Hey guys, I am a first time grower and have NO experience with growing any plants. I am only trying to grow for personal use so I chose the ganja dwarf lowryder strain. I currently have 3 plants going on about 60 days and they are growing VERY VERY slowly. Because I am not looking for very high yield I have placed each plant in its own pot with potting soil (I am not fertilizing). I am using a 24" fluorescent bulb to light the plants and have a well ventilated box (small fan and air filters). They are flowering but have its extremely slow. The plants in general are quite small and not very bushy but i think that is because I'm not using fertilizer. The temperature is about 60-70 degrees and I am watering them once a day when the soil is dry to the touch. The plants are green and the leaves look healthy they are just growing very slow. I am on a 24hour light cycle because they are autoflowering. Any Ideas to speed up the flowering time? I appreciate any and all comments and I did try to search this but couldnt find anything
i personally have never grown an autoflower so i may not be the best person to ask but IMO i would keep it at 24hr ON
Thanks for the help. I added 2 more 13watt lightbulbs in the box. My pics got messed up on photobucket but here they are again. sorry.
get the lights as close as you can. You need to feed them. They are light green and purply because they are deficient in Nitrogen and Phosphorus probably some other elements as well.
I just bough some feed for them and starting feeding them tonight at about 1/3 the amount recommended on the package. The lights are only about 3-4inches above the top of the tallest plant. Thanks alot for the help man! I'm used to cars not plants haha
its cool...we all start somewhere. I would actually bump up that dose a little. Atleast half the recommended dose. they look really hungry.
Done! now to find/make an auto watering system so they dont die when I'm out of the country for work for a week
Not trying to discourage you But youll save more money Buying weed then trying to grow. If you do get any bud it will be very low quality and maybe enough to pack a joint out
Thanks for the insite. Not discouraged here. I wasnt trying to save money. The hundred dollars for everything didnt really hurt the wallet at all. This was more out of boredom
Dude for real go get a HPS or MH light. Dont pussy foot around. Youre risking youre life so you can grow like 1.7 grams.. When you could risk the exact same amount, have the exact same number of plants and grow like 400 times more. Theyre gonna weigh the dirt anyway so it dont matter. Also slow growth is likely caused by PH problems. If you dont check your ph basically every single time before you water/feed (unless you have done many cycles or your water just comes out a fresh 6.5) you arent checking it enough.
Although I will always recommend getting more advanced equipment, I started growing in solo cups with mom's potting soil in my closet, too. I can tell you've done a bit of research and you'll be hooked after your first little harvest. Good job picking autoflowers. They will benefit from an 18/6 light schedule. Dark time is important, and the plants actually grow in the dark. They store energy in their fan leaves during the day, and use it during the night. Your plant isn't getting what it needs for photosynthesis to occur, and replenish the green chlorophyll in the leaves. With a few easy rules, you should be able to see this through! That said, here are the key points you should follow, so you can enjoyi a couple bowls of your own homegrown: 1) Use flowering/bloom type nutrient, and follow the instructions on the container. Don't use a extended release, or time release nutrient, because you won't be able to flush it out and you'll end up smoking it. Only water after the soil has had a chance to get dry to the touch, and the pot feels noticeably lighter in weight. Never water if the soil is already wet. This will feed the plant, and allow the roots to get much needed oxygen. 2) Get your light closer. For $20 you can add some wattage using 2700k (look on the package for this more yellow looking color spectrum) CFL lights. Get them close to the plants. You'll hopefully gain more than $20 worth of end product with this change. 3) Keep air circulating. It's best if the leaves of the plant move from turbulence. This allows the plant to use CO2 efficiently. 4) Try to keep the day time temps around 78 degrees Fahrenheit, and night temps above 60. 5) When you think it's done, flush the soil with clean water for at least a week to ten days. The extra week will only help the quantity, and quality slightly. Flushing it will improve the taste, significantly The above key points should help you considerably, while tipping the scales into your favor, and out of the hands of lady luck! When you're ready to step it up a bit, insted of buying an ounce, put $100 aside for a pH/PPM meter, $80 for a C.A.P. 150w HPS light, $30 for an oscillating desk fan, $30 for quality nutrients and/or good soil,(add some perlite, too!) and you can start a small/perpetual autoflower grow method that will keep you in the weed indefinitely. You can get a couple ounces per grow with a setup like that, which is a great return on a minimal investment, and a minimal fuss. In the mean time, research "Lucas formula", and "Hempy bucket," which will guide you down the path of righteousness, which is hydroponics, of course. To do this you'll need a bucket and perlite instead of soil. Otherwise you can use the same rig as described above, it's just as easy, but you'll get improved yields and growth rates. For the record, I'm writing a book about growing, and it's basically just a long way of explaining everything I've told you in this message. Minus some details and theory, but in the end, you're just growing weed.
check your runoffs PH!!!!! looks like you have nutrient lockout!!! go to 18/6 light schedule ASAP its important for root structure. you may not need ot fertilize at all right now. let us know what the ph is?
Your plants look big enough for full strength. Choose something organic, so you're on the safe side. I use bio-bizz nutes. Also I'd switch to 18/6. Plants are living organisms, they need sleep like you and I do. When it's light they develop roots. Just my 5 cents. Good luck.