2k querkle scrog

Abucks

Well-Known Member
Update:
So this past week I submersed myself into the world of Brix. I deviled in this back in 03', and for some reason, forgot how important brix is for everything from plant health, to helping figure out a plethora of other things. Brix measures the sugars in the sap of your plant. For growing purposes, it runs on a scale from 1 to 32. One being horrible, and 32 being unattainable. The benefits from high brix are to numerous to list. I use it to gauge the plants response to things I'm doing. A heathy mj plant will have a brix of 7 to 9. Over 9 is great, and 12and over is phenomenal. A brix over 12 gives the plant a natural resistencia to pest, molds, and diseases. The little sap sucking bugs that we deal with growing mj do not have a digestive system complex enough to digest sugars. They take a suck, and the sugars shut down their digestion, so they pull out and starve. It's impossible to gauge brix by looking at a plant. Remember heathy mj has a brix of 7. The first test I did on this crop, which is by far the healthiest I've grown, was exactly 7. So I started playing around. I would change one thing at a time, feed strength, frequency, additives, ect... After each change I would let the plants adjust, and take a brix reading. If the number went up, it was a good change. When the brix went down, that change was dropped. What I've seen amazes me how much even the smallest simplest change effects brix. The key to doing this is take the reading at the same time everyday, and from the same general area on the plant. From what I've researched the best times to take a brix reading is 2 to 5 hours after morning feed. This is when the number will at its highest. I've done tests throughout the day and found this to be true. It's super simple to do a brix test, not so easy changing the brix though. In just a week I've raised my brix from 7 on the first test, to 10 on my last test. The difference in the overall plant look, growth, everything is very noticeable. I thought the were stunning when the brix was 7, but now that they are at a 10 the whole structure, feel, color of the plant has changed! Between testing brix, and doing weekly 1:1.5 soil analysis it feels like I've taken control of my grow. No more guessing. Two of the easiest tests to give you all the info you need to grow great plants, and both are the least talked about on forums. Knowing the ph and ec of your root zone is crucial to diagnosing sick plants. Soil growers can just check their runoff to get these numbers, but us who grow in coco don't have that luxury. Coco runoff is never the same as the root zone, so we have to do a 1:1.5 soil analysis. These two test are so simple to do, and provide so much information, and yet are never on any of the sick plant diagnoses sheets that I can find. I would recommend that any serious grow research these, and implement them into your grow.
 

Abucks

Well-Known Member
So 10 days into flower and the screen is full. Not sure if I should tuck bend force the branches into a new positipn, or let them go. I still have 20" I can raise the light. Hmmmn decisions decisions. Taking pics when lights come on.
 

Abucks

Well-Known Member
IMG_20160312_192459741.jpg Here they are. 10 days into flower, and its looking like the stretch may be slowing down. I defoliated pretty good, and seems to have helped. Already starting to form flowers. Usually 2-1/2 to 3 weeks to see flowers forming on my past soil grows of this same strain. At this rate I'm going to shave 3 weeks to a month off my overall grow time. That's another crop a year!
 

Abucks

Well-Known Member
IMG_20160314_050637056.jpg 13 days into flower, and 29 days into the overall grow. Bud formation is well on its way, and hopefully most of the stretch is over. Almost all the tops are 6" through the screen. Really regretting not flipping the lights a week earlier. I think it will still be a bumper crop for me, but it's not going to be a true blue scrog. Won't know for sure until 7 or so weeks from now .
 

Abucks

Well-Known Member
So a couple notes on my side by side test of botanicare coco blocks, and canna coco bricks. It's been 4 weeks and a few things I've noticed. Like I said before, the 65-70 liter botanicare, and the 40 liter canna filled my 15 gallon pots to the same volume. The only reason I can see for this is the canna has that much more air capacity. I prepared them as the manufactures suggested, and filled the bags the same way. I think the reason for this is the ratio of pith, chunks, and strands. After a month of watering it's become obvious the botanicare is settling whereas the canna hasn't settled at all. The surface of the canna still looks like the first day I transplanted it and the botanicare has a fine almost muddy look to it. Another big difference, has become watering frequency. The canna is asking for water daily, and the botanicare can easily go three days without. Roots are blowing out the sides of the canna bags from the bottom 3/4s of the way up. The botanicare is only showing roots on the bottom 1/4 of the pots. For the first three weeks growth was the same, but canna is starting to eek botanicare out there too. I'm going to do a 1:1.5 soil test on each today. We will let the rhyzosphere tell the rest of the story.
 

Abucks

Well-Known Member
Holy natural desaters! We just got 15" of wet heavy snow that took out power in 3 counties. Power was off for 30 hours with outside temps hovering around 27f no generators to be had anywhere. The girls survived, but I'm sure it's going to take a few days for full recovery.
 

Abucks

Well-Known Member
So for the last week I've been suspicious of the back 4 girls in this grow. A crop or so back I lost my bubblegum mom. This is most assuredly not due to being medicated while cloning. Anyways, I think I've found it. It's always been hard to tell the difference between the querkle and bubblegum in veg. Usually early flowering their differences become more and more obvious. Bubble gum stretches more, and produces bigger buds faster. This is exactly what is happening right now. Another week and I'll know for sure. Might be changing the name of this grow to, 2k querkle/bubblegum scrog, and chalk it up to another embarrassing stoner mistake.
 

Abucks

Well-Known Member
23 days into flower and things are looking great. Despite another 4 hour power outage in the middle of the day cycle. This past week or so I bumped up to a daily feed. Normal strenght according to cannas feed chart. Thinking I might have to bump it up to the heavy feed. These girls can eat! IMG_20160324_203657655.jpg IMG_20160324_203704868.jpg
 

Abucks

Well-Known Member
Thsnks! Got a little out of control on me. Not really a true scrog any more. I never imagined growth like this. Lesson learned for next crop though.​
 

Abucks

Well-Known Member
At the end of day 29. Looks like the flowering stretch is done. Buds are stacking. Started pk 13/14 at half strength. Now to sit back and watch the most exciting part of the grow :) IMG_20160330_054848736.jpg IMG_20160330_054833184.jpg
 

Abucks

Well-Known Member
Day 38 flowering. Been hitting the girls with PK 13/14 for the last couple weeks. Started out half strength and slowly worked up to full strength. Noticed some foxtailing on some of the buds in the strongest light. Nothing I'm worried about though, as they are filling in nicely now. IMG_20160410_053335.jpg IMG_20160410_053247.jpg
 
Top