Need Your Grow Questions Answered? Come On In!

[elklake]

how big your room is should be based on how many plants you intend to grow and what strain. my flower room is 8x8 with 1200 watt mh. I do 6 plants at a crack. But heck Ive learned most of what I know by getting advice from bubble grower, he is the man, never seen him give bad advice, thanks bg

[kgb69ss]

Well, well, well! I cut down a White Widow last Saturday . I was pretty fortunate to get around 3 oz's with all the foxtailing I had going on! That was after about 5-6 days of drying out. 2 days hanging, 2days in a paper grcery bag with holes cut in the sides 4" up from the bottom, and now in a big tin with a lid which i remove everyday a couple of times to let the air in the tin dehumidify for a while, then back on with the lid. Is there a better way to cure it? I have a Himalayan Gold and Super Silver Haze plant that are almost done too and need a easy way or the best way to dry and cure them? Thanks for helping me accomplish a pretty dang good first grow!

[Grow Thread]

WOOT! My cousin called and he got me a 1000w balast and bulb!! He is gonna take the 400w for his veg room. Can I use the hood etc from the 400w? till i can afford an inclosed hood etc

 

What size room do I need now? I just built a 3foot x 3foot room yesterday for the 400w. ........help!

yup, 99 times out of 100, the reflector is interchangable and you will be just fine using it until you get something bigger/badder

 

personally, i wouldnt go any bigger than 6 x 6 with a 1000watter. i prefer 5 x 5, but you will be just fine either way.

 

how big your room is should be based on how many plants you intend to grow and what strain. my flower room is 8x8 with 1200 watt mh. I do 6 plants at a crack. But heck Ive learned most of what I know by getting advice from bubble grower, he is the man, never seen him give bad advice, thanks bg

thanks for the kind words

 

Well, well, well! I cut down a White Widow last Saturday . I was pretty fortunate to get around 3 oz's with all the foxtailing I had going on! That was after about 5-6 days of drying out. 2 days hanging, 2days in a paper grcery bag with holes cut in the sides 4" up from the bottom, and now in a big tin with a lid which i remove everyday a couple of times to let the air in the tin dehumidify for a while, then back on with the lid. Is there a better way to cure it? I have a Himalayan Gold and Super Silver Haze plant that are almost done too and need a easy way or the best way to dry and cure them? Thanks for helping me accomplish a pretty dang good first grow!

 

super congrats!!

 

if you havent seen this yet, here's the brown paper bag method:

 

HARVEST AND CURE PROCESS

by rumpleforeskin

 

 

 

 

I have been asked a number of times about harvesting and curing. I understand that there are as many ways to cure Marijuana as there are Marijuana strains. It seems that no two growers do it alike.

 

From harvest day to bong. Here is my method:

 

I can't tell you the exact time to chop your plant down. Some research can tell you how long to flower your strain for best results or you can check trichome color. Either way, you will have to do a bit of trial and error to find the very best day to chop the girls down.

 

At day 60 my White Widow shows a mixture of trichome colors. Most of them will be milky or amber, with a small percent of clear ones scattered about. Use a jeweler's loupe/magnifying glass of 20x magnification or more. A small pocket microscope can be bought at RadioShack:

 

 

 

 

I have grown this strain long enough to know that day 60 gives the best flavor and effect.

 

Day 60. My single plant grow:

 

 

 

 

 

Time to chop it down: Even if you can take the whole plant in one single cut, I would break it up into large sections. This is so it can get lots of air while drying (branches won't be touching).

I take one cola/branch at a time. It is very important to take your time and be gentle in every step of harvesting. It's a good idea to always be gentle with your medicine at any stage. Manhandling your buds will cause the trichomes to break off (you don't want that).

 

Using a pair of Fiskars® Softouch Micro-Tip Scissors, I take the first of many branches:

 

 

Noticed I put on rubber gloves? Get a box of them at the drug store. They are a must have item. You will not get that sap off your hands for days no matter what you wash with.

 

Tie some twist ties or line to the end:

 

 

 

Pluck off all the sun leaves and any leaf that is big enough to pull off (without hurting the bud). They can be easily removed by snapping them off while pulling up or you can use scissors:

 

 

 

You don't have to get them all. Just get what you can and save the rest for your "Trim-Party".

Before:

 

After:

 

 

 

 

 

Dry Time:

 

Try and find a cool, dark, preferably ventilated space such as a closet, basement, or winter attic. I have no such space at my home, so I use the attic all year. It is dark and ventilated but not always cool. Works anyway.

Try and hang all the branches so they don't touch anything:

 

 

 

A small oscillating fan on low will help things along real nice:

Place all the leaf in a few paper bags and place them in the same space as the hanging branches. Leave bag open.

 

 

 

TRIM-PARTY!

 

Let them hang for three days (72 hours). After three days they my feel real dry or real damp. It does not matter.

Note: You might want to stir the bag of leaves after a day or so. They tend to be real wet.

 

Three days later. So sad the big bud is so small now:

 

Let's get this party started. Lay out all your trim gear.

A trim tray (cookie sheet will work), rubber gloves, micro-tip scissors, large paper grocery bags, small brown lunch bags and a few razors (to clean the scissors). Music helps or someone to talk to. It becomes un-fun in 15 minutes (trust me).

 

 

 

Most the water has evaporated out of the branches.

 

 

 

Time to manicure and finish your trimming.

This task takes some time and a whole lot of patients.

Take a branch and start at the bottom, cutting off all leaves and bud leaf tips. After your get all the big leaves off, pretend you are giving a slight trim to the whole bud. The very tips of the bud leaves will cause the smoke to be harsh, so just do a slight trim all around.

 

Before:

 

After:

 

 

Now clip the buds off the main stem.

 

 

 

 

Glad that's over:

 

 

 

 

Brown Bag Um:

 

Get a few brown grocery bags and a pack of brown lunch bags. Shred the brown lunch bags (not confetti but strips). I bought a cheap shredder to make strips from the lunch bags:

 

 

Now lay down a layer of bud at the bottom of the grocery bag (one bud thick):

 

 

Place a layer of the bag strips over the top of your bud:

 

Place another layer of bud on top of the strips.

Keep making layers until the grocery bag is full. Your last layer should be strips:

 

 

Place your grocery bags in a cool dry place for two days. Churn/mix the bud and strip layers gently and place back for another one or two days:

 

 

Your bud may look over dry or a little crisp when done. Over dry is much much better then moist. The texture and smell will come back while curing in the jars.

 

Your bud is smoke-able but harsh until cured in jars. The longer it stays in the jar, the smoother the smoke and the stronger the smell.

I like the 32oz wide mouth Ball mason jars. They can be found at every grocery store, but next to impossible to locate the isle they are on. Look hard:

 

Don't pack the bud in the jar. Fill them up about 80% to 90%. You can get close to an ounce of small buds in a jar (could be wrong about this fact). Less if they are bigger bud:

 

 

 

 

 

If the bud it a bit too long, don't squish it or bend it. Just cut it up:

 

 

After your jars are filled, take a break (you need it):

 

Always store your jars in a cool, dark, and safe location. Light is bad for your weed.

Try to remember to open each jar twice a week for the first month. Leave it open for a few minutes and seal it back up. I don't always do this (I forget), but it makes a difference. It's also a good idea to check for mold while opening each one.

 

We can never wait the month that is recommended for jar curing. But it does get much better as time passes. After a month it is killer.

 

Best of luck,R

[Grow Thread]

[elklake]

Its like you can read my mind mr. bubblegrower. I was just going to ask about jar cureing. thanks

[Guest drcanna-pest]

just a question maybe u can help me with. my plants have been flowering 4 just over 8 weeks. i still have huge buds but now i have a bunch of little buds stretching out of the large ones. this is happening on all of my plants is this normal or maybe the humidity? we keep it right around 50%. i tried 2 take a pic but my camera isnt working.

 

This is completely normal and a good sign. Many times you will see white or clear "hairs" that will turn red or orange but new ones will appear also. New buds will begin to grow and expand all the time. Try to get a pic up just to make sure. As long as you have healthy plants and the right nutrients - you should be fine.

[Guest drcanna-pest]

well im totally depressed

 

I harvested my first plant and only got 4.4 grams of bud and that was weighing it wet 3 days after cut down wonder how little it would have been totally dried and cured

 

 

You must have chopped it down WAY TOO EARLY!!! If you need any help or have any questions let me know!

[Grow Thread]

welcome to the site drcanna

[Grow Thread]

SOIL vs. HYDRO

 

the saga

 

Here's my take on this debate...

 

Hydroponic cultivation has some advantages over soil. However it also has many disadvantages. It all depends on which of the many different hydroponic techniques you choose to utilize. I don't really want to get into the semantics and details of each but I would like to express my opinion on some important points.

 

My opinion on hydroponics has always been that the advantages of growing hydroponically will never outwiegh the disadvantages. That and every single aspect of hydroponic cultivation is, by definition and functionality, completely unnatural!

 

The one disadvantage that has always deterred me and remains the same throughout all hydroponic cultivation techniques is that you are forced to provide the plant with every single micro, macro and mobile nutrient it needs to grow. To do this without the presence of the beneficial bacteria and microbes that help break nutrients down and provide a good catalyst for the roots you have to provide the plant solubles and non-organic compounds. There is no TRUELY organic hydroponic cultivation technique. It's simply not possible biologically. AND you have to monitor many different aspects of that solution to be sure the plants can even utilize it. It can be quite difficult finding the right nutrient solutions that work and keep it consistant. In this aspect Hydroponics seems to me like an incredibly redundant and daunting task... Especially considering there's no real GREATER reward over organic soil grown plants in the end for all the extra hard work hydroponic cultivation entails.

 

Another negative mark on hydro for me is the initial cost of equipment such as meters, tubes, pumps, air stones, more tubes and reservoirs... It all seems a bit excessive.

 

Not to mention in the event of a prolonged power failure (say 1-2 days, like in the event of a storm or something) most hydroponic systems will completely fail at keeping the plants alive through the ordeal... I don't know about you, but in my opinion, this type of situation would have a medical marijuana patient ripping thier hair out after months of hard work goes down the drain.

 

Then you gotta deal with leaks... Oh my god the leaks can be DEVASTATING to a grow room. Better hope all your tubes are EXTREMELY secure.

 

Don't forget hydroponic waste pollution. All those non-organic compounds and all that fertilizer used in those reservoirs gets literally dumped down the drain and washed right into the environment. That's not good for anyone or anything... It's not natural.

 

Don't have to haul dirt? I fail to see how that is a positive aspect of hydroponics. Now, instead of hauling dirt, which can easily be vacuumed up if spilled, you have to haul a ton of water, which if spilled, can't necissarily be just vacuumed up... So really it's just offset to a slightly more unstable load.

 

Soil cultivation just seems so much more simple in my opinion. In almost every aspect too... It's not very difficult to purchase or create very effective organic soil mixtures...

 

The detrimental variables are far less in soil cultivation than in hydroponics... There is no question about it...

 

 

no doubt this debate will loom forever...... as it should IMO.

 

there are pros and cons to each, no doubt. but for the sake of "telling the other side of the tale"............... here i go

 

"The one disadvantage that has always deterred me and remains the same throughout all hydroponic cultivation techniques is that you are forced to provide the plant with every single micro, macro and mobile nutrient it needs to grow. AND you have to monitor many different aspects of that solution to be sure the plants can even utilize it. It can be quite difficult finding the right nutrient solutions that work and keep it consistant. In this aspect Hydroponics seems to me like an incredibly redundant and daunting task..."

------- yes this is true, but its not as bad as it seems. nutrients have been specifically designed for hydroponic applications and with the right nutes/knowledge mixing a gallon of nute/water for hydro is no different at all than mixing a gallon for dirt. i can put 8ml of one liquid and 16ml of another liquid into a gallon of water and have every nute necessary.... micro and macro.

 

 

"Another negative mark on hydro for me is the initial cost of equipment such as meters, tubes, pumps, air stones, more tubes and reservoirs... It all seems a bit excessive."

---- very true....... depending on what kind of hydro you decide to grow with. yes, some aero systems can go well into the thousands of dollars with EASE. but as i have illustrated, a 2-plant hydro system can be built for less than $30. add together your dirt and grow pots for 2 plants and you are close. but the hydro system is 100% reusable, whereas when you are done you have dirt to dispose of, and you are left with a reusable 5 gallon bucket or whatever you grow in originally. after 3 cycles, that $30 tote has pumped out 6 plants. now do the math on your dirt for 6 plants plus pots......... it becomes much more competitive.

 

"Not to mention in the event of a prolonged power failure (say 1-2 days, like in the event of a storm or something) most hydroponic systems will completely fail at keeping the plants alive through the ordeal... I don't know about you, but in my opinion, this type of situation would have a medical marijuana patient ripping thier hair out after months of hard work goes down the drain."

----this is where you have hydro under the gun depending on what form of hydro the grower is using. and this is also one of the MAIN reasons that i grow in bubble buckets and not in a true aero system. if a pump should fail, or a power outage occur, a plants roots can sit in absolutely still water for 3-5 days before any major major damage begins to occur. up until that point, it is nothing to pull out of for a plant in a bubblebucket/tote. a true aero or even an ebb and flow system on the other hand?? all dead in 24 hours without that pump. now lets turn that around for a minute or two. say i want to leave my grow room for a whole week straight? a dirt grower couldnt do it without an automatic watering machine or something. i could walk out right now for a week and leave the bubbletotes assuming they are not in mid-flower and drinking a gallon a day anyways...... i could conceivably leave a freshly rooted clone that has just been planted into a fresh bubblebucket for 2 weeks if a had to. they dont drink that much water..... and my bucket/tote will never dry out in that amount of time with such a small plant in there..

 

"Then you gotta deal with leaks... Oh my god the leaks can be DEVASTATING to a grow room. Better hope all your tubes are EXTREMELY secure"

----- hydro nightmare for sure. precautions must be taken at the beginning for this disaster, and yes that may mean a little more initial startup cost.............. but lets check out the real "pros" of hydro:

 

first off, especially for a newer grower, you have no idea what is in that soil/mix/whatever. no clue at all. you can read the manufacturers specifications, you can read other peoples grow journals, and you can get a good idea of what to do with it...... but do you really ever know 100% exactly what nutes you have and when you have them?? never. in hydro, you know everything, right down to the milliliter.

 

the biggest "pro" for hydro is faster growth. period. i either get more meds in the same amount of time as a dirt grower, or i get the same amount of meds in less time. any dirt grower that says they can get a plant to grow faster than in my bubblebucket is a straight-up liar. it's science and its common sense. in soil, the roots gets air when you let them. after you water, you flood the roots. still (non-moving) water contains no oxygen. oxygen to the roots is simply the #1 aspect of rapid growth. use any nutes you want.......... if the roots dont get air, your plant wont grow. in soil, the roots begin to get air little by little as the soil begins to slowly dry out over the span of a day or two........ and then you flood them and choke them again.... in bubbles, we are forcing oxygen directly at the roots 24/7. there is no down-time. its all grow all day. in an ebb-n-grow you flood the roots for a hot minute and then drain all the water instantly away leaving the roots exposed to straight air until they get just dry enough that it is time to flood them again. this is MAX growth IMO but as i said, there are some probs with aero as well.

 

i have never ever ever ever had a bug in my water. most of soil growers cannot say the same about their dirt. soil is a natural habitat for many garden variety pests. a tub full of nutrient water is like hell for them and they avoid it at all costs.

 

the long-time deal with the taste issue has gone to the birds as far as im concerned. as a matter of fact, i will turn the tables on the dirt grower now.

a 10 day flush in hydro will give me 100% cannabis taste and nothing else. you can flush for a year and wont get 100% taste. you are getting dirt no matter what. do i prefer the dirt taste? yes. but thats not the point.... the point is that there is no other 100% flush other than having your roots in nothing but clean water for 10 days. flush = clean. as clean as you can get it. my roots in dirt isnt clean. a 10 day flush in hydro 100% assures you that nobody could ever possibly say anything at all about the way your meds taste. if they do, its the strain, not the grow.

 

before i forget, but there is a pro and a con for dirt that shouldnt be overlooked for the budget grower. in the early veg stage, having buckets full of wet dirt will DRAMATICALLY increase your humidity....... this is perfect for the veg room. but then when they hit flower, you have a problem with high humidity. the bubblebuckets are sealed and therefore any moisture that is going to seep into the air to help create humidity is going to be the tiny tiny amount that may evaporate through the hydroton pebbles. very minute amount. so i just make up for it by misting the plants in veg to help raise humidity..... and when i get to flower, i have way lower humidity (naturally and without the aid of equipment) than any dirt grow.

 

the pros and cons are endless and THC could go back and forth for hours..... but one thing i know we both agree on..... its all up to the grower.

 

 

• THC-Farmer The plant utilizes only what it needs and converts everything into the necessary sugars to construct the plants structure and to further along growth. Nothing is stored, nothing is wasted.

[Grow Thread]

the debate here is over flushing. final flushing to be more specific.

 

my stand is that the plant drinks water in its final week-10 days. no doubt. dont you want that to be 100% clean water only?

[THC-Farmer]

Here's my take on flushing... I am in no way entirely against it, I just don't recommend or support the idea because it's generally just a waste of time and water. But other than that it's not as if it's a bad thing! Don't get the wrong idea... I'm not saying it's going to ruin anything, only that it's pointless.

 

One of the most important things to remember when referring to this topic is that we are dealing with an annual flowering plant. It is NOT a fruiting plant. Fruiting plants are COMPLETELY different.

 

Most of the flushing practices and products are designed and carried out by non-organic vegetable and fruit farmers because those plants do in fact store nutrients within thier cellulose and other areas, especially the fruits, and they don't want those non-organic compounds affecting thier product in a potentially negative mannar. It's kind of like consumer reassurance if you will...

 

But annual flowers are completely different. They don't store nutrients like those plants do. So flushing them out doesn't do anything.

 

I'm going to asumed everyone is familiar with the photosynthetic process.

 

Ok, Cannabis is very identical to most other vascular plants. It carries out the photosynthetic process in the very same way the other plants do. While Cannabis itsself as a species has never really been put under the scope to be studied on a cellular level pertaining to it's overall growth, many other annual flowering plants have and while quite different, they still share the basic characteristics of a vascular plant...

 

One of the most important growth aspects noted by scientists who have studied annuals are thier amazingly fast growth rates. They are unlike any other plant on this planet.

 

So they decided to take a closer look at what was driving these fast growth rates and how the plant actually carried out it's metabolism. The most noteable feature was the high efficiency of sugar development via the photosynthetic process. They are so efficient that there is literally nothing used that the plant doesn't need and nothing is wasted...

 

Every single nutrient molecule is spent during the process of creating the sugary glucose needed to grow. Even the larger macro nutrients, also known as the mobile nutrients, are used up as soon as they are absorbed. Nothing is stored or left over within the plant.

 

When this logic is applied to the Cannabis plant one would assume the same process occurs. And indeed it does. Cannabis is not a fruit. It's an annual flower. Annual flowering plants do not store nutrients within thier cellulose for later production of fruit like fruiting plants do, they just use what's available to them and grow. When the photoperiod changes annual flowering plants simply adjust thier metabolic rate and begin using more of the nutrients they require to construct the flowers.

 

Once the flower (bud) is constructed/grown it consists of the glucose, terpenes, cannabinoids and THC compounds the plant used the nutrients and light we provided it to create them. The flowers never contain any of the nutrients that the rest of the plant does. The flowers are only comprised of the compounds created BY the nutrients and light energy.

 

So the notion that somehow the nutrients, chemicals or other substances within the medium will affect the end result simply because they are there, even in perfectly natural amounts, seems to be quite improbable. Even if the plant was still absorbing nutrients up until the day you harvest the flowers will not contain those nutrients, only the compounds the plant creates by using those nutrients...

 

As far as the plant absorbing more water near the end of it's bloom goes, I'm not so sure about that. Is it possible? Of course. But highly unlikely in my opinion. The main question there would be why? If the plant has already gone through it's blooming process, which requires more nutrients and more water, why would it need to increase water uptake when it's at the end of that process? It just seems very unlikely that this is taking place... And I have never seen any indication that would suggest the plant is doing this through my experience...

[Grow Thread]

Agreed! But a major difference still remains; Those Hydroponic nutrient compounds are not organic by any means. The only concern I have with non-organic nutrients and compounds is the issue of them leaking into the environment. It's never a good idea to pour hydroponic waste water/spent nutrient solutions down the drain, in the toilet, or anywhere for that matter. So the question is, what do you do with your left over non-organic solutions?

-------- i water my houseplants with it, and the rest gets spread across mine and my neighbors lawn. dont frown, its no worse than what you buy in the store, and trust that we have some pretty green lawns

 

 

But see, that $30 tote is much more than a $30 tote when you factor in the nutrients you put into the water, the pumps required, the tubing and the water. You forgot to mention those factors. And they are important because they all add up. More competitive, sure. More efficient? Not really... I pay roughly $80 for all the soil I need to do twelve 5 gallon buckets, filled to the brim, and quite a few 1 gallon pots for vegetative growth. Fertilizer lasts 4 times longer in organic soil mixtures because the soil itsself as a medium also provides months of nutrients for the plants. So while you use up a bottle every 2 cycles, mine lasts for 4 cycles or more!

------- no $30 equals EVERYTHING I NEED TO GET STARTED FOR TWO PLANTS.... thats 30 bucks minus nutes and water.......... same as you.

 

 

Not to mention soil allows for beneficial bacteria and micro organisms that are impossible to support in a hydroponic system. This aspects of biology are very important to NATURAL plant growth. This is also what enhances the natural flavors and aromas of the plants... Something no hydro system can EVER achieve!

 

 

 

 

 

that pretty much solves the rest eh??

 

 

Yes, the DWC buckets definitely help out if you had to leave your garden unattended for an extended period of time. Very good point there! Possibly one of the best solutions for a situation where the patient isn't able to tend to thier garden everyday would be your basic DWC bucket system.

 

 

 

I disagree... I'm confident that certain soils are just as accurate as anything else. Manufactured organic soils, such as Fox Farms Ocean Forest and Fox Farms Happy Frog are extremely accurate mixtures. They are all mixed with precise amounts of the ingredients listed on the package. I have yet to have an inconsistent outcome. However, not ALL soil media are accurate. This is where a little research and understanding of the origins and process of your soil are extremely important.

 

 

 

This is not entirely true... This is where technique and knowledge become important. I don't flood my soil with water. I use a ZERO RUNOFF policy when watering my plants. My soil stays thoroughly moist all the way through, ALL THE TIME. There is no dry out period. It requires some very tedious watering but it pays off in the end. In the event that these conditions are met properly, as nature would provide, growth rates will be optimal.

 

The only TRUE way to increase growth rates beyond natural rates is to add abnormal amounts of C02 into the equation. In this event plants reserve the genetic ability to increase thier growth rates far beyond what natural levels of C02 would allow. This is the ONLY way to increase growth rates beyond thier natural tendancies under natural conditions.

 

 

 

Agreed... While I have never encountered any soil dwelling pests through my experience, it is most definitely a relavant concern! But proper treatment of your soil (don't store it outside, don't bring outside soil in, always store your soil in a cool, dark, sealed area) and a properly sealed and sanitary grow room should be enough to thwart off any intruders!

 

 

 

This is one topic I completely disagree on. I always will.

 

In an organic soil cultivation the soil is teeming with organic life such as mycorrhizae and all the rhizobacteria family. Hydroponic cultivation completely lacks this aspect of the plants growth. This is the most important benefactor when determining the plants flavor, aroma, and overall complete developement. See, these bacteria and microbes all provide nutrients and other added benefits to the plants root system that dramatically affects the plants vigor, nutrient uptake, and it's overall development.

 

Plants have adapted to utilize these bacteria, microbes, and thier byproducts very effectively. Hydroponics strips them of this evolutionary ability and the side affects of this are quite obvious...

 

This is the main reasons that only organic soil grown Cannabis is allowed for entry in the High Times Cannabis Cup.

 

 

 

I couldn't agree more!

[Grow Thread]

the fun of it is the never ending part

[THC-Farmer]

lol

 

Yep... Round n Round we go...

 

But the important thing is to get both opinions clearly laid out so the beginners can make educated choices based on what would suit them best!

[Grow Thread]

and in that you are 100% right................

 

and i ask.....

 

how long did it take you to know exactly how much to water and when to water?? 2 cycles?? 3? 6? remember, you are talking about a PERFECT water as to where the roots are never choked

 

big problem for a newer grower..... in a bubblebucket we know how much from day one

[THC-Farmer]

and in that you are 100% right................

 

and i ask.....

 

how long did it take you to know exactly how much to water and when to water?? 2 cycles?? 3? 6? remember, you are talking about a PERFECT water as to where the roots are never choked

 

big problem for a newer grower..... in a bubblebucket we know how much from day one

 

And how do you know exactly how much? I fail to see the point...

 

In hydroponics the roots are more or less fully submerged in water all the time. This is why the bubble stones are required. Regardless of the bubbles a vast majority of your roots are fully submerged. What about the roots that aren't getting any bubbles?

 

If anything, what you're implying applies to hydroponics, not soil...

 

So how can you choke the roots with water in soil? I don't understand mon...

 

Really the only way to choke roots in a soil grow is if you use absolutely NO aeration what so ever and use a sand-like soil that becomes compacted and doesn't allow any kind of air in the mix at all... But 9.5 times out of 10 the soil has plenty of aeration in it, be it perlite, wood chips, sticks, the soil itsself... It's all fairly pourus and more than enough.

 

I think you're exaggerating the roots requirements for 02 a bit... Think about it from a natural perspective. Think about the roots growing through the soil outside in the ground... Cmon now.

[elklake]

Ah, varity is a spice of life.

[Grow Thread]

THCfarmer is my dirt hero. they guy spends the time and effort on every single post that i sometimes do not put in myself.

 

he cares about this site and its members very much. he cares about the newer grower and has the patience to do so. he has actually volunteered to become a mod as well. super kudos to you my friend.

 

regardless, he's "secretly informed me" that he has some potent info floating around in his head.

 

what's it gonna take for you to lay it on us right here bro??

 

a nod for the info locked inside THC's brain??

 

how about a nod for THC for mod??

[FlyingHigh]

Nod and nod

 

I really enjoyed reading you two debateing the marits of each method well done to you both

[Eggybuddy]

Is there anything wrong with useing 'both' methods at the same time?

[AbsoluteRoyal]

I am curious about this zero run-off policy you speak of. I agree wet/dry cycles arent beneficial.

 

but.... If I dont see something come out of the bottom of the pot, then I am not saturating the entire medium thouroughly I feel.

 

Is it just a fine line drawn on how often you want to water?

[Grow Thread]

And how do you know exactly how much? I fail to see the point...

 

In hydroponics the roots are more or less fully submerged in water all the time. This is why the bubble stones are required. Regardless of the bubbles a vast majority of your roots are fully submerged. What about the roots that aren't getting any bubbles?

 

there is a predetermined water level. this point is determined before a plant is ever placed into the bucket/tote. that water level is maintained all day every day from beginning to end. one HUGE AND COMMON MISTAKE of the new grower in soil is over/under watering. you know this to be true.

 

new grower over/under watering kills nearly as many plants as the american government every year.

 

in a bubblebucket, you simply cannot screw it up, draw a line in your tote:

 

and keep the water level right there!! cant go wrong.

 

as far as the roots that arent getting any bubbles?? soil growers misconception right there. as well as many new bubblefolks. each root does not need bubbles. your bubblestones do not need to be directly under your plants either. the goal here is circulation and oxygenation.

 

the air pump provides plenty of oxygen through the bubblestones and bubbles ...........yes. but the actual water movement itself creates air. moving water = oxygenated water. thats science.

 

the more bubbles you provide, the more water movement you provide. water movement = oxygen.

 

roots can lay in the corner of the tote in completely non-bubbled water and still be 100%+ oxygenated.

[THC-Farmer]

there is a predetermined water level. this point is determined before a plant is ever placed into the bucket/tote. that water level is maintained all day every day from beginning to end. one HUGE AND COMMON MISTAKE of the new grower in soil is over/under watering. you know this to be true.

Agreed... However, the same mistakes CAN be made in a hydroponic system. And 95% of all hydroponic systems are much more unforgiving to the new cultivator than soil systems ever could be. Water levels and nutrient availability included... Again, it all depends on which technique is being used.

 

as far as the roots that arent getting any bubbles?? soil growers misconception right there. as well as many new bubblefolks. each root does not need bubbles. your bubblestones do not need to be directly under your plants either. the goal here is circulation and oxygenation.

 

the air pump provides plenty of oxygen through the bubblestones and bubbles ...........yes. but the actual water movement itself creates air. moving water = oxygenated water. thats science.

 

the more bubbles you provide, the more water movement you provide. water movement = oxygen.

 

roots can lay in the corner of the tote in completely non-bubbled water and still be 100%+ oxygenated.

Fair enough... I can't disagree much there.

 

However, when the soil is properly aerated, water being pourd into the soil becomes aerated as it passes over particles of perlite, wood, and other debris in the soil. This actually creates a bubbling affect that you can actually hear as you water your soil. Not to mention, most water that is being watered into the soil is, or should be, already oxygenated. So it carries that 02 down into the root zone as well as stirs the air concentration up within the soil.

 

Now, in some cases yes, if the soil is not properly aerated and an extremely excessive amount of water is being used to the point where it sits in the soil and creates a damp, mucky medium, then indeed, it can choke the root zone out.

 

So it's important to have a properly aerated soil medium. Although, these days it's pretty difficult to find store bought mediums without aeration. And as long as the soil has plenty of aeration it's actually very difficult to choke the root zone. However that doesn't mean overwatering won't cause problems at the root zone.

 

Generally speaking, overwatering properly aerated soil doesn't choke the roots at all. That's a common hydroponic growers misconception. Overwatering is a slightly more complicated issue, most of which has very little to do with lack of 02 at the root zone. Overwatering in properly aerated soil creates nutrient absorbtion problems by washing away and blocking ionic exchanges between particles at the root surface. This will inevitably induce the plant into what is called "damping off". This usually leads to denitrification. This is the most common problem caused by overwatering.

 

Another problem overwatering causes, and this is especially true in organic media, is that it literally kills the soil. Overwatering can put micro-organisms and beneficial bacteria into osmotic shock. This kills them off and dramatically reduces the overall nutrient content and effectiveness of the organic soil. This can be very detrimental to the growth of the plant.

[Grow Thread]

i swear you just edited out the part i was about to attack

 

hahaha.... i love this "indifference"

[THC-Farmer]

I may have... lol...

 

I do edit my posts occaisionally. Though, I don't recall removing any statements from this post.

 

I may have just moved the whole statement to make it fit in better.