Thanks for stopping by, welcome! Take a seat. Setting: Indoor, closet 2 plants (dank bagseed) MG Organic soil (seedling) --> FoxFarm Ocean Forest (Veg) Ferts: Grow Big (veg) Tiger Bloom (flower) CFL set up (210w mixed spectrum ~6500k in veg *420w 2700k during flower) Cardboard+mylar housing Fans 24/7, passive ventillation (for now..) Progress: (Only showing 1 out of 2 plants at start, because they both have looked practically identical while growing) 8-14-2010 (germination) 8-15-2010 (peek-a-boo) 8-16-2010 (taking shape) 8-19-2010 (om nom nom) 8-21-2010 (new leaves.. FYI sand on the topsoil corrected gnat/larvae issues I was having 8-23-2010 (looking good) 8-26-2010 (getting bushy) 8-26-2010 Plant #2(ignore the runt in the background)
8-29-2010 (Questionable leaf curling.. was informed that my temp 90F and humidity 25% is the cause.. trying to improve these conditions..) Plant #2 8-29-2010 (same problems) 8-30-2010 (side stem shot) 9-2-2010 (curling is bad.. also some yellowing. I have 2 fans on high and the door open.. temp still 88-90F. Open jar of warm water in for 3 days, humidity still wont go higher than 30%) Plant #2 9-2-2010 (looking better than #1) 9-2-2010 This was the runt growing off to the side, obviously very sick, is getting planted outside somewhere or given away.. either way it's getting it's ugly ass out of the room before transplant 9-2-2010 (Transplanted today! I hope they enjoy their new home.. I also set up a THIRD fan blasting on high... hopefully temps go down. Put a second open jar of water in there to get humidity up..) (Peek at the set-up) _\|/_ Again, thanks for taking interest! This has been a fun project so far. Please feel free to ask questions.. criticize.. or just rant and rave about what a n00b I am. It's all much-needed feedback!! Let me know if I left any vital info out. Everyone loves fresh healthy buds, with your help I just might succeed. Will update often. Peace!!
Best of luck, my friend. Try to get a moisture/pH tester (about 7 or 8 bucks at the hydro store.) I think keeping the pH between 6.3 and 6.8 is ideal for healthy plants. The temps can also be helped by blowing one of the fans across some ice or cold packs if all else fails. I'm a noob too, but have done quite a lot of research on these forums.
Thanks Yeah I actually have that EXACT Moisture/PH meter.. the moisture meter works great and I dont have to shove my finger in the soil.. but the PH meter doesnt seem to do anything.. I'll leave it in the soil for 1-2 mins but the needle never moves. Stays on like 7+. Could that be accurate? Also, can it be used to test run-off water?
Ill grab this seat if u dont mind thanks for your advice bud, i went out and bought 6 more CFLs. and I subscribed to your thread here, and once I can figure out how to up your rating I'm gonna do that bud. Thanks for everything. Keep me posted on mine if u dont mind.
Day 19 from sprout Veg. A Veg. B Not MUCH growth.. but some since I transplanted.. so I'm assuming the roots were in good shape. Obviously some mobile deficiencies happening there with both A and B in curling/yellowing, but the new growth has been a deep green.In A.. possible little leafy budsites?? It's been 72 hours since the transplant into the Hot, rich FoxFarm.. Could they be showing dominant strain characteristics in the long slender leaves? Or do I generally want to see wide leaves? the moisture meter is still showing ok @ root level. Watered the new medium pre-transplant, let drain 15 mins, niiiice and moist. The AC is now rigged to blow in cool air, but it's not very controllable..(thermostat doesnt trigger from the heat, so it's on and off) while lights on, the temp (at light/plant level), ranges from 83-95. could be a harmfull change? While lights-off it's serene, perfect 71-78. Gentle fan breeze. Once the roots settle in and I see more growth I'll be adding some FF grow nute, low concentration at first. I plan on some veg time but not too long. 2-3 weeks would be pref. I hope my Veggies show vibrant growth!! -peace
9/5/10 Veg. (A) Nice top-view of (A). Leaf curling has decreased, definitely some growth, so I know the roots are settling and expanding in the new soil! (B) Not as tall as A, but clearly more bold green, and shinier leaves. Leaves are flattening out nicely is it continues to grow. Closely check out this side shot of (A) If you look directly in the center, right on the upper-stem.. dont those look like pistils?? Seems very early to show sex.. but I'm just going by what I see at this point.
It says to take a muddy soil sample from about 2" down, but I just measure it right after watering... same thing, right? I don't know if it works for runoff or not, though. Good luck on the grow.
thought I'd throw up this shot of the EXTREMELY handy extension unit of the $15 temp/RH meter. Just sticks in there right @ plant level, so you know exactly how your leaves/buds feel. I'm looking at 83-89F with lights burning, fans & AC. ~75 @ night. 38% humid. Both veggies seem to be resilient and O.K. with thier conditions.. so as much as I do want to decrease temps, I'm riding it out. (might consolidate down to one veggie when flowering is induced.. just to spoil it in all angles with light and dealing with it's size when blooming) PM me if you need more details on the meter
the plant structure seems female, although no telling, the pic seems to be just the leaf spurs not pistols. You won't see them in veg usually. It won't show until plant maturity, and ur 3 weeks in or so, no sex yet, be patient. * the leaves curl because it's too hot and dry, so they curl trying not to give off water and transpire, by folding over it holds it's water and trys to cool itself. Mother nature is a smart bitch. Also a lil nute burn w that MG feed soil, but since roots dug into good soil, there leveling out
hey GREAT explanation of the natural leaf curling. It does stay toasty in there with lights running. Trying to control the elements the best I can. And yes.. loving the new soil.. and no bug/insect issues AT ALL as some may think from rich organic soil. had a gut feeling it was too early to tell sex.. those little things are very convincing I'm patient though, every change in growth is exciting. It's got plenty of time to mature. Will have to make a decision soon on consolidation.. With my area/resources I only want to focus on one budding beauty. Growth progression update coming when lights switch on. VERY insightful post jpjp, +rep
The reflectors look like they are trapping heat. I have two suggestions. 1. Position a small fan to blow directly on the lights. 2. Remove the reflectors and make something that won't trap as much heat. This type of reflector is not ideal, anyway. Most of the light from the bulb comes off the sides, so with these dome-type reflectors a lot of light hits the reflector first. At this point your plants are small enough that they don't need the reflectors (since you have a lot of lights), so take them off and see what happens to the temp. Then put a fan on the lights and see what effect that has. Then go from there. IMHO reflectors are one of the hardest parts of CFL growing. I used a disposable aluminum serving pan, cut some holes in it to let heat escape, and suspended it over the lights. One day I accidentally tilted the pan so that the edge of it touched the metal screw-part of the bulb, and POP! ( a mini explosion). I'm lucky I didn't electrocute myself. After that I covered the edges of the pan with tape, but next time I'm going to try a piece of aluminum strapped to the bulb base with a zip tie. When I switched to HPS (half-way through flowering I bought a 150W HPS) I put a little PC fan in front of one of the intake holes and tilted it so it blew on the light, and that helped a few degrees. Just my .02; hope it helps.
Thanks a lot for the input!! It's actually very easy to remove the domes and just leave the bulb base, so I'll try it for a couple days to see what happens to the temp.. I suppose your right the reflectivity is a bit of overkill for now, I'm just trying to spoil my babies in light! But I don't want to stress them, either.
Growth update, 9-9-2010 (A) Growth is definitely increasing!! Leaves are becomming more broad, flattened, and deep green. Very uniformed and structured. (A) side profile Sturdy stem (B) It's growth so far seems healthy.. but it's just SMALL in comparison with plant (A). Grows slightly crooked, and is not as tall or wide. Temp ~83, RH ~35%
Had the lights suspended for watering, got a couple nice shots. (A) (B) B has really filled out, straightened up, and is looking good. A is just a leaf-set ahead of B. With them both looking so healthy I can't get rid of one just yet.. I plan to sustain them both at least until pre-flower/sexing. To better my chances of getting a female. (Or 2 )
Hey thanks for the feedback. In weeks 1-2 they were stressed from heat/dryness, also they did not like the MG "organic" starter soil much.. but since transplant (8 days ago) they've really taken off.. I've improved the temp with more air circulation + AC being blown into the room. Also the low humidity is no longer a problem as the plants get larger.. the smell is starting to be an issue.. and at this point it doesn't even smell like bud, just a pungent plant smell. I'll need to start taking measures for this. Today: (A) (B)
Thanks again, yes I can only hope Still debating on whether or not I could take care of two females to harvest.. I'd almost rather have one big happy plant then deal with the space/odor/light coverage for two.. and from what I hear, the flowering plant needs much more light.. so it may be for the best.