Sup all, The only thread I've made here asked for help with some CKS White Voodoo seeds that wouldn't germinate. First time grower, doing it cheap and easy with 6 23-watt cfls in a homemade grow box. Read the First Thread Here Incredibly, 1 of the 10 seeds actually sprouted - the seed that I just stuck in some soil (cause I was sick of germinating,) popped up 4 days later! Things were going smoothly, it was growing great, looking healthy... ...but I realized today is day 10 and this little turd doesn't look like a 10 day old sprout to me. It looks and green and healthy, but shouldn't it be beefier after a week+ or am I just being a paranoid first timer?
Your plant does not really look stretched to me, some strains develop faster than others. If you're using CFLs make sure they're 5000k or 6500k for veg and make sure the light is within 3 inches of the top of the leaves. Here is a pic of the ones I'm growing at day 10, you're not too far off. Healthy is better than bigger and your leaves are looking nice and green. I'm growing blue hash right now, Take a look at my grow journal http://forum.grasscity.com/index.php?/topic/1390185-Kyla%2527s-Blue-Hash-in-soil-grow
Thanks for the reply. Yeah, I'm not too far off judging by your plants. Still, you've got an extra full pair of leaves on the smaller one compared to mine. CFL's are all in 6500k. Keeping the seedling pretty close, approx. 3 inches off a set of lights. She seems to be thriving on the water schedule I've been going with. Anything I could be doing wrong that might slow growth? I'm going based on leaves and color and both look great in person so I might chalk this up to genetics. "White Voodoo" is a CKS custom hybrid so who knows. Also, I should add that the red stick propping up the seedling is a toothpick - for scale
What is your watering schedule? If I had to say anything it would be that your soil looks sort of dense. Cannabis likes aerated soil so most folks add perlite. I use 25%perlite 75%soil. If your roots are struggling to breath your grow will slow way down.
Being a new grower, I'm trying hard to not over water. I'm going by a combination of total weight (it's a small planter,) feel of the soil 2-knuckles down and the reading on my cheap moisture meter stick. If all 3 tell me it's time to water, it's time to water. I let the soil get pretty dry before I water. Last night I could feel a little dampness at the very bottom so I decided to leave it till morning. I read that it can be beneficial to make the roots "hunt" for moisture at the edges. This morning I sat the planter in a half inch of distilled water for 2 or 3 minutes then used a light spray on top to wet the leaves and top soil. I want the majority of the water to be in the lower half of the planter until the plant has a much bigger root system.. The soil is a Promix type, it's advertised on the bag as being a lighter, airy soil (I agree that it is). I know what you mean about it looking dense - after watering it definitely seems to condense a bit. I learned early on that too much water will turn it in to mud clumps lol thanks for the tip about the soil density. That could be a good explanation for what's happening
For a small CFL grow that size is fine... it just takes longer with less light. In my journal you can see mine at 2 and 3 weeks. I veg under 18 watts ... so mine go very slow at first 210 watt perpetual box https://forum.grasscity.com/index.php?/topic/1394922-210-watt-3.5-sq-ft-Northern-Lights-and-White-Widow:
Just wanted to encourage you to be checking your water ph and adjusting as necessary. I overlooked this the first couple of times Looks like you are on point! LED indoor - https://forum.grasscity.com/index.php?/topic/1394646-Pure-AK-barebulb-cfls