Ep 024: Still Stretching: End of Stretch Check-In

0:06 — 1:04

Day 10 Flower Intro — End of Stretch

Jeremy opens episode 19 on day 10 of flower, rounding out the end of stretch. He points out how tall the plants have gotten since the second layer of screen went on and previews what the episode will cover: each quadrant walkthrough, water consumption changes, and the announcement that he's leaving town and has arranged a guest host to keep the YouTube series running.

1:04 — 3:25

Quadrant One — Defoliation Philosophy

In quadrant one Jeremy notices leaves that need cleaning up and uses it as a teaching moment about defoliation timing. He rejects the idea that you must defoliate on specific days (day 1, 14, or 21) — that framework exists because commercial grows must schedule labor in waves. In a home grow you can pull a couple leaves here and there every day, or clean it up in one pass before getting behind. He says the best rule is simply to do it as soon as you can so you never fall behind.

1. 1. Check in on the quadrant daily as part of manual watering routine
2. 2. Identify lower leaves that won't make it to the top screen and will yellow from being light-blocked
3. 3. Pull those leaves preemptively rather than waiting for them to crisp and fade
4. 4. Don't force a specific calendar day — defoliate when the canopy needs it

3:25 — 5:33

Watering Instructions and Canopy Heights

Jeremy lays out the written instructions he's leaving for caretakers: for one quadrant, look down the tube and water when it's empty; for the earth boxes, water one Chapin full at three and a half gallons every other day, backing off as stretch slows. He observes that canopy heights have changed dramatically in just two days — tops that were below the second screen on day 8 are now above it. He decides to thin the dominant back-right Branson's Royal plant to let light reach its neighbors, but warns against pulling too many leaves because leaves ARE the solar panels giving energy back to the plant.

1. 1. For the automatic container — look down the tube, water when the reservoir is empty
2. 2. For the earth box — water one Chapin full (three and a half gallons) every other day
3. 3. As plants slow down from stretch, back off to less than a Chapin full every other day
4. 4. Wait one extra day between waterings as stretch ends
5. 5. If water comes out the bottom, you've watered too much
6. 6. Thin the back-right Branson's Royal sparingly to let light reach other plants
7. 7. Don't over-defoliate — leaves are solar panels

5:33 — 6:12

Airflow and Disease Prevention

Jeremy explains why canopy cleanup matters for airflow: leaves that overlap and rest on each other collect dew and condensation in the morning, which can mat together and create vectors for mold, mildew, and disease. Even though he doesn't think there's a problem in this tent, he wants to stay ahead of it because they've already brought in enough bugs with all the compost.

1. 1. Look for leaves resting on each other in the canopy
2. 2. Separate overlapping leaves to prevent dew collection points
3. 3. Pull matted foliage before it becomes a disease vector
4. 4. Maintain good airflow around branch intersections

6:12 — 7:46

Quadrant Two — Seed Genetics and Stretch Ending

In quadrant two, all four plants are Branson's Royal Revenge from seed, which makes the canopy more uniform than quadrant one where the Halitosis and Branson's Royal are competing at different rates. Jeremy explains F1 vs F2 seed variability — with F1 you see more of the mother and father, with F2 you open up recessive genetics. Plant number 12 in the light soil is starting to stack; nodes are no longer jumping apart but filling in. He predicts they'll be at the top of the bamboo poles in five days, and that these genetics will finish stretching around the normal two-week rule rather than the sometimes-seen 20-day stretch.

7:46 — 9:06

Feeder Roots in the Mulch Layer

Jeremy references his pre-flower preload from an earlier episode — he deliberately filled his 10-gallons with only 7.5 gallons of soil to leave headroom for a before-flower top dress. The point wasn't just nutrient release, it was to develop a feeder root system in the mulch layer. He peels back the mulch and shows fish bone ladder roots and fine root tips migrating up into the top dress. This means that when he or AJ top dresses again, those feeder roots will grab the new compost and amendments faster than if they were only reaching it via water solubility.

1. 1. Before flip, leave headroom in container (7.5 gallons in a 10-gallon pot)
2. 2. Apply a pre-flower top dress of compost and amendments in that headroom
3. 3. Water consistently so the mulch stays moist but not soaking wet
4. 4. Wait for feeder roots to migrate upward into the top dress layer
5. 5. Verify by gently peeling back the mulch and checking for fine root tips
6. 6. Any future top dress will then be received rapidly by those feeder roots

9:06 — 10:53

Environment and Guest Host Announcement

Jeremy notes the humidifier kicked on mid-video — he's decided to leave all the environmental equipment running during filming instead of turning it off, both for plant comfort and because he might forget to plug something back in and get a Pulse alert. He announces AJ as the guest host: former BuildASoil employee, co-owner with his wife of Growing Organic, Colorado Home Growers Cup winner (first place), maker of the Kashi blend product that BuildASoil carries and that Jeremy uses in this grow. He encourages viewers to drop questions in the comments for AJ.

10:53 — 12:45

Quadrant Four — Bolting Lettuce and Clones

Jeremy moves to quadrant four and shows the lettuce bolting under 12/12 — the lighting change triggered it to start producing seed and throwing a stock. Bolted lettuce turns bitter so he's going to harvest it all, feed the residue to the worms, and decide what to replant. Peppers and tomatoes still look good. He then shows the clones he brought in under a Cypress light on a rack while he sets up the 4x4 veg tent. One cutting from every plant in the grow was taken less than two weeks ago, all rooted 100%, all transplanted into light soil showed 100% success, domes are already off meaning they're no longer babies.

1. 1. Harvest all bolting lettuce heads rather than letting them regrow
2. 2. Feed the spent lettuce residue back to the worm bin
3. 3. Decide what to plant next — possibly new seeds during the time away
4. 4. Keep clones under Cypress light on rack until 4x4 veg tent is set up
5. 5. Up-pot rooted clones into one-gallon containers once back from trip
6. 6. Maintain as mom plants for future comparative runs

12:45 — 14:39

Next Cycle Planning

Jeremy brainstorms the next cycle. He wants to run identical clones instead of seed so comparisons between quadrants are more meaningful. He'll keep the 3x3 no-till and probably keep three quadrants for cannabis. He's considering swapping the 10-gallons for a different system in one quadrant — possibly very fast-flowering phenohunts in one to five gallons to serve smaller-scale growers. He teases that Timber is working on an exclusive 2x2 light for BuildASoil and mentions a possible 2x2 grow-along series, and asks viewers to comment with ideas.

14:39 — 18:05

BuildABloom Feeding and Sign-Off

Jeremy remembers to mention that yesterday he added BuildABloom at one teaspoon per gallon during the last watering, even though he's already top-dressed. BuildABloom is BuildASoil's water-soluble organic fertilizer — a balanced blend of phosphorus, calcium, and fulvic acid that complements living soil and offsets the potassium-heavy skew from excessive compost in small containers. Entering flower, calcium and phosphorus are the most important nutrients for flower development. Plan while away: first week AJ will do one top dress on the four flower containers, one top dress on the earth boxes, nothing on the 3x3. Branson will drive down on Sundays four days a week to water the 10-gallons. Jeremy ends with a reminder that being a good farmer means listening to the plants, not guessing far in advance.

1. 1. Top dress first before adding water soluble feeds
2. 2. Add BuildABloom at one teaspoon per gallon during a regular watering
3. 3. Water it in so the soluble minerals reach the soil biology
4. 4. While away — AJ does one top dress on the four flower containers in week one
5. 5. One top dress on the earth boxes
6. 6. Nothing on the 3x3 — let it ride
7. 7. Branson drives down on Sundays to water the 10-gallons (four days a week coverage)
8. 8. On return, do an update video and reassess whether to top dress again, brew compost tea, or hold off