DeeJay Posted June 6, 2019 Share Posted June 6, 2019 High there guys and girls... I am a first time hydro grower with a homemade nft system in my wendyhouse. I have a few little girls growing, but am having issues with them, and need some help with diagnosing what is wrong with them please? First of all let me say that I grew these girls from seed in rock wool, and they took forever to get a root system that was long enough to transfer to nft. Eventually I transferred them with only a short root system hoping they would grow towards the nutrient film. So far they are trying, but have not yet reached the nutrients, although they are getting wet by the splashing. They are surviving okay, and look healthy enough, but some of them are showing signs of problems. I will attach pics and hopefully someone can point me in the right direction? I think diagnosis should be fairly simple for an experienced grower, but there is so much information and misinformation on the net that after a lot of searching I have decided to ask you guys instead... Thanking you for your help in advance. Ps: Growing using Nutriplex 3 part system, water is 6.2ph, 24C nutrient solution temperature, ppm is around 320. Pps: Plant 1,2,3 have the same rust coloured leaf issues and drooping. Plant 4 am wondering if this is a male as it looks like it is carrying pollen sacs?? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkunkPharm Posted June 6, 2019 Share Posted June 6, 2019 pH needs to be 5.8Sent from my VTR-L09 using Tapatalk 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dank Posted June 6, 2019 Share Posted June 6, 2019 (edited) 12 minutes ago, SkunkPharm said: pH needs to be 5.8 Sent from my VTR-L09 using Tapatalk I am not currently growing hydro, but this is spot on, hydro likes being below 6. Looking at the plants, to me it looks like some nutrient burn (but not sure if its possible at 320ppm) as well as possible deficiencies (could be PH related). Does the nutrients contain macro/micro elements? Do the roots look healthy? White and fuzzy or brown and gooey? This system could supply water to the base of the plants via a drip irrigation or something similar. Edited June 6, 2019 by Dank Added extra info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeJay Posted June 6, 2019 Author Share Posted June 6, 2019 @Dank The nutrients are micro veg and bloom, so i am guessing there are micro elements in the 1st bottle? The roots look fine. They are white, but tiny little pinheads poking through the rockwell on some and a little longer on others. They are getting splashed by the nft running past, so should be okay for watering. I am going to drop the ph to 5.8 and see how they like that. I know it is a matter of find ing the sweet spot. Used to growing in soil, so need to get used to this setup now. How often would you empty the reservoir and flush with ph'd water only? And how long on the flush cycle before emptying and supplying muted water again? Thanx a lot for you help 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dank Posted June 6, 2019 Share Posted June 6, 2019 I found the Nutriplex info, looking at this chart your ppm could even be a bit too low. I am sure the Hydro growers on the forum will sort this out quickly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeJay Posted June 6, 2019 Author Share Posted June 6, 2019 @Dank This might sound pretty stupid, but how do you up the ppm of a mixture? I am assuming you add more nutrients to get a more concentrated solution? Is this correct? And then to lower the ppm you would dilute the solution by adding ph'd water? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dank Posted June 6, 2019 Share Posted June 6, 2019 (edited) @DeeJay that is correct, the more nutrients in the mixture the higher the ppm will be, which on the nutriplex charts is given in EC. Here is a pretty good explanation about EC to PPM - manicbotanix.com/ec-to-ppm-conversion-chart-2/ The best is usually to follow the instructions on your Nutrients as they have done all the testing. After mixing the nutes (according to your plants growth phase), I would then measure the EC/ppm. I would also start a new mix with ph adjusted as plants have used some nutrients, etc. I would assume that mixing according to these (or the interactive one supplied on their site) your ppm/EC should be around where they suggest, if not you can up the dosage, just remember to keep it in ratio. I would also wait for some experienced hydro growers to either confirm or correct all this as I am not currently growing hydro, used to back in the day. All these nutrients are pretty new to me. Edited June 6, 2019 by Dank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeJay Posted June 6, 2019 Author Share Posted June 6, 2019 @Dank I have followed the feeding chart for seedlings and had to slightly increase the amounts of feed to get the ppm up a bit. I have now dropped the ph to 5.8 and will wait and see if things improve. PPM is sitting at around 380 at the moment, so I am assuming that feed mix is around about the mark? I filled the reservoir (15l) on the 1st, and from the info I found on the net, it seems like a weekly change is needed. I am thinking to flush with ph'd water for 24h and then fill with fresh nutes and start the next week's feed. If anyone could comment on this schedule? Thanx all 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkunkPharm Posted June 6, 2019 Share Posted June 6, 2019 You will only see improvement on new growthSent from my VTR-L09 using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeJay Posted June 6, 2019 Author Share Posted June 6, 2019 @SkunkPharm Yes, true dat. Thanx 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kgrows Posted June 6, 2019 Share Posted June 6, 2019 i've used nutriplex & i'll be honest i dont like them. but, yes increase your ppm to about 600 until they come right then increase to about 800ppm. also calmag deficiency! remember if you are using calmag, add your PPM for nutes after calmag. where about are your lights heightwise? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenkush Posted June 6, 2019 Share Posted June 6, 2019 6 minutes ago, Kgrows said: i've used nutriplex & i'll be honest i dont like them. but, yes increase your ppm to about 600 until they come right then increase to about 800ppm. also calmag deficiency! remember if you are using calmag, add your PPM for nutes after calmag. where about are your lights heightwise? Agreed, i've only heard terrible things about those nutes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kgrows Posted June 6, 2019 Share Posted June 6, 2019 i've grown nice plants with them using the lucas method - no grow only micro & bloom @ a 1:2 ratio in veg & 1:4 ratio during flower. the plants were good but i really struggled to dial in the ppm & during flower its easy to fk up with all the nitrogen. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeJay Posted June 6, 2019 Author Share Posted June 6, 2019 @Kgrows I have ordered the Flora series a few weeks ago but there was no Bloom in stock so am awaiting delivery of the Bloom before I change over to Flora instead of Nutriplex. If I use the tables that Nutriplex gives me for seedlings I get a ppm of just under 300. Therefore to get to a ppm of 800 I would almost be tripling the recommended dosage?! Is this correct?? I have ordered Calmag and it is out for delivery today. How important is Calmag if using Nutriplex as opposed to using it with Flora? Is it a necessity no matter which nutes you use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kgrows Posted June 6, 2019 Share Posted June 6, 2019 @DeeJay your plants arent seedlings anymore you are in veg now, i stop calling them seedlings after the 2nd set of true leaves are out - set with 3 leaves, but if you're nervous then increase the ppm to 450 for a week then 600 until you can see new healthy growth, then increase to 800ppm, check the tips of leaves for nute burn (give it a week or so) then increase a bit more until you see the first signs of nute burn, dial it back & you should be good till flower, in flower you need to readjust, as they dont like too much Nitrogen. Are you top feeding them while their roots are still growing? Do yourself a favour & look up the Lucas method or Formula for GH flora. You know what NPK is? so with cannabis it should be NKPMgCa - long abbreviation lol but ya its that important. if you're using the flora series you'll defs need to use calmag & asap (some nutes have the added calmag ie GH coco range). best quick fix method is to do a foliar feed at about 150ppm calmag, 150 Grow & Bloom, spray under the leaves tonight about 15 mins before lights out & keep your fan going. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeJay Posted June 6, 2019 Author Share Posted June 6, 2019 @Kgrows I'm eagerly awaiting the Calmag and will do the feed this evening and report back 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeJay Posted June 11, 2019 Author Share Posted June 11, 2019 Calmag didn't arrive with the shipment. Hopefully here today. In the meantime have dropped to ph 5.8, and plants all seem okay for the time being. Flushed with Florakleen for 24h and fed them nutes yesterday for the next week. Will add Calmag when it arrives. Flora Bloom finally back in stock end of the week, so should have it for the next feed around Tuesday next week. Nutrient temps seem to hover around room temp at 24C, which is a little high. Have ordered a thermocool fan and temperature controller to blow into the reservoir to cool the nutes. Quite excited to set it up. This is now week 3 since I transplanted into NFT, but only 1 of my plants has a root system in the NFT. The rest are about an inch away, getting splashed, and sending out exploratory roots, but not found the nft film yet. The one that has found the nutes has grown a lot and its main root is about a foot long now! Just a question to those in the know... If these roots start to clog up the drain hole, what do I do? Can I prune the roots or will this kill the plants?? Thanx guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeJay Posted June 11, 2019 Author Share Posted June 11, 2019 Hey guys, just a quick note... Calmag arrived today. Mixed up a new batch of feed. Let me just say that when you mix the Calmag with 10l of water you are looking for about a heaped teaspoon to get 150ppm mix. I started by pouring the bag in, and ended up with a 2500ppm mix! My girls are fed and will wait and see how they adjust to the calmat water and nutes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeJay Posted June 14, 2019 Author Share Posted June 14, 2019 My little girls looking WAY better after the Calmag! Thanx a lot for the help in this respect. I will be getting my Flora series nutes next week, so my next feed will be with the Flora, but I will add a 150ppm mix of Calmag to all my feeds from now on. My garden is beginning to grow nicely and looking real healthy. Will post pics in the next few weeks so you can see the progress... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CreX Posted July 4, 2019 Share Posted July 4, 2019 Note on the Nutriplex... It's a super basic nute combo, apparently based very close to the GH flora range... But obviously at half the price of GHF, you will be missing out on a few things... I wanted to switch at one point.. But then started ammending the nutes with basic extras.. Humic and fulvic acids, kelpak, mycoroot and EM pro, Trelmix And now I see no need to spend 300 bucks more on the GHF when my plants seem to love what I do So sure, they aren't the most complete or complex... But with a Lil extra love, they work perfectly... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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