Bud protection.

[Frank Reynolds]

Thanks for that, beeen looking for chitosan for a while as a fungicide, only ever seen it over in the UK woot.

 

Btw nice plants itchy looking great

[itchybromusic]

Hey Frank 

I've been trying to source the raw material of some sort of crustacean meal to go in as a soil amendment 

so far the only thing i can find is salt free freeze dried shrimp at a aquarium store , feeds turtles i think 

They claim around 5% moister which might or might not be a prob in a coffee grinder to make them crushed 

 

If you feel like a read this is pretty cool info  http://idigmygarden.com/forums/showthread.php?t=51481

[missrachael]

Thanks everyone. Will check out all the links. Hope your season has been a merry one 

 

Hey itchy, wow your gal was/is beautiful!! How did you end up? I'm just debudding the last of my gals dried branches.......ahhh love getting to the curing stage, phew! I reckon I lost almost a 1/4 in the end to bud rot but really happy with the crop. High humidity, constant rain and heavy heavy dews, almost like a few mm of misty rain, on a couple of nights they were uncovere. Umbrellas & tarps did a stirling job once I'd tied and weighted them down with 100's of kg of rock. Will definitely be constructing a PVC pipe hoop house and cover it before those buds are too plump & dense. Hope all went swimmingly for you and your girls. Definitely up for more of your ramblings

[crow]

001.JPG

 

Jeez itchy, she's magnificent.  Which strain was that?  I'd love to see a pic of her closer to the finish...

[itchybromusic]

Hey missrachael

I did ok this year 41 ozzy's from 2x in grounds & 2x 520mm pots , ( loss was 2 or 3 ozzy's maybe ) which is not bad for the little space i have between a garage & a fence

Am thinking of a redesign for the hoop cover i have , would like to open the top middle center by removing a strip of plastic ( 200/300mm ) then mounting a roof over that strip 

2 more trench mesh run length ways along the top of the hoop house & raised up X cm & cover that with plastic as a roof to stop rain getting in

but also air flow by allowing air to be removed out the top , hopefully that should keep the humidity down & control temps under the plastic a little better

 

this year drying took a month before was able to jar which stops my room from being kicked in to gear again but that was the year that was

How did you do missrachael , happy ?

 

Hey crowsange

The main plant you can see is GG Allin & behind her is Bubble Fuck a little harder to distinguish

will put some picks of her up when i can get the old comp back up & running "again"

( gotta back up on to something else , i'm a slacker , what can i say )

Both those girls given open space are capable of producing multiple pounds for the grower 

[Donald Mallard]

Thanks guys. Hahahaha yep not exactly camo but luckily I live in the middle of nowhere and my gals are surrounded by other lush vegetation too.

 

Hey itchybromusic your set up sounds interesting. Do your plants mind 15% less light? Any airflow problems? I would love to construct some sort of retractable awning one day and the hot house material you mentioned may work beautifully. I could leave the gals covered if there was any rain forecast during the last month or so of flowering, especially if I was away for a few days.

Lovely plants missrachael,

i love the asian style umbrellas ,

makes for a great pic .. 

 

I think you touched on one point re bud rot and your garden,

the airflow looks restricted , and will add the the problem ,,,

 

i find there is usually damage at the site where the rot begins ,

often from caterpillers ,

spraying regularly in flower is almost essential outdoors to avoid that .. 

 

im told healthy plants dont get such problems ,

so the other thing to do would be increase the health of your plant as much as you can.. 

 

lastly i guess if rain in flower is common where you live ,

you might want to look at varieties that are more suited to that,

i found mango haze resisted any problems associated with rain better than any id tried ... 

[louise]

 

If you feel like a read this is pretty cool info  http://idigmygarden.com/forums/showthread.php?t=51481

 

 Unfortunately idigmygarden.com is a parked domain... no website online...

 

Got any other links that might be active?

[itchybromusic]

 Unfortunately idigmygarden.com is a parked domain... no website online...

 

Got any other links that might be active?

Bugga hate when that happens 

I think i found the post C & P'd to

another forum but haven't read completely yet

but here it is anyway Lu

 

Chitin, Chitosan, Chitinase – an organic pest control arsenal 

 

A Copy/paste from http://idigmygarden.com/forums/showthread.php?t=51481

 

To most effectively use chitin you need to understand the three related compounds – Chitin, Chitosan, Chitinase

 

Chitin is a compound that makes up the shells of crustaceans/arthropods. Not only that, but chitin helps form the cell walls of fungi (I will share the importance of this later). And even more good news, it is a main component of the exoskeleton of insects. One thing you also need to be aware of is that it is found in the “skin” of worms.

 

Chitosan is a compound that is created from the breakdown of chitin. Chitosan is the product that you may find most commercially available as both a plant growth regulator and a “no risk” systematic pesticide. Note: per my current understanding most chitosan is produced using a synthetic process on an organic product, thus is not truly organic. Not only that, but if you are using it to reverse an outbreak, it may not be the best option. I will share a better option in a minute.

 

Chitinase is the naturally occurring enzyme that breaks chitin down into chitosan. I will repeat that point, it is the central point you need to know in order to organically reverse a disease (and possibly even insect) outbreak using chitin! Chitinase is the enzyme that breaks chitin down into chitosan. Some living organisms produce this chitinase enzyme. Most of these organisms are bacteria (and some fungi). Some plants even produce this enzyme in order to fight off disease (this is the “system” that we will use to model our pest control treatment). Anyways, many of the chitinase producing microorganisms are known crustacean pathogens. These organisms produce this enzyme so they can break down crustacean shells (in order to eat it, or get through it to invade the shellfish itself). While this may seem bad, it can be used to our organic advantage.

 

More info:

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitin

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitosan

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitinase

 

Ok, now that you are a little familiar with each of these substances let’s start talking pest control. There are really two stages of pest control: preventative and reactive.

 

PREVENTATIVE PEST CONTROL using chitin and chitosan

 

Like I mentioned, chitin is found on the outer parts of fungi and bugs. Some plants use this to their advantage. They have receptors that sense chitin. When the plant detects chitin (especially in high concentrations) it assumes that it is being attacked by either an insect or a fungal disease. The plant will ramp up its defenses. It will thicken and strengthen its cell walls. If it can, it will start making chitinase.

 

Why would a plant make chitinase if it thinks it is being attacked? Well as you know, chitinase breaks chitin down. Hence, when the fungi or insect comes in contact with the plant, the plant will excrete these enzymes. When the enzyme touches the chitin on the pest, it will break it down. As the chitin breaks down the pest either becomes vulnerable and weak or even flat out die. In this way some plants produce their own ‘insecticide’ and ‘fungicide’, albeit in very limited quantities.

 

So why apply chitosan?

 

Well, plants can react to chitosan in the same way as chitin. When they detect it they will beef up their defenses. Hence companies sell chitosan as a systematic pesticide. Could the same effect be achieved by using chitin itself? Yes. I understand it though that most companies sell chitosan because it is more soluble and can be better mixed and sprayed as a solution.

 

I also understand that as the plant works to strengthen its cell walls etc, it must create new growth. Hence chitin and chitosan are used as plant growth regulators that increase plant growth. When you apply the product the plant will put energy into growth as it tries to defend itself against the apparent attack.

 

In summary, when you apply chitin or even chitosan you will stimulate the plant to beef up its defenses. In this way your plant will be less susceptible to diseases and insects. This is most effective before the pant is being attacked. If an outbreak is already in progress, there is a better option.

 

Now that we know how to use chitin products to help prevent outbreaks, how do we use them to correct outbreaks that are in progress?

 

REACTIVE PEST CONTROL using chitin, chitosan, AND chitinase.

 

Suppose that your plant (be it tomato, squash, etc. or even a fruit tree) is already being attacked by a pest. What can you do? Applying chitin or chitosan can’t hurt, but my experience suggests that there is a more effective alternative.

 

Plants can kill fungi/bugs using the chitinase enzyme, so why can’t you? The idea is to use the plants natural model to provide your own pest control. You simply need to make a concentrated amount of chitinase and apply it. You will effectively be applying a concentrated dose of a natural pesticide!

 

So how do you make chitinase? You let bacteria do it for you! It’s pretty simple really. Get your hands on some chitin and ferment it. As it ferments, chitinase will be the main compound helping the bacteria eat it. If you apply the mixture AS it is fermenting you will be applying a large dose of the chitinase enzyme, and as such, will be able to help the plant kill off the disease/insect outbreak.

 

HOW TO PRODUCE CHITINASE using fermentation

 

Remember, chitin is the main component of crustacean shells. Save the shells when you eat crabs, shrimp etc. and dry them out. If you live near the coast you are in luck. Many people/companies see these shells as waste. If you can find someone who is getting rid of some, tell them you will gladly take them off their hands. If not, buy a crustacean shell fertilizer; something like “crab shell fertilizer”.

 

Now that you have your shells you need to turn them into powder in order to maximize surface area and increase break down. Simply put them in a blender and puree until powder. smile.gif

 

Ok, now that you have your powder chitin you need to let the bacteria do their thing. This is best achieved if you inoculate it with chitin eating bacteria. The simplest way to do this is to find a company that sells non-sterilized chitosan that was produced by using fermentation. The chitosan will have the appropriate bacteria. If you can’t get some non-sterilized naturally produced chitosan that is ok, you will just have to wait for nature to blow in some of the desired bacteria on its own (leave open outside for best natural inoculation).

 

Once you have your ingredients take a bucket full of of non-chlorinated water and add your chitin. Next add your inoculant and wait until fermentation begins.

 

To speed up the process, it is beneficial to aerate the bucket of water with a fish-tank air pump (as if you were making actively aerated compost tea). Also, warming the water can promote bacteria production. The temperature depends on which type of bacteria you want to encourage. Usually you want it over 80 degree F and below 135 degrees F.

 

Just like with other organic pest control practices timing is important! You want to spray the solution while there is the maximum concentration of chitinase. This is done while fermentation is happening rapidly. The easiest way to tell is to smell the product. Once the smell changes it is ready. The longer you wait, the less chitin there will be, and hence less chitinase. So smell often and spray quickly.

 

Spray the substance on your plant. Over and under leaves, on the bark, and even on the soil around the root zone. That’s it, your home produced natural and organic pesticide!

 

Note: think ahead for the next outbreak. Leave a quart or so of the solution in the bucket and let ferment for a few more days (until fermenting is over). Place in an airtight jar and save. You will use this to inoculate your next batch.

 

Warning about concentrated doses of chitinase

 

I have a friend who grows worms. She threw some extra chitin “brew” in one of her worm piles to feed them. The thing she didn’t think about was that worms also have chitin in their skin. The brew killed the entire worm population just like it can kill fungi and bugs.

 

In other words, be careful and only use active chitin brews during an outbreak. It is likely that using chitinase brews can kill beneficial organisms as well as pests. To correct this, once the brew has had time to do its thing and break down (a few days to a week) it is best to re-introduce beneficial organisms to the plant and soil. Spray your plant and soil with a compost/manure tea or simply sprinkle some compost over the dirt and water those good guys into the soil.

 

Note two: The above process can also be used to produce chitosan on your own so you do not have to purchase it for your preventative applications. Simply let fermentation finish before applying.

[itchybromusic]

you can use fermentation for so many things , it's grouse ! , Just for you 80's high school cats 

[louise]

thanks