Phew, just finished reading the whole thing, it sure was a lot of learning! Took some 5 days reading here and there, just like a book. Great that you didn't give up on them, it sure paid out!
I'm currently on a test run of a grow box, 2 x 2 x 4 with adjustable 4 59w CFLs, but I plan on putting some 4 more 23w's once I started flowering the weirdest pack of plants one has ever tried to tame. They grew in a kind of vase outdoors from seeds of plants that grew there before, but there just happened to be a freaking TREE growing there too, so some plants were completely stunted in the shade while others reached 2 feet (with some 2 to 6 inches of stem going between nodes!) when I topped them for some half dozen clones.
I'm vegging them for some time to learn the ropes of nutes and lights, your thread have and will sure help! I had to tie the 2 tall plants down, ended up bending the stems in the process, but it seems the plants handled it. Three other average sized plants are looking shitty, very long stems from the base to a small cola, but the have some potential. Clones took forever to pick up, no such thing as rooting hormone to be found in supermarkets or even gardening shops around Brazil, perhaps in capital cities. One clone seems to be dying for good, two have exploded in growth this week, and two are, well, alive. Just gave them some vegging nutes yesterday, so I'll wait at least some 10 more days until I start flowering, I guess I'll have a (very) little something to celebrate late January.
Planning on getting some NL for a fresh new grow, but I might just go with bagseed and use the cash to pimp the box a bit... Temps will not get under 85-90 with lights on, and it's NIGHT -- well, summer night, but I've seen things go past 110F with lights on in the afternoon, that's why they now get a rest from 1 to 7 pm. Well, that's what I get for setting up a grow in a box under a ceramic tile roof!
Maybe it's time to think of another room to hide that in.
Guess I turned wide on the bable, but it's just the excitement of seeing a great grow and thinking how I can get things to work around here. I might start a journal with the fresh grow, hope the CFLs do me good!