DWC Colorado

CanOli95 Welcome to my DWC grow. I bought the cutting from Hanfgarten and I'm excited to see how it performs. For the system, I used an Ikea Sockerbit, which can hold over 30 liters. Additionally, the plastic is food-safe and the lid is very sturdy. It's so sturdy that it's difficult to insert a lock for the net pot. But it should be, as I plan a long veg of about 8 to 10 weeks. For fertilization, I'm using the Canna Aqua series and supplementing with individual components as needed. For example, I used 100 microliters per Roots per liter of water to accelerate root growth. The additive is also suitable for Coco and Hydro according to Terra Aquatica. Furthermore, I'm using the Calcium EDTA from Greenhouse Feeding because my tap water has a base EC of 0.4. According to the water company, it contains about 50 mg of calcium per liter of water. While Canna Aqua Vega A does contain calcium, increasing it would also force me to raise nitrogen and other values. For the start, I set the EC to 0.8, which should be safe. In my very first DWC grow, I followed the Canna schedule (EC 1.1), which was too much of a good thing. Unfortunately, Canna Aqua Vega Part A and B cannot be separated here, so please read it as 1:1 added from the total amount. I indicated 2 ml per liter, so 1 ml A + B each. The veg will continue until the other two (Happy Hour and Pomelo) are ready. Until then, there will be plenty of growth and training. Thanks in advance for following, liking, and commenting :) 💐

CanOli95 Not much has happened this week, which is to be expected. The plant has straightened up a bit but hasn't shown any growth, which it shouldn't yet. However, it has started to form nice roots that look like they are developing strong branches. I lowered the EC a bit to 0.6 because I think it was set a little too high. I don't actually expect any growth from the plant this week; the main thing is that it forms plenty of roots and lays a solid foundation. 🌻

CanOli95 I'm very satisfied with the growth. However, I broke the main stem while bending it... Such a shame, but with the hydro setup, the plant should recover quickly and put more energy into the side branches. In the pictures, you can see that the plant has 3-bladed fan leaves. It probably flowered briefly during shipping and then revegged. The top leaves, however, show normal growth, so everything's fine. I've increased the light intensity to just over 300 ppfd, which it has responded well to. The roots are also developing beautifully. I've only adjusted the pH once this week, and I haven't changed any nutrients otherwise. I probably won't do that this week either, as the overall volume is more than sufficient.

CanOli95 Veg Week 4 🌱 The little one is happily producing more roots and, despite topping the main stem, is showing stable growth. As a reaction, she started to focus much more on all the branches, which is currently resulting in quite a wild growth. This works out great for me because I want her to grow wider anyway. Today, I did the first partial water change since the nutrient solution has been running very stable so far. She has taken up the nutrients well, as shown by a slow decrease in the EC value. Due to the large amount of total nutrient solution, the change is slow but steady. This also means significantly less maintenance for me. A large reservoir is just more stable than an 18 l bucket, as they like to sell. The extra 10 l makes a huge difference, especially with a smaller plant. The pH has been slowly pushed down by the plant from about 5.8 to 5.5, which ultimately prompted me to make the change. 5.5 is not ideal, but it should be a bit higher during veg, and the change will also bring new buffers into the system through the bicarbonates and the nutrients. I removed the proRoots because it seems no longer necessary. There were 14 l of new water, to which I added 21 ml of Canna Aqua A and 21 ml of Aqua B. According to the nutrient calculator, this results in: Nitrogen: 86.3 ppm Phosphorus: 18.1 ppm Potassium: 92.8 ppm Calcium: 28.4 ppm Magnesium: 13.5 ppm Sulfur: 28 ppm These values are without tap water with a base EC of 0.4, moderately hard. Since the overall EC is now a bit higher again, I will need to keep a closer eye on the turgor and pH stability. From experience, an excess of nitrogen quickly shows up with drooping leaves and very dark green leaves, which she already has. However, she doesn't have clawing leaves, so everything seems to be fine for now. Let's see how it goes 🌱

CanOli95 The good lady is stepping it up! :) It's nice to see how she's developing. I have nothing to complain about, except that it seems the 3-blade pattern has settled in due to the reveg. But that doesn't seem to have any downsides, so everything is going well. Unfortunately, I didn't pay much attention to the little one this week, which is why she drained the EC to 0.4 (so the base of my tap water). Filled it up quickly and off we go 🌱

CanOli95 The week went very well. The plant drinks a lot of water and quickly absorbs its nutrients. A friend had to lend me an extra lamp to properly light the lady. She's practically exploding with her leaf and root growth. Slowly, 5-bladed leaves are coming back. In the flowering stage, it probably won't work without proper defoliation and bending; otherwise, the buds would grow too close together. There's still a lot of work ahead of me, but I'm even more pleased with the solid foundation. The plant has a healthy dark green color and shows no other deficiencies. The EC is being drained from 1.3 or 1.1 down to 0.6 within a few days, which makes me happy.

CanOli95 Unfortunately, due to the number of projects, I forgot that I also need to update here. The Colorado Nightshifter is growing quite happily. Unfortunately, my net is not designed for the tent, so I can't make it look as nice. Still, I am continually impressed by the growth in DWC, and the best advantage is simply the control over nutrient uptake. For a single plant, I find DWC to be one of the best things you can do for your lady. At the end of the week, it will go into week 1 of flowering; otherwise, it won't be manageable anymore. The EC has been increased to about 1.4 to 1.5, and it's clearly noticeable that she is at her limit. I have already noticed a slight formation of claw leaves here and there, but everything is still OK. For the first week, maybe into the second week, I still plan to use the Veg nutrients, depending on how she does.

CanOli95 It was a tough week here too. I want to be honest. I haven't checked the pH as often as I should have. There was a drift that I really need to monitor more closely now. Unfortunately, thrips have also sneaked in, probably due to the ventilation and the heat. Heat unfortunately acts like a boost for insects as well. I've ventilated the plant a bit more and removed the more heavily infested leaves. After that, I administered Spruzid from Neudorff. It's more of a biological agent based on chrysanthemums, which is biodegradable. Since the plant is still in the vegetative phase, the application is still safe. I just wanted to mention it in case someone wonders about the veil on the leaves. Yesterday, there was a NL with EC 1.4. Today I checked, and it was at 0.9. That surprised me a bit; I’ll check again tomorrow to see how rapidly the decline actually is. Through the defoliation, I first noticed how thick the stem has become. That’s really a solid base for flowering. Once the predatory mites are there and the nutrients are stable, I think this will be a very nice project.

CanOli95 Unfortunately, it hasn't been such a relaxed week here. The pH has drifted and blocked nutrients. So far, I've mostly topped up the nutrients and water, and now I've done a complete tank change, setting the pH to 5.8 and the EC to 1.1. Moving forward, it's important to monitor the values so I can adjust accordingly. The older shoots are showing drooping leaves, while the new growth looks vital but is just pale. I added a product with Fulvic Acid, but unfortunately, I overdid it, which pushed the pH down to 4.5... If the lady were a blueberry, that would have been fine...👀 Unfortunately, she also broke the net pot with her root growth... well, I can't replace it, so she has to keep going like this. A very bad point is that it might not even be a Colorado Nightshifter. I bought this plant as a cutting and honestly, about 2 months earlier, I got the same plant from the same dealer... the previous plant didn't get a diary, but it's done now. This one is definitely a completely different strain. Now the question is whether the same mistake happened with this order for the DWC project. Unfortunately, we'll only see that when the first flowers develop in 2 to 3 weeks, if Liliane flowers start forming at the beginning, or not. I still don't know if I should delete the diary then, or if I should point it out again with every update.

CanOli95 The flower development is in full swing. I noticed that the carbon filter was unfortunately off for too long, which probably resulted in not enough fresh CO2 being drawn in. I'm curious if I got the right strain this time; otherwise, I will probably abort the run. I really hope to see a noticeable purple in the next 1 to 2 weeks, otherwise, I have to assume that I received the wrong strain again. I've started adjusting the magnesium content because I unfortunately have a calcium to magnesium ratio of 10 to 1. For that, I dissolved 90 grams of Epsom salt in 1 liter of water and simply add 1ml of the stock solution to each liter of water.

CanOli95 I’ve decided to wait another 1 or 2 weeks to better determine if it really is the strain in question. Compared to the previous one, this plant is forming more bulbous flower clusters. Still, it’s a bit too early to fully judge. I’ve raised the lights a bit because it seems to be somewhat overwhelmed by the amount of light. The Sanlight does radiate sideways as well, but the centering is still quite strong. By hanging them higher, I’m hoping for a better distribution of light. The upper buds also seem a bit stressed when you look closely from above, and the upper leaves also seem a bit overwhelmed. The leaves and buds in the middle area, on the other hand, look good and show no abnormalities. I’m looking forward to the coming week. So far, nothing has changed in the schedule, except that I’m adding more magnesium and a bit of sulfur separately. This plant seems to prefer a low EC in its current state. A smell is also noticeable, but not particularly strong yet. It mainly smells sweet, but not like a specific strain. I’m still curious to see what this lovely lady will show in the coming weeks.

CanOli95 We're slowly hitting the halfway mark. I'm always amazed at how beautiful and uniform the buds grow in hydroponics. Soil just can't keep up. I just defoliated a bit after taking the photos, and you'll see that next week. The buds are getting thicker and stacking nicely. The leaf tension is great, and I have the impression that they like the higher lighting. Unfortunately, I still have the feeling that it's the wrong strain again, but I'm going to stick with it. Let's see what it turns out to be in the end. The plant drinks a lot but doesn't use much fertilizer... I notice that the EC often goes up to 2.0, even though I'm only feeding 1.4. I guess I'll have to fine-tune that a bit, but the overall impression of the plant is fine.