Hey City, I'm currently about 14 days into my first grow ever! Currently things are going relatively well; I have five plants growing. I'm using a 2ft, 4 bulb t5 light fixture with 3:1 6500K:2700K ratio. The light is working well for my needs, although I am having some issues with stretching. I'm looking into getting more CFLs to supplement growth as time passes but for now the 8000L the t5 gives of seems to be enough. Thanks to the light being fluorescent I don't worry too much about temps; they usually hover from 76-79F. This time of year in AZ is perfect for growing, it'll be in the 70s from mid-November until early March during the day. I'm just using a fan for circulation, plants are in an air-conditioned room that also has access to fresh air. Currently, I have the plants in SOLO cups. I'm going to sex them before I put them in their final positions and start training them. The plants are in Miracle Grow Organic with Miracle Grow Perlite (3:1.5). I totally appreciate the fact that this makes no sense at all due to the fact that the MG perlite contains chemical ferts and therefore negates any organic consideration for my plants. I regret buying MG every time I see that half used bag sitting on my shelf... No nutes at all yet. I hope to not use that many nutes in any case. I'm in process of building an organic soil and it'll be ready for my next grow. For the current grow I'm hoping to use mostly organic practices but I can't go full organic, unfortunately. This is the current setup. Light is about 1.5" off of the tallest plant. Fan is on constantly, lights have been 24/0 but I'm switching to 20/4 tonight to promote root development. Watering occurs every 4-5 days and I had been spraying due to the low humidity (It can get below 10% somedays...) but it didn't seem to help. I'll be getting a humidifier soon, I hope. Here's my first child. She's 14 days old today, four pairs of new leaves, and about 3-4" tall (She should be taller but I added soil earlier in her life to raise soil levels). Slight yellowing at lower leaves but nothing to be too concerned about, the shitty MG products are the issue but hopefully it'll pass with watering. Stalk strength is good and she seems pretty happy. 8 day old sprout. Good health, solid growth, 2" tall after 1" resoil. 8 day old sprout. Slight yellowing but no burn. I hate MG. She's the runt of the litter. 8 day old sprout. Burn... I really hate MG... I flushed her last night, wilting and dramatic yellow went away but the burn is a burn. She's the underdog of the group. The above four are just bag seed from some Reggie. First grow, didn't want to spend a lot of money to mess up during germination and lose my investment. Here's the better of the bunch. Hog's Breath, a pretty solid indica, used to be popular a few years ago. I thought it would be good for SCROG and I happened to find a seed that was viable. 8 days old, really strong growth. Fatter, larger leaves than the others, obviously better genetics. I'm pretty excited but worried about issues with smell come flowering time. Family photo November 1st 2012 Like it says in the title, I'll eventually be running a SCROG set-up in an 18 gallon tote. the tote measures about 18x34 at the level that I expect the soil to be so about four and a quarter square feet for five plants. Current light setup states 8000 Lumen (1778 Lumen per square foot) so I'm set on light for the next few weeks and maybe up until flower but I'll need to supplement once flowering rolls around for sure. I'll be using 1" hex chicken netting for my screen, but don't plan on training until I know sex (don't want to tear apart my plant due to a male in the bunch). So far, I've dealt with watering issues (my bad) and nitrogen issues (also my bad) but nothing too dramatic. I think I've done my research and I'm able to pretend to know what I'm doing pretty well, so, we'll see! I'd love some seasoned growers input to see if there's anything else I should do/improve upon. Thanks in advanced for reading and for the help! Good smoking, AZ
Day 15: More issues with the MG soil, I think... Burn at end of leaves. This is the Hog's Breath too... [Frown] It was due for a watering, so I went ahead and flushed the cup with pH neutral distilled water. Still not feeding. Lower leaves on 15 day old plant are continuing to yellow. Also flushed the cup, so we'll see in the next few days if the soil really was the issue. Some okayish news. This was the plant with the nitrogen burn from the original post. One day after flush wilting has gone away and, while there is some yellowing, deeper greens are returning. Hopefully that result will reoccur with my other two sick little girls... In any case that's the story so far. AZ
10 hours since flushing. Pretty dramatic wilting action from my 15 day old, but that's to be expected from the flush this morning; she's pretty weighted down with water and such. I'll wait a full five days before watering again. Color on new growth is looking better but there is some permanent damage on the two original leaves. This is the same leaf from previous post. Some crispiness but hopefully its recoverable. Other side is much less likely to recover. Very crisp, a lot of damage. Might remove this leaf in a week or two once the plant has enough foliage to support itself without it. Hog's Breath looks much better than it did this morning. Drooping not significant, slight damage on outside of leaves, but most likely going to make a full recovery. She's even starting to reach towards the light again. I'll keep up to date on the plants situations as time passes AZ
Day 16: My eldest looks much better today! Bottom two leaves are definitely long-term goners, but for now they'll serve some purpose for the plant. Mg/Ca deficiency ended up not being an issue like i previously worried. All in all, the little ones look pretty spry this morning. Think the 20/4 cycle is working well. AZ
Hi Az. I think you are doing good for your 1st grow. I'm sure you know by now that MG soil is the pits. When you transplant into some bigger pots (ASAP), before you sex and transplant into your tote, I would use better soil. At the very least some fox farms soil. I think the papery, crispy leaves are from heat, from your lights being too close. Maybe back off the lights an inch or two. Point your fan straight across the top of your plants. The soil is whats giving you the brown burnt edges. Keep it green up in here...
Hey, Thanks for the input! I'm planning on transplanting in five days (next watering is in four) and I'll definitely be avoiding the MG products. My soil is going to be Happy Frog Soil(50%), Perlite (35%), Compost (12%), remaining 3% will be bone/blood/neem meal. I'm just planning on treating with an EWC and alfa tea, don't have enough time to build a full organic soil. I decided to remove the two bottom leaves from my older plant and I'm waiting to see what effect this will have. I adjusted my lights this morning so hopefully that'll help as well. Thanks again for your knowledge, AZ EDIT: I'm unsure if I should mix the blood/bone meal directly into the soil or just use it in teas later. I don't want my soil to be too hot and obviously don't have time to wait for the soil to cycle... Tips?
Transplanting in five days: Excellent! Next watering is in four: Perfect, TP one day after watering. Avoiding the MG products: FTW Happy Frog Soil(50%), Perlite (35%): Sounds good, I'm really not up on the prefect mix for an organic soil, but I have some friends, who could answer your questions. I could point you in the right direction, if you want. EWC and alfa tea: I have use an EWC tea before, worked well. The plants shot up. I would ask others about the alfa. I heard it is a hot mix (tea). I'm subbed up. So, lets see some trees!
Thanks for the Sub! I've been on the organic threads and jerry, InTheGarden, and a lot of the other folks over there have been a huge help. I'll hopefully be going full organic for my next grow! Teas are just to supplement my soils, when need be. I'll probably just run the setup for a week or two before adding more nutes after the transplant. Soil should have enough nutrients to support them for that long alone. I'll be sure to keep up to date on my grow. It's just hard waiting, and waiting, and waiting. I can't stop myself from checking my plants every 40 minutes or so... ...It's pretty awesome people! AZ
End of day 16: Relatively good day, I guess. Lets go from smallest to largest... Good day for the runt! Gained about 3/4" in height and leaves have increased in size. No issues with nutes, no discoloration, just a happy plant! Several new leaf sets in the past 24 hours. Slight burn on tips of leaves but nothing dramatic. Good health over all. Two days after flush and she looks good! Happy to see her leaves up and color is ideal! Older leaves have reached the edge of the cup, gonna need replanting sooner than I had thought. Got them Big ol' leaves now. Measuring a solid 5-6 inches from tip to tip! This is the Hog's Breath. Really hoping she's a girl, because I'm already drooling thinking about the product she'll give me! Her mom rocked my world and I'm hoping she will too (Sounded less creepy in my head...). Here's the 16 day old. Not super happy with the way her leaves are sagging but color is good and I'm hoping she's still just recovering from the flush. We'll see in the morning. In other news, I ordered some 1-gal smart pots and they should arrive by Friday. Planning on replanting as soon as I get them! My little ones need some more room to play. I raised lights this morning and already need to raise them again. Good sign i think Lights-out in 3 and a half. Tucking my girls in now. See you in the morning GC, AZ
GOOOOOOOOOD MORNING GRASS CITY! It's a pretty nice thing to wake up to five healthy plants! A little bit nervous though. My smart pots apparently aren't getting here until Friday at the soonest and then it's a three day weekend... I don't think i can go any more than one week without transplanting... So I have quite the predicament. Also cotyledon leaves on most of the plants have wilted away, I'm going to need to start feeding them soon... Focusing on the bright side- I have five healthy plants in my third week of my first grow! Smell ya later GC, AZ
Day 18 Start: No issues. End of Day 18: And we have nute issues again... Leaves one and two of 18 day old: Slight yellowing, thought It might be a deficiency. Same two leaves six hours later: Still not 100% sure what the issue is. Can't tell if its burn or deficiency... Waiting for the morning to see. Lets hope for the best, AZ
I think that is a deficiency. Either Mg. or Potassium. Here's the chart. Does the leaves look like they are getting yellow from the tips, or the base. It looks like Potassium def to me. Feed with 1/4 strength veg schedule nutrients, ASAP.
Thanks for the chart! It seems like the yellowing is coming from the end of the leaves. There's no upward curl though. I thought that the leaves would do that if I had deficiencies. Maybe it's still early. I watered at one, my time; the cups were very light, and I'm transplanting into a rich soil this weekend, hopefully. I think I'm just going to watch the plant for a few days and feed if need be on the next watering (about 4 days). I don't want to feed then transplant because I've already had burn issues. Hopefully the one picks up then. The others are doing well, though! AZ
Day 20 start: All four young plants are growing well. The Hog's breath seems to be stretching a bit and i don't think it's because of light distance... Really hoping she's not a he... Tallest plant still has yellowing on bottom set of leaves but new growth looks good. Most likely a slight K shortage. Not going to feed though. Smart pots are in the mail with gardening lime and rock dust. Organic soil is about 5 weeks away, probably won't make it for flowering. Just time to sit and try to not worry too much. AZ
Great jourrnal dude, i like the detailed accounts of each plant and constant updates. Ill definetly be dropping by again.
Welcome, man! Glad to hear you're liking it. I'm trying to keep up daily, which isn't super difficult seeing as how I spend HOURS a day staring at my plants and surfing this site... It's really an addicting hobby. AZ
This is good advice. I've seen some really ghetto, uneducated grows produce a decent end product. You seem really on top of it, and that's what your plants need.