E&f Grow Using Perlite for Grow Medium

i started this low-tech low budget grow just to see if it can be done originaly posted in general growing forum but decided to move over here started grow may 9. & had a few problems & thought i was gonna lose the grow im growing in pots filled with coarse perlite [i usually use rock wool slabs] also using gh maxi -series powdered nutes [the purpose of this grow is to be economical & simple im growing 3 killing fields & 3 superlemon haze in a homemade 3x3 tub & a 1000w. hps

ive had some trials & tribulations because i mistakenly thought i was overfeeding when in fact my plants were starving im now up to 3/4 strength & flooding every 3 hrs [light on] & every 4 hrs at night theyre responding with new growth i put the screen down tonight ive done 6 E&F grows & usualy use gh-floranova with additives ive always wondered just how much of the stuff hydro stores try to ram down your throat is absolutly neccessary im purposly not using my tds meter i change my res every week & top-off & adjust ph. about every 2-3 days as needed im gonna veg for about a month i almost yanked everything out & started over with my traditional method & nutes but at some point you need to try new stuff & when i saw fresh growth i decided to roll with it i think i can pull this off perlite dries out so fast [faster than hydroton] its the opposite of rockwool slabs which can hold moisture up to a week

Interested to see what the cheap nutes do for you - I use cheap-ass nutes (in hempy pots) and I'm very pleased with the results.

3 parts perlite to 1 part vermiculite would get rid of the perlite drying out problem ... the vermiculite holds the water and the perlite provides the drainage.

hey thanks for the response i actualy got this idea from the hempy bucket thread rockwool pads are are $15.00 each im definatly gonna improve the concept my stuff is too well rooted to add the vermiculite now but will do so on future grow thanks for the input

im finaly starting to get something that resembles a grow took some pics last night color & vigor is coming around & ive added a 7th plant its a sannies lady cane so now its 3 slh,3 killing fields & 1 lady cane still have nutes at 3/4 strength but gonna advance to full strength sunday when i change out my res. i think theyre hungry & im expecting them to at least double in size after i flip the light 12/12

Nice job. I will be follwing this. I am interested in the GH powdered nutes, too.

i turned my light 12/12 today the lady cane is lagging behind but thats to be expected in spite of a rocky start this grow is really starting to take off & is improving daily i was gonna veg for 4 weeks but i think 3 weeks is gonna be just fine so far im happy with the powdered 2-part nutes this is my 8th hydro grow & ive used either 3-part gh. flora series nutes or their 2-part floranova nutes with the additives as well its a little too early to predict the outcome but going over my notes from previous grows im right on schedule this is gonna get interesting i have a feeling this is gonna be a success the maxi grow is simple to use im gonna clone tomorrow & im really liking the killing fields & cant wait to see the finished product

things are really shaping up & finaly im getting a rate of growth im happy with 1 of the killing fields is pale compared to the others & the lady cane continues to be lagging because of its late addition to the grow there is the possability the healthier plants might choke the weaker 2 out ive cloned everything & also fired up another grow room using a 600w hps & dirt but as soon as i can figure out a low height reservoir it will be hydro as well

View attachment 1635819View attachment 1635818View attachment 1635817got everything tied down & ready for the big stretch here is todays pics most of my screen is filled up with bud sites

im almost a month into this grow[started may 9th] & in the beginning underfed my plants then mis-diagnosed the problem, almost tore everything out & scrapped the project but i played a hunch & increased the nutes & flooded every 3 hrs instead of twice daily gotta admit i was plumb tickled when instead of dead plants i got new growth im now up to full strength on the nutes & flood every 2 hrs. round the clock the gh maxi-grow & maxi- bloom seem to be working good & are easy to mix & use the pheno of slh im growing yields about 1oz. per plant using floranova & rockwool so we will see how the simple, cheap stuff stacks up in the end product if it dont work out i can always go back to the old way every day things are looking better & im pretty stoked on my results thus far & the growth spurt that starts in the weeks following turning the light 12/12 has began

Looking great.. Keep us posted..
I, too, underfed before.. It is crazy how hydro gets jamming once you put in enough food!

this is my 8th hydro grow its my prefered method i have a dirt grow going as well

Why are you feeding at night?

I have both methods going, as well.. I prefer the hydro, too... easier to keep up with

perlite dries out extremely fast i dont want to risk root damage plants feed at night too

hey tommy i seen on another post youve got slh going its one of my favoriyes here is some highlites of my slh grows there are several phenos so number your phenos so you can identify them youre in for a treat

Oh boy! I am excited.. I just put the seedlings into my ebb table yesterday.. They are in rapid rooter plugz and the cotyledons were yellowing... So I threw them in with 500PPM GH three part.. I hope they like it.. They seem to be greening-up but it is too early.. next week they should be rippin..

Those pics are excellent, herk! awesome!

ol country [a friend of mine] uses gh-3 part on slh & gets amazing results we just follow the gh feeding schedule mild growth should be about right mine were done in rockwool blocks & slabs [my prefered & most successful method] heres what they look like early on

oh yeah in hydro slh finishes faster than they claim im talking i can veg 3 weeks & still complete a grow in 85 days if everything goes right

im way behind on my updates but here is todays pics of both grows im having heat issuues in one room that im gonna work on this week end buds are starting to show on my slh & killing fields my stuff in soil is doing good too pic 116 is a week old the other 2 soil pics are today as are the small buds of my hydro grow