Hi Killset, yes they are feminised. Great idea and you're right. Clearly some of the plants are looking better than other ones. I've accepted I wont get any smoke any time soon so another few weeks to increase quality is preferable. This is all about growing good shit and taking me out of the black market. Also decided to try seedlings (and cuttings) under a CFL, initially, next time. I'm thinking the high heat, low humidity and super bright light has combined to stunt early growth. Just looked in now though and even in 8 hours they are showing about 2cm of new growth (in the form of new leaves coming through rather than stem length).
Ok still not had chance to finish the room but have just fimmed 6 of my 8 plants (destroyed the sickly one today). High heat over the past few days have meant I have had to raise the light and growth has certainly slowed - and 1 plant has stretched slightly (well distance between nodes, the plant overall hasn't stretched noticeably) Applied diatomaceous earth to the leaves (hence the white powder) to counter act the few spider mites I have now seen (and any other evil critters). The other 2 will hopefully need fimming within the next 2-3 days. I'm looking to repot soon - maybe when the plants have recovered from the fimming? Transfer into from 6" to 12" pots?
My plants are totally stunted, no denying it. Decided that a soil change is needed immediately to see if I can turn these girls round. I've just transplanted 6 of my girls to 7" pots and 2 to 9" pots. All of them were in 5" pots (ignore above where I say 6", they were actually 5") For my soil mix I mixed together: 3 5" pots full of vermicompost 3 5" pots full of b&Q fruit compost 2 5" pots full of vermiculate 2 5" pots full of perlite 1/2 5" pot of diatomaceous earth 1 tablespoon of epsom salts 70 grams chicken manure 140 grams bone, blood & fish meal 70 grams of bone meal de-chlorinated water I popped my girls out of their pots and it's clear I should have transplanted them 2 weeks ago. I'm 2 weeks down but I'm convinced I can turn these babies round into nice yielding plants (or at least get 2 decent enough to take cuttings from). I put them into the above soil mix and placed a thin layer of canna terra seedling mix over the top of this before transplanting. I then covered around the plants with more canna terra seedling mix. The soil mix was nice and wet but I haven't added any water on top. Just done the transplant and now lights are off for 6 hours. Have a feeling I didn't plant them quite deep enough but I will change them all to 3 gallon pots, I think, in another 2-3 weeks????
Growth may have slowed, but hopefully you didn't do any permanent damage. Doesn't seem like you did. I'm pretty sure they'll be fine and just needed the extra room like you said.
No, indeed 7 of the plants have grown dramatically since transplant and also showing signing that the FIMing worked. Also I can smell weed in there for the first time! The blue cheese plants all of a sudden reek lol! God knows how bad it will be when they flower. Will post some pictures tonight. Also I saw that you killed your crop - gutted, looking at your new thread now.
It was only 1 plant, but yeah, simple mistakes add up. Every mistake I made this grow was a mistake I've never made before. My new soil mix is way too concentrated for direct planting. This time around, I'm making sure to take my time.
I'm already thinking the same about my own soil. Well, I just went in and had a panic as a 1 of the plants leaf tips are folded down. Was thinking soil mix too hot or too damp but I have realised that bigger plant pot plus some rapid growth over the past few days means the plant is much closer to the light. Have moved the light up and hopefully this well stop the rot. These pics were taken just now, 4th day since fimming.
8 days since fimming and 6 days since replanting. All looking nice and healthy, slow growth in one but growth nevertheless.
Looking at all my plants I don't think the fimming has worked. Att the main stems are still growing up, not sure how I messed up every cut but Im guessing I did it too early. I think they were far too small, the growth over the past week means they are now surely ready. Ive just got plants with the ends of leaves missing where I cut, and still growth above them up the main stem. D'oh. Not given them any attention since repotting, but will be all over them this week.
I can't really tell from the pics, but even if you FIM or Top, they still continue to grow up. It'll just have 2 - 4 main colas instead of one. If you want them to grow wider, you need to train them. It won't happen automatically. I'm assuming that's your goal?
Hi, yes I want them as wide as possible but I do have a good 5.5ft to play with taking into account light distance and pot sizes. Will be installing the scrog screen asap, maybe i should have already been training them, will see how it goes. The plants have grown rapidly and the reattempt at topping fimming has worked. I'm repotting again today into 3 gallon buckets as the roots are already coming through the holes in the pots. Will post updated pics later today but I'm feeling much more confident. I think another 10-14 days of vedge is needed max and then I can flower my girls.
You can still train them now. Get some garden staples and pipe cleaners. Also, why are you cutting parts of your leaves off? That will slow growth by harming the plant and they can't take in as much light.
Oops that's how I realised I hadn't topped or even fimmed them correctly. The plants were so small when I did the 1st cuts that I was overly cautious with how much I trimmed off. I effectively just trimmed the ends of the set of leaves coming through! D'oh - schoolboy error! Couple of my plants now starting to show female preflowers - zoomed in. Will get some pics on tonight, can't find my darn camera. Going to jump across to your thread and see how you are getting on. Thanks for the help so far buddy
yeah i pretty much have 4' arms but that does not mean my back is not broken from that grow. screen's are the WORST and the best. check out my grow and how i tried to make individual screens and have sativas and indicas all making "one canopy" could be better but i think that is more of the lighting. man i feel like my FIM was kind of a bust compared to some other I've done, but i think i just went too far down when cutting/not sure, but you deff didn't do it too soon. they need some time to start growing again!! just let them spaz out for a sec cause u did kinda cut parts off her body and she will be wonderful and growing even faster but they will slow for sure anytime you stress them so just expect that!!!!! and yes they will go up and up and up above where u cut that's where the light is. not giving them any attention is prob the best thing you could have done from my experience. yea i think they need to start being trained as infant's, worked for hitler. you can wait till the roots have a better system to TP, they take it better when they have a "web" and all of the dirt is not falling off and you have a nice pretty ball to put in the hole you moving into. I think training is faster at making more tops than topping/fimming.
Just transplanted them all into 14litre (3 gallon) buckets. The roots were well spread in the pots and nearly every bit of soil was well rooted. Transferred 6 into the same soil mix as before. I've put one in 50% of the above soil mix with another 25% compost and a further 25% vermiculite. The final one I have used 50% compost and 50% vermiculite. Will be using bottled fertilzer on this and it will be my 'test' plant. Most of the plants are recovering nicely from topping/fimming now. One, however, has a few yellow spots - bit of slight nute burn I'm thinking. Can see the spots quite clear on the middle couple of photos. Seems not too bad at the moment so will monitor over the next couple of days now I've transplanted. Couple of bite marks missing out of one plant but noticed that the other day. Took the chance to clean the whole room, good hover and disinfected the walls and floor. Will be putting down some more DE tonight all over the plants, then spray them with plain water at lights on in the morning. Going to crack on building the screen today and finishing my intake pipes that should spread fresh air throughout the bottom of the canopy and around the plants nicely.
Update. All of the plants are doing well except the 8th plant - the test one. Showing yellowing on leaves - nitrogen lockout or ph an issue I feel. Going to be replanting it in the next day or two I suspect. I think I started the LST way to late. All of the plants main stems seem too close to the soil? They go off in diagnols for a good 4 nodes before get any proper 'bending'. It's helping them bush out for sure though - just unsure if this will lead to the stems snapping when the pressure builds from those lovely buds.
Maybe its just me, but some of your plants look stressed. It could be just under watering. You're doing fine for your first grow though. My first grow didn't go nearly as well.
The buckets are still really damp, I think it was the heat yesterday. Heat got up to 33c in my room before I realised and got some ice in there in front of my fans. The leaves all look fine today but Im noticing the tips of my leaves re getting eaten by something! The DE isn't killing off everything that's for sure, can't see any insect life on inspection so Im puzzled at the moment.
Update. Lot of chewed up/deformed new growth. Slight yellowing of the tips of the new growth too. The weakest plant by far is the one with a simple compost/vermiculite soil. All 8 plants already have substantial root growth coming through the drainage holes in the 3 gallon buckets. Given that I haven't started flowering yet I feel I'm going to have to repot again just before flowering. Leaves are all a bit droopy at the minute but the pics were taken just before lights out, looked ok earlier. Some of the plants are showing female pre flowers and some nothing at all. Still too early to start flowering I feel. Maybe another 7-14 days will be needed.
Screen installed. Stickes just need straighening in places. Switched to 24/0. The roots are so well established I'm happy to go to 24/7 lighting so it hopefully hits the screen faster. Although I am unsure as to whether I should lower the screen a bit and flower asap??? Advice anyone please?