Double Grape S2 P1

Welcome to what I am calling Season 2 of my grow room. I’ve made several changes from my first garden. This time I am growing two Mephisto Double Grape feminized autos. This week the report is the same for both plants. I will have individual reports next week. ~~~~~~~~~~~ ENVIRONMENT ~~~~~~~~~~~ * 18-inch by 18-inch growing area, with extra space for equipment. * Self-built growing area. See the first Grow Diary for a video tour. * Very limited headroom, the lamp can get no further away than 25 inches. * Light: Horticulture Lighting Group 135W Quantum Board V2 R-spec LED * 4-inch AC Infinity Cloudline vent fan attached to a carbon canister. * 4-inch Vivosun circulation fan * 3-gallon cloth Smart Pots * The pots sit on a small piece of wire shelving to keep them off the floor. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SOIL AND NUTRIENTS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * 3-gallon smart pots * Base soil: Biobizz Light-Mix * Added: 1.2 pounds Nature’s Living Soil Autoflower mixed in * Added: Layers of soil amended with Homegrown Bokashi 12oz Seed To Harvest Pro Bokashi Set. NOT ALL OF IT, just a portion to make the layers and get the plant started. * Added: 10 TBS dolomite lime * Added: 0.5 gallons of worm castings * All of this was mixed and layered according to my recipe, developed with the help of Dr.KidneyStoner, and set aside for a few days before planting. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SOIL SET-UP NOTES ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * The top third of the pot is reserved for a mix of Biobizz and work castings. * A hole the size of a 16-ounce cup is reserved in the middle of the pot for just un-amended Biobizz Light-Mix. This is where I will plant my sprouted seed. * Nature’s Living Soil was mixed throughout the remaining two gallons of Light-Mix. * Five layers of Homegrown Bokashi additives were added in the bottom two gallons of media. DAY (-2) TWO SEEDS INTO A WATER BATH * 2 PM: Dropped the two seeds in a glass of tap water. They floated. * 7 PM: Both seeds have sunk to the bottom of the glass. Time to sprout. * Both seeds placed into a damp paper towel which is in turn placed on a small tray and inserted into a plastic bag and placed in a warm dark place. DAY (–1) TIME TO HIT THE DIRT * 3 PM: Both seeds placed in the dirt, watered in with 25 ml of water. Both were covered with a humidity dome. ==> DAY 0: NO ABOVE GROUND ACTION <== DAY 1: BOTH SEEDS ABOVE GROUND * Each watered with 30 ml of tap water pH’d to ~6.5. * Still in humidity dome. * Light is 25 inches above the plants. Day 2: WHAT IS THE VPD IN THE DOME? * Beginner BUDZ on YouTube had problems with seedlings not growing under the humidity dome. I wonder why. * I check the Vapor Pressure Deficit inside the dome and find that it is off the charts. The temperature is fine at about 78F, but the humidity is 99% and the plants can’t breathe. * I tried to get enough airflow through the dome to achieve the correct VPD but didn’t have any luck. * Humidity dome removed. Turned up the room humidifier. DAY 4: I NEED TO TURN THE HUMIDIFIER UP HOW HIGH? * Watered with 30 ml of tap water pH’d to ~ 6.5. * Spent the day increasing the setting on the humidifier. The temp is about 80F, I want to get the VPD to the 0.4-to-0.8 range. * With the vent and circulation fans turned off and the humidifier set about as high as I can get it, the VPD finally enters the correct range for seedlings. * Even though it is a relatively small light at about 135W, I still turned it down 50 percent. I will gradually increase the brightness over the second week of the plant’s life. The total range of the brightness screw on the Meanwell HLG-120H-54A LED Driver is about 3/4 of a turn. DAY 6: WATER AGAIN * Watered with 30 ml of tap water pH’d to ~ 6.5. * Refilling the humidifier daily. * Beginning to wonder how to I top-dress or use teas when I am watering with only 30-100ml of water. Something new to explore! DAY 7: STAND TALL GIRLS * Double Grape #1 is 2-inches tall. Double Grape #2 is 1.5-inches tall. DAY 8: LOOKING GOOD * It was 30 ml of pH 6.5 tap water per girl today. * They are growing rapidly. Today #1 is 2.25-inches tall and #2 is at 1.75 inches.