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"Grow Tips" - information and education on cultivating medical quality cannabis.  By Mr. M3rky and a cast of bunches.
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Growers’    Guide
To Medical Marijuana
The Serious Contemplations of MrM3rky
 and His Companions
A compilation of great facts
 kept away from us
 by all kinds
 of people

  About this page  
"Help me, Mr. M3rky!  Big, nasty blue things are crawling all over me & my plants!"  We hear that all the time at the Old pdxNORML Website and Online Library.  For pests like that ('government' & other over-Authorized varmints), we are looking at solutions both short term & long.  For help with critters much more your size (and legal to hunt in Oregon) we are pleased to announce some first aid.  OMMA patients & caregivers have a legitimate need to control pests and much more.

Introducing help in cultivating and harvesting your medical marijuana - Mr. M3rky.  Dirt or Hydro, Indoors or Out, from Feed to Pests - the latest FAQs, just ask away!  As for his experience, he's been growing for … well, lets let him tell it.  Without further ado, here's Mr. M3rky! > … (Intro to Mr. M3rky)

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  Introducing Mr. M3rky  

"First Contemplations" by Mr. M3rky

It was 1975, I was in Africa 15 years old and puffing my first joint.  Within minutes my vision, which was 20/60, had cleared and I was experiencing my first “cerebral expansion”.  I was hooked.  Not two weeks passed and I started some seeds sifted from my stash and had my first marijuana plantation.  I had lots of plants, all over the countryside between my home and school but they always got stolen.  My love for the plant didn’t disappear, however, and I brought back to the USA some of the base genetics we enjoy from our local domestic weed today.  They went to a major domestic grower, one of the first ones to hit the woods, after we had been putting up with paraquat-laden pot in the ‘70’s.  Along with the African genetics I had given him, he had Thai, Columbian, Panamanian and Vietnamese seeds germinated in the same grow.

  Today we enjoy genetics gathered and cross- bred and in-bred to reward us for all the years of hard labor, hard time, and hard attitudes we have endured.  All the efforts of all the guerilla farmers and “illegal” grows have left us with a way to alleviate our pains and our disabilities.  Oregon has been a leader in genetic experimentation with the sacred herb and has led the front in the battle to get medical marijuana to patients and recreational herb to anyone of age without fear of felony charges and jail time.  We were the first state to decriminalize pot and are now the standard for medical marijuana legislation across the country.

  I have, over the years, compiled invaluable data about growing our herb and have kept a finger on the pulse of grow technology.  In this column I will explore questions submitted to this publication regarding grow problems and will share my data and the vast resources available to me.  Feel free to share with me your tips and experience.

    http://www.genhydro.com/compare.html 

  “Dirt vs. Hydro”? Wrong.  Dirt or hydro?  Better.  In my experience with both, I could argue either way.  But there are good things about both. 

  Hydro:  lightweight growing medium, always watered-no guessing if it’s too wet or too dry, fewer potential for bugs and bug habitat, lots of new products to try, with known NASA-standard nutrition. 

    http://www.genhydro.com/article1.html   
    http://www.genhydro.com/profile.html   
    http://www.genhydro.com/artfaqrw.html 

  Dirt:  more stable medium  … temperature, ph, etc., less “how-to” knowledge to start off, organic benefits of the earth (although we know our country’s dirt is polluted) easier access to growing materials, i.e., Fred Meyer, etc., more readily available information on “how to do it in the dirt”.    http://www.genhydro.com/article.html   

  In our next meeting we will field your questions and explore dirt farming followed with an equal exploration of hydro farming.  So, for this month, I leave you with this thought. “ Pot is not illegal, the law against it is.”   Let’s repeal this ignorant law and replace it with the freedom of knowledge.

  So, go with a puff and a vote and let’s change the world.  Don’t forget to contact your local representative and senator to let them know how you feel.
 

Mr. M3rky
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  Upcoming Newz & Events Report  

*  Patient / Caregiver networks and other sources for medicine, starters, info and just plain support is one of our priorities.  Classifieds and any other potential means will be explored.  It is the only hope of some of those new to the program.  Stay tuned for details. | Making Contact   |

  Articles & list of Subjects  

Subjects du jour:

Whats gone down and whats coming up.  Just some of the requests for info in the hopper for Mr. M3rky:

  • Intro.  Say hello to Mr. M3rky.
  • Dirt.  PROs & CONs; It's a dirty job, but some like it.
  • Hydro.  Or not to Hydro, that is the question.  More CONs & PROs.
  • Feed.  Nutrition and other Fertilizer FAQs.  Including Mr. M3rky's Magic Grow Formula.
  • Pests.  (aside from the Big Blue Meanies)  The Not-so-mighty mite, among others …
  • Testing, 1-2-3 …
  • Set Up (& Breaking it down … ) from Cheap to Keep.  For the apartment dweller (classic closet grows!) and those who can barely afford sunshine (or to wait for it, rather) as well as those with long term systems.  FAQs by System Component or Area, like …
  • High (pun intended) Tech; including …
  • Totally Auto Grows; automatically watered, remote camera observed and PC controlled systems.  Also, grows shared on-line.  Which would lead to …
  • On-line Pictures and Video clips;  both on the set up of various types of systems as well as the sprouting and maintenance of the plants themselves.  Such as …
    • 'spreading' - pinching or clipping the 'grow end' (growing tip).
    • 'sexing' - separating the female/male plants (and acting accordingly).  See Determining Sex in FAQS section.
    • <glossary for the vocabulary of the newbie>
    •  How to use a looking glass (microscope or other lens) - what to look for.
    • The grow cycle; how much hours & when?
    • Ventilation and …
    • Odor Control …
  •  Sources!  And Networks … how about the Classifieds?  Caveat Emptor!  Some tips about used equipment.  Also, Gro-lite stores, Nurserys and other OMMA friendly biz.  And beyond!  Seeds, Sprouts & other sources …
  •  the 'Clone Ranger'; what is a 'mature' plant, what is a seedling -v- a clone -v- 'immature'?  How do you get them and, of course, what is the law on this matter?
  •  Just to name a few!  We may even have time for a chuckle or two along the way.  Email us your topic today!!
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  Making Contact  

for Questions & Comments for Mr. M3rky you can email him at: mrm3rky1@hotmail.com 
______________________________________
"Grow Tips" with Mr. M3rky was a service of Ye Olde pdxNORML Website and Online Library and is meant to be plagarized like heck.  Please steal this info and spread it all over the place.  Thank you.  Contact us at:

Librarian@pdxnorml.org
or visit:  www.pdxnorml.org/home

  the Dirt on Dirt  

"It’s a Dirty Job, But Somebody’s Got To Do It"
by Mr. M3rky

  Before us and before them, people have always done it in the dirt.  A few seeds, some well-draining, nutritious dirt, and papa sun was the only recipe people have relied on for centuries.

  Today, we have a specialized plant with special needs and one is the grow medium, or, what the roots grow into.  Several commercial potting mixes are available practically anywhere, and if cost is a factor, buy the cheapest generic brand, but be ready to amend it or mix more stuff into it.  I'll use a 2 cubic foot bag for a standard and you may calculate your mix from there.  I always add 12 dry quarts of perlite per bag for aeration and drainage.  Along with this, I add 5 cups of bone meal for the phosphates the plant will need in the flowering stage.  I also add 3 cups of blood meal for the high amount of nitrogen the plant needs during the first growing stage through the first part of flowering.  You may add a half-cup of dry granulated fish fertilizer for any trace elements your soil may lack.  Lime your potting soil so it reads 7ph, and  use the prilled dolomite lime, as it won’t pack down as hard as the other stuff.  Mix thoroughly and you should be set for an indoor grow season. You have now completed your mix and all you do is add water.  Be careful not to add too much; your plants will tell you when they need it by slightly drooping, after which you should probably catch them a day earlier.  Another way is to tilt the pot or lift it to see how heavy it is with water weight.  Depending on how big you want your plants, you can adjust your pot size accordingly.  The smallest I recommend for an 8 week total grow cycle (impossible?...not!) is a 6-inch pot measured across the top.  For an outdoor grow started early (hint...hint), you'll need a much bigger pot...anywhere from a 3 gallon minimum to a thirty gallon maximum.  I think any bigger would be a waste, but…  

Oh, you rural people might not want to use anything for fertilizer that might attract bears.  Also, you may want to put something around your plants about 6 inches or so high, like a pot with the bottom removed, to prevent baby rabbits from felling your plants.  Mature rabbits won’t bother them, but the babies will.  They will tear up your plants to get at the roots to eat stuff like bone meal, blood meal, fish fertilizer, etc., so a manure-based fertilizer is recommended.  Also, you may want to put something around your plants about 6 inches or so high, like a pot with the bottom removed, to prevent baby rabbits from felling your plants.  Mature rabbits won’t bother them, but the babies will.  

  Can you waste your money on a whole bunch of other or different amendments? Sure can, be my guest.  This is just a guide, not the law.  This worked good enough for me to grow 2-3 ounce buds, not colas, single flower clusters which used to astound my friends and then of course the law stepped in and told everyone we were having far too much fun at our own expense and to pick up our toys and go home.  Wait a minute, this is my home, but you're the law.  Something like that...  

I think I have room for a question.

  "Lumens or wavelength, which is more important?  Do fluorescents give off the right wavelength (soft white) and do they furnish enough lumens at a reasonable wattage?  I may be able to put together a space with 240-480 watts of fluorescents."

  My answer: Fluorescents are great for starting plants ... seeds or clones, but to make them efficient finishing lights some customizing must be done.  The lamps (tech for bulbs) must be closer together than manufactured to give you the light intensity needed for your direct-sun-requiring tropical plants.  In order to do that, you must disassemble the fixtures and mount them closer together on a piece of plywood.  You still come out with only 1/3 the lumens you'd have with the same wattage sodium light.  In the equation, this results in more heat from the same wattage, which could be too hot.  So, for your money, a 400-watt sodium (pretty cheap) would net you more usable medicine.  From my experience, it's best to look ahead to the point when you run out ... not a good place to be.  You need to produce enough to keep you going w/out running out so your other medicine schedules won't be compromised, ie.  the interaction between meds or the replacement of narcotics w/marijuana and what that could mean when the pot is gone.  (Click here for all the FAQS).

  Lumens or wavelength?  Used to be lumens before they had specialty bulbs with color-corrected technology.  If you're on a budget, go for lumens.  Soft white gives off more red and is good for cloning (root production) and budding.  Notice the food is similar in these two stages also.  Cool white is bluer, which is good for the vegetative stage.  Technically, white or blue is hotter of a color as established by the term Kelvin.  3000 Kelvin is the color temperature tungsten gives off at 3000 degrees Fahrenheit.  But the fluorescent people label it opposite.  3000 Kelvin is good for the flowering stage and 3500 - 6000 Kelvin is good for the vegetative stage.

  Consider the greater efficiency of the high intensity discharge (HID) always before considering other sources of light.  HID include metal halide, high-pressure sodium, and mercury vapor (not a good choice, however).  Greater efficiency always means more light per watt and less heat per watt.

  Good luck, and don't kill yourself taking apart and re-hooking up a bunch of fluorescents.

Mr. M3rky
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  yo, what about Hydro  

"Hydro: an answer to some problems" by Mr. M3rky

  Since the late 1800’s when hydroponics was first developed, the science has jumped into another realm.  Research has shown us most if not all the necessary components to grow in water.  New developing mediums for roots to grow into are appearing yearly and products for enhancing all the developmental stages are appearing faster on grow shop shelves. ( http://www.genhydro.com/article1.html,    http://www.genhydro.com/article.htmlhttp://www.genhydro.com/media.html )

   To keep it simple, don’t try to go out and make your own nutrient solution.  You can make it with a lot of instruction in plant biology and a full course in hydroponics, but I don’t recommend it.  Any of the off-the-shelf products for hydro work; you must find the best one for your needs…i.e., availability, etc.  You will need enough to get through a whole grow to start with; you don’t need to run out in the middle and lose your crop.  The stuff is a lot cheaper in larger amounts, too.

  The next thing you’ll need to pick is a method of growing:  ebb and flow tables, rockwool slabs on trays, NFT or nutrient flow technique which can use a sloped table or gutter-style flow system, aeroponics system, or the latest one called aero-hydroponics.  All methods have a way to secure the plant and water the plant continuously or at 4-hour intervals.  The reason for securing the plant is that the roots are in a much looser environment than dirt and that environment can easily become a lot lighter than the plant as the plant grows.  This can make the plant want to tip over and expose the roots to too much air causing them to dry out and die.

  You’ve now picked a method and nutrient and I strongly suggest you read up on the method you pick or give me a yell at MrM3rky1@hotmail.com.  Once you’ve read up on your method, you should test your water.  There are several products out but I’ll save you some time and money and recommend Hanna meters.  They test ph  (acidity or alkali level) and TDS, which give you a benchmark for how much calcium (total dissolved solids) is in your tap water.  Hanna has replaceable probes and has been field tested in my lab with great results.  Any water measuring over 200ppm (parts per million) on your TDS meter should prompt you to look for your nutrient in a “hard water formula”.  Don’t use water that has been treated for hardness as sodium is used to replace the calcium in hard water.  Hard water isn’t bad for your plants; in fact I’d venture to say that the extra calcium could make for more resin production, as calcium is needed in the molecular bond of the THC molecule.

  You’ll find the initial costs to be higher than dirt, but you’ll actually end up spending less in the long run.  You might also note that with dirt, you merely guide the plant to do what it wants; with hydro, you make the plant do what it doesn’t want to do.  Kind of like the difference between an airplane and a helicopter…lots more learning and you still fight to keep it in the air.

  The latest info on our plant’s ph needs are this:  (please don’t confuse this with earlier information on dirt, this is hydro) vegetative stage: 6.4ph – 6.6ph, and blooming stage:  6.2ph - 6.5ph.  I run my veggie cycle at 6.5ph and my bloom room at 6.3ph.  My nutrient gets changed completely every 7-14 days.  The ph starts to really rise after the nutrient gets old and that’s a good sign it’s time to change it.  If you don’t change out your water completely a deadly build up of  “plant dump” can occur.  They shit? Kinda…  http://genhydro.com/faq/ph/faqph.html    

  A couple of reason you may want to grow in hydro: lighter weight when dealing with the plants if you’re not too strong or are disabled. Less unnecessary “critters” you can bring into your grow room as a result of bringing dirt in (whenever dirt is brought in you also bring in about 35 varieties of non-beneficial bugs and bacteria).  This ties in to the next reason, fewer habitats for “critters” to lay their eggs in.  Remember to cover your plant pot top with the double-extruded “black-on-one-side and white-on-the-other”  plastic sheeting you can purchase at your grow store   (white side up).  Reason?  Algae will grow there if you don’t and that is a great place for white fly and other “critters” to grow, live and raise their young ones.

       
  Here’s a question fired at me earlier …

  Question 1: Is G13 real? Stories abound since the release of American Beauty, but no concrete answers to the question. Everyone claims to have G13 seeds in their bank, but often it turns out to be a renamed variety (Such as Mr. Nice). I have my own story, about hitchhiking in the early '70s and sharing a roach with the driver. Best stuff I've smoked then or since ("Completely mellow high. No paranoia"). I swear I remember him telling me it was G13, but . . .

Answer:  G-13, the legendary "standing 8-count", in-your-face-potent strain was genetically altered by a US government marijuana cancer research facility to increase potency in the herb when there was an actual honest gov't program (among all the swag related dis-honest programs then and now).  When the facility was disbanded scientists who cared took clones with them to preserve their research. (http://www.angelfire.com/nz2/g13central/frames.html)  G-13 has all but disappeared in its original state, but there some reliable, extremely potent, high-yielding crosses available right here in our own state ... clones!  (Click here for all the FAQS).

  I am experimenting with a G-13 crossed with Hawaiian that is extremely potent, but leaves you rather breathless.  Anyone out there with another cross of G-13 or pure G-13, let me know … Please.

 Sharkey and K from High Times say they have pure G-13 which produces 26% THC.  How to get hold of them  is another question...you might write the editor.

            Mr. M3rky
some Cool lynx:

(1)  http://www.lifecircle.com/  (2)  http://www.genhydro.com/systems.html
(3)  http://www.greenair.com/plastics.htm   (4)  http://www.cannabisculture.com/
(5)  http://www.angelfire.com/az2/g13central/frames.html

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  Feeding yer Plants face  

"Feed and Nutrition Plus a Bunch" by Mr. M3rky

   What you’ll find below is something for everyone.  You experts, who I bore, flip down to the bottom for some cool pages with lots of plant-food facts and figures.  There’s got to be something in there that can aid you in your constant search to better your potency, resistance to crud or whatever.  Click here to see Mr. M3rky's Magic Grow Formula.

  When they first examined plant tissue to see what plants are made of (for the initial hydroponics research) they found out by burning the tissue and examining what was left that carbon was one of the main ingredients.  Pretty rudimentary, but without that first step, we wouldn’t be where we are today.  So, by you taking your first step, no matter how rudimentary, you can start the process of gaining this well-documented knowledge for yourself.

  Plants need nitrogen, phosphate, potassium, trace elements in minute amounts, and something else called macronutrients in even smaller amounts.  There are also some beneficial non-nutritive substances like silica, which are part of a plant’s makeup, but the research hasn’t shown quite how they work.  They seem to make a plant’s profile stronger and more pest resistant, however.

  When you buy commercial fertilizer, there should be some sort of analysis on the packaging and you should find three numbers separated by a dash (-) that may look something like this:  10-6-2 followed by, hopefully, a list of trace elements and macronutrients.  The numbers mean, in sequence, the amounts of nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium is guaranteed in the product.

    http://www.genhydro.com/nutrients.html 

  Nitrogen is really important in the first ¾ of the plant’s life, but the need decreases in the flower stage and the need for it in the last two weeks or so of its life are nil.  In fact, the sweetest stuff has almost always been “flushed” with clear water the final week to 2 weeks of its life. Nitrogen is responsible for everything green in your plant.  Your plants are a high-nitrogen-requiring variety; so don’t skimp on their needs.  Nitrogen in too high amounts will burn the leaf tips, so beware, but use that knowledge to help in your diagnosis.  If you ever get too much in your root system, flush with clear water at least 20 minutes for hydro and 2 hours with slow running water flow for dirt folks.  There are several products that aid in emergency flushing and also in the final pre-harvest flush.  Go ahead and use them, but clear water works, eventually, too.

  Phosphate is needed all the way through the plant’s life, but in huge amounts in the flowering stage.  It is responsible for any color besides green in your plant and that means white, etc.  It doesn’t have the same burn properties as nitrogen if given the plant too much, but it may block the ion uptake of the plant by changing the ph.  Remember that the safe zone for plants is between 6 and 7 ph.  If you’re out of that range and you’re having problems, consider adjusting your ph.  Hydro, you’re at the mercy of the grow shop again, but dirt, you can raise ph with dolomite lime (two granular grades available) and lower with Alaska fish fertilizer bloom which has a high amount of phosphoric acid.  It’s all a little slow reacting, so go easy at first and check out your amendments with a gauge(s) to be precise over the next few days for dirt and the next few hours for hydro. 

  Potassium is needed in smaller amounts than the first two “majors”, but is still responsible, as are the others, for yield.  Don’t forget the “K”.  It is responsible for stem strength, flower strength, taste and a bunch of stuff you don’t want to miss out on.  

    Trace elements, macros, and all the other special additives you may run across are at least available in at least small amounts in most commercial potting soils or the garden dirt you may be in.  If you want to take a stab at it, you may add several kinds of stuff including seaweed products and other products from the sea as the sea is harvested for these elements in particular.  Sea, ocean, whatever, if it contains salt, it also contains a lot of other minerals plants need in minute amounts.

  Remember that these plants use a lot of calcium, so hard water is better.  If your water is soft, add some organic calcium to it, following the directions.  If it’s hard water, there’s no need to waste your money.  In dirt, you may add calcium, which really adds potency more than about anything I know of besides the increase in UV light in the flowering stage.  More on that one later. 

  In your search for fertilizer, I would always recommend food grade products.  Chemical salts will vary in consistency and quality from brand to brand usually indicated, but not always, by the price you pay.  Be as picky as you are with your own tastes, because that’s what flavor you’ll end up with.  Organics always give good flav, but they are susceptible to room temp (too cold will not activate the microbes and enzymes to do their digesting thing, rendering poop into the kind).  They are sensitive, too, to other chemicals competing for dominance and will most always lose that fight.  You can set a vigorous plant in dirt back several weeks at the least by wiping out its living organisms and forcing them to re-establish themselves in that hostile environment.

  The how-to’s on application of fertilizer varies from whom you talk to, but as a medical grower, stay away from… I strongly repeat…do not put anything on the flowers.  If you have an infestation and need to apply some thing to rid yourself of the pests, or you need to rinse the plants with clear water, you must still be very careful.  Anything that may be OK to eat or that’s been approved for food products doesn’t mean it’s OK to stuff in a pipe and smoke.  They use stabilizers, which give off dioxins when torched, and dioxins, in case you don’t know, are the most deadly thing known at this time. 

   And if you’re lucky enough to not get poisoned, you may incur a reaction to whatever it was that was in whatever you put on your plants, especially if you’re already in a severely weakened position.

  How to:  dirt farmers make your mix up early, using organic fertilizer.  Let it sit a couple of days, test again for ph (around 7ph-7.2 ph) and adjust, as you need.  If you want to use the salt-type fertilizer, you can add it weekly to your watering routine.  Introduce it diluted at least in half of the recommended dose for seedlings or established smaller cuttings.  Increase it to the recommended dose using the highest dosage as your goal.  Your plants will use it.  Water with it; don’t spray it on your flowers.  These aren’t tomatoes that will be rinsed and eaten…

  Hydro, follow the instructions on the product label for the clone, pre-veggie, veggie, and floral stages.  For example, General Hydroponics’ feeding schedule @ http://www.genhydro.com/flora321.html 

  Another thing that can happen to foliar feeders, especially organic foliar feeders, is that you build a perfect environment for spider mites and flies, which can live and feed off the stuff on your sprayed plants.   They build their homes in it and it provides protection from any eradication attempts you may make. Mite eggs and carcasses can taste horrible, and the mites eat all the oils from your flowers rendering them a fraction of their potential strength, if any. There will be more on eradication later….

  Keep it simple or make it complex, the tools are right here for you to use.  Good luck, early bird gets the worm.  
 

Mr. M3rky
some Cool lynx:

(1)  http://www.greenair.com/interpri.htm  (2)  http://www.greenair.com/nutrip.htm  (3)  http://www.genhydro.com/mineralmagic.html
(4)  http://www.greenair.com/pyro_clay.htm

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  those pesky Pests  

"Pests…. God, Please Not Pests" by Mr. M3rky

  You’ve seen ‘em, smoked ‘em, ate ‘em, and now you’re tired of them and hate them.  Watcha gonna do?  Get out the post-nuclear technology and blast them with some organic shit they prefer to call …….. Pyrethrins, chief agent of all plant kings, swift and lethal, instant death to those things that crawl, fly or otherwise ravage your plants.  I know a swift blast of this in the face would even thwart the blue meenies.

  Seriously, if you are infested and seriously infested, your best option for getting rid of them …them?  Mites.  Spider mites?  No, your plants…get rid of your plants along with the mites, seal up your grow area using caulk or whatever will seal it from the outside, especially the dirt where all your spiders will migrate from, and bomb the grow area with as lethal as a pesticide you can handle (following the directions, of course).  Yup, get rid of them.  Start over with fresh clean clones from somewhere else or start your whole process over with seed.  That should take 3-4 months in vegetative to reach maximum seedling vigor and then you’re 2months or so in bud before you fully enjoy the fruits of your labor.  Or, you could be 5-6 months down the road, not having done a thing still infested and getting a fraction of your potency, along with a bunch of lung-hacking useless fiber and carcasses and eggs.

  If you’re not seriously infested, there is everything from predator mites (carnivores, not recommended taking to bed with you), natural oils which smother the current crop of critters, natural nerve gas which will not harm you or your small animals in small doses, but will kill your fish and birds, and natural alkaloids which harm only insects.  Anything not recommended for food products should be avoided.  There are also stabilizers that don’t harm you when eaten, but deadly when smoked, that are used extensively in most natural products intended for pest purging.  So, what can you use?  almost anything fitting the above criteria, but not when flowers are showing.  Then you are left with few choices but consider a fine spray of water to knock off the bugs, raise the humidity (they stop feeding above 60% humidity), and wash any webbing, which can accumulate.  This stuff happens fast and will either wipe you out or give you extreme headaches if you don’t eliminate the problem.

  Pyrethrums are a good preventative in the vegetative stage, but unfortunately contain the stabilizers talked about earlier.  Available widely at any big store that includes any kind of gardening tools, pyrethrum has become a widely accepted practical weapon.  Beware, again, about using these products in the flowering stage.  They need to be used in a rhythm to thwart the hatching adults…bomb every three days, and bomb at least three times, if not four.

  New products, which could also be included in your toolbox, are the alkaloids made from plant extractions (like the pyrethrums, but a different family of pesticide).  They kill the bugs on contact like the pyrethrums do, and build a hostile environment for them.  They require rinsing off totally after their recommended treatments, and I recommend you continue the cycle once more, rinsing between and after cycles.  These may be carefully used in the flowering stage…don’t forget to rinse.  

  There is no magic cure, and a lot of hard work may be in front of you.  You should remove all infested leaves before you treat the plants, and a magnifying glass is appropriate for finding the pests.  You should also treat all surfaces with insect-specific oil, a mild bleach solution, or spray with a 50% rubbing alcohol/water mix all your non-living surfaces; the alcohol shouldn’t hurt your plants, either. 
 

Mr. M3rky
some Cool lynx:

(1)  http://www.greenair.com/sm90.htm
(2)  http://www.mycotech.com/horticulture/cinnamite.shtml

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  Study! There'll be a quiz later  

"Testing … 1,2,3 …" by Mr. M3rky

  Testing can take the guessing out of what you’re doing and can tell you about your plant’s cycles and what works best to keep everything stable and worry-less.  Meters are expensive, but let you keep in the optimal ph range for your method.  They can also tell you when your water is “dead”, hydro fans.  They let you know how wet your soil is and lots of other pertinent facts you’ll need to keep comfortable.

   Meters are available in portable, plug-in, and “built-in” in-line models depending on your needs.  Pick one with replaceable electrodes so you can reduce your long-term costs.

  Dirt, you can keep it simple by just acquiring a stick-type ph meter.  The ones with the probe attached separately with a wire usually are more precise and last longer.  They are widely available at garden stores.  A particular variety  I like is the Rapitest brand.  Hydro, you’ll need at least a ph meter and a tds meter.  Some people get away without these, but if you want to keep more accurate accounts of what works and what don’t, you may find they’re what you need.  My favorite one is the Hanna Gro Check meter, available in a combined unit, also.

  Ranges for your plant’s most successful life have been established and resemble the people who use them…quite varied, each with their own success story.  However, ph range is probably the most argued.  Veterans tell me to keep my ph high and when I listen and do what they suggest, I always come out way ahead.  Chances are they are not wrong and if you haven’t tried it how do you know?  I know that rock wool is alkaline, so I compensate by lowering my water ph to 6.5 in the vegetative stage and 6.3 in the flower stage.  I know this also helps because my nutrient is a salt based one, which should turn alkali, as it gets old or “dead”.  With dirt, however, I keep it above 7ph so the breakdown of organic material won’t become too acidic.  Not too much, just 7.2ph or so.  I don’t amend any further after that with a quick grow because there is no need…too little time to change the ph that much in dirt.  Nobody ever told me these things and you probably won’t come across this info until you need it.  By that time I may be gone or who knows what with the current federal climate.  So, use…test…be free.
 

Mr. M3rky
some Cool lynx:
(1)  http://www.genhydro.com/faq/ph/faqph.html
(2)  http://www.greenair.com/meters.htm
(3)  http://www.greenair.com/oaktoncat/phtestrseries.htm#pHTestr%20Series

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  Setting Up  

"Breakin’ Down the Setup" by Mr. M3rky

Set Up (& Breaking it down)… from Cheap to Keep.  For the apartment dweller (classic closet grows!) and those who can barely afford sunshine (or to wait for it, rather) as well as those with long-term systems.  FAQs by System Component or Area, like …

  The best way for me to keep everyone with different grows on the same page is with formulas.  If your math isn’t good, we can help, but this way you can ask someone an intelligent question and expect an intelligent answer.  And do this right, you have to read everything I wrote in the other columns, not to bore you, that’s how my puny brain works without over-heating.  You don’t have to read it in any order, just read it. 

  Area = length times width.  For example, an area 4 units long and 4 units wide (units are whatever you use for measuring) looks like this: 4u x 4u = 16 u.

  Medicinal marijuana or any of that kill bud you’ve tried or bought in the past was all grown under intense lighting.  To do that indoors, you need HID lighting, no matter how small of a system you have.  They make HID lights in a 100watt lamp, even.  Not that I’d recommend you go that low in watts, but keep within the science of HID and you’re on your way.  To keep your formula workable, use reflective enclosures to keep all the plant inside the maximum radius of the light beam.  Flat white paint reflects better than glossy and is second only to Mylar.  Aluminum foil and mirrors hold too much heat for your purposes.  Dutch masters have also been using that double-extruded black and white plastic sheeting for re-usable reflective boundaries because it was washable.  Mylar reflective properties break down as soon as any water comes in contact with it.  

  Watts/area is the next formula.  This is science, so trust in god.(ha ha} You need at least 50watts/square foot.  Dutch and Canadian masters use 600watts/meter sq.  So, in a 12” (inch) x 12” area, you’ll need a dedicated 50 – 90 watts from my experience.  I’ve read where anything over about 60watts/square foot is overkill and counter productive, and I’ve found that 90 is too many for most people to afford, and 80 works best for me if I can keep the heat out.  This one may generate some questions, so…

  Heat, temperature, humidity are the next pertinent topics.  Pot grows best in the 70’s during the day and 60’s at night.  It will survive most anything, I said best.  And specifically 73 degrees Fahrenheit for daytime and 65 at night.  A difference of more than 10 degrees really slows down production, so keep it in that range.  THC levels are highest at 73 degrees and lose an amazing amount of potency with the increase of every single degree of additional heat.  Pests are more active and horny in hotter rooms, so they will breed like crazy, and will mature up to ten times faster the hotter your room is.  Humidity should be kept between 40% and 65% for maximum results.  Lower humidity will increase water uptake, but will also accommodate those pests better.  Mites stop feeding voraciously where it’s over 60%, so aim for somewhere in there where you fit.  Anything over 65% encourages algae growth and rot type pathogens, mold and bacteria to develop, so stay away from that!  Plants will endure a mild freeze if their roots are well developed and will survive into the 100’s Fahrenheit, but precautions must be taken.  If you are indoors, anything over 90 degrees Fahrenheit will require you to pump in additional CO 2 to keep THC producing.  You are OK outside at that temp, but you must give them plenty of water every day.  Look out in the fall outside when the temp drops because the only warm spot for mold to grow might be the dewdrops on your buds, which have been heated up by the early sun’s refraction inside each one…the only spot you may have mold is all through your beautiful big ripe buds.

  The Inverse Square Law of Light is a formula, too, but on its head.  Don’t ask me why, but a plant twice as close to a light is getting four times the amount of light.  If you take a plant that is ten feet away and bring it to one foot away, it is getting 100 times the amount of light.  Yes, 4 times closer would be 16 times brighter, you geniuses.  So…Inverse Square Law of Light...remember it for your own final exam.

  Photoperiod sensitivity law is the next rule we follow.  All plants have somewhere in their genetics, recessive or dominant, instructions to respond to a 24 hour day period.  You will need at least 18 hours of light inside and the most recent science says that marijuana is not stressed by not having any darkness during the cloning stage and the vegetative stage.  This means that the plant will continue production of carbohydrates non-stop.  You can gain a 20% speedier turn-around with 24 hours of light than by keeping them at 18 hours.   …”Yes thank you, Theodore”…(he’s an old instructor of mine and I’m afraid he’ll see this and think I forgot something), but the truth is, is that plants react to the amount of darkness you throw at them.  Any amount of total darkness in a 24 hour period that gets close to about half (12 hours or approaching) triggers dormant hormones to change the cells structure from vegetative (leafy) to floral (buds).  This is called a short flowering plant because there are other kinds of plants (not marijuana) which blossom when the days are long and they are called long day flowering plants…there, you can save yourself all the college hours I spent learning this shit.  Any contributions will be made straight to my long over-due student loan account.  But don’t ask NORM’L to give me your money.  You and that student loan dude can share notes on how to find me.

  Ph is the next topic, I guess.  Plants like ours love the 6ph – 7ph range.  Technically ours is an acid loving plant, which is anything below neutral or 7ph.  Above 7ph all the way to the end of the ph scale (14ph) is considered alkali or basic (as opposed to acidic). Mix the two and they tend to cancel each other out.  That’s what you’ll be doing when you adjust the ph, just a little at a time so they don’t cancel each other out completely.  Dirt is best kept higher at around 7ph or neutral.  This allows for acid breakdown from organic stuff during the plant’s lifecycle.  Hydro, everyone in the latest positions of research are using around 6.5ph during the vegetative cycle and 6.2ph – 6.3ph during the budding stage.  But the science of it is this.  All elements are available in different percentages throughout the ph range of plants, but if they were to somewhere coincide at one  “peak” availability for plants it would be at 7.0ph.( http://www.genhydro.com/faq/ph/faqph.html

  Outdoor schedules would be our next one.  Your seeds should already be germinated or your clones selected and in a cold frame somewhere or under lights by late April.  Yes, you may use fluorescents for this stage.  Pick a permanent spot where they will get at least 8 hours of direct sunlight all through the season, or move your pots around to get the sun.  Remember to keep them out of view so you won’t get the obvious hassles.  Direct sun all day will, of course, give you way bigger and better plants, but we all work with what sun we can get.  Remember, at least 8 hours of direct sun.  In May, you may put out well-established little girls, but be sure to protect them from freezes especially overnight.  They will be there until somewhere in October if we get a long, hot, dry Indian summer.  Those years always have the best harvest.  Enjoy.
 

Mr. M3rky
some Cool lynx & other info:
(1) http://www.genhydro.com/photos/waterdiag.html
(2) http://www.genhydro.com/photos/waterkit.html
(3) http://www.genhydro.com/photos/pwercntrl.html
(4) http://www.genhydro.com/photos/24.html

a (potential!) formula for success 

Mr. M3rky's Magic Grow Formula
   
12 quarts perlite
5 cups bone meal
3 cups blood meal
½ cup Alaska Fish Fertilizer pellets (dry)
(You may use kelp instead of the fish fertilizer for trace elements)
2 quarts dolomite lime (prilled so it’s not dusty)
2 cubic feet premium potting mix

Mix well, let stand for two days, check and adjust ph as necessary to give you a solid 7.0ph – 7.2ph.  That’s it!  Inside or out.  If you find you’re making cement in your attempts to adjust ph, dilute the mix a little with fresh potting soil.  You may add organic calcium or a couple of calcium tablets to each bag for extra special results, but the dolomite lime should be sufficient for the calcium you’ll need.  Just add water, nothing else.  If your plants are too big, use bigger pots, but I can’t guarantee the same results if you throw any other chemicals in the mix. (  http://www.genhydro.com/media.html )

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  FAQS  

Frequently Asked QuestionS

1.  Lumens or wavelength, which is more important?
2.  Is G13 real?
3.  New grow, recently noticed the pistils coming from the internodes ... is Ok?
4.  What are the physical differences between a male and female marijuana plant?
5.  Can you tell me where to get the info I need for growing?
6.  What's the main force behind quality herb?
7.  What is SCROG?
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  Question: "Lumens or wavelength, which is more important?  Do fluorescents give off the right wavelength (soft white) and do they furnish enough lumens at a reasonable wattage?  I may be able to put together a space with 240-480 watts of fluorescents."

Answer: Fluorescents are great for starting plants ... seeds or clones, but to make them efficient finishing lights some customizing must be done.  The lamps (tech for bulbs) must be closer together than manufactured to give you the light intensity needed for your direct-sun-requiring tropical plants.  In order to do that, you must disassemble the fixtures and mount them closer together on a piece of plywood.  You still come out with only 1/3 the lumens you'd have with the same wattage sodium light.  In the equation, this results in more heat from the same wattage, which could be too hot.  So, for your money, a 400-watt sodium (pretty cheap) would net you more usable medicine.  From my experience, it's best to look ahead to the point when you run out ... not a good place to be.  You need to produce enough to keep you going w/out running out so your other medicine schedules won't be compromised, ie.  the interaction between meds or the replacement of narcotics w/marijuana and what that could mean when the pot is gone.  (Click here for all the FAQS).

  Lumens or wavelength?  Used to be lumens before they had specialty bulbs with color-corrected technology.  If you're on a budget, go for lumens.  Soft white gives off more red and is good for cloning (root production) and budding.  Notice the food is similar in these two stages also.  Cool white is bluer, which is good for the vegetative stage.  Technically, white or blue is hotter of a color as established by the term Kelvin.  3000 Kelvin is the color temperature tungsten gives off at 3000 degrees Fahrenheit.  But the fluorescent people label it opposite.  3000 Kelvin is good for the flowering stage and 3500 - 6000 Kelvin is good for the vegetative stage.

  Consider the greater efficiency of the high intensity discharge (HID) always before considering other sources of light.  HID include metal halide, high-pressure sodium, and mercury vapor (not a good choice, however).  Greater efficiency always means more light per watt and less heat per watt.

  Good luck, and don't kill yourself taking apart and re-hooking up a bunch of fluorescents.
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Question: Is G13 real? Stories abound since the release of American Beauty, but no concrete answers to the question. Everyone claims to have G13 seeds in their bank, but often it turns out to be a renamed variety (Such as Mr. Nice). I have my own story, about hitchhiking in the early '70s and sharing a roach with the driver. Best stuff I've smoked then or since ("Completely mellow high. No paranoia"). I swear I remember him telling me it was G13, but . . .

Answer:  G-13, the legendary "standing 8-count", in-your-face-potent strain was genetically altered by a US government marijuana cancer research facility to increase potency in the herb when there was an actual honest gov't program (among all the swag related dis-honest programs then and now).  When the facility was disbanded scientists who cared took clones with them to preserve their research. (http://www.angelfire.com/nz2/g13central/frames.html)  G-13 has all but disappeared in its original state, but there some reliable, extremely potent, high-yielding crosses available right here in our own state ... clones!  (Click here for all the FAQS).

  I am experimenting with a G-13 crossed with Hawaiian that is extremely potent, but leaves you rather breathless.  Anyone out there with another cross of G-13 or pure G-13, let me know … Please.

 Sharkey and K from High Times say they have pure G-13 which produces 26% THC.  How to get hold of them  is another question...you might write the editor.
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Question:  I am a new grower. I have two plants that are 6 wks old and are at 12 in. They are in a relatively small box with two 27W fluorescents above. 

  My question is this: Recently we have noticed the pistils coming from our internodes. This makes me happy but I don’t know why they are showing themselves at this time. I thought that only happened when you force the flowering (12hr dark periods). The thing is that we have been keeping the lights on for 20-24 hrs a day. Is this new development good, bad or just kind of there? 

 Answer: I will answer you the best way I can with the information you gave me.  The main thing I'm lacking is, are they cuttings or seedlings?  If they are cuttings and you already know their sex, cool.  If not, they may not be females at all, just exhibiting female traits as a juvenile.  This sometimes happens because of the tendency for all green plants to have hermaphroditic gene code to insure the propagation of the species even when both sexes are not present. 

         If you know their sex already (they would be clones or cuttings you got from someone or made from an earlier seedling), I would say that you don't have a problem.  Some varieties exhibit internodal pistils all the way through growth, even in the vegetative state.  This has been happening more frequently over the last 10 years when more seed companies started and more cross genetics appeared.

          To me this happens if I take a clone or cutting off a plant too late in the grow season outside when sex starts to show.  I've seen more cuttings that have been reverted from the bloom stage lately (they were taken off a flowering plant) and these plants seem to invariably carry this trait with them from clone generation to clone generation. 

         If this has happened to me, I consider it not to be a clean job of cloning because that is usually a sign of stress (I consider myself somewhat a perfectionist).  Usually this stress symptom is photoperiod related if it appears all of the sudden in a grow sequence with plants that you have been growing and are familiar with.  Hence, the unclean label from me.  This would mean I didn't do my homework soon enough and took clones a little late.  They would continue to produce from generation to generation, but would always have those annoying hairs during the wrong season.

         For you, don't worry.  Continue to grow them, the bigger the plant, the potential for more bud.  If they are seedlings, remember to grow them at least 12 weeks to achieve maturity, take clones and then force flowering with 12hours on, 12 off (the lights).  Clone under 24 hours light.  You'll need a clone chamber to keep humidity over 80%, root-tone, and 2" or 4" pots with potting soil or if you're in hydro, try those plugs you can get from Millennium Products (http://www.lifecircle.com/)  I highly recommend their way of growing to the novice or expert.  You can use the starting plugs for about any kind of system you could imagine; they're cheap and available in OREGON.  They will work great for dirt growers, too.  The local outlet is real friendly and will ship anywhere.  I dare you to match their prices anywhere, too.  They are in Grants Pass, however, so window shop on the web and give Matrix a call. 

         Try and increase your light with either more bulbs, a bigger light, or get them outside in May for some huge plants come October.  If you are in a hurry, consider the outside idea and when they get big enough, take clones and grow them inside all the way to finished bud.  You could take a clone(s) every week or two and keep a regular cycle of incoming buds growing inside with the big bonus of the mother plant harvest from outside in fall.
______________________________________________

Question:  What are the physical differences between a male and female marijuana plant?

Answer:  The males in adolescent stage exhibit facial hair and lower voices.  (Just kidding.) 

   Plants will show primordial (immature) sex glands at the intersection of stems and at the base of leaves.  At this stage they san be very similar, although most female varieties will exhibit a hair coming out of the pistil (name for female gland) mentioned earlier.  The male gland is called a stamen and has no hair.  A cluster of male flowers look like a tiny cluster of grapes while a female will have some hair and resemble the stuff you smoke (hopefully).

  Females in the same variety will almost always be shorter than the males so that they can receive the golden pollen spewed when the male flowers mature and open.  One tiny stamen will hold thousands of pollen grains, so be careful about leaving them around females unless you want seeds.  Males in the same variety will generally show flowers a few days earlier than the female hair exhibition that is soon to follow.  For production and your needs, the females are what you're after.

  Just because a plant shows primordial sex glands one way doesn't mean that it will be that sex when you get ready to flower.  I've grown a six-foot plant with female primordial glands and it turned out to be a male when forced to flower by giving it only 12 hours of light per day.  So, you get to know your plant better after the first or second generation.  The other way to guarantee a female is to get a female clone from somebody.

  I hope I answered your question.  In summary:

   Male flowers - spherical or slightly elongated spheres about the size of pot seeds (slightly smaller) in singular form or in clusters

  Female flowers - "hairy" pistils, also in clusters or individually disbursed

  How to tell before they flower without knowing ahead is not 100% accurate and should be avoided if a lot is at stake.  You may attempt to by looking for the primordial flowers at the base of at least the 3rd or 4th leaf node (look at the base where it attaches to the main stem).  You may need a magnifying glass.  Like I said, this method is not guaranteed.
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Question:  Hi, I have a doctor signed letter I'm mailing to the state today for medicinal. I need to start growing right away and don't know where to get seeds or what kind of lights to use. Can you tell me where to get the info I need for growing? 

Congratulations!  You are part of an awesome movement that I believe is equal to that of the Vietnam War Protest Movement.  If you got my e-mail address from the NORM'L website, please go to the first grow tips columns.  We are working hard to fill in the web skeleton, but I feel there is enough there to work with to get you started 

  Feel free to contact any of the organizations who promise help with lights and clones off the Biz page. Everyone is scrambling for donations of lights, etc., so let's be sure that the most needy get it first.  There several grow shops in the pdx metro area and more to come.  Rain or Shine, American Agriculture (?!), Light Manufacturing Company (a little pricey, though.... they really believe in profit margins and free enterprise). They have any kind of system you desire and as long as you don't mention marijuana, will help you with your system-specific questions.  Most of my knowledge has been gleaned over the last 20 years from these same shops.  A new shop is coming to Division St. in Portland, too.  "Flora-something" is the name … can't quite remember.

Still perplexed?  Please take the time to read the column and you'll end up with more specific questions or maybe even get the ones you have answered.  Please give us any feedback where possible.  Always here for you.
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Question:  Innate or Genetics?  Tell me Mr. M3rky, what's the main force behind quality herb, is it your  innate knowledge on this subject or is it based on the genetics of the plant itself.  I have pondered this questions and other great minds  have repeatedly pondered and pondered this eluding question.  I come to  you Mr. M3rky for the true answer. 

Answer:  A valid question, one many times pondered, but my autistic mind went straight to the answer.  Genetics, my friend, is your true answer.  Genetics have always ruled, even in our own society.  Great wars have been started over differences in our own human gene pool.

  Chromosomes will always dictate the results of your crop more than anything else in given a controlled environment.  Sure, different growers have different skills and some of the same plants will look different  grown under two different circumstances.  But give that same grower two varieties, one obviously better, and chances are high that the grower would have the same comparative results : the obviously better plant will still be better under those simple controls.

  Always go for the best strain you can get; a poor strain will not do much better for you than what it already is.  And, sorry to shoot down all you believers, but another generation or two will not increase potency;  you might understand your plant better after a couple of generations, but the only way to increase potency using the "generation" method is by crossbreeding using male pollen from a superior strain.  Even then, you have to in-breed it a couple of times to produce stable seeds.  Seeds you get in the first round will be quite varied, although most will resemble the mother, but not necessarily will be the same genetically.

  Thanks for your support and I look forward to your further questions.
_______________________________________

Question:  What is SCROG?  ... isn't in my vernacular, perhaps a synonym would jog something loose. 

Answer:  Happy to share the wealth, it is an acronym for SCReen Of Green. 

 If you're short of growing room, or even if you're not, you use a lower watt bulb (say, 250w or even 100w). The optimum effective range is ~18-24", so you configure some chicken mesh in a rough dish shape to take full advantage this. 

 Clones are placed 6-12" under the mesh in veg stage. As soon as they hit the screen the lights are cut back. At some point (can't remember) the clones are topped to encourage branching. The branches are trained to the screen to maximize the distribution of bud sites.   Time to harvest is cut way back and yield is maximum.   You're probably seen the technique.  I'd never heard it referred to as scrog until a year or two ago.  (thanx to Bruce A. for this contrbution)

_________________________________
email Mr. M3rky at: MrM3rky1@hotmail.com


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  Smile  

"You gotta be joking" by Mr. M3rky

  hehe...where are they when you need them?  I got this from a friend whose husband was an OPP officer....

"Hello, is this the FBI?" 

"Yes. What do you want?" 

"I'm calling to report about my neighbor Billy Bob Smith! He is hiding marijuana inside his firewood." 

"Thank you very much for the call, sir." 

The next day, the FBI agents descend on Billy Bob's house.  They search the shed where the firewood is kept.  Using axes, they bust open every piece of wood, but find no marijuana. 

They threaten & swear at Billy Bob and leave.  The phone rings at Billy Bob's house. 

"Hey, Billy Bob! Did the FBI come?" 

"Yeah!" 

"Did they chop your firewood?" 

"Yep." 

"Happy Birthday, Buddy!" 
 

hope you enjoy in the spirit intended!  Send yours to:
Mr. M3rky at
 MrM3rky1@hotmail.com
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