Auto Flower Perpetual Redundancy Part 2

Auto Flower Perpetual Redundancy Part 2 per·pet·u·al/pərˈpeCH(o͞o)əl/ Occurring repeatedly; so frequent as to seem endless and uninterrupted. re·dun·dan·cy/rəˈdəndənsē/ The inclusion of extra components which are not strictly necessary to functioning, in case of failure in other components. Follow along with my multi part Auto Flower Perpetual Redundancy Diaries. Part 1 and Part 2 will consist of 2 different strains cultivated side by side in my Veg tent. Once officially in bloom they will be transferred to my Bloom tent. I have chosen to allow at least a week past the mid-point of bloom before starting the next phase of the Auto Flower Perpetual Redundancy Part 3 and Part 4. I will repeat the process running 2 additional strains starting once again in my Veg tent. I am doing this to allow a slight buffer to give me more time for harvesting, drying, preparing for re-potting the next batch and ensuring space is available in my bloom tent. I’ve been pondering a way to increase production for some time. With my set up I can typically expect to harvest about every 75 to 77 days. If I choose the appropriate strains, I will be able to increase the number of harvests to at least 8 or 9 per year with faster finishing auto flower strains. Each diary will contain and repeat similar or possibly identical growing conditions, feeding schedules etc. A couple or a few photos will be posted each week depending on my available time with the bulk of the photos being during the last weeks of flush and harvest. Specific review about each strain’s growing characteristics will be given after harvest/curing including a smoke report. Thanks for following along. OFFICIAL SET UP VEG TENT Gorilla Grow Tent Shorty 2 ft X 4 ft X 5 ft (2) G8 Led grow lights 140 actual watts each (4) 1020 reinforced drainage trays (8) 3.17 Gallon Maxi Pots (12 Liter) (2) Exhale XL Co2 bags (2) 6-inch 2-speed circulation fans Customized Air Innovations 2-gallon Cool Mist Ultrasonic Humidifier 4-inch 190 cfm variable speed exhaust fan no filter BLOOM TENT (2) G8 Led bloom lights 245 actual watts (4) 1020 reinforced drainage trays (8) 3.17 Gallon Maxi Pots (12 Liter) (2) Exhale XL Co2 bags (2) 6-inch 2-speed circulation fans 4-inch 190 cfm variable speed exhaust fan with carbon filter MISCELLANEOUS TOOLS OF THE TRADE Aquatic Life RO Buddie 100 Gallon Three Stage Reverse Osmosis System (10) 5-Gallon BPA Free Food Grade Water Jugs (8) Clear Solo Cups with 5 Vent Holes (Humidity Domes) Super Foam Wire Ties (Cut to 12” Lengths) Hydro Farm PPF/PAR Meter H&M TDS Meter (0.5 ppm scale) Hanna PH Meter Hanna Cleaning, Storage and Calibration Solutions Digital Infrared Thermometer (2) Digital Thermometer/Hydrometer Precision Hand Held Watering Device (Turkey baster) Graduated Nutrient Eyedropper Various Sized Mixing Containers 3/8-inch Siphon Hose 2 Gallon Wet/Dry Vacuum 40X LED Lighted Jewelers Loupe (2) Curved Bladed Trimming Shears (4) Teflon Coated Baking Pans 10”x 16”x 2” (8) Heavy Duty Wire Clothes Hangers Roll of Fine Florist’s Wire (Cut to 6-inch lengths) Digital Scales (Large & Small) (12) Half Gallon Glass Jars (12) Ink Bird LED Hydrometers (12) 62% Boveda Humidity Packs (1) Pack RAW Hemp Rolling Papers (1) Butane Lighter (1) Comfortable Lazy Chair SOIL COMPONENTS Canna Coco Coir Mix Fox Farm Ocean Forest Mix Perlite Extreme Gardening Azos (Azospirillum brasilense) Extreme Gardening Mykos (Rhizophagus intraradices) Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (All Fungus Gnats Must Die) BULK MIX PROPORTIONS 60% Fox Farm Ocean Forest 30% Canna Coco Coir 10% Perlite SEEDLING MIX PROPORTIONS 7 parts Biobizz light 1-part Canna Coco Coir 1-part Perlite SEEDLING / VEG. NUTRIENTS Canna Bio Rhizotonic Canna Bio Vega (If needed) BLOOM NUTRIENTS Advanced Nutrients Connoisseur Bloom A & B Big Bud Canna PK 13/14 Canna Boost SUPPLEMENTS AN B-52 AN Bud Candy AN Sensi Cal Mag Xtra Canna Cannazyme General Hydroponics Armor Si Epsom Salt (If Needed) Mammoth Microbes Mammoth P Organic Blackstrap Molasses LABS (Lactic Acid Bacteria Serum) https://themodern.farm/why/ FLUSHING SOLUTION General Hydroponics Flora-Kleen AUTO FLOWER LED LIGHT INTENSITY Recommended LED PPF/PAR Values / DLI Based on 20 hrs. of light. Seedlings 150 - 200 umol / DLI 10.80 - 14.4 moles per day Veg up to 9" 450 umol / DLI 32.40 moles per day Early bloom 500 umol / DLI 36.00 moles per day Mid bloom 650 umol / DLI 46.80 moles per day Late bloom 750 umol / DLI 54.00 moles per day Ripen 400 umol / DLI 28.80 moles per day *** Use extreme caution going 700 umol or higher @ 20 hrs/day this could cause leaf burn*** PPF measures the total amount of PAR emitted from the lighting system per second. PAR is the amount of light in the 400 - 700 nm color spectrum that can actually be used by the plant. PAR does not measure the amount of UV and Infrared that plays a part in trichome formation and cell quality. DLI is the total amount of PAR the plant has received per day Our goal is to have a minimum DLI in the 38-40 mole range when it bloom. https://www.waveformlighting.com/horticulture/daily-light-integral-dli-calculator https://horticulturelightinggroup.com/blogs/news/horticulture-metrics-par-ppf-ppfd-dli Growing your plants with the optimum LVPD (Leaf Vapor Pressure Deficit) ranges helps them absorb Co2 to properly conduct photosynthesis and allows the root system to adequately utilize water and nutrients. Using average leaf temperature is the best way to calculate LVPD. Measure this temperature using an infrared thermometer. LED lights tend to have leaf temperatures lower than atmospheric temperatures in the grow room. Growers using HID, Fluorescent bulbs typically will have temperatures higher than room temperature. With HPS leaf temperature can be 8 - 10 F higher than room temperatures due to the amount of infrared emitted by the bulb. Recommended LVPD Seedlings/Early Veg 0.4 - 0.8 kPa Late Veg/Early Bloom 0.8 - 1.2 kPa Mid/Late Bloom 1.2 - 1.6 kPa *** Danger Zone*** Below 0.4 kPa / Over 1.6 kPa https://www.dimluxlighting.com/knowledge/vapor-pressure-deficit-vpd-calculator/ https://vpdcalculator.com/vpd-calculator https://www.blackdogled.com/lst

Week 2 Update These girls are showing some very nice growth with one over achiever showing its sex or first pistil on day 13. I have one that seems to be lagging behind the rest we will see if she catches up to the rest in a few weeks. They are showing some nice wide Indica type leaves with short internode growth. Maintaining a nice warm tent with high humidity seems to be to their liking. I'm running two Exhale XL bags for this and future grows trying to kick up the Co2 levels to stimulate better growth. Just using Biorhizotonic and Mammoth P and have been watering sparingly just enough to keep the top surface moist every 3 to 4 days. I still like using my electronic digital moisture meter to tell me what's going on deeper in the pots to prevent over saturating the soil. Typically I see the first root tips poking out the drainage holes by the end of week 3. I'm trying to once again keep the first 4 weeks or so organic to allow the beneficial microbes do their work in building a nice healthy root system. Dropped my lights to 24" this week and will slowly over the next few weeks increase the light intensity. I'm still using my summer lighting schedule of lights on at 3:00 pm and off at 11:00 am. This helps keep my temperatures reasonable by having them off during the hottest times of day and allows me to work on them in the evening after work.

Week 3 Update They are growing well and are showing preflowers. 3 have started to stretch and were ready to start some LST training. My typical strategy is to wait until they are 7 to 9 inches tall then bend/swing the main colas about 6 inches above the base to the rear or fronts of my tent in an effort to limit any potential light burn or stress as the get taller. I also reposition any smaller branches to give them as much light as possible and pull any large fan leaves to the sides and rear of the main cola.. I have learned to refrained from doing LST training too early to avoid damaging or interrupting the of the root crown or root mass. I'm beginning to see a few root tips showing out of the drain holes but continue to limit the amount of watering to every 3rd or 4th day as needed. Humidity is running between 60% to 65% most of the time. Trying to maintain about a 20 inch distance with my lights until some time in week 4. I would like some modest stretching but do not like my total plants height to exceed 30" if possible.

Week 4 Update She's showing some nice late stage preflower development so I'm considering her as in bloom. Getting some nice stretch out of them with modest amount of internode spacing which will be great for the buds to receive ample light. She was pretty dry when I photographed her but she held up well considering. Did some more branch manipulation for best positioning. They got there first feeding which was fairly light. Her first run off for the grow was running around 1100 ppm after feeding a bit higher than I like. She will get plain water with some Carbs and Mammoth P until I can get her run off down in the 800 to 900 ppm range. I expect her to start feeding more in week 5 -6. Lowered my humidity to about 60% to start increasing the plants transpiration rate to trigger her to feed a bit more.

Week 5 Update Looks like they are done stretching. Starting to form more developed bud shape. Kicked up nutes slightly. End of week run off is running about 850ppm to 1000ppm with a 6.2 ph. I have a few upper leaves that are more directly under the light showing some light bleaching which is pretty typical on most of my grows. I will start strategically removing leaves in a few weeks so no big deal. Humidity is bouncing between 55% to 60% between waterings. Using a feed-water-feed type schedule with minimal run off allowing them to dry out a bit each time.

Week 6 Update Very impressed by Ethos Genetics looks like the top notch buds are starting to really grow and fill in. She starting to throw off a nice faint smell. Nice internode space is going to allow more light to the bud sites. I pulled off any of the lowest bud sites and a few of the lowest leaves. I will slowly remove more lower leaves over the next few weeks Increased nutrients to 650 ppm 6.5 ph. Getting a runoff of 900ppm to 1000ppm with a ph of 6.2. I allowed them to dry out a bit before using a feed then water then feed for the week. Leaves are holding out pretty good but showing a bit of fade in green coloration from light stress and some droop on the tips probably due to my wet then dry type watering cycles. Some of the lowest leaves are showing they are hungry and getting drained of nutrients. Running about 50% to 55% of humidity after watering. Be sure to check out my Auto Flower Perpetual Redundancy Part 3 and Part 4 Diaries which are currently 7 days old. These were started in my veg tent at the beginning of week 6 when the first batch was moved into the bloom tent. If all goes as planned harvests will be about 6 weeks apart.

Week 7 Update Buds are filling in and starting to bulk up nicely. Started to give them a nice little pop of PK 13/14 ,Boost and some Cannazyme to make sure those roots free to soak up the bud building goodness. My weekly run off is around 1000ppm to 1100 ppm with a ph of 6.2. Leaves are still holding up well and are handling the light stress well. Using a weekly application of LABS (Lactic Acid Bacteria Serum) which is mixed with Organic Blackstrap Molasses. I drizzle this on the top of the pots surface with a turkey baster on my plain water. days. I have been using this on my grows for a while and feel it has improved the over all quality of my buds flavors and aromas.

Week 8 Update These girls are hanging tough handling the abuse of intense lighting and a strict wet then dry watering/feeding cycle. Nice chunky buds are showing sign they are getting closer to wanting to get flushed. Seeing a lot of pistils drying and curling up by the end of the week. A light sweet diesel like scent is coming off her. Runoff was 850 to 900 ppms with a ph of 6.1. Going to try to sneak in one more feeding next week. Trichomes are clouding up nicely. I see signs of a few ambers trichomes showing up. I've been waiting to start my flush until I see the first multiple ambers showing up on the calyx. My guess is they typically amber up at about 5 % every week on my grows. This will give me 2 weeks for flush and trichome ripening. Chop with 15 to 20 % amber trichomes.

Week 9 Update Finally some cooler weather coming through allowing me to keep my daytime temperatures lower. I was able to fit in one last feeding this week and let them dry out a bit then followed up with a nice 6 gallon flush per pot on day 63. I added 5 ml of Flora Kleen to the last gallon of flush water. Going to stick to a nice wet then dry cycle until harvest and continue to drizzle a few turkey baster worth of LABS (Lactic Acid Bacterial Serum) and organic blackstrap molasses mixture to the top surface of the pots. Some signs they are getting closer to being ready with more ambers and milky trichomes showing up on the main cola and upper most buds on the lower branches. Guestimate 10 to 14 days until harvest.

Week 10 Update They are almost ready, showing off some end of life fall like colors. Pushing 15+% amber on the upper main cola with mostly cloudy milky and a few stray clears/half milky trichomes scattered throughout. Watering to the point of nice run off then I'm letting dry out very well until they get watered again about every 3rd to 4th day pushing them a bit to the limit. I do this because if kept constantly watered it will raise the humidity in the tent which is not good at this point. I am still following up with LABS/ Organic blackstrap molasses mixture drizzled on the surface of the pots. I've also removed most of the accessible fan leaves. I don't like to and try not remove any leaves extending from inside the buds. The reason for this is to avoid moisture from leaking out at the cut creating a condition ideal for molds and bud rots which is lack of air circulation, darkness, moisture and temperature.

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