It seems to work well and the lights out temps drop to 66-68 degrees. If I lower the hood a little the temps go to 77 degrees but I was afraid to keep them that high. I know up to 80 is ok without CO2, but I was afraid of burning the leaves. Probably cost myself some light on light off temp difference by a couple of degrees.

Kite: Your earlier post about calcium vs potassium need was very informative as usual and I never got around to saying so. I have been using my cal/mag + in my between feed waterings so thanks again. I'm curious as to how you would lower the lights on temps for three hours from lights off temps. Unless you had an air conditioner blowing on them when the lights first come on. With my fan setup, it would be impossible.

Leaf: Thanks for the info. I'm not sure that I will yield that with my 400watt setup, but I'll get something and that's fine. Whatever I get will be because I grew it and that will be very satisfying.

I do have a mini split ac in a completely sealed environment....but I am sure you have cooling available in the structure your grow is in so find a way to lower it. Also give very little P during the stretch phase and blue light.

Yes cal and sulfur very important in flower

And 400 watters yield very well...also if you have a mag coil ballast look into cmh philips bulbs