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

LoL...Blulait
Germinating a seed , without any prep.

Yes, you want the seed to be in its own soil, yes, you want to put that seed in soil immediately.

Keep it in the sun/light for 16-20 hours a day.
After a few weeks, you will see the plant will develop bumps near the bottom of the plant where the stem meets the soil , this is how you know you're ready to flower.
(And of course if you're plant is showing pistils )

Once you get an idea of what you want to do, where you are growing it, and if you need any advice or help, feel free to ask.
 
Yeah I'd suggest reading some beginners guides or watch some videos to give you a better understanding. It can be quite a demanding plant. Although some of the guides are way over the top and needlessly complicated. You just need to know the principles to get started. Also another way of telling if your plant is mature is to look at the nodes(base of stems) and if they start growing in a staggered fashion as in not a V form but the opposing stem starts higher than the one next to it. Basically letting it get to a foot or so high is bet then go to 12/12.
 
I'd focus on the basic things first - lights, ventilation, maybe fertilizer (you don't have to buy expensive ones off the go)

If you look a few pages back i started my first grow with inadescant bulbs in a cardboard box.
Reading beginner guides works wonders tho, but don't mess with organic teas, EC values and all that shit until you are sure that you aren't going to be cause of problems not some wrong parameters.
 
Yeah make it as simple as possible and don't make stupid mistakes like feeding them when they're two weeks old because you think it will make it grow faster. If you have a decent mix even miracle grow will do you'll be fine for at least a month or so.
I wouldn't use incandescant bulbs as they get too hot and have the wrong spectrum for plant growth. When I first started I bought a few cheap table lamps and fitted those energy saving fluorescent bulbs to them. They work fine or you can just buy a bunch of bulbs and wire them to plugs yourself. Or it might be better to just buy one of those big veg lights the 200watt ones with reflector and plug fitted they're not that expensive and save a lot of hassle. it would be wise to buy a hps lamp flowering if you want nice dense buds but then you've got to think of ventilation etc.
 
yea i was just using the example with the inadescant to clarify that you can start from virtually nothing, i was just using them as a temporary solution because I was waiting on shipments. never use inadescant bulbs, they dont give off anything but heat and a little bit light so you can see your plant burning away
 
The seedlings have pulled through the overfeeding now I think

group shots:
orangebud
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ld
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They will be put out in about 10 days give or take a few days depending on the weather. =)

The 3 Kc33xLowryder plants are runts to the core, probably they were alot more sensitive to overfeeding than the other strains, they have all been discarded except 1 which isnt picture worthy

cab shot
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It seems like autoflowering genetics is slowly starting to become a lot more viable in terms of yield. You now have what are termed 'super autos' or 'amazonian autos' which take longer to flower but yield much more. The main advantage is that you can be more flexible and flower it in with plants that are vegging at the same time without the need to have a separate flowering area. If planted early enough it would flower early before the whether turns too bad and you could avoid some mould theory, although photoperiod strains that show good mould resistance are just as useful in that respect.

I'm ambivalent about autos, regardless of how much they yield though, because of the simple fact that you just can't clone them and are forced to be reliant on the breeders for new seeds, meaning self sufficiency is not possible. That's a major draw back. However they do and should have a place. It just would make a lot more sense for the conventional non-autoflowering strains to be more popular, but instead newbies are obsessed with autoflowering feminized seed since they think it'll be a lot easier. In the old days things were different and most people didn't bother growing because they thought it would be too difficult, so only the die hard enthusiasts were attracted to the hobby for the most part - now with modern grow techniques that allow people to grow indoors, people are of the impression that growing is so much easier and they can have bud in no time, so the wrong sorts of people are attracted to growing in the first place and are more inclined to want to take shortcuts wherever they can, hence the reason auto fem seeds are so popular. I'm not saying growing is like rocket science, but there's a big difference between some of the shitty closet growers using things like the aerogarden i.e. people who think their growing skills are great and they're growing killer weed when it couldn't be further from the truth and people who are more dedicated, who put a lot more effort and time into doing things properly rather than just doing a half hearted botch job.

Anyway it's these people that make a massive market for autos and fems who are partly responsible for ruining it for the rest of us. So many decent breeders have stopped selling regular seed just because there's simply no market for them anymore. Certain classic strains that used to be available in regular form are only sold as feminized seed, which is so sad and so frustrating. DNA genetics for example stopped producing headband in regular form for this reason and have started churning out kush this kush that in fem form at a rate so fast they couldn't actually be breeding them properly since the art of selection takes up so much resources and time that it's obvious that they're just producing hacks at the fastest rate possible. The only reason they've stooped to such lows is because of money which has corrupted them. Granted they're the main one's responsible since they sell the seeds but also they wouldn't be doing it if there wasn't a market for it.

What I'm doing is making sure to collect and preserve landrace genetics whilst I still can, and to collect decent strains whilst I still can. If I were around years ago in the 80s and 90s I would have preserved the original skunk #1 but since then unfortunately it's all but disappeared (may it RIP).

Think Different AutoFem from a Dutch Passion:

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^ Autos seems to be the "easy way" to go, at least that's how they are publicized to be like, but except from them being shorter and not having to switch the light cycle I don't really see that much of an advantage from growing 4 autos and 1 clone...

I agree that it sucks that most growers don't really care about breeding their own thing and making everything perfect for their plant... Most just want buds really fast and think it'll be a walk in the park. I thought it was going to be easy, but as soon as you have some problems it's a pain to get them solved if you have next to know knowledge.

That autoflowering plant looks a lot bigger than the ones I had though, maybe if I had transplanted them in bigger pots they would have stretched a bit more though.

@Xayo : Not looking bad :) Keep the good work!

P.S. 420th post %)
 
I would move my plants to take pictures in a different light, but , they are a bit too large, lol, I dont like moving them, though I will have to in a week or two to flush them before I chop em down. I can try to take a picture tuesday/wednesday.
Plants are looking pretty decent, seems like the largest plant is taking a bit longer to fully flower than the two smaller plants (it's buds are bigger, but the the calyx aren't bursting with thc like the other plants)

Anywho, looking good xayo, I think your plants like the foil darkness at the bottom of their cup ;)

I have never grown autos, I never plan to either, I've seen them grow, I'm definantly not a fan, seems most auto-flowering strains Ive smoked end up having few seeds through out the buds.
 
God it's so fucking amazing how much quicker cuttings root when you use very little light. For the longest time I had used a 125W CFL and had cuttings turn yellow on me every single time, not realizing what I was doing wrong. As soon as I switched to a simple single 21W CFL (which isn't even close to the cuttings when I use it), the cuttings root within 7 days and stay as healthy and green as the day they were taken. If you're having trouble taking cuttings make sure you're using very little light and not large CFLs (definitely not HIDs!).

I don't use rooting hormone either and still get a 100% success rate.
 
^Do you just imerse them in water? Or use a different method? I was reading a how to guide about putting cuttings in water to grow roots but it sounds like it takes a fairly long time.
 
^,
Usually, from what I read/hear,
Most people use a rooting powder or gel, they will take a cutting from the lower part of the plant, and then dip it in the powder/gel, and place it inside of a small pot with soil (usually you want to push a hole in the soil with a pen or something, this will stop you from rubbing off most of the rooting powder before you put it in soil, but, not necessary)

After that you should put it somewhere that won't have INTENSE light, but will have light for at least 16 hours out of the day.

I've always used CFL bulbs for cloning, a friend of mine took down their grow room, and ended up just giving me their T3s (or is it a T5, who knows)
Each Is about 21 watts, I have 3 total, works Great for cloning, I rarely ever have problems, I'd say for every 10 clones I make, Ill lose one. That's more my fault for not keeping them as wet and humid as I should though.


Anyone know why auto-flowering plants can't be cloned? I mean, thats a pretty heafty sized auto-flowering plant (I've only seen them half that size)
I don't understand why one plant would be cloneable , and the next, though the same plant, and same family (I think?) , can't be cloned.

Once I get more knowledge on growing, and feel comfortable with how I'm doing, Ill try messing with genetics, and either getting pollen, or just getting some regular seeds and waiting for a male...
I also have a family member who used to grow, they stopped recently, but I believe they still have some Pollen from Durban Poison and White Widow :( Sad he doesn't grow anymore, I would go so far as to say he could compete with AE ;) lol

Anyways....Gotta be up in 8 hours (and I just got off work literally 45 minutes ago, how lame)
Gonna go smoke and sleep.
Ill try to post some pics on Wednesday like I said, hopefully I can get around to it.
 
we are on a good weather spree at the moment =D The plants are going to leave home tomorrow, finallly..its getting very crowded and temperatures peak at 32°C :S

Going to upload pics when Im done tomorrow
 
justsayknow said:
^Do you just imerse them in water? Or use a different method? I was reading a how to guide about putting cuttings in water to grow roots but it sounds like it takes a fairly long time.
Click to expand...

Here's my method:

First I take the cutting at the base of the branch, well below the place just below a node where I plan to make the cut. Then I cut off the leaves/side branches and place it under water where I make my diagonal cut, just below a node. I then, under water, poke it into a Root Riot cube and place it into a propagator straight away and don't touch it for a week except to air it out.

Making the cut just below the node under water is not necessary but it does increase the success rate by a small but noticeable amount. If you forgo this method make sure you place the cutting in your compost, root riot or rockwool very quickly to avoid an air embolism.

I wouldn't root cuttings in water because the water roots are different to the other type of roots you'll get with the conventional method (don't quote me on that though).

I then place the cutting under a 21W CFL on a thermostatically controlled heat mat that keeps the temp at about 25-26°C inside a propagator.

Rooting hormones are not necessary in my experience. I've tried both with and without and have found time and time again that if done correctly, they root just as well without the rooting hormone as they do with. That said, there's definitly no harm in using them though, so if you would prefer to just for peace of mind it won't hurt.


The biggest reasons cuttings won't root are:

  • Incorrect temperature - 25-27°C is ideal
  • Disturbing the cutting too frequently to see if roots have formed
  • Too much light - one domestic CFL - 20W for example - is fine
  • Not airing the cuttings out, causing mold to form - lift the humidity dome once a day or so
 
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Prelude2TragedyII said:
take a cutting from the lower part of the plant
Click to expand...

That's correct, you should ideally take it from lower down not from the top of the plant. If it's the main shoot, taken from the top, the cutting will be more susceptible to disease and the low carbohydrate content causes more issues. Lower nitrate content is also desired. This explains it all:

With both soft tip and semi lignified cutting, the best material should be of sufficient size for rooting, those that have a high carbohydrate/low nitrate ratio are the best, these are found at the tips of well lit lower branch tips where growth is slow and a good portion of nitrates in the tissue are converted to carbohydrates. These cutting will root the fastest and have the most disease resistance in later life.

Cuttings taken from the upper part of a natural form plant, tend to have a high nitrate/low carbohydrate level tissue, this inhibits rooting and plants made from this material tend to have less resistance to both root and leaf diseases in later life, the higher up the plant you remove cutting from the more it upsets the plants auxins balance as you are removing main meristem’s.

If you want to take cuttings from plants before flowering, lower healthy branch tips produce the best stock wood and actually raise the auxin levels of the remaining top meristem growth, this does increase yield, it should be done a few days before going to 12/12. In fact lower branch tips should be removed at this time whether you want cuttings or not as it enhances yield and upper bud quality. If the plants are sat dominant more branches will need pruning back at about day 18 to 20, this again increases the yield of the main cola and upper sidies by concentrating the auxins or phytohormones where they are needed.

Taking cutting from a properly trained mother plant is a totally different thing, but that was not the question.
Click to expand...

Prelude2TragedyII said:
Anyone know why auto-flowering plants can't be cloned? I mean, thats a pretty heafty sized auto-flowering plant (I've only seen them half that size)
I don't understand why one plant would be cloneable , and the next, though the same plant, and same family (I think?) , can't be cloned.
Click to expand...

If one wants to be anal, they can be cloned. It's just that because the plant is autoflowering it will flower before it has a chance to reach a decent size, so you'll end up with a pitiful amount of bud on a tiny cutting. So yes, they can technically be cloned but it's just not worth doing it. In my opinion, this is the biggest drawback of autoflowering plants. If you could clone them and keep them in a vegetative state through some trick, I'd be a big fan.

Far red light can be used to make plants stretch rapidly, which is useful for SCROG growing (a friend 'discovered' this in cannabis, or at least was the first to try it) so I do wonder whether you can stop an autoflowering plant from flowering by using a certain spectrum of light, to prevent the flowering 'switch' from being flipped. I'm sure there's a good chance it's possible, but how you would do it I do not know.
 
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By the way, if you have a cutting that's quite lignified i.e. quite 'woody', you can speed up rooting by exposing the cambium layer. You do this by getting a very sharp surgical blade or razor blade (was away oil with soap before use) and carefully scraping off the outside layer. Try and practice several times until you get the hang of it and know how far to go based on which cuttings root the fastest. You have to be careful when doing this but for particularly woody cuttings it can speed things up quite a bit.
 
Hey AE, I have a quick question about my plants that are flowering.
I have 3 plants, all about 3 1/2 weeks into flower. I have two plants that are about 2 ft tall, and look pretty healthy (development of the bud)
The tallest plant I have, is maybe 3 - 3 1/2 ft. This plant, though it is the same strain (northern lights #5) is flowering very slowly.

Do larger plants take longer to bud? Will I probably end up pulling out my other two plants a few days before this tall one reaches full maturity?

Also, one thing I am finding very wierd, out of the three plants, my two taller plants have the same looking buds. On my shortest plant, the buds look completely different.
On the short plants, the calyx are ridiculously swollen and just looks delicious.
My taller plants, have buds, but the calyx isn't very noticable, I just see pistils everywhere, but the calyx is so small.
Im confused on how, all of these plants have the some conditions/nutrient/temp etc, and ones buds are completely different.

Ill probably try to take a picture and post it tonight.

Thats so wierd that auto-flowering plants can't be held back from flowering, I wonder what it is in the genetics, just something that tells the plant it needs to reproduce regardless of 12/12 or what?
 
As far as the auto flowering goes its just the result of an extreme bottle neck scenario, where like 1 in 100 plants survived the cold weather in siberia. I heard that some equatorial sativas might express auto flowering withing 4-6 months so maybe the trait is somewhere in the genepool and was isolated by a very rough selection over many generations
 
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