Hydroponic Growing Kit. Instruction Booklet

5 Gallon Bucket System Kit Instruction Booklet

Contents

5 Gallon Bucket System Kit

2

Setting Up The Bucket System

3

Starting Your Seedling

4

How to Solve Common Problems

5

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5 Gallon Bucket System Kit Instruction Booklet

5 Gallon Bucket System Kit

This 5 gallon bucket bubbler system was designed to get the curious gardener plunged into the advantageous world of hydroponics. It is suitable for both indoor or outdoor growing.

If growing indoors, consider using at a minimal T5 lighting, or a simple LED. If growing outdoors, make sure root temperatures do not get too hot (68-72F being ideal).

The kit includes: • 8 oz CNS17 Grow + 8 oz CNS17 Bloom • 5 Liter hydroton • Rockwool for seed starts • Airpump + air stone • 5 gallon bucket • 8” Aero net pot

This kit will you the best results when used to grow only a single plant. The nutrients included are for both the vegetative stage and flowering stage.

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5 Gallon Bucket System Kit Instruction Booklet

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Setting Up The Bucket System

1. Use clear tubing to connect air stone to air pump, and thread tubing through hole through side of bucket at the top. Place the airstone at the bottom of bucket and connect the pump to a power source. Turn the dial on the pump halfway up.

2. Place hydroton balls in net basket and rinse with clean water outdoors or over your sink, removing all sediment from substrate.

3. Place blue tubing, with elbow in grommet at the outer bottom of bucket.

Use the bucket handle to hold the blue tubing vertical along the side of the bucket. The other end of the blue tubing stays open, it functions as a fill line so you can visualize the water level, as well as the tube you will use when filling and draining water from the bucket.

4. Fill bucket with filtered, drinking quality water (preferably filtered using reverse osmosis). The bucket system is designed to hold 3.5 gallons of water, fill to the indicator line on the bucket. You should now see bubbles coming from the air stone.

5. Snap the net basket with hydroton balls onto the top of the bucket. This creates a perfect moisture seal for your plant. The water should reach the top level of hydroton balls but not submerge them. If you cannot see water, or hydroton balls are under more than half an inch of water, adjust accordingly.

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5 Gallon Bucket System Kit Instruction Booklet

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Starting Your Seedling 1. If starting from seed, separate one block of rockwool and place the seed inside. For most seeds, the apex is the rounded side, roots will emerge from the opposite, pointed side, so be sure to insert it into the rockwool with the apex facing up. Place rockwool block in center of the net basket, partially submerging it within hydroton balls. Hand water the block as necessary to keep seedling moist.

2. Place your bucket system in a warm, well lit area that is not overly humid or arid. Place a clear cup over seedling to protect seedling from drying out until larger. Seeds will typically sprout from the rockwool within 3-5 days.

3. As your seedling grows, pay close attention to the water level, leave it high as it begins to grow, and bring the level down once the roots are seen coming out of the net basket.

4. Mix in CNS17 Grow at the rate of 5-7ml/Gal of water to start. Top the water level off with water every 3-5 days. As the plant grows and matures, gradually increase the strength of the solution as neccessarry 7-9ml/gal, 9-11ml/gal and so on. Usually by 2-3ml every week. NOTE: Do not over-saturate the water with nutrients. It is easier to feed a plant more food if it is deficient than the other way around.

5. When plants are ready to flower, switch to CNS17 Bloom. Again gradually increase the feeding strength weekly until mid flower then maintain for 1-2 weeks and begin reducing.

6. The last week of flowering, the plant should be fed straight water. This allows them to eat up all salts in their system, reducing chemical taste.

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5 Gallon Bucket System Kit Instruction Booklet

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How to Solve Common Problems Root disease: Pythium is a disease that decays the roots and overall plant health. It is often caused by low oxygen levels in rootzone. To help prevent this from happening, keep water temperature down by insulating the bucket, and use Botanicare Hydroguard at 2ml/gallon to maintain root health.

Leggy growth: This happens when plants are not getting enough light. Increase exposure and use full spectrum lighting for better growth. Or lower the light closer to the plant.

Calcium/Magnesium Deficiency: When growing in hydroponics, calcium and magnesium deficiencies are common, even when included in the nutrients.

Supplementing the nutrient solution with a calcium magnesium supplement is highly recommended.

Trimming and training: Cut off all sickly growth and under growth that is not photosynthesizing. This diverts more energy to important parts of the plant.

77 50 %

Provide a good grow environment means keeping as close to 77F during the day as possible. Relative humidity should drop during the night cycle and be maintained between 40-60% during the day.

Good air flow and circulation are necessary to strengthen stems exchange exhausted air with air rich in carbon dioxide (CO2), and allow for deeper light penetration.

Force flowering: This is the practice of artificially changing the length of light from a vegetative stage of 18 hours to a short day cycle of 12 hours of light. At this time your plant will stretch and reach because the light cycle is much shorter. Feedling a plant a flowering formula a week before going into a 12/12 cycle can help the plant make the transition. pH meter to make sure the water has a slight acidity between 5.5-6.2 pH. Letting the pH drift between that range allows for necessary elements to easily be absorbed by the plant.

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5 Gallon Bucket System Kit Instruction Booklet

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For additional tips on how to maximize your crop yield and get real results from your plants, be sure to download our essential guide to growing, 5 Tips for Cost Effective Yields.

You can claim this free e-book at http://grow.sea-of-green.com/improve-your-harvest

For assistance call us: 800 266 4186 Visit us: 1828 E. University Dr, Suite 11 Tempe, AZ 85281 Visit us online: www.seaofgreenonline.com