Welcome to autos in hydro. Not an expert, but I'm starting to get it dialed in and I'll tell you what my process is. First, If you're starting from seed I highly recommend planting in jiffy pellets or a small rockwool cube to get your seedlings rooted properly before putting them in buckets, wait till the roots extend 4-6 inches out of your starter cube/pellet, then soak your growing medium (hydroton, perlite, or whatever you're using) overnight in pure water ph'd 5.5-6.2 and at the same time, prepare a batch of compost tea large enough to have a cup of it for every gallon of water you'll be using in your reservoirs (this is optional, but experience has taught me the value of having beneficial microorganisms in your hydro system) Progress Earth makes a great compost tea in a box, you can get enough to keep you supplied for many grows for under $50 If you choose to use the tea, inoculate your reservoirs at the rate of a cup per gallon, then ph your buckets to 5.7 or so and set your starter in the bottom of your net pot while very gently and carefully pulling the roots through the bottom to hang down into the res area (fill the res to within an inch or two of the bottom of the net pot) give them 4-7 days in the tea (it's very mild on the nutrients and can't burn young plants) at this point your autos should be around 2-3 weeks old from sprout and you can begin to give them light vegetative nutes, according to the feeding schedule of whatever nutrient line it is you're using (if it's not an only hydro line, make sure you use the hydro feeding schedule) at that point, it's mainly about making sure your ph's stay in the proper range, and changing out your reservoirs every week or so (make sure you thoroughly clean your buckets, tubes and airstones with hot, soapy water and rinse well with each bucket change) you have a good M.O. in that you start small on the nutes and work your way up, but there are many auto lines that can take high nute doses as was stated above. I have my Northern Lights autos from Vision seeds in 1400ppm solution right now, and they're beasting!! (can't recommend Vision seeds enough, btw) Hydro can be intimidating, but use the knowledge and experience of others on this forum to your advantage and I think you'll find the fruits of your labor well worth the extra work it takes to grow in Hydro.
:stylez rasta smoke:
