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: 11/5- Well here we go into the second week of flower for the FastBuds Tropicana Cookies! All three plants are now in flower, with the #2 & #3 ahead by about a week. I have done LST on all three, tying down branches with horticulture wire. I've also done some defoliation on each plant as they got extremely bushy and were getting zero light down into the lower sections of them. All have responded extremely well to the training and are looking great! Tomorrow I will empty and clean the reservoir along with the 'brain bucket' as the water has really gotten funky and has an odor that I don't like. Going forward, I'm going to be doing weekly changes on the reservoir where I'll empty/clean/refill and add fresh nutrients. In between changes I'll just be topping off the reservoir with straight water and only checking the PH. 11/7- Yesterday I emptied, cleaned/disinfected and refilled the reservoir and 'brain bucket' with well water. After filling, I added Plagron's Cocos 'A' and 'B' in equal portions, Green Sensation, Royal Rush and Power Roots. I also added a dose of silica to this batch @ 1.2ml/g. The plants are all doing alright, the #3 does have some spotting beginning on her leaves in in margins, and has never had the darker green of the other two pheno's. 11/9- I'm continuing to adjust the LST wires on all three plants to try and keep as much light penetration down into the centers of the plants which has been working well. I have also removed a shade leaf here and there when necessary. The plants are really doing well in this AirCube system and I'm slowly getting a better handle on its 'in's & out's'. I did also check the ppm's of the return solution to see if there was a wide variance from what was going in, and all was good with only a 50-100ppm difference. 11/11- The spotting on the #3 pheno has cleared up nicely, and she's the tallest of the three plants @ 24". The #1 and #3 plants, although not as tall, have flowers that are getting a beautiful dark purple coloration in them, while the #2 pheno's flowers are pure white, with only a slight hint of purple coloration showing. Tomorrow I will be doing a drain/clean/refill on the AirCube system, along with fresh nutrients, which the girls should really enjoy! There's two weeks of flower behind these girls, with another six to eight to go which will be getting more exciting as the weeks progress... I can't wait!😎 💚 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!💚