Cannabis as houseplant

[MDR]

Hi Everyone

I'm still new to this message board and already appreciate the help and advice given. As per my other thread I'm currently growing some White Widow plants from feminized seeds. I don't really consume cannabis because I've never really enjoyed the high (although I'm told CBD strains might be a good alternative). Having said that I love growing plants and cannabis has quickly become another cultivating interest since it's legalization in Canada.

For starters I am not experienced at this, and I know most of the growers in here focus on maximizing their yields. However, my primary intention is to grow a plant or two as a house plant with future clippings to be used as clones outside or for friends, I guess like a mother plant. My setup is open concept and not optimal conditions for maximizing yields, but I'm okay with it.

Having said that I took a lot of the advice previously shared...

1. I added a second light . It's probably still not the full amount you guys recommended but, My partner and I have to agree on things before we make it happen, and she's already making a number of concession letting me pursue this hobby.
2. I replaced the soil with coo coo coir and perlite 3:1 ratio.
3. Switched to Dyna Gro for nutrients and have Dyna Bloom in stock.
4. It's on a 19 hour light cycle.
5. I clipped two of the plants down a couple nodes. It appeared to put it in slight shock for a week, as the growth has been slow compared to the two plants I didn't clip.
6. At least one of the plants has started to show pistols.

Questions

• Ph level - I bought a Ph kit and tester. It ranges from 7 to 6.5 from top of the pot to bottom (respectively). I feel like this is slightly too high, but don't want to play around with the Ph levels if it's not necessary.
• I'm training my plants with soft copper wire. It's a technique I learned with bonsai plants and figured it could work the same here. I know it's not one of the standard training methods, but I'm comfortable with it, unless others see a problem. I've trained the larger plants to open up light to the lower new growth. I did this a couple days ago, so I'm hoping to see some positive growth.
• You might notice some of my bottom leaves developed a magnesium problem. After I transitioned to coo coo coir and added nutrients, I went of a travel vacation and the person watering the plants only used water. Since my return I've only watered with nutrient added water, and things seem to have bounced back. Should I clip those pale leaves off?
• I put one of the plants under our sunroof to get about 10-12 hours of natural light. It appear to be growing slower than the others. It's been there for about 3 weeks now, and there's no signs of flowering. I believe this is largely because it's not getting 12 hours of complete darkness despite the natural light cycle. I'm okay with that, because my goal is to eventually keep one as mother houseplant.
• Leaves curling up - you'll notice some of the leaves on the smaller plants are curling up. I believe this is because the house temperature lowered to about 14-16 degrees while we were on vacation. Temperatures are back to 20F and the curling appears to have stopped.

[Tersky]

Ok to address your fist point, get a different ph testing kit or ph pen. For coco the ph needs to be between 5.5 and 6.5 but i always water my plants at 6.0

Second point, copper wire is not recommended but can work. The problem with bonsai training is the way they do it. Bonsai grow REALLY slowly usually. The stems of cannabis plants can thicken quickly and you run the risk of strangling branches if the wire is not being constantly loosened. Also copper is a little rough and young cannabis stems can break easily. That said, if your careful and mindful of the stems i dont see why this would not work. Not sure if the copper would effect the plant that is for someone else who know more about that.

Third: You can clip those leave if you want but i dont think it will hurt to leave them either. You may want to consider adding a calcium-magnesium supplement to you feeding as coco is completely inert and growing in it can have cal-mag issues. I use it every feed in my coco. Oh and i wouldnt use vermiculite as it retains water. Use perlite instead. Coco it's self will retain a lot of water and not having good drainage and stagnate water can cause root rot.

Your last two are more statements than questions it seems unless i read it wrong.

I found an article on how to do a cannabis bonsai on this site actually recently. May find some useful ideas in it. https://www.growweedeasy.com/how-to-...limited-clones

[Tersky]

I figured you were keeping a close eye on the copper wire as i dont think you are an inexperienced gardener by the way you talk, just new to cannabis it seems. But i wanted to be thorough and mention it. Looks like you got a handle on it! I'll be interested to see your progress! I might try the bonsai thing i linked you tbh! First post you did i didnt even know that link existed so sorry for not giving you that link in the beginning.

[MDR]

I read through most of the article. This is exactly what I would like to do and would probably be greatly appreciated by my partner, so thank you. She's not too keen on having a huge mother plant in the house. Sounds like one of my smaller plants would be an ideal candidate. However the tutorial seems to talk about soil and not coo coo coir. I wonder if I need to switch my medium again?

[Tersky]

i plan on doing it in coco so i dont think you have to switch. You will have to provide nutrients is really the only difference imo. I have a plant that i trained like the link in a solo cup with coco and its working right now. The roots have gotten so big that i have to water/feed daily almost tho so if you had compost and soil you wouldnt have to do that. I use synthetic nutes so i just make a gallon of nute water and water a little each day. Been working so far.

[MDR]

I'm getting a bit nervous. The larger leaves near the bottom are turning more yellow. I think it might be a lack of nutes. I've been using Dyna Gro for two weeks now, watering every 3-4 days. The guide said start with half the dosage, so I've been using 1/8 tsp per gallon of water

[Tersky]

Typically, yellowing of the leaves is a nitrogen deficiency. I dont know anything about those nutes so cant help you there. One thing that stands out from your last post was the PH testing. if your ph is not right then it will prevent the plant form taking up nutrients. That said, nitrogen is able to be absorbed in most ph levels. I would try upping the nute strength a little and see if that helps.

[Farmall]

I admire you regarding the concerns of your partner. I like that copper wire thing but as Tersky mentioned, the stems rule and once they start thickening, they can break easily on some plants. I’ve always had 1 do that each time and I’m very careful about it

[Farmall]

When I tried to bring some of the growth pulled down horizontally, it all goes well and without any notice, the branch splits the center.

[SirSmksAlot]

s62 try using some liquid skin bandaid on the wound. Just had to use it on one of my girls. I find it really helps.

[s62]

SirSmksAlot Thanks! I had no idea that was a thing. Will try it out.

[s62]

I think this is a really cool idea. I really enjoy growing this plant, and I think that would be true even if I didn’t use the flowers.
Cheers! Keep us updated with pics

[Mr.furley]

MDR
How old are your plants?

[MDR]

seeds were germinated mid September

[MDR]

Tersky , I think you're right. I need to hone my Ph game a bit better.

I have two Ph testers that aren't giving me the same reads; Generic Garden Soil PH Meter Moisture Tester and the General Hydroponics pH Control Kit promoted on this website. The former always gives me generally higher reads, compared to the latter.

Here's what i did for my last watering.

• I started with a gallon of water
• Next I tested with General Hydroponics pH control kit
• The original color was a light green, so I added some pH down to bring it to a bright yellow
• The Generic Garden Soil pH tester still read it at 7.3 but I decided to trust the General Hydroponics kit more
• I then added half the recommended dose of Dyna Gro Grow nutrients to the water.
• I watered the plants with about a 10-20% runoff in each pot.
• The Generic Garden Soil pH tester still gives me reads of 7.0 went testing in the soil. Today it's reading 8.0

Why would the tester be giving higher readings now, when I lowered the pH before watering?

[Mr.furley]

First off get get rid of that soil tester. Second is you need to adjust your pH after you add nutrients. Third is you need your pH to be at 6.0 going in.

it's time to flush for your plants, do you have a flushing agent like sledgehammer?

[MDR]

Mr.furley the guide gives two different remedies. One is a full flush the other is to water with the corrected pH balance. Which stage do you think I'm at?

[Mr.furley]

I'd suggest the 3× water to pot size and get that pH under control, then move to the water every other time.

[MDR]

Will do

A few follow up questions though

1. Where does the Sledgehammer fit into this? It's not mentioned in the flush guide?
2. What kind of pH reader do you recommend? is my current one useless?

[MDR]

So...funny thing has it, I discovered there's a cannabis specialist store just down the block from where I live that sells everything needed to grow from seed to harvest.

I explained my setup, goals and concerns. He pretty much recited everything shared on this site

• It's possible to grow it as a houseplant, but I won't be able to flower any of it unless I plan for complete darkness. I liked the idea of a house mother plant.
• He said the testers I'm using were inaccurate.
• He gave me both a digital PH meter and a TDS. He recommended I test the run off before I flush just to be sure
  • Ph should be 5.5pH - 6.5pH in coo coo coir
  • TDS should be no higher than 500
• He also recommended I add C Plus M (3-0-0) 1 part to 3 parts Dyna Grow. He said coo coo coir sometimes needs calcium supplements until it stabilizes.

[starramus]

MDR Why do you bother with feminized seeds if you don't plan to smoke the flower? You can pick up regular seeds far cheaper than the feminized.

I do not partake of a cannabis high on a regular basis either. This is due to my tendency to engage in extreme paranoid introspection. Also the heightened senses make me far more aware of my animality which I find distressing. I do smoke on occasion to check the potency of a new strain, or as a quality control check at the end of a grow. What is it about the high that turns you off? Have you tried a variety of strains? You are aware of the difference between a Sativa, and Indica high? This link might help you choose a strain you might find more preferable. https://www.growweedeasy.com/whats-t...sativa-strains

[s62]

Man, paranoid introspection. That’s beautifully said. I experience the same damn thing, but I used it as an excuse to exercise my demons. After confronting myself for awhile, the paranoid introspection abated. Worth it!

[MDR]

The store I bought seeds from were priced like this
Regular Girl Scout Cookies = $75.00 CDN (12 seeds)
Feminized White Widow = $95.00 CDN (6 seeds)

I bought one back of each. I guess you;re right, I could just get regular and cull the males, but at the time I purchased them I really had no idea what any of that meant. I also do get enjoyment out of budding them eventually.

In terms of consumption. I don't have anything against it, I just don't enjoy the thoughts that go through my head. I can quickly get paranoid and high anxiety, thoughts of my own mortality, thoughts of losing family, life choices, etc. Basically I start feeling not in control of my life and vulnerable.

[Farmall]

Man, that is deep shit... philosophically stimulating and honestly, there are several strains that don’t contribute to that paranoia feeling but, the fun part is you gotta keep going...trying several until your satisfied . Frankly, It could be worth your while

[MDR]

tested the runoff water

1000+ TDS
6.5 pH

I'm going to flush and use these meters to properly add nutrients

[Farmall]

MDR. You may have said it but...is this city water? Well? That 1000 TDS seems quite high... my well is about 98ppm and once in a blue moon, 114.

[MDR]

It's city water. However the coo coo coir wasn't pre mixed. I did it myself and the guy at the specialty store mentioned that brick coo coo coir should be flushed before adding the plants, which I didn't do.

[Woodsman67]

If your only growing for the sake of growing a plant, no worries. If the end result is just a nice beautiful green room decor, your doing great. Dont over complicate it with too much technology crap, just enjoy the vegging plant. They are amazing to train and grow

[MDR]

Thanks, that is my end goal. If I decide to bloom buds I will take clones from the houseplant.

[s62]

I mostly agree, but frankly it’s all of the fun tech, training, etc, that makes working with cannabis so fun and rewarding. I say get as nerdy as you want!

[MDR]

Good news update

I flushed each plant with water 3x their pot size. The runoff is now

pH = 6.9pH
DTS = 191ppm

I'm going to let them continue draining for a few more hours before I rewater with nutrients. This time I will test the pH after I add the nutes.
To help bring the pH down more, what should I set the re-water with nutes at 6.0pH or 5.5pH?

[Tersky]

I would do 5.5 for this feed and then when ppm is around 5.5-6.5 start ph'ing to 6.0

[MDR]

sounds like a good plan. Thanks

[MDR]

Update

I re-watered with Dyna Gro Grow (1/4 tsp per gallon) + a calcium/magnesium supplement at half strength.

The runoff is now

pH = 6.2pH
DTS = 300ppm

A couple more leaves started to yellow, but I'm hoping the next couple days will fix.