A Real K.I.S.S. Growing Method - Soilponics

WattSaver

Well-Known Member
I normally wouldn’t share something like this but it really works, and I’ve been doing it for over 3yrs now. It is the simplest and easiest growing style I know of. I am not saying you will grow the biggest baldest plants with this system, but you will be able to grow well above average plants with the least amount of brain damage. And you can procure everything you need at your local hardware store, no need for a hydro shop, this can be a plus if availability or delivery is a problem for you.

For the last 4yrs + I’ve been bent on reducing the amount of time and money I need to spend and expend on keeping my med cabinet / stash box full. There are 2 major components I’m using to achieve this.

1) Control Release Fertilizers

2) Hempy Bucket

I mention the CRF (control release fertilizer) first only because I started with these at least a yr prior to my 1st hempy bucket, when working with soil. I was tired of chasing EC (tds) as the grow progressed. And with soil which is a slow responding medium this could take much more time than I wanted to invest. One of the best benefits of using CRF’s is that you only have to adjust the ph of your feed water; nutrients are released on an as needed basis (as long as you don’t over water). This leads us to a Hempy bucket which is very hard if not impossible to over water.

The Hempy Bucket is a passive hydro system. No pumps, no air stones, no external reservoirs. Just get a bucket, can, bottle, whatever, and drill a 7/16” hole in the side 2” up from the bottom, and you’re in business.

Here’s some photos of my grows using this process.
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WattSaver

Well-Known Member
Control Release Fertilizers (CRF)


CRF’s are treated fertilizer prills that steadily release food over time, the time they last differs depending upon product. They also somehow release more food when the plant wants it, and generally when used growing cannabis they only last a little more than ½ of the published duration time. There is also a Time Release Fertilizer (TRF) category but in my experience they don’t perform as well.


Here are a few CRF and TRF I’ve used:


Foxfarms - Marine Cuisine; Organic TRF - I really wanted this one to perform well, but it didn’t have the legs to get through flowering with single charge, I had to top dress at least once, usually more, and it still didn’t keep everything running full speed


Dynamite Red – I only used this for a couple of runs, a 13-13-13 formula with a full blend of micro nutes. But for my use during flower (8 to 10wks) it lasted too long, This product will last over 3 months in a Hempy bucket. Then again is it really wrong to have lush green plants at harvest. (TRF) Overall a good product.


Dynamite Purple (14-5-10) (TRF) & Commercial grade Osmocote Plus (15-8-11) (CRF) – These are both high N great for veg and even work well for the full grow. And they have a very complete blend of micros. These will produce very healthy plants for the full term, and can be used in conjunction with other CRF’s. They have a posted 8 to 9 month duration.


Now my personal favorites; Remember that posted durations only last a little more than 1/2 as long as posted durations growing cannabis .


Osmocote Plus (gardeners level) – It is a 15-9-12 with the best blend of micros I’ve seen, & 6 month duration. Last summer (2013) this product was discontinued by Scott’s for reasons they would not share with me. I stocked up and still have 5 lbs. This past spring they have repackaged it and it’s available again.


Osmocote Flower & Vegetable – This is the flowering fert I use, the best I’ve found so for, I use it in conjunction with other CRF’s, which I’ll detail later. This is a 14-14-14 fert with a four month duration, it has no micros. It is a very fast feeding nute, that will feed as much as the girl wants, and will even show a slight tip burn (this is strain dependent only light feeding strains show this effect, heavy feeders will want a P-K boost later in flower), a great base nutrient.
 

WattSaver

Well-Known Member
Keep it Simple and Easy


The system I describe is the simplest for me and my set-up and conditions; I have a 4x4 flower area with a small veg box. Your conditions may dictate going a different direction.


Now a hempy bucket is a soiless, passive hydro growing system, but I’ve incorporated using some soil in the system, hence what I jokingly call Soilponics. After many runs with and without soil I’ve seen no detriment to its use, actually there are several benefits to its use.


Starting seeds and clones;

The easiest, simplest, & most reliable way to pop seeds is to slightly scuff the husk, and then plant directly into a cup of good potting soil. I use a 16 or 18oz solo cup filled with potting soil and put several tbsp’s of seedling soil mix into a hollowed out area in the top center of the soil. I plant the seed in the horizontal position. The soil will have enough food in it, that no other amendments are necessary during the 2 to 3 wk growth period in the cup. I don’t use the paper towel method to germinate seeds. There is no advantage in pre popping seeds when using soil, you can only damage the sprout by handling it.

Hints to 100% germination; Temp is the most important. Maintain 75 to 80 degrees. This includes starting temp of wet soil. I’ll fill the cups for seeds then water to saturation. Then let them sit until they reach the target temp.

I start clone cutting in a cup of soil as with seeds, the only difference is the need for a humidity dome for the first 7 to 10 days.


Veg Period

After 14 to 20 days there will be enough roots to hold the cup of soil together during transplant. I like to let the cups get real dry for transplant, Be careful there is a fine line between real dry and dead dry. If the cup is too wet during transplant the weight of the soil can cause the core to fall apart which will break roots.

I transplant the cups into aprox 2 qts of soil. I line the bottom of the pot with a thin layer of of chunky perlite for drainage, then a layer of soil, now I add the first tsb of OC+, then another thin layer of soil. Now it’s time for the plant. Repeat layers of soil and OC+. I use 2 to 3 tsp of OC+ per pot. (note: 3 tsp = 1 tbsp). No other feeding will be necessary for the rest of the veg period, in my case that is 7 to 9 wks. The only work I’ll have to do with these plants for the veg period is training to keep them contained in my small veg box. (4’x1.5’x2.5’ tall)
B-11fem_14-11-03 cup transplsnt 003.jpg B-11fem_14-11-03 cup transplsnt 014.jpg B-11fem_14-11-03 cup transplsnt 009.jpg B-11fem_14-11-03 cup transplsnt 011.jpg

Flower - Time for the Hempy Bucket

As soon as its harvest time in the flower area, its time to get the plants out of the veg box and into hempy buckets. Most of the time I’ll use 3.5 gal buckets to get an extra day between watering, but you can get a lot of work out of a 2gal bucket. The veg plants are generally root bound & want some space, with a 2 gal bucket it will only take a wk or less for the roots to hit the rez of the hempy bucket and are ready to flower, with a larger bucket it will take a little longer to get ready to flip.

If I’m doing an unsexed seed run I’ll use 2 gal buckets, just to speed up the process, save some medium knowing some (males) will be thrown out.


Now its time to use the OC 14-14-14. I use 1.5 to 2 tbsp / gals of medium. So for a 3.5gal bucket I use 5 to 7 tbsp, a 2gal - 3 to 5 tbsp. Out of that total amount I will use 2 or 3 tsp (3tsp=1tbsp) of OC+ for the micros, the rest will be OC 14-14-14.

NOTE: It is fine to use just OC+ and I’d recommend going this way for your first attempt. It is a perfect food for flowering despite it’s hi N content. The 14-14-14 just seems to feed faster.


I’m going to describe a perlite hempy, The CRF’s work well with coco also, but IMO the perlite bucket is the easiest to use, and lends itself better to medium recycling, which helps keep the costs down.


Fill with medium to coarse perlite to about an inch above the hole, lay down the first layer of of OC (1 ½ to 2 tbsp) then perlite, OC, plant the soil core with plant. Continue layer perlite and OC till about 2” down from the top of the soil core. From here on up fill with soil, first an inch layer of soil, now here is where I place the OC+ then cap with the final inch or so of soil.


There are several advantages to soil cap on a perlite bucket even if you aren’t using CRF’s.

  1. It holds the perlite in place, which makes watering much easier.
  2. The soil acts like a sponge and helps with the wicking action of the perlite, this keeps the body of the perlite moister, and therefore there is no need for vermiculite which helps the moisture level with straight perlite hempy buckets. (again it easier to recycle perlite without verm in it)
  3. You can maintain a good microbe regime in a hydro setting
  4. Mitigates all light intrusion
  5. You can know your rez level just by looking or sticking a finger into the soil. Just like a soil grow to check the moisture content you can see the dry soil on top and work a finger into the soil to feel the moisture. This can come in very handy if you are working under a screen or other condition that will not allow you to lift the bucket to see how heavy it is to determine the rez level.

When using CRF’s it’s important to let the rez dry prior to watering. You don’t want to water every day. If you over water you can release too much of the nutrients from the prills, this is especially true with the TRF’s. If the plant wants more it will empty the rez quicker, and watering will reactivate prills.


Supplements


I do add several different supplements in my grows, these are optional and need to be done in a very conservative method.


I add 1 ml of cal-mag per gal of water, just because my water has none. You may not need any with your tap, if using RO I’d recommend using 1 to 2 ml/gal. (When using coco add 5ml/gal)


With a Hempy you have to adjust your water ph to hydro range 5.5 to 6.5 with the soil core and cap I run 6.0 and north. But I won’t add ph up if I’m at 5.7. I’ll just reduce the ph down I use next watering.


With CRF’s you can add any of the many supplements that proclaim improved results that do not have an N-K-P rating or is near zero, they don’t seem to hinder results, do they help????? You be the judge.


Adding a P K boost is tricky and can cause great harm. Never add more than ½ the recommended dose to start. Start slow to see how the plant reacts. This has a lot to do with strain, some love food others have problems with excess food. So if your plants look like they are already at max feeding then don’t add any bloom boosters. If they always look hungry then a little boost could be in order.


I’m currently using Cha-Ching for my P-K boost. I prefer powdered nutes to liquid, as they have a much longer shelf life. When using ¼ tsp or less per plant 3 times per grow, 1 lb will last for a few yrs. When using a bloom booster I only use it every other watering.
 

WattSaver

Well-Known Member
Hempy Bucket


For those not familiar with hempy passive hydro, here’s a quick description of how to do it.


Get a bucket drill a 7/16” (11mm) hole in the side 2” up from the bottom; fill with perlite, coco, or other soilless medium (or combination).

Feed with every watering add enough for a 10-20% overflow out the hole. Wait till bucket is dry. Repeat until harvest.


Lot’s of info here “World of Hempy” (WoH)

and many Hempy Threads in the “Drain to Waste” forum

List of Hempy grows “Link your Hempy Grow”


Here’s something I posted a while back on WoH – The ramblings of a man whose medication level was nearly perfect, & had seen the same set of questions asked again…..


Hempy A Passive Hydro Growing Machine

There has been a lot of talk about what is the correct size for a hempy bucket, correct medium, watering etc.

Well here’s my “opinion” based on my observations running hempy growing machines.

First what is hempy? It is a passive hydro system. What is a Passive Hydro? It’s just that, no pumps, airstones, automated drain valves etc. Hempy is just a type of passive hydro.

How & Why does “Passive Hydro” Work”? Well you need a rez that is small enough to be used up in a short enough period of time to not have the need to use recirculation, airstones, chillers, adjust ph during the life span of the rez, add H2O2 or other rez cleaners. I’m not saying a little bleach or H2O2 won’t help or shouldn’t be used if needed, but conceptually & in a properly working bucket it isn’t necessary and I’ve never used any.

What’s the right size for a hempy container? I personally believe that when your hempy machine is running at full capacity it should need to be watered every 1 to 2 days. So if you are looking for accelerated growth throughout all phases of growth you’ll have to change container sizes. If you’re looking for big plants, starting in the final bucket size is not a wise idea, it will work but won’t be the fastest way there.

Let’s look at known winning size containers, they can show us the machine aspect of the bucket.
2L when filled with medium has a height of 7” (18cm) to top of medium, with a hole 2” up from the bottom that’s 5” to top of medium. Rooted clone with a couple inches of root that is buried ½ to 1 inch above the roots, leaves a gap of only 2 to 2 ½ inches from root tip to rez.

2gal is only an inch taller than the 2L at 8”, but has a much larger dia. using jella as subject. Start in RR 1 ½” tall put in solo cup 3 ½ to 4” & vegged, transplanted into final 2gal bucket. So at transplant of RR into solo only 1 to 1 ½” roots to rez, then Solo to 2 gal the gap is 2 ½ to 3” roots to rez.

3.5gal Is 10” deep and the same diameter as a 5gal bucket. Using my grows, soil solo cup for clones or 2” pots for seed transplanted into 2 to 3 qt soil pots 4 ½ to 5 ½” deep for longer veg. Again 10” minus 2” hole = 8”. So the gap from bottom of root core to of rez is 2 ½ to 3 ½. IMHO anything over 4” is too large a gap from root ball to rez, to achieve maximum production from your hempy machine.

5gal is 13 ½” deep from bottom to top of medium, so just add 3 ½ to the 3.5gal #’s, and you’ll get 6 to 6 ½” gap, I’ve tried this and IMO it took way to long to set roots and get after it. I’m not saying it won’t work it’s just another time factor you have to allow for in your grow schedule (but the rewards can be worth the delay).

What’s the best medium? I’m currently leaning towards coco. But there are many options. I started my study of Passive Hydro through news group threads written in the 90’s, and the geometry was the same but the chosen medium was perlite to above the hole and a 50/50 mix of soil and perlite on up. So I’ve never really had a problem with the use of soil in a hempy bucket. I’ve done many mixes from all soil to straight perlite, the one thing I can say is that a 1 to 2” top cap layer of soil over perlite will improve the bucket’s performance.

What’s best for you? Your growing environment and growing style will be the ultimate deciding factors here. Growing in a crawl space with no head room? Then 12/12 from clone with 2L will lead the growing style list, which works better with a smaller container, so the machine can start faster. Your veg space or lack thereof can be a huge factor in your choice. But you’ll never know what’s best until you jump in and get your feet wet.

Happy Growing


**********************************************************************************

In my opinion if you’re not growing organic, then Hempy is the easiest best option for growing. A 2 gal hempy can match a 10 gal soil grow. A great hempy grower “Jella” was bent on matching DWC in a 2gal bucket, he did achieve this goal. In a minimal labor grow as described, and the standard for hempy’s, you can use 2.5 as a multiplier to compare hempy to soil.

i.e. 2 gal hempy = 5 gal soil for plant yield.

I welcome anyone who is using or has used Controlled Released Fertilizers to share their experiences here.

So in the end with this method I spend less than $2/plant/complete grow for nutes and all supplements. My total cost per plant/grow including electricity is less than $20, and I spend less than an hr/wk in the grow room. The hardest part of this growing method is doing nothing at all.
 
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sunny747

Well-Known Member
This is very helpful. Thank you.

I started a seed in a hempy solo cup with just perlite and a bit of peet that was used for the germination. It didn't go all that well. I think I was missing Cal Mag. After I added Cal Mag it seemed to do better, but still not the growth I would hope for. I was using 1/4 strength GH Floranova Veg Nutes and a little root stim. Are there any special considerations for starting seeds in hempy?

Why is it difficult to over water hempy? Because of the addition of so much perlite?

Why does a 2 gallon hempy equal 5 gallon of soil? What is so special about hempy.?

Would it still be hempy if I loaded a 2 gallon bucket with fox farms soil and drilled a hole near the bottom?

I got nervous about my 3 week old seedling in the solo cup so I transplanted into a 1 qt pot with Roots Organic (mostly coco). It' the kind of pot that has sort of a built in resevoir at the bottom. Can I still put this into a hempy bucket when it's time to up pot?

Thanks so much.
 

WattSaver

Well-Known Member
This is very helpful. Thank you.

I started a seed in a hempy solo cup with just perlite and a bit of peet that was used for the germination. It didn't go all that well. I think I was missing Cal Mag. After I added Cal Mag it seemed to do better, but still not the growth I would hope for. I was using 1/4 strength GH Floranova Veg Nutes and a little root stim. Are there any special considerations for starting seeds in hempy?

Why is it difficult to over water hempy? Because of the addition of so much perlite?

Why does a 2 gallon hempy equal 5 gallon of soil? What is so special about hempy.?

Would it still be hempy if I loaded a 2 gallon bucket with fox farms soil and drilled a hole near the bottom?

I got nervous about my 3 week old seedling in the solo cup so I transplanted into a 1 qt pot with Roots Organic (mostly coco). It' the kind of pot that has sort of a built in resevoir at the bottom. Can I still put this into a hempy bucket when it's time to up pot?

Thanks so much.
Hempys are near impossible to over water, due to the soilless medium, most hempys are either perlite or coco based, so they drain well and retain a lot of O2.

Gal for gal hempys (and coco drain to waste) seem to produce more roots in the same area, and just the basic hydro action of having feed water always available, and there is a lot more air retention in perlite and coco compared to soil. You add this all up and you get more work in the same space.

My first hempy's were filled with perlite to an inch above the side drain hole, then soil cut 30 to 40% with perlite from there up. They worked great and kept me playing with the buckets. There is no need to fear using soil in a hempy bucket.

Yes you can transplant your new containers of soil mix into a hempy just give them time to grow enough roots to hold the soil together during the transplant into your buckets.

I've tried on several occasions to start seeds and clone cuttings in a hempy cup, but in the end it is so much easier to start them in a soil cup, and you don't have to worry about feeding for the 1st 3 wks.
 

sunny747

Well-Known Member
Hempys are near impossible to over water, due to the soilless medium, most hempys are either perlite or coco based, so they drain well and retain a lot of O2.

Gal for gal hempys (and coco drain to waste) seem to produce more roots in the same area, and just the basic hydro action of having feed water always available, and there is a lot more air retention in perlite and coco compared to soil. You add this all up and you get more work in the same space.

My first hempy's were filled with perlite to an inch above the side drain hole, then soil cut 30 to 40% with perlite from there up. They worked great and kept me playing with the buckets. There is no need to fear using soil in a hempy bucket.

Yes you can transplant your new containers of soil mix into a hempy just give them time to grow enough roots to hold the soil together during the transplant into your buckets.

I've tried on several occasions to start seeds and clone cuttings in a hempy cup, but in the end it is so much easier to start them in a soil cup, and you don't have to worry about feeding for the 1st 3 wks.

Awesome. Thanks so much. i have a few seeds to pop so I'll do it in soil then when they are ready in a few weeks I'll pop them in a hempy with chunky perlite on bottom then add a soil or cocoa cap.

Much appreciated.
 

ButchyBoy

Well-Known Member
Is your use of Cal-Mag because your water is missing it? Sorry if you covered it already, I have a very short memory. (For real)

I keep finding this style of growing interesting and really want to give it a go but really am against non organic! Cal-Mag in my book is Non-Organic. I am sure my tap water has plenty of calcium so the magnesium would be the issue.
 

WattSaver

Well-Known Member
Is your use of Cal-Mag because your water is missing it? Sorry if you covered it already, I have a very short memory. (For real)

I keep finding this style of growing interesting and really want to give it a go but really am against non organic! Cal-Mag in my book is Non-Organic. I am sure my tap water has plenty of calcium so the magnesium would be the issue.
Yes I add the cal/mag because my water needs it. My tap TDS is around 400ppm but it has no cal in it.
 

ButchyBoy

Well-Known Member
I see!!


My water leaves calcium on everything LOL.... I might give it a try soon and see how it goes without adding Cal-Mag. I do have a bottle along with Canna Nutes that I haven't used in a long time but most likely will toss them soon enough.
You don't add air to the bottom of these correct??
 

WattSaver

Well-Known Member
I see!!


My water leaves calcium on everything LOL.... I might give it a try soon and see how it goes without adding Cal-Mag. I do have a bottle along with Canna Nutes that I haven't used in a long time but most likely will toss them soon enough.
You don't add air to the bottom of these correct??
With your water I'm sure you won't need any cal/mag. And you're correct there is no air added to the rez. You don't need to plug in any accessories using a hempy.

If the Canna nutes are too old, then go splurge and buy a $12 two pound jar of OC+ and get more relaxation time.8-)
 

sunny747

Well-Known Member
I add cal mag because something is up with my leaves and someone told me it was likely Cal/Mag related. I use filtered tap water.
 
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