Greetings all. The last time I 'grew' was in the late 60's so it's been a long time. I live in a state that growing and recreational as well as medicial use will all be legal July 1, 2015. Anyway, I've started a few femenized seeds to see how well I can do. I have a 4x4 tent and a carbon filter, 400CFM fan on a variable setting. While I do have a few CFLs, I decided to get a decent LED light. I chose an Advanced Platinum Series P300 300w 11-band LED Grow Light - DUAL VEG/FLOWER SPECTRUM and also have a few CFL's hanging. I have 5 plants (seedlings) that are about 2.5 weeks old and seem to be doing well under the LED and a few hanging CFLs. My temps are finally steady about 75-80 but my humidity is about 30-35%. I placed a few tray's of water in the tent and it seems to help a bit. I'm on the 18/6 cycle also. I was considering getting another 300W LED as they run about $360 on sale. Yea, I've seen the Appolo lights that are 300W and run $128, but lots of LED's going out and such. The Advanced platimum seems to have good reviews and so far, so good. I have it about 18 inches above the seedlings and they seem to be doing well in 5 inch pots. Time will tell. I will most likely use either 3 or 5 gallon smart pots to transplant and plan on topping, lolly poping and SCROG. This is my first post and hopfully I found a great forum to share info. My name's David. Comments welcome, especially about the lighting..... I've attached a few pics from a few days ago. They are larger now. PS, I do feed my girls and pH down to 6.6 along with watching the PPM.
I must have double posted. Check the following... http://forum.grasscity.com/absolute-beginners/1360249-greetings-older-newbee.html?p=21388916
They look great mate, you will definitely need more light at some point. In a 4x4 area you sorta want at least 500 actual used watts. Your 300w LEDs will likely use about 170watts so about 4 of those would be a nice fit I have a 4x3' tent and I have two 300w LEDs and a 450w LEDs. They collectively use 610 watts, but are rated for 1050w collectively. This is a nice balanced amount in my opinion. Have you had a look at mars-hydro LEDs? They are great quality at a great price Have a look here http://www.mars-hydro.com/led-grow-light One of their reps SmokeSara is a member on here and has a long on going thread in the lighting section. She can often arrange a cheaper price compared to the website
Thanks for the comments and suggestions. I've sent Sara a message on the LEDs. Also, here's this mornings pic of the girls. So far, so good. I'm still struggling with my humidity. My temps are fine between 75-80. Humidity is between 30 and 40 percent. I was thinking about a small humidifier, but not sure. Will humidity increase as the plants get older? Not sure?
Marijuana plants are amazingly efficient humidifiers and give it a couple of weeks and your humidity will rise considerably. 30-40% isn't bad really, I wish mine was like that. Mines about 50% without plants and 70% with plants
Thank so much mate. That's what I was hoping for. I live on the north coast of Oregon and it's usually cool, wet and humid here, but with the lights and my exhaust fan (400CFM, but run low on a variable speed controller) it must keep it dryer then I would like. I'll update in a few weeks. So far for 2.5 weeks old, I think they are doing fair. Cheers!
Hey david! Your plants are looking great so far bud! Keep up the good work! I subbed up and will be watching and helping when needed. If you have any questions please feel free to pm me anytime Or simply quote me here I recommend a little research into LST! Im doing my first real run with LEDs as well and so far i am super impressed, after switching over to LED after nearly a decade of HIDs and cfls before that Anyways, keep up the good work! ~ poke
Thank you so much for the encouragement. I know folks have a lot of time invested, so I don't want to use up my welcome without first doing my homework and research. I've read about LST and HST. My last grow was... hummmm.. late 60s, so I might as well be a total newbie! I started a journal (link below) so might be easier to follow. I am thinking about topping, but not yet as I am in no hurry. Also will be setting up a SCROG as my 5 plants (I was counting on 4, but all are doing well) should more than fill up a 4x4 tent. Not sure exactly when I will top, but most likely a few more weeks at least. Perhaps when I transplant in to 5 gallon smart pots? That will be my next milestone. Anyway, hope to stay in touch with you also. Peace.. http://forum.grasscity.com/indoor-grow-journals/1360481-2015-journal.html