HYDRO My second grow in the 4'x4' tent: Acapulco Gold, Laughing Buddha & Purple Haze!

[UndergroundFarmer]

Sunday I cut down the six clones I couldn't just throw away, cleaned out the RDWC setup and transplanted these guys. I could check my old posts to see when their moms were hatched. I swear it's been nearly four months waiting to get clones of these varieties growing! They were looking a little rough because I had an outbreak of fungus gnats and thrips on all my plants in coco. I killed them off with Neem oil spray but I probably overdid it with the dish soap and the leaves suffered a bit. The day after the transplant, they all perked up under the better light and all the water they wanted. Most of the dead stuff has fallen off now and they seem jazzed to be able to grow beyond the confinement of Solo cups. I was sharp enough to remember to add the elbows to the ends of the water tubes to stop instances of what I call "dribbleback". That's when surface tension caused nute solution to cling to the tube and run through the grommet and down the side of the bucket onto the tent floor. All three varieties tend to grow tall so this will be as full as this tent has ever been once harvest arrives. I've grown ILGM Purple Haze before with outstanding results even under fluorescents but I'm new to the Barney's Farm stuff. BTW, I know this is technically not the real Acapulco Gold of the old days. I have had a half-ounce of it and dug the happy vibe it brings, so I'm good with that. Anyone who wants to fix me up with the real deal can shoot me a DM, I'm definitely open to trying the non-hybridized version.

[crucialbunny]

Looks like an experiment on a space shuttle. You got all the whiz-bang toys going. I have noticed on a few posts people saying "state sanction grow". What exactly does that mean?

[UndergroundFarmer]

Exactly! We had to get a boatload of petitions signed and deal with suspiciously written competing measures to get Amendment 2 passed in Missouri in 2018 so I can grow my own. Even in such a conservative state, our ballot initiative passed with 66% for and 33% against. The problematic competing amendment failed with only 33% for. Opting for a cultivation license was a shrewd move considering that we still don't have medical dispensaries open yet.

[crucialbunny]

Nice. I've spent a little time in Missouri near Hannibal and couldn't help but think what a great place to grow weed this would be. I noticed that the prevailing sentiment leaned to the right fairly hard so I am surprised the measure passed. Thanks for clearing it up for me.

[UndergroundFarmer]

I think the reason it sailed through despite all the right-wing voters is because the conservatives out here tend to lean libertarian. I'll take it if it will help free the herb!

[SoOrbudgal]

Great start UndergroundFarmer those 6 won't get crowded in there? I don't know much about this way of growing but it is interesting to watch.

[UndergroundFarmer]

Thanks! They will be shoulder-to-shoulder in this 4'x4' tent but not cramped like they were when I grew six in the 3'x3' tent where the four bucket setup for Project Blueberry now is. That one was a mistake. Only three of them produced well and they did so at the expense of their three shorter tentmates.

[SoOrbudgal]

I got it and i really like these types of grows very interesting to me.

[UndergroundFarmer]

Week 2 began with last week's harvest moved back into the tent to finish drying because they were getting pretty loud outside the tent! Every time I unzip it now the smell smacks me upside my head. The clones continue to drop dead leaves and reach a bit higher each day. I forgot how nice it is working in the tent before the scrog net is a necessity. It's all so open now even with the light hanging low. Timing the cloning process better this time helped so much because there is so little coco to be filtered out of the solution. Also this time, I only have two extra clones to give away and I'm waiting for a response from our friends. Trouble is, the moms all need haircuts and I hate to waste good cuttings....

[UndergroundFarmer]

Week 3! I cleaned up suckers from the stems and put up the first scrog net. Sorry for the blurple photo - I had the white LEDs lit but it didn't photograph well. Laughing Buddha is much taller than its tentmates and Acapulco Gold is looking a little weak. I found out why. I couldn't remember recalibrating the pH pen since I bought it months ago. So.....it was reading almost a whole point high! I'm impressed that LB & PH did as well as they did in such acidic (4.5!) solution! It explains why their neighbors in the other tent ain't thriving too. Oh well, it's early enough to overcome such overwhelming oddities. In other news, I cut two clones each from the moms in coco and will probably replace two of the sicker looking ones. I also learned of a local growers group where I can unload extra clones and seeds so swapping might be in my future.

[UndergroundFarmer]

Week 4 and the girls are on a growth spurt! I might flip to flower next weekend depending on how tall the AG and PH have gotten. I've added a sticky trap and have several tiny bugs on it already. I attacked with Lost Coast Plant Therapy and gave every other plant a spritz to be sure.

[UndergroundFarmer]

I'm still spritzing every plant I've got with Lost Coast with good results. The sticky traps are getting more of the thrips and an occasional gnat every day. I hosed down the mothers in coco the other day. Today I took them out of the tent for a feed and had to wipe up at least half a hundred dead thrips! I wish I'd known about these devils about a month ago. I thought they were much larger, possibly because I saw the pictures in books and on the website and got them confused with earwigs or some other larger pest. If I'd known they were no bigger than iron filings I would have attacked sooner! These girls are doing well enough; I wish the Sweet Zombie in my other tent wasn't so eaten up!

[UndergroundFarmer]

Week 1 of flower (or at least 12/12). These varieties are known for stretching, so I'm switching now that they are reaching the net. I had to supercrop the Laughing Buddha in back. It left an incredible smell on my fingers and pointed the growth tip back up in just a matter of hours. I'm expecting to see fan leaves with no signs of thrip damage very soon. I got a one gallon pressure sprayer with a wand for reaching under the leaves where the little bastards like to hide today and mixed up a fresh batch. Heeeere thrippy! Nice thrips! Got something for ya!

I believe I may put a skunk in both tents next grow...

[UndergroundFarmer]

Week 2 of flower and the stretch is on. I added another thrip trap after feeding Sunday. It caught a few more, so the invasion isn't quite done. I also got rid of a blower that was pushing air into the tent when the temps were high to see if I can keep them out better. At any rate, the apparent damage to new growth isn't much. All the girls got a bit of a trim below the net but not as severe as the last grow because these are so sativa dominant.

Laughing Buddha might just be worth it for the smell alone. It's like Juicy Fruit gum! Here's hoping the smoke is as awesome. I already know about the other two - PH from previous grows - back by popular demand, AG from a dispensary buy. Interestingly enough, I checked Barney's Farms' website looking for grow info and noticed that they don't sell seed for commercial grows. I guess someone either violated their terms or was growing out clones from a stable of mothers.

I'm still leaning towards growing out Skunk #1 and Ghost Train Haze next for seed.

[UndergroundFarmer]

Week 3 of flower and I already had to install the second scrog net! The Purple Haze up front is already hitting it. This grow would be almost perfect if not for the thrip invasion.

I finally trained my eyes to find the little devils on my plants. Yesterday, I think I killed at least a dozen personally. I've started alternating LCPT spray with a solution of Dr. Bronner's with a bit of cayenne. Every time I check them and find a live one they are getting bombed again. I also added a Hurricane fan at the floor level to keep them from being able to get around. What I don't understand is if these things pupate in soil or coco, how in hell are they able to reproduce in this hydro tent? If all goes well, I won't be mentioning thrips next week.

I am off for two weeks and will be able to give them a lot more attention. Part of this time at the house will be devoted to replacing a 125 year-old lead water supply line and adding a filter system to get rid of chloramine and pesticides leaching into the water supply from "farms" upstream. I suspect some of my issues with Blueberry may be sensitivity to these impurities that other varieties can deal with better. At any rate, it will help me sell the house someday when I'm ready to leave life in the big shitty.

[UndergroundFarmer]

Week 4 and the Purple Haze up front has grown way past the second net and the Acapulco Golds aren't far behind. The thrips may just be finished here. I've been off work for a week and was able to hover over the girls and blast them every time I found a live thrip. Next feed, I should be using filtered water. I have everything ready but my plumber I thought I'd hired seems to have ghosted me. I think I'm just going to do it all myself.

[UndergroundFarmer]

Week 5 of flower and thrips are history. Captain Jack's finished off the precious few that remained after the little bastards fooled me a couple of times. Lately, I'm only seeing these girls in green light because the days are getting so short inside their tent. All of their buds are getting fat and frosty! It may or may not have something to do with the new water filter I installed. Maybe they like the carbon particles that are still washing out of the system. The details of the new filter(s) merit a whole thread of their own. Basically, a one inch water line flows into a 50 micron particle filter to stop the bigger stuff then into a 5 micron filter then two carbon filters to get rid of chloramine and ideally pesticides and whatever else leaches into the Missouri River. Pictures coming when I can catch them with the lights still on. The taller Purple Haze is looking like a huge producer and the rest aren't too shabby either.

[UndergroundFarmer]

Week 6 and the return of bud porn! They are uneven but healthy and producing. That one PH cola will likely keep me in smoke for a few weeks or more! The smells are intensifying too and that's good. Let 'er rip - I got a new carbon filter for this grow. It's quite a contrast compared to what's going on in the tent next door. Still no sign of those f*ckers (thrips) returning. I think they are about done for the season outdoors too. That new couldn't come at a better time because I really wasn't liking the notion of spraying anything once the buds get this big.

[SoOrbudgal]

Those are filling in and looking like they will be covered in trichs. Beautiful

[UndergroundFarmer]

Week 7 of flower is underway and we have our first yo-yo! The taller Purple Haze was making me a bit nervous with its leaning! The rest are all still getting slightly taller and making colas like they're s'posed to. I estimate two weeks to chop - I'm seeing some orange stigmas now.



The thrip traps may soon be gone. A few gnats still hanging around are the reason they are still there. I kinda wish I'd topped them all and given them another two weeks in veg at the time I flipped to flower, but it's no biggie.