Hempy Bucket Feeding Schedule

Ok so ive been looking around and find all kinds of different feeding schedules for hempy buckets. Hempys guide says full strength start to finish, others say 1/2 or even 1/4. Also how often to add the nutes every watering, or feed skip a day, plain water, skip a day, feed kinda thing? Im new to the hempy bucket thing and would really love some insight on this.

progress to full strength (depends on strain/pheno learn to read the plant), feed, feed, feed, flush... ect

The idea with Hempy is that there's essentially a little reservoir at the bottom. The salts will be down there and by the time the roots make it to the bottom of the bucket they'll be ready to uptake full nute strength...

I would start off easy, easier to add more than take away... Then titrate the nutes as you see fit

I wait two weeks then start at 1/2 and quickly work up to full strength

best to allow the hempy to go dry before watering, so it depends on how big of bucket you have.

my 3 gallon bucket typically need water/feeding once a week, but temps can alter that

I know ur thread is old I just put my clone in all perlite n RW n rez n I can't get it to grow no roots in rez etc how often should I water clones just after putting em in the Hempy container my ppm is at 250 thank u

I see u didnt get a response to ur 1question...I went back to Hempy after 37 yrs of growing...really cant be beat if u do it right...running 100% perlite is fine, it doea require more watering early on..once the roots hit bottom its a better medium due to high air ratios...ur concern will be to keep that area around the root moist all the time till they bottom out...u CANNOT over water with that mix, nor do u want to waste much either...I would just give them a little every day (TOP WATER), but dont worry about a bunch of runoff early on...just keep them damp and U WILL KNOW WHEN THE ROOTS HIT BOTTOM...THEN u need to water until runoff to keep ur mix fresh....I use an air stone in mine...even thought original hempy doesnt call for it, IT IS BETTER FOR THEM....when root hit bottom in a Hempy, you know it, but when they hit bottom and there is an air stone, EXPLOSIVE GROWTH OCCURS....I have a tiny hole with a rubber stopper in one of my containers for collecting a sample to test pH and ppms...pH and your ppm are STILL VERY important for best growth...it seems many are not as concerned as much using hempy buckets...anyways, good luck with your grow...it works great and is simple as it gets...cpl pics...one drawing of how my buckets are done and one of current grow 15 days into flower...YT

As long as I don't see nutrient burn or nitrogen toxicity or something I feed everytime I refill the reservoir. As far as when to feed that's not cut and dry. Humidity, temperature and bucket size are all going to make that answer different. Just get used to the weight of when they're empty and go accordingly. My 3 gallons need watering every 36 hours or so.

When I ran hempy buckets my medium was 50% Perlite and 50% Coco mix. I watered them every other day with nutrients with runoff.

IMO, off and on feedings do not conform to what a plant is use to doing....It moreso a SAFE bet for those who either tend to overfeed, or have not yet learned how to READ their plants...learning to read your plant is CRITICAL to making anyone a good grower...it.is best to to start you plant light (as u did) and dont increase UNLESS the plant shows signs of wanting more...typically lighter new growth, lower fan leaves lightening, magnesium type def, like yellowing btwn the veins....BUT, you never wait till those conditions take hold...when u see your plants multiple times a day, you recognize the most subtle changes...When u react then, they dont skip a beat....Slightly under feeding can easily be adjusted, where as OVER FEEDING caused Much More Stress, OR WORSE...so its BEST to feed with every watering...just learn how...it creates a much more stable enviroment for the roots, and ultimately the plant...after close to 4 decades growing, I am the Self-Proclaimed King of running light nutes....I read threads where ppl have their ppms up at 1000, 1300 AND EVEN HIGHER....that will work, but regular flushings are then required...I dont think I have set my ppms any higher than 600, maybe 670 (max) during heavy flower...When I did DWC that # is 200ppms lower...Nor am I a mad scientist mixing potions...I use the Dyna line of nutes...One for grow, one for flowering...IMO, its THE BEST single use nute on the market...I WILL SUPPLEMENT it in flower just a little with 'Monster Bloom'..has no 'N' but super high 'P'....I find it DOES assist with larger blooms...I dont use much, and since its phosphorus, there is no concern about Nitrogen toxicity, which is the #1 problem when overfeeding.... Point being, plants grow best with a stable feeding program....just learn how by reading your plants...you will be AMAZED how low of numbers a plant will THRIVE ON....Makes finishing a breeze...I dont have to flush...just cut my numbers in half 2 weeks out and totally withhold the last week and they yellow out perfectly since the have never had an opportunity for ANY build up...

Another pic from earlier in my current grow...shows more about drain system and air lines going into each bucket...just a small tray for run-off...u learn after a cpl waterings about what each will hold without wasting much...there are certainly a few medium choices that work well...I like perlite with 20% vermiculite...the vermiculite is purely to hold additional water for best start up at transplant...all perlite works too, just require a little more frequent waterings till roots bottom out in the rez.....really is an efficient and EFFECTIVE grow method...it works as well as any of them...As with any system, once u understand it, AND understand the plants ur using, its game on!!!

A little bud porn while I'm burning some Cheese Candy (AKA Delicious Candy)....bud under the orange hue of the HPS is White Widow extrm....the one taken with natural lighting is Cheese Candy....that happened to be one of a few free seeds from an order and I got lucky...not know as a heavy yielder, it is my BEST yielder right now, AND happened to be beautiful, super frosty, super potent, and plays some real neat tricks with your vision..LOL...this crop has (2) Dr. Krippling Incredible Bulk plants in it, so most likely, they will trump on the yield thing...Next crop had these strains benched for 1 game to start some seeds I aquired from Bomb Seeds...especially THC bomb, which I have high hopes for...I DONT HAVE a pic of the Incrd.Bulk...soon enuf and CERTAINLY will have more grow pics as this crop matures...Day 17 of flower is starting, so the fun, gooey pics are coming in a few weeks....YT

Check it out, of the 10 THC Bomb regular seeds, one cracked and produced 3 tails....never even saw one with 2....has 2 long ones and 1 short one on top of those...gotta be pretty rare cause it took me 37 yrs to see this happen..LOL..cant wait to see what it does...

My first bud pic of this grow...17 days into flower...all bud porn is good bud porn...they gotta start somewhere...this is an incredible bulk top...its taken with my phone but my phone does pretty good and shows enuf detail clarity....already shows nice premature trichs forming.. there WILL BE much larger bud pics coming...YT

yankeetransplant said:

View attachment 3963309 Another pic from earlier in my current grow...shows more about drain system and air lines going into each bucket...just a small tray for run-off...u learn after a cpl waterings about what each will hold without wasting much...there are certainly a few medium choices that work well...I like perlite with 20% vermiculite...the vermiculite is purely to hold additional water for best start up at transplant...all perlite works too, just require a little more frequent waterings till roots bottom out in the rez.....really is an efficient and EFFECTIVE grow method...it works as well as any of them...As with any system, once u understand it, AND understand the plants ur using, its game on!!!

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Nice setup!
How much perlite gets back to the drain trap?

None...the inside of those pvc connections going into the buckets have threaded caps...each cap has a bunch of small holes drilled in them, so they function almost like screens....AND, the hydrotron layer, at the bottom of each bucket, is just high enuf to cover those caps too...If u just had OPEN ENDED pvc going into the bucket, YOU WOULD KEEP LOSING A BUNCH to the point of having to redo it....preparation ALWAYS makes life a lot easier...YT

yankeetransplant said:

None...the inside of those pvc connections going into the buckets have threaded caps...each cap has a bunch of small holes drilled in them, so they function almost like screens....AND, the hydrotron layer, at the bottom of each bucket, is just high enuf to cover those caps too...If u just had OPEN ENDED pvc going into the bucket, YOU WOULD KEEP LOSING A BUNCH to the point of having to redo it....preparation ALWAYS makes life a lot easier...YT

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I tried it with mesh screens over the end of the hose but vermiculite would block it every time.
I really dislike vermiculite now because of that problem.

There is nothing wrong with using straight perlite either....I water every 3 day now and I will do a watering once around the medium surface to keep the whole mix fresh and clean and the next watering, I will go straight down that vertical 2in pvc tube I have in each bucket...that goes straight down to the Rez without washing it thru the mix...EVERY NOW AND THEN, I may feel the need to rinse the ECA out, and using a gallon or so, straight down that 2in pvc, makes short work of it....I NEVER had issues in past with the PVC caps clogging with perlite or vermiculite...As long as u dont have complete blockage, your fine...even a slow drain is ok, as long as it drains...Those who have modified with a drip coming back from the waste (and/or waste with new solution they add), REALLY NEED make sure the drain system, at the bucket exit, is in GOOD working order...They could easily over flow a whole bucket...OR, not have them over flow, but stay WAY over filled with a high water line...A small pc of clear tubing on the outside of the bucket makes a good visual level...a little elbow fitting (side of bucket, down low), with the clear tube attached, running up the bucket side will show exactly how deep the water in the bucket is....think I mentioned I have one bucket right up at the closet door with a little 3/16 hole drilled down low on the side...its corked with a small rubber stopper...at any given moment, I can pull the plug and collect a few tbsp of water to check the pH and ppms....I ALWAYS know what I give them, but a dbl check of solution (right out of a buckets rez), is nice to know EXACTLY what ur roots are in...It bubbles around with the airstones and plants are constantly feeding, so your pH and ppms can CERTAINLY DRIFT....next watering you know exactly what to adjust them with....OR, immediately, if your #'s are out to lunch for some reason....Hempy buckets are a beautiful thing...so easy, you can feel guilty hearing about ppls roots rotting in their DWC....just kidding, a properly run DWC is fine..As are any hydro system if u run them correctly....but a slightly modified Hempy with air stones will make anyones 1st crop a HOME RUN....I tell ppl all the time, Hempy buckets ARE NOT just for beginners...its for ANYONE who wants QUALITY, without all the bells and whistles, and a lot less work...Sounds like a no brainer to me...You do what works and works well...the less complex and the less 'PARTS', The fewer things that can go wrong...The hydroponic systems mfg'ers want everyone to believe we all need complex set ups or U CANT grow decent meds, they stand to make millions...I fell for every system made as they evolved over the years...Now it all came back down to a simple modified Hempy bucket...

Cpl pics from night 18 just ending...one is a minute before the light went off (orange hue from HPS Light), and the other is just after the light went off (more natural lighting from camera flash)...This is the fun period...heavy stretch is gone and its time to just pack on bud weight...I have them on 550 ppm (total) of Dyna-bloom and a little Monster Bloom now...I only put a tsp of Monster Bloom into a 5 gal mix...Very high phosphorus goes a long way...Other than that, my mix gets a little superthrive....The Dyna line of nutes is pretty complete...I doubt, I will have to raise the ppms...typically, I NEVER see a need for any higher than 600 ppms max...Before I went back to Hempy, I WAS doing a water culture type system (B4 going back to Hempy), but mine was done with a shallow water rez...I used SM-90 for a rez treatment (basically an organic disinfectant)..now that I am back into a contained bucket, I swapped to Hydro-Guard (beneficial bacteria treatment)...I prefer Beneficials in this type of system...in fact, I am going to try Mykos extreme gardening innoculant on the next crop...hear great things about it....there are a lot of opinions that say u can still use SM-90 with beneficials...You CANT, in fact, u cant use H202 either....Sm-90 (and H202), both KILL bacteria...Doesnt matter if the bacterias are good or bad for your plants, SM-90 and H202 doesnt know or care which bacterias are wanted, it just wants to kill them.....SM-90 is great product, just cant use it with your bennies...Those that tend to profit from a product, may be prone to say otherwise, if u catch my drift...Enuf about treatment options....More pics to come as the crop now evolves....YT

Quick update on my multiple root seed...it produced 2 seedlings, one much larger than the other so far...Not even sure if its female yet?...most likely genetic clones if each other regardles of gender since its a split embryo......We shall see!!!

yankeetransplant said:

Quick update on my multiple root seed...it produced 2 seedlings, one much larger than the other so far...Not even sure if its female yet?...most likely genetic clones if each other regardles of gender since its a split embryo......We shall see!!!View attachment 3964704

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I'd cut the littlest one off and move forward