story and photos by HundredGramOZ Looking for explosive growth and massive yields leads one to try many
different growing systems and techniques over the years. In this story I would like to share some of the things that I’ve learned about growing in coco with a drip system that drains to waste (DTW).
The majority of my growing life was spent growing in organic soil, using commercial nutrients along with compost teas, and it was great! My plants seemed
happy to grow in 12 liter pots, watered every two days, using wet-dry cycles. I was also happy growing like that!
Then I started to grow in coco with drippers, and I was hooked instantly. Everything was showing explosive growth rates, thick white root masses, and the ultimate yield went up 20-25%.
Here is photographic evidence of what I saw:
4 Weeks Root Growth
5 Days Growth Comparison Pictures
Coco is not soil and it should not be treated like soil.
Coco is a hydroponic medium. Some like to call it
‘semi-hydroponic’ because it is more forgiving than full hydro. Ultimately it is a soil-less growing medium.
The trick to the coco is that you could water coco like you water soil, letting it dry out completely between waterings every other day or so - and you will get soil-like results. But, if you water coco a few times per day you will really reap the rewards of hydroponic results in this more stable medium.
When dialing the watering schedule it’s important to take into consideration the size of pot that your using and the size of your root mass.
For example if you put some freshly rooted clones into 6.5 liter pots, and start watering them three times per day you will run into some problems.
You can over-water your plants in coco if you don’t have a well developed root system.
It is easy to build your root system from the beginning.
When I pot up a freshly rooted cut I let it have wet-dry cycles for a few days, then I slowly up my watering.
Chem D - Day 31 Flowering, the ultimate yield was 9.25 ounces, grown in a 6.5 liter pot.
At the end of week one I’m watering once per day. I aim to be watering three times per day by the end of week two. Once the root system is developed, it is very very hard to over water. They will take all you can throw at ‘em and ask for more.
I also think it’s important to mention that coco doesn’t require the same size of a pot compared to soil. I have grown plants yielding 9.25 ounces in a 6.5 liter pot.
Less is more! Unless you are looking for giant trees, don’t go over 6.5 liters.
If you are aiming for 1 gram per watt, then work out how much you need from each plant and pick your pot size accordingly. For example, if you're growing 6 plants with 600w, you will want an average of 3.5 oz per plant. Bear in mind that the above Chem D yielded nearly 10oz grown in a 6.5 ltr. pot. You really don’t need or want a big pot when using this method.
I like to add hydroton at the base of my pots, this assists in drainage. I also add layer of hydroton at the top of the coco to help slow down evaporation.
I’d highly advise you to do those 2 things for an extra
‘kick’.
Once you water three times per day, your plants will start to grow super fast, with FAT stalks, branching and growing like crazy. It really is fun seeing the
explosive growth rate. I feed three times per day, right up to when flower stretch is over. Then I bang up the waterings to five times per day, right into the swellage mode and the plants respond greatly to this.
When you feed a plant you aren’t just giving it fresh nutrients, you are also giving fresh oxygen to the
roots. The nutrient solution saturates the medium and pushes out the stale O2. As the solution works its way down the medium it draws in fresh oxygen from the top. This is one of the reasons why I think multi feeds works so well with coco. You are giving your plants access to more fresh oxygen.
Another huge advantage to growing with coco DTW, is the fact that when watering, you get a little runoff each time, which goes to a waste tray or reservoir. That little bit of runoff ensures that each and every time you water your plants (three to five times per day) you are also washing away excess salts., Salt buildup can be a problem in coco and you have to flush it out to get rid of the excess salts. Once you get that little bit of waste run-off from each watering you are effectively flushing it out every time you water. This means that you don’t have to do a manual flush until the end of flower when you do your ‘final flush’.
If you don’t already use it, then I can highly
recommend a product from House & Garden called, Drip Clean. I’ll not go into the science behind it
because all that information is easily accessed on the Internet, but this product will ensure that excess salts are washed away. Drip Clean attracts salts and other build up, it helps to purge them from your medium, and it also does a great job keeping your drippers clear.
Another thing that I’ve noticed about growing in Coco
to feed ‘little but often’. Just like how a bodybuilder or an athlete breaks their daily caloric intake into 6-8 meals a day to keep their metabolism in peak working order.
From my experience, I see the same applies to plants grown in coco. Instead of watering your plants at a high EC/ppm once every few days, break it up into 3-5 smaller strength feedings each day and watch how your plants react. Remember, plants need a developed root system before you use the multi-feeding method.
Once I start the multi-feeding I like to keep the EC at 1.3/650ppm, I let the run-off tell me if the plants require more or less feed. If the waste EC rises by a point or two, then I know they are getting too much.
So I adjust my EC accordingly and vice versa.
If you have been growing in soil, and want to
experience something new, and IMHO better, then give Coco DTW a whirl! Everyone that I’ve helped convert has never looked back.
Technical notes:
I build my own drip system with 16mm feed pipe going from the pump to a manifold with 4mm feed nipples.
KarmaTrain - 8 Weeks Harvest Grown in 6.5 liter pots
Tent Shot - 54 Days Flower
My pump is a MaxiJet 1000, it’s flow rate is 1000 liters/
hour, with 24 drip heads.
pH: I like to keep my pH at 5.8-6.0 right up to the end of flower stretch. Once the plants have stopped stretching and start to put their energy into bud production, I keep my pH at 6.0-6.2. There are variables that make the exception. For example if I think they look a little bit Nitrogen toxic (during veg or flower,) I’ll keep the pH at 6.2 because at this pH less nitrogen is available. Nitrogen is more freely available the closer you get to 5.8.
For the timer I use an Intelligent Watering System Minute/Second Timer, it really is a nice bit of kit.
For drip stakes I use the little blue fast flow ones. I find them good but they can get clogged every once in a while. The drip clean helps take care of that though. If you can’t get them, then get the basket stakes, they are great.
In Closing...
I’d like to give a big thank you to Bush Dr. - he has been like a teacher to me, and is an excellent grower with a lot of experience. Without him, I’d most likely still be growing in soil.
Thank you Bush Dr!
Peace HGO