[MEGA]Growing advice, tips, tricks and experience: Mark 3

[lotusbloom]

Hi I'm new here and have a few questions before I go ahead with growing. I've been doing a lot of research and need to clear a few things up. I'm planning on 2 grow tents (one for veg and one for flowering). I'll probably be bringing home 15 clones. My husband is on top of the lighting and construction aspect of this operation and I have other tasks. For now, I'm focusing on the babies and their first few weeks. I think this time will be very crucial. So I have a few questions:
1) When I bring home my clones, I have read that it's important to introduce them to their new environment slowly by keeping them away from direct light and air. Not sure how long I should wait to induce their vegetative growth. When they are ready though (maybe a week?) , and I'm ready to transplant them to 3 or 5 gallon pots, is this when I begin direct light cycle / air circulation?
2) 3 or 5 gallon pots? I've read 2 or 4's are easier to maintain and control (plus i'm a beginner), and the plants will have less health problems.... but 5 gallons may allow a more effective root system...and ultimately a larger harvest.
3) I've read that its good to apply vitamin B to a clone before and after transplant. If this is good for the plant, how should I apply it?

I hope these aren't too many questions at once! I'm brand new to this, but I feel confident enough in what I've learned so far to get our clones in about a week. I'm looking forward to learning from anyone that can help Thanks!

P.S. I Live with Spanoonaps. Sorry for the dual IP.

 

[w01fg4ng]

Ah cool. Thanks so much wolfgang. By the way, I see you are the Cannabis King I've created a monster!

I hope you guys don't mind the barrage of questions and pictures you are about to receive. I'm starting this up in a few days. I've read every book and watched every video but want to make sure I do this perfectly. Here is the next question - After harvest, what is the best method to dry. I don't have tons of room. I've read that it should be dry and always dark. Any suggestions?

You're welcome and yes, yes you have.

A dark lit corner, in a well ventilated room should work well for hanging/drying buds.

Hi I'm new here and have a few questions before I go ahead with growing. I've been doing a lot of research and need to clear a few things up. I'm planning on 2 grow tents (one for veg and one for flowering). I'll probably be bringing home 15 clones. My husband is on top of the lighting and construction aspect of this operation and I have other tasks. For now, I'm focusing on the babies and their first few weeks. I think this time will be very crucial. So I have a few questions:
1) When I bring home my clones, I have read that it's important to introduce them to their new environment slowly by keeping them away from direct light and air. Not sure how long I should wait to induce their vegetative growth. When they are ready though (maybe a week?) , and I'm ready to transplant them to 3 or 5 gallon pots, is this when I begin direct light cycle / air circulation?
2) 3 or 5 gallon pots? I've read 2 or 4's are easier to maintain and control (plus i'm a beginner), and the plants will have less health problems.... but 5 gallons may allow a more effective root system...and ultimately a larger harvest.
3) I've read that its good to apply vitamin B to a clone before and after transplant. If this is good for the plant, how should I apply it?

I hope these aren't too many questions at once! I'm brand new to this, but I feel confident enough in what I've learned so far to get our clones in about a week. I'm looking forward to learning from anyone that can help Thanks!

P.S. I Live with Spanoonaps. Sorry for the dual IP.

Welcome. I'll try to answer these questions as well.
#1. Vegetative growth starts immediately after the clone has rooted. So it essentially should be in veg now, unless it's under 12/12 already.
#2. The size of the pot depends on how long you want to keep them in vegetation.
#3. Never tried it, but you should and report back and tell us how it went.

 

[lotusbloom]

Thank You! That's helpful. I'll look into the vitamin B a little more.

 

[Prelude2TragedyII]

Also, if the clones you are bringing home are pretty small, you should start with a smaller pot, rather than jumping into a huge 5 gallon pot with a little baby clones, Start them in small cups and ,when the plants get root bound (the roots grow to the bottom of the container) move them into a larger container.

Atleast that's kind of what I've understood from all the advice Ive gotten here, I just bought 2 Master Kush clones yesterday and have 4 Northern Lights clones growing,
I put them in small foam/plastic cups to start so they can get a strong root system, once the reach around the height of the cup, or a little larger, I move them into another pot (slightly larger) so on and so forth, idk if you want to do all that work, but, its just a suggestion, helped me to get a strong root system, might help ya too.

Had a quick question to ask as well, Northern Lights plant outside is looking absolutely beautiful, it looks healthy (though some of the lower leaves are still dying and showing brown, the new growth looks great.

I will be putting my other plant(Nothern Lights are both femmed) outside as well, but I currently have it in a 3 gallon pot, as I dont want to put it in the ground because I want to flower this plant. I was thinking, put it outside at 8am, then placing it in the garage at 8 or 9pm for a 12/12.

Anyways, I was reading in a high times magazine that some indica strains if you throw them in 12/12, and put them outdoors when flowering, they will continue to flower even with 16 hours of light, anyone know if there's any truth to this?

Just really curious about that as the plant I first put outdoors IS flowering, and doing a great job at that, after I read about that, I was really hoping that this plant would continue to flower, So , if anyone knows anything about this, Id appreciate the info.
And would the quality of the buds be any lesser? Whats really weird is I went out and squeezed one of the buds today to smell it , and it had no smell at all, smelled, earthy and dirt like, but not like the Northern Lights Ive had before. Who knows, I just really dont want to wait all the wait until October/November to harvest this plant as it's already 3 1/2 ft tall, I dont want it to grow over the fence...lol...

And also, anyone know of a way to provide shade for my plants during the high noon when the sun is at its highest and hottest, leaving almost no shade for the plant during 95-105 (Fahrenheit ,Up to 110)

Ive been trying to think of a way to give them shade when the summer sun really starts to beat down, but I can't really think of any ideas for it, Ill try to take some pictures and post them so you can get an idea of where they are and what I can do for shade (if anyone would be willing to help me out thinking of how to provide shade, I appreciate the help in advance, again, thanks for all the help BLers)



Oh yeah, and to who ever asked if Ive been to those other sites, yes, I have , and Ive posted questions, None of which have been nearly as helpful as BL.

What usually ends up happening is Ill post a pic, Ill ask whats wrong with the plant, how to help fix the problem, and one person will say something like 'oh its a cal - mag def. , without giving me any idea on how to fix the problem, even when i repost "okay, and what should I do for that" Ill usually end up getting nothing, hence why I've stuck to BL,

I do go to a lot of sites and just read up on different stuff about growing, but most don't help a fraction of what bluelight has provided.

I guess I just prefer getting help from people I know and that don't mind helping me, I feel like if Im going on another board and post a question thats been posted 100 times people get pissed off. I know the rules of BL, so I guess Im just comfortable here, and most of the information I've gotten from here has been pretty spot on, so, no need to go posting else where for me (IMO)

 

[Artificial Emotion]

One more thing to add to wolf's advice, with respect to drying. He is right that the room should be well ventilated, but make sure not to point any fans directly on the buds, since you don't want them to dry out too quickly.

Aim for a relative humidity of about 50%. In a lot of environments this might even necessitate the use of a dehumidifier with a humidistat built in (like in my house).

The aim is to dry them not too quickly, but not so slowly that you risk mold developing. Darkness is advisable to preserve cannabinoid content. You must also understand that curing is every bit as important as drying them in the first place, and can turn mediocre weed into killer chronic that stinks the room out when you leave the jar open (minddetergent will know what I mean ).

 

[Artificial Emotion]

Anyways, I was reading in a high times magazine that some indica strains if you throw them in 12/12, and put them outdoors when flowering, they will continue to flower even with 16 hours of light, anyone know if there's any truth to this?

If it's just a normal indica strain, they should reveg, but this could theoretically happen if you don't trim it into the classic cone shape like you should when you reveg them (doh, I should have told you to do this, sorry). Basically revegging is done in a way where you remove the bulk of the flowering foliage so that the plant can revert back into the vegetative stage more easily.

Prelude, there is a way of putting it in the ground and revegging. You could make a small sort of tent/enclosure that fits over the whole plant and excludes light for 12 hours a day. You'll get a bigger plant overall by growing in the ground, but you need to veg in the ground for a decent length of time because roots don't grow much, if at all during most of the flowering period.

As for shading it, there are many ways. You could get a big piece of plastic and paint it with white wash emulsion paint and either place it above the plant on supports to block some of the light, or put it next to the plant so that it blocks some of the light when the sun is in the right position in the sky when it's hottest. Another way is to cover it with horticultural fleece, however the best way would be in one of those small greenhouses that naturally shade the plant anyway. See the photo for an example - you can get much smaller ones cheaply. This will increase your yield by a large amount anyway, since it controls the environment quite nicely. Another way of shading your plant(s) would be to use a larger plant to block the light, or to use a hedgerow.

The quality of the bud shouldn't be less, no. Your bud quality will always be best when UV levels peak. In the UK that's around July (mid summer), but I'm not sure when it is where you live. UV levels are in proportion to THC and other cannabinoid levels.

You should be able to cool the rootzone with cold water during high temperature peaks. It's the temperature of the roots that matter the most, not the foliage, so if you painted the pot white, which reflects light more (it makes a bigger difference than you'd think, trust me!), then it will help greatly. I think this is your best bet and that you should just not worry about the temperature temporarily getting too high. Sometimes my greenhouse goes above 50C and my plants couldn't be healthier. The bottom line is that transient increases or decreases in temperature often don't make much of a difference, if at all.

I hope that has answered your questions Prelude. If you don't understand something just say so.

NSFW:

 

[Prelude2TragedyII]

Well, I guess I should get some pictures up so you can get an idea of what the plant looks like and what I should do..

As for the plant that is already flowering, I want it to finish flowering, as I have no clue how to trim it into what ever shape you were talking about. Ive never had to reveg a plant(let alone even grow outside), and with this plant being 3 1/2 feet tall, Id rather just finish its flowering and take the harvest, because If I reveg and fail, well, thats about 3-4 months worth of plant down the drain. (and the plants buds are still pretty small, Id say about the size of a fingernail would be the largest bud on the plant)

As for the other Northern Lights plant that I have out there thats potted, well, I think I plan on putting that one in the ground as well, I just dont know if I should put it near the other plant which is in the South East corner of my backyard (backyard is facing south if I walk out the sliding glass door) Or if I should put it somewhere else,

There's a lot of stuff in my backyard that Im sure I can use to help with shade and everything, as I said before, Ill just have to get some pics up and see what ya think I should do for the plant and where I should put potted one, or if I should just flower it as well....

And I was thinking of putting something over the plant to get it to flower with 12/12, but , I was thinking wouldn't the heat build up if I put something over the plant? wouldn't that make it humid? I dont know what kind of material I should use, or a cardboard box, idk, lol. Guess Im a bit clueless,

Im just in a hurry to get buds as Im running out of my last harvest. got about two months worth of bud left , and Im hoping to get another harvest before October/November to hold me over until I get the large harvest from November.

So your plants do fine in in 120 degree weather? Thats amazing. My plant in the ground seems pretty happy in the warmer weather, though its in the shade 1/3rd of the day. The one in the pot seemed unhappy, but thats probably because the pot its in is black and it probably baked the roots out there, damn, didn't think of that. I have a hole dug up thats the same size as that pot is, Ill try placing it in the hole tomorrow to see if it helps the temp for the roots.

Anywho, thanks for the ideas, I appreciate it, hopefully I can get some more input from you when I get some pictures put up....

Ive been considering buying a greenhouse or a tent.
Was honestly considering putting my grow room up in my garage rather than my room, I have the money to do it, I just dont know if there would be any benefit to the garage from my room.

Thanks again for the input, Ill try to post back tomorrow or saturday with pics of what Ive currently got in my backyard, and what I can do to make it better (after this outdoor harvest Ill be making 3ftX3ft raised beds.) hopefully I can improvise and make a better suited growing area for my plants with your input/ideas. thanks for the help, I truly do appreciate it....

My room only gets 15 amps, I had a few power outages on this side of the house when I first set everything up, but they seem to have stopped, Im sure once summer hits and that box with the breakers starts warming up It'll flip off a few times, who knows. Guess Ill add up all the watts to my room and use that link, this sounds fun, lol, thanks again, hope all is going well with everyone, happy growing.

-edit-

Curious, what is it exactly that a green house does? I don't really understand the purpose of them, Im sure I could google it , but, I like to hear things right from the mouth of the user. (Yeah you AE. lol)

Im guessing it helps with shade slightly? But would think it would make thinks hotter & more humid...?
Just a guess, Ive never really used one.

 

[SpanoonapS]

Ok - let me get some things straight here. (you guys are excellent, btw)

1. For drying buds, does it have to always be dark? I was thinking of hanging them in the flowering room. Separate, dark room is best?

2. When we get the clones, we will keep them in cups for about a week. During that time, should we feed them or just water?

3. Complete noob question. I'm kind of hung up on what soil and nutrients to use. Could someone maybe recommend what to use and give me an example of a typical feeding schedule for both Veg and Flower. Sorry

 

[A Lucid Pet]

Complete noob question. I'm kind of hung up on what soil and nutrients to use. Could someone maybe recommend what to use and give me an example of a typical feeding schedule for both Veg and Flower. Sorry

hahah I was so scared of this when I first started that I decided "I'm not even going to mess with that" not realizing that it's essential. I've use Fox Farms Ocean Forest along with a sample pack of general organics which has seen me through a whole grow easily. I'd imagine you can get the free sample pack by inquiring at your local hydro store or contacting general hydro (the company that makes the line) yourself and asking nicely. The FFOF soil is quite expensive though and I think this is just because of stoner hype. I'm sure there are plenty of nice soils out there that aren't nearly as expensive, I'm just not sure what they are.

Next round I think I'm going to go with this CNS 17 stuff for a fertilizer. It's supposed to be cheap and easy.

The first thing I learned / attempted with my clones was cloning itself. Within weeks I had a small army of plants I could experiment on or kill without tripping out on loosing my genetics. Just like every other aspect of cannabis cultivation, there are a million ways to do this. I found a homemade auto cloner to work the best but it was another plug, another noise and another potential spill/leak. In the end I found the little spongy root cubes to work the best for me. I also learned a lot about maintaining a mother plant as well. Just a suggestion.

 

[SpanoonapS]

Ok so... a 5 gallon pot filled with FFOF can last an entire cycle, right? From Veg to Harvest. Within that time, what should I use to feed them and how often should this be done? How will I know how much to use for each plant?

 

[StickyChron]

Fox Farm soil products are garbage, literally. I've pulled out pieces of tires, shoes, hair ties, half of pliers, huge chunks of plastic, giant hairballs?, the list goes on and on. That fun assortment was from 4 pallets (each pallet was 52 bags) of soil on my first grow. I said never again.

If you have a local dirt and sod supplier, chances are they have a proprietary blend of soil very similar to fox farm OF (or missing a few ingredients which could be bought and administered yourself) for a fraction of the price. Fox farm is grower hype bullshit. Some of the best weed I've ever had was grown in plain old generic "potting soil" with things added to the mix. Buy some fish casing meal, perlite, and VOILA! You've got Fox Farm Ocean Forest.

 

[Artificial Emotion]

Well, I guess I should get some pictures up so you can get an idea of what the plant looks like and what I should do..

As for the plant that is already flowering, I want it to finish flowering, as I have no clue how to trim it into what ever shape you were talking about. Ive never had to reveg a plant(let alone even grow outside), and with this plant being 3 1/2 feet tall, Id rather just finish its flowering and take the harvest, because If I reveg and fail, well, thats about 3-4 months worth of plant down the drain. (and the plants buds are still pretty small, Id say about the size of a fingernail would be the largest bud on the plant)

As for the other Northern Lights plant that I have out there thats potted, well, I think I plan on putting that one in the ground as well, I just dont know if I should put it near the other plant which is in the South East corner of my backyard (backyard is facing south if I walk out the sliding glass door) Or if I should put it somewhere else,

There's a lot of stuff in my backyard that Im sure I can use to help with shade and everything, as I said before, Ill just have to get some pics up and see what ya think I should do for the plant and where I should put potted one, or if I should just flower it as well....

And I was thinking of putting something over the plant to get it to flower with 12/12, but , I was thinking wouldn't the heat build up if I put something over the plant? wouldn't that make it humid? I dont know what kind of material I should use, or a cardboard box, idk, lol. Guess Im a bit clueless,

Im just in a hurry to get buds as Im running out of my last harvest. got about two months worth of bud left , and Im hoping to get another harvest before October/November to hold me over until I get the large harvest from November.

So your plants do fine in in 120 degree weather? Thats amazing. My plant in the ground seems pretty happy in the warmer weather, though its in the shade 1/3rd of the day. The one in the pot seemed unhappy, but thats probably because the pot its in is black and it probably baked the roots out there, damn, didn't think of that. I have a hole dug up thats the same size as that pot is, Ill try placing it in the hole tomorrow to see if it helps the temp for the roots.

Anywho, thanks for the ideas, I appreciate it, hopefully I can get some more input from you when I get some pictures put up....

Ive been considering buying a greenhouse or a tent.
Was honestly considering putting my grow room up in my garage rather than my room, I have the money to do it, I just dont know if there would be any benefit to the garage from my room.

Thanks again for the input, Ill try to post back tomorrow or saturday with pics of what Ive currently got in my backyard, and what I can do to make it better (after this outdoor harvest Ill be making 3ftX3ft raised beds.) hopefully I can improvise and make a better suited growing area for my plants with your input/ideas. thanks for the help, I truly do appreciate it....

My room only gets 15 amps, I had a few power outages on this side of the house when I first set everything up, but they seem to have stopped, Im sure once summer hits and that box with the breakers starts warming up It'll flip off a few times, who knows. Guess Ill add up all the watts to my room and use that link, this sounds fun, lol, thanks again, hope all is going well with everyone, happy growing.

-edit-

Curious, what is it exactly that a green house does? I don't really understand the purpose of them, Im sure I could google it , but, I like to hear things right from the mouth of the user. (Yeah you AE. lol)

Im guessing it helps with shade slightly? But would think it would make thinks hotter & more humid...?
Just a guess, Ive never really used one.

Those greenhouses offer many advantages, as well as being cheap:

- they keep away pests, such as slugs, whitefly, ants etc. They're not foolproof, but they work extremely well in this regard.

- they maintain heat during the night when it gets cold. This in itself will increase your yield significantly. They let light in, but don't allow radiant heat to escape into the atmosphere (see the greenhouse effect).

- they help regulate humidity levels too, as well as sheltering the plants from the wind. Studies have shown something as simple as a windbreak can improve yields by about 30%. That's a massive amount!

- the main advantage for most people is that they extend the growing season, so you'll be able to flower for longer and not suffer problems with mold as easily.

- for me mine works well because it means I can grow whatever I want and because it's all painted with greenhouse shading whitewash paint, nobody can see in. The cannabis plants can easily get lost among tomatoes, cucumbers and other fruit and veg, allowing you to get away with growing them more easily.

Basically they're awesome and are probably the best single purchase you can make, and no, I'm not exaggerating. There's a reason why growers, whether it be commercial or hobby, will dig into their pockets to buy greenhouses to grow their plants, and this is because they work so well.

Polytunnels work just as well, if not better in some cases, and can be cheaper than the big glass/polycarbonate/PVC greenhouses. Because they often come with two doors which can be left open, the airflow/ventilation is naturally taken care of whenever the wind blows.

 

[A Lucid Pet]

^ LOL. See, this is what makes internet research so hard. I can tell you that my FFOF was not garbage at all but I'm not about to tell this guy that his experience wasn't real.

Fox farm is grower hype bullshit.

For the price I do believe this to be true.

Ok so... a 5 gallon pot filled with FFOF can last an entire cycle, right? From Veg to Harvest. Within that time, what should I use to feed them and how often should this be done? How will I know how much to use for each plant?

From what I understand it's better transplant up as the root ball will fill out more efficiently this way. Once the rootball has taken up all the room it can in a smaller pot, it's time to transfer it to a bigger pot and then the roots can continue to expand. I've also read that it's harder to maintain the correct soil moisture throughout the whole pot if the roots are so small they can only drink from the top. I'd imagine this is also why root formation isn't as efficient because the roots would just be shooting to the bottom to find water.

This is only how I've done it so far though based on what I've read. Just like how StickyChron has a completely different opinion about FFOF, someone else might tell you to throw it in a 5 gal and forget about it lol.

Transplanting is easy though and nothing to be scared of. I start out in party cups, go to a one gallon and then I've gone to a three gallon which I probably won't do anymore and will try and go to a 5 gal next time.

 

[StickyChron]

The fewer times you have to transplant (thus shocking the plants) the better, skip multiple size pots and go from small to large. No medium needed.

^ The soil itself is not bad, its organic and full of good nutrients that they designed specifically for growing in pots/growbags. The large problem lies in their mixing process, where tons of garbage somehow makes its way into the bags. I've opened up a bag of OF that had so many tiny pieces of plastic it looked like someone put an empty bad through a shredder and thrown all the bits in the soil. Why pay almost double what you would to just make your own 10-12 ingredient blend of soil just because it has a pretty bag? The ingredients of OF aren't a secret, you can do things yourself. It will turn out better.

 

[A Lucid Pet]

Why pay almost double what you would to just make your own 10-12 ingredient blend of soil just because it has a pretty bag? The ingredients of OF aren't a secret, you can do things yourself. It will turn out better.

Indeed. I was just at the point to where I'd put so much time and effort into building a space in which to grow, etc. that I just wanted something I could kind of "set and forget" for my first run. I'm thinking of going hempy for my second run.

 

[SpanoonapS]

This is great info but you guys still didn't answer my questions!

What/How do I feed these guys. What nutrients do I add and how often do I add them?

 

[A Lucid Pet]

Sorry! I forgot, you know how that goes . Whatever you buy should come with a feeding schedule. For instance, here is the brocure / feeding schedule for the cns 17 stuff HERE.

I've read that it's best to start out lower than the recommended dosage and work your way up but it's up to you. Whatever you buy should come with a feeding schedule. *NO SOURCES*Flora Nova is another option I've considered and still may use in the future but I've read enough about the CNS that I feel comfortable trying it and I believe it's a bit cheaper as well.

Just remember that horticulture has been around long before the cannabis cultivation boom and it's not like cannabis is this magical plant that requires magical products. You could, if you wanted to, just buy your fertilizers in bulk salts and mix your own. Once you've the basics down you can start tweaking with the additives.

Also I would hold off on boosters, bloomers and all that other stuff and just feed the plant enough of the basics to make some great stuff the first time. That way if something is going wrong or goes wrong you have that many less factors to take into account in your trouble shooting.

 

[Artificial Emotion]

The fewer times you have to transplant (thus shocking the plants) the better, skip multiple size pots and go from small to large. No medium needed.

Transplant shock is not a problem with cannabis unless you smack the rootball with a mallet and break the root ball up. It's more a myth really IMO - everybody says, oh you'll get transplant shock, but in reality I doubt you'd actually notice any stunting in growth if you actually tested it yourself rather than rely on what other people tell you.

If you go straight from small to large, the roots will occupy a small space in the centre, meaning the soil surrounding the rootball will stay wet for far too long and start to rot since there aren't roots there to absorb the water in the medium and you need to rely on capillary action within the soil and natural evaporation for it to dry instead. You want the majority of the soil in the pot to be occupied by roots, so that the soil dries out quickly between waterings and you have a 'wet/dry' cycle with a greater frequency, which oxygenates the medium and therefore the roots since air gets in. Unless you're using a very unusual medium, which most cannabis growers don't have the knowledge or materials to make, you can't achieve this with your method unfortunately and your results will suffer. This could mean the difference between a mediocre/poor grow and an excellent grow.

Google 'potting up' to read up about the subject.

 

[Artificial Emotion]

Ok so... a 5 gallon pot filled with FFOF can last an entire cycle, right? From Veg to Harvest. Within that time, what should I use to feed them and how often should this be done? How will I know how much to use for each plant?

No, it has enough nutrients to last for the whole growth cycle up until about two weeks after your last pot up, which should ideally be the point you switch to 12/12 (and root growth will begin to slow to a crawl at this point). After that, use an organic bloom fertilizer and titrate the dose accordingly. However, this advice won't work if you're not using the correct potting up technique like you should be doing, despite the advice given above by Stickychron (no offense mate, I just don't agree with your advice).

I personally wouldn't use nutrients geared towards growing hydroponically in a soil environment, since an inert hydroponic medium and a multipurpose compost are two completely different kettle of fish and therefore fertilizers will behave differently in them. Rather, get a nutrient made specifically for soil (organic is usually your best option since the weed will taste better and it is less likely to cause nutrient burn or possibly cancer). An organic 'bloom' fertilizer is what you want for when the nutrients run out in the soil (sorry, I'm not sure which brands are available on the dark side of the moon since I live in the UK * edit: you should be able to buy Biobizz fishmix, which can be used during both the vegetative stage and in flower and is an excellent product which I use myself since it's so versatile).

My advice would be to be wary of feeding schedules though (actually my advice is to not use them), since you need to see what your plant is telling you to do (I don't mean it will talk to you) rather than reading a chart.

 

[StickyChron]

Transplant shock is not a problem with cannabis unless you smack the rootball with a mallet and break the root ball up. It's more a myth really IMO - everybody says, oh you'll get transplant shock, but in reality I doubt you'd actually notice any stunting in growth if you actually tested it yourself rather than rely on what other people tell you.

If you go straight from small to large, the roots will occupy a small space in the centre, meaning the soil surrounding the rootball will stay wet for far too long and start to rot since there aren't roots there to absorb the water in the medium and you need to rely on capillary action within the soil and natural evaporation for it to dry instead. You want the majority of the soil in the pot to be occupied by roots, so that the soil dries out quickly between waterings and you have a 'wet/dry' cycle with a greater frequency, which oxygenates the medium and therefore the roots since air gets in. Unless you're using a very unusual medium, which most cannabis growers don't have the knowledge or materials to make, you can't achieve this with your method unfortunately and your results will suffer. This could mean the difference between a mediocre/poor grow and an excellent grow.

Google 'potting up' to read up about the subject.

If you think transplant shock doesn't exist, you're sorely mistaken. I have witnessed it first hand, and while I don't claim that its really a huge issue, or something to worry about much, it is real and very much possible. It can manifest as lots of things: drooping and yellowing leaves, stunted growth, ect so its hard to diagnose and know what the real cause is, but if you encountered the problem after transplanting...seems logical. If you've ever had a plant shit out on you a few weeks after transplanting it, I guarantee it was directly attributed to your transplanting method. If it didn't exist, why would there be "About 342,000 results" for Cannabis transplant shock? Google it and read up about the subject.

Being pretentious about your growing methods is pretty fucking stupid, especially when mine are obviously better.

Aeration of the root ball can be done lightly by hand before transplanting into the medium, roots will grow in every direction man. Its not like they stay confined to their original shape. If you use proper additions (like perlite and cocoa) to your soil mixture that don't hold much moisture (or create humidity, like steer manure), it has no where to go but drain down, evaporate, or to be absorbed into the roots. You seem to have read a lot of books and know some fancy sounding shit, and while telling someone to read up is all fine and dandy, I'll stick to spending 300 days out of the year tending and caring for hundreds of REAL plants. If you told my grandpa to go read a book about growing weed, he'd mollywhop you right quick.

I'm not claiming to be growing the best weed ever or know the best techniques, but my accomplishments involving weed are more than enough for me to know I'm doing something right.

PS: This kind of shit is why I don't like growing indoor as much.