Hi all First time grower seeking some answers from any helpful growers out there. I am planning on growing a few plants from bag seeds I have accumulated over last few years. Not a large scale grow, just enough for me and some mates. I hope to veg under 2 T8 fluoros (18w each - circular LST) and flower with a 600w Lucagrow HPS I have. I threw 6 seeds into damp tissue covered with upturned saucer and placed on warm/hot (7 days ago) and 1 germed within 24 hours, threw him into some garden soil and put under said fluoros. 2 days later I still had no action from the others so I replaced the ungermed seeds along with another dozen or so in some new tissue. So far I have had no new action from seeds. Germinated seed has only today sprouted however shot to about 2" with 1 leaf set, has me quietly confident . Let me precede my qq by saying I have been scouring these and other forums over the last week gathering information and have just a few particulars I could not find. If they are obviously simple and available feel free to flame me. My qq: 1. I've read about testing seeds by flotation (good seeds will sink?). It would not be too late to do this would it? 2. Is there a minimum size growroom/box for my 600w light? I am currently designing a stealth like grow box and as I only want a few plants and want to use LST (for yield and space reasons). At the moment it looks like I will have about 10,000 lumens per sq ft or just over, I will make sure that the light/box is sufficiently cooled. 3. I haven't found a lot of information on humidity. It is coming out of winter here in southern hemisphere. Am I right in saying the seeds need more humidity to germinate than the planted seedling? 4. I know not to fertilize until flowering time. I have about 500mL ea of Dutchfest hydro part A and part B. Come flowering time would I be able to dilute this with water and feed the plant that way? Thanks in advance PS Thanks must go to all members of the forum who contribute constructively as they have helped create an incredible resource to us newbies out there. Keep it up, the world will always need another grower!
No flamming here guy!! (Well... Hopefully not on this thread) lol 1. I've read about testing seeds by flotation (good seeds will sink?). It would not be too late to do this would it? Never tried it but will read up on more, My guess is yes.. Warmn doesnt mean hot... Hopefully they aren't frying! 2. Is there a minimum size growroom/box for my 600w light? I am currently designing a stealth like grow box and as I only want a few plants and want to use LST (for yield and space reasons). At the moment it looks like I will have about 10,000 lumens per sq ft or just over, I will make sure that the light/box is sufficiently cooled. People will tell you 6 square feet, but you could get away with more... and in a confined space, works magic... BTW, vent system my be just your second most expensive part of the whole thing. 3. I haven't found a lot of information on humidity. It is coming out of winter here in southern hemisphere. Am I right in saying the seeds need more humidity to germinate than the planted seedling? You are right!! Be during flower... you want to keep it as low as possible. 4. I know not to fertilize until flowering time. I have about 500mL ea of Dutchfest hydro part A and part B. Come flowering time would I be able to dilute this with water and feed the plant that way? Jes jes... follow instructions on back... its like 1TBlSP per gallon or something...
1. I've read about testing seeds by flotation (good seeds will sink?). It would not be too late to do this would it? you could do that as long as they havent cracked. drop em in a little bit of water and once they drop drain it and leave em in there with a little bit of water. theyll be fine. 2. Is there a minimum size growroom/box for my 600w light? I am currently designing a stealth like grow box and as I only want a few plants and want to use LST (for yield and space reasons). At the moment it looks like I will have about 10,000 lumens per sq ft or just over, I will make sure that the light/box is sufficiently cooled. LST will be good with your 600 hps. it all dpends on how many plants youll have. you can cover 6 plants easy with that light. even push it to 8 since its LST 3. I haven't found a lot of information on humidity. It is coming out of winter here in southern hemisphere. Am I right in saying the seeds need more humidity to germinate than the planted seedling? you can put your seeds in a tupper wear with a wet napkin over and on top of the seeds. wet both papers and make sure its in a dark place. humidity is ok for the seeds but not a huge thing. youll be fine with the water and the darkness. 4. I know not to fertilize until flowering time. I have about 500mL ea
Thanks guys. I'm about to test my seeds, will they get damaged if i chuck em in a cup of water (for 10-15 seconds to test em) if they have cracked open (not visibly)?
1. I've read about testing seeds by flotation (good seeds will sink?). It would not be too late to do this would it? I personally don't like this method, because soaking can cause seeds to rot if you're not careful. Instead, give the seeds 5 days or so in the towel, and if the shells still haven't split, line a small matchbox with fine grain sandpaper, place the seeds inside, and shake them around a bit. This can help a taproot to break out of an otherwise too-tough shell. 2. Is there a minimum size growroom/box for my 600w light? I am currently designing a stealth like grow box and as I only want a few plants and want to use LST (for yield and space reasons). At the moment it looks like I will have about 10,000 lumens per sq ft or just over, I will make sure that the light/box is sufficiently cooled. As long as you can mitigate the heat buildup in a small space, you'll be fine. Just be careful, because plants can double or even triple in size during flowering. 3. I haven't found a lot of information on humidity. It is coming out of winter here in southern hemisphere. Am I right in saying the seeds need more humidity to germinate than the planted seedling? Ideal humidity is between 50 and 70 percent. 4. I know not to fertilize until flowering time. I have about 500mL ea of Dutchfest hydro part A and part B. Come flowering time would I be able to dilute this with water and feed the plant that way? You can generally follow the instructions on the box without any problems, although some people like to only fertilize at half the recommended amount for the first couple of feedings.
Thanks BKKG, wish I'd read your post before doing the test. Anyways... 18 seeds went into the water and all sunk! I did expect this as I only ever kept what I thought were good seeds after giving them a pinch etc. One seed cracked a tiny bit and the root became visible as I was extracting it from the water. This one is going straight into a pot and under the lights now. Another one appeared to have a small air bubble coming from it. Is this a good sign? A quick analysis of the seed did not show any obvious cracking. They are back in the tissue paper now. I will probably wait a day or two and try the matchbox suggestion. I think I will plant them in their own small pot regardless of the result of this as there is a bit of room under my veg light and I truly believe they are good seeds. I would have thought I could expect at least half of my seeds to germinate. Oh well - "Be patient - wait it out" MJK Thanks again
1. Never used this method. What kind of water are you using for the paper towel soak? Tap water could have negative effects on the germ process. I buy natural spring water for my seeds, seedlings, and newly rooted clones. If you are gonnna use tap make sure it sits out un-capped over night before use. 2. 10,000 lumens per square ft is about what the sun is at high noon out in your front yard. Perfect for Mary, trust she will reward you hansomly with all that light. As long as you keep it below 85F growth will be phenomenal. Learning the many methods of training will be a must if you put that much light in a cabenet or some sort of stealth box. Also look in to the SOG and SCROG methods as they to will keep plants short. 3. Humidity: You have a pretty wide range to work with here. Mine fluctuates between 40-80% in my veg room. And 40-60% in flower area. My only humidity worries are in the plants late flowering stage when buds become susceptible to molds and fungus, thus the lower numbers in flower. 4. I dont know the nutes your using but do make sure to go light. Much easier to add more than to deal with burnt up plants. Most nutes should be added to water before feeding. Thats my 2 cents hope it helped. Good luck with the grow, and keep us updated! IMO Much Love.
Okay last update for the night (wee hours of the morning here). 2 seeds from the 2nd lot have cracked. Funnily enough, and luckily, they were two i had separated from bout 2 mths ago cos they were from a bonza 1/16th. they were also my newest seeds. Possible theory that fresh seeds germinate quicker? In response to some qq. Seeds have def not been frying, just warm. Spring/mineral water has been used so far, some of the water has been enhanced with xooma x2o, if anyone has heard of it, a teabag style water supplement containing lge amount of calcium, and also lesser amounts of magnesium, chromium, sodium, potassium, l-abscorbic acid and even trace amounts of silver, over 70 minerals although these are only ones mentioned by name. unfortunately it does claim to boost alkalinity of the water. I have photos and would be keen to start a journal, if I can find my ever elusive usb cable. Is it recommended to start a brand new thread? Thanks all - speak to you later
Glad to hear that some more of them germinated for you! But when you say tissue paper, do you mean a tissue (like a kleenex) or actual tissue paper, or something else? Because I don't recommend using either of those. I always use paper towels (two layers on bottom, one on top of the seeds), both thoroughly moistened but not dripping wet.
BKKG - yeah kleenex style, and the first one cracked using toilet paper. Are you talking more like paper towell that you keep in the kitchen? After all my research I think next time I will just be giving them a short soak in water and placing them straight into the soil. I don't really like the idea of handling the seeds at all.
floating or sinking in a glass of water doesnt mean a thing i had the same question when i germinated some seeds, all of my seeds floated in the water so i used the paper towel method and all of them have germinated and are now growing well so it doesnt matter weather they sink or float. i also used toilet paper to germinate them
Yes, paper towels just like in a kitchen. They hold moisture better and don't shred or dissolve in water, plus there's no chance of having lotions or chemicals for adding scent in them (like in facial tissue). I don't recommend putting seeds directly in soil, and I don't really recommend putting them in water at all. Some people swear by it, but waiting for the seed shells to crack in the water never really worked for me. The big disadvantage of putting a seed directly in soil is that you can't tell when it's germinated (if it has), and so you might be waiting a long time on a seed that never cracked, or jump the gun and throw out a plant that was just a day or two away from breaking the surface of the soil. Handling seeds does have some risk, but if you're careful the risk is very low.
I soak my seeds in water for 24 hours, no more. As stated above those that sink are likely to be viable, but this can take quite a few hours. Any still floating after 24 are liable to be sterile husks. Many have absorbed water and the cases split after this - they are obviously viable seeds. Seeds need warmth and moisture to germinate, so I then plant them in my soil mix about a quarter " deep, keep them warm and moist. The ´sinkers´go one to a pot, any ´floaters´ all go in a pot together, just in case there is a viable one there. They will pop in 1 to 5 days - any not come up after a week, won´t - recycle that pot of soil. Heresy coming up. I have never seen any point whatever in putting them in paper towels just to germinate them, it is just an unnecessary extra step that confers no advantage whatever. I can in fact list a number of disadvantages. More heresy. I fert my babies as soon as they appear, with liquid organics - my own kick-ass Russian comfrey fert. They seem to do well on it, and do not collapse and die as is popularly imagined. Certainly do not wait until flowering, and during vegging they get loads of fert. I only use one soil mix, which contains horse shit and rich garden compost. The only problem I ever had with ferts was once, a long time ago, I tried those chemical sticks of solid fert. Got root burn and one lady died. These are just the results of methods that work for me - other folks will surely have different experiences.
hi cantharis thanks for your input, i have a lot of time for what you have to say say after reading your posts. when i put my seeds into the water (after several days in the moist paper) they all sunk instantly so i removed them again. would this suggest to you that they are viable (i think) or would i have to leave them sunk for the 24 hours to see if anything changes. it sounds like a stupid question but i just want to be clear. after hearing you fert your babies i think i'll mix a capful of my hydro solns into a big bottle of water to feed my baby girls (hopefully all 3 of em). I only used garden soil from about a half foot deep from near some established plants, they could maybe do with some additional nutes, any and all input is most welcome from all Cheers
also one last one i am only using my 2 t8 fluoros to veg atm and was going to leave my 600w HPS until flowering time, would you do this also or would you chuck it in there for the seedling and or veg stage also? cheers
hey catharis good info here man, nice to see you not pissed when your seedlings are young they are fragile, i wouldnt stick them under a 600 yet. let them turn into toddlers before you hit them with that kind of sun, I know notthing about soil but it seems catharis does and hes helping you so your good there... get your flouro's down about 5" or so above your babies and try to keep them reaching for the light(leaves up) a good sign your on the right track. if your leaves start dropping its a sign somthing is wrong. Welcome to your new favorite hobby, Keeping it green...... budslinger
If your nutes are chemicals, don't feed them please. Cantharis may be able to get away with it because his mix is purely organic and slow acting, but chemical hydro nutes will burn and possibly kill your seedlings. Also, 2 T8 tubes will work for a little while, so it will depend how many plants you'll have under it and how tall you want them to get. I'd get the tubes a lot closer than 5" too, since you want the least stretch possible, and tubes run pretty cool so it doesn't hurt if your ladies bump into them.