Thunder Banana

Zengrower Hey growers! 👋 It’s been a while since my last update – and I know it sounds like a bad homework excuse, but… my Labradoodle pup ate my first seedling 😅 One blink while I was inspecting it, and poof… gone. So, I started over with two fresh seeds, which germinated nicely within a few days. They’re now settling into their small pots inside the Minigrow, so I can see which one shows the most promise. Sadly, I can only keep one in there, so it’s going to be survival of the fittest this round 😉 For this run I’m trying a 50/50 mix of Plagron Allmix and coco substrate. The coco keeps things nice and airy for the roots, but it also means there’s less pre-loaded nutrition in the medium. Normally, with 100% Allmix, you can wait 3–4 weeks before adding any nutrients. With this mix, I’ll start feeding around week 2 at about 50% of the regular schedule, then slowly build up to full strength over the next week or two. Up front, you might notice two Erdbeer feminized seedlings – those are destined for the GTools setup. You’ll be able to follow their journey in my upcoming diary. 📅 Mini Feeding Plan – 50% Allmix / 50% Coco Mix English Week Nutrients Dosage* 1 Water only + Root stimulator 50% of recommended dose 2 Grow nutrients + Root stimulator 50% grow + 50% root stim 3 Grow nutrients 75% grow 4 Grow nutrients + CalMag (if needed) 100% grow 5 Transition to bloom (switch feed) 75% grow / 25% bloom *Based on manufacturer feeding schedule, adjusted to percentages. Happy growing everyone, and see you in the next update! 🌱✨

Zengrower I think I found the sweet spot in the Minigrow lighting settings! Last rounds the plant stretched a bit too much even though I stuck to 2 weeks of growth (18/6). For this run I decided to tweak the spectrum a bit. My grow light lets me adjust the red, blue and white channels (with infrared linked to the white). After reading up on plant science, I’ve set the light to focus on keeping the plant short and bushy during veg, instead of stretching too much. Space in the Mini Grow is limited, so compact growth is key. In practice this means: 🔵 Blue stays high (100%) – blue light keeps the internodes short, improves leaf structure, and even boosts terpene production. 🔴 Red is strong (100%) – to keep photosynthesis efficient and to “balance” the infrared that comes with the white channel. 🌫️ White is slightly reduced (around 80%) – this lowers the amount of infrared, which otherwise could trigger stretch, while still giving a broad spectrum of light. The idea behind this setup is to create a high red-to-far-red ratio and a blue-rich spectrum. Plants interpret this as being “in full sun” rather than “in the shade,” which results in tighter internodes and more branching. Later in bloom I’ll shift the balance a little, giving more red and white so the buds can bulk up while still keeping enough blue for resin and terpenes. You can see the results already as the internode are really short now. Stay tuned to see if it stays that way!

Zengrower The plants were almost outgrowing their small pots, so it was time to decide who would stay in the Minigrow. I chose to keep the right Thunder Banana inside and moved her sister to the greenhouse outside. Since switching to the new light settings, growth has been spot on for this setup: short internodes, strong leaves, and a nice bushy structure. She really looks comfortable in her new home. To keep things simple with feeding, I’m using Bio Tabs fertilizer tablets, so all I have to do is give water. Once the plant starts blooming, I’ll add some Power Buds and Green Sensation, but for now this hands-off approach is super convenient and keeps the routine stress-free. After the fifth node appeared, I started the mainline process by topping the plant above the second node. It always feels a bit drastic to cut such a healthy top, but I know the payoff will be worth it. Now it’s just a matter of waiting for the side branches to take off so I can guide them horizontally. I’m really curious how she’ll respond to the training – it looks like she has the vigor to bounce back quickly!