1st Drip Hydro Grow - (10) Bubble Ice F/ Autoflowers, EcoGrowers, 357Magnum LEDs

Thx a lot Encomium and everyone else chiming in.
I worry because I love to smoke, and have had nothing for two months because of where I live.
And Im going to be crying if they dont produce.

Update:

DAY 48 from seed / 41 days veg'd / 7 days into flowering under 12/12 red led spectrum only

Air temps all good between 70-82 deg
Resv temps between 18.5 C and 21.5 C at highest - mostly circa 20.0 (Ive been lucky as this has been room temps and air from outside - picking up an A/C for the room very soon - Mother Nature has been cool and kind)

RESV 1
pH: 5.7
PPM: 730

RESV 2
pH: 5.4
PPM: 520

Havent done a single resv change. Roots healthy and consuming resv chambers, water clear, no sign of matter in the water, no sign/smell of mildew
Using GH Flora series nutes - nuting for bloom now.

Again, red LED spectrum.
Am I correct, as what Ive been reading, that red spectrum is for the flower period? Has anyone flowered with just red spectrum before? I am doing this because (taking it off full spectrum) I dont want them to grow that much more. Not that much more room before they start reaching the top, and bleaching themselves by being too close to the light. Thats not a heat issue btw - its possible to get too strong of a wavelength of light, as per what Ive experienced with the 357Magnum LEDS Im using in there.
That bag is a CO2 cultivator: Ex-Hale - its awesome.

Any thoughts on red spectrum flowering?

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The 2 tall ones in the back are White Widow mystery sex plants (theyre looking female to me - praying)
the shorties are Bubblator Ice feminized autoflowers
the one in the front to the left is a taller spindly plant that I believe is a bag seed.
12 plants in all in there.
I definitely wont do that again.

Do the tops Im showing indicate femininty, in anyones opinion? I know its early, but there's no male balls (flowers) and they look spindly.

they look GREAT! just like the plants in the movie NIGHT OF THE LIVING HEADS!

Youve seen that movie? Great low budget pothead horror film.

I wouldn't turn off the other spectrum in your LED for flowering even if you're worried about ending canopy height. While I know that the red spectrum is ideal for flowering, adding at least blue spectrum is going to help in bud formation as well later on. The blue spectrum will also help with newer growth during the first month or so of flowering.

If you're worried about ending canopy height so as to not bleach your plants then start thinking about LSTing your tops down a bit. This is exactly what I ended up having to do with my initial set up (3x3x5.5 feet). Just be sure to be gently tying or bending stems down as too much will obviously break the stems.

Encomium said:

I wouldn't turn off the other spectrum in your LED for flowering even if you're worried about ending canopy height. While I know that the red spectrum is ideal for flowering, adding at least blue spectrum is going to help in bud formation as well later on. The blue spectrum will also help with newer growth during the first month or so of flowering.

If you're worried about ending canopy height so as to not bleach your plants then start thinking about LSTing your tops down a bit. This is exactly what I ended up having to do with my initial set up (3x3x5.5 feet). Just be sure to be gently tying or bending stems down as too much will obviously break the stems.

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Aarggh. Dont want any more growth. Was hoping red spectrum would be good for strictly flowering period and bud formation. May have to rebuild the top of my space and go up even further - not wanting to go that route - not a big fan of LST. Ive seen someone else do it and I wasnt convinced that it did anything. Appreciate the advice though. Its probably best in my case, but I cant commit to doing it after what I saw. He ended up snagging strings going into the growspace and bent a couple of cola stems. Im likely to do the same.

I need to deconstruct the grow area, and then rebuild it. Growth has been insane. I need to raise the lights and widen the walls, even if the light doesnt cover the spread - theyre way too crammed. Ill take the production loss on the outer rims. Ill post before and after pics if I can.

Encomium said:

If you're worried about ending canopy height so as to not bleach your plants then start thinking about LSTing your tops down a bit. This is exactly what I ended up having to do with my initial set up (3x3x5.5 feet). Just be sure to be gently tying or bending stems down as too much will obviously break the stems.

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use the pinch method for LST.... gently squeeze the stem over a few hours and the stem will "bend" without breaking. squeeze the same spot gently and it will soften the stem remember to squeeze the stem not crush.. you can get a stem to bend 90 degrees and no splitting!

Pray for the Ladies!

Update: Day 52 from germination - Day 11 of Flowering:

Res 1:
pH: 5.8 ppm: 710

Res 2:
pH: 5.7 ppm: 650

OK. Ugly day yesterday. Youve all seen the overcrowded growspace. I decided to rebuild. Here's what happened.

Instead of LST'ing I raised the ceiling and went up with the lights, and added one full spec CFL to the bottom of the space. There was a lot of death going on in the lower levels. So I pinched like a madman and lollipopped these suckers. Not sure if you can tell from the pictures, but now you can see through to the back of the chamber near the stem bases, because so much dying veg and fan leaves were removed. Because of the bushiness, light was not getting through to the lower section of the plants, and there were celery colored flowers and sites (yellow - light green).

Even worse, the larger plant on the left side (the bag seed) is growing at three times the rate of the autos, and as a result stunted one of them, and just about killed another. Theyre not dead, but all the leaves had shriveled down in the shade. So 2-3 of the 10 autos are megaundeveloped and may not make it, but for a branch node or two. I spaced out the resv's and allowed for more direct light to get to them, so HOPEFULLY things will turn for the better.

The resv's are jam packed with roots. Complete res shaped web of roots. ppmks, ph and temps all good. Moved lighting 12/12 back to full spectrum, as there are flowers forming on the white widows, the bag seed, and the autos, so theyre fem and budding, thank goodness. Something will come of it.

Widened the walls as well.

Need to see how the comeback goes from here. Cross your fingers for me. Been smokin fan leaves for a month. I know. But its either that or nothing for me right now.

(pic #10 and the two red pics are BEFORE - amateur and embarrassing, really)
(the rest are AFTER)

Not sure but it looks as if you still have branches coming out of the bottom 1/3 of your plants? Lollipopping removes the stems entirely (like the pics in this thread).

Removing the branches entirely allows flowering hormones to focus on the top colas instead of "popcorn" buds that you'd get on those lower branches. In my test the plants that I lollipopped have both yielded more than the unpruned plants.

Thanks Encomium, I can use all the help I can get at this point. Will do. With light having trouble reaching the mid-lower branches, the top colas are all Im hoping on. Thanks, again.

Supz man. I would agree with the minor trimming of the lower canopy. You'd be surprised at the recovery time and the overall growth spurt afterwards. Keep em comin!

Hey all! UPDATE

Day 57 from Germ - Day 16 into Flowering:

Res1:
pH: 5.4
PPM: 720

Res 2:
pH: 5.5
PPM: 670

So - three plants died. One of them got soft stem at the base - went from green and barky to mushy tan and jelly. Snipped it. Had to also snip two other shorties that got overcrowded and were starved of sunlight.

QUESTION: the stumps are still in the pots - with the bubble dripper still dripping water into the pots (because its a fixed system- and I cant remove the root system because its tangled with the other plants growing in these six-plant resv's. Will the roots rot and contaminate my system? Can the soft stem ooze or spread into the resv chamber below and rot the roots inside of other plants? What to do?

Also have a bug problem. Gnats - fruit flies. There's like 12 of them in my space, and I keep thumbing them to death, but there's always 6-12 in there. Any solutions? Was thinking of putting a banana peel in the bottom of the space and attacking in the morning with some mist spray and thumbs.

Also having a heat problem. Temps blew up this week and its the end of the month and time to pay the bills, so Im having to wait another 7 days or so before I can get a little 5000 btu unit and cool the air in the whole room. The space contains heat and I can control it by venting, but only when there's cool air to draw from. Now the summer is here and its hard to keep cool in there. Resv temps have been running at a scary 77 degs.

Everyone is budding. The Bubblator Autos were the three I lost - short - got overwhelmed by tall bag seed plants (which has barely flowered - think its a lame strain) and the 2 white widows, which are the leaders of the pack. Multiple bud sites and largest in the space. The Bubblator autos have sites, but only at colas, and theyre white and dense and growing and looking like theyll be sugary.

Removed so much of the lower undeveloped stems and leaves , basically its now up to keeping space between sites and getting light to them contantly. Have 20-30 sites, some small, some bigger, but thats what Im hoping to bring to fruition.

Here's some pics but theyre from a videocam and its light sensitive and cant handle the LED lights - so they suck. Sorry.

Supz demon. Bummer bout the 3 plants As for the gnat problem you could try spraying your girlz with a light coating of Neem + or something. Maybe put some flytape in the corners of the room? Or move around your fan a bit to try to move the air around the main areas being attacked. Hows the weather there? My humidity levels keep jumpin up and down...may have something to do with your temps? Lemme know brutha mane. Keep em comin!

DemontauruS said:

Hey all! UPDATE
QUESTION: the stumps are still in the pots - with the bubble dripper still dripping water into the pots (because its a fixed system- and I cant remove the root system because its tangled with the other plants growing in these six-plant resv's. Will the roots rot and contaminate my system? Can the soft stem ooze or spread into the resv chamber below and rot the roots inside of other plants? What to do?

Also have a bug problem. Gnats - fruit flies. There's like 12 of them in my space, and I keep thumbing them to death, but there's always 6-12 in there. Any solutions? Was thinking of putting a banana peel in the bottom of the space and attacking in the morning with some mist spray and thumbs.

Also having a heat problem. Temps blew up this week and its the end of the month and time to pay the bills, so Im having to wait another 7 days or so before I can get a little 5000 btu unit and cool the air in the whole room. The space contains heat and I can control it by venting, but only when there's cool air to draw from. Now the summer is here and its hard to keep cool in there. Resv temps have been running at a scary 77 degs.

Click to expand...

Sorry to hear about your deaths
I would try and remove as much of the dead plants roots as possible. No doubt they will decay and may cause unwanted hassles.

With the rez temps, freeze up some ph adjested water, either in bottles or freeze large ice cream tubs of water and drop ice into the rez until you can get your temps under control. (Obviously size dependant on your res and totes.

The combination of warmer res temps and dead root matter is not a good combination.

Well it sucks you had to cull some of your girls but it's probably for the best in the long run.

For your dead roots you might want to start using H202 (I use the hydro strength @ 29%) in your reservoirs to help control dead organic material. I use 6.7 ml/gal of the 29% solution; make sure to get at least 29% peroxide and not the 3% solution. Add every 3-4 days in your rez.

Encomium said:

Well it sucks you had to cull some of your girls but it's probably for the best in the long run.

For your dead roots you might want to start using H202 (I use the hydro strength @ 29%) in your reservoirs to help control dead organic material. I use 6.7 ml/gal of the 29% solution; make sure to get at least 29% peroxide and not the 3% solution. Add every 3-4 days in your rez.

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Wow - couldnt believe the price on that 29% hydrogen peroxide. Almost 100 dollars for the bottles Im finding. Im really hoping theres another way. barely have enough money for the air conditioner. Worried ice water bottles in my resv's is going to cause root shock - again, I have the EcoGrower systems, and they are six 6" pots in a 27 gallon resv - and the roots are starting to tan a bit in there due to high temps and dying root matter. I have about three stumps and roots for each resv. I took one of the pots and ripped them from the root mass that fills the 27 gal chamber - you wouldnt believe it in there - one huge hexogonal mass. Have t think of something quick though - dont want to lose the half of the plants that are left. Cant.

Encomium said:

Well it sucks you had to cull some of your girls but it's probably for the best in the long run.

For your dead roots you might want to start using H202 (I use the hydro strength @ 29%) in your reservoirs to help control dead organic material. I use 6.7 ml/gal of the 29% solution; make sure to get at least 29% peroxide and not the 3% solution. Add every 3-4 days in your rez.

Click to expand...

Cant multiply the solution proportion by 9, and get the 3% H2O2?

Looking good.. Pardon my direct talk,, screw h2o2... it feeds the shit out of brown algae at levels recommended for hydro reservoirs , doesn't kill some pathogens at all ... I know some people freak out when they hear this,,, but find Fatmans article on using plain ole
clorox bleach,, works wonders and is cheap.. your res is made to be sterile.. at all times.. I tried benny's , h202,etc etc doesnt hurt you or plants at all at 2-8ppm... hydro stores just want you to buy expensive crap... And listen to Ecom... leave all your light spectrum on... I grew some of the most potent bud people have smoked in 20 years flowering with just mh (on my first grow ever) ... blue spectrum will cake on the trichs... its the only way they grew indoors in the 70's... and they had super frosty bud... loving the led's will keep checking back..

frogster said:

Looking good.. Pardon my direct talk,, screw h2o2... it feeds the shit out of brown algae at levels recommended for hydro reservoirs , doesn't kill some pathogens at all ... I know some people freak out when they hear this,,, but find Fatmans article on using plain ole
clorox bleach,, works wonders and is cheap.. your res is made to be sterile.. at all times.. I tried benny's , h202,etc etc doesnt hurt you or plants at all at 2-8ppm... hydro stores just want you to buy expensive crap... And listen to Ecom... leave all your light spectrum on... I grew some of the most potent bud people have smoked in 20 years flowering with just mh (on my first grow ever) ... blue spectrum will cake on the trichs... its the only way they grew indoors in the 70's... and they had super frosty bud... loving the led's will keep checking back..

Click to expand...

Right on - good advice. Being a newbee Ecom' has been a wealth of info. Thanks for the specific feedback!
Posting some pics - roots are a little tan instead of white, but seem OK for the most part. The one White Widow is doing spectacular. The one Bubbleator that got snapped in half, I spliced the cola-top down the stem and placed it into a new pot with bubble drip and it perked back up in the past 24 hours - was looking like wet rags there for a bit - dont expect it to continue budding but thats fine. The remaining plants - if they make it thru - will do great. Have kept on both LED spectrums, on 12/12. Things are moving ahead nicely. Will look in to the bleach.

No problem Demon t Btw.. I got a good laugh at your post of finishing 7 weeks total,,, that was funny .... we all have growing pains... dont worry about your potency ,, I have seen very potent autoflowers.. depends on the grower and strain combined... your roots are looking good... I cant remember the specific dose for the clorox in ml or drops per gallon.. but I know I put in as an initial shock 25ml in my 50 gal rez with no problem, then 15ml every two to three days.. (only regular clorox, no scented etc) you can also use regulat tap water (its usually at 2-4 ppm) as long as your water isnt freaky high on the ppm and they use chlorine instead of chloromines ... chloromines suck for plants ,,, they dont dissolve like chlorine and will interact with nutrient salts.(not sure on amino acid based nutes) but the ammonia will prob. kick the plants ass in the long run,,,,,.. just check with your local municipalities website or call them and ask what they use... standard charcoal fridge filters will get out enough of the chlorimines .. no need for a fancy ro unit unless your tap is over 200ppm..