Deficiency! Could I be doing better? Healthy looking plants

The yellow between the veins is magnesium def. Are you supplementing calmag? (nevermind i read you bought some, so use it at 3ml/gal if your base nutes have calmag. If not go 5ml/gal. Dont go past 5ml/gal unless your plant is really asking for it)

If you're feeding them 1200 they are way overfed, which is evident from the brown tips and leaf 'tacoing'. Never use feeding charts. And stop using ppm, use EC so everyone knows what you're talking about. PPM means nothing to anyone without knowing your conversion factor.

Stop PHing twice a day. If you notice your PH increasing that much, start at 5.5 and let it work up to 6.5. Then bring back down to 5.5. And repeat. I feel like it will make your life a lot easier. Clean out res every 1-2week.

They should be at 1.0-1.2EC at this stage.

firsttimeARE said:

The yellow between the veins is magnesium def. Are you supplementing calmag? (nevermind i read you bought some, so use it at 3ml/gal if your base nutes have calmag. If not go 5ml/gal. Dont go past 5ml/gal unless your plant is really asking for it)

If you're feeding them 1200 they are way overfed, which is evident from the brown tips and leaf 'tacoing'. Never use feeding charts. And stop using ppm, use EC so everyone knows what you're talking about. PPM means nothing to anyone without knowing your conversion factor.

Stop PHing twice a day. If you notice your PH increasing that much, start at 5.5 and let it work up to 6.5. Then bring back down to 5.5. And repeat. I feel like it will make your life a lot easier. Clean out res every 1-2week.

They should be at 1.0-1.2EC at this stage.

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Thank you for your response!! The ppm pen is uses the .5 conversion factor. I will look into purchasing a EC meter asap but for now is their a way I can convert the ppm reading to ec? I used this chart and according to that I am at a 2.2 ec. Should I flush or just change the res solution so it has the correct ppm/ec?

The PH doesn't rise to drastically. I check twice a day just to make sure. Nevertheless, I will start adjusting it only once.

Do you or anyone else know of any thread which can help me learn of signs of over-feeding vs. under-feeding? I need to learn this ASAP!

I changed the res solution and have filled with 8 gal of plain tap water and adjusted the ph to 5.7 (no nutes). I am thinking of adding half a serving of the FF nutes and monitoring it from there. Could I be doing anything else?

learning05 said:

I changed the res solution and have filled with 8 gal of plain tap water and adjusted the ph to 5.7 (no nutes). I am thinking of adding half a serving of the FF nutes and monitoring it from there. Could I be doing anything else?

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You dont need to PH tap water. There is no nutrients to absorb so PH is irrelevant.

I dont think starving your plant is a good idea. Go quarter strength nutes for a week then go half and up. Get the plant some calmag.

learning05 said:

Do you or anyone else know of any thread which can help me learn of signs of over-feeding vs. under-feeding? I need to learn this ASAP!

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Check out the plant problems sub forum on this site.

Read around this website for proper dosages. Its trial and error really. I think I have a right amount worked out and I go to a new strain and its totally different. What works for one does not for all sort of thing. Best idea is start small and work your way up to see how the plant reacts. Of course knowing what to look for helps. So read up.

firsttimeARE said:

You dont need to PH tap water. There is no nutrients to absorb so PH is irrelevant.

I dont think starving your plant is a good idea. Go quarter strength nutes for a week then go half and up. Get the plant some calmag.

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Thanks a ton again. I will add 25% or a little less of the serving sizes. What do you think is a good ec range I should aim for?

1.0-1.2EC at this point. Up to 1.4EC around weeks 3-6 with like a PK boosting product, unless your NPK numbers are good already. Then decrease down to 1.0 in weeks 7 to finish.

Weeks 3-6 your plant will pack on the most weight. And then at the end they will swell I think, I have always "flushed" which I dont think is necessary unless you've been pushing 2EC+ down the plant. Then I might want to. I hear this "flushing" prevents the plant from having enough energy to do key processes at the end of its life cycle like swelling or ripening. Not sure what else.

Flushing is not necessary but highly advised. In hydro flush for 4 days The Cannabis and any plant on our planet will absorb excess nutrients and store it through out their life cycle. Especially mobile ones(NPK). Flushing solutions can even encourage plants to ripen. It's all up to the user/grower on the taste of the final product to see if flushing works for them. I'm on my way back from day 1 of the U.S. Cannabis Cup in Denver. The last cultivation seminar I saw with Dan from DNA and Scott for Rare Dankness,D.J Short, Adam for T.H. seeds all went on a rant how flushing is just one of best ways to get the best tasting end product. Especially in soil situations. I'm sure some will disagree. Trial and error is the best way to lock that nutrient situation down. Have patience and trust your plants to take care of business.

Update: So the 2nd newest growth or the node from which the new growth exits, has tips turning brown and a single spot of brown on the edge of the leaf's saw blades. The ppm has not moved much and the ph has been stable. Two of the smaller two plants look as if their new growth is continuing to grow but the rate of growth of all the plants have definitely been stunted. I already flushed with 1/4 nutes and it has been four days now.

Tomorrow I am thinking about changing the res and adding 6-gal of water, 2 tsp of tiger bloom, and 1 tbsp of big bloom. However, I am concerned about the quality of my tap-water. Everytime I fill my res there's a cloud of whiteness which evaporates within a min. I usually let it sit for >5 min but I think the chlorine is contributing to the issue. I did some research on my city's tap water and based off their 2011 study chlorine/chloride is added to the water also their is no Cal. I am not sure if the levels are high but does anyone have any thoughts on this?

Here is a screenshot:

View attachment 2628930

I was thinking of adding some of this to the water. I found it locally. It is a chlorine/toxic metal eliminator for fish but if I have a chlorine issue it could help right? 1-2 drops max. Here is a link, its called API Tap Water Conditioner

I appreciate any thoughts.

learning05 said:

I was thinking of adding some of this to the water. I found it locally. It is a chlorine/toxic metal eliminator for fish but if I have a chlorine issue it could help right? 1-2 drops max. Here is a link, its called API Tap Water Conditioner

I appreciate any thoughts.

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Have you checked with your local water supplier to see if you have chlorine or chloramine?
Will that bottle of stuff work on chloramine also?
If you hae chlorine in your water, don't waste money, just put your water out in an open bucket for 24 hrs. before you use it.

Bakatare666 said:

Have you checked with your local water supplier to see if you have chlorine or chloramine?
Will that bottle of stuff work on chloramine also?
If you hae chlorine in your water, don't waste money, just put your water out in an open bucket for 24 hrs. before you use it.

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I have called them in the past regarding the chlorine odor and they said they use chlorine. Also based of their study in 2011 which I attached it says they use chlorine/chloride. Even during my last grow I suffered with mag issues. FF nutes doesn't seem to have a significant amount of mag in it.

Thats the thing I haven't been waiting longer then 10min so it makes sense that their could be a mag issue due to the chlorine/lack of mag from FF.

Also based off the study I doubt their is any cal in the water either. So it makes sense that their is a cal mag deficiency. I know to much cal can cause lockout on mag but it doesn't seem to be that in my case. It seems more likely that chlorine is affecting the mag uptake even tho their isn't a significant amount in the solution. The API product was $4 at petsmart so I am going to give it a try today. The instructions say 1 drop per gal so I will do 2-3 drops since I have a 6 gal solution. I will let it air out for awhile as well.

Note: The ppm rises a little per day so isn't that a indication that they are not eating? I think increasing the mag will help things along. Does anyone know the right dosage per gallon for using epsom salt??

It means they aren't eating as much as they drink. Usually do with 1/2 tps of Epsom per gallon. Make sure you grind and dissolve.

I added the 2.5 tsps of epsom salt, allowed the res water to air out before replacing it, and added 2 tsps of Tiger Bloom and .5 tablespoon of Big Bloom. The ppm was at 475 with 140 being from the tap so 335. Lets see what tomorrow holds...

Oh no. It seems like a bottle fell in my closet last night and snapped off ONE branch with little growth on it. It was one the ground when I opened my closet door. Also that same plant which lost the branch just showed its first set of female pistils emerging from the new growth. Will this cause it to hermie? Esp since they are still recovering from nute burn/mag issue?

learning05 said:

Oh no. It seems like a bottle fell in my closet last night and snapped off ONE branch with little growth on it. It was one the ground when I opened my closet door. Also that same plant which lost the branch just showed its first set of female pistils emerging from the new growth. Will this cause it to hermie? Esp since they are still recovering from nute burn/mag issue?

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If it hermies, the branch won't be a major factor in the event.

So my plants are on the way to being recovered. All three of them are growing daily and the new growth looks better. Together they have been drinking on average a gallon per day. I only have the res filled with 6 gal for the three plants. I have been topping it off daily with plain water bc the ppm doesn't seem to decrease much but the new growth seems fine. I got the cal mag and used it. It has seem to have help them recover and continue growing. I do a foliar spray 10 min before the lights go out with 1/4 tsp of cal mag mixed with a liter of spring water. I change the res every 5 days now and use the tap water conditioner at 1-2 drops. BUT I am concerned about how much water they are supposed to drink per day. Is a gallon/day for all three normal - for a cfl grow especially?

I have put them on 12/12 two weeks ago and the tall female has bud sites all over the horizontal branches but not many on the tall center stalk. And one of the plants has displayed only one pair of pistils near the new growth and nowhere else. The third plant hasn't shown its sex as yet. I am not sure what else I can do? Is this common?


I was thinking of maybe adding this 85w CFL 2700K but I am not sure if it is worth it? As of now, I have only one 85w 2700k and three smaller watt 2700k bulbs. Also one 85w 6500k which I move around for a dual spectrum. I want there to be a decent yield.


Also I am having a weird issue with my ph pen. All of the sudden, it keeps un-calibrating itself. I adjust it using a 7.0 solution then test a sample of my res water in a cup and then test the res directly and the readings are different. Also if I place the pen back into the calibration solution after it is suddenly +/- .3 .
I haven't gotten it wet besides the probe area. Could low battery cause this? What is the best way to measure the ph in dwc - any thoughts?

Digital PH meters are considered the industry standard. Others like the chemical method as it never needs to be calibrated. Like this one, http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0001XGPLO/ref=mp_s_a_1?qid=1367259929&sr=8-3&pi=SL75
Have you cleaned the probe on your meter?

I like the digital meter. I haven't cleaned the probe at all. When it was working normally- I usually just checked the ph of a sample of the res solution in a cup and then I confirm by checking the ph directly in the res. After I adjust the ph by adding down to the sample in the cup, I then pour it back into the res. I then take another sample and re-check. After I am done, I usually just turn off the device and cap it. The probe stays moist due to the cap and I haven't had issues thus far.

However, I did leave it on overnight/day a few days ago and now it won't hold its calibration. I have to keep adjusting it by placing it in the PH 7 solution and turning the screw till it reads 7. Then I go on and check my sample/res. BUT I have to keep making sure it reads 7 in the calibration solution; therefore, I am not sure if the probe has just gone bad or it may be a low battery issue. After I adjust it to a 7 in the cal. sol., it fluctuates by +/- .1 each time I place it back.

So I am hoping I don't need to buy another one but I just don't see what could have caused the probe to mess up? Thats why I was thinking it could be the battery. Any thoughts?