seedling help

Discussion in 'Growing Marijuana Indoors' started by curtropolis420, Nov 20, 2012.

  1. I'm going to veg under a 600watt mh, just wondering if i can put my seeds under that directly or if i should veg with fluoros first? if so how long?
     
  2. i would suggest cfls until the plant develops its second set of true leaves
     
  3. #3 SCMC, Nov 20, 2012
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 20, 2012
    Two or three 23w to 28w Daylight spectrum 6000k to 7500k CFLs will pay for themselves the first time around. Use the medium sized 6" clamp light reflectors and try to keep the bulb close to the seedlings. Use these lamps for the first 8-12 days, or until the third leaf set is starting to fill in. The bulbs and reflectors might set you back $7-$8 for each setup but can offer the same lumens to a smaller footprint for 1/25th the cost of power.

    I suggest a seedling tray, like a RapidRooter or RootRiot tray. If the humidity in your grow space is not consistently over 50% then you might want to include a humidity dome as well, for the first few days at least. No heating pad required but do try to keep the growing space somewhere in the 78 to 80 range until they sprout to encourage them along like its spring.

    Root plugs like I mentioned above are fantastic at starting seeds for any kind of system, hydro or organic, and they have a phenomenal success rate with the proper environment. Jiffy peat pellets, Rockwool, and the whole paper towel thing all have issues. The plugs are a wise investment.

    Ensure that once you get them up, or the dome off and the humidity under control, that there is a healthy breeze on them from an oscillating fan. Knocking them about like this will strengthen the main stem, encourage lateral root growth for stability, and decrease the energy spent stretching up for light. It will also help keep them cool and provide a consistent supply of fresh CO2 for photosynthesis. Once the seem to be able to stand a fairly strong breeze without falling over you can reduce the fan's power to a lower setting for a more gentle flutter. This allows for the plant's fan leafs to still get enough air but without acting like "sails" and taking damage and stress.

    Focus on root development. Water when necessary by lifting their tray or individual container. Most of the weight of soil is water weight, when dry it will weigh very little at all. Lift the container regularly and when it is dry it should be noticeable. Before the plant wilts, of course, is when you water again to complete saturation with runoff. This provides a healthy amount of necessary O2 to the root system while ebbing from totally saturated to almost dry. Over watering is watering too often, not with too much. Once the soil is watered it is saturated. More water just runs through, it cannot get more wet than saturated... Having the right watering schedule is a considerable factor to the root development process. Since the roots are responsible for growing the rest of the plant it is monumentally important they are very happy all of the time.

    Good luck.
     
  4. I started seeds under a 400w with no problem. Small baggies over solo cups to keep some moisture in while sprouting. Kept the light about 3ft above the seedlings the first week, 2ft the second week, and 1.5ft from there on out.

    Keep it simple, provide proper conditions and they will thrive.
     

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