JoeDude's Micro/Stealth 1st grow(ing pains) !

A Big Thanks to MicroGrower420 and Your Grandfathe is in order

I have already gone through the headaches of building my boxes and stealthing/lightproofing/temp-checking them. Now it's just the daily maintenance and shooting for the best outcome with what I've got started already. And these plants have all gone through the above headaches with me ~ Poor babies... Oh Well, gotta start somewhere.

So here are my plants. The two in the one yellow pot (yes I know ~) are bag seed skunk. I really dug the sativa high which is how I am in this situation since I found a few (very few) seeds. The others are grown from seeds I got from Marijuana-seeds.nl. Thai & Luna Haze (which were free~).

So, the 2nd pic is the Thai which hadn't been watered in 5 days or so, Pics 3 and 4 are the Luna Hazes (1 & 2). You can see my humidity-adding sponge in it's water dish in the 2nd Thai pic. the 5th and on pics are my 2nd (much nicer) box where I'll do all my vegging and cloning. There are started clones in there now from the toppings I did on the other plants. Hope this all works out !

Ok, I promised a few people I'd post if the plants picked-up from this mornings LIGHT watering. They obviously did

Here's the updated group (minus the yellow potted plants) shot again:
with flash
 DSC00907.jpg   482.53K   323 downloads

and without flash (as I noticed better leaf clarity for diagnosing anything)
 DSC00908.jpg   499.85K   256 downloads

This is the (free) Luna Haze #1 close-up
 DSC00909.jpg   433.66K   245 downloads

and this is (free) Luna Haze #2
 DSC00910.jpg   419.57K   223 downloads

This is (what I presume to be root-bound) The Skunk Girls (little and big)
 DSC00911.jpg   310.86K   226 downloads

Now just for close-ups on the clones which I do not know how they are doing as I'm totally new to cloning too
 DSC00913.jpg   396.65K   220 downloads

So please advise away / gimme some feedback if you would !

Especially you, Grandpa

Kewl, I'm subscribed.

Soil looks nice.

You add some VAM to the soil?

Edited by Your Grandfathe, 17 June 2011 - 11:12 PM.
well doh

This is what I was going after with you before ~ Where do I get VAM that you would recommend ? And then, do you just add it to water before watering? Or does it need to be mixed in with the soil prior to potting ?

Go to amazon.com and search for mycorrhizae

One pound goes a long way, but then again those smaller containers cost more. Personally, I'd try to find out which brand has the biggest amount of Propagules and what the potency number ( 1x10^4 ). Liquid is better than granule.

I would say take a tablespoon and put it into the bottom of any hole - where it comes in direct contact with the roots - anytime you are planting something.

Also, anytime you are making up soil, put a spoon or two into the mix. It can't hurt and you can't have too much VAM.

Edited by Your Grandfathe, 18 June 2011 - 01:26 AM.
damn link was bad

Well I ordered some root stuff. lol, Scientific wording there, eh ?

Rooters Mycorrhizae S.P. 1lb. (assuming it's powder)
 41k3k1qjy+L._SS500_.jpg   19.92K   87 downloads

Now I'm going to have to wait for that shipment to repot my two in one pot girls

Am I right that that looks like the problem with them ? I mean, I am only guessing here. And, they both popped out their pistols close to a month ago but I am making them wait for the flowering 12/12 till the other plants are about ready (which can't be too much longer cause my flowering box is not that big!). ..

I've used that brand and it's good stuff.

Ya, probably want to wait and then up-pot them nice girls.

Well, glad I ordered it sooner than later

Now, here's the real question Gramps, when I repot I can only go into a slightly larger pot due to my limited space in my flowering box. So, when I do repot, should I cut-back the roots at all a bit to encourage newer growth ?

No.

I would advise not to cut roots, ever - shock = high probability of hermie

Noted. No cut roots, unless possibly bonsai'ing a mother. . . ?

And, as it turns out, I even UNDERWATERED my twin girls ! Geezus you'd think I would have at least figured that out by now. Anyway, watered them last night and gave them some time. Here's them NOW.

 DSC00915.jpg   517.24K   146 downloads

They perked up a bit, and then I removed the leaves that fell off by simply touching them (they were super yellow and brownish)


And now I am simply checking for sex constantly on these Luna's and the Thai. I am pretty sure they are so lanky because they are sativa dominant. ?

 DSC00917.jpg   235.15K   109 downloads

 DSC00919.jpg   329.19K   98 downloads

See anything I don't ? (I see nothing indicative of their sex still)

I STAND CORRECTED

Easier to give water than to remove.

Right around the 28th day you should start seeing the beginning of sex signs

Well, last night I made the final decision on my lanky Thai. The damn sexless thing was getting way too tall due to it's lankiness between nodes. Way taller/lankier than the Luna's even. Does anybody know if that's a sativa trait or not for sure as I was lead to believe ? I mean I've heard they are hard to grow indoors as they tend to be taller than indicas. . .

So, with the second topping just below where I did the first, I used the two rejuv'ed start-up tops to make two more clones. Hopefully, if my clones take (I've been putting them in rapid rooter thingies after slappin' 'em in rooting hormone powder), I'll have three decent clones of the Thai if it turns out female (crossing fingers just like everybody else who's started from seeds)

So here is the Thai in the center foreground (where I've been keeping it) after it's second topping.
 DSC00920.jpg   573.35K   83 downloads


Then, with the Luna Haze's AND the Thai, I am getting some rather LARGE fan-leaves. Again, is this a sativa trait ? Here's a pic of the back left Luna's HUGE FAN LEAF. And note, I do not have small hands ! LOL
 DSC00923.jpg   264.89K   87 downloads

JoeDudeGuy,

I gotcha moved over here in a round about way (thanks YGF/Unoit). Welcome to Grasscity and the Organic Grow Journals section.

Looks like YGF has you in good hands and I'll bet the other guys/gals will be along for more support. Keep the pics coming and good luck!

chunk

Wow ~ I am honored as the almighty Chunk Daddy has posted in my thread ! (even if more or less just to notify me of his reorganizing my journal area) Thanks for the good vibes !
I have been fortunate to have some highly respected people sniff around here

So here's a few updated pics from this morning. We'll start with the clones. The first ones I tried start in rapid rooter thingies, and then I placed that into Fox Farm Light Warrior. That's why they look like they are in tiny little pots only as you can barely see the rapid rooters. There has been limited success that way I believe. This is, first, the very first clone I took of one of the already flowering (in veg lighting only!) skunk girls. It's not looking like she'll make it if you ask me ~
 DSC00925.jpg   342.22K   65 downloads

Then here are the others progression. The back left is the other skunk girl. She may make it ~ I hope !
 DSC00926.jpg   445.05K   57 downloads

Here is a close-up on just her
 DSC00927.jpg   354.9K   52 downloads

And then these are the two newer Thai's I did from topping #2. I did them the tried and true way I've read so many times.
 DSC00924.jpg   571.89K   64 downloads
They were all wilty to begin and day #2 they are already straightened right up. That pleases me as I want to be able to clone successfully and KNOW right away if it's working. Now, if they only turn out to be females

And now onto a majorly cool change I made for simplifying my Micro grow area. I made a lazy-susan so I can simply spin the plants around to water or to refill the humidity sponge. Wow is that ever perfect ~
 DSC00928.jpg   543.61K   55 downloads

Here is an overhead view by simply shooting blind with my arms through the door holding the camera up and over
 DSC00931.jpg   495.04K   60 downloads

And this is with it spun around 180 degrees. It's so slick
 DSC00932.jpg   538.7K   69 downloads

And then, last but not least, I remotely-ballasted the light (as it was a tall-ass warehouse HID fixture crammed in the box). It not only created more height in my tiny box, but it orientated the bulb sideways & I am able raise/lower the light now! This is just a beautiful shot of that "new light" through the "forest of mary jane". I can't get enough of these pics it seems
 DSC00929.jpg   337.36K   67 downloads

I'm such a porn dog

Well, don't you worry, you filthy porn lover! (LOL) I will be sure to be posting more as I love it too

Pervert

Well, I don't know that photos are a necessity today as the only thing that is different is that the plants in the VERY SOON TO BE FLOWERING chamber have all perked up a bit. I blame this on the horizontal orientation of the very same 250 watt Metal Halide bulb that was previously (socket-up) vertical. Can that make that much of a difference ? Well, that and WATERING them

Anyway, tell me I am wrong to just turn the light off tonight around 7:00pm, change to the High Pressure Sodium bulb and in the morning at 7:00am, begin the 12 - 12 lighting schedule and get these plants to show sex/flower away ~

In the week before I flip the lights, I introduce 'P' and give the last shot of N. (I use guano, you can use whatever is organic and high in those elements). The plant will use the N later.

So, for me, I would use 0-12-2 guano for my high P and 10-2-0 for my high N. A measured tablespoon of each scratched into the top of the soil (which I had pre-moistened the evening before).

One of the harder things for me to get my head around, growing organically, was the delay from application to onset of results. Kind of like leading a clay pigeon with the shot gun. I just calculate 7~10 days after I do it that it will be taking effect and then remind myself that it does take a while to completely break down, so I don't go adding more when I really don't want to.

Hope this helps

Damn, I knew you would stump me Gramps

Well, let's be honest, ChunkDaddyo moved me here to the organic journal area for reasons I know not. I never claimed to be 100% organic. I love the idea of it, but I do not know shit about it as this is my first grow. I mean if somebody showed me that feeding my plants gasoline would be good, I'd be dousing them regularly

So your information on this stuff has been extremely helpful. Both what's been said in this thread AND what was said in the PM's.

I did buy some "rose" fertilizer for blooming as I was originally thinking of keeping it simple. I thought, and have read, that people have had good results with that sort of stuff. I do not know if that would be considered organic anymore or not ! And, as luck would have it, I do not know, nor do I have a label pic of the bag, what the N, P, K contents are currently ~

What's your thoughts on that stuff ?