Hello everyone. I'm growing my first plant, and am actually 2 months into the process already, and am just wanting to make sure if what I've done so far is right, and what I should do going forward. Let me describe the current setup: I got a seed from a well trusted friend who says it comes from an Afgan/African Mist hybrid. (YEAH!!!) This is an indoor closet grow, a space of 5x5x10, however, I am using a hollowed out night stand for the plant and lights. The nightstand's dimensions are probably 1x2x2. Started growing outdoors during daytime for one month, taking it indoors at night. Brought it indoors full time 1 1/2 months ago. Plant is in a 3 gallon pot, with 90% miracle grow potting soil and 10% outdoor soil. There is one earthworm in the soil. For lighting, I can't find or afford HPS lights, so I'm using 6 40w Soft White CFLs. 2600 lumens, 3000k each. 4 hang over the plant about 1 to 2 inches from the canopy, and 2 are on one side of the plant. Each day I rotate the plant a quarter turn. I have a 9" fan that circulates the air, and I leave the door cracked open for a few hours as well. I started to go 12/12 one week ago when the plant had 13 nodes, plant has 15 nodes now. (the top three nodes have nine leaves). During vegging I would see 1/2 to 1" growth each day, but now the growth comes from the sides. Top growth is maybe a centimeter daily. The sex showed itself before budding: female!!! Plenty of secondary growth too. I feed the plant in cycles: 2 cups of fish aquarium water one day, then wait a day. Second feeding is Spring Water with miracle grow fertilizer (got it for the nitrogen, which has a 24% level), then wait a day. Lastly I flush out with 2 cups of water sat out for one day. I do however spray seltzer water on the leaves twice daily: when the lights come on and then 6 hours later as well. No bug problems whatsoever to worry about. Okay! Now you know my situation, can someone tell me if I'm on the right path?
Everything sounds good except for using the mircle grow nutes in flower so often. theres so much Nitrogen in your soil already from the MG. When the nutes start breaking down in your soil in about 2 to 3 weeks it will come back to haunt you. Chill out on the ferts for a couple weeks if possible. thats every new growers problem, Over-loving our plants. A.K.A loving our plants to death. GL P.S my first grow was done in MG with MG ferts you might want to cross refrence to see how nuteburn set-in during mid-flower.
With your aquarium water.... That stuff works great...but there is alot of salts in it and it may go into your soil immidiatly, but it wont break down for your plant to absort immidiatly. Might take up to a week. Therefore i believe you will run into a nutrient lockup/burn prob. Feed heavy one week, then use just water the next. Balance your nute/water mix before you feed your plant with a ph of 6.2-6.5. Sounds like you are doing great so far tho man. Oh yeah by the way...check out other nutes that dont cost very much more, like the foxfarm line. Foxfarm grow big is specifically for vegging and its what i used my first time.
the soil i bought a year ago, so there's no way for me to know the levels of ph, nitrogen, ect. But for the food it was 1 gal. of spring water and a 1 gal dose of miracle grow plant food with a nitrogen level of 24%. I fed the plant this two days ago with this now my plant has been drooping...all leaves are practicality hugging the stock. The leaves are still green. The top 2 in. of soil is dry and i haven't fed or watered the plant for 2 days since i thought i overwattered it(like you said). What happened? How do I fix it?
okay, so now I've put about one cup of regular tap water for the plant, and the lowest fan leaves were going yellow, so I cut them off. One hour later and the plant looks alive and thriving again. Maybe it was the shock of going 12/12 for one week?
Alright... week 2, day three of the flowering cycle. Plant is on it's 16th node, but height growth has all but slowed to a crawl. It's currently about 15 inches high. Side growth from secondary branches (each with tops) are on their 5th nodes and are growing fast. I can see two white pistils with orange tips coming out of each node level, starting from the canopy down to like the 4th to bottom node. I bought another 40w soft white cfl light, for a total of 7 40w soft whites. Five are situated over the top of the plant like this: o o o o o the other two lights are on one side of the plant for side growth. Once again I rotate the plant 1/4 each day to better even out the side growth. My question is this: Am I on the right track right as far as lighting goes?
We demand pics before we try to figure out if it your having any Ph or nute lockout issues. keep the lights as close to the budsights as you can without temps going over 78degrees.
I use club soda...and scotch. Mix one part soda with two parts scotch, then sit and watch the plants grow.
yeah, man. I wish I could get pics but I don't have a camera that can link up with a computer. I'm noticing several white hairs sticking out of each top I have, except the main top cola. It's 1 week, 4 days into the flowering stage. I noticed the plant droops after not watering for two days. I normally water with 2 cups, then wait a day and then day two water again. Could I get fertilizer high in phosphorus at Lowe's or Home Depot? I also was fortunate enough to get my hands on a sour diesel seed...I am short on space in my closet and will start this after my current lady is finished. Also, with 7 40w soft white cfls, that makes the lumens amount above 18,000. Is this an okay amount of light to bud enough to get like a half ounce or an once of this plant? If not, what would be a good amount to have
no doubt. I might get lucky and use a friends cell phone to upload a pic. could somebody tell me how to post a pic? I've never done that before.
I thought I would give an update to the forum. I've been reading and studying for weeks now, and wanted to get (yet again) some feedback from the gurus directly... Plant is now on day 30 of flowering. One or two days out of this the timer shorted out during an attempt to double my lights with y socket splitters during the "12 on" part of the cycle. Maybe 7 min. total disturance of light in this 30 day period. Now I currently have 7 40w cfls at 3000k: One over the top cola, and the rest form a circle around the plant. Still have the 9" fan, and I've also put a radio in there to sing to the plant (Ive heard stories how they respond to music...why not???) Now, I have no grow box, so I use a "makeshift" box by using two sides as the actual closet walls (white), one 2' x 1 1/2" board covered w/ aluminum foil, and then the last "wall" is just a top of a nightstand with no refective surface or foil. since I'm in a closet, I hang two white t shirts that also form a "box" with the walls, to help trap the light in that one area. In case you haven't figured it out I'm broke as all hell and am just using the instruments I can find. It's at least one hundres miles in all directions for a good grow shop. Now, the plant itself has done some growing, to say the least. As far as height goes, its only at max 4 inches taller...but there are like 20-30 bud sites that look like those wishing flowers you blow into the wind...lots and lots of white hairs, but no bud in site yet. The top cola is where all the height came from since the last post...about the lenth of a closed fist, and it looks like several bud tops merging into one bud, but just hairs at this point...no bud!!! I now water and feed the plant in this new routine after speaking with a friend: Day 1: plain tap water sat out for one hour (two cups) Day 2: nothing Day 3: 2 cups of water mixed w/ Miracle Grow 15-30-15 Flower Bloom Mix (half dosage used in gallon of water) Day 4: nothing repeat. No noticable smell yet...although I did notice a FAINT smell yesterday... Any suggestions? Also a few questions... 1. When should I expect to be finished with this plant? As in ready to harvest? 2. I have no way to put an exhuast in my room to help with smell when it eventually happens. What suggestions do you have to help with smell? 3. I have a total wattage of 280 with my cfls. Is that enough for one plant and is that noticable by thermal scanners? 4. Will I have dense bud with it only being one plant with those lights or will I still have airy buds due to not having HPS lights? I mean I know they're better and all but I only have ONE plant! Thanks for all the help you guys give me.