Clementine Rhythm Bagseed

First grow! Thought it would be cute to pop a Clementine bagseed in some soil mid-July. Started out in a sunny window but soon got attached to it and got it a grow light - first a 600W blurple LED. Read more about lighting and figured out that it's actual output was more like 40W so I upgraded to a SF-1000 from Spider Farmer. As a seedling I just had it in some miracle grow but upgraded to Happy Frog when transplanting it into a one gallon. Started feeding it Grow Big / Big Bloom about once a week. I didn't know too much about pH for the first few weeks so it was probably pretty wacky, but Clem survived!

Going strong! Taking well to the new light (SF-1000) Started to see some fungus gnats so I slowed on the watering and put up some sticky pads. I'm filling this out retroactively so sorry that there isn't too much data!

I noticed a lot of stunted growth near the main stem, so after reading some articles I decided to try defoliating (probably a mistake) and LST (definitely not a mistake). Originally I thought I’d spiral it around the outside of the fabric pot but it was already too tall for that (strength of the main stem made it difficult to position correctly), so I ended up bending it over and securing it with a paper clip and plant tie. Still in a one gallon and soon will be transplanted.

This poor plant is really working with me despite lack my of knowledge. I transplanted it into a 5 gallon smart pot and re-configured the LST position a bit. After my defoliation mistake, some new fan leaves started to grow in. Replanted into FFOF and Light Warrior mix. (Previously FFHF)

Clem is starting to bounce back a bit and I can see the formation of a flatter canopy. I started a few more seeds (Blueberry auto and Purple Haze photo), so in preparation for other plants, flowering, etc., I upgraded to an SF-2000 by Spider Farmer. Still using the SF-1000 for the seedlings. Definitely seeing a little light burn, so although I feel like I’m getting a rhythm with watering, I’m still messing with the light height and intensity. It also got a few degrees hotter in here, which Clem doesn't mind so far. Whew. I took the fixed shelving out of my closet and replaced it with two metal shelving units so my plants could have more vertical space. I also put up some diamond mylar so that the light would distribute more evenly (pretty sure that also added to the heat increase).

Not too much this week. Clem is still growing, and there are a few branches that are a bit taller and stronger than the others. I defoliated a little tiny bit to try to get some light and airflow to the center of the plant (😬 couldn’t help myself) and Clem seems to be feeling good about the results. I also used some pipe cleaners to pin down a few branches that were shading the rest of the plant. I also added some Cal-Mag to my nutes this week because I've been noticing some yellow/brown spots on the leaves and I've been using filtered water. I started a Blueberry auto a few weeks ago without thinking through my flowering timeline...it’s just too exciting. So, I’m basically waiting for the auto to stretch and then I’m planning to switch the lights to 12/12. I know the auto yields will probably suffer but it’s all a learning experience :) and also I’m worried that Clem will get too big for the closet if I don’t change the light cycle soon.

The two main branches were getting a little too tall for the rest of them to catch up and one was shading a good portion of the plant, so I tied them both down. Also defoliated a bit of the bottom in preparation to start flowering next week. 🤠 I took a small branch as a clone (in the red cup) and to my surprise it’s still alive and starting to root! I ordered a small tent that I’ll use to keep the clone in 18/6 if it survives, and that I might use as a drying room.

Pretty sure that Clem had been developing a nutrient deficiency due to lockout over the course of the last few weeks. Still not totally sure which nutrient(s) - based on some articles it looks like mg deficiency or a few combined? Some of the older leaves started to show burnt tips/brown spots and the plant was looking a little yellow. I flushed and then watered with half strength nutes and towards the end of the week it started to look a lot better. Last watering the runoff came in at 850ppm. Going to keep it there. Last week in Veg so I’m hoping Clem isn’t too stressed out. Defoliated a bit more and did a little LST to prep for flowering.

First week of flowering! The stretch is underway so I had to rearrange the room. Clem seems to have bounced back from the lockout but I overcorrected, skipped on nutes for the past few waterings and now the ppm seems too low. I’m still doing some LST every few days to keep the vertical height down, and I defoliated some fan leaves to expose the side branching growing up in the center. Im a little nervous that the bigger colas are going to be too heavy, not too sure what to do about that yet so that’s my project for next week.

Still going, Clem gained a few more in. of vertical height and is about 2 ft wide now. There’s lots of side branching popping up in the center and I’m seeing more pistils. Not too many issues this week. I got some bamboo stakes to prop up the taller branches but I’m not sure how necessary that is right now. Last pic features my blueberry auto (8 weeks) and purple haze photo (also in week 2 flower).

Tiny buds are everywhere! This was a good week overall. I am still struggling to get the nutrient balance right and I think Clem is running a little low. Still, I’m waiting to water with nutes to avoid building too much up around the roots again. I’ll be increasing the TB next week to see if that helps. I defoliated a tiny bit, mostly because my cat keeps getting in the room and chopping on the lower leaves 😩. Clem has also been a very leafy plant - more so than the purple haze and the blueberry auto (by far).

Finally seeing less vertical growth this week (🙏). Bud sites are getting thicker with pistils. Still dealing with some drama on the larger + older fan leaves. I forgot to take a photo but I’m getting some brown spots and they look a little yellow overall. New growth seems fine and pH / ppm looks okay so I’m hoping we can make it through flowering without any major issues.

Smells like clementines in here!! :))) I up’d the nutes because I saw some signs of deficiency- mostly yellowing leaves. I’m pretty lost on the brown spots popping up on the older fan leaves...I feel like it might actually be leaf septoria, because I’m seeing similar spots on my other plants. It’s been humid and rainy, so that makes sense. Posted some leaf photos if you want to check it out.

I’ve finally decided that the weird leaf spots are some kind of fungus, probably spreading as a result of poor ventilation. But, it doesn’t seem to be affecting the flowers too much. I put a small dehumidifier in the room to help circulate air and keep the humidity down. Long term I need a tent and fan, both should be arriving next week (though the tent is a bit small for this plant so it’s mostly for the next round :) ). Otherwise, everything is going okay! I’m going to start flushing next week and I’m hoping to harvest around the end of flowering week 8 / beginning of week 9.

So close!!! We’re getting there. Every day a few more trichomes transition into a light amber color, and the others are becoming cloudy. The fungus seems to be holding off; the dehumidifier is definitely helping, as is the late fall/early winter weather coming through. Planning to harvest next weekend if I can wait that long. 🤓

After several long months, we’re here! It took about 3 hours to harvest and it was such a joy to see the “fruits” of my labor, heh. The kitchen smelled like an orange grove 🧡. The buds were super sticky, coated in mostly cloudy trichomes with about 10% amber through the middle of the plant. This was a very leafy plant. I almost wish I had defoliated more, despite the fact that I took a lot off already. But, it’s all good because I made butter with the sugar leaves and smaller buds. I also have a clone of this plant (last pic) and it’s doing really well! I’m glad I sniped it - these buds looks so good and Im glad I get another shot now that I know a little bit more. The canopy is so much more even. Also - I finally broke down and got a tent and fan/filterto prevent dust and hair from contaminating my buds and to fix the ventilation issues. Looking forward to seeing how it improves the grow. I’ll post more photos through the dry and cure, and update with weight once its all in the jars. Super happy with how this turned out and I’m stoked to smoke some in a couple weeks. :) thanks for reading! happy growing 🌱 Updates: Dried in my dry tent at about 40-45% RH and 65F for 3.5 days. Put it in jars at 69% humidity and have been burping 3-4 times a day for varying times. Currently I’m at 63-66 RH. I tried some and the smoke is soooo nice -uplifting and euphoric at first and fades into a nice relaxing body high. Taste is sweet and citrusy, smells like Tropicana orange juice through the mighty. Going to keep curing for a few weeks before adding it to the regular smoke rotation.