Noob Rehab

[NastyNug]

You got through your first grow, you’ve told yourself that you nailed it on your first try... your in complete denial of the reality. You bought into all the light, Nute, equipment and supps hype, only to realize that you’d really didn’t need a lot of this shit! And some of the advise out there, good Lawd, got all spun around.

So, what did you learn after your first couple of grows?

Too much light- I bought an LED, put my light 12-24” from the canopy, and guess what, come on... Burnt the fucking shit out of them. So, back that shit up... as far up as possible!

And about all that PPM per week?! Ducking Bull Cherries!! Less is more ladies and gentlemen. Find the lowest amount and try not to feed them so much. They’ll appreciate more water and CalMag than Nutes. Just saying, don’t need to feed them all the time.

And duck, over watering. Try not to water, instead of trying to water all the time. Roots need air, quit watering every other day. Try to get to 1x per week, and when your getting to 2-3 a week, time to transplant into something that you’ll only have to water 1x a week. I know, it’s a crazy idea, huh.

Anyway. I’m still learning, but will drop my mistakes on here in the hopes that it will help a noob out.

Cheers!

 

[inDC4now]

...So, back that shit up... as far up as possible!
...don’t need to feed them all the time.
...Try not to water... ry to get to 1x per week,

Thanks for sharing your experiences @NastyNug . I would caution you though --about swinging too far the other way. For example, the best distance for your lights is not "as far up as possible." It is where the plants need it to be. I would start with the manufactures recommendations and then watch to see how the plants are reacting. I'd also read a lot here on RIU to see how others are doing. For example, I use Quantum Boards. Here's the spec chart from HLGs website:



It says to hang the lights from 18-24 inches, not as far up as possible.

The same for watering and feeding. My manufacture makes all kinds of recommendations. The best practices for watering in soil is not 1x per week. You need to water when your plants need you to water, not when your schedule tells you to water. There are some rules, if you need them. Have you heard of the "50 Percent Watering Rule?" Jorge Cervantes writes about it on page 346 of his The Cannabis Encyclopedia.

 

[NastyNug]

Thanks for sharing your experiences @NastyNug . I would caution you though --about swinging too far the other way. For example, the best distance for your lights is not "as far up as possible." It is where the plants need it to be. I would start with the manufactures recommendations and then watch to see how the plants are reacting. I'd also read a lot here on RIU to see how others are doing. For example, I use Quantum Boards. Here's the spec chart from HLGs website:

View attachment 4424965

It says to hang the lights from 18-24 inches, not as far up as possible.

The same for watering and feeding. My manufacture makes all kinds of recommendations. The best practices for watering in soil is not 1x per week. You need to water when your plants need you to water, not when your schedule tells you to water. There are some rules, if you need them. Have you heard of the "50 Percent Watering Rule?" Jorge Cervantes writes about it on page 346 of his The Cannabis Encyclopedia.

Yes on both, but I would like to elaborate just a little more

Light- Once your experienced enough to translate how the plants are reacting to what they want, you can start lowering lights. As a noob, you need to finish a run, without burning them up to see what they are suppose to look like.

Watering- There is no schedule, you water when she needs it. But if she needs to be watered daily, she’s in too small a pot. When I first transplant, watering occurs about 1x per week. As she gets bigger, she’ll want more water, eventually to 2-3 per week. She has again grown and the pot is too small and time to transplant, back to 1x per week.

Flushing- I am doing more watering than feeding (fed 2x in flower) So it’s almost like flushing.

How often are you watering and feeding?

 

[inDC4now]

How often are you watering and feeding?

Just now I'm watering five times a day, every day. And I feed every time I water.

 

[Bobby Long Buds]

I think a week is too long between watering. I like the plant to need water every 4 days max. If I had automatic watering I would try set it up so my pots needed water 1 or 2 times a day. I just find they grow quicker?

 

[mustbetribbin]

Thanks for sharing your experiences @NastyNug . I would caution you though --about swinging too far the other way. For example, the best distance for your lights is not "as far up as possible." It is where the plants need it to be. I would start with the manufactures recommendations and then watch to see how the plants are reacting. I'd also read a lot here on RIU to see how others are doing. For example, I use Quantum Boards. Here's the spec chart from HLGs website:

View attachment 4424965

It says to hang the lights from 18-24 inches, not as far up as possible.

The same for watering and feeding. My manufacture makes all kinds of recommendations. The best practices for watering in soil is not 1x per week. You need to water when your plants need you to water, not when your schedule tells you to water. There are some rules, if you need them. Have you heard of the "50 Percent Watering Rule?" Jorge Cervantes writes about it on page 346 of his The Cannabis Encyclopedia.

Going by the recommended height by the manufacturers suggestion....

Wouldn't that be like following a seed company's harvest time recommendation to an exact amount of time, as if there are no variables?

 

[Brettman]

I also find they grow faster when pots dry out daily or every other day.

 

[inDC4now]

Going by the recommended height by the manufacturers suggestion....

Wouldn't that be like following a seed company's harvest time recommendation to an exact amount of time, as if there are no variables?

I accept your point, but for someone who has never grown before and has no idea where to place their lights, would you tell them to "back that shit up... as far up as possible?" What do you tell a new grower who asks "how far above my plants should I place my light?"

 

[inDC4now]

I also find they grow faster when pots dry out daily or every other day.

Sure, but what does "dry out" mean to a new grower? The same thing it meas to you? Does dry out mean only the top inch of the substraite is dry? Or that the plants are physically wilting? What do you tell a new grower who asks "how often should I water?"

 

[Bobby Long Buds]

Sure, but what does "dry out" mean to a new grower? The same thing it meas to you? Does dry out mean only the top inch of the substraite is dry? Or that the plants are physically wilting? What do you tell a new grower who asks "how often should I water?"

Good point. The top inch rule doesn’t work in my opinion. Best way a new grower can learn is just to let 1 go droopy dry. Most new growers will learn quick that it needs to be approaching bone dry before it actually wilts, and the occasional wilt is not the end of the world.

 

[Brettman]

Hmm good question. One that’s been asked and answered literally hundreds of times on here. I don’t like the top couple inches thing at all. Go by when the pot feels light. And if you can’t tell what light feels like, fill two pots and water one of them. Feel the difference.

 

[Brettman]

Didn’t realize Bobby Buds already answered. He’s right though, they perk right back up from wilting. Literally within hours.

 

[mustbetribbin]

I accept your point, but for someone who has never grown before and has no idea where to place their lights, would you tell them to "back that shit up... as far up as possible?" What do you tell a new grower who asks "how far above my plants should I place my light?"

Yo indc4now, what up?

Well first I would suggest that they learn the basics of plant acclimatization, and the importance of gradually introducing photosynthetic radiation to their newly hatched phyto organisms (seedling/clones).

Dynamic Acclimation of Photosynthesis Increases Plant Fitness in Changing Environments

Abstract. Plants growing in different environments develop with different photosynthetic capacities—developmental acclimation of photosynthesis. It is also poss

www.plantphysiol.org

If they have chosen to grow with LED technology, then I would suggest they recognize the full history of the LED diode and the technology that's behind it, if LED diodes are being used as a replacement for (LLLT) low laser light therapy in the medical field of photobiomodulation (PBM) then maybe we should show some initial respect in regards to light intensity, and the lumens/photons that these technologies are emitting in a direct pathway to young organisms such as our plants as they are just beginning to experience their new environment and photomorphogenesis.

Link below:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6091542/

 

[inDC4now]

Yo indc4now, what up?

Well first I would suggest that they learn the basics of plant acclimatization, and the importance of gradually introducing photosynthetic radiation to their newly hatched phyto organisms (seedling/clones).

Thanks for the link, @mustbetribbin -- I got into the article on "Dynamic Acclimation of Photosynthesis Increases Plant Fitness in Changing Environments," a fascinating study by the American Society of Plant Biologists.

Correct me if I misinterpret, that the study suggests getting the light right from the beginning sets the plant up for success for the rest of its grow. Plants with low light "tend to invest more in leaves than in roots." If the plants get too much light "they are liable to suffer from stress."

"When plants were grown from seed at 400μmol they had a significantly higher photosynthetic capacity..." which means they will more easily adapt when moved from the seedling tray to the veg tent, and they will also adapt more efficiently to the flower tent down the road..

Conclusion, place your light to provide 400μmol for seedlings and clones. If you were using an HLG100 board you would need to place your light 18-inches from the plants to achieve 420μmol. I found this number from one of LED Gardener website's YouTube videos:

Skip to 4:17 for the light test numbers.

Next, how much light is needed for Veg and Flower. Cervantes has a chart in his The Cannabis Encyclopedia on page 291 suggesting we'd want 27,000 Lux for Veg and 107,500 Lux for Flower. 27,000 Lux is something like 700μmol. So, we move our light down closer to the plants until we have the right light. If the footprint is too small we'd need to use a second HLG100 or a more powerful light.

Does this make sense @mustbetribbin ??

 

[NastyNug]

Good point. The top inch rule doesn’t work in my opinion. Best way a new grower can learn is just to let 1 go droopy dry. Most new growers will learn quick that it needs to be approaching bone dry before it actually wilts, and the occasional wilt is not the end of the world.

I’ve learned how light my pot is when it’s time to water. Ever pick up an almost empty bottle of milk? You know when it’s almost empty just by feel.

 

[NastyNug]

Thanks for the link, @mustbetribbin -- I got into the article on "Dynamic Acclimation of Photosynthesis Increases Plant Fitness in Changing Environments," a fascinating study by the American Society of Plant Biologists.
So a seedling requires the same light as a girl in week 5 of veg? And week 1 of flower gets the same light as week 8 of flower. The smaller the plant the less light it needs.

Correct me if I misinterpret, that the study suggests getting the light right from the beginning sets the plant up for success for the rest of its grow. Plants with low light "tend to invest more in leaves than in roots." If the plants get too much light "they are liable to suffer from stress."

"When plants were grown from seed at 400μmol they had a significantly higher photosynthetic capacity..." which means they will more easily adapt when moved from the seedling tray to the veg tent, and they will also adapt more efficiently to the flower tent down the road..

Conclusion, place your light to provide 400μmol for seedlings and clones. If you were using an HLG100 board you would need to place your light 18-inches from the plants to achieve 420μmol. I found this number from one of LED Gardener website's YouTube videos:

Skip to 4:17 for the light test numbers.

Next, how much light is needed for Veg and Flower. Cervantes has a chart in his The Cannabis Encyclopedia on page 291 suggesting we'd want 27,000 Lux for Veg and 107,500 Lux for Flower. 27,000 Lux is something like 700μmol. So, we move our light down closer to the plants until we have the right light. If the footprint is too small we'd need to use a second HLG100 or a more powerful light.

Does this make sense @mustbetribbin ??