🌸 Lava Cake – Week 5 Flower Report 🌸 We’ve reached Week 5 of flower — such an important and defining stage in the Lava Cake journey. Both phenos are shining, evolving beautifully, and filling the room with life and energy. It’s a week full of growth, observations, and some lessons to share. ⸻ 🌿 Current Status • Both plants are looking healthy, vigorous, and branching strong. • White hairs (pistils) continue to thicken and spread — the first signs of real bud-building. • Leaves show some spots, likely a touch of CalMag deficiency. This is not uncommon at this stage, as the plants’ demands for calcium and magnesium rise sharply during heavy metabolic activity. To support them, I’ve kept the full nutrient recipe steady this week and reintroduced Aptus All-in-One Liquid to strengthen the nutritional foundation and bounce them back quickly. ⸻ 💧 Nutrient Recipe (Week 5) • Aptus Regulator – cell wall support & stress resistance • Aptus CalMag Boost – to address spotted leaves and support photosynthesis • Aptus All-in-One Liquid – reintroduced this week to balance the base nutrition and help recovery from early deficiency signs • Plagron Power Buds, Sugar Royal & Green Sensation – pushing bud development, resin, and flavor complexity ⚠️ Note on feeding adjustments: This week we removed Top Booster from the mix. While it’s a great stimulator during certain flower stages, running it alongside Power Buds, Sugar Royal, and Green Sensation risks overlapping too much PK. Too much of a good thing can cause stress, salt build-up, or nutrient lockouts. By keeping the recipe focused and balanced, the Lava Cakes can thrive without overload. ⸻ 🌡️ Environment • Temperatures: Lower this week (relief!) thanks to cooling efforts. • Humidity: Still running a little high, sometimes hovering beyond the ideal. • Airflow: Two 6-inch exhausts + intake, all carbon filtered. This, along with fans inside, should keep the air moving and avoid stagnant moisture pockets. ⚠️ Note: Higher humidity at this stage can invite mold or mildew risks, but with strong airflow and constant air renewal, we’re reducing the chances. If issues arise, we’ll face them directly and adjust. ⸻ 🎥 Media Update This week includes: • Outside photoshoots – capturing their beauty under LED light. • Close-ups – showing detail of leaves, bud sites, and trichome sparkle starting to appear. • Video clips – giving a fuller view of the room, the setup, and how the girls are thriving. ⸻ 🔄 Quick Recap for New Readers From seed in the Cannakan ➝ early veg under Black Series LED ➝ transplant into 11L fabric pots with Aptus super soil base ➝ branching and stretching under TrollMaster-controlled environment ➝ to now, Week 5 of flower, where the Lava Cakes are stacking up and turning into queens. Each step has been intentional: careful watering from below to build root strength, dialing in nutrients, setting up airflow, and slowly stabilizing environment. ⸻ 🔮 What to Expect (and Not to Expect) Expect: • Continued flower stacking and calyx swelling over the next two weeks. • Aroma development beginning to intensify. • Slight yellowing or spotting on older leaves (normal as energy redirects to flowers). Not to Expect: • Full bulk yet — this comes in the later weeks, especially 6–8. • Perfect leaves everywhere — in flower, the plant focuses on buds, not flawless foliage. ⸻ 🌎 Closing Thoughts Week 5 is about listening and responding. The Lava Cakes showed us some leaf spots, and in return, we adjusted by reintroducing All-in-One Liquid while simplifying the booster recipe. Removing Top Booster avoids nutrient overlap and keeps the focus on a clean, balanced mix. This isn’t just about correcting deficiencies — it’s about preparing them for the heavier bloom demands to come. With lower temperatures, steady airflow, and a carefully tuned recipe, the girls are thriving. Every day brings more white hairs, more structure, and more anticipation for what’s ahead. ⸻ 🔬 Science Spotlight: Nutrient Antagonism One of the biggest hidden challenges in mid-flower is nutrient antagonism — when too much of one element blocks the uptake of another. • Excess phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) (often from bloom boosters) can interfere with calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) absorption. This can show up as leaf spotting, rust marks, or weakened stems even if those nutrients are technically present in the soil. • By removing Top Booster this week, we reduced the PK load and allowed CalMag supplementation to actually reach the plant without being locked out. • Balance always beats excess. The goal is steady, accessible nutrition, not maxing out one element. This principle is key to avoiding deficiencies during bloom: feed enough, but not too much of any one thing. ⸻ 🔬 Trichome Spotlight If you look closely at the close-ups this week, you’ll notice the first tiny crystals beginning to coat the flowers and nearby leaves. These are trichomes — microscopic resin glands that play a central role in the plant’s defense, flavor, and potency. ✨ What are trichomes? Trichomes are specialized structures on the plant’s surface that produce and store secondary metabolites: • Cannabinoids (like THC, CBD, CBG) • Terpenes (the aromatic compounds that give unique smells and flavors) • Flavonoids (contributing to color, taste, and subtle effects) Essentially, trichomes are the plant’s biochemical factories. 🌿 Why are they appearing now? In early flower, the plant begins to shift its energy from vegetative growth to reproduction and protection. Trichomes serve several evolutionary purposes: • Protection from UV light – the resin acts like sunscreen. • Pest deterrence – sticky, bitter compounds discourage insects. • Moisture regulation – resin helps buffer against stress. That’s why, right as buds begin to stack, you see an explosion of these glittering glands. 🔮 What to expect as they develop? • Density will increase week by week, eventually frosting the buds and sugar leaves. • Color will change: clear → cloudy/milky → amber. These stages are often used to decide harvest timing. • Aroma will intensify as terpenes concentrate, bringing out Lava Cake’s dessert-like profile. 🍯 The chemistry inside • Terpenes – molecules like limonene (citrus), myrcene (earthy), and caryophyllene (spicy). They don’t just shape aroma; they influence the entourage effect, modulating how cannabinoids feel. • Flavonoids – often overlooked, but they add subtle notes to flavor and can have antioxidant properties. • Cannabinoids – still forming now, but ramping up in mid-to-late flower. 🌸 Why this matters Seeing trichomes appear in such numbers this early is a sign of plant health and genetic quality. It means the Lava Cakes are channeling their energy toward flower defense and resin production — exactly what we want in a premium run. From here, it’s all about nurturing them without stress so trichomes can fully mature, delivering not just potency, but flavor and aroma complexity at harvest.They’re queens in the making — and with patience, love, and attention, they’ll reward us with something truly special. 🌸✨ 📲 Don’t forget to Subscribe and follow me on Instagram and YouTube @DogDoctorOfficial for exclusive content, real-time updates, and behind-the-scenes magic. We’ve got so much more coming, including transplanting and all the amazing techniques that go along with it. You won’t want to miss it. • GrowDiaries Journal: https://growdiaries.com/grower/dogdoctorofficial • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dogdoctorofficial/ • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@dogdoctorofficial ⸻ Explore the Gear that Powers My Grow If you’re curious about the tech I’m using, check out these links: • Genetics, gear, nutrients, and more – Zamnesia: https://www.zamnesia.com/ • Environmental control & automation – TrolMaster: https://www.trolmaster.eu/ • Advanced LED lighting – Future of Grow: https://www.futureofgrow.com/ • Root and growth nutrition – Aptus Holland: https://aptus-holland.com/ • Nutrient systems & boosters – Plagron: https://plagron.com/en/ • Soil & substrate excellence – PRO-MIX BX: https://www.pthorticulture.com/en-us/products/pro-mix-bx-mycorrhizae • Curing and storage – Grove Bags: https://grovebags.com/ ⸻ We’ve got much more coming as we move through the grow cycles. Trust me, you won’t want to miss the next steps, let’s push the boundaries of indoor horticulture together! As always, this is shared for educational purposes, aiming to spread understanding and appreciation for this plant. Let’s celebrate it responsibly and continue to learn and grow together. With true love comes happiness. Always believe in yourself, and always do things expecting nothing and with an open heart. Be a giver, and the universe will give back in ways you could never imagine. 💚 Growers love to all 💚

Not much to update. Buds stacking nicely.

This lady has been Transplanted on day 39 since she was planted and she will be grown with the complete biotabs organic line, I have applied for this 50L pot: 25g of startrex for every 5L of soil so I've used 250g of startrex in total, then I've dropped a spoon of mycotrex in the planting hole and when I finished I finally added 5 slow release tabs for this 50L pot, and then I watered right after the transplant with 1g of bactrex per liter of water and 1ml/L of orgatrex, this is gonna be a fun season, stay tuned everybody!!

Day 1 - 03/31/2022 Hello, World! 34th Street AK-47 Autoflower from OCS.ca germinated in 1 day after placing seeds in the freezer over night before planting. This was my 3rd attempt and the freezing method seemed to have done the trick! Sprouted on day 4. I placed the seed in the Aerogarden sponge pod and didn’t press it down too much. When the tap root started, it had nothing to grip onto, so I solved this by cutting a small portion of another sponge and placed it above the seed securing it in place with a loose “lid” on top so the sprout could easily push through. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day 3 - 04/02/2022 Hygrometer is in. Was drier than a popcorns fart in the closet so I got the humidifier going and it’s looking good. Went from 22% to 38% humidity in ~1 hour. pH, water temp and EC/PPM all seemed high so I added ~0.5 mL of pH Down that brought the levels to 5.4 (too low). I added ~2 cups of Brita filtered water (water was getting low anyway) before I went to bed from the fridge that helped raise the pH, lower the EC/PPM, and the temp by a few degrees as well. In an attempt to cool the water down a bit over night, I took the “cap” off of the Aerogarden reservoir to let the water ‘breath’ while the light was off between 2 am and 6 am – that did not work... ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day 4 - 04/03/2022 Water temp remains high at around 28 c. I replaced about 1/3 of the tank with new water and added ~1ml of Miracle Grow. Didn't effect the water temp at all. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day 6 - 04/05/2022 Levels appear the same. Tomorrow I’ll change the water out and start adding FloraMicro, FloraGrow and FloraBloom with some CaliMagic. Might pick up some Root inoculate of sorts or at least some preventative root rot formula – better safe than sorry. I’ll have to start seriously taking care of the water temp as well. Having it always around the 30 degree mark is not good. On a side note, I inadvertently found a great way to bump up humidity and air temp quickly: add boiling/hot water to the humidifier. My humidifier ran out of water over night while I was asleep. At 6:30 am I was lucky enough to notice since the humidifier rattles when empty. Humidity was down to 38% at that point. I went back to bed, woke up at 8:30 and it was down to 28%. As luck would have it, there was some left over boiling water on the stove in a kettle and I needed something easy to pour with. I checked back 30 minutes later and the air humidity/temp was up to 60% / 30 C respectively. Perfect conditions for our little lady to get big and strong. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day 7 - 04/06/2022 First water exchange went smoothly. This was also the first time I added nutrients other than the NutriGrow formula. I mixed everything together in 16 cups of water. NOTE TO SELF: 16 cups is not enough for 1.1 gallons! I had to add another 5 cups of water/nutrients to get the water volume right. I added a bit of NutriGrow only in the last 5 cups with ~1mL of pH down (didn’t measure; kept applying in small doses until pH was around 6). Excited to see how she reacts to her tasty new treats! 😀 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Special thanks to @DreamIT for showing me how to add music and animation to video. Check out my fountain video above for a short clip. Thanks to @UnorthadoxDude for influencing me ( by visual curiosity) maybe twisted an arm to buy some carnivors. Well I happened to find some at our annual master gardener plant sale. I will be putting some in the tent. Lots of growth in my carnivores. Flowers on Sundew.

Got the dehumidifier out the weathers making the humidity stupidly high

Очередное посещение. Высокий куст 100см, другой 80см, остальные 60см. Внёс на 10литров воды 2гр МФК и 2гр сульфат магния (Буйские удобрения). Опрыскал от насекомых вредителей. Нижние листья едят улитки и слизни. Следующая неделя 30-32 градуса, если не будет дождей пойду поливать.

D29. It's a wee bit early, but I will start counting this week as the first week of flower. The first girl is showing pre-flowers, and the second one is lagging but should soon catch up. I gave each 1.25 liters of water @ pH 6.8, mixed with humic acid, fulvic acid, sprouted seed tea, and bokashi juice. More LST and the DLI bumped to 40. ------------------------------ D32. The girls are simply doing their thing. ------------------------------ D35. This has been an eventful week, to say the least. The girls have exploded. Especially the second girl, as she is almost bigger than the first, even though she has been trailing since the start. She is pushing so hard that the nutrition in the soil has a tough time keeping up, which is noticeable due to the lighter green color. It could be the genetics, but I suspect that feeding sprouted seed tea twice during the week also had some part in it. A couple of days ago, I brewed a compost tea for 8 hours – a simple tea consisting of wormcastings, kelp, rock dust, and molasses. Each girl got 2 liters of tea @ pH 6.7, with sprouted seed tea, humic acid, and fulvic acid added to it. The first girl has just started to show the beginning of hedgehogs but none so far on the second. Even though there are no proper flowers, the apartment is still starting to smell quite a lot. I had to turn up the exhaust in the tent, and I'm concerned about how "bad" this might get as we progress into flower. I'm continuing with LST as the girls are growing and stretching. I almost accidentally topped the second girl due to my overzealous wire tightening. Oops... DLI is set to 45, where I will leave it until we're further into flower. ------------------------------

I think they are closer to done than I previously thought. All clear on trichomes though. Two more weeks?

Great week. Plants are ready to be harvested. Really nice plant . Great smell nice structure. Very frosty , really sticky very dense buds. Fast strain to grow, very enjoyable. Thanks everyone

Entering the last 2 weeks of nutrients before flush. Still looking very healthy to me. Growth of buds look a bit slower now but other than that all good here! :) This pollen is getting me supeeer excited 😍 🖖🏽🖖🏽

I didn’t see a lot of vertical growth this week but the buds are starting to really fatten up and get frosty. Humidity was a real problem this week and I had to purchase a dehumidifier as this far into flower consistent levels in the 60’s we’re quite concerning. I’ve still been watering every morning at around half a gallon and will feed a compost tea tomorrow.

The remaining girls are doing great. They stink so badly tho... Like a mix of feet and citrus 🤣🤣 I've sense turned on my exhaust system. 5/2/2023: So I've added more pics... the girls are still doing great so not much to report. I just can't wait til this grow is done and I can cut them down. I love saving $$ by growing my own shit... 😄

Podriamos haber tenido un punto de corte mas optimo, pero la verdad que un primer cultivo exitoso. Muy rico en aromas y en sabores. El olor a mandarina muy marcado y al final un toque de pimienta que hace que no sea tan impalagoso el citrico tangie. 250 g en seco, nada mal.