Critical Kush 60x60 (Gelato #45 RIP)

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-05-02 Home, sweet home -both seedlings are doing great, they've now moved into their final pots -since yesterday, I've set up a "chamber separation" using 4 tent poles + a bicycle or wind hose in XXL roughly in the middle at the height of the Caluma/the Ionbeams -the hose is opaque & loose enough to keep the upper area almost completely dark, and with the step & the two-part design, it wraps wonderfully around the LED hangers -below each fabric pot, there's a saucer with about 1L of water plus a few sponges -so since yesterday, there has been an improvement in climate values (during the week it dropped to 25% RH at times!!!), but with around 50 to 55% it's still too dry -thus, the two plants are now in direct light for about 12 hours during the day, the rest of the time (=mainly in the dark phase) under bells, so that the micro-RH around the plants fits -both are still "parked" in depressions in 200ml cups (with holes at the bottom) to keep the substrate moist enough around the small roots The extremely dry weather for days is not making the grower's life easy right now - all week the RH has been at 30% and below. Luckily, the seedlings have been fine so far since they were still in the mini-greenhouse. However, they are now too big, which is why they moved to the "open air" yesterday. To increase humidity & simultaneously create some retention, a bicycle hose is now laid across the tent over the poles; at the same time, filled water bowls with sponges are on the tent floor. This effectively created a low-cost two-chamber system, with the RH at least heading towards 55% below, and around 50% above (where the exhaust + carbon filter are positioned). The Gelato from the last run is still hanging up there, but a) it's way too late, and b) the Gelato, like her 2 sisters, is basically completely done for. The last few days without all the described measures have turned the last harvest into almost dust... :-( But anyway, this run looks pretty good for now!

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-05-08 All systems are set! Not much has happened, during the week the little ones were still in their 200ml plastic cups, and the substrate was consistently moistened through the Blumate. The climate values were nearly perfect, so the little ones have developed splendidly. And once again, one of the plants (Gelato) is showing leaf deformations - for the 3rd time in a row, with 3 different strains... strange. It's not a big deal, it usually grows out of it quickly, but I'm still surprised by the frequency. Today was the move, which was urgently needed: The roots were already curling at the bottoms. Hopefully, the substrate isn't mixed too hot; about 12g of Compo slow-release fertilizer was added per pot to the BB-Allmix. This only makes up about 2/3 of the total volume, the remaining third is BB-Lightmix, and this third was introduced as the inner core in the pots, so that the seedlings should only find Lightmix plus mycorrhiza in the next few days, nothing else.

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-05-15 Also this week, no special occurrences. The two have obviously not only survived the repotting without any problems, but they are also responding extremely well and growing beautifully. Therefore, the first (and also planned to be the last) topping was done today.

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-05-22 Written By Wolves - Explode -the two are powering up like there's no tomorrow -that’s why I already did the first topping during the week -today extensive LST with a beautifully even final result -despite everything, hopefully, continued decent vertical growth, light intensity remains constant & is balanced by increasing the LEDs During the week, I just couldn't help myself: (way too early) topping... ;-) But since the two plants are literally exploding in their growth, I hope that everything will still grow nicely upwards. Since everything has been going perfectly so far, all environmental parameters seem to be set perfectly, so no other changes are needed. For the next 7 to a maximum of 10 days, the 2 outdoor project seedlings (Amnesia Auto & Anannas Express Auto) will find asylum with their indoor colleagues. Their germination took an unusually long 5 days, and to protect them from burning, they are both currently sitting at the bottom of the tent. But with the current weather forecast, they will be moved outside in plastic cups to their final pots next week and then repotted after a few days.

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-05-29 Eviction lawsuit due to personal use! Since the outdoor weather has developed almost too well & especially to make space in the tent, the two outdoor ladies have moved outside. Additionally, a latest upgrade has arrived: a humidifier. Connected to a WiFi socket & set up via Home Assistant automation as follows: RLF below 60% = On, RLF above 65% = Off. The threshold for ventilation is set at 65% (above = on, below = off), so the RLF effectively fluctuates between 60% and 70%. Perfect! The light has been gradually increased over the past few days, but the LED distance remains at 50cm (with upright shoots), before the last LST this corresponded to about 550 PPFD at the shoot tips. Due to today's LST, it's naturally less, but the two will quickly make up for it with their growth. Unfortunately, during the LST this week, a shoot on the Gelato broke again. The genetics seem to be a bit less robust & somewhat prone to snapping, this has now happened for the 2nd time in a row... but whatever, overall everything still looks super good. The water demand is rising rapidly, the Gelato has completely sucked the substrate dry and has been slightly too dry for 2 days. The shoots are already starting to lighten up slightly, the lack of water is directly negatively affecting nutrient supply. Therefore, today a generous manual watering to re-moisten the substrate, the nutrients were also adjusted afterwards. Today is the last extensive defoliation & LST adjustment, from now on the two will get a few days to recover before transitioning to flowering.

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-06-05 Bye Vegi, Hello Flowering! The flip: Two days ago, the switch to 12/12 was made, so the stretch is starting now. Both girls look very vigorous and are well-fed. Today, I expect to do the last large-scale LST realignment, including a bit more extensive defoliation; everything has been pulled wide and moved into the light as best as possible. 📐 Environment & Parameters Lighting: Gradual power increase over the last few days to 100%=75W with the Caluma, while the Ionbeams have been powering through from the start. With about 50 cm distance, we have sporty ~880 PPFD at the peak. That was the limit for both genetics in the last run, although that was more in the late flowering phase. Even now, in the early flowering stage, this might already be too much; I will keep a close eye on it. The humidity curve has calmed down drastically since I lowered the target humidity in Home Assistant to just under 60% - the girls can easily manage that themselves, so the humidifier should be unemployed from now on. However, the HA control will remain on, serving only as a safety net in case of any weather extremes (unlikely according to the weather report). So far, so good - let’s hope it stays that way! 2026-06-08 Disaster Update: The Gelato #45 has heavily hermied. Almost overnight, a "sea of bananas" has formed, the entire plant is affected - it seems to have succumbed to the high light stress. Luckily, I recognized it in time; the pollen sacs should (hopefully!) still be early enough in their development that nothing could be pollinated. So now the Critical Kush has become an only child... :-(

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-06-12 The Big Grower-Zonk The week started at red alert: The Gelato has unmistakably outed itself as a hermaphrodite. I had my suspicions for about 2 days & then it became clear overnight: Bananas! Unbelievable how those things formed like an epidemic all over the plant... Luckily, I discovered it early enough. The pollen sacs were still far enough along in their development that they couldn't cause any damage, so disposal was easy. So now the Critical Kush is an only child & has the kingdom all to itself. 💧 Watering & Nutrient Buffer - The Near-Crash During the disposal of the Gelato & the subsequent check of the entire setup, the next surprise came: The water reservoir was completely empty. About 20 liters must have drained from both pots within 2 days. That & the high PPFD of 880 at the peak must have given the Gelato the rest... The saucers were still dry, but the fabric pots were of course very damp at the bottom. The ladies were apparently standing way too dry beforehand. And then the almost empty pots gratefully absorbed the torrents again... What exactly caused the sudden drop in water (especially at both pots=Blumat at the same time) is still a mystery to me. So tank reset: The reservoir was replenished to 30 liters on Monday, and since then (logically) only 1 liter has been consumed. EC was intentionally set defensively to 570. The lower level as a safety buffer, so as not to further stress the roots that were first stressed from drying out & then from flooding, or to first absorb flushed residues. pH adjusted to 6.0, drifted to 6.35 today. That will stay like this for now. pH should drift further towards 7 and thus run through the entire "meaningful" spectrum of about 6 to 7 so that all nutrients & especially the "flushed residues" can be optimally absorbed. Even though (or precisely because!) it now stands alone: The Critical Kush is completely unfazed by everything. Absolutely fascinating how it handles it all. By now, I believe I can safely say: A truly very robust strain! Absolutely beginner-friendly & enormously forgiving of mistakes. This is now my 3rd run with this genetics, and in all runs, I have messed up in various places - yet all the plants have come through wonderfully. Some other strains haven't managed that & have buckled... see the Gelato #45. Anyways: Due to the extreme LST & the dense growth, the leaves have started to slightly sweat upon contact. As a countermeasure, the entire fan setup was increased from 7.5V to 9V, and the humidifier is now out of operation. Taking advantage of the naturally rising humidity, it is now maintained between 55% and 60%. Due to the currently rather humid weather and strong transpiration, the exhaust runs almost continuously, but thanks to the 9V upgrade, it keeps the target corridor wonderfully stable. The fresh shoot tips are currently slightly light green due to stretch and stress, but the vitality & overall impression of the plant are still at absolutely picture-perfect levels. Except maybe for the somewhat exaggerated LST (Blumat was still reachable), the girl looks wonderful. Therefore: As long as the two Blumat (I was too lazy to reduce to one) don’t develop another life of their own, the Kush should deliver a good yield. The scrog net was stretched today to optimally utilize the area. I hope there won't be any further problems now!

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-06-19 🌸 Flower Power! The remaining lady is doing wonderfully! The stretch is in full swing & there are no more spots free in the SCROG net. The tent walls have been "stretched" as much as possible with all sorts of tricks & techniques to make room for all the shoots. Due to the currently high humidity, the first sweating leaves appeared in overlaps, despite constant air circulation. Nevertheless, the main goal remains to retain as much leaf mass as possible - so today there was only a "Tuck & Pluck" instead of actual defoliation. Where moisture bridges had formed, individual leaves were removed strategically to choke off mold risks at the bud stage. The "shadow economy" below the net was also thinned out as much as possible to ensure optimal circulation from bottom to top. However, the biggest problem was the water: In the reservoir, it exceeded 26°C, so today there was a complete 30-liter change to protect the roots from germs and oxygen deficiency. The problem is: Even fresh from the tap, the water is currently just under 24°C. So now ice packs are being swapped around the clock to bring the temperature down. Even though it's a shame about the hermied & discarded Gelato: The Critical Kush more than makes up for the loss! And it shows once again how closely luck & misfortune can be intertwined: On one hand, the Kush fills the tent all by herself. But above all, she is nothing more than the result of a hermaphrodite accident from last year's outdoor run... 😇

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-06-26: 🌸 Extreme Wet & Extreme Stretch 🌸 The remaining lady is practically exploding and quickly makes the twisted Gelato forgettable. The stretch was and is enormous; you can almost watch her grow. However, the typical grower dilemma is now arising: some branches are getting dangerously close to the LEDs (PPFD 1000 at peak), while the rest in the SCROG area is only around 600 to 700 and could actually handle more... but the current compromise should still fit quite well. During the week, there was the obligatory lollipopping. That, along with the air conditioning running in the apartment, keeps the temperatures and especially the humidity in check. The conditions seem to be perfect because the flowering is really picking up now, and the first thick, white "pistol tufts" are forming beautifully at the tips of the branches. And to top it off, there's the first light snow at the leaf nodes... 👌 The only problematic issue remains the water. Despite constantly rotating 3 water bottles and a cooling pack through the freezer and then into the reservoir, the soup climbs to 27 °C. That's actually too warm, but "more" in the sense of less is probably not an option right now... The summer heat of already 35 degrees (and the forecasted 40 degrees to come...) is taking its toll... 🌡️ Nevertheless: I am very satisfied, and the lady is perfectly prepared. Now it's full speed ahead into the phase of real bud production! 🚀😍

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-07-03 🌸 Welcome to the jungle! The halfway point of the predicted flowering time should be slowly reached, and the remaining Critical Kush is putting on an absolute show. It's developing beautifully and spreading majestically throughout the tent. Most of the buds are nicely flat and even at about 35 cm, while some potential cola shoots with dense tops are already stretching up to 60 cm. All of this is stacked at wonderful intervals, so the light yield should be pretty close to optimum. This means I've reached the 25 cm LED distance, which is my set maximum. From now on, the LEDs will move up synchronously with the colas, if necessary. The bud development is really picking up: The bud clusters, and especially the resin on the sugar leaves, are visibly increasing day by day. When it comes to lollipopping and defoliation, there’s hardly anything left to do; the girl is in optimal shape. The explosive development has its reasons: A 40-degree heatwave and consistently tropical nights with nighttime temperatures hardly dropping below 25 degrees! Plus, (thanks to the air conditioning in the apartment) mostly pleasant humidity levels in-house, and that’s the dream weather for cannabis... 😎 After the water reservoir was nearly empty yesterday (about 15 liters consumed in the last week!), it was refilled and adjusted: EC about 750, pH 5.9, and off we go! Since the temperatures have normalized again and very moderate (almost too cold) temperatures are predicted for the coming week, it’s now just a matter of waiting and watching how the lady gets more beautiful day by day! 😍 It couldn't be going better - hopefully, it's going just as well for all of you out there!!!

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-07-10 🌸 Mid-Flower Perfection: An absolute dream in green! We're slowly heading into the home stretch, and the current state in the tent makes any grower's heart race. The plant looks fantastic and shows no signs of weakness. The canopy is maximally dense for optimal photosynthesis, yet airy enough for healthy air circulation. The flower clusters are swelling nicely, and trichome production is in full swing. A look through the magnifying glass already reveals a dense field of crystal-clear resin heads. Here and there, slight lightening is showing in the shady lower leaves. The plant is slowly pulling the first mobile nutrients from the light-deprived leaves to maximize the supply to the upper main buds. As long as this doesn't spread further, there's no need for action here - it was also planned to get through the entire grow without additional nutrients. The setup is running like a Swiss watch – and in about 4 weeks, the knives will be sharpened! 😍

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-07-17 The Beginning of the End Everything is still going according to plan. The lady continues to drop some leaves, but only from the lowest levels. However, she is needing more and more water. In the past 7 days alone, it was 15 liters. So today the reservoir had to be refilled, but that was the only really notable "effort." On the buds, the first beautiful color plays are appearing, and the trichomes are starting to cloud up. Correspondingly, a wonderfully fruity smell is developing, and the buds are swelling more and more. It couldn't be going better! 👌

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-07-24 Even though we didn't expect it at the end of July: Thanks to much cooler temperatures (12°C at night), a beautiful autumn fade is still setting in. The violet and yellow tones combined with the dense trichome carpet are simply stunning to look at. We are now 14 days away from the calculated harvest time. The setup is running like clockwork; since the air circulation was switched to blowing from bottom to top, even the somewhat high humidity has lost its scare factor. The circulation is perfectly adjusted, with no signs of bud rot anywhere. Every day, 3–4 dried leaves are being shed from the lower/middle area, and the lady continues to draw her mobile reserves from the fan leaves and pumps everything towards the buds. Autumn fade, as good as it gets. The trichomes are mostly milky now, and the beginning shift towards amber can already be sensed in some places. The clear heads have almost completely disappeared. This confirms the calculated harvest date, and all I can think of is: Never trust a klingon, better trust a trichome! 👻😜😎

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-07-31 The final sprint has begun & the autumn fade has reached its absolute maximum. The contrasts between the deep purple sugar leaves, the shimmering trichomes, and the golden-yellow fan leaves look fantastic. The estimated harvest date in 7 days (BT 65) seems to fit perfectly; by then, enough amber trichomes should be visible. The pH value is now intentionally drifting upwards; the usual pH down is not needed this week. The goal is to cover as much of the trace element spectrum as possible. By harvest, a pH of 7.0 should be reached or slightly exceeded, and at the same time, the reservoir should be emptied. During the week, there was unintentionally about 2 liters of drain, and as a result, I manually implemented a 2-day Blumat drought. The previously filled tank has apparently built up more pressure again, and the Blumats have responded to that. Ultimately, this could turn out to be a significant advantage: hopefully, the last mineral salts in the root area were thoroughly flushed out, giving the lady free access to the last dissolved nutrients. In any case, she looks magnificent, so it hasn't harmed her at least. I'm now enjoying the last days of watching – the grow couldn't look better on the home stretch!

Theo_Rehtisch 2026-08-07 The End The countdown is on, the lady is about to get it! Today there was another unwanted flush; last night I had the Blumate set too optimistically. No matter, this can only help at this point, the tank is now empty & can be prepared for the next run. The plant will now be left to dry for maybe 3 or 4 more days, and then it's party time! Since most of the fan leaves have fallen off by themselves, there probably won't be any wet trim needed & it goes straight into drying headfirst.