Subscriptions - Maximum Yield Cannabis USA November/December 2020 | Page 36

LEDs can significantly reduce the heat output and
temperature swings of the grow-op and can be more economic
to run long term. Dialing in environmental controls can be a
lot simpler with this technology as most of the output is light
and significantly less heat than HID lights. However, the high
cost of LED systems to match, and in some cases exceed, the
performance of HID renders the best LED kits prohibitively
expensive to ordinary decent home growers. Commercially
they could certainly be a viable alternative for a cannabis
farm or if you are a committed home grower who will reap
benefits of this medium- to long-term investment.
My personal grow-op is a humble Hydro Shoot 100 grow
tent by Secret Jardin set up in a spare bedroom. The
powerplant is a simple conventional 400W digital ballast.
For odor control I have strategically deployed several ONA
blocks throughout the property. My window is cracked open
for fresh air and I have a small nine-inch oscillating desk
fan for air flow inside the tent.
Why HID Lights?
I decided to purchase a great big aluminium reflector,
400W dimmable Lumatek ballast and a 400W Sylvania
Grolux dual-spectrum HPS bulb because they were widely
available online in bundle deals at a reduced price. The
easi-roll hangers were included for free, too. Old-school
grow tech is cheap and with only
a lamp to replace every nine
months. Lumii Grow glasses for
eye protection, not as stylish
as the Method Seven eyewear,
function over form for my budget.
Running costs for a 400W HPS
lamp are comparable with a far
higher priced LED that would
have similar performance
and perhaps even close to
400W actual power draw.
“As you might have
guessed a thermo
hygrometer is an
essential piece
of kit to monitor
environmental
conditions, and the
good news is they
are modestly priced.”
Granted an MH bulb
for vegetative growth
followed by an HPS
bulb for bloom would
be better use of the
old-school tech, but
I’m growing autos and
the dual-spectrum HPS
bulb has 80 percent
red with 20 percent
blue spectrum, which
should be just fine. I’ll
be running a continuous
18/6 lights on/off
schedule from seed to
harvest. By gradually
increasing the intensity
of the lamp from
250W to 275W then to
400W or even to the
extra (super lumen)
440W setting is very
efficient and optimal
for my grow-op. I may
move back outdoors for
a summer grow so this
could be my only (8-10
week) indoor grow this
year. If you are planning
multiple grows
year-round, then LEDs
could be worthwhile as
electricity savings will
likely offset a chunk of
the purchase price.
Purple Punch autoflower day five transition
from propagation to larger pots.
Why Soil and Organic Nutrients?
Soil is natural and organic fertilizers are always preferable
to chemicals. They are a match made in herbal heaven.
When it comes to choosing a specific organic substrate,
the choices are endless from lightly fertilized peat blends
to exotic bat guano-enriched premium potting mixes. Few
homegrowers have the time and resources to develop super
soils themselves so the majority buy their dirt in a bag.
Coco coir is an inert substrate common to many soilless
mixes and is a great amendment for soils. Perlite is
perhaps the most popular amendment added to both soil
and soilless mixes to increase drainage. I’m personally
experimenting with a 50-50 blend of Plagron Light Mix
with Coco brix’s and perlite.
Soil and coco have a more forgiving 6.0-ish pH than hydro
substrates like clay pebbles and Rockwool. Moreover,
even if the water or nutrient solution pH is not quite
perfectly tuned, both soil and coco act as a buffer for the
root zone. In contrast, hydroponic grow-ops demand precision
with 5.5-6.5 pH nutrient solutions and frequent automated
watering with heavy use of synthetic fertilizers.
Getting back to nutrients, richer soils require less
nutrients and some hardly anything more than
regular watering of 6.0-7.0 pH water. Organic
fertilizers have closed the gap between
synthetic nutrients and most of the popular
brands carry organic base nutrients and a
selection of organic supplements. Pumping
plants full of chemicals in pursuit of the
biggest fattest colas to the detriment of all
other elements is not exactly de rigueur. I
prefer to keep it simple, feeding light and
often watering by hand.
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