Terpinator, Big Bud, and NPK

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-Nutrient feed
-Adjusted AC timer in Master (+1 hr)

VEG
300 ml Base nutrients
1000-1100 ppm
pH 5.9
Late feed
About 18 gallons

HPS Veg wasn't as wilted as earlier watering days, which is interesting considering they were in recovery from trimming and cloning. The trees that weren't trimmed were actually more wilted than the others. There may have been more water available since the drain bucket was nearly filled to the top, but it is possible that trees with less foliage require less water. This could be attributed to the idea that with less foliage, photosynthesis is taking place at a lower rate. If this holds true, lights should actually be raised slightly following a trim to compensate for loss of calcium and other nutrients that are lost during photosynthesis. If not, a feed is absolutely necessary to compensate for any nutrient loss post-trimming.

MH Veg is still produced desired results. I will postpone topping until plants are ready for HPS, since vertical growth tends to be dramatic during the first weeks of HPS. Keeping the heads of the plant level with each other without topping is tricky, but with adequate spacing and constant rearranging, I should be able to transfer them to HPS without any issues.

CLONES
Growth in the older trays seems stagnant except for GSC and Abusive. It's possible that the Phantom clones were actually too weak to root quickly, although I'll have to remove the cubes from the trays and examine them closer tomorrow. Nevertheless, if the newer trays root within the next two weeks as they should, the process is still keeping to the schedule for transplanting to T5. I'm looking forward to getting these newer clones started, as they are more desirable and marketable strains.

MASTER
300 ml Base nutrients
150 ml Terpinator
150 ml Overdrive
Estimated 1200-1400 ppm
pH 5.9
Early feed
About 18 gallons

Trees are ripening as expected. If the canopy had been fuller, Bubba could have compensated for the low yields of the other strains, but it seems like it still won't be enough. I'm still considering other reasons why the Master has turned out the way it has.

One possible cause of the low yields is the use of wider pots. Transplanting from PW Mids to these pots could have left a gap in the bottom of the pot. I also didn't need a lot of soil to transplant to these pots, which means that there's a smaller volume of root space. These pots tend to dry quicker than PW 5-gals, which could also be a factor. With the wider mouth, I'm forced to water a wider surface, and perhaps there is an inconsistent mix of nutrients within the soil given that my nozzle hits a narrow area. The only way to know is to completely flush them out, which is problematic since standard flushing practice requires 3 times the water needed to fill the pot. Given that Phosphoload was added in this rotation and ripening is practically ahead of schedule, I think I can afford to spend an entire week or more flushing this room out before harvest.

It's also likely that overfeeding may have occurred, which would also necessitate a thorough flushing. I'll be able to better ascertain what really happened here while I observe how the plants react from this flush. I'll be looking at changes in the pistils, leaves, and top colas. If the plants show signs of returning to normal development, overfeeding would have likely been one of the primary reasons for the low yield.

MIDDLE
300ml Base nutrients
150ml Terpinator
1000-1100 ppm
pH 5.9
About 18 gallons
Dark feed

Vertical growth is beginning to stall, although I counted more branches breaching the second level trellis. SCROG hasn't had the same adverse effect that it had in the Master, which is fortunate considering these trees were seemingly weaker on Day One. Powdery mildew is still being held at bay through fungicide and possibly because of the dehumidifier and decent air flow through the canopy. The Abusive tree in the back corner has gotten taller, and I'm sure that the top cola will be too close to the light. If I'm going to bend the stalk to prevent overgrowth, now would be the opportune time. I'm refraining from trimming excess branches so as not to hurt the plant development until next week.

Soil was drier than usual, but I was cautious about overwatering two days ago. I was generous with the feed today. I was hesitant to use Terpinator, but decided to use it considering it was used throughout my 4.5 harvest.

TERPINATOR AND BIG BUD
Terpinator is a 0-0-4 supplement, said to increase terpinoids and stimulate growth of essential plant oils. The only thing I've noticed is that it enhances the odors of the plants, although it seemed to have favorable results in the 4.5 harvest. It's hard to say what else it does exactly, if anything, and whether or not it is actually useful, but increasing the odor would theoretically increase market value since buyers are focused on superficial elements of the product like smell and taste.

One thing to note about Terpinator is its concentration of K. Potassium is a catalyst for the synthesis of carbohydrates, metabolic processes, and overall consumption of other nutrients. A potassium deficiency will result in yellow/orange leaves and lower yields, as the plant will not be able to metabolize all the nutrients it receives, including light.  A toxicity, on the other hand, will lessen the absorption of calcium, magnesium, zinc, and iron. It's interesting to note that a calcium toxicity will affect potassium absorption in the same manner, so a balance between calcium and potassium must be achieved along with other nutrients.

Given success in the past using equal parts of Advanced Nutrient's 3-part base, I will be sticking to that with regards to NPK, as it should already give me the desired NPK ratio throughout veg and bloom. AN suggests adding Voodoo Juice, Big Bud, B-52, and Overdrive in bloom, but without calculating NPK ratios it's hard to determine if these supplements, with the exception of Overdrive, will do anything to increase yields cost-effectively.

Big Bud in particular functions the same way as Terpinator, but includes half the amount of phosphorus as potassium. I may have used Big Bud once in the 4.5 harvest, but I haven't considered it a necessity for strong yields. It is also very expensive, at $230 for 2.5 kg. Since it's recommended use is through Week 2-4, one tablespoon per feed at moderate usage would equate to 120 grams per rotation, which would allow me 20 rotations. Not bad, but if it does nothing, or has adverse effects on the yield or quality, it'll be a significant loss that will be compounded by small profits from lower yields in the future.