SD Office Cube Grow Log

[Sea Mac]

That's right: new branches start at each node (On both Sides of the Plant) right above the Leaf stem. I believe that part is called the "Shoulder" of the node ...

Yeah, they start off innocently enough: as 'bumps'. Then you see tiny leaves, next a small stem: before you know it the nodes on the new branches have 'bumps' on their 'shoulders' ...  (Repeat last 2 sentences)

It's like watching a Beautiful green fractal slowly grow ...

3 1/2 years I've been doing this and I can still say, with great wonder, that I LOVE Watching this beautiful process happen! 

[5010]

One remark on photos: the ruler can be confusing especially on close-ups.  It would be better to shoot from farther away with a zoom so the ruler wouldn't suffer from 3-d effect, but all I have is a cheap easyshare cam.




Above: pay no attention to the ruler as the closeness of plant to camera makes it out of proportion.




Above: pay no attention to the ruler as the closeness of it to camera makes it out of proportion.

[5010]

Xd016 11" high.  Node 3's pointy bump is now a definite cone.  Node 7 leaf resting on node 6 leaf is blackened at the point where it touches, and the blackened area is spreading.  Small leaves slightly larger.  Node 1 looks same as yesterday's detail.

See detail in previous post: Should I be concerned about node 1?

Xd013 is thirsty: 13" high.  Watering the pot this morning.  Tip leaves now .25" long.  The little bumps I noticed yesterday are definitely leaves, one reaching 1/4" since yesterday.  Amazing.  We're looking good.

Sea Mac: So true, this plant has an intrinsic fractal geometry that I find very interesting.

[Sea Mac]

Alright brother!

You did right by those plants! It looks as if 13 is going to be your lucky number. I'll be interested to see if they grow a quarter inch in a week from now on. I use "Sturdy Stake" brand Support rods myself: so I can See they are off to an excellent start!

As for the photo-period: in about a month we'll find out if they are getting more darkness than light each day - Racemes will start forming and you'll be saying "Those don't look like leaves" ...  I'm most eager to see if they'll bloom for you.

And two notes on that last picture ... take a wet paper napkin and gently wipe down that lime stain and 'wash' it off. Some of the white may not wipe off - as long as the plant still has turgor pressure It'll be OK but if the damage spreads or the plant starts failing you'll have to chop the plant off above the bad spot and re-root her as a new cutting.

AND

Did you notice that healthy 'cable' of a root coming out of the stem and plunging into the dirt? Salvia does that and I'm pretty sure that's a good sign: you can SEE she has no root rot.

I'd guess those 2 plants are 'established' in their new pots and will resume growing now.  How fast they grow is depending on how much light they get - this is the part I'm second most interested in finding out.  

[Sea Mac]

Xd016 11" high.  Node 3's pointy bump is now a definite cone.  Node 7 leaf resting on node 6 leaf is blackened at the point where it touches, and the blackened area is spreading.  Small leaves slightly larger.  Node 1 looks same as yesterday's detail.

See detail in previous post: Should I be concerned about node 1? Rinse it off and take another picture.  

Xd013 is thirsty: 13" high.  Watering the pot this morning.  Tip leaves now .25" long.  The little bumps I noticed yesterday are definitely leaves, one reaching 1/4" since yesterday.  Amazing.  We're looking good.

Sea Mac: So true, this plant has an intrinsic fractal geometry that I find very interesting.

Yes: if you noticed a small leaf has grown a quarter inch in one day you are indeed 'looking good'          

Well, you are reporting visible growth each day now: It you start talking to them as if they were cats or dogs (each day when your co-workers aren't around) they should show that explosive "Galloping Growth" that I see in MY outdoor garden!

It is obvious now that those 2 remaining plants have no shipping shock issues anymore. You are going to see these plants putting 'bumps' out on All of their 'shoulders' now.

The bigger they grow the more leaf area to make sugar with, the more leaves they have the faster they grow, ergo: the larger they get the faster they grow. In about 6 months you're going to have to start wrestling them for cubicle space.

             

It seems I put a little bit of Magick in each box I send out, Eh?  

[5010]

I should mention the photos are deeper green than real life (at least on this monitor they are)

The white stuff came off easily.  My girlfriend has the camera today since she is riding nascar at the speedway (a free gift from Marlboro).  I'll get it back here for tomorrow and snap another detail, and capture some details of shoulders and tips too.

I'm planning to do monthly maintenance on their "birthdays".  The next one will be Thursday, Oct 18th.  So far I'm thinking the following once per month:
- place in sink and fill with water up to top of soil, then lift and let drain
- add a little soil (expecting the above to wash some out)
- sprinkle fertilizer on top (not sure how much)
- put back pots, rotated 180 deg

Or should the 1st item be more like every 6 months or what?  I should get cheesecloth or something to catch the silt from clogging the plumbing.

[5010]

Xd016: 11" tall.  I've been watching for leaves on node 1 and 3 and today for the 1st time I see 2 leaves on node 3.  The heavily eaten leaf at node 6 has come down away from the leaf that was resting on it.  There was a tiny white bug roving across the soil, as small as a grain of sand.

Xd013: 13" tall.  The newer leaf on node 2 is now 3/8" long.  One tiny leaf on node 5 is wilted, its twin looking healthy.

[Paradoxic]

Sweet, got some pictures in there now. Plants look good, the stem on Xd013 is nice and thick.

What kind of fertilizer are you planning on using? I dont know of anyone yet who has used the solid sprinkle-on kind. It will be cool to see how Salvia likes it.

Oh yeah I see that white stuff on the stem, I think thats mildew. I got a lot of that back when I grew plants in a humidity chamber. It didnt seem to harm the plants much but I read that if you were to accidentally smoke it you could end up with some dangerous lung complications. Does anyone know of a way to control it besides just washing it off, like a long-term solution?

Now that you have pictures I gotta get off my lazy ass and take some pictures of my plants and start a log. The plants aren't at my house either so its been hard to remember, but now I got no excuse.

[MstryShovel]

about that white residue, seamac u say limedeposits? my plant a while back was getting this white buildup that i was affraid was a mould or infestation, i sprayed it with a dial soap+water solution and it more or less went away, in my dirt-growing plant, then i noticed the cutting gaining the same thing, but the thing is, im using tap water and NYC tap has high amounts of chlorine, so i was figureing, it was evaporating from the ground and depositing on the leaves/stem the deposites mainly form in the main middle veign or the leaf and travel inward along the leaf stem.  no complications from it yet, seeing as the spray knocks it out, but just wondering if you cats had some advice. mabey ill see if my shitty cameraphone can take a picture of it

edit heres a pic:

its not fully visible but in the little valleys of the big leaves theres a white residue. side note: Sally LOVES hydro

[Sea Mac]

So, you CAN tell these plants are growing some EACH Day, Huh?

That is EXCELLENT ...

I'm planning to do monthly maintenance on their "birthdays".  The next one will be Thursday, Oct 18th.  So far I'm thinking the following once per month:
- place in sink and fill with water up to top of soil, then lift and let drain
- add a little soil (expecting the above to wash some out)
- sprinkle fertilizer on top (not sure how much)
- put back pots, rotated 180 deg

No, I think you need to modify that.

- place in sink and fill with water up to top of soil, then lift and let drain 

That's how you should water them, weekly (or if wilted): soak them good for an hour then let them dry out between waterings. Fill it to the rim of the pot and watch it soak through.

- add a little soil (expecting the above to wash some out)

No, don't.  Salvia plants need lots of air around their roots. If you bury the roots you cut off access to air.



These roots being exposed never hurt "Momma Kat". Don't bury roots: let them bury themselves.


- sprinkle fertilizer on top (not sure how much)

No. Don't use a powdered formulation: you might burn the roots.

Every third or fourth watering should be with Miracle-Gro fertilizer mixed into the water

(Yeah: rotate pots 180˚ regularly - maybe weekly)  

[Sea Mac]

about that white residue, seamac u say limedeposits? my plant a while back was getting this white buildup that i was affraid was a mould or infestation, i sprayed it with a dial soap+water solution and it more or less went away, in my dirt-growing plant, then i noticed the cutting gaining the same thing, but the thing is, im using tap water and NYC tap has high amounts of chlorine, so i was figureing, it was evaporating from the ground and depositing on the leaves/stem the deposites mainly form in the main middle veign or the leaf and travel inward along the leaf stem.  no complications from it yet, seeing as the spray knocks it out, but just wondering if you cats had some advice. mabey ill see if my shitty cameraphone can take a picture of it

edit heres a pic:

its not fully visible but in the little valleys of the big leaves theres a white residue. side note: Sally LOVES hydro

I'm not sure ... I call them "lime" or "Scale" deposits.

Rinse with water and wipe with finger ...   

[MstryShovel]

I'm not sure ... I call them "lime" or "Scale" deposits.

Rinse with water and wipe with finger ...   

yeah ^^^

[Sea Mac]

You (and the plants) are doing great.

I recommend you give them their weekly watering Friday evening Just before leaving for the weekend.

They'll last through the weekend with no misting that way ...

This grow log is going to be very interesting ... 

[5010]

Well that white stuff (lime) never returned.

Leaves were badly curled on return to work this morning, so I went ahead and put water in the pot.  Sea Mac, before when you said water for an hour I thought you meant sprinkle water onto the soil for an hour, but now I see.  I'm just sprinkling for now but will be prepared for the soak this Friday.

They are taking up the water nicely.  Xd013's biggest leaves on node 4 have spread out and are looking good.  The upper leaves have uncurled but 2 are still hanging down.  Should perk up now that they's uncurled.

Xd016's top 2 leaves looked perfect even after the weekend.  The rest of the leaves have uncurled and are perking up.

I'll look for a container to place the pots in so that they can retain water for an hour.  I'll begin doing this on Fridays.  Also will look for the miracle grow.  I have some peters blue stuff that I used to put a pinch per gallon for the ivy, but stopped bothering with it because the ivy does well on left-over coffee.  Not sure if it would be good for SD.

I'll be out of town for 3 days this weekend.

Hmm... I wonder if SD would like left-over coffee.  Better to do that with some future offspring, methinks.

[Sea Mac]

Yeah, I was really afraid they were going to die of thirst some weekend (Yd005 DID ... )

Well, actually, I repeat water them about a dozen times: It drains out really quick from those chunky mixes I use so I fill the pot / watch it drain / do it again a couple more times / wait 20 minutes / dose them again ...

This is what I would do to them if they were MY Plants ...

If you get a bucket and fill it with tap water you could get away with immersing the whole thing a fraction of an inch above the dirt line in the water for about 5 - 20 minutes. Put the plant in a clean bucket: slowly add water to the bottom of the bucket between the pot and the buckets walls. The water level rises up around the pot and squirts in through the drain holes in the bottom: you stop adding water when the water is above the dirt level but still below the rim of the pot. This way you won't be pouring water directly on the soil and washing some off. You'll have the root ball fully immersed and the dirt should be saturated in about 5 - 10 minutes.

One weekend a month you'll pre-mix some "Blue Water" to soak them with instead. Say: the first Friday of each month (and the 3rd Friday if the month has 5 Friday's).

Go look for a 1 1/2 pound box of this common plant food at any garden supply store (Home Depot / Walmart / Lowes / Target / most nurseries / Online):

"1 1/2 Lb Miracle Gro Plant Food


Home Depot
1 1/2 Lb Miracle Gro Plant Food
Product Description
Plant Food 15-30-15 - All Purpose ``Miracle-Gro`` Boxed Size=1-1/2 Lbs.
Water soluble; for all vegetables, flowers, roses, tomatoes, shrubs, fruits, trees, lawns evergreens/house plants.
Product Details
Price From:   < $5
Manufacturer:   Scotts 1
Model Number:   100112
UPC Number:   073561001120"

It comes with a little plastic two headed scoop in the box: you pack tight, one, level, LARGE End scoop and dump it in a gallon of water (and Stir well). They will appreciate being soaked in THAT very much.

My Salvia Plants LOVE this Stuff! They get this deep rich emerald green color in their faces: no mistaking it!

Pour whatever remains, after both have had a good soaking, on ALL your plants {The Ivy ...} (Give the Sallys seconds: pour it over them ... )

Yeah, you'll notice the color changes over the next week.

I can't wait to see if they will bloom. If the lights are on each day for LESS Than 12 hours they will most likely try ... In a couple of months we will know! (It takes them several weeks to "Change Gears" into 'Making Racemes' mode but then all new branch ends will be transformed into flowering spikes after that.)

If they DO flower you should try hand pollinating each one - you might just get seeds ...

You'd be famous ... People will turn to YOU for growing advice!

Yeah, that white stuff never returns for me either. It's just cosmetic - not bad news. I just rinse the poor babies when I see it ...