Sea Of Green Grow Journal SOG Method Explained

This is my first Sea Of Green grow journal and I will also be explaining the SOG method and how to set up a SOG grow for yourself.

What Is A Sea Of Green?

The sea of green method uses many small plants instead of a few larger ones. Plants are given a minimal amount of veg time in a SOG system. The idea is to have a level canopy made up of single colas and minimal side branching. Because they have a short veg time or none at all, they can be planted very close together often at 4 or more per square foot.

SOG Vs SCROG

People often confuse the two. A SCROG or screen of green is just that. A screen is used to pull branches down and control height. SOG grows generally dont use a trellis because plant size is controlled by density and veg time.

SCROGS have larger plants and plants are trained into the net whereas SOG grows use minimal to no training at all. Plant count is also much higher in a sea of green grow.

If you are growing in a 2 gallon pot or doing LST or other training to control plant size you dont have a true SOG. You just have a grow with smaller plants. I see a lot of videos where people mistakenly call their grow a SOG. There is nothing wrong with a hybrid system but this about growing in a sea of green so we need to make some distinctions between systems.

Sea Of Green Hydroponics

Hydroponics will give the best results for a SOG. Because of the large amount of plants hand watering will be difficult. As the plants get bigger they will need multiple waterings every day. You will want a system you can automate. You can use aeroponics or a top feed drip system but flood and drain is the easiest to set up and maintain.

I would not recommend growing in soil. You may be able to use coco in a SOG but I think hydroton will give the best results and it is reusable too.

Sea Of Green From Seed?

Typically a SOG is grown from clones. The provide better uniformity and stay smaller than seedlings with a tap root. They are also ready to flower much faster than seeds.

Can you grow from seeds? Sure but you may not be happy with the results. If you have a strain that grows without much variation between phenotypes it might work out. But usually some plants will be taller and some shorter and some may branch more heavily than others.

The whole idea of growing in a SOG is to get an even canopy made up of single colas. This will give you premium buds that get good light and eliminate lower pop corn buds. Growing from seed really defeats the whole purpose of a SOG grow.

Best Strains For Sea Of Green?

I am not going to recommend any specific strains. What you want is a strain that makes a dominant main cola. Heavy branching strains are best avoided. Usually this plant is an indica or hybrid strain although some sativa strains will also work. Early maturity is a plus and it should not be hard to clone. I would really recommend growing a strain you are already familiar with.

SOG Grow Week 7

Plants are now at 7 days and growing well. They are stretching and growing some side branches. I think in a week the canopy will be pretty full.

I started running CO2 about day 4 and the plants really seemed to start showing increased growth almost immediately. Right now I am only flooding once a day and the plants are on a flood mat. It stays moist and I really want the roots to grow down into it. So I am holding back on flooding more often.

Nutrients have been raised from 800 to 1000 ppm and the plants look a bit hungry. I just changed the reservoir and will give the plants a few days at 1000 ppm before I decide to bump things up again. It looks like the 2nd tray with taller strains is a heavier feeder than the tray with the MAC 1 and Death Bubba.

MAC 1 At 7 Days

Flowers! Sea Of Green Grow Journal Day 13

Things are going well. Flowers are here and actually some varieties were showing on day 9. I will be putting up a trellis net because plants are getting tall especially in the 2nd tote.

Plants are being fed at 1300 ppm and a pH of 6.0. So far I am not seeing any signs of too much N like I had in coco so I am loving the growstones. These plants are being fed supplemental CO2 at 1200 ppm.

SOG Day 17 Leaf Strip

Plants are growing well and there are a lot of small lower branches that need to be removed. Time to open up the canopy to air flow and let more light down to lower buds.

Sea Of Green Day 21 Leaf Strip Results

Plants have fully recovered 4 days after leaf stripping. Light penetration and air flow were greatly improved and now the plants can focus on growing buds instead of leaves.

Day 28 Whoops!

So I had a bit of a whoops this week. I had my nutes spike along with a pH drop and I can see some burnt leaf margins from it. Most plants look OK except for the SFV which always has been nute sensitive. The MAC 1 looks totally unphased by it and everything else should be fine.

I am not sure what caused it but it was time for a nute change so things may not have been stable. For one thing I missed a day topping up the reservoir which I am sure was a factor. Also I raised my co2 from 1200 to 1300 ppms which may have made the plants drink more. So what’s done is done and hopefully everything will be OK.

The plants are in growstones so there is nothing to buffer the nutes. This is a good reminder to always check on your plants a couple of times a day especially in this type of hydro system.

Day 35 Bye Bye SFV

So day 35 is here. Its been about a week since I had a nute spike. The MAC 1 was untouched by it which surprised me because they are the smallest plants in the grow. Most of the other plants had some leaf burn but otherwise seem fine.

The SFV is toast though. It is a very sensitive plant and does not like high nute levels. Always would show signs of N toxicity even at low levels and this blast just fried her. She is brown and dry so she will not recover.

If you grow long enough sooner or later something will mess up. I dont care how good a grower you are, expect the unexpected! I dont like losing a plant but at least it was only one and I caught it early enough to correct things and avoid a total disaster.

GML DEATH BUBBA DAY 40

Here is a preview of some Death Bubba on day 40. Incredible stacking and very frosty. She was started and flipped to 12/12 from a 4 inch clone and now she’s almost 4 feet tall.

Now she is doing amazing and grows completely different in a SOG. This girl used to grow bushy and leafy with a regular veg and now she almost looks like a totally different plant.

SOG Day 42 and Black Banana Bud Shots

Everything is looking good. I wanted to give you a closer look at my Black Banana so there are some still shots of her in the video. At this point I think the Death Bubba and Black banana will be the top performers in this sea of green.

THE COLOR PURPLE DAY 47

Nice purple tinges showing up on my Death Bubba. It took a while to get her growing right but now she has made herself at home. I think my LED lighting helps bring this color out.

THE HOUSE IS A ROCKIN’ DAY 49

Things are looking great. Flushing now and seeing results much faster with growstones. Many leaves are turning after only 3 days!

The MAC 1 is bulking up and looking extremely frosty. The Death Bubba is crushing it too. Lots of trichomes everywhere!

MAC 1 BUD SHOTS DAY 49

MAC 1 MIRACLE ALIEN COOKIES CAPS CUT DAY 49

GML Death Bubba Day 53

So it is day 53 and about 10 days to go on the Death Bubba. She is not really a purple strain but nevertheless she is showing a lot of purpling. I have grown her several times before but never really had this.

This is probably my best grow of her so far and I am pretty excited. She does better for me with no veg and in a SOG. When I grow her like that I avoid the leafy bushy structure I get with a long veg. Instead I get a single cola plant with great stacking and the same beautiful frosty buds.

LOOKIN GOOD DAY 56 THE END IS NEAR

Flushing continues. Most top leaves turned and many were removed so now the bottom needs to fade too. Originally planning on a day 63 harvest but I may take these girls to day 70 and hopefully get some extra weight out of them.

Sea Of Green Day 63

It is almost harvest time. Plants are flushing with 40 ppms tap water. I want to give them a few more days. Most look ready now but the MAC 1 and Black Banana look like they need a few more days. The GML Death Bubba is the star of this grow IMO and I have included some bud shots of her for you below the video.