Newbie needs advice on nutes please!

[Achilles]

Campesino
I was thinking of maybe 8-10 leaves (based on need of course) per week just to permit light to reach the lower buds since I don't have an even canopy. Hopefully my next grow will include early plant training so as to have a more even canopy.

I just don't want to cause major shock or damage to my first plants, especially since they've done surprisingly well so far. With your help of course!

[Achilles]

Well I've given them both a little trim and will post pics tomorrow. Hopefully I haven't damaged them. Time will tell on this one. But it's my first grow and I'm learning everyday!

You're right that this is a divisive subject. Lots of strong opinions on both sides of the fence. To each his own I suppose!

Thanks again for all your help!

[Achilles]

Well here they are after their trim. I ended up snipping more than i had planned. Hopefully they'll survive and thrive after this. The last pic is of the little sister. She's yet to start flowering and is about a month behind the other one even though they sprouted at the same time.

[Achilles]

Hey Campesino

Are the leaves I removed worth saving? Can they serve any useful purpose?

[Achilles]

Awesome! Thank you.

Interesting thread. I'm glad I didn't toss them out.

[Achilles]

Morning guys! I need some advice, my girl has leaf tips that are turning yellow or brown. I'm kinda colorblind so I'm not sure which it is. But it's something I haven't seen or dealt with before.

On a better note she seems to be maturing well. She's filling out the bud sites. They're getting fatter and frostier by the day.

More questions y'all....I'm using between a gallon and a gallon and a half of RO water daily. But I have to buy it buy the gallon from a local superstore. Do I have to use RO water or can I use my tap water and just be sure to correct the ph?

Lighting question...I'm thinking of buying the Perfect Sun Dwarf Star for $435. I currently have the Viparspectra V300. It was around $90 on Amazon. I'm pretty sure I need a second light in this tent for full coverage and don't know if I should just get a second V300 or spring for the PSDS. What do y'all think???

[Achilles]

Got it, thank you!

I'm gonna adjust the inflow for now and see what happens. If the change in inflow ppm is correcting the problem, how long before I see a difference on the leaf tips?

[Achilles]

Good morning Campesino

3 days later and the tips do not appear to be worsening. I have increased the quantity given at fertigation (both girls are getting one half gallon twice daily w/a good amount of run-off) and the numbers are

• In 845/Out 987
• In 697/Out 860
• In 709/Out 987

Do these appear ok or should I continue to make adjustments?

[Achilles]

You're correct in assuming that those numbers are PPM. My meter only does PPM. Sorry for not being more clear on that, my bad.
I can fertigate 3x daily no problem. My PPM's have been varying a LOT, from 601-860. After taking the time to read your guide I see that I can adjust it down by simply adding some RO water. That's what I'll be doing from now on and targeting a 550-600PPM.

My fiber pots drain into a large aluminum cooking pan and that's where I measure my run-off from. Will the aluminum skew my numbers?

I'm guessing I'm still about 3 weeks from harvest and I can't thank you enough for your advice!!!

[Achilles]

I assume I can leave my lights on an 18/6 schedule since these are autos. If that's true would it be ok to fertigate every 8hrs for 3x daily or every 6hrs for 4x daily regardless of the light status?

Good idea using the syringe, you've just taught me a new trick and something else I can steal from my wife's kitchen tool drawer. 😁

[Achilles]

I think I've finally gotten my #'s under control. The last 3 times I've checked my in/out PPM they've been...

• In-573 Out-686
• In-573 Out-699
• In-569 Out-654

Many thank to Campesino

[Achilles]

From the beginning of this grow I've been mixing my nutes 1gal. at a time. This weekend I started mxiing 4gal. at time to save a little prep time. My thinking was 4x the water = 4x the nutes. Not so! I had been using 1.5ml Cal Mag per gal. and 2.5ml Bloom per gal. so I added 5ml Cal Mag & 10ml Bloom for 4gal. but the issue is that with this mixture my PPM is too low. This morning it was 324. So I added 1ml Bloom and it came up to 379-still too low. So I added 2ml more Bloom and it came up to 457-still too low, so I added another ml Bloom and it came up to 497PPM with a pH of 5.88. I'm ok with the 497 & 5.88 but my problem is that I had to add 5ml Bloom to get there, that means that in 4gal. of RO water I've used 15ml Bloom which translates to 3.75ml per gal. instead of the 2.5ml per gal. I was using before going with a 4 gal. mixture. This seems like too much to me. Am I going to harm my plants by using this much? Should I mix 4 gallons separately and then combine the 4 into my larger container? I'm confused and need some direction please!

[Achilles]

I agree that it's odd for sure! I was following the instructions on page 15 of your guide where it says if EC is too low then add something. Do you think I should discard the current solution and start over? I don't want to harm my girls and I've already fed them once out of this current mixture. Maybe I should just go back to mixing 1gal at a time, I had better results that way. No need to press my luck at this late stage. I'm thinking I'm only a week or two from harvest.

[Achilles]

True! True! I failed to read that part. As soon as I read "add something" I stopped reading and added something! I didn't add Micro at all, I don't have any. The only nutrients that I have are FloraNova Grow & Bloom and CaliMagic. I don't know how the #'s got out of whack, I didn't change my order at all. I always add CM first then Bloom. Then I test/adjust pH then check the PPM.

[Achilles]

OK. Thank you!