watering/feeding

Discussion in 'First Time Marijuana Growers' started by tog666, Oct 7, 2015.

  1. #1 tog666, Oct 7, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 7, 2015
    Do I need to water/feed during lights out?

     
  2. Honestly, I tried it both ways and didn't see a bit of difference. Now there are tons of people who obviously have nothing better to do than sit around and think of funky things to do to their plants or odd ways to do it and I'm sure you'll have somebody come on here and say, "Heck yea. That's the only way to go." LOL I couldn't tell any difference and for the aggravation and trouble it was, it certainly didn't convince me to change my routine. TWW

     
  3. The time of day i water has no effect on my plants.
     
  4. I don't think it will make a difference, but I understand all these ridiculous questions(no offense) when you are starting to grow. lol. You're free to experiment though.... that's how you learn.
     
  5. With soil or soiless mediums that hold more water it really doesn't matter much. Your pot is going to stay wet for a day or two regardless. Hydro or coco, I like to water early in the light cycle. Maybe just because it makes me feel better, who knows.



    I found this from Sensi Seeds http://sensiseeds.com/en/blog/how-to-water-a-canna...




    When should cannabis plants be watered?
    There is some controversy over the best time of day to water cannabis plants. Most growers believe that cannabis should be watered at night time, but some argue that they should be watered earlier in the day.
    Those that believe cannabis plants should be watered at night argue that in a natural environment, precipitation does not fall when the sun is shining, due to cloud cover. Many also state that if water droplets resting on the leaves are exposed to heat and bright light, they may act as “magnifying glasses” and burn the leaves.
    Some believe you should water early


    It appears that this is just a myth, although leaf burn can occur through prolonged contact with some fertilisers. In any case, possible issues can be avoided altogether if care is taken to simply direct the water towards the soil and not the leaves!
    On the other hand, watering earlier in the daytime allows the plant to utilise the available nutrients more effectively, as many of the fundamental processes of plant growth occur in sunlight. Leaving soil damp throughout the cooler hours of night can promote mould growth.
    If growing outdoors, watering in the morning rather than the warmer afternoon appears to be optimal, as the rate of evaporation is slower. If growing indoors, watering at around the time lights are switched on may be preferable-while temperatures rise quickly with “hot” lights such as HPS, it usually takes some time for them to peak.








     
  6. BWAAAHHHH ha ha ha, you talkin' about me. Bro????
    The only reason to water with lights out, is when you spill some on the floor you don't notice so you don't have to clean it up.
     
  7. Can I ask within this thread - how often would you 'mist' then?


    I'm presuming that water from the watering can is poured into the soil (not on the leaves). How frequent would you spray mist the leaves themselves? - and also, would you spray/mist with neem oil all the time as a preventative measure - or just 1/2 the time, or something completely different?
     
  8. Never spray anything on your bud.
     
  9. IMHO, the only time to mist where it will help anything is when your girlfriend is in the grow room, braless, wearing a thin t-shirt. But you have to post pictures to prove it or no one on here will believe you, or ever talk to you again [​IMG]
    But seriously, misting really is way over-rated, it does more for the mist-er (you) than it does for the mist-ee (the plant). Depending upon the plant's life cycle, the higher humidity can be some help for a delicate young seedling, but a humidity dome does better. With a healthy growing plant in some kind of roughly contained area (tent, closet, room), humidity usually needs to be brought DOWN, not up. Maybe in the dead of winter you might need to raise it a bit, but the easy way to do that is to soak a towel and hang it in the grow area. Or if you want high tech, use a humidifier.
    Too MUCH humidity can cause stem rot, or leaf burn, or in later stages, the dreaded bud rot. You don't want that.
    Yes, pour into the soil, try to keep the leaves dry. Even set up a fan blowing on the plant canopy at all times. Normal plant transpiration will cause moisture to condense between two leaves when they are touching. Then they separate when the lights come on and the wet one gets burnt. A fan circulating the air helps prevent this.
    Neem oil. While neem oil is safe, it is still oil. You can use it "safely" into late bloom but it can impart a taste to your buds if applied too late. Likewise soap (Dr. Bronner's lavender)is safe and effective, but who wants soap on your buds? I'm just not a fan of preventative and recommend you use it only if you have an infestation.
    If you find yourself chronically chasing mites, it can help to do two to three thorough treatments at the end of your veg cycle, three to five days apart, just before you switch to 12/12 bloom. In this case it's definitely easier to eradicate the bastards before bloom starts.
    If you find yourself with an infestation in bloom, especially late bloom, the only thing I would recommend is mightywash. The stuff is safe within a few days of harvest, leaves very little residue, and nothing dangerous to consumption. But I always follow a day or two later with a thorough rinse.


    Now - about that t-shirt ....
     
  10. Haha! Great advice, thanks very much :D


    With the lights on (and no plants in the tent yet) the humidity is between 30-40%. I'm guessing this will raise a bit once damp soil goes in there, but if not I will definitely be trying your 'soaked towel' method - sounds like a good idea.


    Obviously hoping to avoid mites - and was planning to spray neem oil periodically to get it into the plants system, but will go with your advice and will just keep a close eye on them instead :)
     
  11. Good plan. Neem oil is not a systemic (gets in the system), it's a contact kill, meaning it dissolves the exoskeleton of mites and they turn into a little puddle of douche water. Really, they dissolve into a puddle, it's soooo cool to watch this under your trich microscope. Soap sprays do the same. So spraying as a preventative is not going to help you, UNLESS you KNOW you have been fighting an infestation and you see signs of them returning.
    Non-poisonous contact kills like neem and soap usually don't affect the eggs. That's why the multiple treatments. If I remember my bug warfare facts right, mites have a hatch-to sexual maturity time of 3 to 5 days, so if you spray one day and eggs hatch the next, you will still have issues. Spray two more times minimum and you should Interrupt the sexual maturity cycle and (usually) win.
    If you need a systemic I'd recommend AzaMax. It's an organically registered broad spectrum insecticide derived from the neem tree, and it's advertised as safe for continuous harvest foodstuff applications.
    But again - don't see, don't treat. Bugs don't develop resistances to neems & soaps (& mighty wash) but no need to put shit on your buds with no bugs.



     
  12. Interesting! and contradicting the advice given in the hydro store. I'm inclined to follow your advice instead - it certainly sounds like it makes more sense. I'll look forward to dissolving bugs into douche puddles... but hopefully wont be necessary :) Once again, thanks for your knowledge. Very informative!
     
  13. Glad to help. The challenge about getting good advice from hydro stores is they don't usually get paid if they don't sell. And, the turnover us usually pretty high so it's hard to develop a good working relationship with the employees. Unless you meet the owner or manager and tell him/her you will give him all your business (as opposed to shopping online for a cheaper price) as long as he promises to give you good info & not just sell you. Even then... well, no power better than knowledge.
    Most bugs can be avoided by keeping a clean room, NEVER bringing ANYTHING into the room from outside, never let pets into the grow room, and NEVER go in yourself after you have been tramping around outdoors. Not until you've showered or at least changed clothes.
    If you grow long enough you're going to get spider mites sooner or later. Be prepared with a good attack plan and it won't be so stressful.


    Hope this helps & bestaluck to ya.


     
  14. Yes it does, thank you.


    I get what you mean about the sales assistants. Strangely though, the first time I was in there - I wanted to buy more stuff and they advised me onto cheaper alternatives or not to bother (downsold me onto chains instead of ratchets etc) - so thought I could trust them. Nevermind, there's plenty more experience on these boards - relating to the specific plants too instead of w/e they pretend to be selling those kits for in the store!

     

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