Scrogging questions (watering & flushing)

H

Hornstar

Member
Hey all,

I am preparing to start a scrog in the next week as the plants are getting to about 8" high. The scrog screen will be fixed to the inside of my box and so I am thinking about what I am going to do when I have to flush later down the line.

The pots are currently in a tray so any runoff goes into the tray and is held. However, when i am flushing I imagine there is going to be quite a bit of water and I wondered if anyone had any idea about what to do as I will not be able to move the plants once scrogging has started. I guess I will be able to lift the pots about 2" and remove the tray to discard any water but I wondered what other scroggers did?

Another question I had, When watering normally, do you let the plant re-absorb the runoff water or do you discard it? As I said, the pots are in a tray and so any runoff is currently being caught and then evaporating or being re-absorbed by the plant.
 
bigv1976

bigv1976

Well-Known Member
If you grow them right there should be no need to flush your soil. Just leave the run off in the run off pans.
 
nomaninsf

nomaninsf

Well-Known Member
What exactly do you think flushing is? All you do is feed regularly with plain water, or a leaching agent like clearex or final phase. You don't give them an excess of water during flushing. Keep your watering schedule the same but only use pure water or water and clearex. Water just until runoff or just before runoff. You can get away with a good flush in 1 week with clearex. Go 1 1/2 to 2 weeks if you're using just water.
 
H

Hornstar

Member
AH!!!! The lightbulb is on! Sorry for being a dumbass. I thought flushing was effectively overwatering where you drench the plant and there is a lot of runoff.

I misunderstood. Thanks for the clarificationa nd that makes life a hell of a lot easier.
 
nomaninsf

nomaninsf

Well-Known Member
Hornstar said:
AH!!!! The lightbulb is on! Sorry for being a dumbass. I thought flushing was effectively overwatering where you drench the plant and there is a lot of runoff.

I misunderstood. Thanks for the clarificationa nd that makes life a hell of a lot easier.
Click to expand...
If you accidentally over fertilize you can use the extreme runoff to help get those extra nutes out so you can start feeding proper ppm levels again. With soil, coco, and rockwool the general rule of thumb is you want your medium to dry out between feedings but not bone dry because that will kill roots. When you feel like they're about a half day away from being too dry is a good time to feed them. This is why beginners should really only try to do one strain at first, pro's too unless they have separate growing environments or tents. It's nice to have multiple strains and selection at harvest but strains can be so different that it can turn into a headache. Each is going to drink different volumes of nutrient solution and strains vary in the amount of ppms they can handle before you start getting nute burn. You also run into height differences. You don't want to raise your lights for one strain and have your others suffer because they are too far away. The last thing is flowering time. Your plants are going to want different kinds of nutrients at different stages in their lives depending on if it is an 8 week strain or an 11 week strain.
 
kingofqueen

kingofqueen

Well-Known Member
Hornstar said:
AH!!!! The lightbulb is on! Sorry for being a dumbass. I thought flushing was effectively overwatering where you drench the plant and there is a lot of runoff.

I misunderstood. Thanks for the clarificationa nd that makes life a hell of a lot easier.
Click to expand...
It is ! Flushing is watering your plants with 3x the volume of the container. Some flush at the end only some flush all the way through feed ,flush,feed . Organic growers have no need to flush. I,m looking at getting a flood tray to fit the floorspace of my cab.Then I,ll be able to drain off the overflow outside.

The purpose of flushing is to remove salt buildup from your medium . It also cleans the pies so to speak of the plant so it doesnt smoke harsh.
 
nomaninsf

nomaninsf

Well-Known Member
kingofqueen said:
It is ! Flushing is watering your plants with 3x the volume of the container. Some flush at the end only some flush all the way through feed ,flush,feed . Organic growers have no need to flush. I,m looking at getting a flood tray to fit the floorspace of my cab.Then I,ll be able to drain off the overflow outside.

The purpose of flushing is to remove salt buildup from your medium . It also cleans the pies so to speak of the plant so it doesnt smoke harsh.
Click to expand...
That is what I meant when I commented saying, "If you accidentally over fertilize you can use the extreme runoff to help get those extra nutes". Everything you said is correct. You can flush your container with lots of water to quickly rid your plant of excess nutes and salt buildup. When I used to use general hydroponics way back in the day I used to do two feedings and flush every third because of the high salt content in that brand of nutes. Now that I'm using canna nutes I don't have to flush at all except until the end where I cut out everything but cannazym and boost. My idea of flushing is that you want to flush the plant.

Extreme flushing of the medium isn't important unless you have overferted IMO. All the plant has been feeding on has been is nutrients and a lot of those fertilizers are stored up in the plant. In the time that you feed your plant only water, water and clearex, or cannazym and boost in my case, you just want to water until normal runoff. Your plant will use the remaining nutes that it has stored and eventually only be storing water. Just like we are around 60 percent water in weight, plant weight is mostly made up of water until the flowers are dry.

If you end up with 100 grams wet you'll probably end up around 30-35 grams dry. You want that extra 65-70 percent of water weight to actually be water and not nutrient solution which would give you a harsh smoke and possible some snap crackle pops when you smoke it. This is why just a massive runoff isn't enough for a quick flush but also isn't necessary for a proper flush. After a few feedings of just water or water and a salt leaching agent your plants will use up the last of the nutes in the soil and start filling up with just water.

Enzymes are always good to use in soil, coco, and soil-less mixes because they help create a balanced environment of beneficial organisms in your medium and breakdown and turn dead roots into organic nutrients for the plant. If you're going to reuse your medium on your next grow you should double up on the enzyme dosage during the last week of flush. Enzymes aren't systemic so they won't be taken in by the plant and they won't effect your flush. They are only used to keep your roots and medium a happy environment for your plant.
 
kingofqueen

kingofqueen

Well-Known Member
nomaninsf said:
That is what I meant when I commented saying, "If you accidentally over fertilize you can use the extreme runoff to help get those extra nutes". Everything you said is correct. You can flush your container with lots of water to quickly rid your plant of excess nutes and salt buildup. When I used to use general hydroponics way back in the day I used to do two feedings and flush every third because of the high salt content in that brand of nutes. Now that I'm using canna nutes I don't have to flush at all except until the end where I cut out everything but cannazym and boost. My idea of flushing is that you want to flush the plant.

Extreme flushing of the medium isn't important unless you have overferted IMO. All the plant has been feeding on has been is nutrients and a lot of those fertilizers are stored up in the plant. In the time that you feed your plant only water, water and clearex, or cannazym and boost in my case, you just want to water until normal runoff. Your plant will use the remaining nutes that it has stored and eventually only be storing water. Just like we are around 60 percent water in weight, plant weight is mostly made up of water until the flowers are dry.

If you end up with 100 grams wet you'll probably end up around 30-35 grams dry. You want that extra 65-70 percent of water weight to actually be water and not nutrient solution which would give you a harsh smoke and possible some snap crackle pops when you smoke it. This is why just a massive runoff isn't enough for a quick flush but also isn't necessary for a proper flush. After a few feedings of just water or water and a salt leaching agent your plants will use up the last of the nutes in the soil and start filling up with just water.

Enzymes are always good to use in soil, coco, and soil-less mixes because they help create a balanced environment of beneficial organisms in your medium and breakdown and turn dead roots into organic nutrients for the plant. If you're going to reuse your medium on your next grow you should double up on the enzyme dosage during the last week of flush. Enzymes aren't systemic so they won't be taken in by the plant and they won't effect your flush. They are only used to keep your roots and medium a happy environment for your plant.
Click to expand...
Good post what kind of enzymes do you use ? I,m switching to soiless next grow.
 
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