GrowAce AirCubes with Tropicana Cookies

~ AirCube Active Oxygen Ebb/Flow System sponsored by GrowAce, featuring Tropicana Cookies by FastBuds ~ Well guy's and gal's here we go again on another exciting Autoflower run together! This time will be different as I will be doing a 'Hydroponic' run utilizing the AirCube Active Oxygen Ebb/Flow System by GrowAce, who were kind enough to sponsor me for this run, so it should be interesting to see what results I get and have some fun along the way! •Let me first tell you about this 6 Pot Ebb/Flow system from GrowAce: "The AirCube system is the one and only Ebb & Flow grow system on the market that combines the benefits of air pruning with a fully automated Ebb+Flow system! With the AirCube's proprietary fabric pot in bucket design, this system is guaranteed to outgrow any other Ebb + Flow system on the market. The results speak for themselves- grow MASSIVE roots that result in MASSIVE fruits! Air Pruning- Air Pruning only happens with fabric pots. As the roots reach the fabric walls of the pot, they penetrate and grow into the breathable fabric. Once penetrated, the roots are exposed to air, which causes the tips of the root to dehydrate and naturally prune themselves. This natural pruning process forces the roots to grow tons of lateral fibrous feeder roots. This results in a plant that utilizes the entire root zone and fills the entire pot with tons of roots. These fibrous feeder roots are incredibly effective in uptaking water and nutrients, resulting in a plant that grows healthier and more vigorously! Oxygen Benefits- Without oxygen, nutrient absorption cannot occur. On a molecular level, oxygen is needed to transmit nutrients across the cell walls and into the roots of a plant. With the AirCube's proprietary bottom lifted draining design, the system actively draws all of the water out of the bucket pulls vital oxygen into the root zone. Maximum Versatility with Any Grow Medium: The AirCube System is the only system on the market that allows you to use any growing medium you like. Use coco coir, soil, peat moss, perlite, vermiculite, hydroton, rockwool or any other medium you wish! This system is the most versatile Ebb and Flow bucket system in today's hydroponics industry. Temperature Control- with the fabric pots constructed with highly porous polypropylene fabric, heat dissipates easily and effectively. Unlike standard plastic pots, heat isn't trapped in the root zone. Heat in standard plastic containers can reach temperatures of up to 125 degrees. When this type of heat is trapped and unable to escape, it can damage your plant's health and limit the potential of your harvest. Growing in the AirCube System, plant roots grow cooler, healthier, and more vigorous. Largest Pots in its Class- this system features 5 Gallon grow buckets, the largest pot size of any other ebb and flow hydroponic system in the market. Modular and Expandable- start with 6 grow buckets and expand up to 36 grow buckets with the optional 105 gallons PopTank reservoir!" For my medium and nutrients I decided to also switch things up from my regular Organic runs, going with Plagron Nutrients and Root Royale 70/30 Coco/Perlite. When filling the fabric pots with medium, I first added just under a gallon of horticulture perlite from Nor-Cal as a base layer to ensure good drainage and then filled the remainder with the Root Royale. •Now for the outstanding, award winning strain from my friends at FastBuds... Tropicana Cookies Auto: I'll be running Tropicana Cookies Autoflower which is a 60/40 Indica/Sativa Hybrid. "Tropicana Cookies Auto is the perfect variety for growers of all levels, especially beginners as this strain performs very well outdoors and indoors, and can produce up to 500 gr/m2 in 56-63 days without needing extra maintenance. Reaching up to 110 cm, this strain grows fairly tall with medium-sized branching, showing its mixed heritage. Definitely the right choice for those with a high tolerance looking to get their hands on the strongest autoflowers out there. You can expect an extremely powerful and long-lasting high that’ll boost your mood and give you that extra push you need to start your days on the right foot. This variety offers the whole range of citrus and woody flavors with a strong candy-sweet background that will keep you coming back for more and more."* *References: GrowAce.com, 2fast4buds.com ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The Setup: • AC Infinity 4x4 tent •AC Infinity Cloudline T6 Exhaust Fan w/ Controller 67 •HLG 650R w/UVA Bar *** For some reason GD does NOT have a listing for the USA version of the 650R so I selected the closest match to it. •AirCube Active Oxygen Ebb/Flow 6 pot System •DL Wholesale Root Royale Coco Lite 70/30 coco/perlite •TrolMaster Hydro-X Controller for light •AutoPilot APC8200 co2 controller fed by a 50# tank •16" Hurricane oscillating fan and 8" floor fan •Tent cooling via filtered outside air delivered by AC Infinity Cloudline T6 fan •BlueLab instruments: PH Pen and Truncheon Nutrient Meter ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Weekly Updates: 10/22- The Tropicana cookies are going into their third week of veg, and their fourth week since breaking ground. All three are looking great, with the #1 pheno having the darkest green coloration and super tight node spacing, and the #2 which is looking super healthy, with much wider node spacing. The #3's color is not yet where I'd like to see it, but it has been steadily improving over time. Their feedings of Plagron nutrients continue three times daily and I'm monitoring the reservoir before each, adjusting the nutrient level to 650-700ppm @ 5.9-6.2 ph. The tent environment has remained dialed in with the VPD averaging 1.40kpa over the last seven days. 10/24- Today I drained, cleaned and flushed the AirCube reservoir and 'brain bucket', then filled it with 70L of 74℉ well water. After filling I added the Plagron nutrients separately and also began adding in Plagron Royal Rush. The Tropicana Cookies are responding well to the feeding schedule, and are also tolerating the increased light output which I now have set to 80% along with setting the co2 levels to 1100-1400ppm. 10/26- The #1 pheno has some huge shade leaves that are blocking her side branches, and are an absolute bitch to keep tucked out of the way. I'm contemplating removing a few to allow the side branches more light so that they'll be able to grow out. Today I added 1/2 tsp. of Yucca Extract to the reservoir which will aid in feeding by acting as a surfactant, increasing the wetting ability of the solution. I am continuing the feedings of Plagron nutrients three times daily, and I'm monitoring the reservoir before each, adjusting the nutrient level to 650-700ppm @ 5.9-6.2 ph. The solution temperature is maintaining a steady 73-75℉. As a side note; as the weather gets colder I may install a heat mat, controlled by a thermostat, under the reservoir to ensure proper temp's in it. 10/28- There goes another week for the FastBuds Tropicana cookies and they're all shaping up to be beautiful cultivars, with some slight differences between them which makes the grow interesting! Our weather has warmed up the past couple of days. Because of this I've had to lower the light output to 55% in order to keep the tent temp's below 82℉. The Tropicana Cookies are showing zero sign of heat stress so I'm not terribly concerned, especially as the weather will be dramatically cooling off in a day or two. The #2 and #3 pheno's are showing signs of the beginning of flower, ans I went ahead and removed four of the huge shade leaves on the #1 as they were too big to tuck and blocked a ton of light from the side branches. Hopefully now the #1 will start to bush out with all the additional light reaching into the interior of the plant. I'm also continuing to tuck shade leaves daily on all three girls, and have been gently bending down their side branches as well. I upped the nutrient ppm level to 800 with the addition of Plagron's Royal Rush 8-0-0 which will continue in their feeding through flower. I'll also be adding Plagron Green Sensation in another 7-10 days which will also continue through flowering. I hope to see you next week... Growers Love!💚 💚 Thank you for checking out my passion in life! Please visit as often as you wish and I hope you enjoy this journey as much as I know I will! Grow what you love, Love what you grow!💚