Well hello Grasscity, this is my very first attempt at cultivating my own marijuana so here goes nothing. For starters I'm using a Stealth Hydro DWC unit that holds 4 plants. Which I've now found out is a supreme waste of money and utterly useless. IT DIDN'T EVEN INCLUDE NET POTS. Not to mention I will need to change into a bigger setup once they mature. Anyways, digressions aside. I will be using 4' floros for vegetative, and will also be ordering a 400 watt HPS/MH compatible lamp. I will begin germinating seeds tomorrow and will hopefully have four nice sprouts. I do have my worries though. First of all I wonder if the floros will pull enough light to support four plants. Not that it matters to much once I get the MH lamp, but I'm also wanting to make clones to continue harvest. So I'll need them to support the clones once I switch to HPS for flowering. Next problem is ventilation. I live in an apartment and can't go cutting holes everywhere in my closet. I wonder if anyone could tell me how much of a problem this would be. Could it be solved by opening the door frequently and setting up a few fans? Thanks for your help people whom may respond. I'm quite excited to start. Also any other advice is welcome.
Alright, so I started germinating my seeds last night. I'm going to pick up my lights Fri. Then we will get this show on the road. I'm still stuck on what exactly I want my light setup to be. I was first thinking of vegging them in flourescents and then buying an HPS light. I also found and HPS/MH compatible light. I'm wanting to make clones pretty early so originally I was going to veg the clones in the flouros once the others were ready to flower in the hps. But maybe I should just get the HPS/MH and then buy another HPS down the line, using MH for vegging and the HPS for flower of course. Any suggestions?
So my 4 Himilayan Gold seedlings sprouted today. I've been soaking rockwool cubes in ph corrected water. I'm going to the local hydro shop to purchase flourescents to get me started. I'll also be ordering an HPS/MH compatible 400w light, along with a CO2 boost pump. Hopefully I will have something to take pictures of soon.
So I went to the local hydro shop today. I purchased a Sunblaze 44 T5 4 bulb to start me off on vegetation. I put my seedlings under the light and into the DWC tub. I was going to move the air pump, I went to unplug it from the airstone and it broke. Noob mistake, I felt dumb. I also purchased General Hydroponic Flora Micro and Flora Bloom. Am I correct to assume this would be all the nutrients I need or do I need to also get Flora Gro? I was planning on using the Lucas formula. Anyways super excited and can't wait to see what these babies do in the next few months. Oh and I also ordered a co2 boost kit. It's hella expensive but I figured it would be well worth it. Anyone have success with co2?
sounds like you've got all you're ducks in a row. That T5 rig will work very nicely for veg. You got the correct nutes for Lucas formula, it works very well, keep it simple. haha, and yes, everyone has success with co2. It's the only surefire "trick" to have healthier plants, with bigger buds. Plants just grow better in co2. Don't use any myself, but only because it's just too expensive. You need to read up on how to use it effectively, though, or you're waste all that expensive co2. good luck man, and get some pictures up in this journal!
Put the seedlings under the light today. The seed shells still haven't fallen off and one is really hanging on. Hopefully they will sprout soon.
I might invest in a camera somewhere down the road but it is no way a priority. Fortunately I'm not keeping this journal to prove that I actually grew it. It's solely for the purpose of gaining more knowledge on the subject. I still have to purchase a lamp for flowering, and a digital camera is just I don't have the money for.
gotta do what ya gotta do, but we're all picture whores on this site. If you start throwing dank nugs, that camera better shoot up to the top of you're priority list, right under odor control. we'll even settle for camera phone shots!
Picture phone I think I can manage. So all of the seeds shells have fallen off and they're starting to open up. I put the flourescents about 3 inches away. One thing I worried about though is that my room temps are staying at about 80 to 83 during the day. Would this be bad for vegging? If I added another box fan would that take down the temps a couple degrees? I've been looking at a lot of videos of people growing HG and I have to say I'm impressed with the average yield. I mean the potential for growth outside is just amazing though. Really would love to try that, just not bold enough yet. I will try to get some pictures on here when they show some real growth. Also, when do you guys think I should start adding nutes?
Also, anyone know when the best time/way in the grow cycle it would be to introduce co2 to my plants?
Due to unforseen financial and grow room problems I will be having to go with a cheaper flowering setup. I'm curious to know if a 150w Hps light would be enough light for four plants? Reason why I'm not going with a 400w is because I'm probably going to have to buy a dehumidifier.
400w light is a much better investment than a dehumidifier at this point man. RH is important, but light is much more important when it comes to growing plants. A 150w will keep you're plants alive and grow some little buds, but you probably won't be happy with the yield. if you must save money by buying a smaller light, at least get mylar on all 4 sides of you're plants to make use of all the light you can get.
Alright thanks for the advice. Right now my hum. is fluctuating around 50 to 60%. I've heard that temps. that high can be bad for vegging. I think I will be going with the 400w HPS though. I really want to get a decent yield from this first grow. How much would an HPS raise the temps. in my grow room?
50-60% R/H is fine if you've bought CO2 then dont worry too much about temps - you can grow in up to 90 degrees if you have a good CO2 setup besides it's impossible to say what the temps will go up by - so many factors involved - let's just say they definitely wont go down
I forgot to mention i'm in the middle of a HG grow at the moment - just harvested a load about a month ago as well for the first time it's a very nice smoke indeed the plants have an odd bud formation and they are slow to really push out flowers - but they get there eventually
Alright man, thanks for the help. Yah I've been smoking mids recently so when this harvest is ready I'm going to be in heaven. Not much has happened recently, I guess I'm just waiting for the roots to hit water. Still only about an inch tall though. Progress is slow but evident.