1st Full Grow: Blackberry by Fast Buds

Well, my 1st grow was a comedy of errors, but I still ended up with about 2 oz of nice bud (NYC Diesel). This time I will be trying the Super Soil Concentrate for autoflowers by Nature's Living Soil. I have it set up in the "seed in a peat plug, in a "Solo Cup" size "Happy Frog", surrounded by the Super Soil. I'm planing on doing very little but some minor LST with these to see how the super soil works. We'll see. After three days we have seedlings. :D So the seedings pics are now "day 1" I'll update on day 7 to be the end of the first week. Then It will be Sunday evenings for weekly reports Week one is done. I hope to improve my photography skills a bit as this progresses. I guess first off, I need a white light to use for the pictures ;)

I tried a different camera and flash. Not much better. I'm going to have to set up a white light for photos. The colors next week *WILL* be better :) The Summer temperatures rose some here, so the top temperature has gone up a bit. It is still good, so I'm not considering increasing the air conditioning. I'm using the Super Soil Concentrate for autoflowers by Nature's Living Soil, so only watering with ph'd water (ph 6.5). The girls are all looking good. Plant #2 is running a bit short, but they are all between 3-4 inches tall and beginning to spread nicely. The distance between bud nodes is tight. So far, so good :D

Day 18 LOOK! The colors are "better". I hope I get better yet as this goes along. It appears that the roots have reached the super soil :O #1 jumped up to 8 inches in two days! I did the 1st (maybe only?) LST on the main stalks. I had to do a little leaf tucking to expose the bud sites. #2 is still lagging behind the other 3 plants. Continuing with watering with only PH'd water (6.4) I raised the light to compensate for the rapid growth I'll still do my end of the week update, but I thought I should show the 1st LST bend. Day 21 The colors are even better this time. A couple are still a bit overexposed. I'll figure it out. Also, next week I'll remember to turn them so that they are more "individual" in the pictures What a difference 3 days makes! The end of week 3 shows #1 continuing to outgrow the others. #2 is still lagging behind. Different phenotypes in the same package ;) I had to do additional LST'ing because three of them (1, 3, 4) are needing to be "turned" at the edge of the pot. The "heights" would be more if they were standing up ;) Pistils are beginning to pop. :) The transition to flowering is upon us. :D

It has been a fun week. The girls are starting to flower and stretch. #1 that grew so much faster at the beginning is showing a much more sativa phenotype. The other three are more indica like. Also, #2 has started to show the first of the purple/blue coloration :D With the stretch starting, I probably won't be able to do much more LST'ing. I'm keeping the lower bud sites cleared to the light. I hope they can "catch up" They are beginning to drink a bit more water. I am using the simple, "How heavy is the pot today?" method so I have no measurements. To remind y'all, I am using "Super Soil Concentrate for Autoflowers" made by Nature's Living Soil in this grow. I mixed it into "Happy Frog" potting soil before planting. I am still only watering with PH'd water.

Week 5 is in the bag. The girls are still stretching and beginning to fill in the flowers. They are also beginning to show their trichomes. Let the frosting begin! :D All but #3 are turning purple now. #3 & #4 are beginning to lag behind in height. They are taking about one gallon (about a quart each) of PH'd water every third day now. I'm still just using PH'd water because of the "super soil." Some of the older leaves have shown some spotting and yellowing this week. I posted three representative pictures above. It seems to be a little early for them to be "aging" out. Maybe the super soil needs a boost during flowering :/ My wife has just informed me that she is starting to smell the flowers. Her nose is more sensitive than mine. She describes it as a "sweet pot" smell.

Week #6 ends with just a couple of more inches in height. Plants #3 & #4 have settled for a bit shorter. Also, #3 still hasn't shown any color :/ However, the flowers are gaining weight and the trichomes are looking luscious. Still sticking with only PH'd water with the "super soil" (SUPER SOIL CONCENTRATE for AUTOFLOWER by NATURE'S LIVING SOIL)

The end of week 7 shows very little more growth in height/width. However, the ladies are packing on the weight and the trichomes! Check out the close-up shots :D The trichomes are mostly all white now. Maybe next week? I'll keep a closer eye on them this week. Also, the aroma is getting stronger. This is especially true after watering! These smell very sweet :) I love the smell. I've taken to leaving the front of the tent open a bit when my wife isn't here ;) I'm still sticking with just PH'd water. They are taking about a pint each, every third day now. Numbers 3 and 4 are just not as big as 1 and 2. I'm thinking maybe I bent the main stalk over too much when I LST'd them. They are dwarfed a bit. The flowers are still just as juicy. They just aren't as big or numerous. This really isn't much of a problem for me. It is just my wife and I here. I don't need huge harvests. Plus, I hope to get better at this as I get more experience. We're losing more leaves. This is especially true on #3 and #4. I may do some defoliation later today. Finally, it appears that #3 just isn't going to turn purple :/

The end of week 8 brings more weight and "juice" to the girls. The flowers are very frosty ! The aroma is increasing with the maturing of the flowers. I'm checking for amber trichomes every other day now. Harvest is imminent :D You may have noticed that I defoliated all of the dead and dying fan leaves. The girls are looking pretty "trim." Still using PH'd water only.

The end of week 9 shows more weight on the girls. Most of the pistils are now brown. The trichomes are still mostly white with some clear remaining. Not seeing any amber yet. Watering continues with only PH'd water about every 2-3 days

The ladies are ready :D I'll be back in a bit with some trimmed pics and the wet weight. The strain review won't let me comment for some reason. A couple of the plants stayed small. I don't know if I did something to dwarf them or not. One of the plants didn't develop any purple/blue coloration. Beyond that, using organic "super Soil", this grow was about as trouble free and easy as I could imagine a grow being. :D The trimmed pics are up I'll be back in a week with the dry weight OK Dry weight is up. I got a total of 58.6 grams (2.1 oz). That is less than I was hoping for, but at my minimum required for my wife's and my medicine. Between what she uses in edibles and what I use smoking, I only need about two ounces a quarter. I know -- I'm a lightweight ;) I won't smoke any of this until it is cured, so no report on taste or effects. I'll try the Super Soil again in my next grow (I have enough left for one more grow) Then I'll try a grow with nutes. We'll see if it's me or the nutes :P