First Bubble Garden...Any Advice On My Set-up? PICS!

Whats up guys? Stayin high I hope! I know I am

I have my gals goin in soil doin ok for now but I decided to take a few of them and start a bubble garden/small hydro set up. I have always been interested in doin hydro and now with the help of RIU I think I can pull it off.

My seedlings are in rapid rooters, with vermiculite on top inside some cardboard like 2" cups. The roots CAN grow though them, I them in soil.

Can you tell me if it all looks ok?

How high should the water level be?

How long until I can add ferts?

A lot of bubbles or a little?


Thanks a lot for all the help!
DBB

good start the more bubbles the better can never have to much of those i use the same setup you should capitalize on the space of the lid on your system lol i put five girls in one of those and i just use net pots start my seeds is rapid rooters as well untill i see roots coming out then straight into rock wools and in the net pots i keep the water level right to the bottom of the pots at first so the rock wools can stay wet untill the roots are very long then i dont worry so much about the level and i use nutes right away about 1/3 strength. good luck with the grow.

Thanks, I plan on putting more than 2 in there.

Why is your water brown?

I think in the cups I am using and the rapid rooters would soak all the water up to the top... is that ok? View attachment 1258331

Can I drown a plant?

Thanks,
DBB

Anybody? I would like to get this goin before bed.

Thanks
DBB

You still have to light proof your reservoir by the look of it. I have found 5" wide aluminium tape to work just great.

I planned on using 3" black tape on the sides for light proofing.

Does anyone know the answer to post #3?

Thanks
DBB

Black absorbs light = big no no. You do not want hot reservoir. Use silver tape to reflect the light and keep it cool.

You can add butes at a low dosage, say 1/2 or 1/4 strenght when you've got some good roots in the water and some good growth on top (good growth being not a seedling but say 3 or 4 nodes.

I never thought about water temps, what should they be at? my guess is 65-75

Something like that. Water temps are very important, too hot and you create rot and bad weegies, too cold and they get lazy and don't bother growing

As to drowning a plant, i guess yes and no. While it is till young, if the roots have not established well and are aready in the water, if you get the rockwool too wet then you will get stem rot which could lead to plant death.

Thanks a lot for all the info! +++rep

tip top toker said:

As to drowning a plant, i guess yes and no. While it is till young, if the roots have not established well and are aready in the water, if you get the rockwool too wet then you will get stem rot which could lead to plant death.

Click to expand...

Mine is still young and the rapid rooter is soaked... so I think I may get stem rot. I only put 1 in ftm to see what happens. What is a good age/size to put in the system?

DBB

I alternate between rooting out my clones in the system, and rooting them out in propogators and then putting into the system. I have no used rapid rooters so can't comment on their moisture levels. With mine, i make sure that the airstone in the system is making enough bubbles so that if i were to leave a net pot and rapidrooter/rockwool in the system as a "dry run" the bubbles would keep the rockwool/rapidrooter moist. If the bubbles are doing this, then the plant can go into the system at any point. You don't want to put it in only to find the bubbles are not keeping everything moist though. So just put together a rapid rooter in a net cup, or however you were planning on growing them in that DWC tub, and just see how well the bubbles do their job. Once the roots are in the water the moisture level of the rockwool/rapidrooter becomes a non-concern.

I am confused... should the water level only be to the bottom of the planter? My planter is 25% submerged. Sorry for all the Q's and thanks for your time.

DBB

It should look something like this



The bubbles will cause splashes on the surface which will reach up and wet the planter (i asusme by planter you mean the rapid rooter?) to a chosen degree.

BTW. You do not want all that vermiculite and carboard in your DWC, the cardboard will go soggy and fall to pieces and the vermiculitewill most likely just end up in all the root mass. You want to use a net cup (round, larger is better due to added stability from plant toppling) and then then commonly it would be a rapid rooter or a rockwool cube surrounded by clay pebbles (hydroton) to keep it in place. Kinda like this

I took the soggy girl out to dry for a bit and I will get it set up like that.

My "planter" is a RR cube and a 2" cardboard like square cup that the roots can grow through. They both soak water up very fast.

View attachment 1258533

I plan on buying some hydroton and net baskets today. What size do you suggest 3", 4"? Should I get any certain ferts while I'm there?

I hope you live close so you can smk some of it w me

DBB

Dirt Bikin Buds said:

Thanks, I plan on putting more than 2 in there.

Why is your water brown?

I think in the cups I am using and the rapid rooters would soak all the water up to the top... is that ok? View attachment 1258331

Can I drown a plant?

Thanks,
DBB

Click to expand...

my water is brown cause of the nutrients i add to the water witch is what the plant actually feeds on seeings how there is no soil and therefore no furts its all in the water and for the stem rot i never have a problem with putting seedlings in my system works great for me just put one in about a week ago and it grew quickly i wait till they are about the size in my pic above.

Dirt Bikin Buds said:

I plan on buying some hydroton and net baskets today. What size do you suggest 3", 4"? Should I get any certain ferts while I'm there?

I hope you live close so you can smk some of it w me

DBB

Click to expand...

i use 5" pots but it just depends on how many you are looking to fit and what size rockwool you will be using i like my rockwools to be kina snug in the pot

Dirt Bikin Buds said:

Thanks a lot for all the info! +++rep




Mine is still young and the rapid rooter is soaked... so I think I may get stem rot. I only put 1 in ftm to see what happens. What is a good age/size to put in the system?

DBB

Click to expand...

I use rapid rooter plugs but I keep mine in a dome to veg for a couple weeks before transferring them o the reservoirs ...