Illegitimi Non Carborundum www.grozine.com Your -ORIGINAL- Paperless Hydroponics Publication

F#*K Lawns

Bottle Rocket Hydro

Green Pad CO2 Test

Ask Erik

Illegitimi Non Carborundum www.grozine.com Your -ORIGINAL- Paperless Hydroponics Publication

ContentsFrom the Editor

Ask Erik

The Straight Dope-Product Reviews

Bottle Rocket Custom FeedChart

Hydro-STAR: Perfect Gardens

Product Test: Green Pad CO2

F#$K Lawns: Aquascape 4 Life

Thanks & Praise, Coming Next...

-click- on subject(s)

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Illegitimi Non Carborundum www.grozine.com Your -ORIGINAL- Paperless Hydroponics Publication

From the EditorWelcome Back to another of YOUR -ORIGINAL- Paperless Hydroponics Publication.. For those that have been along since we first set-out, you will know this is our 3rd Edition-”San”. If you just caught up with us, please drop by our website -click- and broswe our past editions (PDF). Some of you took the time to reach out and let us know that you liked the new look-THANKS-we are always a work in progress.

We have been having a lot of fun, enjoying the Freedom

to Develop, Evolve and Refine not only our “look”; it’s been

cultivating our content, based on the feedback we have

been getting from YOU-the real grower- on what you want

to see more of from us. that is proving to be the most re-

warding.

For as long as I can remeber as a hydroponic writer, people were always asking “what’s good?”. Of course I had some opinions, but when you write for the other guys, you can’t just come out and say whatever you think---

Not here : )

So Edition -San- starts where the other guys seem to leave off. We

have LB, a real-working nutrient guru from Long Beach, California de-

livering a mixed-brand (performance based) feedchart for HEAVY pro-

duction-plus some tips to help make you a savvy Hydro Shopper.

We review Hydro products you might already be using (or thinking about using) We will also introduce you to our Green Pad CO2 Propagation Experiment-do they work, and is it worth it?!

While we ARE and ALWAYS WILL BE a HARDCORE HYDRO MAG geared at giving you bet-ter results from your growing, we also like to touch on things that you, our growing friends might find especially cool (and related to what you dig, yo)

For example, in this Edition, Aquascaping borrows a lot from what you took to learn to grow Hydro, and allows you to create some very ZEN surroundings-why cultivate your death with a toxic lawn when you can, as Bruce Lee said: “ Be Water, My Friend”. And of course we put in LOTS more awesome stuff we think you will just LOVE:)

Erik Biksa-Editor

ORIGINAL FEEDING CHART-1999

Grozine’s Green Pad CO2 Experiment

Illegitimi Non Carborundum www.grozine.com Your -ORIGINAL- Paperless Hydroponics Publication

Ask Erik Hey Erik, Just read your article on LED’s in Max Yield, and had a couple of questions for you.One of our distributors of AC units claims a watt is a watt, HID, LED, or Induction when determining cooling needs. Was this taken into consideration when you determined you reached the same yield as under HID?Did the final watt calculation take consideration of “accessory” wattage (ie ac, inline fans)We have seen some great results grown under the Lumi, have you tried any other models other than the SG?What do you recommend, 5 band, 7 band, 9 band?We can see the future of grow light options, first there was 1w diodes, then 2w, now 3w, 5w, and so on. We just want to be able to provide our customers with quality products.We just want to clarify this, your thoughts would be much appreciated.

Q:A:

Thanks for your question., it’s a good one.Re M.Y. Article: the LED article I had written was censored and edited; so the whole picture could not be presented. Ap-parently, there were concerns that an article summarizing two years with of LED experiments was all of a sudden going to put lighting, ventilation and AC suppliers out of business, which naturally couldn’t be further from the truth.

In examining the facts that came about from almost two years of real-working observations, it can be said that LEDs RUN COOLER. However,, they do put off some heat, and in a tightly enclosed area (especially with higher wattage panels) you are still going to need to ventilate or cool-just not as much . The yield in terms of watts was LIGHTING ONLY.

As a rule of thumb, your vent system or AC will kick on about half as often as it used to-so you still need fans or an AC, just half the size if you are building new, or if using existing gear, expect it to cycle about half as often.. Now on the flipside of this, I recommend a bigger De-Hum than you needed before and more air-circulation fans. This stimulates a higher rate of water-loss from the plant leaves (“transpira-tion”) because in a reduced ventilation environment, your plants may not take in as much water and nutrients. While efficient, it can cut down on production levels slightly if not compensated for. Taking advantage of the reduced ventilation requirements, especially when using fans, means adding CO2 to the garden is easy and affordable. This further helps to “amp-up” growth rates and contribute to heavier yields with less cropping time.

Besides the SG models I tested (which were both Quad-Band, but had different diode arrangement ratios), I have also tested a 600W “Tri-Band, Full Spectrum” model from a different manufacturer. While the results were impressive for propagation and Veg., it did not give the yield that the crazy purple looking lighting does, about 40% less to be specific in bloom (watt per watt comparisson).It’s tough to make a recommendation with an LED because of all the inconsistencies from manufacturer to manufacturer and even from batch to batch. I have yet to trial anything higher than 3 watt LED chips, but would surmise that in the right arrangement they kick butt! I advise picking a unit, getting to know it-and if it performs stick with it-AND MAKE SURE THE SUPPLIER DOES TOO! The premise of the article was to say “YES, after two years of real-grow testing it’s safe to say these particular High Output LED models CAN and DO perform” Not that they are the only ones. They just happened to be the ones given to me and therefore tested. I always encourage growers to experiment, especially with new technologies; it’s what drives us forward as an industry-however, this recommendation is also tempered with the notion: “Don’t bet what you can’t afford to lose” because if something doesn’t perform, the consequences can be profound for a professional grower.

-Cheers, Erik Biksa (erikbiksa@grozine.com)

Have a growing Question or Concern? Just Ask Erik-his column has been answering questions from hydroponics growers since 1999. Email: erikbiksa@grozine.com

Illegitimi Non Carborundum www.grozine.com Your -ORIGINAL- Paperless Hydroponics Publication

The STraighT Dope: Here we tell you our findings after working these products through a cycle or two in our gardens.

A lot of growers just want to know -what is good-. Instead, they often hear a lot about how much better Product X is better than Product Z, yet seemingly with

no real reason as to why and with no noteable real-life-growing observations. Trust me, having a P.hD does not give you license to a green thumb! So here we

review some products, and give you the straight dope, so to speak, on whats good about something and whats not. While some products are newer, we also like to

look at ones that have been out a while-just to make sure they still work and have not been slimmed down to be more profitable for someone-tust us, it happens....

Liquid Karma (www.botanicare.com)MSRP: $26.95 USD for 1QT

This stuff has been around for a while, and while the label has changed (as most have in the industry) we are happy to report that it seems to work every bit as well today as when we first tried it many years ago. Not to say there has not been any changes, because we have seen the humic portion get lighter or darker, what we are saying is this S#%t still works and is a good value. Basically, it helps boost plant metabolic rates, stimulates microbes in the roots, and gives plants what they crave like vitamins, etc for sustaining higher growth functions.. A great general, all-purpose additive. Avg use about 10 ml per US Gallon

When: cuttings, seedlings, veg, and bloom (we advise omitting for transition and ripening)What: Healthier, faster growing plants with better colors, denser buds, and more aroma and flavorGZ Rated: a good bang for the buck

Liquid Bud Blood (www.advancednutrients.com)

MSRP: $21.95 USD for 1 L

Bud Blood has been around as a powder for years, and is one of many products styled after Bumper Crops Blossom Blood.

Typically, thse products are used for the first one to two weeks after switching the lights to 12 on 12 off for the bud

phase. What you see is plant producing more flowering sites per foot of vertical growth, helping to build good struc-

ture to fill out later for bigger blooms and higher yields later. The liquid version is a welcome idea-powders are a

pain in the ass to measure and mix properly. For the money, this is a good value and we did see a better flower set.

Note the flowers looked a little more gnarly than usual and the stigmas seemed a little longer in both trials-we would

use it again.

When: first one to two weeks of bloom cycle

What: more flowering sites per foot of vertical growth; we did not see earlier flowering

GZ Rated: a No-Brainer if you are already using the powders.

Sub-Culture B (www.generalhydroponics.com)MSRP: $39.95 USD per 200gm

While GH set the standard for three-part hydro nutes, we feel they missed their mark with this one. The product is a bacterial-blend designed tio give your plants bigger roots systems and to improve nutrient absorption. While we DID see the root system get bigger and fuzzier, we also saw our plants stretch like F$%K. GH does in fact say not to use this until your plants are establsihed, however, we haven’t found a phase of growth where we like our stems to strech yet. Well, OK, motherplants but even then you don’t want the extra N, right?

When: they say after plants are establsihed, we say skip it.What: improved roots systems (true)-too much stretching, likely due to N contentGZ Rated: use outdoors, when Sky is the Limit for height.

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Cropping Schedule: SoCal CustomBy L.B.EB Note: This isn’t my chart under another name-this chart has been painstakingly put together as a course of evolution from a good friend, who also happens to own a large hydro store; not only are they an owner, they are also one of the better growers I have had the pleasure of chat-ting with. If you grow the So-Cal varieties, this is your ticket to pure gold!

Also note the mixing of brands-Grozine isn’t trying to promote one company over another-this is just what works best for this grower (and 100’s of his clients). If u make nutes and think yours are the best, send us some- WE WILL USE THEM!

From the Grower:

So after being in this market for many years both as a Gardner and a store

owner I’ve came across the topic many times of custom feed schedules. What

is a custom feed schedule might you ask? Well its usually a gardeners whole

line up of nutrients to do there run composed of different products ( root

booster, flower booster, microbes, base, enzymes) from different companies to

make an ideal feed for there specific variety. I’ve learned from my own ex-

perience that certain varieties respond better to some feeding schedules

as opposed to others. I’ve also done side by side runs where plants on both

trays were completely healthy but one tray ended up being better in qual-

ity than the other tray based off the reaction from the nutrient it received.

Today I thought I would shed light on custom feed schedules by sharing one

of mine. I call it the Bottle Rocket Bloom Schedule, I use it for plants that

bottle rocket meaning first two weeks after bloom initiation the plant more

than doubles it’s size.( Ex.in at 12inches after two week in 12/12 plant is over

36 inch.) This is just one of many schedules I plan on sharing that have been

refined over many years and trails in efforts to meet the goal of maximizing

varieties to thier full potential.

WHO IT’s FOR:

-Drain to waste

-Rockwool 6 inch

Hugo

-14 plants per

light

(recommended)

WHO IT’s -NOT- FOR:

-Newbies

-Growers on a tight budget

-Unstable enviornments (eg high temperatures, no pH control & EC Monitor, etc)

>>>

Illegitimi Non Carborundum www.grozine.com Your -ORIGINAL- Paperless Hydroponics Publication

4 Light40 gal reservoir drain to waste switched out every 2 days= 140 gal/ week

CANNA SUBSTRA A+B= 120ml A/B per 40gal mix= 420ml A/B each week

420ml x 8 weeks= 3360 each A+B per cycle = suggest 5L A/B set

ROOTS EXCELLERATOR= 40ml per 40gal mix= 140 ml each week

140ml x 4 weeks= 560ml = suggest 500ml bottle (stretch out to 4 weeks)

HYGROZYM= 8ml x 140gal per week=1120 ml per week

1120ml x 4 weeks= 4480 ml per cycle= suggest 4L Bottle (4200ml=4L)

CANNAZYM= 8ml x 140gal per week=1120 ml per week (except last 2 weeks)

1120ml x 3 weeks= 3360+ 2800(20mlx 140)= 6160ml per cycle= suggest 5L

BUD IGNITOR= 8ml x 140gal per week=1120 ml per week

1120ml x 4 weeks= 4480 ml per cycle= suggest 4L

RHIZOTONIC= Used as foliar spray goes a long way= 250ml bottle

PROTEKT= 40ml per 40gal mix= 140 ml each week

140ml x 8weeks= 1120ml per cycle= suggest 1L (stretch out for whole run)

SWEET= 40ml per 40gal mix= 140 ml each week

140ml x 8weeks= 1120ml per cycle= suggest 1L (stretch out for whole run)

CAL/MAG= 80ml per 40gal mix= (2ml x 140g each week) 280ml each week x 8 weeks= 2240

ml per cycle= suggest 2L, or 4L and use again next cycle

MOAB= 1 tsp/ 15gal apply at recommended times= suggest 100g

BIG BUD= 120ml per 40gal mix= 420ml each week

420ml x 4weeks= 1680ml per cycle= suggest 2L

OVERDRIVE= 120ml per 40gal mix= 420ml each week

420ml x 4weeks= 1680ml per cycle= suggest 2L

NIRVANA= 80ml per 40 gal mix= 280ml per week (weeks 3-7)

280ml x 5 weeks=1400 ml per cycle= suggest 1L ( Stretch out 5 weeks)

BOOST ACCELERATOR= ratios fluctuate each week starting week 2 ending week 8 (8ml

,10ml,12ml,14ml,12ml,10ml,8ml) week2=320 week3=400 week4=480ml week5=560ml

week6=480ml week7=400 week8=320ml

Total ml per cycle= 2960ml per cycle (used once a week)= suggest 5L use 2 runs

GRAND FINALE= Used last two weeks ppm very= suggest 1L

COMPOST TEA= compost and castings usually only come in big bags buy

smallest bag of each and use until out. Usually 1 cup of each per 5 gal mix

* guanos and additives vary from recipe to recipe look up a standard recipe online for recom-

meneded amounts.

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Week1-

~CAL/MAG- R.O water 175ppm /total ppm~175~SWEET- 1 ml/g usually adds 25-50ppm /total ppm~200-225~ROOTS EXCELLERATOR- 1 ml/g does not effect ppm much /total ppm~205-230~BUD IGNITOR-6 ml/g /total ppm 225-325~MOAB-1 tsp per 15gal 50-100 ppm most/ total ppm 275-425~HYGROZYME- 4 ml/g does not effect ppm much/ total ppm 300-450~PRO-TEKT- 1 ml/ g / total ppm 325-475~CANNA SUBSTRA A/B- equal parts of each, add ppm to total of 1200 ppmpH 5.8 ppm 1200( ex:450ppm from previously noted products ~ 750ppm SUBSTRA A/B~1200ppm)

* add pH down if needed to reach desired pH 5.8*foliar spray Rhizotonic first week once a day for stress relief*foliar spray Boost ACCELLERATOR once a day until flower initiation to re-duce intermodal stretch.*compost tea once a week * keep night temps above 70 degrees preferable no more than 3 degree dif-ference from day time to night time temps.

Week2-

~CAL/MAG- R.O. Water 200ppm/ total 200ppm~SWEET-1 ml/g 25-50 ppm/ total 235ppm~ROOTS EXCELLERATOR - 1 ml/g / total 250 ppm~BUD IGNITOR-8 ml/g / total ppm 300ppm~BIG BUD- add 200 ppm to mix/ total 500 ppm~HYGROZYME- 6 ml/ g / total 540ppm~PRO-TEKT-1 ml/g / total 575ppm~BOOST ACCELLERATOR- 8 ml/g/ total 650ppm~CANNA SUBSTRA A/B- add 550ppm/ total 1200ppm

*add pH down if needed to reach 5.8 pH*compost tea once a week*keep night temps warm

Week3

~CAL/MAG- R.O. Water 175ppm/ total 175ppm~SWEET-1 ml/g 25-50 ppm/ total 225ppm~ROOTS-1 ml/g / total 250ppm~BIG BUD- add 200 ppm to mix/ total 450ppm~HYGROZYME- 8 ml/g / total 515ppm~PRO-TEKT- 1 ml/g /total 550ppm~BOOST-10 ml/g / total 625ppm~NIRVANA-4 ml/g / total 700~CANNA A/B- equal parts of each add 475ppm/ total 1175ppm *add pH down if needed to reach 5.8 pH*compost tea once a week*keep night temps warm

Week5

~CAL/MAG- R.O. Water 150ppm/ total 150ppm

~SWEET-1 ml/g 25-50 ppm/ total 200ppm

~PRO-TEKT- 1 ml/g /total 235ppm

~BOOST-14ml/g / total 350ppm~CANNAZYM- 8 ml/g /total 410 ppm

~OVERDRIVE add 175 ppm to mix/ total 585ppm

~NIRVANA- 8 ml/g / total 685ppm

~CANNA A/B- equal parts of each add 415ppm/ total 1100ppm

*add pH down if needed to reach 5.8 pH

*compost tea once a week ( add alfalfa, guano)

* increase day/night differential

Week6

~CAL/MAG- R.O. Water 125ppm/ total 125ppm

~SWEET-1 ml/g 25-50 ppm/ total 175ppm

~PRO-TEKT- 1 ml/g /total 210ppm

~BOOST-12ml/g / total 320ppm~CANNAZYM- 8 ml/g /total 375 ppm

~MOAB add to mix/ total 500ppm

~NIRVANA- 6 ml/g / total 575ppm

~CANNA A/B- equal parts of each add 500ppm/ total 1075ppm

*add pH down if needed to reach 5.8 pH

*compost tea once a week ( add alfalfa, guano)

* increase day/night differential

EB Note: Hey, ever wonder why some of your grower friends

get a better deal than you at the Hydr

o Store-or why does

the guy ahead of you always seem to get better and f

riend-

lier service? Maybe you need some G-Tips-visit our site, and

check out our Grower Tips on Grow Shop Ettiquette;

you might be surprised at the difference!

Week4

~CAL/MAG- R.O. Water 200ppm/ total 200ppm

~SWEET-1 ml/g 25-50 ppm/ total 250ppm

~ROOTS-1 ml/g / total 275ppm~MOAB-1 TSP/ 15gal / total ppm 400

~HYGROZYME- 8 ml/g / total 475ppm

~PRO-TEKT- 1 ml/g /total 510ppm

~BOOST-12 ml/g / total 625ppm~NIRVANA-6 ml/g / total 725~CANNA A/B- equal parts of each add 425ppm/ total 1150ppm

*add pH down if needed to reach 5.8 pH

*compost tea once a week( add guano)

*start 5-7 degree differential from day to night (ex: day-77, night-72)

-Bottle Rocket-10 Week Bloom PhaseCrop Feeding Schedule

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Your AD WILL look great here! YOU Saw it, didn’t you? Con-tact us today. Just -CLICK-or visit our site, please

Illegitimi Non Carborundum www.grozine.com Your -ORIGINAL- Paperless Hydroponics Publication

Week7

~CAL/MAG- R.O. Water 125ppm/ total 125ppm~SWEET-1 ml/g 25-50 ppm/ total 150ppm~PRO-TEKT- 1 ml/g /total 185ppm~BOOST-10ml/g / total 265ppm~CANNAZYM- 8 ml/g /total 315 ppm~OVERDRIVE add 200ppm to mix/ total 515ppm~NIRVANA- 4 ml/g / total 575ppm~CANNA A/B- equal parts of each add 425ppm/ total 1000ppm

*add pH down if needed to reach 5.8 pH*compost tea once a week (guano)* increase day/night temp. differential

Week8

~CAL/MAG- R.O. Water 125ppm/ total 125ppm~SWEET-1 ml/g 25-50 ppm/ total 150ppm~PRO-TEKT- 1 ml/g /total 185ppm~BOOST-8 ml/g / total 220ppm~CANNAZYM- 10 ml/g /total 300 ppm~OVERDRIVE add 175ppm to mix/ total 475ppm~GRAND FINALE add 400 ppm/ total 875 ppm

* add pH up if needed Grand finale is very acidic * compost tea once a week (stop using guano)* increase day/night temp. differential

Week9

~CAL/MAG- R.O. Water 75ppm/ total 75~SWEET-1 ml/g 25-50 ppm/ total 125ppm~BOOST-8 ml/g / total 200ppm~CANNAZYM- 14 ml/g /total 275 ppm~GRAND FINALE add 400 ppm/ total 675 ppm

* add pH up if needed Grand finale is very acidic * compost tea once a week (stop using guano)* increase day/night temp. differential

Week10

~SWEET-1 ml/g 50-75 ppm/ total 75ppm~BOOST-6 ml/g / total 150ppm~CANNAZYM- 20 ml/g / total 250ppm

* do not adjust pH

* increase day/night temp. differential

*The reason I gave ppm numbers were to better show the

relationship of my nutrient profile. The ppm numbers will

probably not be in direct relation to ml per gal. They are

based for a guild of reference. How strong each additive

will effect reservoir will vary due to many circumstances.

I hope this brings clarity to a custom feed schedule.

At the end of the day there are many ways to the top of

the mountain, just some trails are more direct than others.

At the end of the day it's all about reaching the top.

I have found out through many years, trials and tests that

this schedule with the proper room conditions really seems

to work out GREAT for the "bottle rocket" varieties.

Many experienced gardeners can say after looking at the

schedule posted that there isn't a need for the amount of

products on the list.

All I can say is this list is not designed to sell you prod-

ucts, its does visually point out on the other hand that

there are multiple companies that carry great products

and it's really up to the end user to find out what works

out best for he/she to get to their desired goal.

Keep us Tuned in to get seasoned'

> > T a k i n g c l o n e S T o z o n e S ,

>l.b.Do you have questions

about this Custom Crop

Feeding Schedule? Just

-click- on an author’s signi-

ture in Grozine, and you can

email them direct;) >>>

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Green Joint Ventures>>>grows>>>Perfect Gardens

Welcome to ou

r first-ever

Hydro-Star

feature. Thi

s is our

place to le

t stars shin

e; and we

all shine in

different w

ays-just

so long as i

t’s glowing gr

een to

make our pa

ges, thanks.

Think you h

ave what it takes

?

Drop us a l

ine! info@gro

zine.com

So, now we turn our spotlight onto where it belongs: persons in and of the hy-droponics community with a real love of growing-and the desire to give back by sharing and spreading what hydroponic gardening has given to them.

Four years ago a little hydro joint started up by father and son, which they cul-tivated into a growing business called Green Joint Ventures. Mark Boutwell Sr. And Jr. Had a love for all things leafy and green, in fact it had been a large part of Mark Sr’s professional and academic career via agriculture before making his lump in Real Estate.

Quick Rewind: After the market crashes of around '06-'07, Mark Sr wanted to do something different; and most importantly something he cared about and could share with his family and community-this was the seed that gave way to an idea that grew into the early days of their hydroponics supply shop, located in Salinas, California.

Salinas also happens to be one of the world's largest producers of strawberries and lettuce-to the tune of billions-but, more on that later...

EB NOTE: These guys have a HUGE list-ing of great Hydro-Vids-check ‘em out!

-Click->>>

Things were going OK with the business-the market was growing.

Then in one day walked Joey Espinoza, in his early twenties and with a burning desire to cultivate not only his own hydro-ponic skill-set, but to help grow the business of his now favorite place to shop for hydroponics goods and information.

It took a lot of convincing before Mark Jr & Sr agreed to see that there was a need and a spot for an employee in their or-ganization. It took even more convincing, and by way of demonstration Joey was able to establish that he shared in their passion and had a real desire to see the business grow which earned him a place at the family table as a Partner, rather than employee.

Over the last four years, they have seen their local market change. While they still (and happily) see a lot of new entrants coming to get the gear and more importantly, the information they need to get growing with success, what they have also seen is more competition-by way of price.

Rather than play the drop your price lower game (why bother when you are already competitively priced), they have con-tinued to grow by adding value to their customer’s experience. Priding themselves as one of the more knowledgeable places you can shop, and backing it up with the right goods has allowed them to grow in what can be a harsh climate, competitive-ly speaking. According to Joey, it has been more than one occasion where customers have been politely advised that they can get a better price somewhere else; but to stick around if they want a fair price and everything they need to know to have real growing success.

Besides growing plants, Green Joint Ventures, as it will be formerly known is helping to grow communities by way of a name change to Perfect Gardens as they plough forward in helping bring their surrounding agriculturally based com-munity in through their doors-and beyond, as they are expanding their already well-know Aquaponics set-ups into a larger scale set-up.

They have already had involvement with Educators, Institutions, etc who have expressed a strong interest in co-piloting Aquaculture related projects and raising ecologically friendly farming practice awareness through pioneering programs they have under works. Naturally having their hydroponic shop connected directly to the project won’t hurt their growth either.

“We Help You Grow”. These simple and powerful words are what drives Perfect Gardens (formerly Green Joint Ven-tures), and they don’t just mean your plants. They believe in growing a community, and growing the hearts and minds of the people in it. When we grow crops we do more than harvest-we learn to cultivate...and Grozine sees a bright future ahead for Perfect Gardens and the growers and community they help to serve.

Green Joint Ventures>>Perfect Gardens61 Tarp CircleSalinas, CA 93901855-GROW-GOODEmail-Click-

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The Green Pad:Propagation-Showdown

In the Last Edition of Grozine, we spent some time talking about the benefits of “unseen” elements in our grows, for example like CO2. Most of us realize the benfits of CO2 enrichment in our veg and especially bloom phases, but how many of us growers have enriched their propagation en-vironments with this invisible friend of ours?Most of us think “O2” (oxygen) when it comes to this phase-so is there a benefit to raising carbon dioxide levels under the domes to 800 PPM?

Green Pad, the MFGs of this innovative pad that releases CO2 when it comes into contact with humidity from the air, say YES it does. Sounds cool, so we decided to try it out for ourselves (and for YOU of course!)

The SET-UP:

We relaize not all types of pl;ants are going to respond the same, espeically early on in development. So the way we mapped it out is as follows:

Two 1020 Prop Trays with 36-Cell InsertsTwo 1020 Prop Lids (Humidomes)Peat-Based professional growing mix (Pro-Mix)Liquid Karma

Seeds: a variety of tomatoes, chives, chard, basil, sun-flowers, etc

Side by side, we set-up or Propagation trays in a 40 cm X 40 cm grow tent. We light it up with a 400W PlantMax MH lamps in an engineered horizontal reflector. Light cycle is 18/6. Average temperature is about 85 deg F inside the domes

The -ONLY- difference between the two trays is that one will have

the CO2 Pad from Green Pad replaced every

other day, following the instructions provided. The other tray will not

CO2 for Victory?

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Pictured: The Prop Test growth chamber, as used to conduct our informal CO2 Pad Trials

7 days after planting:WITH GREEN PAD CO2

7 days after plating:NO GREEN PAD CO2

NOTES & OBSERVATIONS:

After seven days enough of the different seed types had germinated inside the humidity domes to necces-sitate removing the lids (to avoid seedlings from stretching

in high humidity). While the difference was not “striking” IT IS NOTICEABLE: the covered prop trays that had the Greepad CO2 Pad replaced every other day looked better: the young seedlings were a little further ahead and there are more of them in less time versus without

Green Pad Co2: prop test

v1.1-FINAL RESULTS

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Friend or Foe? -SpringTailS- viSiTeDBy caSey joneS FraSer (click to email)

Have you ever seen tiny, pale, flea-like critters catching a wave in your hydro system?

Maybe you’ve seen these little guys crawling in your soil, rockwool, or clay pellets, or even on bare roots. Fret not! These friendly bugs are called Springtails. They are often mistaken for thrips, root aphids, or spider mites, but they are not a pest.

Springtails (Collembola) are one of the most abundant crea-tures in healthy outdoor soil. Some evolutional scientists have theorized that other insects developed wings just to get away from the mobs of Springtails. EB Note-Finally, a critter you WANT to find in your garden!

Technically they aren’t even insects (insects have external mouthparts -- Springtails have internal mouthparts). While they have existed on this planet for hundreds of millions of years, and their populations are massive, they don’t have many obvious relatives. They might be more closely related to crayfish than typical garden insects.Unfortunately, many gardeners will freak out upon seeing these little bugs. They look like thrips from a distance, and they are athletic jumpers. The sight of possible pests in the thousands, jumping all over the place, is enough to make most growers reach for the bleach. Before you do that, reach for the microscope.

They are surprisingly darker under magnification. Their bod-ies reflect light, and may appear light gray or beige to the naked eye. You will usually see a segmented body with six legs and two antennae. You may also notice the furcula tucked under the body of the Collembola. This appendage is like a cocked trigger which allows the Springtail to jump with the speed of a bullet. Now you see them, now you don’t!Since they don’t eat plants, what do they do? For the most part they eat decomposing organic matter, like soils, leaf debris, compost, dead roots, etc.

They also consume microorganis

ms including bacteria a

nd fungi. The waste pro-

duced by the Springta

il is rich with organic

nutrients and bacter

ia. These little

guys can spread the go

od stuff all over a root s

ystem.

In hydro, they clean yo

ur roots from any decay

ing matter and distribute b

en-

eficial microorganisms. With their ti

ny size and extreme adaptabi

lity, they have

learned to exist on th

e surface tension of w

ater. You can sometimes see them

con-

If your hydro solution contains or-ganic matter, these arthropods can live their entire lives surfing in a reser-voir. Springtails can even mate on the surface tension. “Hey baby, check out my water bed!”So if you get ‘em, don’t sweat ‘em. If you would like to catch some for your gar-den, try this trick: mix some seaweed into a bucket of water, and set that bucket near an outdoor organic garden or in a wooded area. Check the bucket a week later, and you may see a few thou-sand Springtales wiggling their butts as they cruise for chicks. If you’ve seen them in action, you know what I’m talk-ing about. Cue the kinky 70’s music. Bow-chicka-bow-bow!

Casey Jones Fraser is an obsessed gardener

.

He grows veggies, herbs, and flowers with both

traditional and hydroponic methods. His years

of botanical experiences have taken him ev-

erywhere from Jamaica to Northern California

on a quest for more knowledge. You can read

his articles in various hydroponics magazines,

or visit his retail shop: Garden Grove Organ-

ics in the Northern Kentucky region of Grea

t-

er Cincinnati. www.gardengroveorganics.com

Illegitimi Non Carborundum www.grozine.com Your -ORIGINAL- Paperless Hydroponics Publication

You make the call: you have grown tired of the same old poison, and make a call for something that’s going to take your mind and surroundings into a liquid state. You hear it coming before it even arrives.....a v-twin thunder-storm is rolling up your driveway.

Throwing a leg off the bike, up to your door walks a leather and denim clad (and looking like a young Marlon Brando) biker name Joe Richard to answer the call-and deliver on a promise:

To rid you of your boring and toxic conventional lawn-scape and replace it with an Aquascape.

Aquatech Designs is a BC-Canada based company owned and operated by Joe Richard that specializes in transforming landscapes into moving and flowing “Aquascapes”; he is also an Aquaculture specialist, and is well known in local aquatics circles for his micro-biological skills in diagnosing and treating a variety of ailments and disorders for pond fish like Koi.

While this itself is cool stuff in the opinion of this publication, we espe-cially like this guy because he loves hydroponics as much as most of the people who read this publication. So, here we have a guy who can bridge some very transferable skills between the two fields and give you insights on how to help create healthy ecologies rather than support synthetic and toxic conventional landscapes. But, if you want to catch up with him while he’s on his custom Harley...well, good luck with that, because this guy really moves, so we caught up here at Grozine instead.

F*@K Lawns! Aquascape 4 Life

Illegitimi Non Carborundum www.grozine.com Your -ORIGINAL- Paperless Hydroponics Publication

GZ-knowing that you started a career in the retail hydroponics trade in the late 90’s, when and how did you start to make the crossover to Aquascaping?

JR-I was living at a property where there was an inland-fish hatchery around 2001-it caught my attention right away, because I always loved the moving water aspect of active re-cicrculating hydroponic systems-at the time drip tables were very popular here. So I started out with small pond I dug out and lined, then dropped in a few aquatic plants because they kind of blew me away compared to land plants for looking so...well, “extra terrestial”.

It made me happy, and from the there it grew into adding some Koi-that’s what really set things in motion.

GZ-What do you mean, the Koi “lit the match”, so to speak...how so?

JR-Like most people who do their first pond, and are excited and do it in a hurry, I ended up making a lot of mistakes. The Koi likely had parasites to start with-it’s kind of like buying clones. You have to know what to look for and buy from reputable sources. So with my first pond akin to a novice built hydro system planted with sick clones I quickly realized that if I wanted my water gardens to flourish like my hydroponic gardens, I needed to do some more learning.

Luckily, there was guy on site at the fish hatchery who took pity on my first pond-he seemed to warm up to me after I started discuss-ing Carbonate values; something I had picked up on working at the retail hydroponics shop. He was Pro-and taught me how to use a micro-scope and do a micro-scopic biopsy. It was a real eye-opener, as it opened up a whole new world that was living in my pond the whole time.

GZ-So, it sounds like that was foundational for you?

JR-Yes, absolutely. It taught me that it doesn’t matter whether you are growing land plants or aquatic plants and fish, you must under-stand the nature of their environment and how it’s all interrelated to be able to make any kind of real effective treatment.

GZ-OK, so here we are at present day, and you with an impressive portfolio of completed jobs and projects.

JR-Actually, I do a fair trade in maintaining Aquascapes, besides just the initial installation. I also offer specialized services, including removing sick fish from a system, quarantining and then returning them once they are 100% healthy again.

GZ-That’s definitely worth mentioning, thanks. Alright, so what does it take to get started, budget wise? Let’s say I have a small yard that I would rather not maintain a lawn and toxic chemicals and a gas mower, but would rather have something a little more Zen, like a modest Aquascape-I’ve got a shovel and a strong back, what’s it going to cost?

JR-Initially it’s probably going to cost more of your time than anything, but if you are willing to do the back work and can research and learn the basics, you could probably get started with a decent sized pond, complete with pump, filtration system etc for under one thousand dollars. After that sky is the limit but like hydroponic systems, it’s about economies of scale. The bigger you go, the lesser the cost typically on a square foot or per gallon basis. Believe it or not, Koi can cost as much as a car-but just a few goldfish is a great place to start if you want to add fish to a modest .aquatic plant garden.

GZ-For space allowing, let’s let your work speak for itself, visually. Any closing thoughts?

JR-For sure. I can tell you 100%, that if you love hydroponics, you really may prefer Aquascaping over conventional landscaping. Think about it: with a lawn, all you are left with is a patch that constantly needs water, and sometimes harmful chemicals, fuel to mow, etc. With a pond, you are left with a living system that yields thousands of gallons of healthy living water and adds beauty and tranquillity to your life and surroundings. For me and my clients, it’s become the clear the choice.

Illegitimi Non Carborundum www.grozine.com Your -ORIGINAL- Paperless Hydroponics Publication

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