Hey Guys, I started some seeds on Oct 1st and was just wanting to make sure my setup was ok. I have 4 seedlings getting started in peat pots. The lighting setup is 1 24 watt T5 with reflector, and 2 32 Watt CFL's One of the CFL's has a reflector on it as well. I've been water once the peat pots dry and have the lighting setup 8 inches above the seedlings. Got the little guys going in some Fox Farm Ocean Forest as well. I've got perlite on hand for later to help with drainage and really only planning on doing one or two females for my first grow since I figured I'll need more lights if i did more plants. I did a 18-6 cycle for the first couple of weeks but switched to a 24 hour cycle for the last week or so. They are starting to get their third set of leaves. So when is it safe to start fertilizing and is my lighting setup ok for 1 or 2 plants? I also have a 250 watt Metal Halide for flowering when that time comes. Thanks!
Hold up. You planted the seeds on oct. 1 and that pic is of them currently? You said they are getting 3rd set of leaves, just curious for clarification. Assuming that pic is old?
Yeah sorry that pic is about two weeks old, just took this one this morning, they are barely just starting the third set of leaves.
Your plants are stunted. A month old plant from seed should be 8-12 inches tall already in my experience. Hell, even in a party cup it'd probably be getting close to a foot tall. Get that 250 watt metal halide hooked up now, and use your current lighting as supplemental. There's something going on if they are still this small. It looks like some bottom leaves are yellowing out, it could be a PH problem maybe. They should definitely be larger. What are your temps? Is the grow well ventilated? What's the PH of your water? Do your pots have drainage holes? Give us all the details, and we should be able to help. Quote my post or something and I'll come back when I get a notification. Otherwise, I'm bound to forget hahaha.
Check my journal for reference. My ladies are 26 days in soil and should give you an idea how relatively big they should be from seed. The link is in my sig.
Hey man, I tested the PH of the soil but it was a basic soil test kit with the green caspules you mixed in with 1 part soil and 3 parts water, it said the soil was between 6.5-7.0. Do I test water as well. Actually currently I don't have a MH, I thought I did but I was wrong. So what can I use to supplement the light with the T5, and the two 32 watt CFL's? Your right about the bottom leaves yellowing out on two of them. Pot's have one big drainage hole in bottom since they are those little peat pots, How heavily do i water? I wait until the soil is fairly dry between waterings. Temperature remains around 70 with a single 8 inch fan blowing on low.
You'll want to test your water, but you'll need a PH pen or a meter to do so. Those strips aren't very accurate. You can always add more CFL lighting or keep an eye out on craigslist for some metal halide or high pressure sodium high bay lighting for cheap. Make sure they dry completely, they should feel pretty weightless.
Ok, I'll buy a PH Pen here tommorow, What wattage of Metal Halide or High Pressure sodium should i go for? I'm considering building a grow box out of wood since i'm familiar with carpentry and using the two 32 watt cfls along with perhaps a MH or HPS in the center. Is MH or HPS my only supplemental answer I would like it to be somewhat budget friendly is possible.
Ideally you'd get a good mh bulb for veg and good hps for flower but they also make dual spectrum hps to cover both. It really depends how big a box you are building. For example I can run 400w in my 3x3x72 tent without heat problems but no way a 1000w. Let us know how big of a box u intend to build and we can advise from there. Also yes those cfls would make great side lighting for the mh/hps top light!
Alrighty, so I'm going to lowes tommorow to buy some OSB sheathing to make a grow box with the dimensions of 24"x16"x48". I'm going to install the 24W T5 and two 32W CFL's in there. All have 6500k, and with a total wattage of 88W. Will be putting the CFL's on the side could I get away with installing some more T5's or should I go with the HPS or MH for that amount of space?
Hps and mh are always the best to use. They produce the most lumens. Sent from my LG-L38C using Grasscity Forum mobile app
Dont use mh for flower use hps for flower also i hope you ment 40" and not 4" Sent from my GT-I9505 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
if you can move your lights closer, 2-3 inches away from the canopy instead of the 8 they are currently at. it will make a difference as cfl's lose their effectiveness the further away they are. i would recommend reading kamels cfl guide and the other stickies in this forum as they will give you almost all the answers to any questions you might have still.
Color isn't really THAT important. I currently veg and flower under both and I've never had any issues. For what it's worth, HPS of the same wattage as a MH will put out more lumens. Look for 400 watters on craigslist, that's probably the most common. I grabbed a 400 watt MH for 35 and a HPS for 25 both with bulbs. They are old magnetic ballasts, but they've been working 3 years for me now. For what it's worth, if one of them shit out on me, I wouldn't really care. I've had HID lighting for 3 years of grows for 20 bucks a year. Of course, I did upgraded bulbs. The more light the better. If you don't have a lot of light, you're just wasting your time.
Color not important.... do you actully think if an hps was to put out the same as mh you would get same results?? All you have to do is look at nature and youll see red light come later in the year and the plant has evolved to respond to it red light us far more effective during flower than blue fact. Sent from my GT-I9505 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
Ive tried both lights a always had better results when i use mh for veg and hps for flower i know hps put out more lumens but even in veg i find that my plants are stocky bushy and nodes close together. But if i use hps to veg there not nearly as good Sent from my GT-I9505 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
Oops your right, I actually meant 48". so that's the space I'm working with. I'm hoping to use a 150W HPS mounted to a board that i can lower in the box, along with the CFL's on the sides and the T5 running vertically down one side. this would give me total wattage of 233W for two plants. would this be sufficient or should I invest in a higher Wattage HPS? I read the stickies that the general rule of thumb is 100 watts for each plant and 50 for each addtl. I'm just not sure if HPS would be enough for the Flowering stage since the CFL's and T5 put out 6500k of blue spectrum. Thanks alot for the all replies guys I didn't think anyone would even answer me.
Thanks for the reply, so would a 150W HPS will be sufficient for the flowering stage of 2 plants? Even though I'll be supplementing it with about 88 Watts of Blue Spectrum Lighting with the CFL's and T5?
If you can cope with the heat 150w of hps will be better than 150w of cfl what temps do you get now i use 250 for 4 plants Sent from my GT-I9505 using Grasscity Forum mobile app