irishboy
Well-Known Member
not too sure now because i have to wait for the roots to fill in these 1 gal pots before i can flower so i can transplant. maybe 2-3 more weeks?
Irish Boy's 2011 Spectra Led Grow (Revenge Of Casey Jcnes))
- Thread starter irishboy
- Start date
Pork4sprout
Member
Ah well at least i now know there are good things being said about it. i couldn't find a website or any info on the stuff really just thier ebay store. thanks
irishboy
Well-Known Member
from what ive seen its good organics and allot of people like it. i think its a little low on the nitrogen in flowering though, so maybe week 3-4 of flower give them some of the veg food. ive also heard good things about Earth Juice.. with true organics and micro life you dont need to PH anything they will do it for you. remember that. the best organics are making ur own teas.
if you ever need to be directed into organics send me a PM and ill hook you up with a ton of good info.
Grow on my brother!
irishboy
Well-Known Member
Masterclass: Positive Stress
, Can being “unkind” to your plants ever be a good thing?
Stop reading this. Please. Make sure you’ve completely dialed in your grow first. It’s far more important! Perfect your daytime and nighttime temps, keep a tight grip on your relative humidity, maintain optimum light levels, exact your feeding regimen, the works – all of it, get it right first.
The techniques described in this article are NOT for beginners and some of this stuff is nothing short of contentious. (Hmmm, a sure way to peak your interest though, eh?) We’re going to discuss methods of taking your plants to their outer limits and making them go a little bit crazy in the process. So, if you’re coming with us on this journey, buckle up, put on your questioning hat, and hold on to it tightly! Here we go …
Personally, I don’t care for stress, especially that special kind imposed by magazine publication deadlines. But I have to admit, one positive effect these deadlines have is to make me work harder!
So what about plants? We all know that unfavorable growing conditions (e.g. high temperatures and low relative humidity) can stress plants out big time. And if these conditions are severe enough you’re the quality and quantity of your yields will suffer. Invariably badly stressed plants will yield less than plants that have been pampered in every way.
Similar to most things in life, plants stress is not as black and white as you may think. In biology, stress can actually strengthen an organism. Immunity is obtained only from being subjected to an infection which involves suffering followed by growth, resistance and strength. In the human body a muscle cannot grow without being subjected to stress; a broken bone, when it sets properly, binds stronger than it was before and for that reason is very unlikely to break a second time at the same juncture. I’m sure many of you will have heard the phrase “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” or “Treat ‘em mean, keep ‘em keen”? Well to a certain degree there is some truth in these sayings.
So with all this in mind is it at all possible that some forms of mild plant stress can actually improve results? The idea that stress can actually be a positive thing may seem alien to some of you. Why would you purposely want to stress plants? Surely stress should be avoided at all costs, right? Well the answer is “yes” and “no.” Here we explore the realms of stress; types that should be avoided and others which may well help you push your plants from being lazy and complacent into restless and eager producers!
Defining Plant Stress
There are many factors that will cause plants to become stressed, most of which can be grouped into two general categories -
Physical / Mechanical Stress:
Manipulation – Bending or training stems, physically damaging the plant.
Pruning – Removing leaves, stems, flowers or fruits.
Denial – not allowing a certain physical growth factor; e.g. blocking light, preventing pollination
Environmental / Abiotic Stress:
Water – drought, over-watering.
Temperature and Humidity – Cold (chilling and freezing), heat, wet or dry.
Mineral deficiency or toxicity – incorrect fertilization or salinity.
Pests and disease.
Danger Stresses
Temperature
High heat in your indoor garden can create a myriad of problems, the most common of which are tall leggy plants with large intermodal spacing, small fruits and loose flowers, high water usage, lower nutrient tolerance, and if temperatures remain high for long periods the stomata will close, plant growth will slow right down and may even cause severe wilting. Low temperatures are less problematic for indoor growers but can occur and cause slow growth and poor nutrient uptake.
Humidity
Low humidity during hot weather is a common problem that should be monitored and avoided as it will cause elevated transpiration and high water usage, increased susceptibility to over fertilization, leaf roll, stomata closure, and stunting. Periods of very low humidity can also cause wilting. On the flip side, high humidity will invite fungal infection to take hold and will slow the uptake and transport of water and nutrients.
Watering/Irrigation
Consistently irrigating the root zone beyond the plant’s usage capability causes a depletion in oxygen. These anaerobic conditions create a poor environment for root growth, cause poor water and nutrient uptake and favors the development of root diseases. A persistent lack of moisture around the rhizosphere can cause wilting, weakened leaf tissue, permanent root damage and nutrient precipitation in the growing media.
Light intensity
Having the grow lights too close will cause localized high heat and low humidity, this will lead to elevated transpiration and may result in permanent leaf tissue damage. Not having enough light tends to create poor plant growth as low water and nutrient uptake occurs. It most commonly causes elongated stems and large intermodal spacing.
pH
All good growers understand the importance of their nutrient solution’s pH and keep it within the range of 5.5-6.5, thus allowing nutrients to be available for uptake. If the pH swings out of this range for prolonged periods then nutrients that your plants need will be unavailable or ‘locked out’ which will eventually lead to mineral deficiencies
Nutrient Strength
High nutrient levels can cause permanent damage to your plants. Symptoms include tough leathery foliage, very dark green growth, leaf curl, poor water uptake and leaf tissue necrosis (death). Low nutrient strength is not so damaging but can also create unwanted characteristics such as soft weak stems and leaf tissue, mineral deficiencies, leggy growth and poor fruit and flower development.
Pests and Disease
Aside from pests physically eating the leaves and causing direct tissue damage, they can also spread disease from plant to plant or make a plant more susceptible to diseases and infections. Plants can usually recover from pest attack if the problem is dealt with quickly but diseases are a little more tricky. Above ground, fungal diseases like powdery mildew or botrytis can be controlled once they have infected the plant but root pathogens, viruses and other forms of invasive diseases are difficult, if not impossible to shift once they have taken hold.
Heard all this before? Okay, well now it’s time to introduce some more concepts that may not be so familiar…
How Can We Use Stress To Our Advantage?
It’s good practice to do all you can for your plants during propagation and their early growth stages because keeping plants healthy during this time is crucial when creating healthy vigorous plants. As plants mature and start producing fruits or flowers, small amounts of stress applied in the right way can actually help to improve the plant’s favorable characteristic. This may be an enhanced flavor, early ripening, elevated resistance to disease or enhanced chemical/medicinal characteristics.
Positive stress techniques are often used in commercial horticulture as a tool for influencing or ‘steering’ plants into a growth habit which the grower desires. Steering plants with mild stresses can influence the plant into shifting its efforts from vegetative growth into fruit or flower production.
Vegetative Steering
Sometimes you want your plants to grow, sometimes you want them to bloom. Most growers are familiar with using their light cycles to steer photoperiod sensitive plants. But this is just the tip of the iceberg. For most cultivated fast growing plants, “mild conditions” play a large role in steering the plant towards a vegetative growth habit. Here are some examples:
Lower nutrient strengths
The idea here is that by using a low nutrient strength you makes it easy for plant to take up water and nutrients through the roots. Obviously, you need to supply enough nutrients so as not to cause any deficiencies or unwanted growth characteristics (stretching/ long internodal distance), so supplying your plants with just above the minimum to reach these requirements will make it ‘easy’ for the plant, less stressful and therefore help keep the plant vegetative.
Wetter Root Zones
By regularly replenishing the growing media or root zone with water and nutrients without allowing dry periods to occur, the grower allows the plant easy access to water and nutrients, helping to steer the plant in a vegetative direction. It’s not good practice to purposefully over water the root zone in an attempt to steer vegetatively – all this will do it drive out vital oxygen and impede root function. The aim is to understand your plants’ (and growing media’s) water requirements and irrigate just before the growing media starts to dry. To implement this technique, drip irrigation systems offer most control. The irrigation strategy employed should be short irrigations with a high frequency. These irrigations should supply a little more than the amount the plants are using, with only a small amount of runoff occurring. By allowing water and nutrients to be constantly available to the plant it minimizes stress and promotes a vegetative growth habit.
Warmer Root Zones
Heating the nutrient solution will make it easy for the roots to function and take up water and nutrients easily. Aiming for 70°F (21°C) will help to make it easy for the plant and steer towards vegetative growth.
Low “Dif” – Small Difference in Day and Night Temperatures
The difference between the maximum daytime temperature and minimum nighttime temperature is often referred to as the ‘dif’, and contributes significantly towards your plants’ state of growth. By keeping the dif as small as possible the grower stimulates vegetative growth and keeps the plants short and compact. This is a really crucial technique for all indoor growers to get their heads around as shorter plants tend to yield far more under grow lights. Ideally, to keep plants vegetative and squat you should aim for a dif of no greater than 7°F (4°C). Time to buy that block heater!
Mild Environmental Conditions
To steer plants vegetatively, it’s important that the environment is as stress free as possible; therefore efficient temperature and humidity control are vital. Stress free growing conditions will be created if plants are able to transpire comfortably and create assimilates (sugars) via photosynthesis effectively. This will be achieved if the air temperature and humidity is within the plant’s comfort zone, generally 60-70% relative humidity (RH) with the air temperature between 68-77°F (20-25°C) – these conditions should make it comfortable for the plant to function vegetatively .
Stop reading this. Please. Make sure you’ve completely dialed in your grow first. It’s far more important! Perfect your daytime and nighttime temps, keep a tight grip on your relative humidity, maintain optimum light levels, exact your feeding regimen, the works – all of it, get it right first.
The techniques described in this article are NOT for beginners and some of this stuff is nothing short of contentious. (Hmmm, a sure way to peak your interest though, eh?) We’re going to discuss methods of taking your plants to their outer limits and making them go a little bit crazy in the process. So, if you’re coming with us on this journey, buckle up, put on your questioning hat, and hold on to it tightly! Here we go …
Personally, I don’t care for stress, especially that special kind imposed by magazine publication deadlines. But I have to admit, one positive effect these deadlines have is to make me work harder!
So what about plants? We all know that unfavorable growing conditions (e.g. high temperatures and low relative humidity) can stress plants out big time. And if these conditions are severe enough you’re the quality and quantity of your yields will suffer. Invariably badly stressed plants will yield less than plants that have been pampered in every way.
Similar to most things in life, plants stress is not as black and white as you may think. In biology, stress can actually strengthen an organism. Immunity is obtained only from being subjected to an infection which involves suffering followed by growth, resistance and strength. In the human body a muscle cannot grow without being subjected to stress; a broken bone, when it sets properly, binds stronger than it was before and for that reason is very unlikely to break a second time at the same juncture. I’m sure many of you will have heard the phrase “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” or “Treat ‘em mean, keep ‘em keen”? Well to a certain degree there is some truth in these sayings.
So with all this in mind is it at all possible that some forms of mild plant stress can actually improve results? The idea that stress can actually be a positive thing may seem alien to some of you. Why would you purposely want to stress plants? Surely stress should be avoided at all costs, right? Well the answer is “yes” and “no.” Here we explore the realms of stress; types that should be avoided and others which may well help you push your plants from being lazy and complacent into restless and eager producers!
Defining Plant Stress
There are many factors that will cause plants to become stressed, most of which can be grouped into two general categories -
Physical / Mechanical Stress:
Manipulation – Bending or training stems, physically damaging the plant.
Pruning – Removing leaves, stems, flowers or fruits.
Denial – not allowing a certain physical growth factor; e.g. blocking light, preventing pollination
Environmental / Abiotic Stress:
Water – drought, over-watering.
Temperature and Humidity – Cold (chilling and freezing), heat, wet or dry.
Mineral deficiency or toxicity – incorrect fertilization or salinity.
Pests and disease.
Danger Stresses
Temperature
High heat in your indoor garden can create a myriad of problems, the most common of which are tall leggy plants with large intermodal spacing, small fruits and loose flowers, high water usage, lower nutrient tolerance, and if temperatures remain high for long periods the stomata will close, plant growth will slow right down and may even cause severe wilting. Low temperatures are less problematic for indoor growers but can occur and cause slow growth and poor nutrient uptake.
Humidity
Low humidity during hot weather is a common problem that should be monitored and avoided as it will cause elevated transpiration and high water usage, increased susceptibility to over fertilization, leaf roll, stomata closure, and stunting. Periods of very low humidity can also cause wilting. On the flip side, high humidity will invite fungal infection to take hold and will slow the uptake and transport of water and nutrients.
Watering/Irrigation
Consistently irrigating the root zone beyond the plant’s usage capability causes a depletion in oxygen. These anaerobic conditions create a poor environment for root growth, cause poor water and nutrient uptake and favors the development of root diseases. A persistent lack of moisture around the rhizosphere can cause wilting, weakened leaf tissue, permanent root damage and nutrient precipitation in the growing media.
Light intensity
Having the grow lights too close will cause localized high heat and low humidity, this will lead to elevated transpiration and may result in permanent leaf tissue damage. Not having enough light tends to create poor plant growth as low water and nutrient uptake occurs. It most commonly causes elongated stems and large intermodal spacing.
pH
All good growers understand the importance of their nutrient solution’s pH and keep it within the range of 5.5-6.5, thus allowing nutrients to be available for uptake. If the pH swings out of this range for prolonged periods then nutrients that your plants need will be unavailable or ‘locked out’ which will eventually lead to mineral deficiencies
Nutrient Strength
High nutrient levels can cause permanent damage to your plants. Symptoms include tough leathery foliage, very dark green growth, leaf curl, poor water uptake and leaf tissue necrosis (death). Low nutrient strength is not so damaging but can also create unwanted characteristics such as soft weak stems and leaf tissue, mineral deficiencies, leggy growth and poor fruit and flower development.
Pests and Disease
Aside from pests physically eating the leaves and causing direct tissue damage, they can also spread disease from plant to plant or make a plant more susceptible to diseases and infections. Plants can usually recover from pest attack if the problem is dealt with quickly but diseases are a little more tricky. Above ground, fungal diseases like powdery mildew or botrytis can be controlled once they have infected the plant but root pathogens, viruses and other forms of invasive diseases are difficult, if not impossible to shift once they have taken hold.
Heard all this before? Okay, well now it’s time to introduce some more concepts that may not be so familiar…
How Can We Use Stress To Our Advantage?
It’s good practice to do all you can for your plants during propagation and their early growth stages because keeping plants healthy during this time is crucial when creating healthy vigorous plants. As plants mature and start producing fruits or flowers, small amounts of stress applied in the right way can actually help to improve the plant’s favorable characteristic. This may be an enhanced flavor, early ripening, elevated resistance to disease or enhanced chemical/medicinal characteristics.
Positive stress techniques are often used in commercial horticulture as a tool for influencing or ‘steering’ plants into a growth habit which the grower desires. Steering plants with mild stresses can influence the plant into shifting its efforts from vegetative growth into fruit or flower production.
Vegetative Steering
Sometimes you want your plants to grow, sometimes you want them to bloom. Most growers are familiar with using their light cycles to steer photoperiod sensitive plants. But this is just the tip of the iceberg. For most cultivated fast growing plants, “mild conditions” play a large role in steering the plant towards a vegetative growth habit. Here are some examples:
Lower nutrient strengths
The idea here is that by using a low nutrient strength you makes it easy for plant to take up water and nutrients through the roots. Obviously, you need to supply enough nutrients so as not to cause any deficiencies or unwanted growth characteristics (stretching/ long internodal distance), so supplying your plants with just above the minimum to reach these requirements will make it ‘easy’ for the plant, less stressful and therefore help keep the plant vegetative.
Wetter Root Zones
By regularly replenishing the growing media or root zone with water and nutrients without allowing dry periods to occur, the grower allows the plant easy access to water and nutrients, helping to steer the plant in a vegetative direction. It’s not good practice to purposefully over water the root zone in an attempt to steer vegetatively – all this will do it drive out vital oxygen and impede root function. The aim is to understand your plants’ (and growing media’s) water requirements and irrigate just before the growing media starts to dry. To implement this technique, drip irrigation systems offer most control. The irrigation strategy employed should be short irrigations with a high frequency. These irrigations should supply a little more than the amount the plants are using, with only a small amount of runoff occurring. By allowing water and nutrients to be constantly available to the plant it minimizes stress and promotes a vegetative growth habit.
Warmer Root Zones
Heating the nutrient solution will make it easy for the roots to function and take up water and nutrients easily. Aiming for 70°F (21°C) will help to make it easy for the plant and steer towards vegetative growth.
Low “Dif” – Small Difference in Day and Night Temperatures
The difference between the maximum daytime temperature and minimum nighttime temperature is often referred to as the ‘dif’, and contributes significantly towards your plants’ state of growth. By keeping the dif as small as possible the grower stimulates vegetative growth and keeps the plants short and compact. This is a really crucial technique for all indoor growers to get their heads around as shorter plants tend to yield far more under grow lights. Ideally, to keep plants vegetative and squat you should aim for a dif of no greater than 7°F (4°C). Time to buy that block heater!
Mild Environmental Conditions
To steer plants vegetatively, it’s important that the environment is as stress free as possible; therefore efficient temperature and humidity control are vital. Stress free growing conditions will be created if plants are able to transpire comfortably and create assimilates (sugars) via photosynthesis effectively. This will be achieved if the air temperature and humidity is within the plant’s comfort zone, generally 60-70% relative humidity (RH) with the air temperature between 68-77°F (20-25°C) – these conditions should make it comfortable for the plant to function vegetatively .
irishboy
Well-Known Member
Generative Steering
Encouraging plants to flower quickly is a key skill for every indoor grower to acquire. The last thing any of us want are tall, stretching, leggy plants that force us to raise up our grow lights. To get the most out of grow lights indoor gardeners aim for shorter, compact plants with wide canopies – the best way to harness as much of that precious incident light energy from grow lights as possible. To influence the plant’s speedy shift from a vegetative growth into flower or fruit production (generative growth), most indoor growers cultivating photosensitive plants will alter the light cycle and change out the nutrient solution from a ‘grow’ formula to ‘bloom’, and maybe use a few blooming additives through the cycle. This may meet the plant’s basic requirements to start producing fruit or flowers, but selectively using mild stresses can not only trigger your plants into generative growth more quickly and efficiently, but it can also help focus your plants, throughout the flowering stage, to drive their efforts into producing copious amounts of flowers and fruits. These generative steering tools include:
Higher Nutrient Strengths
By raising the strength of the nutrient solution you are effectively increasing the concentration of mineral salts around the roots. This situation makes it more difficult for the plant to uptake water. When carefully managed, raising the nutrient strength to just below your plant’s upper tolerance will create a mild stress around the roots and steer the plant towards generative growth. Before undertaking this measure it is important you know your plant’s nutrient tolerance, some species and even different varieties within species will be able to tolerate more nutrient than others. Most importantly, you must have good environmental control to implement this stress technique. If you have problems with low relative humidity (below 50%) or do not have good temperature control, I strongly advise against using high nutrient strength as a steering tool as you will most likely cause problems with over feeding. Only with optimum environmental control can you accomplish generative steering with elevated nutrient strength.
Drier Root Zones
Allowing the growing media to dry slightly between irrigations also causes mild stress. The aim is not to completely restrict the availability of water and certainly not to allow the plant to wilt. The goal is to allow the growing media to dry to a point where the roots are ‘worried’ that water is running out, but not so much as to allow complete dehydration of the root surface. Implementation of this is fairly simple, during veg you water little and often to stimulate vegetative growth so during flower you water larger volumes less frequently. You don’t have to alter the total volume of water given during a day, just the timing of the irrigations. Once aging this technique is most controllable with drip irrigation systems.
Irrigation Start and Stop Times
As well as the frequency of the irrigations, the start and stop time can also be used as a steering tool. During the night your plants still use small amounts of water, this creates a drying back of the growing media during the night cycle. The more the growing media dries overnight, the more of a generative action it has. If the growing media is not drying much during the night it may be because you are irrigating too close to the lights turning off, which is more suited to vegetative growth. Your chosen time to stop and start irrigations will be determined by the growing environment but generally, starting one hour after the lights come on and one hour before they go out will be a good base to start from. If you hand water your plants in veg, say 35 fluid ounces (just over a liter) each day and you get a small amount of runoff, you could change to watering 70 fluid ounces every two days to make your plants more generative.
Word of warning; if the growing media dries too much and does not receive enough nutrient solution to re-saturate it, the nutrient strength in the growing media will start to rise. This will add to steer the plant generatively, but may lead to over fertilization. Always ensure that during the peak irrigations you supply enough solution to re-saturate the growing media and achieve 10-20% runoff.
Colder Root Zones
If you have some degree of control over the temperature of the nutrient solution you can stimulate generative growth by slightly cooling the solution. A drop from 70°F (21°C) down to 65°F (18°C) will make it slightly more difficult for the roots to function, but they will still be more than able to take up water and nutrients effectively. This mild root zone stress will not harm growth, it will just nag at the plant and push it in a generative direction.
Larger Difference in Day and Night Temperatures
Increasing the dif is known to have a positive generative action for most cultivated plants. However, it is not always good for plants that grow large fruits or flowers for the temperature to drop much below 65°F (18°C) as the transportation of assimilates made during the day can be affected by cold nights. If you have moderate day temperatures (75°F/24°C) and cannot achieve your desired dif, you may find it beneficial to raise the day temperatures to enough to keep the plants growing healthily (80°F/26.5°C) in order to enable you to increase the daily dif. To steer plants generatively try to aim for a dif of around 15°F (8°C).
Rapid late evening temperature drops have been used by greenhouse tomato growers for many years as a way of forcing assimilates towards the fruits. A quick fall in air temperature causes the plant to also cool down, but the leaves cool much faster than the fruit. This difference in internal temperature causes a draw of photosynthetic assimilates from the large leaves, which have been working hard to make sugars throughout the day, to be translocated to the fruits to advance growth. These quick pre-night temperature drops are not so difficult to achieve in an indoor garden because when the grow lights switch off, temperature often drops quickly. As long as the temperature falls enough to quickly cool the leaves, and is them maintained at a reduced level, the fruits or flowers can often stay warmer than the leaves for more than an hour. This maybe a mild stress technique you are already employing without realizing it!
Slightly Harsh Environmental Conditions (warmer temperature, lower RH)
One of the most severe stresses you can inflict on a plant is environmental stress. High temperatures coupled with low RH will make it near impossible for most cultivated plants to grow successfully. However, if you have optimum environmental control systems in place, a slight increase in day time temperature combined with a slight decrease in RH can have a significant impact. If, for example, during vegetative growth you are maintaining the day time temperature at 75°F (24°C) with 70% RH, a slight increase for a few hours each day to 80°F (26.5°C) while maintaining the same RH will increase plant metabolism and transpiration rates for short periods creating small periods of mild stress. During these periods the plant is still fairly comfortable and able to function properly but these slightly harsher conditions steers the plant more in the direction of generative growth.
Elevated CO2 levels
Higher CO2 levels in the growing environment increases photosynthetic rate. This in turn creates and provides more assimilates to the developing fruits and flowers. This means better fruit and flower initiation and overall more fruit or flowers on the plant which guides the plant in a generative direction. Dosing CO2 early in the light cycle will have a more generative action as this is when peak growth occurs.
Crop steering techniques are great tools to have in your arsenal when trying to get the most from your plants. When growing vine (indeterminate) tomato varieties or sweet and chili peppers you want to harvest fruits for as much time as possible, generative or vegetative steering techniques can be used to balance the plants into a state of constant production e.g. not too vegetative and not too generative.
When growing short cycle plants like bush (determinate) tomato plants or flowering annuals, the goal is to push the plant from a vegetative direction and force it into a generative state and keep it as generative as possible. This will result in one big flush or fruits or flowers to be harvested in one go. Generative steering techniques are extremely valuable when used in the later stages of a short cycle plants life to help it drive all its efforts into generative production.
Encouraging plants to flower quickly is a key skill for every indoor grower to acquire. The last thing any of us want are tall, stretching, leggy plants that force us to raise up our grow lights. To get the most out of grow lights indoor gardeners aim for shorter, compact plants with wide canopies – the best way to harness as much of that precious incident light energy from grow lights as possible. To influence the plant’s speedy shift from a vegetative growth into flower or fruit production (generative growth), most indoor growers cultivating photosensitive plants will alter the light cycle and change out the nutrient solution from a ‘grow’ formula to ‘bloom’, and maybe use a few blooming additives through the cycle. This may meet the plant’s basic requirements to start producing fruit or flowers, but selectively using mild stresses can not only trigger your plants into generative growth more quickly and efficiently, but it can also help focus your plants, throughout the flowering stage, to drive their efforts into producing copious amounts of flowers and fruits. These generative steering tools include:
Higher Nutrient Strengths
By raising the strength of the nutrient solution you are effectively increasing the concentration of mineral salts around the roots. This situation makes it more difficult for the plant to uptake water. When carefully managed, raising the nutrient strength to just below your plant’s upper tolerance will create a mild stress around the roots and steer the plant towards generative growth. Before undertaking this measure it is important you know your plant’s nutrient tolerance, some species and even different varieties within species will be able to tolerate more nutrient than others. Most importantly, you must have good environmental control to implement this stress technique. If you have problems with low relative humidity (below 50%) or do not have good temperature control, I strongly advise against using high nutrient strength as a steering tool as you will most likely cause problems with over feeding. Only with optimum environmental control can you accomplish generative steering with elevated nutrient strength.
Drier Root Zones
Allowing the growing media to dry slightly between irrigations also causes mild stress. The aim is not to completely restrict the availability of water and certainly not to allow the plant to wilt. The goal is to allow the growing media to dry to a point where the roots are ‘worried’ that water is running out, but not so much as to allow complete dehydration of the root surface. Implementation of this is fairly simple, during veg you water little and often to stimulate vegetative growth so during flower you water larger volumes less frequently. You don’t have to alter the total volume of water given during a day, just the timing of the irrigations. Once aging this technique is most controllable with drip irrigation systems.
Irrigation Start and Stop Times
As well as the frequency of the irrigations, the start and stop time can also be used as a steering tool. During the night your plants still use small amounts of water, this creates a drying back of the growing media during the night cycle. The more the growing media dries overnight, the more of a generative action it has. If the growing media is not drying much during the night it may be because you are irrigating too close to the lights turning off, which is more suited to vegetative growth. Your chosen time to stop and start irrigations will be determined by the growing environment but generally, starting one hour after the lights come on and one hour before they go out will be a good base to start from. If you hand water your plants in veg, say 35 fluid ounces (just over a liter) each day and you get a small amount of runoff, you could change to watering 70 fluid ounces every two days to make your plants more generative.
Word of warning; if the growing media dries too much and does not receive enough nutrient solution to re-saturate it, the nutrient strength in the growing media will start to rise. This will add to steer the plant generatively, but may lead to over fertilization. Always ensure that during the peak irrigations you supply enough solution to re-saturate the growing media and achieve 10-20% runoff.
Colder Root Zones
If you have some degree of control over the temperature of the nutrient solution you can stimulate generative growth by slightly cooling the solution. A drop from 70°F (21°C) down to 65°F (18°C) will make it slightly more difficult for the roots to function, but they will still be more than able to take up water and nutrients effectively. This mild root zone stress will not harm growth, it will just nag at the plant and push it in a generative direction.
Larger Difference in Day and Night Temperatures
Increasing the dif is known to have a positive generative action for most cultivated plants. However, it is not always good for plants that grow large fruits or flowers for the temperature to drop much below 65°F (18°C) as the transportation of assimilates made during the day can be affected by cold nights. If you have moderate day temperatures (75°F/24°C) and cannot achieve your desired dif, you may find it beneficial to raise the day temperatures to enough to keep the plants growing healthily (80°F/26.5°C) in order to enable you to increase the daily dif. To steer plants generatively try to aim for a dif of around 15°F (8°C).
Rapid late evening temperature drops have been used by greenhouse tomato growers for many years as a way of forcing assimilates towards the fruits. A quick fall in air temperature causes the plant to also cool down, but the leaves cool much faster than the fruit. This difference in internal temperature causes a draw of photosynthetic assimilates from the large leaves, which have been working hard to make sugars throughout the day, to be translocated to the fruits to advance growth. These quick pre-night temperature drops are not so difficult to achieve in an indoor garden because when the grow lights switch off, temperature often drops quickly. As long as the temperature falls enough to quickly cool the leaves, and is them maintained at a reduced level, the fruits or flowers can often stay warmer than the leaves for more than an hour. This maybe a mild stress technique you are already employing without realizing it!
Slightly Harsh Environmental Conditions (warmer temperature, lower RH)
One of the most severe stresses you can inflict on a plant is environmental stress. High temperatures coupled with low RH will make it near impossible for most cultivated plants to grow successfully. However, if you have optimum environmental control systems in place, a slight increase in day time temperature combined with a slight decrease in RH can have a significant impact. If, for example, during vegetative growth you are maintaining the day time temperature at 75°F (24°C) with 70% RH, a slight increase for a few hours each day to 80°F (26.5°C) while maintaining the same RH will increase plant metabolism and transpiration rates for short periods creating small periods of mild stress. During these periods the plant is still fairly comfortable and able to function properly but these slightly harsher conditions steers the plant more in the direction of generative growth.
Elevated CO2 levels
Higher CO2 levels in the growing environment increases photosynthetic rate. This in turn creates and provides more assimilates to the developing fruits and flowers. This means better fruit and flower initiation and overall more fruit or flowers on the plant which guides the plant in a generative direction. Dosing CO2 early in the light cycle will have a more generative action as this is when peak growth occurs.
Crop steering techniques are great tools to have in your arsenal when trying to get the most from your plants. When growing vine (indeterminate) tomato varieties or sweet and chili peppers you want to harvest fruits for as much time as possible, generative or vegetative steering techniques can be used to balance the plants into a state of constant production e.g. not too vegetative and not too generative.
When growing short cycle plants like bush (determinate) tomato plants or flowering annuals, the goal is to push the plant from a vegetative direction and force it into a generative state and keep it as generative as possible. This will result in one big flush or fruits or flowers to be harvested in one go. Generative steering techniques are extremely valuable when used in the later stages of a short cycle plants life to help it drive all its efforts into generative production.
irishboy
Well-Known Member
Other positive stresses
So, mild stress can be used keep plants growing in your desired direction, but what other stress techniques are out there that may be able to help us achieve better results?
There are many myths that circulate in grower circles about techniques to enhance quality and quantity. One that I would like to quash before we go any further is the stress technique of inserting a nail through the base of the stem. Many times I have heard This old grower I know says hammering a nail through the stem just before the end of the plant cycle makes the final fruits smell and taste better. Total BS! Hammering anything into your plant is a sure fire way to majorly stress it out, potentially reduce yield considerably and result in very little change to your end produce. May this myth die a horrible death, much like the hammered plants will.
Topping
Topping is a technique that most growers are familiar with to transform a tall skinny plant into a short, wide bush. Removing the growing tip reduces apical dominance which is where the central stem is dominant over other side branches. By removing the growing tip early the plants life, many side shoots grow which helps indoor growers create a more even canopy when growing under lights. Removing the growing tip causes some considerable stress to the plant but creates much more productive and controllable plants in the long run.
Thinning
Thinning or complete clearing of bottom growth is a technique often utilized when growing indoors to concentrate the plants efforts into producing good quality fruits and flowers that are bathed in light. Stems, leaves and flowering sites that are in complete shade will end up producing very little, so removing them may cause some initial stress in the short term but the plants will benefit from more concentrated growth in the long term. Many growers say that the thinning process, when done in the early stages of the flowering cycle helps to speed up the onset of flower. It may be that the removal of plant material stresses the plant in a generative direction. Fruit thinning is often carried out when growing cucumbers, peppers and even apples. Removal of some of the smaller fruits helps divert energy toward the larger fruits and results in better quality large fruits rather than lots of small ones.
Diverting Energy
When growing sub terrain crops like garlic and potatoes, growers want the plants to put all their efforts into producing those underground delights. To help them do this growers stress the plants by removing the flowering stems when they appear in midsummer. This stops the plants investing energy in fertilizing their flowers and producing seed, and focuses their attention into producing large tubers or bulbs. The picture below show the effect of removing the flowering stalk, aka scape, from the garlic plants compared to leaving them on. Significant increases in yield can be made using this technique.
Air Pruning
Air pruning roots is another great example of positive stress. It works by allowing the root tip to come into contact with air. During this process the root tip die dies back through dehydration. Although this process is fairly stressful to the root system, it actually enhances it. Once the tip dies it promotes secondary root branching along the length of the root. Once these secondary root tips come into contact with air, they too become air pruned which stimulates more root growth. Much like pinching out the top of the plant to create a bushier plant, allowing the root tip to dry creates a more branched root system within the growing media. Air pruning can be done successfully with rockwool blocks by placing them on a wire rack allowing air to pass underneath them, or with specialized air pruning pots such as Smart Pots or Air-Pots.
Humidity
Plants that are grown for their aromatic qualities can sometimes benefit from brief periods of humidity stress during their final stages of development. As the leaves and flowers reach maturity, a sustained drop in RH can cause the plant to production more essential oils. Apparently this is a defense mechanism to further protect their leaves and flowers from the dry air.
Anecdotal grower reports on positive stress
The following are just reports from individual growers so please take with a pinch of salt!
Give Me Thrips!
One grower we spoke to is now getting consistently better results now that he controls a small population of thrips in his indoor garden! This grower had a dialed in semi-closed garden and was used to getting the same yield time and time again. After a short two week holiday he came back to discover thrips had invaded and many leaves were damaged. He was not surprised when it came to harvest time to find the crop yield was significantly down. However, on the next grow he introduced the predatory insect amblysieus cucumeris in controlled release sachets. He found that by introducing these sachets every four weeks it kept the thrips numbers down to a minimum without having to regularly spray. To his surprise he found the next crop yield was up on his pre invasion average. The next crop he continued with the controlled release sachets to keep the thrips under control and again found his yield to be better than before. Is it possible that the very small amount of thrips feeding from his plants were mildly stressing the plant in such a way that it improved results? Difficult to believe but this grower was convinced.
Problem Plant
A grower had four different 4ft grow tents in one room. Each tent has one big plant in and is harvested every two weeks. That was the theory anyway all was going well until one problem plant just wouldnt grow. It was fine two weeks into vegetative growth and then just stopped and the leaves started to curl! At first he thought it was over fertilization, so he ran the nutrient strength much lower, one week passed and still nothing. He then thought it must be over watering so he left it to dry more between irrigations, another ten days passed and still nothing. He noticed some of the roots had started to look slight brown so he disinfected the nutrient solution with an ozone sterilizer. Still the plant looked alive, with green curled leaves but another week passed and it was still not growing! All his friends told him to stop wasting his time and rip it out and start again but he wanted to fix it. Another two weeks passed with various attempts to fix the problem being unsuccessful until he decided to give the plant a full strength dose of nutrient solution with a ppm of 1200 (2.4mS). Boom! The plant sprung back into life the next day and grew like crazy! This poor stressed plant had been in veg for nearly 8 weeks, when it usually took 2. The long and the short of it is that although this plant did nothing for 6 weeks other than look half dead, it turned around to yield the most he ever got of one plant. Could this be down to its poor stressed out vegetative cycle? Maybe
Cutting Stress
Another grower took cutting in pots of coir. Rooting times were 12-14 days at this point he could see roots appearing at the bottom of his pots. On one occasion, four days after taking the cuttings, he was inspecting them when his phone started to ring. He picked it up and got distracted. Ten minutes into the call he remembered that hed left the propagator lid off. He rushed back to his cuttings and found that many of the larger leaves had started to wilt. He quickly sprayed the lid and put it back on to quickly raise the humidity. The cuttings came back round but he was sure the stress would make the cuttings weak so he took some more as a backup. On the eighth day he checked his stressed cutting and was surprised to find that a few had roots at the bottom already! On the tenth day they all had roots at the bottom. On the next batch he did them as normal and was back to the 12-14 day turnaround, so on the batch after he purposefully took the propagator lid off on the fourth day and waited until most had slightly wilted. Once again the cuttings had visible roots between days eight and ten, as few days earlier than before. He now swears by this technique
Spicy Stress
This grower loves his mouth to burn, and a few years back grew chilies using an Autopot system where a valve tops up a small reservoir of nutrient solution in the bottom of the pot. It was mid July and the plants were in full swing and producing loads of fruits. One particular variety was quite mild and great in salads. One day the grower shuts off the supply valve in order to fill the reservoir with fresh water and nutrients, after filling he forgot to open the valve! An easy mistake to make but he didnt notice for the whole weekend. Come Monday morning and all the plant were badly wilted but not unrecoverable. He opened the valve and let the plant recover. In the mean time he picked all the ripe chillies and they tasted the same as usual. He though the small developing chilled might abort but they all seem to continue growing. A few weeks later when he picked the ripe chillies the mild ones had developed a much more fierce heat level. It was the chilies that were developing during the drought stress, could it be that the short period of drought increased the spice level of the chilies?? The next set of fruits that came through were back to usual spice level so this grower is convinced that drought can influence spicier fruits.
Cold Roots
During winter, this grower liked to cold shock his roots! He grew in three gallon pots using an organic potting soil with organic liquid nutrients. During the last three weeks of the flowering cycle he hand watered the plants with water at 55°F (13°C) once a week. He says that these cold irrigations shock the roots and the plant slightly, he does not result in any increase or decrease in yield but it does lead to a definite increase in essential oil production. The mild stress seems to work as a quality and flavor enhancer.
Wilt Shock
One grower finds that by introducing a few periods of drought stress in the last six weeks of his flowering cycle he improves plant vigor and produce quality. His technique is to let his coco coir dry out just to the point where he can see the first signs of the fan leaves wilting. He does this once during week 3, 5 and 7 and finds that the plants come back fighting after each short drought.
A Final Repetitious Word of Warning
Theres plenty of food for thought in this article. And perhaps thats the best thing to do. THINK about it. Before we all get instantly carried away the notion that stress can be good please read and heed this final word of warning:
PURPOSEFULLY CAUSING PLANT STRESS IN AN ATTEMPT TO IMPROVE RESULTS WILL NOT MASK OTHER GROWING INADEQUACIES SUCH AS POOR ENVIRONMNETAL CONTROL OR NUTRITIONAL DISORDERS!
If you want to have a play with positive stress techniques you should do so in a controlled fashion where all aspects of your grow are completely dialed in. Only then will you know if what you are doing is positively or negatively affecting your plants. It is one thing to mildly stress a healthy plant, but to stress an already stressed plant could lead to disaster!
So, mild stress can be used keep plants growing in your desired direction, but what other stress techniques are out there that may be able to help us achieve better results?
There are many myths that circulate in grower circles about techniques to enhance quality and quantity. One that I would like to quash before we go any further is the stress technique of inserting a nail through the base of the stem. Many times I have heard This old grower I know says hammering a nail through the stem just before the end of the plant cycle makes the final fruits smell and taste better. Total BS! Hammering anything into your plant is a sure fire way to majorly stress it out, potentially reduce yield considerably and result in very little change to your end produce. May this myth die a horrible death, much like the hammered plants will.
Topping
Topping is a technique that most growers are familiar with to transform a tall skinny plant into a short, wide bush. Removing the growing tip reduces apical dominance which is where the central stem is dominant over other side branches. By removing the growing tip early the plants life, many side shoots grow which helps indoor growers create a more even canopy when growing under lights. Removing the growing tip causes some considerable stress to the plant but creates much more productive and controllable plants in the long run.
Thinning
Thinning or complete clearing of bottom growth is a technique often utilized when growing indoors to concentrate the plants efforts into producing good quality fruits and flowers that are bathed in light. Stems, leaves and flowering sites that are in complete shade will end up producing very little, so removing them may cause some initial stress in the short term but the plants will benefit from more concentrated growth in the long term. Many growers say that the thinning process, when done in the early stages of the flowering cycle helps to speed up the onset of flower. It may be that the removal of plant material stresses the plant in a generative direction. Fruit thinning is often carried out when growing cucumbers, peppers and even apples. Removal of some of the smaller fruits helps divert energy toward the larger fruits and results in better quality large fruits rather than lots of small ones.
Diverting Energy
When growing sub terrain crops like garlic and potatoes, growers want the plants to put all their efforts into producing those underground delights. To help them do this growers stress the plants by removing the flowering stems when they appear in midsummer. This stops the plants investing energy in fertilizing their flowers and producing seed, and focuses their attention into producing large tubers or bulbs. The picture below show the effect of removing the flowering stalk, aka scape, from the garlic plants compared to leaving them on. Significant increases in yield can be made using this technique.
Air Pruning
Air pruning roots is another great example of positive stress. It works by allowing the root tip to come into contact with air. During this process the root tip die dies back through dehydration. Although this process is fairly stressful to the root system, it actually enhances it. Once the tip dies it promotes secondary root branching along the length of the root. Once these secondary root tips come into contact with air, they too become air pruned which stimulates more root growth. Much like pinching out the top of the plant to create a bushier plant, allowing the root tip to dry creates a more branched root system within the growing media. Air pruning can be done successfully with rockwool blocks by placing them on a wire rack allowing air to pass underneath them, or with specialized air pruning pots such as Smart Pots or Air-Pots.
Humidity
Plants that are grown for their aromatic qualities can sometimes benefit from brief periods of humidity stress during their final stages of development. As the leaves and flowers reach maturity, a sustained drop in RH can cause the plant to production more essential oils. Apparently this is a defense mechanism to further protect their leaves and flowers from the dry air.
Anecdotal grower reports on positive stress
The following are just reports from individual growers so please take with a pinch of salt!
Give Me Thrips!
One grower we spoke to is now getting consistently better results now that he controls a small population of thrips in his indoor garden! This grower had a dialed in semi-closed garden and was used to getting the same yield time and time again. After a short two week holiday he came back to discover thrips had invaded and many leaves were damaged. He was not surprised when it came to harvest time to find the crop yield was significantly down. However, on the next grow he introduced the predatory insect amblysieus cucumeris in controlled release sachets. He found that by introducing these sachets every four weeks it kept the thrips numbers down to a minimum without having to regularly spray. To his surprise he found the next crop yield was up on his pre invasion average. The next crop he continued with the controlled release sachets to keep the thrips under control and again found his yield to be better than before. Is it possible that the very small amount of thrips feeding from his plants were mildly stressing the plant in such a way that it improved results? Difficult to believe but this grower was convinced.
Problem Plant
A grower had four different 4ft grow tents in one room. Each tent has one big plant in and is harvested every two weeks. That was the theory anyway all was going well until one problem plant just wouldnt grow. It was fine two weeks into vegetative growth and then just stopped and the leaves started to curl! At first he thought it was over fertilization, so he ran the nutrient strength much lower, one week passed and still nothing. He then thought it must be over watering so he left it to dry more between irrigations, another ten days passed and still nothing. He noticed some of the roots had started to look slight brown so he disinfected the nutrient solution with an ozone sterilizer. Still the plant looked alive, with green curled leaves but another week passed and it was still not growing! All his friends told him to stop wasting his time and rip it out and start again but he wanted to fix it. Another two weeks passed with various attempts to fix the problem being unsuccessful until he decided to give the plant a full strength dose of nutrient solution with a ppm of 1200 (2.4mS). Boom! The plant sprung back into life the next day and grew like crazy! This poor stressed plant had been in veg for nearly 8 weeks, when it usually took 2. The long and the short of it is that although this plant did nothing for 6 weeks other than look half dead, it turned around to yield the most he ever got of one plant. Could this be down to its poor stressed out vegetative cycle? Maybe
Cutting Stress
Another grower took cutting in pots of coir. Rooting times were 12-14 days at this point he could see roots appearing at the bottom of his pots. On one occasion, four days after taking the cuttings, he was inspecting them when his phone started to ring. He picked it up and got distracted. Ten minutes into the call he remembered that hed left the propagator lid off. He rushed back to his cuttings and found that many of the larger leaves had started to wilt. He quickly sprayed the lid and put it back on to quickly raise the humidity. The cuttings came back round but he was sure the stress would make the cuttings weak so he took some more as a backup. On the eighth day he checked his stressed cutting and was surprised to find that a few had roots at the bottom already! On the tenth day they all had roots at the bottom. On the next batch he did them as normal and was back to the 12-14 day turnaround, so on the batch after he purposefully took the propagator lid off on the fourth day and waited until most had slightly wilted. Once again the cuttings had visible roots between days eight and ten, as few days earlier than before. He now swears by this technique
Spicy Stress
This grower loves his mouth to burn, and a few years back grew chilies using an Autopot system where a valve tops up a small reservoir of nutrient solution in the bottom of the pot. It was mid July and the plants were in full swing and producing loads of fruits. One particular variety was quite mild and great in salads. One day the grower shuts off the supply valve in order to fill the reservoir with fresh water and nutrients, after filling he forgot to open the valve! An easy mistake to make but he didnt notice for the whole weekend. Come Monday morning and all the plant were badly wilted but not unrecoverable. He opened the valve and let the plant recover. In the mean time he picked all the ripe chillies and they tasted the same as usual. He though the small developing chilled might abort but they all seem to continue growing. A few weeks later when he picked the ripe chillies the mild ones had developed a much more fierce heat level. It was the chilies that were developing during the drought stress, could it be that the short period of drought increased the spice level of the chilies?? The next set of fruits that came through were back to usual spice level so this grower is convinced that drought can influence spicier fruits.
Cold Roots
During winter, this grower liked to cold shock his roots! He grew in three gallon pots using an organic potting soil with organic liquid nutrients. During the last three weeks of the flowering cycle he hand watered the plants with water at 55°F (13°C) once a week. He says that these cold irrigations shock the roots and the plant slightly, he does not result in any increase or decrease in yield but it does lead to a definite increase in essential oil production. The mild stress seems to work as a quality and flavor enhancer.
Wilt Shock
One grower finds that by introducing a few periods of drought stress in the last six weeks of his flowering cycle he improves plant vigor and produce quality. His technique is to let his coco coir dry out just to the point where he can see the first signs of the fan leaves wilting. He does this once during week 3, 5 and 7 and finds that the plants come back fighting after each short drought.
A Final Repetitious Word of Warning
Theres plenty of food for thought in this article. And perhaps thats the best thing to do. THINK about it. Before we all get instantly carried away the notion that stress can be good please read and heed this final word of warning:
PURPOSEFULLY CAUSING PLANT STRESS IN AN ATTEMPT TO IMPROVE RESULTS WILL NOT MASK OTHER GROWING INADEQUACIES SUCH AS POOR ENVIRONMNETAL CONTROL OR NUTRITIONAL DISORDERS!
If you want to have a play with positive stress techniques you should do so in a controlled fashion where all aspects of your grow are completely dialed in. Only then will you know if what you are doing is positively or negatively affecting your plants. It is one thing to mildly stress a healthy plant, but to stress an already stressed plant could lead to disaster!
irishboy
Well-Known Member
ya i do, going to LST, and lollipop, and try out the watering thing, ive read the watering thing brfore but forgot all about it.
irishboy
Well-Known Member
Seed Germination
It all starts with a humble seed…
Seeds are truly magical. They are organic logic bombs, containing everything a plant needs to grow and reproduce. Although a large part of indoor plant propagation focuses on cloning, another part includes growing plants from seeds. And this is where indoor gardening takes on a nice spin, because a grower can cultivate plants that are as unique as the parent plants.
Seeds can be germinated in many different substrates. Each medium has particular qualities that will ether enable or hinder adequate germination and growth, and so growers must familiarize themselves with their medium of choice in order to ensure high germination and seedling success rates. Although many choose to germinate seeds in potting soil, I find most to be too nutrient rich and/or too dense for seedlings. The medium of choice for seedling propagation must be light, porous, inert (or with a low nutrient content), and must provide a root zone with a well-balanced air-to-water ratio.
Coco coir – Coco coir is my favorite substrate when growing from seed. Roots seem to go crazy in coco! It can be used to germinate seeds in small planters, trays, or cups. Coir provides a good air-to-water ratio and is less likely to waterlog than peat based potting soils. I would, however, shake off any excess water from planters or cells before planting seeds in coco.
Rockwool cubes – Rock wool cubes provide an excellent foundation for growers who plan to grow their plants in rock wool blocks or slabs. They are also widely used for plants that will later be transplanted in media such as LECA (clay pebbles), coco chips, or silica rocks. It is a neutral substrate (pH 7), so requires pre-buffering in water with a pH of 5.5 before use. Rock wool cubes need to be presoaked and the excess water expelled, either by shaking off the cubes or by placing several of them in a mesh bag and gently swinging. Cubes must feel light yet moist. This moisture ratio should be maintained until a plant germinates and its roots crowd the cube. The cube’s hole can be widened using a variety of ‘dibbers’, make sure whatever you use is clean and sharp (toothpick, nail, pen etc).
Peat-based plugs and polyethylene-based “rooter” cubes (Rapid Rooter / Sure to Grow cubes) – Suitable for soil, soilless, and hydroponic culture, they each retain quite a bit of water. The peat-based plugs and Sure to Grow cubes should be presoaked and their excess water gently squeezed out until the plugs are moist, but not soaking wet. Their holes can be widened with some light scissor work.
Peat/coir pellets (Jiffy pellets) – These are compressed disks of peat or coir that expand when soaked in water. Encased in a net sheath, each disk expands to form a small cylindrical plug in which a seed can be planted. After presoaking, a plug should be lightly squeezed until water ceases to run out. The peat or coir in a plug is loose, so it’s possible to make a hole, plant a seed and fill the hole back in. These are great for soil or coco growers, are very easy to use and ‘beginner friendly’.
Steady Gro and Oasis cubes – These two substrates are similar in structure: spongy and brittle. Oasis, however, are usually preferred for plants that will be grown in soil later. Both must be presoaked lightly, as shaking off the excess water will result in the inevitable breaking of the whole sheet, so treat gently and be light on the watering. “Light yet moist” is the key.
Soilless mixes (perlite / peat and perlite / vermiculite) – These mixes, typically at a 50-50 ratio, are excellent for germinating seeds and raising seedlings, because they are porous, retain water, provide good root zone aeration, and are inert. Watch the pH of peat-based soilless mixes, though, for they can sometimes be too acidic.
Paper towel – I like this method because it enables me to germinate the seeds first and then transfer them onto any of the starter grow media previously mentioned. It prevents having to throw away a cube in which a dud seed rotted (thus contaminating the cube and rendering it useless for propagation). When seeds are germinated in paper towel, their progress can be checked with minimal disturbance and either sterile or selectively-inoculated conditions can be maintained with ease. Paper towel is, by design, quite absorbent. Make sure excess water is drained before germinating your seeds.
Handling seeds
Seeds should be stored in a cool, dry area, preferably in a sealed environment. Many growers prefer to either refrigerate or freeze their seeds in order to preserve them until they decide to use them. Once you decide to germinate plants from seed, make sure the seeds are viable by inspecting them individually. Check for dried up, cracked, discolored, diseased or deformed seeds and discard them. If your seed packet looks moldy, discard it!
Presoaking
Many seeds have such a hard outer shell that they may benefit from presoaking in either plain, filtered water or a mild solution containing humates, B-1 vitamin, or kelp (which is rich in naturally-occurring growth hormones). Seed starting formulations or additives containing these three basic ingredients are easy to find in your local grow store and can be used to make a presoak solution. Soaking times vary depending on the thickness of a pericarp, or outer shell, and may last from a few minutes to a few days. Over-soaking can lead to macerated and rotted seeds. An alternative to presoaking the individual seeds is to simply add the seed-starting additive to the water used to soak the medium where the seeds will germinate.
Scarifying
Some seeds need to undergo scarifying. This can be achieved by two methods, depending on the plant’s habit: erosion of the pericarp or refrigeration. Erosion simulates the passing of a seed through an animal’s gut, where the digestive enzymes soften a pericarp enough for a seed to be able to germinate. Refrigerating seeds for a specific period of time simulates winter, which in many species is necessary for the seed to germinate. Check the Internet—most land-grant universities offer websites full of detailed information on the grow habits and proper cultivation techniques of almost every plant you can imagine. With a little digging, you will be able to determine which varieties benefit from which scarifying method.
Planting depth
Plant your seeds as deep as the seed is long. For example, if your seeds are 5 mm long, plant them 5 mm deep. When germinating in cubes or plugs, make sure that the hole is of adequate depth. A dibber can be used to make planting holes in loose or soilless substrate.
Orientation
Some seeds need to be planted upright because the taproot emerges from the bottom of the seed; others need to be planted sideways because the radicle (emerging tap root) tends to do a twist and a turn before it begins to grow in a downward habit. When planting larger, flat seeds like pumpkin and squash, it’s best to plant them on their thin side rather than flat side down. This helps to avoid water or wet growing media collecting on the seed surface. When in doubt, I plant my seeds on their narrow side at a 45⁰ angle. Works like a charm.
Lighting
Most seeds require no light to germinate. A plant’s light intensity requirements at this early stage are not that high, so putting a high intensity discharge (HID) lamp over your newly sprouted newborns is not a good idea. T-5 fluorescent lamps are excellent for seed propagation; one or two per seedling tray should suffice. LED lights are still in their infancy, so I cannot comment or recommend their suitability for propagation. Always wait until the plants pass the seedling stage and begin true vegetative growth before placing them under HIDs.
Nutrition
Seedlings require no food! Nature has invested them with cotyledons (baby leaves) rich in carbohydrates, hormones, and amino acids. It’s good practice to refrain from adding nutrients to your seedlings’ water until at least the appearance of the first set of true leaves. Once a first leaf pair begins to grow, a plant enters the seedling stage. As the weeks go by, increase your nutrient concentration gradually, starting with one fourth (¼) the recommended strength at the beginning of the seedling stage, not going beyond 375 ppm (0.5 NaCl scale), and using good filtered water. Increase the concentration by an additional ¼ every 2–4 weeks, depending on the length of your plant’s vegetative period. In indoor gardening we tend to do things rather quickly, so a ¼ increase in nutrient strength every 2 weeks will provide most indoor growers with an acceptable vegetative time frame, which will produce plants that are mature enough for reproduction, but compact enough to manage indoors.
Beneficial biology
Many people are recommending the introduction of a broad range of beneficial microbes into their propagation substrates. Some even recommend sprinkling seeds and clone tips in powdered inoculants or soaking them in microbial teas. My personal experience with this practice has been mixed, with some failures in seed germination and cloning. Then it dawned on me that I was introducing too many of these organisms, with their broad spectrum of activity, too early in the game. The seedling stage is not the time to put plants into overdrive—they simply are too young. Compost Tea’s and other microbial inoculants may be used during germination, but there are so many products on the market, that you have to be sure to use a high-quality, effective one that has been prepared correctly. Tea extracts used for propagation should be substantially diluted and applied only once before transplantation. Wait until your plants have established root zones in the late stages of propagation, or in the early vegetative stages, before bombarding a substrate with beneficial biology. There are some specific microbial products that can help with seedling germination and propagation; just be aware that it’s not black and white when it comes to beneficial biology and propagation.
Temperature
Every seed species has an optimal temperature range for germination. Land-Grant university websites are a good source for information regarding your seed’s optimal germination temperature range. A seedling tray heat mat and a thermostat will ensure that your seedlings bask in the warmth of mild, bottom heat. Ensuring even temperatures increases homogenous germination and can help prevent root borne diseases. It also maintains optimal metabolism and enzymatic function at the root zone, which promotes overall plant growth.
Moisture
What is the easiest way to kill a seedling? By overwatering it! Excess moisture in the root zone accounts for most seed and seedling failures. An easy way to determine if your seedlings need watering is to fill a planter of the same size as your seedlings’ with the same mixture of substrate. Irrigate and shake off excess water. Compare the weight of the “control” container with your seedlings’. If your seedling container feels less than half the weight of the control planter, you should irrigate. If you want to get technical, you could use a scale to weigh your planters and irrigate once you notice that the seedlings’ planter weighs 75% less than the control planter. It’s better than sticking your finger and disturbing newly-formed anchor roots. This method can also be used with seedlings grown in cubes and plugs.
Relative humidity and propagators
Seedlings need a high relative humidity in order to thrive. Cold drafts, in particular, can shock or even kill days-old seedlings surprisingly quickly. However, too much humidity may aid the growth of opportunistic pathogens that can destroy your younglings even before they peek out of their shell. Covering your seedling tray with a propagating dome is a good way to prevent abrupt changes in temperature and humidity. Once seeds have germinated and established, the dome can be raised or vented, gradually over a few days. This will get the seedlings acclimatized to drier air; it’s a process known as ‘hardening-off’, which prepares them for the vegetative growth stage.
Do-it-yourself mini propagator
Put one or a few seeded planters (or cubes) in a zip-top, clear plastic bag. Make sure the bag is large enough to allow some room for air. Do not vacuum-seal it; rather, have it hold some air before closing and put it in your propagation area under fluorescent lights. Check the bag daily and tap-off any excess moisture that may form inside the bag. Once the seeds begin to germinate, begin opening the bag gradually as explained previously.
From seedling to early vegetative
Defining the line between the seedling and vegetative stage is a bone of contention among growers. Let us simplify things: observe your seedlings. A few clues will tell you when your plant is ready. Many plant species begin their vegetative period once the first set of true leaves is fully developed and a second node begins to open. The stem’s girth and rigidity will also increase. Yet the definitive sign of entering the vegetative stage is the aging of the cotyledons (or “baby leaves”
. Once a plant has used up the food packets contained in the cotyledons, it is ready to feed from outside sources. The seedling has then grown to a young vegetative plant, and it is ready for you to initiate a nutrient feeding program until the root mass is large enough to transplant into soil or a soilless mix.
Step-by-step seed germination using the paper towel method
Gather your materials. You will need: a plastic tray with lid (I’m using a Chinese takeout container), paper towel, seeds, & water.
Soak your seeds.
Fold paper towel pieces and place in the plastic tray. Moisten the paper towel with water. Do not overwater the paper towel! Use a fine-mist nozzle spray bottle, if possible, to thoroughly moisten all sides of the paper towel sheets. Drain off excess water.
Gently place the pre-soaked seeds onto the paper towel. Try not to touch the paper towel, so it stays supple & well-saturated. Make inventory of the kinds of seeds you used, note their location on the sheets, & the date you began germinating them. This will save you a lot of headaches trying to identify which is what & will enable you to track how many days your seeds have been germinating.
Gently cover the paper towel. Notice that some seeds may germinate better placed on the paper, uncovered.
Cover your tray with an airtight lid, as moisture retention is crucial for proper germination. Place your tray under a gentle heat source. Wait for seeds to germinate.
Check your seedlings daily, but only once a day: you want to maintain the seed environment as clean as possible, so always wash your hands before opening the lid. Keep in mind that seed germination times vary according to plant species.
When the first root (usually called the “taproot” or radicle) begins to emerge from the seed, it is time to transplant the seedling into its starter environment. If the radicle has stuck or pierced through the paper towel, carefully cut the paper around it with clean, sharp scissors, taking great care not to cut the radicle. Transplant to your starting medium; the paper towel will degrade.
Lay out your rooted seedlings under a light source of moderate intensity, such as tubular or compact fluorescent lamps. Try using a nursery tray with an air-pruning, raised wire screen. Ensuring good air circulation helps prevent root rot & enhances rooting
It all starts with a humble seed…
Seeds are truly magical. They are organic logic bombs, containing everything a plant needs to grow and reproduce. Although a large part of indoor plant propagation focuses on cloning, another part includes growing plants from seeds. And this is where indoor gardening takes on a nice spin, because a grower can cultivate plants that are as unique as the parent plants.
Seeds can be germinated in many different substrates. Each medium has particular qualities that will ether enable or hinder adequate germination and growth, and so growers must familiarize themselves with their medium of choice in order to ensure high germination and seedling success rates. Although many choose to germinate seeds in potting soil, I find most to be too nutrient rich and/or too dense for seedlings. The medium of choice for seedling propagation must be light, porous, inert (or with a low nutrient content), and must provide a root zone with a well-balanced air-to-water ratio.
Coco coir – Coco coir is my favorite substrate when growing from seed. Roots seem to go crazy in coco! It can be used to germinate seeds in small planters, trays, or cups. Coir provides a good air-to-water ratio and is less likely to waterlog than peat based potting soils. I would, however, shake off any excess water from planters or cells before planting seeds in coco.
Rockwool cubes – Rock wool cubes provide an excellent foundation for growers who plan to grow their plants in rock wool blocks or slabs. They are also widely used for plants that will later be transplanted in media such as LECA (clay pebbles), coco chips, or silica rocks. It is a neutral substrate (pH 7), so requires pre-buffering in water with a pH of 5.5 before use. Rock wool cubes need to be presoaked and the excess water expelled, either by shaking off the cubes or by placing several of them in a mesh bag and gently swinging. Cubes must feel light yet moist. This moisture ratio should be maintained until a plant germinates and its roots crowd the cube. The cube’s hole can be widened using a variety of ‘dibbers’, make sure whatever you use is clean and sharp (toothpick, nail, pen etc).
Peat-based plugs and polyethylene-based “rooter” cubes (Rapid Rooter / Sure to Grow cubes) – Suitable for soil, soilless, and hydroponic culture, they each retain quite a bit of water. The peat-based plugs and Sure to Grow cubes should be presoaked and their excess water gently squeezed out until the plugs are moist, but not soaking wet. Their holes can be widened with some light scissor work.
Peat/coir pellets (Jiffy pellets) – These are compressed disks of peat or coir that expand when soaked in water. Encased in a net sheath, each disk expands to form a small cylindrical plug in which a seed can be planted. After presoaking, a plug should be lightly squeezed until water ceases to run out. The peat or coir in a plug is loose, so it’s possible to make a hole, plant a seed and fill the hole back in. These are great for soil or coco growers, are very easy to use and ‘beginner friendly’.
Steady Gro and Oasis cubes – These two substrates are similar in structure: spongy and brittle. Oasis, however, are usually preferred for plants that will be grown in soil later. Both must be presoaked lightly, as shaking off the excess water will result in the inevitable breaking of the whole sheet, so treat gently and be light on the watering. “Light yet moist” is the key.
Soilless mixes (perlite / peat and perlite / vermiculite) – These mixes, typically at a 50-50 ratio, are excellent for germinating seeds and raising seedlings, because they are porous, retain water, provide good root zone aeration, and are inert. Watch the pH of peat-based soilless mixes, though, for they can sometimes be too acidic.
Paper towel – I like this method because it enables me to germinate the seeds first and then transfer them onto any of the starter grow media previously mentioned. It prevents having to throw away a cube in which a dud seed rotted (thus contaminating the cube and rendering it useless for propagation). When seeds are germinated in paper towel, their progress can be checked with minimal disturbance and either sterile or selectively-inoculated conditions can be maintained with ease. Paper towel is, by design, quite absorbent. Make sure excess water is drained before germinating your seeds.
Handling seeds
Seeds should be stored in a cool, dry area, preferably in a sealed environment. Many growers prefer to either refrigerate or freeze their seeds in order to preserve them until they decide to use them. Once you decide to germinate plants from seed, make sure the seeds are viable by inspecting them individually. Check for dried up, cracked, discolored, diseased or deformed seeds and discard them. If your seed packet looks moldy, discard it!
Presoaking
Many seeds have such a hard outer shell that they may benefit from presoaking in either plain, filtered water or a mild solution containing humates, B-1 vitamin, or kelp (which is rich in naturally-occurring growth hormones). Seed starting formulations or additives containing these three basic ingredients are easy to find in your local grow store and can be used to make a presoak solution. Soaking times vary depending on the thickness of a pericarp, or outer shell, and may last from a few minutes to a few days. Over-soaking can lead to macerated and rotted seeds. An alternative to presoaking the individual seeds is to simply add the seed-starting additive to the water used to soak the medium where the seeds will germinate.
Scarifying
Some seeds need to undergo scarifying. This can be achieved by two methods, depending on the plant’s habit: erosion of the pericarp or refrigeration. Erosion simulates the passing of a seed through an animal’s gut, where the digestive enzymes soften a pericarp enough for a seed to be able to germinate. Refrigerating seeds for a specific period of time simulates winter, which in many species is necessary for the seed to germinate. Check the Internet—most land-grant universities offer websites full of detailed information on the grow habits and proper cultivation techniques of almost every plant you can imagine. With a little digging, you will be able to determine which varieties benefit from which scarifying method.
Planting depth
Plant your seeds as deep as the seed is long. For example, if your seeds are 5 mm long, plant them 5 mm deep. When germinating in cubes or plugs, make sure that the hole is of adequate depth. A dibber can be used to make planting holes in loose or soilless substrate.
Orientation
Some seeds need to be planted upright because the taproot emerges from the bottom of the seed; others need to be planted sideways because the radicle (emerging tap root) tends to do a twist and a turn before it begins to grow in a downward habit. When planting larger, flat seeds like pumpkin and squash, it’s best to plant them on their thin side rather than flat side down. This helps to avoid water or wet growing media collecting on the seed surface. When in doubt, I plant my seeds on their narrow side at a 45⁰ angle. Works like a charm.
Lighting
Most seeds require no light to germinate. A plant’s light intensity requirements at this early stage are not that high, so putting a high intensity discharge (HID) lamp over your newly sprouted newborns is not a good idea. T-5 fluorescent lamps are excellent for seed propagation; one or two per seedling tray should suffice. LED lights are still in their infancy, so I cannot comment or recommend their suitability for propagation. Always wait until the plants pass the seedling stage and begin true vegetative growth before placing them under HIDs.
Nutrition
Seedlings require no food! Nature has invested them with cotyledons (baby leaves) rich in carbohydrates, hormones, and amino acids. It’s good practice to refrain from adding nutrients to your seedlings’ water until at least the appearance of the first set of true leaves. Once a first leaf pair begins to grow, a plant enters the seedling stage. As the weeks go by, increase your nutrient concentration gradually, starting with one fourth (¼) the recommended strength at the beginning of the seedling stage, not going beyond 375 ppm (0.5 NaCl scale), and using good filtered water. Increase the concentration by an additional ¼ every 2–4 weeks, depending on the length of your plant’s vegetative period. In indoor gardening we tend to do things rather quickly, so a ¼ increase in nutrient strength every 2 weeks will provide most indoor growers with an acceptable vegetative time frame, which will produce plants that are mature enough for reproduction, but compact enough to manage indoors.
Beneficial biology
Many people are recommending the introduction of a broad range of beneficial microbes into their propagation substrates. Some even recommend sprinkling seeds and clone tips in powdered inoculants or soaking them in microbial teas. My personal experience with this practice has been mixed, with some failures in seed germination and cloning. Then it dawned on me that I was introducing too many of these organisms, with their broad spectrum of activity, too early in the game. The seedling stage is not the time to put plants into overdrive—they simply are too young. Compost Tea’s and other microbial inoculants may be used during germination, but there are so many products on the market, that you have to be sure to use a high-quality, effective one that has been prepared correctly. Tea extracts used for propagation should be substantially diluted and applied only once before transplantation. Wait until your plants have established root zones in the late stages of propagation, or in the early vegetative stages, before bombarding a substrate with beneficial biology. There are some specific microbial products that can help with seedling germination and propagation; just be aware that it’s not black and white when it comes to beneficial biology and propagation.
Temperature
Every seed species has an optimal temperature range for germination. Land-Grant university websites are a good source for information regarding your seed’s optimal germination temperature range. A seedling tray heat mat and a thermostat will ensure that your seedlings bask in the warmth of mild, bottom heat. Ensuring even temperatures increases homogenous germination and can help prevent root borne diseases. It also maintains optimal metabolism and enzymatic function at the root zone, which promotes overall plant growth.
Moisture
What is the easiest way to kill a seedling? By overwatering it! Excess moisture in the root zone accounts for most seed and seedling failures. An easy way to determine if your seedlings need watering is to fill a planter of the same size as your seedlings’ with the same mixture of substrate. Irrigate and shake off excess water. Compare the weight of the “control” container with your seedlings’. If your seedling container feels less than half the weight of the control planter, you should irrigate. If you want to get technical, you could use a scale to weigh your planters and irrigate once you notice that the seedlings’ planter weighs 75% less than the control planter. It’s better than sticking your finger and disturbing newly-formed anchor roots. This method can also be used with seedlings grown in cubes and plugs.
Relative humidity and propagators
Seedlings need a high relative humidity in order to thrive. Cold drafts, in particular, can shock or even kill days-old seedlings surprisingly quickly. However, too much humidity may aid the growth of opportunistic pathogens that can destroy your younglings even before they peek out of their shell. Covering your seedling tray with a propagating dome is a good way to prevent abrupt changes in temperature and humidity. Once seeds have germinated and established, the dome can be raised or vented, gradually over a few days. This will get the seedlings acclimatized to drier air; it’s a process known as ‘hardening-off’, which prepares them for the vegetative growth stage.
Do-it-yourself mini propagator
Put one or a few seeded planters (or cubes) in a zip-top, clear plastic bag. Make sure the bag is large enough to allow some room for air. Do not vacuum-seal it; rather, have it hold some air before closing and put it in your propagation area under fluorescent lights. Check the bag daily and tap-off any excess moisture that may form inside the bag. Once the seeds begin to germinate, begin opening the bag gradually as explained previously.
From seedling to early vegetative
Defining the line between the seedling and vegetative stage is a bone of contention among growers. Let us simplify things: observe your seedlings. A few clues will tell you when your plant is ready. Many plant species begin their vegetative period once the first set of true leaves is fully developed and a second node begins to open. The stem’s girth and rigidity will also increase. Yet the definitive sign of entering the vegetative stage is the aging of the cotyledons (or “baby leaves”
. Once a plant has used up the food packets contained in the cotyledons, it is ready to feed from outside sources. The seedling has then grown to a young vegetative plant, and it is ready for you to initiate a nutrient feeding program until the root mass is large enough to transplant into soil or a soilless mix.Step-by-step seed germination using the paper towel method
Gather your materials. You will need: a plastic tray with lid (I’m using a Chinese takeout container), paper towel, seeds, & water.
Soak your seeds.
Fold paper towel pieces and place in the plastic tray. Moisten the paper towel with water. Do not overwater the paper towel! Use a fine-mist nozzle spray bottle, if possible, to thoroughly moisten all sides of the paper towel sheets. Drain off excess water.
Gently place the pre-soaked seeds onto the paper towel. Try not to touch the paper towel, so it stays supple & well-saturated. Make inventory of the kinds of seeds you used, note their location on the sheets, & the date you began germinating them. This will save you a lot of headaches trying to identify which is what & will enable you to track how many days your seeds have been germinating.
Gently cover the paper towel. Notice that some seeds may germinate better placed on the paper, uncovered.
Cover your tray with an airtight lid, as moisture retention is crucial for proper germination. Place your tray under a gentle heat source. Wait for seeds to germinate.
Check your seedlings daily, but only once a day: you want to maintain the seed environment as clean as possible, so always wash your hands before opening the lid. Keep in mind that seed germination times vary according to plant species.
When the first root (usually called the “taproot” or radicle) begins to emerge from the seed, it is time to transplant the seedling into its starter environment. If the radicle has stuck or pierced through the paper towel, carefully cut the paper around it with clean, sharp scissors, taking great care not to cut the radicle. Transplant to your starting medium; the paper towel will degrade.
Lay out your rooted seedlings under a light source of moderate intensity, such as tubular or compact fluorescent lamps. Try using a nursery tray with an air-pruning, raised wire screen. Ensuring good air circulation helps prevent root rot & enhances rooting
karr
Well-Known Member
Personally i hate sprouting in paper towel. I just have really bad luck with it. I have been using little seed starting disks that expand into little soil pods, much better germ rate for me. I usually sit the seeds in for a few days, then i carefully dig them up and poke the tap root down into the soil a little better.
How is the light treating ya Irish?
How is the light treating ya Irish?
I have really good luck with the paper towel method. I have had my last 12 out of 12 sprout. I've also just used paper towel germination on a bunch of pepper and spinach seeds and they sprouted much faster and are growing well. I know spinach are supposed to be direct sow but they worked out great. I'm trying out jiffy disks with tomatoes and peppers right now. Never used that way before.
irishboy
Well-Known Member
ive been lucky with the paper towel back in the day when i used seeds. ive always wondered how those disk worked, thanks for the info..
as far as the light working i dont know? just my luck the bag of Roots organic soil i bought dosent have dolomite lime or something in it and the PH was 5.3-5.5 and its locked my plants up pretty good and is really putting a hurting on them. seems the last 3 bags of soil i have boughten from different company's were lacking in quality. this is what happens when company's get big and have a high demand.. i am trying to get the girls to bounce back by watering some Dolomite lime in and folair feeding, but the PH being so low in the soil did a good number on these girls.. guys take this as a heads up, check ur soil PH before using and dont count on the quality being the same with others bags from the same company.
works every time for me also.
Are you finding the lime helps? As I've read people say that the dolomite lime must be in soil for at least several weeks before it starts to work.
irishboy
Well-Known Member
havent used it yet, but its correct unless you smash it up. the finner it is the fast it acts, i am going to but mine in water and do it that way for faster acting.
Irish boy I love reading your LED Journals. I'm fascinated by the LED developments and thanks for all the photos too. It really helps.
With the price of energy rising around the world I suppose we've got to try and save our electricity bills somehow....... I'm leaning towards LED but then the safe HPS option keeps butting in.
With the price of energy rising around the world I suppose we've got to try and save our electricity bills somehow....... I'm leaning towards LED but then the safe HPS option keeps butting in.
and of we were to consider an LED light from the original manufacturer... what kind of things should we be looking for features wise? size? LED size? 90/120 degree? slightly off topic I know but I think it would be useful for those who perhaps cant order from the US and want to save some cash. thanks.
newworldicon
Well-Known Member
Where do you live that you can't get a delivery from the States?
irishboy
Well-Known Member
thanks buddy its my pleasure. both leds and HID are great lights. leds are more for a less heat thing and better quality
you want 3w leds, 90 degree, multi spectrum. you want to look for a great warranty and not crazy claims like most company's make like 300w of leds match 1000w of HPS. its not true and will bet no led out today will match that claim, its a sales scam. also make sure the lights drawl the power they claim because most company's say 250w and are only 130w or whatever.
this is why i stick to the comp-any ive been using the last 4 grows or so, because what they claim is what u get and they work great for me.
irishboy
Well-Known Member
thanks for that post.. i can say for sure GLH works.. as far as removing the glass i dont do that on the new ones its more high tech and i am too scared to mess things up, the led face plate has so crazy looking high tech soder looking stuff doing somthing with the leds. IDK? but i just leave it alone.
as far as my old ones never had any trouble doing so