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Black Banana and MAC 1 Sea Of Green

Black Banana and MAC 1 in a sea of green. There are 36 plants, 20 Black Banana and 16 MAC 1 in a 2 x 4 flood tray. Pots are 5.5 inch. Clones were vegged in small pots of coco and then buried in grow stones. Lighting is HLG 650R and nutrients are House and Garden Aqua Flakes. Training is called one node and flip and developed by the Jungle Boys.

Black Banana And MAC 1 Sea Of Green Day 14

Plants are doing really well. The MAC will be shorter than the Black Banana and seems to require lower light levels. So it is in a block on the end of the tray and seems very happy there.

At this point my HLG 650 R is partly dimmed down and over 3 feet away from all plants. My par levels are about 500-700 and plants seem good with it.

Daily Light Integer Or DLI And CO2 Levels

I have been doing a lot of research on DLI or daily light integer. With a LED like the 650 R it is very easy to oversaturate your plants especially in a small space. DLI is simply a way to measure how much light a plant gets in a day. Cannabis is a very high light plant but there are limits to how much light it can use. This is directly dependent on how much CO2 it has available.

As an example a plant at 400 micromoles gets by fine on 400 ppms of co2 which is an ambient level. But at 500-600 par it needs about 800 units of co2 and at 1000 about 1400 units. If its not there the plants cant use all the light they get.

I was always told a par of 1000 was all a plant can use without co2 so that is what I aimed for. Turns out it can cause problems like fox tailing and reduced trichome production. I am not running co2 at this time. So for this grow I will be dialing things back and my plants look much happier. I will probably raise levels later in flower and go from 12 to 11 hours on though.

Leaf Stripping Day 18

Plants were leaf stripped on day 18. The Black Banana makes really large leaves and they needed to come off. Air circulation is very important for plant health, especially in a closet grow.  Five days later you would never know any leaves were removed.

The MAC 1 did not require a stripping although I did selectively remove a few larger fan leaves. I am seeing trichomes on the larger leaves after adjusting my DLI. Usually only the bud and the small sugar leaves were heavily frosted. I actually expect better trichome coverage after lowering it.

If you are interested in learning more about DLI here is a link to a video from Wolverine Grown on YouTube   https://youtu.be/iTgbckgb1Dg

Day 18 Leaf Stripping

I decided to leaf strip these plants. Black Banana makes really large fan leaves. I wanted light to get to all the bud sites and I also wanted to make sure air could circulate through the grow.

The MAC 1 really did not need to be stripped. I did remove a few selected leaves here and there. I also removed some lower bud sites that had regrown.

 

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Day 28

After leaf stripping light and airflow have been enhanced by the leaf strip. The girls never skipped a beat and by day 21 you could not tell they had been stripped.

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Black Banana And MAC 1 Sea Of Green Day 49

Everything has been going well, in fact better than expected. The MAC 1 was flowered smaller than I usually do but the buds dont seem any smaller. The Black Banana has stacked really well and buds are large and well shaped. This is a strain I have grown for years and this might be my best crop ever.

I removed some fan leaves to allow more light to the lower buds and I had to put in a second trellis net because the Black Banana colas were starting to fall over because of their weight. I think the leaves were actually propping them up.

So I would attribute the differences to applying DLI to my grow. The MAC 1 has more trichomes particularly on the larger leaves. I think it is a lower light plant. The BBC stacked better and the bud shape is different. More conical whereas before the tops were flatter and showed signs of foxtailing.

DAY 49 BUD SHOTS

 

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Black Banana and MAC 1 Sea Of Green Day 61 Harvest Time

Because I am running a 11 on and 13 off flower cycle plants will generally finish a few days earlier than normal. So the leaves were purple, a sign of a good flush. The plants were not drinking much which is another sure sign the end is near.

Checking the trichomes showed they were cloudy with a few amber. I like to harvest at this point because as the amber increases the THC begins to drop so this is the perfect harvest time for me. Some like more amber but I dont want weed that couchlocks me.

 

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Black Banana and MAC 1 Day 61 Pictures

MAC 1 SOG HOUSE AND GARDEN GROW

This is a  Mac 1 SOG and House And Garden grow with their Aqua Flakes and some of their flower additives like Bud XL Top Booster and Top Shooter. These are really healthy looking plants but you should have seen them as clones.

These girls were looking pretty rough as young clones but after a couple of weeks of the Aqua Flakes and some badly needed calmag they turned right around. Here is what they looked like after transplanting into net pots filled with growstones.

They were rooted in small 2 inch pots filled with coco but they were not doing well which is why I decided to get them under my HLG lights and test the House and Garden Aqua Flakes.

You can read my full H&G review on my sister site here:

https://420dotcom.com/house-and-garden-aqua-flakes-review.html

They were given some Roots Excelurator and it really helped them pop some nice roots. I found problems with my other nute line resulting in bad calcium uptake even though I was supplementing with calmag. But the House and Garden seemed to make these elements more available to the plants. They also got a foliar spray of New Millenium Lightning Start which also made a big difference.

Some people said I should trash them after posting a video of them on Instagram right after transplant but I knew they just needed some TLC. I am glad I did not listen to them! Because now they look like they are on track to be my best MAC 1 SOG to date.

MAC 1 ROCKING OUT DAY 30

Very happy with this grow and House And Garden  nutrients. The plants are stacked better and the buds are larger than previous grows.

 

DAY 63 BUDS HAVE BLOWN UP

So this MAC 1 SOG is drawing to a close. The House and Garden nutrients worked really well. The Top Booster really blew up the bud size. I really have never seen results like that from any other product. Definitely the largest MAC buds I have ever grown.

The Top Shooter really works too. So they say it brings on a new flush of flowering and grows buds on top of your buds and it does that. But really what it does is promote foxtails. They are solid so it definitely increases final weight like they say. But I dont really like the way it made my buds look so I probably wont use it again on the MAC. It seems to be strain specific as I did not see it on my Platinum Candy.

People are asking for final weight and finished bud shots. I cant show that on YouTube without risking losing my channel but I can show them on here so stay tuned for that in a couple of weeks. Meanwhile here are some pics taken on day 63.

 

 

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PLATINUM CANDY AND GORILLA BUBBLE SOG TEST GROW

I have started a Platinum Candy and Gorilla bubble SOG. This is a test grow for these 2 and a final test of the Bad N Boujee from Solfire Gardens.

Platinum Candy is a strain from In House Genetics and is listed as a cross of Platinum x (Fem)Platinum Candy. It is very frosty and I am growing all 4 phenos again. Something this triched out is rare especially from seed. I think this was a limited cross that they made because it is not listed anywhere else.

The Gorilla Bubble is a BX4 and from Tony Greens Tortured Beans. It is a cross of GG4 and Sour Bubble. He has been breeding this strain for many years and many say it is even better than the original GG4. You can check out Tony’s work on Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/tonygreens_tortured_beans/

Platinum Bud Shots

PLATINUM CANDY AND GORILLA BUBBLE SOG

We will pick this grow up on day 21 because looking at immature plants is not that exciting to most. I had 10 Gorilla Bubble seeds and they all germinated. There were 8 girls.

The Platinum Candy has 4 phenos and last time from seed one was outstanding but very tall and long noded. The other 3 were shaded by taller plants and did not do too much. This time I am running clones because they will often grow different than a seed plant and already I can tell my tall #1 pheno will be much shorter.

I am also running some other plants in this sea of green. There are 5 Bad N Boujee from Solfire Gardens which is a Chem by Black Banana cross. Trying to find a winning pheno in this group. I am looking for that real gas smell my buddy’s batch had but have not found it in the seedlings so maybe it will show in the clones. Also there are some Black Banana Cookies and GMO in the mix.

DAY 40 TESTERS AND ADDING POWER SI BLOOM

Things are moving along. There are 2 Gorilla Bubble plants that have some potential. One is pretty tall and the other is shorter and stacked really well. These are seedlings though so clones could potentially be different. My best Platinum Candy pheno was really tall and long noded but as a clone she is much shorter.

Here is a pic of my #1 pheno of Platinum Candy on day 40. I am testing 4 phenos and there is only one other that might be really good. It is shorter but the buds are a bit larger although not quite as frosty.

PLATINUM CANDY AND GORILLA BUBBLE DAY  59

Looks like my videos can only be seen on YouTube even though my website requires age verification. Not sure if there is a workaround. But my grow has been progressing and fortunately I have pictures.

First 3 pics are Platinum Candy next 3 are Gorilla Bubble. You can see it  needs more time to finish. I think because it was a seedling it took longer to flower than the Platinum which were rooted clones. I have been lowering nutrients and getting ready to flush but the GB definitely needs more time. These 2 are my keeper phenos. One fairly tall and one medium height with very heavy stacking. The rest were frosty but smaller.

 

BAHAMA MAMA BY SOLFIRE GARDENS

So my buddy gifted me a pack of Bahama Mama from Solfire Gardens. There were 13 seeds in the pack and they all germinated. All are doing very well and showing excellent vigor.

I have big plans for this strain. Since I have grown the genetics it was made with separately I know it will produce nice flowers. But I also want to find a really nice male and do a bit of breeding. I actually tried to reverse my Black Banana with STS and it made male flowers but there was no pollen. I will be trying again if I can find a good male in this batch of seeds.

How I Germinate Seeds

I always soak my seeds in a shot glass until they sink and that usually happens within 24 hours at most. Then I transfer them to a small plastic container with a lid like the ones lunch meat comes in. I line it with a paper towel and dump the shot glass and seeds into it. Usually there is enough water that I dont need to add any more. The towel should be wet but not soaking in standing water.

I seal the lid. From there I look for a spot with some bottom heat and dont worry about light at all. Seeds dont need to be in the dark to germinate. I put mine on top of my fish tank cover where the water is 80-82 degrees and they will usually have tails within 24 hours but older seeds will sometimes take longer to crack.

Seedlings are fragile so I dont leave them on the napkin for very long. If you do sometimes the roots will start growing into the paper towel.
Then I transplant them root down into 2 or 3 inch pots filled with Canna coco  which I feel is the best and most consistent coco. Also I always use the bricks because I feel they are dry and more likely to be free of fungus gnats.

I make sure it is charged with CaliMagic at 300 ppms. It has more calcium and magnesium than other brands and also a bit less N.

If the shells stick to the leaves which sometimes happens I will mist the plants and occasionally I will help a husk off. Otherwise I do not mist seedlings at all. Just give them about 300 micromoles of light and 50+% humidity and it’s off to the races. Never put a dome on seedlings!

BAHAMA MAMA BY SOLFIRE GARDENS GENETICS

This strain is a cross of Black Banana Cookies and Tropicanna Cookies. I have the cuts this strain was made from and have grown them both multiple times and both are permanent residents in my stable.

You can read more about Bahama Mama’s genetics here: https://en.seedfinder.eu/strain-info/Bahama_Mama/Solfire_Gardens/

Here are some Bahama Mama bud shots. They are not mine but I expect good things from my seedlings. I have grown multiple strains from Solfire and they never disappoint.

Bahama Mama Bud Shots – Not Mine

Here are a few pics of this strain. They are not mine but I think they give a good indication of the quality I expect. If they are any indication of what is to come the hardest thing about growing this strain will be deciding on a keeper.

Bahama Mama Day 14

I ended up with 5 girls out of 13 seeds. Not the best M/F ratio but that’s how it goes sometimes. I have 5 smaller cuts also that were taken to determine sex and 5 larger plants. There also are 3 MAC 1 moms in coco and a Tropicanna and a Platinum Candy too.

So 15 plants mostly in growstones in a 2×4 tray with flood and drain. Lighting is an HLG 650R and I have decided to try out House and Garden Aqua Flakes this run. I am happy with my Dutch Master nutes but I like to try new things. H&G is one of the few lines I have never tried and I have friends who get great results with it.

Coming up on a new year so why not try something new. I have never grown Bahama Mama but I have grown both the Tropicanna and Black Banana and they are 2 of my all time favorites so it should be a nice cross. So we will see how the Aqua Flakes does and I will be running their Bud XL and Top Shooter. I am not running any of their other additives. I also run CaliMagic and Power Si Bloom.

YouTube is blocking me from showing my restricted videos. Guess they dont want kids seeing them. You can watch it on my channel though https://youtu.be/fBFxf5Zl1q4

Another change I am making is going to a 50/50 mix of Happy Frog and coco. Been having calmag issues with my moms. The combo of coco and Led lights means using far more calmag than I want and after adding the rest of my nutrients the resulting ppms would be higher than I want in veg. So I am hoping with this mix I wont need as much and reduce ferts and watering a bit too.

House And Garden Nutrients and Bahama Mama Day 21

Things are moving right along and so far the H&G Aqua Flakes are doing a great job. I have a review I did on House and Garden nutrients on my sister site. https://420dotcom.com/house-and-garden-aqua-flakes-review.html You should check it out for more info on H&G.

Meanwhile my plants are a healthy green and frost is starting to show on the Bahama Mama girls.

My MAC 1 is looking better than it has in a long time with the Aqua Flakes. Leaves are not distorted by calcium and magnesium issues and plants are overcoming earlier deficiencies.

YouTube wont show my restricted videos on my site any more but you can watch my day 21 video on my channel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtQCoBU4-mA Please like and subscribe while there!

DAY 28  MAC 1, TROPICANNA, PLATINUM CANDY, BAHAMA MAMA

Things are going well. Plants are just about done stretching although I am still seeing a little bit. Waiting for buds to enlarge. One Bahama Mama is really tall and there is another tall one but a bit shorter. One plant is medium height and has the biggest buds so far. The other 2 are nice but much shorter. Cant wait to see what they all do. Here are pics of the grow:

 

DAY 35 BAHAMA MAMA,MAC 1, TROPICANNA, PLATINUM CANDY

DAY 49 BAHAMA MAMA,MAC 1, TROPICANNA, PLATINUM CANDY

Moving right along on day 49. Will start flushing soon. Bahama Mama is a mix of tall and short plants. The shorter ones lean towards the Black Banana and the taller towards the Tropicanna. The tall ones are stacked really well and will likely be my keepers. Very happy with the House and Garden line and the Top Shooter works well to increase bud growth at the end.

The Color Purple Day 56

The Tropicanna usually starts showing purple around day 50 and I have 2 tall girls with a lot of Tropicanna genetics in them, This past week they really started yo color up. Some buds are elongating like Tropicanna buds do. The rest of the plants lean towards the Black Banana and are shorter with similar bud structure. At this point they are frostier bud I can see trichomes coming on stronger on the the tall ones.

MAC 1 looks good but the buds are small. These were mother plants in coco and I think all the cutting affected them along with some calmag issues in the coco. I have learned this cut really needs a ton of it in veg. Tropicanna was a small plant and is not up to par. Although it looks nice it is underperforming.

Platinum Candy is looking great and I will be doing a full grow of her in the near future. The star of this grow so far. I also have started flushing this week. Some day 56 pictures:

 

BLACK BANANA SOG PLUS TROPICANNA AND TESTERS

Time for another Black Banana SOG. I have 17 of the BBC in a 2×3 tray. The other tray has 9 Tropicanna Cookies and 5 test plants. The testers are a Koffee and 4 Platinum Candy.

The Black Banana SOG will be a good producer and the BBC is a favorite of mine. The Tropicanna cookies is another long time favorite. I am also running 5 test plants. One is Kaya’s Koffee and there are 4 Platinum Candy. I have not grown either of these strains but have heard really good things about both.

Starting this SOG out running Dutch Master Commercial Edition and so far so good. I started with their standard root feed because I was unfamiliar with their line and quickly realized I needed to switch to their aggressive feed schedule.

If you are looking for good clean nutes without dyes or heavy metals you can give them a try. Read my Dutch Master Nutrients Review: https://420dotcom.com/dutch-master-nutrients-review.html

They only really sell from their website. Anything you see on Amazon is either their old Gold Line or is very overpriced. You can order Dutch Master Nutrients here: https://dutchmasternutrients.com/?rfsn=4449097.f8ec40
Use discount code 420GROWER10 for 10% off.

BLACK BANANA SOG DAY 1

Today these ladies were flipped over to 12/12 lighting. They were rooted clones to start and were given about a week of veg. The Black Banana makes large leaves so she was leaf stripped just before switching over. The other plants mostly had lower bud sites pinched off.

The Black Banana is under an HLG 550 but it was dimmed to 285 watts to match the Tropicanna and test plants under the HLG 300. They have plenty of light and it is summer so I want to keep temperatures down. Also with a sea of green lights do not need to penetrate as far into the canopy which is nice.

Kaya’s Koffee from Pacific Northwest Roots

This plant above is Kaya’s Koffee from Pacific Northwest Roots. I only have 1 girl and a boy I saved for possible breeding. I am pretty excited to see what she does. At the Seattle Cannabis Cup in 2014 she tested at 31% and High Times moved her to their Worlds Strongest Strains list.

BLACK BANANA SEA OF GREEN DAY 7

Today is day 7 and flowers are beginning to appear and it is especially noticeable on the Tropicanna Cookies. The Black Banana is filling out nicely and although plants were cleaned up and stripped on day 1 you would never know it.

Koffee And Platinum Candy Testers

The Koffee is a short strain and looks like it was not 100% revegged judging by the large leaves it produced. Most of those have been removed now.

The Platinum Candy has 2 nice plants and 2 that are quite a bit smaller. Not expecting much from them but you can never tell.

Black Banana Cookies Day 14

My Black Banana SOG is taking off! Plants are vigorous and still stretching. The Dutch Master nutrients are performing well too. Very stable and without some of the negative side effects I often see from other brands.

The Tropicanna is also doing well. Of the 4 Platinum Candy only one really looks like it might be a keeper. The Koffee is less than impressive at this point. It has been through a lot but I know the potential is there. That’s why I call them testers!

Some Day 14 Pics

SOG DAY 21

DAY 28

The Black Banana is really taking off and looking good. The Tropicanna is really tall this time and I pulled some of the taller colas to the side.

The Platinum Candy has one really tall plant and 2 shorter ones. There was a runt which I removed. I doubt I will be running it again unless it really surprises me.

The Koffee was in coco instead of growstones and I forgot that. It was overwatered and stunted but I raised it up and now it looks much better.

Black Banana Cookies Day 35

Black Banana looks really good. The Dutch Master nutrients are doing a great job. I can feed at higher ppms without leaf clawing or tip burn that I had with other nutrient lines. Also I can see purples showing up at least 2 weeks earlier than normal especially in the Tropicanna.

The Platinum Candy is very tall with large leaves. There are 2 shorter ones not doing much right now but the large plant is very frosty and may be worth a regrow.

The Koffee is interesting. Two different looking plants from the same mom and 2 weeks apart now. The order one showing effects of monster cropping or incomplete reveg along with over watering. The other that is 2 weeks behind has a more OG like structure. Curious to see how they both turn out because I will be starting a breeding project with the Koffee strain.

DAY 42

BBC DAY 49
I got to speak with Craig the owner of Dutch Master Nutrients, Good guy and knowledgeable too. Gave me some grow tips and advice which is cool. This video will be split into 2 parts because it ran long. So part 1 is Black Banana and part 2 with the Tropicanna will be up in a couple of days.

Tropicanna Cookies day 49

DAY 55 BUD SHOTS
Some Black Banana Cookies, Tropicanna Cookies and Platinum Candy bud shots for you. Taken on day 55. HLG lighting and Dutch Master nutrients. Enjoy

Shape Of Things To Come – Bye Bye Koffee?

Both closets were just harvested. Still hanging on to a few plants that need more time and packed my #2 closet full of plants for my next grows. Platinum Candy turned into a rock star and wish I could say the same about the Koffee.
 

SOG TESTERS GMO ANIMAL COOKIES AND MORE

Here are some mixed SOG testers underway. Some tried and true strains like MAC 1 and some brand new ones including GMO and Animal Cookies. I have half the grow at 35 days and just added some clones from seeds I am testing at day 7.

Lighting is from HLG with a HLG 300 and a HLG 550 in a 2 x 8 closet with a growing area growing made up of 2 2×3 mixing tubs using flood and drain with growstones.

Plants can grow quite differently depending on training methods and the plants genetics. A plant that branches heavily will not be a good choice for a SOG. That is why I do SOG testers. I am still fairly new to growing in sea of green and need to see which of my strains will perform best in this type of grow system.

The MAC 1 to me is the perfect plant for a sea of green. It has a narrow upright profile and is sturdy and pretty much free standing. Even its side branches are sturdy , upright and held close to the main stem.

SOG TESTERS AND MAC 1

After a bit of juggling things around the new seed testers are on one side and the other plants are in the other tote. I had an issue with some of the larger, older plants getting underwatered which was corrected. But that allowed for some nutrient build up so some leaves have some tip burn.

SEA OF GREEN TESTERS WITH SEED PLANT CLONES

In this video everything is sorted out and I talk about the genetics that went into making some of these plants. All the seed plants are in 1 tote and all the clone only plants are in the other.

ANIMAL COOKIES AND GMO DAY 35

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MAC 1 along with Animal Cookies, GMO and others. Day 35 in closet #2 Under HLG lights. Also some testers just put in 3 days ago. THANKS FOR WATCHING! PLEASE LIKE AND SUBSCRIBE! VISIT 420DOTCOM.COM FOR MORE https://420dotcom.com/mac-1-sog-under-the-hlg-650r.html • Full HLG 650R review at: https://420dotcom.com/hlg-650r-review.html MAC 1 SOG at: https://420dotcom.com/mac-1-sog-under-the-hlg-650r.html • You can buy the HLG 650R direct from Amazon at: https://amzn.to/2WuOHDf Or buy through my Amazon Store at: https://www.amazon.com/shop/howtogrowweed420 FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM FOR DAILY UPDATES https://www.instagram.com/howtogrowweed420/ STAY GREEN Y'ALL!!! • @grandmasterlevel @horticulturelightinggroup @nlggrow @tastiterps @solfiregardens2019 @realthor89 @mr_smokalotapotamus • #animalcookies #GMO #420grower #420instagram #420everyday #420nation #mmjlife #weedlove #weedlover #weedofinstagram #mmjgrower #mmjlife #budporn #howtogrowweed #growingweed #420dotcom #closetgrow #howtogrowweedindoors #growyourownmedicine #growyourownmeds #playingwithfire #greengenesgarden #closetgrower #closetgrown #quantumboards #hlg

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GMO PREVIEW DAY 42

The GMO appears to be a good SOG strain. She is upright and tall and grows well as a single stem plant with minimal lower branching. She stacks buds very well along the stem too. The only thing I dont like about her is the longer finishing time than many other strains.