Week 10 Update
This week overall looks solid. The plant is in good health and has responded really well to the topping I did last week. The canopy has filled back out, it’s denser, and the structure is becoming more balanced.
During this session I went in with a major defoliation, another topping, and some LST to shape the plant. Unfortunately, while doing the training, one of the junctions between a branch and the main stem cracked slightly. To support the recovery, I applied a small piece of tape as a bandage to help the plant heal and close the wound.
Structurally, we now have four main branches, each with two fresh tops — which means eight apexes in total. The plan now is to let her recover gently and monitor how she develops over the next days.
Environmental conditions are stable. Temperatures have cooled a bit, averaging around 22–23°C, with relative humidity hovering close to 70%. This range feels comfortable for the plant.
Regarding pH, I no longer check the runoff in the saucers because it doesn’t make sense. Fresh nutrient solution leaving the reservoir at 5.9–6.0 will measure fine at first, but three days later the leftover solution in the saucer gives a completely different number. It’s not representative, so I just focus on locking the reservoir pH between 5.9 and 6.0. The plant seems to handle this approach very well.
Nutrients remain unchanged for now. I may have added a touch of Rhino Skin, which I didn’t mention earlier in the diary, but it’s there to start strengthening the plant tissues in preparation for heavier branches later.
So far, everything is steady. We’ll let her settle, recover, and keep following the evolution week by week.