highchome
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Everything posted by highchome
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Clips for training. That is such a great idea!
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Looking good! I'll flip mine with the chocolopes. Hopefully all the end of the month
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Hi, perhaps start looking at this thread: https://www.420sa.co.za/index.php?/topic/1501-your-favoured-local-seedbank-please-vote If you click on "show results" you'll see what everyone has voted so far. Also quite a few comments there that should help -
New grower. Coco or organic soil?
highchome replied to Jedi Messiah's topic in Starting Your Own Grow
Take a look here: https://www.420sa.co.za/index.php?/topic/2174-fabric-grow-bags/. I used landscaping fabric / weed shield from the local nursery, at less that 1/2 of that cost -
New grower. Coco or organic soil?
highchome replied to Jedi Messiah's topic in Starting Your Own Grow
Pretty much the same as your list, but notably an EC meter rather than a TDS one Coco perlite hortimix a,b and mpk (from hydroponics.co.za) calmag pH meter & pH "storage solution" & 4.0+7.0 calibration fluid EC meter (you definitely want EC rather than TDS. TDS calculation can vary from brand to brand, EC is always the same. Most EC meters will also do TDS) pH up & down I'm growing indoors, also using fabric pots (home made though). I'll see how far I get with ~8L ones -
New grower. Coco or organic soil?
highchome replied to Jedi Messiah's topic in Starting Your Own Grow
Firstly a disclaimer, I'm a new grower only on my second grow. But I've recently switched to coco/perlite and I'm loving it. I think there are different trade offs and there are some very experiend soil & organic growers on this forum that can help you out if you go that route. I'm not sure there is a clear answer one way or the other. Its really going to depend on your interests and goals... If you are interested in coco/perlite I can certainly tell you what is working for me so far and why I prefer it, also have you seen https://cocoforcannabis.com? Quite a lot there, if you are intested shout and I'll send some links etc. Perhaps we'll need a coco/perite thread at some point -
Looks like a nice setup you have going there!
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Looks like it is going to be a good harvest for you, wow. I've just started with coco/perlite and I'm extremely happy with it, much smaller grow area than you though
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Possibly just some shock after the repotting and fert changes? I've noticed that the plants I've repotted take a week or so to get going again
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Nice, exact ones I got but those are way less expensive. So just shipping and postage issues to sort out / worry about. But probably worth a try at that price
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I got this one for pH: https://www.takealot.com/portable-digital-ph-pen-meter-tester-pool-aquarium/PLID48545959 But you'll need to calibrate it weekly. So worth getting a pH 4.0 calibration mix, as well a "storage solution". As for TDS I'd still recommend an EC meter over a TDS one. The one I linked to does TDS as well so you are covered both ways with it. I wasted money on a TDS meter (that then broke), I should just have got the EC one to start with
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I think you are better off with an EC meter, I got this one for R300 https://growguru.co.za/products/basic-tds-ppm-ec-digital-water-meter TDS is based on EC. As far as I understand TDS is mostly EC*1000/2 (TDS500) but there are different standards. So you don't always know what you are comparing to. EC is just EC. If you want plain TDS meter though, you can get them on bidorbuy for ~R200
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I've mostly seen the coco guys advising to keep the nutrients the same for all feeds. But the great thing about growing in coco is that if this does not work for you, then you can change how you do things and see results very quickly
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Welcome @Surfboy. Sounds interesting. You should start a thread under grow diaries, I'd love to see some pics
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@Dank just to double check... Using pure coco/perlite is the same as hydroponics. The coco is only going to hold whatever you last watered, so you are supposed to add nutrients with every watering. I.e. its very unlike soil. The advantage is you get much more control since you can easily keep the pH, EC and nutrient levels exactly where you want them and adjust then very quickly (hours max). The disadvantage is that you need to add ferts (fertigate) much more often (at least daily). I'm not sure only using them when needed makes sense here? Perhaps it is different with these specific nutrients..., I know the guys on the coco forum have been trying with organics but I've not followed that closely.
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I'm not sure , hopefully one of the organic growers can confirm. I know it can matter so I guess it is best to follow the instructions until you get an answer. I'm using synthetic nutrient and I do mix a batch for a few days which is convenient, the hortimix ferts have been really cost effective and work well so far. But not organic, so not an option if that matters to you. PS take a look at: https://www.420sa.co.za/index.php?/topic/2367-calcium/, there are some nice pics there that may help
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Right, that makes it easier . I'm not sure what it would be with 25% soil, probably still the normal soil pH target. For pure coco/perlite you are doing hydroponics so use those targets Then it seems like 5.8 is the ideal range. I'm probably over cautious doing the calmag the way I'm doing it, but so far no issues... Hopefully someone can confirm that is is a Ca deficiency as I'm only guessing though. So if you are in pure coco/perlite (+vermiculite) you are doing at least daily watering with nutrients right? I'm doing twice a day, which seems very odd after having to restrain myself when growing in soil. I'm mostly following articles from cocoforcannabis.com but shout if you want more detail on what has been working for me Anyway here are two charts showing the pH targets, I hope the plants come right!
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Interesting... Sounds like its viable for fast smaller yields in general. I'd want to get seeds as fast as possible. I think seedlings ~2 weeks under CFL and then direct to flower is about as fast as it seems like that can go. I'll have to wait until after the chocolopes and then flower the two reliable strains I have. So many things to try
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@Newbie any luck? If you are ok with bag seeds (i.e. some will be male) I think I can make a plan with white widow and cali orange seeds. But if you want reliable genetics, feminised, auto etc you are almost certainly going to have to order online. Take a look at the poll on this forum about local seed shops, if you stick with one of the top ones there is no reason you will have any problems.
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Could it be early signs of calcium deficiency? Hopefully one of the pros can confirm... I'm doing pure coco&perlite and the coc needs to be buffered with calcium and magnesium to avoid this. I think you are doing 25% soil, so I don't think that is considered hydroponic anymore. I'd guess you would be wanting to target the soil pH range rather than the hydro pH range. Also I'd imagine that with a high percentage of coco you'd still be at risk of calcium deficiency. I buffered my coco, add a low concentration of calmag in my nutrients and also apply a calmag foliar spray (I got the calcium-magnesium-nitrate from hyrdroponics.co.za). (FWIW Personally I could not be any happier with the coco/perlite approach, I've seen a massive improvement in my plants since switching. However I've not grown in high quality soil so I can't actually compare. But I don't have much motivation to switch at at any point)
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I can't remember exactly where I found these numbers, somewhere online... But these are the notes I have for how reflective the various options are foylon: 95% mylar: 92-97% flat white paint: 75-85% semi/gloss paint: 55-60% white plastic (panda): 75-90% aluminium foil: 55% Flat white seems like the best option value for money and simplicity wise. Like @Oolong83 though, I was not able to paint my grow area so then panda film seems like the best alternative, the others are way more expensive
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Has anyone experimented with going from seed directly to 12/12, or from seed to 18/6 for a few weeks and then 12/12? It seems like this is a good way to quickly get to the flowering stage to be able to create feminised seeds. Obviously the yields would be low, but I'd still expect to get quite a few seeds by doing this... Right? Seems to me like this is a good way to start getting a good collection of seeds to keep and trade. (These seems like a good into BTW: https://www.royalqueenseeds.com/blog-how-to-grow-cannabis-from-seed-under-12-12-lighting-n330 and https://www.growweedeasy.com/is-12-12-from-seed-worth-it) I'd love to hear an experience people have had with this method
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lol, yeah. Four out of five of the plants were male... So it made sense to chop up the remaining female for clones
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Thanks @CreX, that is very interesting. (FWIW I've switched to 18/6 myself, I don't think I'll bother with 24/0 again)
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Interesting. (I'm always open to people's 2c BTW, that's what the forum is for ). I'll take another look under the microscope and see what they look like now. I think I'd having done the water cure I'd say this: Odds are I screwed it up, so the issues are possibly me being too rough rather than a flaw with water curing itself. I chose to water cure mainly because it was my first time and I did not have a reasonable space to dry without worrying about mold. However I don't think I'd want to water cure again, even if I could get all the water cure issues resolved. For vaping / smoking it seems clear that a dry cure is clearly the best option. For cannabutter I could probably skip the curing phase altogether if I really wanted to. And thanks for the feedback
