Sixteen Top Mainline - Fallponics Vol 1.

Why hellooooo! (Mrs. Doubtfire voice)

Well I’m about 105 days in and 100 days behind on this post. Start date, April fools, expected harvest date, second week of August. I have grown off and on for the past 18 years, first tried it 20 ago.

This is my comeback, been too long, 4 years, new system, new room, new plans. Always wanted to do hydro and I always want to make steps forward with every grow, gear, equip, experience and knowledge.

Feel free to comment, I will be adding some old start pics and I will add updates and some more recent pics as I sort them. I’m using this post to share my outcome on my first hydroponic experience. Had a few mistakes but was able to rectify them swiftly, plus one for the response time in hydro+! A different beast and I like it... Ok, on with it.

6x7x9.5 room, vented with 2x 520 cfm fans, 8k window shaker, 70 pint dehu, 1k de 600 se. RDWC, 1800gph mag, 1” intake 3/4” manifold, 8x3/4” spray bars with 2 5/16” holes per bar/site. (Pic has spray bar before I shortened them) 28 gallon sites x 5 with control site, operating capacity 75-85 gallons (depending on my current brew). RO water, Lucas, micro bloom calimagic, later on (currently really) BigBud (yeah fuck an otherwise).

I can’t really tell in the younger plant pics what topping I have going on, pictures will be random but the later pics, I will identify the strains and topping methods. I have some Peyote Critical, Critical Kush, Cookies Kush. I didn’t want to use my other beans until I ran this setup once, it’s going to be killer next round and a fall/winter grow(fuck you heat).

That took too long and of course I’m high, let’s get this shit started. I will post a few random pics of the veg and be more updated on the flowering, I’m currently around day 45 in bloom on this run.

Rockwool was new to me, rapid rooters on hand now.





Could of put it deeper, plants spit it out later in life anyways, you will see.. bit of spotting on the one, was around the time micro hard water lied to me, haven’t used since.











this takes us to about May 10th

Pics of the to be 16 top plant and group shot, last pic takes us to May 21st

Looks like the 16 while it had 8... just found the pic.

Let’s fast forward a little... we go tree mode pretty soon. These pics are from June 10th..
16 top, can see the Y clearly, it was achieved by spreading with wire rods.

June 13 pics, we already flipped after 60-65 days of veg.. had to clear some brush, nothing compared to later..

June 22nd, starting to stack, this is a group shot and the 16 top peyote critical for the last 2 pics.

Too be continued, time line will tighten up now, bud shots inbound...

June 24th pic, the 16 top is what can be seen in the pic up to the cord at the left. At this point the canopy still required thinning. There is a 8 top behind it and 2 8 tops in the sites to the left. I make use of that hole there later..

Let’s take it to July 1st, here’s a bud shot of one of the 8 top PC colas.



Here’s a bud shot of the 16 top on July 2nd, Cookies kush 8 top spearing the background.

8 top cookies kush in the back, was always a dark plant but I also fought n tox on another. The problem child critical kush. They seemed to thrive so I just let ride. Could of very well been as the same problem child might of had a reveg event. I double checked the room regardless. Might of happened when I did some work outside the room on some exhaust as well. Oh well, still on track. Pics @ day 39 of the flip.



8 top PC frosting more then the 16..



16 top PC



16 top underside.. taproot ripped the basket a new asshole, pics @ harvest of that.

We are up to July 5th now, and they are getting chonky.. been running 1.7 1.9 ec but tonight I cut it to 1.6. Removed, doubled my add back but only half nutes, drop was perfect. I will assume they will eat 20-30 plus ppm tonight, anything over 1.8 right now they quit feeding. I’m going to drop it and monitor the slight burn. Yeah I will reference both ppm .5 or EC, I assume you guys can do the quick math. I like ppm still but whatever. Fucking critical kush is showing a cal def but what else is new, I yanked 3 of them for being a pos. The one left is throwing 4 big colas, pics later.

3 of the 4 bigger colas, around 20” and starting to fill after a crazy stretch, plant reminds me of a big leafy outdoor. Possible heavy N reveg, not sure. This strain reminded me why I shouldn’t of ran any Barney’s. Oh well, starting to stink, the CC is overpowering (sourish??) the rest and should yield decent. Not a great pic, big plant. I have a better pic coming up from last night and today.

Here’s a July 11th pic of a couple of the 16’s colas. Day 45 12/12

J232 said:

Here’s a July 11th pic of a couple of the 16’s colas. Day 45 12/12

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Man is that the famous critical genetics at work? Huge. I've always wondered how they smoke. Reminds me of Big Bud or God Bud.

Khyber420 said:

Man is that the famous critical genetics at work? Huge. I've always wondered how they smoke. Reminds me of Big Bud or God Bud.

Click to expand...

I’m kinda at a loss for this peyote critical, it’s been amazing in every aspect, it takes crazy feed or light, grows super fast. And it has some nice structure and lots of trich already. Super hungry in the stretch. I have a actual critical mass tucked in the corner and a pre 98 bubba kush as well (no topping). I have a god bud cross lined up next.

3 of the 8 top PC seen here, that cola in the back is the pre 98 I left to die under the canopy, 2 week veg and now a monster, no idea lmao, be some diff flav to smoke I guess, didn’t have the heart to kill it. July 12th, so now we are current and on day 46 of the flip. 4-5 weeks to go who knows. Cola on the left is about 12”, different bud structure then the 16 top PC, narrow sativa leaf as well, might be the 1k de above this girl... bad pic, not a photographer

In week six, I find it odd that one cola on one plant is fading, picked a fan for closer inspection, I don’t know, just going to ignore it. Here’s a pic of critical kush in week 6 about 5.5ft tall. Not overall impressed with this plant or strain, interested to see it finished though. Was hard to get this plant happy in a common res, was border n tox might of re vegged weeks ago and loves spotting up if I don’t tailor the calmag.

Colas are filling out now, was bit concerned for a couple weeks. This plant is a 8 top and impossible to get a decent pic. Yeah I beat back some colas to close the door nowadays. Plants also a little bitch that burnt a few times, nobody else complained...

My biggest concern right now is the plants breaking the baskets and going into the sites. The 16 top, I can’t guess the weight. I had searched for big lip baskets and I thought I had it. I’m almost thinking a bucket lid would of worked better now, no doubt. New pics tonight.. post #10 shows the load on the site lid. And fml, opened the door this morning and the plant behind the one I just mentioned was tipped over resting on its mate, I need a rubber suit to get in with them now or I come out smelling like a fresh bud and I’m sticky af. Stress level rising overall, haven’t done a res change in I don’t know, add back well over 80 gallons, 5-7 gallons daily maintaining 1.4-1.7 (I’m looking for the spot) and 5.8-5.9ph. Starting to think 6 might of been a bit better, it dips to 6 once and awhile but really it’s been 5.8 for most it’s life and 5.9 more so in flower.

Missed pics, ended up doing a 30 gallon water swap, wanted to down the EC yet add a good dose of fresh nutes, ended at 1.5, they should like it. Grab pics before lights on tomorrow, got the selfie stick out

Little more concerned with my single yellowing fans today, looks like fade but tripped out because it’s one of like 50 tops. Might see it in the pics this eve. Totally looks like P def but fucked if I know how, it’s got plenty now after last night regardless and it’s only one branch, I’m prob chintzy with the calcium too, rolling with it now.