First Grow Ever - Stealth DIY CFL DWC Auto AK & Fem Big Bud... Help Wanted

Update 05/01

Day 29 from seed!

I am absolutely amazed at how the AKs are growing. Today is their 4th res change, 3rd with nutes. I hit them with 1/3 strength Grow Big, Big Bloom, and Tiger Bloom today. One of the little ones confirmed for me today that it's female. So far that's:

8/8 Germinated - 100%
6/8 Survived until Veg - 75%
4/6 Female - 67%

Still waiting on the other little one to show... I'm hoping the two smaller ones will spring up soon. They're staying rather small. A bit too small for my comfort. Is it because the lights are getting a bit far because of the bigger ones? I've been trying to stagger the lights to make up for it. The bigger ones are about 12" tall now... Damn, I should have put something in the pics to scale for size. I will next time, I promise.

The Purple Lady/Gigabud get their res change tomorrow. As you can see, I did quite a bit of trimming on them. I'm trying to turn them into sort of bonsai-esque mother plants, and I plan on vegging them for a long time. I accidentally broke the Purple Lady a few times, but she seems to be recovering nicely.

Uploaded pics from this morning.

Pics 1-9 are the AKs.
Pics 10 & 11 are the Purple Lady/Gigabud
Pics 12 & 13 is the setup and environment. New Therm/Hygro! Lol.

I got a TDS meter, too. PPM for the autos is at 850ppm, the fems are at around 200, but they haven't gotten their nute change yet.

I took a few of the budsite pics with a new 30x jeweler's loupe. I'm hoping I'll be able to see the trichs clear enough when they come in.

Please leave some feedback. I love constructive critisism and would like to know how I'm doing. Let me know, and thanks for stoppin in!

Ok, this is retarted. Bump.

*Sigh* Bump...

Update 05/02

Day 30.

Just a little update to let you know what's going on. The AKs are showing a bit of nute burn, but not horribly, so I think they'll work it out.

The smallest one showed male today so I pulled it. Not a bad female to male ratio, though... 4:2 is ok with me.

If you got somethin' on your mind, let it out. I wanna hear your opinions. I wanna know how I'm doin.

You got a jungle in there 420! Looks like things are going very well. Beware of over nuting the little, younger AKs that sharing the rez with the huge ones. Sounds like your cuttin back on the nutes anyway for the bigguns. How tall would you say your AKs are at this point? This is roughly the 1/2 way mark for the AKs right? Those roots are ridiculous! They must be drinking tons. How often do you have to top off the rez? Nice going with the ppm meter. Any idea what your ppm is in the AK rez?

(Butters) said:

You got a jungle in there 420! Looks like things are going very well.

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Thanks, man... The growth is ridiculous. I didn't think they'd get this big, lol... I'm quickly running out of room.

(Butters) said:

Beware of over nuting the little, younger AKs that sharing the rez with the huge ones. Sounds like your cuttin back on the nutes anyway for the bigguns.

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Yeah, I've been giving them partial strength nutes anyway, simply because they're autos... Interestingly enough, the mid height leaves on the taller ones showed more burn than the little one. The little one's getting bigger by the day, though.

(Butters) said:

How tall would you say your AKs are at this point?

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I'd say they're about 14-16 inches. I'll measure next time I update.

(Butters) said:

This is roughly the 1/2 way mark for the AKs right?

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Yeah, I'm in the home stretch now!

(Butters) said:

Those roots are ridiculous! They must be drinking tons. How often do you have to top off the rez?

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I'm starting to have to top off every couple of days now.

(Butters) said:

Nice going with the ppm meter. Any idea what your ppm is in the AK rez?

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I've checked it a couple times and I'm not completely sure I'm doing it right. Can someone explain to me exactly how to use the HM TDS-4? It seems to jump around quite a bit.

Thanks for stoppin by, Butters. I'm actually watching South Park with my wife right now, lol.

4204l1f3 said:

I've checked it a couple times and I'm not completely sure I'm doing it right. Can someone explain to me exactly how to use the HM TDS-4? It seems to jump around quite a bit.

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Do you have any reference solution to calibrate with? Shouldn't be much of an issue if it's brand new. I have a very similar one as that. How big are the jumps you get with it? It should basically take about 10 secs to even out those swings and then you just push the "HOLD" button so that you get a final number to go by. Make sure you track ppm day to day. It's one of the best ways that your young ladies will try and communicate with you. If it's too jumpy, definately write the manufacturer. I had that problem with the ph pen I bought and as it turned out...i had left the cap on it

(Butters) said:

Do you have any reference solution to calibrate with? Shouldn't be much of an issue if it's brand new. I have a very similar one as that. How big are the jumps you get with it? It should basically take about 10 secs to even out those swings and then you just push the "HOLD" button so that you get a final number to go by. Make sure you track ppm day to day. It's one of the best ways that your young ladies will try and communicate with you. If it's too jumpy, definately write the manufacturer. I had that problem with the ph pen I bought and as it turned out...i had left the cap on it

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Lol... I'll make sure to keep an eye on it from now on. Last time I checked it, I put it in the water and about 30 seconds later the ppm was still going up. It went up about 10ppm each second. It came with a 1380 calibration solution, but it read it at around 1380 so I figured it was calibrated properly.

Edit: Just checked, buddy... The AKs are at 642ppm, and the Feminized girls are at 559ppm

4204l1f3 said:

Lol... I'll make sure to keep an eye on it from now on. Last time I checked it, I put it in the water and about 30 seconds later the ppm was still going up. It went up about 10ppm each second. It came with a 1380 calibration solution, but it read it at around 1380 so I figured it was calibrated properly.

Edit: Just checked, buddy... The AKs are at 642ppm, and the Feminized girls are at 559ppm

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LOL...It only goes up 10ppm at a time?! That's like trying to count a thousand bucks a penny at a time. I hope the packaging said "TDS/Patience Tester". At that rate, you might as well just create a strap on the side of both units to hold it in place for you. Don't worry, mine sucks ballz too. It'll get the job done.

Nice to see that autos can handle above 600ppm. I wouldn't go any higher though...not so much cause they can't handle it but more because you're gonna have to wait 1/2 a day before your TDS meter gets up there. On the bright side, you're gonna have one huge arm (depending on your handedness) by the end of this grow boss.

Keep up the good work man.

(Butters) said:

LOL...It only goes up 10ppm at a time?! That's like trying to count a thousand bucks a penny at a time. I hope the packaging said "TDS/Patience Tester". At that rate, you might as well just create a strap on the side of both units to hold it in place for you. Don't worry, mine sucks ballz too. It'll get the job done.

Nice to see that autos can handle above 600ppm. I wouldn't go any higher though...not so much cause they can't handle it but more because you're gonna have to wait 1/2 a day before your TDS meter gets up there. On the bright side, you're gonna have one huge arm (depending on your handedness) by the end of this grow boss.

Keep up the good work man.

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LMFAO, nah dude... I mislead you. It'll instantly go to a higher number (600, 700, etc.), but will keep ticking up about 10 at a time after it jumped up. I just did what you told me. I hold it in for 10 seconds and hit the hold button. Stick around, dude... Some HUGE updates coming up.

Update 05/12

Days from seed

Day 40 - AK47 Autos - Alpha
Day 6 - White Russian Autos
Day 5 - AK47 Autos - Bravo

I tossed the two full size plants and decided to keep my growing to autoflowering strains. I plan on making feminized seeds and starting a perpetual auto grow. The reason I'm doing this is because of my space limitations.

I finally finished all my work on my grow room. I have my main area which will hold 12 plants, 6 plants per harvest. A smaller area is set up for the 48hr dark period before harvest. I will eventually put some lights in there as well, for flushing.

I threw up some pics for ya...

As you can see, the AutoAK Alpha team is well into flowering. This is week 6 from seed, so they probably have about 5 weeks left. For some reason, though... One of them is growing some badass trichs, but the other two don't have any for some reason. The fourth, younger one is looking real good for its age too. They drink water like it's fuckin nothing, so I have to top them off every other day. Can someone explain why the other two aren't growing trichomes?

I also planted 6 Auto White Russians and my last 2 Auto AKs. I'm hoping one of the baby AKs is female so I can seed it from an older female.

Pics are as follows:

1-7: Flowering AKs
8: White Russian seedlings
9-10: My 2L AK babies, one's a jokester with a fucked up stem.

Thanks for stoppin' by! Sorry for the break in updates.

Hey 420. Still looking good. Liking the perpetual auto grow idea. No need to change lights, manage space, and all the complications that goes on with mixing autos and regs in the same room. Did you use any type of humidity domes with the new babies or did they just go right into the system with the hydroton pellets once they germed? I'm gettin stuck on this part and would appreciate any techniques that are working for you. That has to be the craziest stem I have ever seen dude! Can't wait to see how that's gonna work itself out as it gets taller. What method are you gonna be using to create fem'd seeds? Very curious to see how that works out.

(Butters) said:

Hey 420. Still looking good. Liking the perpetual auto grow idea. No need to change lights, manage space, and all the complications that goes on with mixing autos and regs in the same room. Did you use any type of humidity domes with the new babies or did they just go right into the system with the hydroton pellets once they germed? I'm gettin stuck on this part and would appreciate any techniques that are working for you. That has to be the craziest stem I have ever seen dude! Can't wait to see how that's gonna work itself out as it gets taller. What method are you gonna be using to create fem'd seeds? Very curious to see how that works out.

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Hey man, good to hear from ya. I'll be using Soma's method for creating feminized seeds. As far as germination goes, I simply soak the rockwool in pHed water and shake it out until it doesn't splash water everywhere. I then stick in my seed, close up the hole, and pop them in a black plastic container with a clear top. I think these come from chinese take out. They pop out after about 3 days.

Yeah, the perpetual autoflower idea seems a lot more reasonable for a small space. I figure if I get 30g per plant I'll be fuckin ecstatic. A zip per plant is my goal.

It is a wacky stem, huh? We'll see what happens.

Thanks for stoppin' in, bro. How's your grow going?

My last plant turned out to be a girl thankfully so it's on like donkey kong again for making lr2 seeds. Got some auto bb x ak47 starting up too. Thanks for the tips on the process too. Any difference in success rate based on the type of chinese food you got in those containers? I could imagine growth being better in a container that originally had general tso's chicken as opposed to say a sweet and sour pork.

For the perpetual grow and minimizing space issue, I have a similar issue. It seems like "lollipopping" is the way to go. Basically, you cut off all of the bottom side branches early on to focus the growth solely on the main cola. Saves space horizontally which allows for more plants and supposedly bigger yields per sq ft. With the auto's and a bunch of already fem'd seeds, I would imagine you would be able to get some serious yields given the space.

Can't wait to get a smoke report on that white russina too. Supposed to be some heavy stuff. Keep up the good work and thanks again.

(Butters) said:

My last plant turned out to be a girl thankfully so it's on like donkey kong again for making lr2 seeds. Got some auto bb x ak47 starting up too. Thanks for the tips on the process too. Any difference in success rate based on the type of chinese food you got in those containers? I could imagine growth being better in a container that originally had general tso's chicken as opposed to say a sweet and sour pork.

For the perpetual grow and minimizing space issue, I have a similar issue. It seems like "lollipopping" is the way to go. Basically, you cut off all of the bottom side branches early on to focus the growth solely on the main cola. Saves space horizontally which allows for more plants and supposedly bigger yields per sq ft. With the auto's and a bunch of already fem'd seeds, I would imagine you would be able to get some serious yields given the space.

Can't wait to get a smoke report on that white russina too. Supposed to be some heavy stuff. Keep up the good work and thanks again.

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Your grow sounds good, man... I've never had blueberry ak... That shit would be crazy! Yup, I already started lollipopping these girls a bit... I'm just worried that the stress will fuck with it, seeing as it has such a limited lifetime. I'm gonna try to grow the White Russians straight up with no branches and see how it goes. It's one big experiment with the autos... Nobody seems to know much about them.

Someone's been ignoring his grow journal. Just checkin in to see how things have been coming along lately? You must be coming up on the 8-week mark for the surviving auto AKs right? They lookin close yet?

Yeah man how is everything turning out, lets see some pics of the progress!

i just bought some feminized Easy ryder (ak47 x low ryder #2). i need help with a grow setup stealth in a 32"x32"x48" box i want 3-4 plants and a hydrosystem... help?? what size net pots to use? is the net pot supposed to touch the water in the rez i mean i need help!!!

Haha, sorry guys... Had family in town and various shenanigans... Everything's going great! I'll do a proper update with pics tomorrow. AKs are lookin great, and I got two females out of the White Rhinos I planted. They just started flowering. About 2 weeks left in the AKs. Thanks for caring! I promise I'll do better with the updates, lol... Texan, check out the grow FAQ, and the Hydroponics area. I learned everything from those with some help from a few other threads.

Alright, my bad guys. Life's been pretty hectic lately, and I really haven't had time to upload pics and do updates and all that.

The harvest went great. I'm putting some pics up of the AKs just before harvest.

I totaled 3.32 oz dry from 4 plants, but one of them was a lollipop and only gave me about an eighth. I also harvested about a half ounce early and water cured it. It was an experiment, so I don't mind. I'm still not through that stash and I have another harvest coming up in 3 weeks.

I'm thinking about moving up in the world, using mother plants and cloning. I still have quite a few feminized AK47 auto seeds, so I'm gonna use them up and incorporate the mother/cloner later.

I just planted 3 more AK seeds, and they're perky and healthy. I've realized how experience really helps make things go smoothly. I have a good idea of what I'm doing now, so everything's getting a little easier.

As for the pics, keep in mind I used a shitty camera so the color is all messed up.

Pics 1-6 are the AKs 1 weeks before harvest.

The last pic is of the young White Rhinos, which are soon to be harvested now.