My Gear

When I started my research in 2021, there weren’t a lot of places to read about cannabis grow lights, food, soil, and other grow related subjects.

Instagram continued to cater to the majority of the vendors within the industry.  Very few were advertising adequately, and none of them seemed to be doing it by way of education with metrics that would hold their weight in water. 

As a result, I tried a little bit of everything, which led to some solid failures and fantastic wins.  But at one point or another, everything just kind of “clicked.”

As I write this in late 2023, I own and operate the following gear and materials. I’ve used and had successful grows with everything listed. Items with an ” * ” denote products I currently use and have had the greatest success with. Any decent grower knows it takes a great deal of product and plant knowledge to grow cannabis successfully.

If you lack attention to detail, patience, or are lazy, you’ll be better off heading to your local dispensary. That’s my PSA.

I have no ties or sponsorship to any of the manufacturers below, nor was I compensated for this writing in any way. I use this equipment because it‘s the best I have found and can afford to own.

Tent(s)

In my opinion, Gorilla rules the roost as the tent benchmark with height, adjustability, and overall construction, but it also comes at an added cost. AC infinity has also created an excellent tent, but it lacks the overall height of the Gorilla Brand.
  • Gorilla Gear 4×8
  • AC Infinity 5×5
  • AC Infinity 4×4
  • AC Infinity 3×3

Lighting

Horticulture Lighting Group (HLG): It is difficult to beat the intensity of any HLG light, but in turn, they run on the warm to hot side. Adequate airflow is a definite must in hotter states like Arizona. They’re a great middle-to-upper-road choice, depending on the model itself. Most of these lights can be interchanged for a variety of reasons.

  • HLG 600 Rspec – Veg & Bloom
  • HLG 350 Rspec – Veg & Bloom
  • HLG (2) 300 Rspec – Veg & Bloom
  • HLG 300 Bspec – Veg
  • HLG 100 4k – Veg

Growers Choice: Excellent bar-style light and runs very cool in comparison to my HLG gear. It is great for the 5+-foot-tall plants, and they can grow close to the light without burning, which definitely comes in handy. This light needs a minimum of a 4×4 tent, a fairly large footprint.

Growers Choice 720e – Veg & Bloom

**Pay close attention to your reds, deep reds and blues for flowering

Grow Room Monitoring

In order to optimize your growth, monitoring the environmental conditions is an absolute necessity. I believe that (Vapor Pressure Deficit) or VPD is one of the more important measurements that falls through the cracks in a lot of grow setups or monitoring. When things are running correctly, you’ll find that your VPD is usually in check (or not far off), but being able to see the data and respond instantly is a supreme benefit.

  • Pulse Pro (PPFD and CO2 meters)
  • Pulse Original

Exhaust Fan/Scrubber

AC Infinity is my go-to here, and I enjoy the fact that their fans can be controlled wirelessly when you purchase the setup as a whole. They have manual, Bluetooth, and WiFi controllers for all budgets. This is your ally in air exchange and smell control, I don’t run without them.

  • AC Infinity Controller 69
  • AC Infinity Cloudline T6″ with Carbon Filter
  • AC Infinity Cloudline Pro T10″ with Carbon Filter (4×8 Gorilla Tent)

Base Nutrients and Supplements

The majority of marijuana plant foods or nutrients are sold as a base formula, with additional supplements available for specific areas of performance per brand.

To clarify, Advanced Nutrients has a number of add-on products to supplement the plant’s growth throughout the stages.  One particular product initiates early bud development, while another grows the flower to its maximum potential.  Advanced Nutrients also encourages good bacterial growth in the soil or medium. These are just a few offerings out of many that Advanced has for the plant.  Athena operates a bit differently.  They rely much heavier on the base food and not the add-ons. Athena also runs in a sterile or non-bacterial environment.

Each has its benefits, but I choose to run bacteria or mycorrhizae in my soil or coco.  I am extremely fluent in use of both foods.

Advanced Nutrients fits my growing profile a bit better.  I will also continue to try new foods and master them as well.

  • Advanced Nutrients Sensi-Line (Grow A/B, Flower A/B) *Currently run
  • Advanced Nutrients Bud Ignitor *Currently run
  • Advanced Nutrients Big Bud Coco *Currently run
  • Advanced Nutrients Overdrive *Currently run
  • Advanced Nutrients Voodoo Juice *Currently run
  • Advanced Nutrients Flawless Finish *Currently run
  • Athena Pro – Granular (Core, Veg, Bloom)
  • Athena Liquid Line
  • Athena Stack
  • Athena Cleanse
  • Real Growers Recharge – Contains a plethora of helpful things, mostly present in humic acids and mycobacteria. *Currently run
  • Power SI – Assists in nutrient uptake and fortifying stems and branches. It’s an expensive piece of my recipe, but I try not to run without it. *Currently run
  • Great White – Mycorrhizae for beneficial root bacteria. Used for seedlings and transplanting. *Currently run

Measurement Instruments

Bluelab pH and EC/PPM measurement tools. Currently, these are the best instruments I’ve worked with. Calibrate monthly or quarterly, depending on usage, and you’ll be good for years. If you are not measuring or checking your food and runoff pH and EC’s, you are gambling and will eventually fail or produce garbage. Either event is a loss of time and plants. If you aren’t measuring, how do you know where you’re at?

Soil and Medium

A majority of soils on the market are amended, meaning there’s already a certain amount of nutrients in the medium itself. I utilize lightly amended soil for seeds and clones to get them started, but when the vegetation and flowering state occur, I prefer that the nutrients take control. Tuper is my medium of choice and is not amended; fertigation is required with every feed.

  • Royal Gold Tupur – Veg and Flower *Currently run
  • Royal Gold Kings Mix – Seeds and Clones *Currently run
  • Fox Farms – Coco Loco
  • Fox Farms – Strawberry Fields
  • Fox Farms – Ocean Forest
  • Fox Farms – Happy Frog
  • Roots Organic – Original
  • Pro-Mix HP CC
  • Soil King

Pots

I have used fabric “smart pots” or plastic “airpots” for the duration of my growing profession. These are specifically designed for root termination/regrow points. They also supply proper air and drainage. Until something better comes out, this is what I will continue to use.

Pest Management

I use a mixture of IPM, Stack, and Power SI 2-3 times weekly. I substitute Dr. Zymes with IPM once a week to prevent resistance. For those of you not into pest management, it’s just a matter of time for you. Ironically, pests are not your biggest obstacles, mold and powdery mildew are. This regimen will support and protect your plants, highly recommended. Use what you are comfortable with and can afford.

  • Athena IPM *Currently run
  • Dr. Zymes *Currently run
  • BT Monterey- Outdoors *Currently run for caterpillar issues

Cloning Machines

I use a 32-spot ez-cloner and a hand-built 64-spot cloning machine. I use Athena Bloom and Cuts as my root developers. I won’t disclose my recipe, but I am able to produce rooted clones in as little as 4 days in a semi-sterile environment. On average, EZ-Cloner will take 1-2 weeks to develop. My hand-built cloning machine will produce rooted clones in 1-week or less. Manual cloning with rockwool is always an excellent backup.