It's all fun and games growing powerful ganja and we all like to show off the final results but it's the hassles and struggles in the background that are the real juicy parts.
This is where I tell you how I've been struggling my schlong off recently, but those of you who have kept up probably already have an idea of what my hassle has been.
First number one bullshit is the fade and deficiencies I'm experiencing in my big tent. First thing I did was raise the EC from 0.7 - 1.4 EC. Autopots you can usually get away with adding a lower EC because the nutrients are being continuously fed to the plants so technically you do not need to match the recommended EC on the bottle. So naturally that was the first thing I tried because I thought that the EC was simply too low.
After a week of no change I decided it must be the medium I am using. I tested the pH at the reservoir and then the pH in the actual trays and I found that no matter the pH in the reservoirs, it would always be 0.3 pH higher in the trays. This made me think maybe the pH of the medium is too high and maybe the addition of a nutrient lock-out. Some of the medium is reused so this might also be a factor, although I did flush the medium thoroughly before using it again. Maybe I just messed it up somehow.
I flushed the pots and the Autopot system with Flashkleen solution and ran about 5L through the system and drained it. I then waited for the pots to dry (which was this morning) and I will now add nutrient solution starting at half strength sometime this afternoon once the nutrient solution has warmed up to room temperature.
Another suspicion is an old bottle of Micro I was using. It was given to me by a friend who wasn't using it but I have a feeling it's too old or off, so I am completely removing that bottle specifically and replacing it with one of my new bottles.
Second number two bullshit is my veg tent. I had an entire round of clones just wreck itself which has set me back quite a bit, to the point that I have two empty tents chilling doing nothing that could have been close to flower by now. I am certain it was because it was too cold and too dry in my veg tent and they just couldn't take it. I decided then that I might as well get some fresh seeds and pop them along side the fresh clones I had taken after the first round of clones bombed out. I got 5 seed packs of Dinafem - Blueberry Cookies and OMG - Ripper Seeds. The company I bought from also provided some free seeds. I decided to pop all of them, because I just had this feeling...
Well, the clones worked out this time, all of them rooted and are currently in pots. That's a full 100% turnaround from the last round! wtf. The weed gods giveth, and they taketh. Speaking of taketh, only 4 OMG seeds popped. Yes, only 4 out of 15 seeds popped, and it was only the Ripper Seeds that popped. I don't know if I have to say this, but I think I am only going to purchase Ripper Seeds from now on. I will bow and become a whore of Ripper Seeds because frankly they have provided the most for me up until now, first with my most successful strain ZxP, and now with being the only seeds to pop in my time of need.
So I am thinking of throwing the four OMG into the previous Organic Tent™ so they can do their thing, and then I might take two Wedding Cake and four ZxP and pop them into Autopots for the other empty tent. I am thinking of using 6 instead of 4 plants per 1.2m² because I feel that even in the big tent currently I could have fit in some more plants. 9 plants per 1.2m² was certainly a bit ridiculous but I think the 6 plants will be the sweet spot.