Killed my fem mix seedling. Damn it! Got so busy I forgot to check on it. It fried. I need to get my shit together. Now that the veggie garden is planted, I can pay attention to the other plants. Definitely, need to get some more autos started. What’s the story with the glass of water to tell if the seeds are good? If they fall they are good or if they float? Someone explain for this jackass please. I don’t want to waste my time if I have some funky seeds. I want to sprout these in seed starter soil this time outside. I need to take the greenhouse down until winter.
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if they sink right away they’re bunk, & have an air-hole
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LITFA overdose, it’s a powerful substance. 
I have not seen a correlation between sinking/floating and germination rates personally.
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what’d your soil test cost & what lab was it?
would you use them again? add more/different tests?
my budget won’t allow for both chemical & biological analysis but i’d love to have both done.
@MomOnTheRun have you ever used a microscope for looking at soil life? a la fancy-pants-living-soil people? 
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@cannabissequoia I used https://aglabs.com/services/soiltesting.html It was 50 for the standard with recommendations and I added the boron test for 10 extra bucks. Yeah, I’ll use them again next year too. It was much easier and cheaper to buy their amendments than buying all the stuff and mixing it myself as a lot of those microminerals are pricey since you usually only need a tiny bit and you can’t buy them anywhere else like that. You would be stuck with a lot of stuff you wouldn’t use later. To amend that entire huge pile of dirt plus my entire huge backyard was like 560 bucks I think. He also extra customized my mix to bring certain mineral levels to the higher side of normal as most of my garden is flowers, for maximum bloom potential.
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There’s an interesting post about this germination method:
Soaking seeds - why do you guys do it
I normally use this method with much success so far, if they float I just push them down the next day 
, the floating or not method was used in the past to discover witches, I don’t think it matters with seeds, scarifying them before and not picking them with your fingers helps too … 
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Yup! Though its hard to get pictures through the lens and I run out of patience pretty quickly without fixative for the slide so the microscope stays mostly packed up…perhaps this next winter
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Speaking of my soil test… Hey @MomOnTheRun did you ever get any of their transplant powder stuff? If so do you think if I added some in my cannabis pots before I plant that it would aid germination?
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Are they kinda like eggs and witches? if they sink they are fine, if they float they are fkd?
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Yes, you’re right! They thought witches had less than 5 kilograms weight (that’s why they could fly), so if they floated they were really coitus (like the egg).
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I wonder if any smart peasant asked if a boat was witchcraft & if swimming was sin? 
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Started 6 new auto seeds today. 2 Dark Devils, 2 Reikos Fem mixes and 2 Blue Dreams. I’ve had 50% germ rate with the DD’s and Fem Mix so far and 80% germ with the Blue Dreams. They are all directly outside in the sun. Crossing my fingers!
The other 3 budding girls got their weekly feed of Megacrop and Mammoth P today. I can’t see a difference from last week to be honest. Bad time of day to shoot pics. I’ll give it a try later after the shadows are gone.
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It just occurred to me that the autos have been out there for like 3 months. I went and checked trichomes and they are cloudy. One dd has a few white hairs on the bottom. I’ll give them a week or 2 more then pull them. My winter experiment was a waste of seeds. Even in Southern Cali it was just too damn cold for them. If I’m lucky I’ll get a joint per plant. lol
Well, now I know. sigh
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Yup! I haven’t seen any difference at the seed level though at transplant, it does help them settle in and grow at a nice rate without adding in mycos…it is a bit frustrating they only state “a broad spectrum of rock powders, broad array of rock digesting bacteria, fungal organisms to symbiotically assist plant roots and some special carbons to stimulate biology.” Guess they have to protect their formulation somehow.
I have been considering running a comparative with Extreme Mycos vs Humbolts Myco Madness vs the transplant powder…perhaps with the clones of the Lucky’s though I have a feeling that either mycos will be better for seed germination being able to attach the the tap root with the transplant powder feeding/attaching to secondary roots hmmmm only way to find out is try it out… I think I have room for a few more Lucky Charms F3’s though have to be careful as I am behind getting my annuals going for outside time to take inventory of my spaces 
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I forgot to add it to like half of my veggie patch transplants. Even when I had the stuff right next to me. lol Unfortunately, I can’t remember which ones I did or didn’t either so I can’t even compare. So far whatever was transplanted out there look just fine. So, I guess it is what it is. I’ve been all over the place lately, between the planting and my depression. My head just isn’t screwed on straight. Eventually, I’ll get it together. 
If I recall, the foliars are supposed to start a month after transplant? Or should I do one on Friday? Tmw is the 2nd Cal Mag soil drench.
Oh fuck, it says Brix Blaster a month after and simply Enthuse weekly (Eek! Haven’t done this) and I didn’t get this Way Ahead stuff or Dextrose they have on my soil paper. Any suggestions? I need a schedule. Can I do the Enthuse foliar Friday if I have a soil drench tomorrow?
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You have been busting your ass off… I would need a month break after doing 1/4 of what you have done especially in your environment. As far as I can see, you do have it together…ok so perhaps some spaciness though to me, that’s part of the work 
They say to wait until 4 wks from sprout to ensure maturity though I have used them as early as 2 wks diluting further giving half the recommended rate…your call
Its ok, still early in the season Brixblaster (raises sugar content) is used weekly as a drench or foliar, Enthuse (plant stress) is a foliar used when the plants are stressed or monthly…awesome stuff to work with on new soils
Dextrose basically replaces molasses since molasses is high in potassium to feed the microbes…Way ahead is a foliar spray for mineral deficiencies though its better to wait and apply just the mineral the soil is lacking - both of these are better to use after the soil is established
To simplify it like I do, you can…
Monday - Alternate calmag or inferno with z-hume drench…either monthly per recommendation or dilute further for weekly application
Tuesday - foliar…enthuse if.when needed otherwise Brix Blaster weekly
Thursday - plain water
Friday - IPM foliar (neem, essential oils etc)
OR
Monday - Alternate Calmag with Brixblaster drench or brix blsater 3x’s and calmag 1x a month
Tuesday - Enthuse foliar
Thursday - Plain water
Friday - IPM foliar
OR
Monday - plain water with a monthly calmag drench
Tuesday - Brixblaster foliar or enthuse as needed
Thursday - plain water
Friday - IPM foliar
Very flexible stuff with the only thing in common is foliars are given the day after whatever drench
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If you get really bored, don’t be afraid to soak some of those I sent you
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Probably why they want me to use this weekly as the new mj bed has zero life in it.
Guessing Lynn the nute guy figured he covered the lacking minerals with the broadcast?? He never mentioned this recommendation even though it was on the paper and I bought everything he presented to me. Hmm
Thanks for the schedule! That’s helpful. They have me doing the soil drenches twice a month too. 2 Cal Mag then next month 2 Infernos alternating. Is it better to switch up every 2 weeks instead? Or just go with it as is?
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@cannabissequoia Oh, don’t you worry buddy. I saved a special spot in the veggie patch for one of your seeds. 
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at the moment sure though the microbes will move in like the worms…more than expected with time its just getting the plants to respond until it happens with some being more temperamental than others
They are trying to move away from the foliars and drenches to rely more on the broadcasts though imho, the 1st run/season they are all needed for best performance…some more than others then the 2nd run/season then the microbes have moved in an abundant supply to break down the broadcasts so the drenches become less important. Usually by the 2nd run/season only minimal tweaks are needed as many mulch the leaves of whatever crop to return the nutrients that weren’t used though those that don’t or can’t can look forward to the minimal tweaks in the 3rd run/season…a lot depends on varietal growing and what attacked it vs availability per environment…only observing with occasional soil testing can pinpoint it down so you know for sure of what to expect and that takes time to hone in what your growing in your environment
No problem! its very versatile as no one can plan what Mother Nature gives…we can only guess on expected patterns so the frequency really depends upon you and how much time you want to be doing drenches and foliars so for each person its going to vary…at the minimum, they say monthly big farmers will do just that though for us that don’t have acres to tend to, we can reduce to bi monthly or even weekly depending upon individual whims and what it takes to remember…usually this is incorporated into a schedule that we force plants to meet. Basically big ag focusing on organics meets backyard grower…same principals apply just different scale and varietals involved.
They say a monthly dose ok cool monthly it is at the given rates for a quick crop though most perennials respond better with bi monthly doses and half the rates with some temperamental varietals (annuals) will respond best with weekly does so 1/4 of the recommended rates so really its up to you to figure out frequency depending on response and how much time you want to spend in the garden.
My breakdown is just evening out drench and foliars for an expected response of uptake though even this changes depending upon climate and what is being grown. After awhile you’ll see patterns of what needs what and it will be easier as it al comes together
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