[MEGA]Community Growing advice, tips, tricks, & experiences Part 4

[^Xayo]

So finally Erna got cut, a bit early but I got 30 seeds starting so I will be switching to veg today anyways.

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The seeds from spain still haven't arrived, the tracking status says that its in the transferring phase between spain and my country...for 8 days now..so either the packet got cashed at the border or spanish delivery guys are lazy as fuck (I read abit about it, quite funny, packets sitting around unnoticed for 8 months aren't something _THAT_ uncommon in spain)
So I got some seeds for outdoor locally, 10 Orange Bud, 10 KC33xLowryder and 10x "LD" (which is a quite mysterious strain from up north, close to the danish border...my friend doesn't know much about it either...but it's said that they worked on the strain for 8 years or something...)

PS: Nice looking plant and little nug Tripman (sorry if I got the name wrong..too fkd to keep it on my mind for a sec..so eiter tripman or...somethin elsen i guess ???)

 

[Artificial Emotion]

Xayo looking good. Just for future reference, the best way to decide whether to harvest or not is to monitor the appearance of the glandular trichomes using a x100 or greater pocket microscope which can be bought for almost nothing on Ebay. The later you harvest, the more CBN (not CBD as commonly stated) and the more sedating/couch lock the high is. Also I forgot to say, I noticed you had the plant you're regenerating in a clear plastic bottle. You should paint this black to stop light getting in, as roots don't grow very well in the dark. Ideally you should grow in containers that exclude all light.

Prelude, it's really important to make an effort to prep the soil really well and get the pH right by doing a pH test with pH indicator from a garden center before possibly adding dolomite lime, if the pH is low or peat if the pH is high (the latter less likely). Plants grown in well prepped soil will end up being much larger than you could get them in containers. Such as this plant which wouldn't be this big and healthy if grown in a pot.

 

[^Xayo]

Is it okay to grow without adding much ferts, when stinging nettles are present (pointer-plant for high fert esp. phosphorus)?? I plannend on just turning the soil over 2 weeks before transplanting adding maybe 40l of garden earth to the mix.

 

[Tripman]

So finally Erna got cut, a bit early but I got 30 seeds starting so I will be switching to veg today anyways.

NSFW:

The seeds from spain still haven't arrived, the tracking status says that its in the transferring phase between spain and my country...for 8 days now..so either the packet got cashed at the border or spanish delivery guys are lazy as fuck (I read abit about it, quite funny, packets sitting around unnoticed for 8 months aren't something _THAT_ uncommon in spain)
So I got some seeds for outdoor locally, 10 Orange Bud, 10 KC33xLowryder and 10x "LD" (which is a quite mysterious strain from up north, close to the danish border...my friend doesn't know much about it either...but it's said that they worked on the strain for 8 years or something...)

PS: Nice looking plant and little nug Tripman (sorry if I got the name wrong..too fkd to keep it on my mind for a sec..so eiter tripman or...somethin elsen i guess ???)

You got the name right


Those buds look delicious man.

 

[Artificial Emotion]

Is it okay to grow without adding much ferts, when stinging nettles are present (pointer-plant for high fert esp. phosphorus)?? I plannend on just turning the soil over 2 weeks before transplanting adding maybe 40l of garden earth to the mix.

Indoors in pots? If it's a multipurpose compost it will have nutrients added. If it's a potting mix it will have even more nutrients added, so if you're using either you won't need to use nutrients until bloom if you're potting up. Using nettle tea fertilizer would be a disaster in pots in most instances IME - it's only really good for in the ground. Similarly adding garden compost to a container mix is a no no. People might get away with adding small amounts but used in a any significant amounts and you could ruin the grow.

If you mean in the ground, then you probably won't need any fertilizer anyway. You certainly won't if it's clay. Adding garden compost to the earth and digging it in is desirable.

 

[^Xayo]

Revegging seems to turn these plants into monsters... Every new top splits into 2 or 3 other tops a day later. Got about 8 or 9 growth tips at the moment =O

20 seeds have germed till now, 11 of them have been planted in already, need to go to the store to buy more cups :'D I think that my goal of putting 30 plants in there wont be met, I'm already grumbling at 20 plants.
Going to install the two 40-Watt light fixtures as a support for the sides of the cabinet. This will put me at 240W on 2,6 square feet (0,25 m²) just under 100W / sqfoot which should give me some good coverage (based on some guidelines i read on other sites)

 

[Pop that]

New to hydroponics, advice and tips needed

Fellow growers!!! Just in need of help and advice. I am new to growing and was wondering if any of yous have tried a similar growing technique to the one I am going to attempt. I also need a nutrient mix planned out and info on how much and when it is needed because I'm a tard in that department as well (dont even know where to buy the shit). Sooo...... lemme know what you think heres what I've got to get me started.

What I have:

3 buckets with fittings on the side to manually drain the water

Fleximix plugs (seedling starter cubes? plus the incubator)

Diatomite pebbles (heaps lol, high in silica so should be good for the roots and builds plant imunity apparently)

Lights (im alright in that department but any advice will be taken so.... if ya feel the need to say anything go for it)

and a couple of battery powered water airators (like the fish tank ones?)

My plan was to germintae my seedlings in the fleximix plugs, 1 seedling per plug (Germinating is not a problem, i can do that haha). once theyve grown mature enough (at what state do you know theyre ready to be moved from incubator to seedling pot?), place them in a large bucket filled with diatomite pebbles and water, however i wasnt to sure if i should be airating or putting nutrients in at this stage (the set up is one large bucket with the pebbles in it, the tubes from airator nestled in the centre pumping oxygen under the plants).

When they are mature enough I will transfer them from the large bucket into a bucket each (one plant per bucket). set up will cosist of the 3 buckets filled with the pebbles and water with the airator tubes running from the bottom to the centre pumping oxygen to their roots. as i mentioned erlier this is a low budget op, so draining and replacing the water will have to be done manually. the fittings on the side open and close so i can drain the water no probs and can refill by topping up the water like normal (lol duh). Ive heard you can leave a plant in airated water with nutrient mix for a week before replacing with new water/nutrients so if anyone knows this method of hydroponics or deep water culture I would really apreciate any advice you have. Also I have pretty much zero knowledge in the nutrients department or what pH levels need to be doin, so yeah, thats pretty much the jist of things so far..... What yas rekn?

 

[Artificial Emotion]

I don't know how open you'll be to my advice but I'll try and help.

If you have no issues germinating seeds then that's fine, but regardless I would recommend a thermostatically controlled heat mat. It helps to get the temp in the exact correct range for seeds and cuttings and brings up the germination and cutting strike rate to close to 100% (with seeds this depends if they're viable in the first place though, obviously). You move the Root Riot cubes (made by Fleximix) into the system when you see lots of roots coming out the sides.

If I were you I'd ditch the plan of growing in diatomite pebbles completely as that idea as described is a non-starter. I would look into as simple a way to grow as possible so you can get used to the whole process. Growing in compost would be best but if you're set on hydroponics, coco would be ideal for a beginner. You'll need a pH pen and I would recommend Hesi coco bloom which you can use in the vegetative stage and the flowering stage. I wouldn't recommend DWC for a beginner because it's very fiddly and plants are more prone to massive nutrient deficiencies than other systems.

If you want to go down the DWC route you should use hydroton/LECA (expanded clay pebbles - see pic below by clicking on nsfw tab). They have to be prepared in a certain way by first running tap water through them for ages and then soaking in pH adjusted water overnight. You put it in a net pot in a hole cut in the lid and fill the bucket with pH adjusted nutrient solution with an air stone which bubbles nutrient water up onto the roots.

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As for the light, it depends on how much weed you want. If it's just for yourself, I would recommend using a 400W-600W HPS in veg and bloom. I wouldn't bother with CFLs or fluorescent lights if you worried about cost, because the 600W HPS in particular is the most efficient growing light in existence and will produce the most bud per killowatt-hour of electricity consumed. The optimum amount of light to use in any given space is 50W per square foot of floor space, so a 600W lamp will light a 1m x 1m space (3.28 feet x 3.28 feet). Likewise a 400w HPS will light an 0.86m x 0.86m space (2.83 feet x 2.83 feet).

You need to have proper ventilation. I assume you've sorted that out? It's not optional. Not only will it supply the plants with fresh air containing sufficient carbon dioxide for essential photosynthesis to take place, but it will also remove heat produced by the light, and believe me they produce a lot of heat. For a 600W HPS lamp you would ideally use something like a 6" high powered Ruck which is 725m3/h as the intake and the same as the extraction. You would slow down the intake to have slight negative pressure so all the air will go through your carbon filter, which leads me on to my next point.

You need a carbon filter. Again, it's not optional. It will stink not only your whole house out, but likely your whole street. I've known a whole street to be filled with sweet skunky cannabis odor with just a single plant someone was growing, and yes, they did get busted in the end. The smell from a flowering cannabis plant seems to even permeate through brick walls. If you're doing a tiny little micro grow in your bedroom if you live with your parents or something then you might get away with it for a while but anything more substantial and you will get caught.

 

[justsayknow]

I don't know how open you'll be to my advice but I'll try and help.

If you have no issues germinating seeds then that's fine, but regardless I would recommend a thermostatically controlled heat mat. It helps to get the temp in the exact correct range for seeds and cuttings and brings up the germination and cutting strike rate to close to 100% (with seeds this depends if they're viable in the first place though, obviously).

I was thinking about getting something like this the other day but I'm not sure if I need one although I may in future. What would you say is the optimum temperature range?

 

[Artificial Emotion]

I would recommend getting a Forttex TC-10 thermostat. It's quite cheap and is probably the single most versatile and useful bit of kit for growing I've ever used. It's accurate to 0.1°C and can be easily programmed.

When germinating seeds and cuttings, I set the TC-10 to turn the reptile heaters on at 23°C and off at 25°C and as long as the seeds are viable it usually gives a 95%-100% germination rate and a 100% cutting strike rate. The single biggest cause of germination and cutting rooting failures is incorrect temperatures and for cuttings, the next biggest cause of failure is too much light. You only need a little light from say a T5 light or even just one or two 20W domestic CFLs.

 

[^Xayo]

for cuttings, the next biggest cause of failure is too much light. You only need a little light from say a T5 light or even just one or two 20W domestic CFLs.

thats probably why my reveg went so well :'D

 

[Artificial Emotion]

How's it doing now anyway Xayo? Got any pics? By the way you might want to trim the roots with a knife and pot up with fresh compost. Looks a bit like this (this guy revegged the plant in question):

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[^Xayo]

I'm going to upload some pics when I'm home later tonight, so as a placeholder

Erna was a total disappointment, no effect at all. I believe its a potent outdoor strain that happened to have some hempy-male in the area, sucks that I had the highest expectations of her, after drying there isn't even any kind of taste anymore. Smoked a joint today and thought it was only tobacco :/

The revegged plant got potted up initially after cutting her off, her new home is one of those oversized 3L coke bottles :'D
Just yesterday I discovered roots coming through, which hints at her being in full-on vegphase again
All of the 30 seeds germed, sadly I had to leave 10(actually a bit more) behind as I didn't have any space for them. This morning 17/17 pushed their head through the ground, I'm excited on whats to come.

On another note: After having worries that a police squad will rush my house any second for 2 weeks, the tracking ID finally tells me the packet got through and is now in my country =)

 

[Artificial Emotion]

On another note: After having worries that a police squad will rush my house any second for 2 weeks, the tracking ID finally tells me the packet got through and is now in my country =)

Are they from a seedbank or just someone you know in Spain? What strain(s) are they?

Sorry to hear about the low potency of the bud. Hopefully you'll have better luck with the new seeds you're growing.

 

[^Xayo]

They are Blue Hash, Powerkush, Afghan Kush (world of seeds), south african kwazulu...well the seeds I was talking about a few pages earlier. First I messed up with the transaction, then the spanish postal service somehow messed up (come on 10 days from spain to a close eu country...did they carry the packages with mules all the way over the alps ?)

Well here are some pictures =)

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For the roots that hate lights...I can't really confirm that:

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PS: Kind of off-topic but I'm really angry right now. Somehow my mum was stupid enough to infect my PC with some random shit trojan, well system restoration point used etc. but damn. that virus renamend EVERY file extension on the entire PC to random 4 Letter combinations. Im just astonished by the simpleness of this, yet it effectively ruined my wole PC =(

 

[Artificial Emotion]

For the roots that hate lights...I can't really confirm that:

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Light doesn't equal no roots, just a lot less roots. Try one clone with roots in darkness one without otherwise there's no point of reference to compare it with. I thought it was pretty much common knowledge in plant physiology though tbh. After all otherwise garden centre pots would be clear (only ones that are are for orchids).

Anyway nice pics btw. Are you planting those seedlings outdoors? I can't remember whether you said they were or not.

 

[justsayknow]

I would recommend getting a Forttex TC-10 thermostat. It's quite cheap and is probably the single most versatile and useful bit of kit for growing I've ever used. It's accurate to 0.1°C and can be easily programmed.

When germinating seeds and cuttings, I set the TC-10 to turn the reptile heaters on at 23°C and off at 25°C and as long as the seeds are viable it usually gives a 95%-100% germination rate and a 100% cutting strike rate. .

Ok if I end up needing it I will try a reptile heater between 23 and 25C. If we dont get those here I'm sure I will be able to find some kind of heat matt. Luckily the ambient temperature is about that here in autumn but for winter it could come in handy. Usually by spring its about 25-30 degrees so I guess thats why indoor germination seems to work better.

Looking forward to seeing what those kwazulu plants turn out like xayo...

 

[Artificial Emotion]

There are loads of reptile mats on a certain online auction site that are quite cheap too.

 

[Prelude2TragedyII]

I dont think AE was trying to say you having your plants in lights will damage roots, I think his purpose was more or less to try and help you.
Yes, a plant WILL grow, even if its roots are in lights, but, the plant would be healthier, if it was not getting light penetration to the roots...
Maybe, if you have the time, or if you want to experiement, just tape the bottom half of some of those plastic cups using duct-tape or something to block out the light a little bit, and leave a few others without. I would be interested to see how much of a difference it would make.

Only reason I advised against the roots getting light is because I put 2 plants in clear cups last grow (4 total, 2 in clear, 2 in red)
Well, 1 of the plants in the clear cup died, the roots started getting towards the bottom and edges of the cup, and the roots started to turn yellow/brown.
The other clear cup, the plant seemed to root straight downwards.
(I was making the same decisions at first, as you were, I think some of us just have to learn it the hard way, AKA, our own way)

Anyways, I have one plants , thats about 30 inches tall right now, (taller than the rest by atleast 8 inches)
I tried taking pictures, but forgot when I flip 12/12 , I can't really get any good photos from that yellow light.

Very nice little germination room you have set up though.
I can't even fit that many in mine
Alright everyone, Im off to go buy some clones for outdoors, Ill take my plants out later tonight during 12/12 light cycle and maybe get some pictures...

The lower leaves are starting to curl downward , and the tips are going yellow/brown, turning crispy (this is only on 2 plants, my tallest plant hasn't even lost is dicotyledon leaves yet. absolutely amazing ,IMO, this is my first plant ever to grow, without problem, I really hope Im starting to find my own little grove here)
It really is amazing how fast a plant can grow when it has the right conditons. No joke. I always figured, it's a weed, it will grow where ever and how ever I feel like growing it, but when I start to put the time and effort into caring for these plants, they start booming.

Anyways, I plan on going to the store to buy when equipment I still need on Monday.

AE, many thanks to you for helping me get this on track.
Xayo, keep your head up, your doing pretty good for how long you've been growing, Im sure you'll produce some good buds soon. Just keep at it buddy.
And many , many thanks to all the growers keeping this thread going.
You guys are awesome

 

[^Xayo]

The postman was good to me today

Finally the seeds have arrived, neatly packed into a free t-shirt (like who would wear a tshirt that says "Cannabis seeds around the world") with leafs everywhere...instant giveaway you're up to no good...but hey it looks nice and feels good so it goes into the sleeping shirts drawer

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<snip>

lower row are freebies by the way :'D