4 Dutch Dragons CFLs **HARVESTED**

(This was originall posted as an LED grow but after some sage advice, I have now switched to CFLs so I thought I'd repost properly)

Hey guys,

I've been a smoker for nearly 10 years and for about 7 of those have always wanted to have a go at growing. At first this was ruled out due to parents who would freak about smoking let alone growing it. Then when I had my own place and looked into it the heat and light issues with HPS/MH really put me off (maybe a bit of paranoia).

Anway a few weeks ago I bumped into an old friend who has been growing for a while and had recently had a lot of success with LEDs. this made sense. LEDs have come on leaps and bounds recently (we use the a lot in the production industry) and they have no heat issues!

With my worries put aside coupled with the atrocious state what is being passed off for bud in the UK at the moment pushed me over the edge. So here's my journal for my first grow, I'm fortunate in that I've got a few quid to spend in getting the set up right.

**After posting on here it took about 3 hours for people to tell my the LEDs I'd bought were shit and I'd be better off with CFLs so I bought some and they're now installed**

Shopping list (purchased so far)

3' x 3' x 18'' Box - Built from MDF, painted white inside and out. 120mm Exhaust Hole. 60mm Intake hole.

4 x 3/4 Gal Pots/trays - I might transplant later but we'll see how we get on

2 x 225 LED Red/Blue Panels - These run at 15w and are advertised as equivalent to 200w HPS each (probably less than that but told they work great!)

5 x 30w 6400K CFL lamps and fittings mounted on a bar

1 x 12v exhaust fan - I'm going to add a carbon filter and bigger fan later on

1 x 60mm PC case intake fan

1 x Plant Magic Soil Grow

1 x Plant Magic Soil Bloom

1 x Plant Magic Soil Bloom Boost

1 x Digital PH meter

1 x Digital Thermometer/Humidity meter.

1 x B&Q general purpose compost (soil)

5 x Paradise seeds Dutch Dragon - I love Sativa and was told this is a great one for fairly easy growing!

Total spent so far £250ish

I'll put some pictures of the space up later tonight, I've stashed it away in a cupboard under the stairs. The ambient temperature in there is nearly perfect.


Day 1-7
So far the seeds have been germinating in some fiber pots (like peat moss). They've been in there for about 4 days and should be poking through any time now.

After that they are going straight under the lights 24/7 for the first week or so and then they'll go on 20/4 or maybe 16/8.

After a couple of weeks I'll start with the ferts (at a very low concentrate)

Expect updates every few days.

Thanks for looking keep checking back! If you spot me doing anything really stupid please say so!

J

 

Hey Guys,

Day 7 - all the seeds have now germinated, Woo hoo

Day 10 - The seeds have now been under lights for about 4 days, they're nice and green and those new leafs are poking out. I'm expecting them to move muhc faster now they're under CFLs but the LEDs did get them going (pics up tonight)

 

Hello to no one!

I've had some digital camera issues and so I haven't got any pictures up yet. They will be by this evening.

Having read more and more grow journals I'm upping the number of CFLs to 8 I'll have 5 6400K and 3 2700K for Veg and the reverse for flowering.

As you'll see in the before and after photo's later I have/had 5 CFLs on a signle bar at the moment,

I'm building a homemade reflector which will give a mopre even spread and use all the light!

they's all going well at the moment, I've got 2 who are definitely going much quick, I thought orginally that it was becuase they were getting fresher air but now I've swirtched them round so they're obviously just stronger plants.

I'm going to go with the 4 way LST/toppping method by LBH but only once as I haven't go a huge amount of space for it. I'll continue the LST as I go

I think I'll be flowering pretty early as they're an sativa dominant strain and are likely to get big!

They're had a 1/4 strength dose of Plant Magic Grow formula and it certainly hasn't hurt, so hopefully it's helping, I'm going to give them one more shot of the 1/4 strength and see how they go.

 

Here's the pics,,
It's quite hard to get into my space to take decent picture but I've done my best.

1 of the plants is racing away, another a bit behind and two slow and steady ones behind.

As you'll see the light spread isn't the best. I've got most of my new reflector ready to put together by my bulbs and mounts have been delayed. I'll then have 5 x 30w 6400k Bulbs and 3 x 30w 2700k bulbs and they'll be arranged to give a much better spread. (Roll on Tomorrow)

Still working though!

The last one is obviously my favorite, she (I hope) is going great considering the meager wattage.

Also my temps range between 70 and 85 which I know is ok but my humidity is almost always 33% is this ok or do I need to do something about it (and what should I do)

 

Well had a nice surprise this morning, I gave the guys a 1/4 strength shot of my plantmagic soil grow nutes and moved them round in the box a bit (the lighting isn't very even) and my did they seem to like it, the smallers ones seem to have cought up and are cracking on.

The big one's looking good too.

I think it might have just been the light and I'm not 100% sure if it's the strain but my leaves look quite light in colour. They're deifinitely green and not yellow/brown but it is a light green. Anyone got any thoughts?


J

 

Thanks for that. I've been re-reading your tutorial all day and think I've got it now.

After the addition of a fan my rooms at about 74-77 with the lights on, it'll only get lower as it cools down over here.

well looks like it wont be a sog then, I was thinking about scrog but I'm very limited with space so I've just gonna let them grow this time and see how I get on. Hopefully this will be the first of many and I can experiment once I've got the growing part sorted.

Thanks for your help.

I'll put up pictures when I've topped!

J

 

Hey, just a quick update.


TGirls are coming on really nicely, starting to grow noticeably between viewings.

Finally got all the bits for my reflector, so I'll be putting that together tomorrow, it'll add 4 more bulbs so I' going to run 6 x 6400K and 3 x 2700K for veg and the reverse for flowering. They're all 30w so thatch be a fairly healthy 270w which I'm happy with and confident I can keep the temps right.

Also got my ph pen today, turns out my tapwater is 7.0ph and when nuted brings it down to 5.9 so it should swing through the range nicely between waterings, I'll check the run off tomorrow when I'm watering.

Few picks, cnot too long and I can top then in prep for the 4-way lst by LBH. Won't be long till I'll get the screen up and get flowering

 

Reflector!

Well I spent this morning putting my reflector today, it might not be the most complicated but it works ans has massively reduced the amount of light leakage!

Have to see if there's any difference in growth! I'm still waiting on 3 more bulbs which should be here soon.

That should really kick things along!

J

 

Thanks for joining budman, hope you enjoy it!

 

Update, with some nicer pics.

Ever since I've started I've kept thinking of (read on GC) ways to improve my cab, well I think they're nearly all done now.

The reflector is sweet, really nice even light spread and the plants are certainly responding well.

As I'm thinking of going scrog after an LBH 4 way top/lst and with all the advice about air flow strengthen stems I got another small computer fanand made it a little stand so it's blowing across all the plants, I hope they like it.

They had a good water yesterday and they'll get some nutes on wednesday.

The biggest one just got topped so there's a pic of that as well. I think they're going really well and should be even better once those damn bulbs arrive.

J

 

Thanks for looking in, check on your grow, that's looking good too.

 

thanks greg, I've just pulled up a chair on yours, I'm interested in the hydro stuff but I think I'll always be a soil man.

 

I'd be curious to see some side by side results from a new grower.

Unless there was a huge increase in yield I think all the hassle of the extra nute, shcedules and the fact that it's a wet system would put me off hydro.

 

Hello to anyone who's reading.

Just a quick update with a couple of pics. 3 of the plant's are doing great, the biggest one (top down view) has shown it's fist signs of growth since topping and the others are growing well too.

One of them has started showing some brown spots in the middle of it's very bottom leaves (single leaf) Is this normal or is it the standard newb overnuting. All of the plants have only been fed once and that was about a week ago the others are all fine.

I'll wait and see if it gets worse an if it does I'll give her a full flsuh and see how she goes.

Only other things are I've taken off my intake fan as i think it's generating a strange air flow which is causing the place to heat up.

I've also made a couple of small holes in the reflector to allow air through better becuase the reflector covers most of the box!

My bulbs finally arrived today and they've sent me screw in not bayonet fitting, so more are on the way!

That's it for now enjoy the pics and any advice on the brown spots would be appreciated.

J