Hey guys whats up? I decided it would be a good idea to journal my first grow so I can have all you experts on my side. lol I germinated 3 out of 4 seeds out of a very good bag of smoke that me and my roomate got. I started these out on just sunlight in my window because I didnt want to have a huge operation going on. Then after hours of digging through these forums I came to a decision on CFL. I grabbed a cardboard box to house my babies in and to keep the light in. 2 26w=120w 5000k CFL daylight bulbs on 24/7 right now. I couldnt find any with 6500k but I have my eyes peeled. 2 of the 3 babies are doing great! Green as can be! The third is hanging in there. I just put the CFL bulbs in last night (day 4) and this morning it was showing some good signs like turning up, a little greener, etc. I had tin foil on the sides for like an hour until I found a thread that said it could hurt your plants. 30 feet of tin foil wasted lol. So now i guess just water and wait? I only have one light in the pic because the splitter i got was messed up. Have to return today...Sorry about the pics. They're takin with a iphone. You'd think they'd have better quality. Thanks for the help guys. Hopefully it will be smooth sailing from here. Ill update frequently. One more thing... do i really need some kind of fan even though im only growing 2-3 plants in my closet with a window literally 5 feet away for fresh air?
One more thing... do i really need some kind of fan even though im only growing 2-3 plants in my closet with a window literally 5 feet away for fresh air?
Hey, Good to see some more CFL growers around. I've got a few suggestions though. 2 26 watters isn't enough light for 1 plant, let alone 3, you should pick up a few clamp lights/plug-in sockets, Y-splitters and alot more bulbs. If you plan on bringing all three plants to maturity, I suggest AT LEAST 250 watts of power in there. I also see that you have 3 plants in 1 pot, this should be changed before your plants become rootbound. Give them a week or so to grow, then transplant to bigger pots, preferably 3-5 gallon pots. As for your question about the fan, if your airing out your closet a couple times a day it shouldn't cause a problem, but constant airflow over the stems will promote strong stems. Good luck on your first grow, I'll be sitting in
Thanks for the reply chemist! The only thing im worried about is the amount of energy being pulled...not so much for the bill but for the wiring in my house. I live in an old trailer and if i have more than a couple things running on the same breaker (which half of the house is on) it will blow. Ill see what i can do about adding some for lights...but just curious: When people say that you need more light is that just to grow the best possible plant or I absolutely need that much light for it to grow? And thanks, i was wondering when to transfer them to seperate pots.
When people say you NEED more light, they're usually referring to the amount you need to supply the plant with its required amount to carry it to maturity. The recommended amount of light per plant is 100 watts, and when dealing with CFL's, I've found to be insufficient. If your looking for anything above 10 grams, you'd be better with around 150+. I'm sure 52 watts(which is roughly 3000 lumens) could "grow" the plant, but it really wouldn't be worth it, and thats just referring to the veg phase, flowering is completely out of the question. I don't mean to rain on your parade by any means, just stating the facts. What you could do (If this is a feasible option) is, add 2 more 26 watters, raise 1 plant until the outdoor growing season starts, then transplant the plant outside. But then again, my first grow was a mere 120 watts and I cropped almost 1/2 oz, so yeah.
Hmmm....yeah 10 grams would downpour on my parade! lol I was thinking after your last post that I will put two more lights in there at least and just see if the breaker will handle it. Maybe get a bigger breaker. As for the 3 plants... I originally was only wanting one but when i germinated the seed i couldnt bear to just throw away the others. I guess in my situation I should just take the best looking one and concentrate on it? Im guessing since my 2 lights would grow but not flower the plant, that it takes more light to flower than veg? Thanks for all the help again. I really appreciate it. I definately will have a lot of questions throughout my grow and it's nice to have someone who's been there before to refer to. I want to get into growing, not for makin money but saving the money i spend on purchasing it. Thanks
I think it would be wise to choose the best looking one and chuck/give away the others. It sucks but its survival of the fittest. Your guess about veg/flower is spot on. I usually try to increase my lighting by 50% when going from veg/flower. So say you vegged under 100 watts, you'd increase to 150 watts. Thats just my rule and opinion, But it seems like a decent route with CFL's. Does your trailer have any electrical outlets outside? If so, you could run a long extension cord from it to your grow space, as the external outlets usually have there own breakers, or at least a less used breaker.
That is a great idea. I've never checked if we have any outside...i'll look tomorrow. I got off work earlier and went to Wal-Mart and found some 42w CFL 6500k so i bought 2. I just put them in maybe 20 minutes ago and so far so good! lol I also got some white paint to paint the inside of my box for some reflection. Heres my set-up now.
WOW! I put those 42w lights in there also last night and this morning the leaves on those babies are at least double in size!!! I was gonna ask... do you think it would be worth the trouble to just grow the three so I can see if I can get a female out of them? Im just afraid that they'll compete for the light and by the time i find out if a have a female the one plant I keep will not be as strong as it would have been if I were to just concentrate on one now. does that make sense? lol as always, thanks for the help!
go to google. type in grow up to 8 ounces for less than $100 by Seymore buds it is a great book if your trying to grow under cfl's. Im doing mine with cfl's and so far so good!! I've got pics up on my post so here is the link to that book if you or anyone is interested [ame="http://www.scribd.com/doc/19554652/Marijuana-BUDS-for-Less-Grow-8-Oz-of-Bud-for-Less-Than-100-by-See-More-Buds"]Marijuana BUDS for Less - Grow 8 Oz. of Bud for Less Than $100 by See More Buds[/ame]
So I took your advice and as much as it kills me...I removed the weakest 2 plants and burned one in there honor. lol Now I am concentrated on this little guy/hopefully girl. I was wondering...when do I need to start adding nutrients to the water? I'm on day 8 now and its got the main 2 leaves and then the 2 really pretty leaves and just sprouted 4 new leaves in the corners!!! Im so excited!
Help!!!! My plant this morning is falling over. It's still green but the leaves look like there drooping i think...it might just be me over reacting but regardless its scary!!! I dont have a fan on it yet and i also read i might need to replant it deeper?!?! Help please!!!
Hey guys.... a little update. I got some computer fans installed. The 2 one the right pull air in while the one on the left pulls out for exhaust. I also built my own verison of the "earth box" to prevent me from overwatering it. Its a pretty cool idea that one of my buddies told me about. Ph Test looks perfect! Light green for Ph of 7!!! She's also standing up better by herself now that i got those fans blowing on her. Thanks for all the input again guys. Stay posted.
Hey guys, haven't posted in a while...just been caught up with work and everything...the plant is coming along good. Ive made a lot of changes since i last updated thought. I decided to LST it even though this is my first grow. I had some problems a couple of weeks ago that she is recovering from now...i think the "earthbox" i made caused some problems because there was not alot of soil space for her.. we just started 12 on 12 off yesterday so im interested in seeing my work pay off. lol april 1st will make 2 months old!!!! let me know what you guys think...