#2 Nachschub für den Balkon
Soil
Custom
Outdoor
Room Type
Topping
weeks 2-3
LST
weeks 2-5
Defoliation
weeks 3
15 liters
Pot Size
Start at 6 Week
G
Germination2y ago
Metterling The plan:
Grow three plants indoors for as long as possible (because there's still a lot of rain and clouds at the moment), put them outside a bit on sunny days, and ultimately transplant them to the balcony. The grow box for starting them is in the attic, which means as soon as the temperatures there become unmanageable, the plants will finally move to the balcony. If everything goes as I imagine, I will count one week of germination in my propagation box. From then on, I will count the veg phase and transplant the Jiffys into the final pot (11l fabric, Air-Pots are too expensive at the moment). For soil, I will try the Floragard Professional Growmix, which should at least be sufficiently pre-fertilized for the first 4 weeks.
Here's how I envision the germination week:
Target areas:
Temperature: 22-25 °C
Humidity: 70-80 %
PPFD: 100-300 µmol/m²/s
Lighting duration: 16–24 h
Target values:
VPD: 0.5 kPa
DLI: 12 mol/m²/d
In the propagation tray, at 100% light intensity without a heat mat and with a water container, the temperature stays max. 25°C and min. 70% humidity quite constant. With a heat mat, it goes well over 30°C, even up to 35°C. The lamp is initially on for 24h.
I have set up a few sensors to keep an eye on the data a bit better with an ESP32. I assume a leaf temperature offset of -0.5°C for the first week.
05/26/24 (G1):
I first soaked the Jiffys in a bowl with 6.1 pH water, lightly squeezed them (not sideways, or they'll tear), buried the seed tip down about 10-15mm deep, pressed the soil lightly over it, and added a few drops of water on top.
05/29/24 (G4):
2/3 are above ground, and the third one already has the taproot sticking out at the bottom.
05/30/24 (G5):
The third one has now also sprouted. I'm already preparing 11l fabric pots. One of them has already spent a season outside; let's see how well I can freshen it up.
05/31/24 (G6):
The plants are getting some long necks! To avoid exposing them directly to too strong light, I started with 24h of lighting, which corresponds to about a PPFD of 140 µmol/m²/s for my target DLI. While I was in the recommended (lower) range, the long necks tell me it was probably too little. So, I moved the plants into the tent, running a nebulizer and one of the grow lights to achieve about 275 µmol/m²/s and 20h for a DLI of 20 mol/m²/d. According to relevant sources, that should be too much. Today, I also added a little water with the pipette, as the Jiffys were already quite light.
06/01/24 (G7):
Today, I just tidied up the electronics a bit. The USB-C breakout boards are nice, but the cables I have apparently don't have the executed pins connected. So, it will either be new cables or I’ll switch to network cables. At least that’s idiot-proof 😑. Otherwise, the plants don’t seem to mind the move; it’s just that the Jiffys are dry again. So, I’ll pipette a bit more water on them.
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Used method
Peat Pellet
Germination Method
1
Week 1. Vegetation2y ago
3 cm
Height
20 hrs
Light Schedule
23 °C
Day Air Temp
6.1
pH
No Smell
Smell
75 %
Air Humidity
19 °C
Night Air Temp
15 liters
Pot Size
418 PPM
CO₂ Level
Metterling I'm going to increase the previous DLI from 20, which has turned out to be okay, to 25 over the course of this week. With that, I should manage to achieve a PPFD of about 350 at 20h. So a daily increase of 12.5. The humidity will be slightly reduced to reach a VPD of 55kPa. I'm also slowly adjusting the leaf temperature offset until it reaches -2°C.
Target ranges:
Temperature: 22-25 °C
RLF: 70-80 %
PPFD: 275-400 µmol/m²/s
Lighting duration: 16–24 h
Target values:
VPD: 0.55 kPa
DLI: 20-25 mol/m²/d
02.06.24 (V1): All three are now in their 15l fabric pots. One of them was previously used on the balcony, root-bound and nicely moldy green, but it cleaned up well and is really okay after drying. The pots were filled with 3kg of Floragard Professional Grow Mix and 4g of mycorrhiza (+1g directly in the planting holes). Everything was watered with 1.3l of pH 6.1 water with 4ml/l of Root Juice. The bottom of the pot was not wet, the pots were not very heavy, so I'm not sure if the water will find its way all the way to the bottom. After the first attempt with larger pots, I might have overdone it, as I had a week of stagnation with the plants. So this time I tried a bit less.
PPFD: 275 µmol/m²/s
03.06.24 (V2):
They look good, haven't grown, and aren't drooping. So I assume things are still progressing below. I've now installed a CO2 sensor, which interestingly shows quite high values. I'll check whether the moist soil is releasing something or if there's a measurement error. I've also realized that I have no desire to painstakingly adjust the lamp height every day to make the steadily increasing PPFD accessible to the plants. Therefore, I've expanded my automation with an interface for the lamps. I can now adjust the brightness via a dashboard percentage-wise. I should do this based on a target PPFD... that's coming soon.
PPFD: 287 µmol/m²/s
04.06.24 (V3):
The Royal Critical at the back in the middle seems to be a bit darker than the others and is drooping its leaves a bit more. I'll continue to observe for now; the soil is not too dry at least in the upper area. I've now completely moved the control out of the tent; only the peripherals are left in the tent. An ultrasonic nebulizer is controlled as a humidifier when the VPD is way too high; otherwise, the plants and pots are sufficient to continuously lower the VPD. In general, it's now regulated according to the target VPD, no longer by humidity. The PID controller does oscillate a bit too much, but that’s probably because the minimum speed of the exhaust fan is so high that the VPD drops very quickly. I assume this will improve with more leaf mass.
PPFD: 300 µmol/m²/s
05.06.24 (V4):
I would say that the soil of the Royal Critical is the wettest at the top; maybe that's why it droops its leaves (during the day) more. Wedding Cake is curling the leaf edges up slightly and is getting the most wind. I've reduced the fan speed and changed the position a bit. You can also tell that the surface of the soil is the driest. So for the plants at the moment, it’s mainly due to the fans directed at them. But both still don't look bad. The lighting time is now controlled by the ESP, so I no longer need a switchable socket or a network connection for this function.
Height: 4cm
PPFD: 312 µmol/m²/s
06.06.24 (V5):
The soil is quite dry on top, only moist deeper down. The plants are developing well, and the leaves are now standing pretty upright and not drooping anymore. I'm still waiting to water.
Height: 5cm
PPFD: 325 µmol/m²/s
07.06.24 (V6):
It's an unreasonable burden to consider the VPD myself, so the ESP updates the ideal VPD daily and uses it as a control variable. The lighting should also be expanded this way.
PPFD: 337 µmol/m²/s
08.06.24 (V7):
PPFD: 350 µmol/m²/s
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2
Week 2. Vegetation2y ago
3 cm
Height
20 hrs
Light Schedule
24 °C
Day Air Temp
6.1
pH
Weak
Smell
65 %
Air Humidity
19 °C
Night Air Temp
15 liters
Pot Size
0.35 liters
Watering Volume
28 cm
Lamp Distance
550 PPM
CO₂ Level
Metterling 09.06.24 (V8):
The soil is very dry, so I gave it a good watering today. This time I watered it enough until the soil was really saturated. In fact, the soil held much more water than the first time I watered it. So next time, I'll water more:
Royal Jack:
Dry 3.060g + 2.450ml water = 5.500g
Royal Critical:
Dry 3.060g + 2.400ml water = 5.450g
Wedding Cake:
Dry 2.960g + 2.600ml water = 5.560g
10.06.24 (V9):
I feel like the plants can handle more light than what the general recommendations suggest. Also, the CO2 levels are usually over 600ppm. So I'll keep the lights a few percent above the "ideal value."
11.06.24 (V10):
12.06.24 (V11):
Since the weather still doesn't look promising, the plants will stay in the tent for a while longer. That's why I topped them this time above the second node. It should definitely help indoors. Let's see how it affects them outdoors.
13.06.24 (V12):
I feel like topping has hardly caused any setback in growth. The big leaves are still growing, and the small ones too.
14.06.24 (V13):
I started LST on the Royal Jack. Probably too early, but that's just how it goes...
15.06.24 (V14):
For better air circulation, I installed a 6-battery setup with PC fans that blows air diagonally down to the plants from one side of the tent. I'll just keep at it with the LST. The soil is dry again, so I'll water tomorrow.
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Used techniques
LST
Technique
Topping
Technique
3
Week 3. Vegetation2y ago
10 cm
Height
20 hrs
Light Schedule
25 °C
Day Air Temp
6.1
pH
Weak
Smell
65 %
Air Humidity
20 °C
Night Air Temp
15 liters
Pot Size
0.35 liters
Watering Volume
28 cm
Lamp Distance
550 PPM
CO₂ Level
Metterling 16.06.24 (V15):
I've read a bit more about the temperature topic. So far, I've tried to keep the temperature in the tent below 25°C by ventilating outside the tent. However, it seems that the ideal temperature during the veg phase is around 25°C ± 3°C. In fact, a higher temperature even improves transpiration and enzyme formation for photosynthesis. So, I'll try to reach 25-27°C in the future. By the way, a reasonable calibration of the CO2 sensor with temperature and humidity seems to normalize the absurdly high CO2 levels.
Topping: A research day isn't a bad idea sometimes. Autos probably shouldn't be topped, as the well-growing main stem generates a lot of biomass that can't be sacrificed in the few veg weeks! My thought that I would achieve a nice flat canopy is correct, but I could have also bent the main stem down with LST! Damn 😓.
17.06.24 (V16):
The plants are really thriving; they seem to have enjoyed the water. The new shoots are also doing well, just a bit wrinkled. I just hope they need a little more time to unfold. Unfortunately, I seem to have overdone it with the "L"ST. Even though the shoots are still very flexible, one of them tore at the top in the axil while I was tying it down. No idea if it will heal, but I immediately loosened all the anchors so they now have a mm of air.
18.06.24 (V17):
It looks good; apparently, they've forgiven me for my roughness. I'll wait a bit before I put a corset back on. However, the plants look VERY compact. Sure, they don't have to compete for light, but I have space above. For now, I've moved the light a bit closer to the recommended values, so I've reduced it.
19.06.24 (V18): To reduce the bushiness a bit, I've started with LST again. And I really like it in this phase! Tying down between the first and second node of a shoot is unproblematic; the shoot is flexible enough if you don't tie it down too low. You can still adjust it a day later and a bit further away. I've also removed the lower fan leaf pair from the Jack. They weren't getting any light anyway.
20.06.24 (V19): Due to the higher temperatures and the larger leaf mass, the plants now need a lot more water. I watered again today. Also, the shoot tips have stood up again, so there's new LST today. Additionally, I've tucked as many of the fresh shoot tips and new small leaves over the larger, shadow-casting leaves as possible. Since that wasn't always feasible, I also removed some leaves that would have otherwise blocked too much light from those spots. I've seen the first pistils, so it seems that pre-flowering is already starting. Next time, it will definitely be photos, so I can take my time with the training :-/.
21.06.24 (V20):
Royal Jack:
Dry 3.120g + 1.880ml water = 5.000g
Royal Critical:
Dry 3.342g + 1.658ml water = 5.000g
Wedding Cake:
Dry 3.442g + 1.558ml water = 5.000g
Otherwise, I defoliated a bit and adjusted the LST.
22.06.24 (V21):
Today, I defoliated quite rigorously. Since the plants are growing very compact, the lower leaves get practically no light, and it's difficult to tuck the new bud sides up. Therefore, I removed practically all the large leaves and left only the new bud sides. Of course, I was particularly clumsy when installing new lamp hooks and accidentally topped a shoot when a lamp fell. So now Royal Jack only has 3.5 shoots left. Additionally, I carefully separated the shoots again so that they grow nicely straight toward the edge, and the inner bud sides are well distributed. Here's another learning: shoots need to be well supported from below; otherwise, you pull them further down from the shoot axil until they tear. If they are supported early, they will only bend! I will follow up on this and pay good attention to it in the future!
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Used techniques
LST
Technique
Topping
Technique
Defoliation
Technique
4
Week 4. Vegetation2y ago
10 cm
Height
24 hrs
Light Schedule
84 °C
Day Air Temp
6.2
pH
Weak
Smell
61 %
Air Humidity
77 °C
Solution Temp
77 °C
Substrate Temp
75 °C
Night Air Temp
15 liters
Pot Size
1.13 liters
Watering Volume
28 cm
Lamp Distance
550 PPM
CO₂ Level
Nutrients 4
Bio-Grow
1 mll
Bio-Bloom
1 mll
Top-Max
1 mll
Metterling This week seems to be getting very warm (outdoor temperatures up to 30°C), so this looks like it will be the challenge of the week. We're probably in the last week of veg. Since it looks like it will be cooler again next week, I’d prefer to keep the plants in the tent. I think I will adjust the light period so that the light goes off at 12 PM. Maybe that will help with the temperature. Otherwise, I need to see how warm it gets in the attic and whether it’s significantly cooler on the south balcony.
06/23/24 (V22):
Royal Jack:
Dry 3,290g + 1,710ml water = 5,000g
Royal Critical:
Dry 3,690g + 1,310ml water = 5,000g
Wedding Cake:
Dry 3,720g + 1,280ml water = 5,000g
06/24/24 (V23):
For LST, I'm now also trying out small supports to prop up the branches so they don't break. I also tried LST clips and am tying down the protruding tips outside the pot. I’m letting 4 inner, young branches grow upwards; otherwise, it will get too bare in the middle. I’ve also done a bit of defoliation again.
06/25/24 (V24):
Royal Jack:
Dry 2,870g + 2,450ml water = 5,320g (1.23 l/d)
Royal Critical:
Dry 3,340g + 1,980ml water = 5,320g (0.99 l/d)
Wedding Cake:
Dry 3,665g + 1,700ml water = 5,365g (0.85 l/d)
06/26/24 (V25):
06/27/24 (V26):
Royal Jack:
Dry 2,765g + 2,610ml water = 5,375g (1.31 l/d)
Royal Critical:
Dry 3,280g + 2,055ml water = 5,335g (1.03 l/d)
Wedding Cake:
Dry 3,730g + 1,630ml water = 5,360g (0.81 l/d)
06/28/24 (V27):
06/29/24 (V28):
The pre-mixed soil should have enough nutrients for the first 4 weeks. Those are now over, so I’m starting to fertilize. Since I bought the BioBizz starter pack, I’m following the recommendations for All-Mix in the first week of flowering. That’s probably coming up (at least for the Jack). Also, today I did extensive LST again, directing everything outward. The branches that I let grow upwards in the middle are growing very tall compared to the rest. For now, I’ll let everything grow horizontally until I’m satisfied with the area and then let everything grow upwards at the same time.
Bio-Grow 1 ml/l
Bio-Bloom 1 ml/l
Top-Max 1 ml/l
Bio-Heaven 2 ml/l
EC: 930
Royal Jack:
Dry 2,680g + 2,630ml water = 5,310g (1.32 l/d)
Royal Critical:
Dry 3,020g + 2,290ml water = 5,310g (1.15 l/d)
Wedding Cake:
Dry 3,460g + 1,860ml water = 5,320g (0.93 l/d)
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Used techniques
LST
Technique
5
Week 5. Flowering2y ago
Nutrients 4
Bio-Grow
1 mll
Bio-Bloom
1 mll
Top-Max
1 mll
Metterling I'm now counting the first week of flowering on behalf of all three. Even if only Jack is really that far along. The others definitely need a few more days.
30.06.24 (F1):
01.07.24 (F2):
- I would say the Critical is now officially in bloom.
- I raised the side fans and the camera a bit to get better photos.
- I hung a ring of 8 Gardena Microdrip drippers on Jack, which I connected to the Gardena vacation watering pump. At the same time, I can easily adjust how much water is given using the kitchen scale. I should automate this.
Bio-Grow 1 ml/l
Bio-Bloom 1ml/l
Top-Max 1 ml/l
Bio-Heaven 2ml/l
EC: 1.000
Royal Jack:
Dry 3.1050g + 2.200ml water = 5.305g (1.1 l/d)
Royal Critical:
Dry 3.235g + 2.145ml water = 5.380g (1.07 l/d)
Wedding Cake:
Dry 3.450g + 1.730ml water = 5.180g (0.87 l/d)
02.07.24 (F3):
More LST
03.07.24 (F4):
I think the plants need more water overall. The scale only goes up to a max of 6.100g, so I watered very slowly until then. There hasn't been any drain yet.
Royal Jack:
Dry 3.475g + 2.625ml water = 6.100g
Royal Critical:
Dry 3.772g + 2.328ml water = 6.100g
Wedding Cake:
Dry 3.425g + 2.675ml water = 5.180g (0.87 l/d)
04.07.24 (F5):
I fertilized today according to the previous scheme, giving each plant a flat 1.200ml. This resulted in about 70% soil moisture.
05.07.24 (F6):
With a larger scale, I watered today until measurable drain came out. I assume I've been watering too little so far. Let's see how the weight and soil moisture develop. I removed all the LST supports for now; a bit of vertical growth would be good, then I can bend the branches further apart at the top. I really don't know what to do with all the little bud sites. I probably should cut off everything that isn't getting good light, but I can't bring myself to do it :’-( The fertilization scheme has now been slightly increased to week 2:
Bio-Grow 1 ml/l
Bio-Bloom 2ml/l
Top-Max 1 ml/l
Bio-Heaven 2ml/l
EC: 1.050
Royal Jack:
Dry 5.370g + 1.665ml water = 7.035g
Drain: PH 5.7 - EC 5.850 - Salt 2.950 ppm
Royal Critical:
Dry 5.370g + 1.500ml water = 6.870g
Drain: PH 5.7 - EC 6.120 - Salt 3.110 ppm
Wedding Cake:
Dry 5.150g + 1.615ml water = 6.765g
Drain: PH 6.3 - EC 2.740 - Salt 1.390 ppm
06.07.24 (F7):
Today I just did nothing. But the leaves of ALL the plants have visibly perked up. I will continue to water until this moisture level is reached. Let's see how they look tomorrow.
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Used techniques
LST
Technique
6
Week 6. Flowering2y ago
Nutrients 4
Bio-Grow
1 mll
Bio-Bloom
1 mll
Top-Max
1 mll
Metterling 07.07.24 (F8):
New approach: Since the leaves are getting paler and already have brown spots, although they are at least standing up again, I will now interpret the runoff from last time. It looks like Jack and Crit are heavily over-fertilized, as the EC and salt concentration in the runoff was VERY high. Of course, it will also be because I haven't watered enough so far, and salts and nutrients have accumulated at the bottom of the pot, but to make a clean slate, I will now try to focus on getting these values under control. The pH value was also not ideal, so I will initially water without any additional nutrients and adjust the water to achieve a pH of 6.0 in the runoff. Hopefully, I can flush out the residues quickly.
Interestingly, the Wedding looks by far the healthiest, already dark green. Its values also seem to be the best!
Critical - Weighed with saucer
Last runoff: pH 5.7 - EC 6.120 - SALT 3.110 ppm
Watering water: pH 6.5 - EC 330 - SALT 165 ppm
Current runoff: pH 5.8 - EC 4.570 - SALT 2.290 ppm
Before: 4.825g - After: 7.000g - Watered: 2.175ml
Jack - Weighed with saucer
Last runoff: pH 5.7 - EC 5.850 - SALT 2.950 ppm
Watering water: pH 6.6 - EC 355 - SALT 175 ppm
Current runoff: pH 6.1 - EC 3.800 - SALT 1.890 ppm
Before: 4.520g - After: 7.300g - Watered: 2.780ml
Wedding - Weighed with saucer
Last runoff: pH 6.3 - EC 2.740 - SALT 1.390 ppm
Watering water: pH 5.7 - EC 300 - SALT 150 ppm
Current runoff: pH 6.6 - EC 1.390 - SALT 700 ppm
Before: 4.560g - After: 6.990g - Watered: 2.430ml
08.07.24 (F9):
09.07.24 (F10):
Critical - Weighed with saucer
Last runoff: pH 5.8 - EC 4.570 - SALT 2.290 ppm
Watering water: pH 6.6 - EC 1.030 - SALT 515 ppm
Current runoff: pH 6.0 - EC 3.000 - SALT 1.540 ppm
Before: 4.825g - After: 7.290g - Watered: 2.465ml
Jack - Weighed with saucer
Last runoff: pH 6.1 - EC 3.800 - SALT 1.890 ppm
Watering water: pH 6.6 - EC 1.030 - SALT 515 ppm
Current runoff: pH 6.0 - EC 3.710 - SALT 1.890 ppm
Before: 4.680g - After: 7.240g - Watered: 2.560ml
Wedding - Weighed with saucer
Last runoff: pH 6.6 - EC 1.390 - SALT 700 ppm
Watering water: pH 5.8 - EC 1.040 - SALT 525 ppm
Current runoff: pH 6.3 - EC 2.480 - SALT 1.250 ppm
Before: 3.985g - After: 6.910g - Watered: 2.925ml
10.07.24 (F11):
11.07.24 (F12):
The leaves are getting yellower and brown spots are appearing on the yellow and even on the green leaves. The condition is worsening. So today I flushed several liters until I got runoff values that I liked. I needed much more water for this than expected; if I had continued as before, it would have taken forever for the concentrations to normalize.
Critical:
Last runoff: pH 6.0 - EC 3.000 - SALT 1.540 ppm
Current runoff: pH 6.5 - EC 1.340 - SALT 670 ppm
Jack:
Last runoff: pH 6.0 - EC 3.710 - SALT 1.890 ppm
Current runoff: pH 6.4 - EC 1.420 - SALT 710 ppm
Wedding:
Last runoff: pH 6.3 - EC 2.480 - SALT 1.250 ppm
Current runoff: pH 6.4 - EC 1.600 - SALT 800 ppm
Note: I find conflicting information on whether 26°C is already terpene-damaging or not. However, since I am already having trouble keeping the temperature below 25°C, I will try to regulate it to a maximum of 26°C.
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