Micro SOG under bathroom counter

Discussion in 'Micro Grows' started by d-lusional, Jul 1, 2013.

  1. I'll accept the newb title on this. First grow since highschool over a decade ago. The goal here was grow as much as possible in a small, out of the way place, as quickly and cheaply as possible.
    Germ'd using the wet paper towel in a ziplock bag. If it worked in 2nd grade, why do it any other way?
    Grow box is just a cardboard box. Biggest thing I could fit under the counter.
    Six 7" pots split into 4, Miracle Grow potting mix for the soil, watering with fish tank water (good for nitrogen)
    Lights right now are daylight and full spectrum fluorescents left over from fish tanks. They'll be upgraded to CFLs later, but I had these on hand already and they don't put off much heat.
    18/6 light cycle and won't be adding fertz... remember, as cheap as possible.
     

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  2. Less than a week in and got mold.
    Bulbs have been upgraded to two 6500k. Will be adding a 3rd soon along with reflective tape to slow this stem growth.
     

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  3. #3 GoldGrower, Jul 7, 2013
    Last edited by a moderator: Jul 7, 2013
    you need your lights closer and at least one fan blowing across the plants. why do you have cardboard in the pots? is that for so it will be easier to re-pot? if so you will find roots will grow through it, why not just use separate pots. your just making hassle for yourself this way.I advise you don't use water from your fish tank. just use tap water and the correct strength nutrients. using unknown water is just going to give you an unbalanced nutrient content. I also recommend you use nutrients that have been designed with cannabis in mind. it will save you getting any nutrient issues. as long as you don't under/overdose of course

    edit...
    another reason not to use fish tank water is because right now your plants are overdosed with nutrients. the nutrient content of the soil is way too high. the plants would grow much faster if you rinse out the soil on watering days, but make sure you allow the soil to dry out between waterings
     
  4. Didn't have anything else thick & flat to lift the pots any higher, but some have reached the lights now and have started growing leaves instead of stem now. They aren't showing any signs up heat stress that I can tell, but someone correct me if I'm wrong. The tubes don't get very warm.
    The cardboard is to split the pots. If I'm able to sex them, I can give the females individual pots, but they won't be allowed to get too big as they will be in this box their whole life. These pots were all I had, it was either these or those flower pack planters you get from HD.

    Tap water it is from now on. I'll let it sit a day to air out chlorine and let the pH drop. Water comes out pretty hard here.

    Pics 1 1/2 weeks in... ignore the ones that look like they leaves turned sideways. I didn't seed deep enough, so the stems had fallen over and the leaves turned to face the light. These were taken after I braced the stems back up.
     

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  5. Week 2
     

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  6. Looks good, but please be aware that your roots will probably grow through the cardboard, and there is a good chance the wet cardboard will give you a mold issue. I like the idea of separating them, I just don't think cardboard is the best way to do it.

    Btw, if you have dvds laying around they are great for raising your plant to the lights.

    Sent from my HTC6435LVW using Grasscity Forum mobile app

     
  7. How many plants can I keep in per pot without separating? Looking to keep plants short, so actual root space isn't a HUGE concern.
     
  8. Week 3...
     

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  9. @[member="car0linab0y"] You shouldn't have more than one plant per pot. Obviously roots can get tangled and kill a crop. A lot of people plant their germinated seeds in dixie cups. It keeps the plants separated while also making it easier to transplant into a bigger pot later. Not to mention cost effectient.
     
  10. Can I do the rest of the grow in say, 16oz cups? I want to keep the plants under a foot tall when it's said n done.
     
  11. You can grow them for awhile in 16oz cups. Puncture holes in the bottom on the cup and add a layer of gravel before adding soil to support drainage. I would honestly consider transplanting them into bigger pots later. Maybe you can find another place to hide them or be creative and build a growbox. You can usually find stuff on Craigslist.
     
  12. I like the idea but the only thing I can see being a problem is that you started from seed and a SOG is usually done with clones. Not saying this is impossible or anything like that but it won't be quite as easy once sexing time comes around unless you have them all separated into solo cups or small pots already. I say grow a mother plant and get some branches to take clones off of. Once you can do that you will have a MUCH easier time with SOG because you know they will all be female, and you already know how the mother plant's genetics are so you will have a better idea of what to expect.
     
  13. They'll be in separate cups by the end of this weekend. Clones weren't an option with this being my first grow, but the sexiest lady in the group can definitely be a mother to my babies LOL. It's all bagseed from different bags over the months. No telling wth I have growing.
     
  14. Yeah in that case you will need to pick the best one and take some clones. If your using different bagseeds your gonna have different harvest times, different plant sizes, different sexing times, flowering times, and all sorts of stuff like that. But grow what you have and pick the best of the best to clone for a SOG haha.
     
  15. So I transplanted them all (the 20 best looking out of 32) to party cups. Now I have a question/concern. I planted them at the bottom of the cups, on top of the gravel, but as deep as possible. Will roots grow upward, or do I need to pull the plants up some.
     
  16. Think I found a pretty good answer via Google... burying them deep will cause the stem to root, therefore giving me more roots. Next question... what happens if I transplant deeply again, but with the roots pointing upward along the stem instead of along the bottom?
    Also, does stem to leaf ratio indicate anything as far as sexing? I need to narrow down from 20 to 8 plants.
     
  17. I honestly Dont know the answer to your question about roots :\ i try to transplant once at tops in a life cycle
    As far as sexing it is true that often times males shoot up towards the light quicker. Switch them over to 12/12 for a week if you have the time if not pick the shortest and smallest node length and hope. When the fan leaves off the main stem become staggard rather than in pairs you'll know you can sex by looking for pre-flowers
     
  18. #18 d-lusional, Aug 7, 2013
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 7, 2013
    2 pots went MIA, so the best 6 went in pots, the remaining space went to the best remaining in cups, and a little experiment with the ones left homeless.Getting ready for the next phase... Is 7200 lumens enough for flowering in my box? This will be my light, once i make it reflective.Sent from my LG-E739 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
     


  19. Sent from my LG-E739 using Grasscity Forum mobile app

     

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  20. why do you have cardboard above your lights? are you trying to start a fire?

    as for your plants, they look good. I have never seen any indication of gender until pre flowers show, males get taller when flowering but not when vegging. I don't know if it's just sods law or it is actually the case but many of my healthiest looking plants turn out to be males.

    you say you want to keep your plants small, I'm assuming you don't have a lot of space? why grow such a high number of plants in the first place? clones can be flowered right away so short sea of green style can work just fine but from seed they need to be about 3-4 weeks old before they are mature enough to flower. by this time even with topping they are going to be well over a foot by the time you can flower them. have you considered ScrOG? this keeps them short
     

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