The Homegrown Helpers

Erin joins us bright and early in the morning from Cascadia Farms in Washington, where she's gotten her feet wet with the cannabis plant and in the cannabis industry. Cascadia Farms was the second time that she's ever seen a cannabis plant, but since she joined the company, she's been a strong cannabis supporter and recognizes the cannabis plant is great medicine. Since joining the company, she and a few other members of Cascadia Farms have started Full Spectrum consulting providing service to everyone from growers to retailers on packaging, retail, cultivation and most anything else that comes up for retail cannabis operations.

Erin currently is the head grower for Cascadia and has about 7000 sq. ft. of canopy that she manages which consists of 4 flowering rooms and 1 vegetative room, all in soil with an organic focus on the growing style. She also has her own personal medical grow to combat a chronic migraine disorder. She has 15 plants, and we suggest you tune into the podcast around 8:45 to hear all about how she sets it up.

How does Erin think about overall plant health? Listen up around 13:30 to hear about good watering practices. She thinks people overthink additives, sprays, and water timing. Regularly people overwater their plants, and she advises that roots need to breath and allow the soil to dry out in between waterings. Maybe add some extra perlite to ensure the roots have room to breathe and loosen up the soil.

Around 18:40 we discuss increasing yields. Her tip is straight-up lollipopping your plant or shaving the legs as Wolfman puts it regularly. Reduce the amount of energy that the plant invests into growing small wispy buds, and have it focus on just the top 4" of growth and ensure that you have a nice full canopy. Right at 20:20 she discusses her feelings on full defoliation, or schwazzing as it's been referred to in the industry.

Around 23 minutes we get into plant energy, schwazzing, tall plants and how the plants reach to such tall, full plants. She doesn't think that yield will increase with growing such tall plants without proper airflow, light penetration, ability to spray, etc. She does think that growing such tall plants without any actual plant material on them is a waste of plant energy, but she also doesn't blow any wind on her plants and allows them to strengthen on their own. It's also a labor nightmare, in her words!

A bit after 29 minutes, we discuss IPM in an indoor garden. She tries to mimic the outdoors as much as possible, and she focuses on microbes for all-natural pest management. She relates the plant to a dinner table, listen in right at 30 minutes to hear how she discusses beneficial microbes and filling up the table with them! If necessary, she'll bring in insects to help control the problems, but she knows how hard it can be to keep them alive and kicking around your grow room.

What type of traits does Erin think make the most successful grower? Open minds are the ones that are going to succeed, you simply can't know it all and think that the way that you've done it is the right way because there is always room to improve. Don't be afraid to be wrong.

"Stop buying cartoon labels on products for your cannabis plants" is her last words of advice for all the listeners. She discusses more at 35 minutes, but essentially it boils down to not treating the cannabis plant so differently than other plants that have been grown for production value. While we're learning to grow a new plant, there is a foundation of research done on all other plants that we can all learn from and then expand upon with cannabis.

Connect with Erin @erin.cascadia on Instagram or email her at [email protected]. If you like what Erin is about, or any of our other guests on The Homegrown Helpers you can book them through me at [email protected]. We will do the work for you to find the right consultant for you, your task and your location.

If you liked this interview, and want to hear more from this week's Homegrown Helper please head over to http://thehomegrownhelpers.com/bonus and download the rest of the show!

Our partners today are Danny Danko and The Amazing Doctor Zymes.

Danny has just written a new book, "Cannabis: a beginner's guide to growing marijuana". Even experienced growers know that you need to continue your education in order to continue improving. Our bloom members get their book signed by the author himself by contacting us and allowing us to help you place the order

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Derek joins us today from his grow in Massachusetts, just a hop, skip and a jump away from my house. As the owner of Today's Healthcare MA, he has a passion for growing cannabis the way it should be done since 2014. Starting in 2016 he started growing full time and then started helping others how to grow their own after doing a lot of self-education and sharing of knowledge.

Derek's current grow set up is 2 15x10 grow rooms and consists of all Fluence LED lighting, Quest dehumidifiers, 18k BTUs of cooling with his Daiken mini-split and averages 2-3 plants per light. He likes to stick to 2 to 4 strains per room and grows in Tupur Coco as he's found the most success with that medium.

What's the one thing that Derek would advise in order to attain the healthiest plants? We've heard it before, but here's another grower saying to focus on your ENVIRONMENT! Clean your rooms and being with your plants every day so you can learn how it grows and when things are going well or if they are not. He also suggests keeping notes or a grow journal so that you can ensure you keep good track of your inputs and results, which we're huge fans of here at The Homegrown Helpers.

I ask Derek to describe what a praying plant looks like, and essentially it's plants that are reaching up towards the light asking for more of it. This happens because your environment is dialed in, and you're concerned with VPD which is the balance of the humidity and temperature in your environment.

What's Derek's tips for increasing yield? High-Stress Training. He believes that the plant should just grow through the veg stage, establish good roots and be a healthy, strong plant before manipulating it. Starting with day 1 of flower he starts a strong de-leaf and lollipop of the bottom third of all branches. He also ties all his vertical shoots to bamboo stakes to spread the plant out further and allow for deeper light penetration. This is an unusual approach, but it works well for Derek!

Derek shares his unique grow tip of keeping the rooms hotter with higher humidity than most people might expect while still maintaining VPD. He likes to keep it at 80-82 degrees and 65-68% relative humidity. If you reference the VPD chart, this is almost in the perfect zone. His theory for this difference maker is that the root zone is cooler and the plant doesn't seem to feed as much as necessary.

What characteristics are critical for a grower to succeed. Derek thinks it comes down to the passion for the plant and the medicine that it can provide. If you are just growing for the money, then it's unlikely that you will produce the best cannabis possible. It takes time and dedication to learn how the plant grows and create a routine to take care of your plants the way they need to be taken care of.

We then talk about the impacts that not spending the proper amount of time can have on your plants and the overall health of your room. Tune in starting at 22 minutes for the full conversation and how we both think about it.

Derek's parting words of wisdom: Start with 1 strain and learn how it grows before adding in other varietals.

Please take the time to rate, review and subscribe to the podcast if you liked what you heard!

If you liked this interview, and want to hear more from this week's Homegrown Helper please head over to http://thehomegrownhelpers.com/bonus and download the rest of the show!

If you liked the way Derek talked about growing cannabis, and want to learn more from him you can find Derek at @todayshealthcarema on IG. Are you ready to hire on Derek or another consultant to help you take your grow to the next level? Reach out to us here at [email protected] and we can ensure you get the best Homegrown Helper for your needs! We have growers all over the country with varying expertise and availability so let us take the work out of it for you, and reach out, we'll make the best connection possible.

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Ravi Roy joins us as another Canadian cannabis consultant located in Toronto. As a passionate home grower of over 15 years of pretty much anything "he can get his hands on", he started consulting on home grows immediately after federal legalization happened in Canada in October 2018. After years around the cannabis industry, he decided to take the leap, start his own business, and help others learn how to maximize their 4 plant maximum in Canada.

Ravi's current grow set up consists of 2 1000w HPS lights 10x20 room in flower, T5 fluorescent bulbs 3'x10' for his veg and clone room. Ravi tries to stick to as organic as possible for his Ultra Soil, using bat guano, coco, peat moss, perlite, glacier rock dust, compost, and a few more additives to grow his plants in.

What is Ravi's tip to improve overall plant health? Dial-in your environment and getting it to the exact spot that cannabis thrives in. There are lots of variables to consider, like lighting, airflow, cooling and so many more.

How do you maximize your yield off a limited plant count? The right nutrients, whether they are synthetic nutrients or organic soil it's important to have the right balance. Giving your plants exactly what it needs, when it needs it, is critical to getting the most out of your plants! Also, good genetics are important along with plant training to ensure yields are up to your desires.

What's a unique tip Ravi brings to the show? Dial-in your soil and pay attention to plant pruning. Know where your good bud sites are, light penetration is important and know how to top, FIM and low stress train your girls.

Determination, dedication, and passion are the 3 character traits that Ravi thinks make the most successful grower. These three traits are ones that will help you overcome any situation that you may encounter in the garden, and ensure you have a successful grow time after time.

Ravi's parting words? Remain determined and passionate. Good things come to those who wait. Stick to your passion and good things will come of it. You will continue to learn with each and every grow, so stick with it and keep your dream alive. Don't give up even after failure, and go after what your mind can conceptualize.

You can find and connect with Ravi on Instagram at @monarchcannabisconsulting. If you're in Toronto or the surrounding areas and need a little help or guidance, reach out to Ravi or us here at the show, [email protected], and we can help make the connection and get you the help that you need to deliver the results you desire.

If you liked this interview, and want to hear more from this week's Homegrown Helper please head over to http://thehomegrownhelpers.com/bonus and download the rest of the show!

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Russell Pace takes a few minutes away from documenting scientific facts about cannabis for his website chascience.com, the Cannabis Horticultural Association. Russell lives in Humboldt County, CA and has been a Humboldt grower for 13 years and growing his own cannabis for over 20 years. With a background in geology, he's a natural scientist and loves tracking, testing, and proving out theories within his cannabis gardens.

Currently, Russell only grows outdoor, in large raised beds with a mix of native and potting soil with natural inputs that he sources from his land. He likes to grow large plants, as is the customary practice in the cannabis heartland of America. He prefers to grow 6-foot square plants and likes to stay away from the super tall ones that require more effort to grow, support and manage.

How do you improve overall plant health? Russell takes a scientific approach and encourages paying attention to the immune health of your plants. He suggests our society attempts to grow plants faster than their immune system can grow and continue to protect the plant. Tune in around 9 minutes to listen to the specifics that Russell references, and why this is important to the health of the plant. He also talks about signs that your plant might be growing too fast – hint…it's too many nutrients like Nitrogen!

How to increase the yield you receive off of each plant? Biostimulants is where Russell would like you to focus (14:00). Amino Acids, folic acids, seaweed extract, chitin to name a few, but any natural input to stimulate yield and terpene production. Having a strong root system and not overwatering are two other points that he brings up, in order for the roots to stretch and establish a good base. Russell gets further into the bio-stimulants around 15 minutes through 20 minutes, on a very scientific level. We encourage you to listen in to get it straight from the source.

Russell's unique grow tips and tricks come in around 24 minutes, and it's about getting longer flowering varietals to finish faster. He says to let the soil dry out significantly with higher temperatures to encourage that plant to mature faster, but understand that you will see a decrease in yield, but it's all about timing for this tip.

What's Russell's thoughts on the character question? Willingness to learn and study the science, be patient with yourself as you continue to learn, Things are always changing with your plants, and yourself, and you need to be willing to change as the industry and access to knowledge is.

Russell's last bit of advice – work towards adding in beneficial insects into your environment. Manage your environment, and the insects will take care of the rest. These insects can help take care of most problems that arise. He talks about the minute pirate bug, and how prevalent it is in his garden because of the banker (companion) plants that he's worked hard to establish. He and Matthew Gates @syncangel on Instagram and he are working on a banker plant project, including peppers that will attract predator mites into your garden. Understanding companion planting is really beneficial especially to an outdoor gardener, and chascience.com has a membership that details some of this if you are really into this type of thing. He suggests checking out Green Life Productions for commercial cannabis done right.

If you liked the way Russell talked about growing cannabis, and want to learn more from him you can find Russell at @chascience on IG, https://www.chascience.com. If you are ready to hire on a consultant to help you take your grow to the next level, troubleshoot a problem, overhaul the grow or have some vacation coverage, please reach out to us here at [email protected] and we can ensure you get the best Homegrown Helper for your needs!

Don't forget, if you liked this interview, and want to hear more from this week's Homegrown Helper please head over to http://thehomegrownhelpers.com/bonus and download the rest of the show!

This episode is brought to you by Mammoth Microbes. Mammoth has provided our new BLOOM members with samples of each of their products Mammoth P and BioControl. Mammoth Microbes aids cultivators in growing the healthiest, most productive crops possible, while minimizing impacts on the environment. They develop highly effective organic microbial biostimulants that are scientifically proven to increase plant growth and plant-derived biocontrol products that prevent and control pests naturally. They are giving away a pile of Mammoth products, including some sweet Mammoth swag to our 5 winners on October 1st!

Also, Sohum Living Soils is giving 10% off using code GROWCAST10 at checkout and members receive 20% off when accessing the code through the membership portal. Sohum Soils was created to take the thinking out of growing. With all of the liquid fertilizer on the market, consumers can be afraid to try and be a chemist when mixing nutrients. No need for that with Sohum. Just add plain water. That's it! We have a great chart that shows you the proper size container to ensure you get enough food to the plant for a full flower cycle with just adding water. The soil is designed with beneficial bacteria and fungus as well as macro and micronutrients. Set it and forget it. It's that easy. Also, they are giving away 10 bags of soil, 2 to each winner of our $5k quarterly giveaway. Sign up at https://www.mygrowpass.com.

Ben Baker joins me from the one and only Nova Scotia, Canada where he's responsible for East Coast Growing Solutions where he's grown for just over 4 years with a wide array of mediums, setups, styles and so on. Now that Canada is legal for most citizens to grow 4 plants at home, he found a niche in the market that was unfulfilled by helping people learn to grow their own cannabis at home.

Ben's currently growing a few different strains under a 630w Ceramic Metal Halide, in ProMix HP (my preferred media) with Mantis nutrients. The reason he likes Mantis is because it's one bottle to provide your plant what it needs. With 5ml per liter of water, it's ph buffered so you don't have to check the PH levels of your feeding program. This is a huge benefit and reduces the work that a grower has to do each and every watering.

Ben states that feeding and nutrient regimen is the thing growers must focus on when concerned with overall plant health. You need to ensure that your plants are getting the right nutrients when they need it. Genetics are also a huge part to Ben's success, as they are the foundation of a good grow.

What's Ben looking for when selecting the right strain to grow? As a rosin producer and consumer, he looks for trichome production. He likes the super frosty type of cannabis to ensure he's getting good yields from the rosin pressing. Healthy plants, with vigorous growth is important and he strongly believes in quality over quantity.

Ben discusses his particular feeding schedule for Mantis, and his time before. Listen in before the 10 minute mark to listen to his theories on feeding, flushing and when the appropriate time to do both is.

How do you increase yield on an individual plant? He suggests it's not all about the amount of plants you cram into a space, but it's all about the microclimate that you create for your plants. Aside from genetics, upgrading your lights is important as well, without overdoing it with the heat that the lights that create. He also talks a bit (at 15 minutes) about proper training and creating a screen of green for your plants to ensure your maximizing that light increase.

Stressing your plant is important to trichome production. In Ben's experience, not all stressing techniques are successful in producing more trichomes, flavonoids, and overall cannabinoids – but his tip that he delivers right around 18:45 is to switch up your light spectrum. He prefers to go from an HPS light to a CMH light right around the last 2 weeks of flower to bring out the best trichome production.

Around the 19:45 mark he talks about how to grow some purple cannabis, which is some of the most desirable colors to pull out of your plants. He talks about why it's important to lower your temperatures at night over the last couple of weeks.

What type of characteristins make the most successful grower? PASSION is the most important thing to Ben, or else he knows growers will just half-ass the process and not grow great cannabis. He also looks for like minded people to teach, and we can't agree with that more at The Homegrown Helpers. Matching you up with the right teacher for your personality is critical to your success. Ben also gives one more tip at 21:30, so tune in and listen up for the last type of characteristic that he looks for.

Everyone has to start somewhere. It's a fun hobby, it will consume your time, and people may judge you so be careful. That's Ben's last bit of advice for all the growers listening right now.

Connect with this week's guest at @weedkid902 on Instagram or email him at [email protected] if you like what he was about today. If you liked this interview, and want to hear more from this week's Homegrown Helper please head over to http://thehomegrownhelpers.com/bonus and download the rest of the show!

Ready to hire on a consultant to help you take your grow to the next level? Just need a bit of help, or maybe some vacation coverage? Reach out to us here at [email protected] and we can ensure you get the best Homegrown Helper for your needs! We'll work to match you up with the consultant that is right for your job, your personality and your location – in that order! Learn from someone you can relate to that has the skills to help. Email us today to get started!

Thank you to our MyGrowPass.com partners for this episode:

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Chris Grunenberg joins us from his spot in California after a brief military career and time living all over the US. After being medically discharged from the U.S. Army for Crohn's disease he started growing his own medicine in 2006 after developing an addiction to opiates after a series of surgeries.

Starting out with a 3'x3' tent in a closet and learning everything he could along the way, he educated himself with some of the classics from the original cultivators of cannabis. Chris also has a lengthy history in marketing and startups, which has lead to a relationship with one of those original cultivators, Ed Rosenthal.

Currently,H Chris is not growing, but when he does, he partners with his daughter to teach her how to grow clean cannabis. Running 20K solar power, he has 3 tents, a 5x5 mother tent, 4x9 veg tent and a 4x8 flower tent with both CMH and LED to give a fuller spectrum. He grows in a coco coir blend and keeps about 30 plants within that 32 square foot tent. We discuss the particulars of growing with a scrog setup within a tent and needing access to all 4 sides.

Chris agrees with our philosophy of tracking everything yo do in the grow. It really is the only way that you will be able to improve upon things, and if necessary, seek help from a consultant. With daily notes and pictures, you'll be able to better track your progress and a consultant will be able to diagnose a problem at a much quicker pace.

How can a grower improve overall plant health? Go back to the basics. Monitor your environment within your grow tent – temperature, and humidity and ensuring they are at the right levels as well as consistent. Also, don't go from working outside and heading right into your indoor gardens. Keep your gardens clean by keeping yourself clean when entering the garden. At least change your clothes and shoes, and shower if you are able to.

What's the single highest leverage move to increase the yield on your individual plants? According to Chris, there are lots of ways to approach this question. He sees a lot of growers trying to increase yield by bumping up their PK (phosphorus, potassium) boosters and using more nutrients, but he'd like to discuss how to increase yield without adding money to the bottom line. He strongly suggests using plant training techniques such as topping, low-stress training, screen of green, etc. Help your plant to reach their genetic maximum with proper plant training.

What's one unique grow tip that Chris would like to share. Focus on your root zone with proper microbes and enzymes, and not so much on the synthetic nutrients. Nutrients are fine to give to your plant, but he suggests using products like Mammoth Microbes (GrowPass partner), or a mostly organic product like Nectar of the Gods.

You can also ensure you get the most roots and best fruits with longer veg times to allow your roots to reach capacity, allowing your media to dry out and those roots to stretch. Transitioning into a larger plant pot is not always necessary but ensure that you allow your roots to establish in the new pots is also critical to having a solid root base and successful grower.

What type of characteristics does Chris think make up the most successful growers? Someone who has patience, excited about learning, and loves everything there is about growing. It's also important to Chris for new growers to master the basics before moving onto the advanced stuff. Listen to the plants, learn what they are saying and how to help them.

We then get into a discussion about garden practices and how bringing negative energy into the garden might not be the best thing for our plants, even though it's surely helpful for us. I'd encourage everyone to think about the exchange that happens with our plants when we are in the garden, we absorb their positive energy, but what happens with the negative energy we might dispel while we're in there? It's critical that we think about that process and try to be as positive as we can when entering our gardens.

Any last bits of wisdom you'd like to share? Do you and block out the noise from everyone else. Don't do what everyone else suggests you do, find what works best for you and get better at it. Do what makes you happy, find your niche and excel.

Connect with Chris Grunenberg on LinkedIn, @satyrchris1 on Instagram, or @zenleafgardens. He loves to connect and share ideas, please reach out he's willing to chat any time.

Ready to hire on a consultant to help you take your grow to the next level? Need some vacation coverage for your grow during a hot summer month? Reach out to us here at [email protected] and we can ensure you get the best Homegrown Helper for your needs!

If you liked this interview, and want to hear more from this week's Homegrown Helper please head over to http://thehomegrownhelpers.com/bonus and download the rest of the show!

Check out our mygrowpass.com for this episode:

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Please enjoy some clips from the 5 questions we ask all our guests and post them on our website where you can listen and download at http://thehomegrownhelpers.com/bonus.

Listen to answers from:

Alex aka Miami Mango

Ned Frost @cannigrow

Simon @ediblezen

Brian Herrmann @cultivationconsultant

Matt Leonetti - Home Grown Consulting

Michael Hinden @privatestockveganics

Michael Travers @start2finish710

Thomas Marcombe @vermontgrowcoaching

If you're looking for some additional help in the garden whether it's getting set up, dialing in a room, troubleshooting a particular problem or a little vacation coverage from a trusted expert please reach out! Email me at [email protected] and we'll do the work to find the right consultant for your job!

This episode brought to you by our https://www.mygrowpass.com partners, Cultilux and Suite Leaf Plant Nutrients. Visit http://www.cultilux.com/ and use GROWCAST10 at checkout to save 10% or join our membership program and up that discount to 25 instantly on their 315w, 630w or their 1000w CMH fixture today!

Visit https://www.suiteleaf.com/ and use code GROWCAST15 at checkout to save 15% on their premium veganic nutrient line, or bump up to 25% after you become a member. They also have donated over $500 worth of nutrients to our quarterly $5k giveaway, split fairly evenly between all 5 prizes! Sign up today to maximize your chances at winning one of the prizes at https://www.mygrowpass.com/.

Please don't forget to subscribe, share, rate and review.

Benjamin Morgan-Dillon joins me "in studio" to share his advice from 14 years of growing his own cannabis. His business, Acadia Farms, is located in Massachusetts and he's willing to do whatever it takes to help growers that need his assistance and enlist his services.

Ben enjoys helping people in all of the ways that many of our guests have, whether it's with top-shelf medical cannabis or with taking extra steps to build specialty equipment for his customers.

Currently Ben is winding down his indoor grow setup as he ramps up the outdoor operation on his hemp farm and with his outdoor cannabis grow. He's currently looking for that amazing phenotype with a pheno hunt to put the most amazing plants outside to stay within his plant counts outside.

Right around 12 minutes Ben discusses how to spot the healthiest plants. Rich solid green, no fading or yellowing, praying towards the light with a slight curl. If your plants aren't praying, take a look at your environment, temperature and humidity and the range of both of those throughout a typical day. Then take a look at your canopy, hot spots and lack of air movement. Then you should check your soil base for temperature, smell, and health, ensuring that you don't have any bug infestation taking over the soil.

Ben has recently made the switch to more of a regenerative organic approach, getting away from bottled nutrients. With help from the Regenerative Organic Cannabis Conference in Portland Maine, Shaping Fire and KIS organics podcasts, he has successfully built out a living soil set up inside, within tents and grow beds.

What's the one thing that a grower can do to increase the yield on their cannabis plants? Ecosystem – make sure everything is balanced with minimal fluctuations. Get your rooms/tents dialed in, and your plants will be happy and pay you back in an increase in yield.

Any unique grow tips or tricks to share? Ben utilizes aloe vera in the garden for a cloning gel, a soil amendment, a foliar feed. Keeping it all natural, aloe vera combined with Epsom salt in a foliar spray will help correct any micro deficiencies you may be seeing as your plant grows. Ben thinks the silica combined with the magnesium in the Epsom help penetrate the plant cell walls and quickly turn things around in your grow.

Patience and empathy are the answers to my favorite question – What type of characteristics make the most successful grower? You have to allow your plant to reach its full potential, and that takes time and patience. The role of the cultivator is not to water the plants, it's to observe, and care for the plants, to replicate nature in whatever way possible.

What's Ben's last bit of advice? Find whatever you are passionate about, learn it really well, and it will lead you to other parts for you to improve upon. Ben's passion was the true terpene profile expression which has led him to the living soil where he's able to get the best terpene profile out of his plants. That's great life advice as well, find your passion and dive deep, everything else will work out just fine.

If you like what Ben is all about, you can find him on the farm at acadiafarmsfamily.com, email him at [email protected] or call him directly 774-565-4077. If you are ready to enlist a grow consultant to help you set up, tear down, or troubleshoot a specific problem we encourage you to reach out to us and we can help match you up with the cannabis consultant that fits your style and personality, because ultimately that's the important part when trying to learn something from someone.

Also, If you liked this interview, and want to hear more from this week's Homegrown Helper please head over to http://thehomegrownhelpers.com/bonus and download the rest of the show! We'll be releasing some "bonus" episodes here in the near future, bringing some snippets from our bonus interviews that we hope you'll enjoy.

Our www.mygrowpass.com partners for today's show are The Amazing Doctor Zymes and Danny Danko.

At www.doctorzymes.com you can save 10% by using code GROWCAST at checkout or save 25% by joining our membership and accessing the discount portal. The Amazing Doctor Zymes Eliminator is a revolutionary green solution that kills and eliminates soft-bodied insects, molds and mildews on your indoor or outdoor gardens. Eliminator is a proprietary formula, handcrafted to ensure quality control. Professional Growers use it all year to ensure pest-free, mildew-free plants. Many growers have realized an increase in yields by not having to combat pests and mildew with toxic or oil-based products and that when used as a preventative they did not see any pests or mildews even up to the day of harvest.

Danny Danko senior cultivation editor at High Times magazine, industry legend, and all around amazing guy wanted to give back to our community a little bit so he joined us in offering up his books to be signed for BLOOM level members only! This is a great book for beginners, and the experienced grower because even experienced growers know that you must keep learning in order to stay on top of your game. Grab a book for yourself on Amazon by going to www.growcastpodcast.com/danko. As a BLOOM member of mygrowpass.com, you can have a book signed by Danny for free just by reaching out to us to help make that happen.

Johnnie Green, The Instinctive Gardener joins us today from his grow in Michigan. After joining the Army and giving up cannabis while serving our country, Johnnie now likes to serve others in the form of home grow consultation. With 20+ years of cannabis gardening under this belt, once Michigan went live with their form of legalization, it seemed like the next obvious step for him to start to help others take that step to provide themselves with good clean cannabis.

6:00 – Johnnie gives a rundown on the size of his room and how to set up the best room for your growing situation, which includes several rooms so he can properly separate the different stages of growth – including a flower room, veg room, a Mom room recently turned into a drying room, as well as a studio/classroom that he uses for grow classes. He's using Gavita DE 1000w bulbs throughout the flower period to ensure that he's achieving the weights that he wants as well as the quantity.

At the 10 minute mark, Johnnie encourages growers not to skimp on any grow supplies and going for the best that you can afford at the time. I chime in and suggest that it's ok to start low and go slow, if you need to, you can always start out with the more low-end products and then work your way up from there but understand that you get what you pay for.

How to improve your overall plant health? His suggestion is reducing the salt input on your plants, which means using fewer nutrients! This is a case where less equals more. He also says that lots of people are having a Magnesium deficiency due to the overuse of other bottled nutrients that results in your plant building up salts in the root area and eventually not absorbing the nutrients that you're putting into the soil.

How can you increase your yields? Shortly after 15:30 Johnnie gives a few tips to achieve the yields that you desire – and the first is more light. It's not necessarily the starting point, but once you get your room dialed in and your plants producing at least 1.5 pounds per 1000w, light is the way to really take your yields to the next level. Johnnie uses light movers in his room, and we discuss the cross-section of adding more light in a room but having your lights on light movers. Essentially, this gives your plants a bit of a break in between full strength 1000w lights and when they get that full light again they respond and grow quicker, resulting in more yield. He also uses some T5 veg lighting as supplemental lights on the outside of his light movers to keep them illuminated.

What's your unique tips or tricks to growing cannabis? Johnnie drops it just after 29 minutes, and it's plant manipulation. He'd like you to consider manipulating your plants during the vegetative stage to help reduce your "set back times", which means that your plants will need recovery time when you do anything to them such as topping or super-cropping. The least amount of "set back time" you can achieve without sacrificing your yields is important, and is Johnnie's tip for the day.

Keeping an open mind is important, as well as patience and that mistakes happen, are the 2 character traits that Johnnie believes creates the most successful growers. We discuss this topic right around 32 minutes.

Johnnie Green's last bit of advice for you: Pay attention to the political landscape and don't let the commercial entities control the government and control our plant. It's critical that we are able to continue to grow our plant and keep large corporations where they belong. There is a place for them, because not everyone will be able to grow their own – but we both strongly believe that everyone should have the right to grow this plant at home and we must fight to gain and then maintain that right because we have so many forces joining against us, including some large medical dispensaries in many states.

Find and connect with Johnnie Green @instinctive_gardener on Instagram, or [email protected]. You can also call him at 268-243-8979 for a live consultation and help with our garden. If Johnnie isn't the consultant for you reach out to us here at [email protected] or on Instagram @thehomegrownhelpers and we can ensure you get the best Homegrown Helper for your needs!

Our GrowPass membership partners for this show are:

Harvest Mutual Seed Bank - Harvest Mutual is our choice seed bank for top quality genetics from the best breeders in the world. They provide rare novelty bird seed from the best players in the game, and their goal is to provide customer experience and tremendous value through their online store. Their founders have over 30 years of combined experience in the industry in all Get free shipping at harvestmutualseedbank.com by using code GROWCAST at checkout. GrowPass members can receive 10% plus free shipping.

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Atlas Plant Trainer - Have you ever found yourself a few weeks away from your next harvest and running low on bud? Are you wondering how you can get more out of your plants without replacing your lights or nutrients? I bet you're tired of bamboo stakes poking you when you're trying to train and support your plants.

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If you liked this interview, and want to hear more from this week's Homegrown Helper please head over to http://thehomegrownhelpers.com/bonus and download the rest of the show!

Ned Frost joins us on the line today from beautiful sunny Boulder, Colorado, where at the time of this recording he was sitting in a park with his shoes off…in mid-April!! Ned's been growing for quite a while and decided to take his expertise to the next level by starting his consulting business CannIgrow LLC!

Here's a bit of the show notes, but if you'd like to access the rest please head on over to http://thehomegrownhelpers.com/ned-frost/

21:00 – What's a unique grow tip or trick you can share? Foliar spraying, but specifically he shares the exact product to use throughout the vegetative stage and early flower. Composed of 1ML sea green, 1 tbsp Epsom Salt (found at any pharmacy or supermarket), 1 tsp Techna Flora Soluble Seaweed Extract per gallon, and using an atomizer to ensure a nice even spray across your canopy. Suggested application is bi-weekly, when lights are off preferably. Within an hour of lights out or coming on. Don't forget to wash your plants within a couple days after application with just straight ph'd water to cleanse everything off your plant.

Ready to connect with Ned? Find him and his knowledge at cannigrow.com, @cannigrow_ or @nedfrost_ on Instagram. You can also find him on LinkedIn, twitter and Facebook at Ned Frost, of course. Ready to hire on a consultant to help you take your grow to the next level? Reach out to us here at [email protected] and we can ensure you get the best Homegrown Helper for your needs!

If you liked this interview, and want to hear more from this week's Homegrown Helper please head over to http://thehomegrownhelpers.com/bonus and download the rest of the show!

Our partners for this show are Nute Tools and Gorilla Grow Tent.

Nute Tools offers a really nifty product, with more to come. Their flagship item is the Nute Needle, which is comprised of a 100ml syringe attached to a 14-inch stainless steel needle that is perfect to fit into any size nutrient bottle on the market. This is to prevent spilling and waste and improve consistency and accuracy in your feedings!

Listeners can save 10% by using the code GROWCAST at checkout at https://www.nutetools.com/ BUT GrowPass members can save 25% off when accessing the partner discount page located within their portal.

Gorilla Grow Tent is the industry leader in grow tents. Each tent comes with the ability to insert height extensions, and includes a 1 foot extension unit, but a 2 foot extension unit is available brining the total height on each tent up to a whopping 10 feet tall – you won't' find this in any other tent on the market. Along with the durability, safety, insulation, and access it provides, you won't find another comparable tent on the market today.

The Homegrown Helper audience can get free shipping at https://www.gorillagrowtent.com by using the code GROWCAST, but GrowPass members can save 10% plus that free shipping when accessed through our member portal at https://www.mygrowpass.com.