250 Watts of Fluorescent Wonder

[Giblet]

Germination Date (started to germinate on this date): Thu Dec 9, 2010
Strain: Strawberry Diesel
Breeder: Holy Smoke Seeds
Medium: FoxFarm Ocean Forest potting soil + 3 table spoons of dolomite lime
Lights: Two 125 watt FELIZ bulbs + refelctors
Fertilizer: FoxFarm Grow Big + FoxFarm Big Bloom

View attachment 1320730View attachment 1320732

Here's my grow space. Only one of my seedlings has sprouted. The other still hasn't broken the shell. I think I already done goofed a little bit because I got too anxious. I presoaked them for 12 hours and then put them in the soil right away. I should have waited till they sank in the water first. Then, after I realized this, I dug them up and put them back in water for a few more hours and then put them back into the soil. LOL. What an idiot. I would have been better off just leaving them alone huh?

Anyway, I kept misting the top layer of the soil several times a day with a spray bottle. I'm still misting the ungerminated seed but I stopped misting the seedling.

Still thinking of names for my babies.

 

[rene112388]

Hey giblet lmao ok first off yes should have let it be after you stuck it in the soil...I don't waste my time with the presoak my seeds got right into the soil then I just stick them in with the water heater till the first set of true leaves start to show always worked for me looks like a good set up ill sub see how this goes

 

[Giblet]

Thanks rene. Should I even worry about misting them once they are in the soil?

 

[rene112388]

Thanks rene. Should I even worry about misting them once they are in the soil?

Lmao man you had me seriously thinking I was tripping this morning I have email sync to my phone so I go in read the email and see what was posted then when I came to the thread (just woken up) didn't see the edit took me a few to figure out what was going on! anyways yes continue to mist the seeds after in the soild you want to make sure it stays moist I find misting is perfect till they go in veg just have to be careful and thanks about my dog hos name is scooby doo he was a rescue

 

[Giblet]

LOL. Not really sure why I decided to edit that out but yeah I kind of want to squeeze your doggy it looks so cute and innocent sleeping there.

I stopped misting so I'll go ahead and start up again. My second seed still hasn't popped!

 

[rene112388]

LOL. Not really sure why I decided to edit that out but yeah I kind of want to squeeze your doggy it looks so cute and innocent sleeping there.

I stopped misting so I'll go ahead and start up again. My second seed still hasn't popped!

Well I mist to prevent from having soil too wet you must be patient though from what I read and have experienced a time or 2 they can take up to 10days. Worst thing about growing is bring patient how long have you been growing?

 

[Giblet]

I've done 3 grows.

First one was hydro and the pump kept getting clogged and shutting off and they eventually got root rot. I bather their roots in H202 and they actually survived, but they ended being males because of the stress I think. Pretty sure they were femenized.

Second one, in a fit of paranoia, I pulled and threw away thinking the feds were going to bust down my door at any moment. LOL

The third grow was just one plant from bagseed and it was a success. Miracle Gro and regular CFL bulbs.

So I've been growing sporadically for years but I don't really have that much experience.

 

[rene112388]

Lmao what's with the fit of paranoia?? Idk many people are but really I never really have been maybe because where I grew up cops didn't hassle mj smokers often and well everything is a learning experience I have been growing a year and a half consistently learned a lot but still screw up can I ask why add the dolomite have seen many people add it but I try to keep it simple

 

[Damianh777]

looks good but you could use 1 of those lights and grow several plants, also saving the light bill some green. This is my small grow with 1 400mh 25 plants. it is in a 4x4 tent and i get 1.5ish lbs every 11 weeks. you are off to a good start just remember dont chop up your plants, dont use miracle grow (i use fertilome 20-20-20 for veg and 9-59-8 for flower) and be patient. growing weed is easy as pie. those who say diff are usualy impatient. just make sure it has light and water. if you are growing in an air restricted small space like me you need a fan that will do a complete air exchange every 5 min. the only thing that is sometimes difficult is waiting. also if you take a wet paper towel fold it in half lay your seeds on it fold it again in half to cover the seeds and place it in a zip lock bag and in a dark place for 6 days you can see which seeds are viable before going through the hassle of filling a pot with dirt. then use tweezers and a pencil to plant them in your pots. pencil to poke a hole and tweezers so you dont damage the tap root. i then let the new guys grow in 100% dark for a week to promote root growth. only after this 2nd week do i put them under the lights. the reason 4 this is the new plants leaves are easy to burn whick causes stress after that sit back and leave them alone for 3-4 weeks under 24hr light. feeding every 3 days till the soil will not hold water (i have a liner in the bottom so i just pour the water in that and let the nutes wick up through the holes in the pot. then after 3-4 weeks go to a 12-12 light cycle wait 7-10 weeks voila bud ready to be harvested and cured/dried. this is all i do with very good results every time. this is a progression of my current grow in flint mi after 4-1/2 weeks another 6-7 weeks and they will all have buds like u see in my profile pic using only the method i just outlined. Hope this helps.

 

[Giblet]

I just naturally tend to be a bit on the paranoid side. But yeah I suspect Texas is a lot more hostile towards marijuana smokers in general. Just combine the fact that I'm naturally paranoid, I was going through a tough time in my life, and I was stoned out of my mind, and me 1 cannabis plant 0. lol

Totally agree on keeping things simple. Which is why I went for the dolomite lime. I can't be bothered to mess with measuring pH etc... It's supposed to help buffer the pH and keep the soil from becoming too acidic over the long run.

 

[rene112388]

I just naturally tend to be a bit on the paranoid side. But yeah I suspect Texas is a lot more hostile towards marijuana smokers in general. Just combine the fact that I'm naturally paranoid, I was going through a tough time in my life, and I was stoned out of my mind, and me 1 cannabis plant 0. lol

Totally agree on keeping things simple. Which is why I went for the dolomite lime. I can't be bothered to mess with measuring pH etc... It's supposed to help buffer the pH and keep the soil from becoming too acidic over the long run.

I see yeah I do the whole ph thing my least favorite part is preparing the water I use hard water so it must sit then ph it all and then add nutes sucanat superthrive according to what plants need what oh and we were talking about lst so my plant in flower that wants to die the branches are scrawny and have a lot of ben to them so I started last night bending the whole plant it look really odd right now but awesome will have to get someone to upload a pic for ya

 

[Giblet]

looks good but you could use 1 of those lights and grow several plants, also saving the light bill some green. This is my small grow with 1 400mh 25 plants. it is in a 4x4 tent and i get 1.5ish lbs every 11 weeks. you are off to a good start just remember dont chop up your plants, dont use miracle grow (i use fertilome 20-20-20 for veg and 9-59-8 for flower) and be patient. growing weed is easy as pie. those who say diff are usualy impatient. just make sure it has light and water. if you are growing in an air restricted small space like me you need a fan that will do a complete air exchange every 5 min. the only thing that is sometimes difficult is waiting. also if you take a wet paper towel fold it in half lay your seeds on it fold it again in half to cover the seeds and place it in a zip lock bag and in a dark place for 6 days you can see which seeds are viable before going through the hassle of filling a pot with dirt. then use tweezers and a pencil to plant them in your pots. pencil to poke a hole and tweezers so you dont damage the tap root. i then let the new guys grow in 100% dark for a week to promote root growth. only after this 2nd week do i put them under the lights. the reason 4 this is the new plants leaves are easy to burn whick causes stress after that sit back and leave them alone for 3-4 weeks under 24hr light. feeding every 3 days till the soil will not hold water (i have a liner in the bottom so i just pour the water in that and let the nutes wick up through the holes in the pot. then after 3-4 weeks go to a 12-12 light cycle wait 7-10 weeks voila bud ready to be harvested and cured/dried. this is all i do with very good results every time. this is a progression of my current grow in flint mi after 4-1/2 weeks another 6-7 weeks and they will all have buds like u see in my profile pic using only the method i just outlined. Hope this helps.

Yeah I was actually gonna do 4 plants but felt it might get too cramped in there and I didn't really know how I wanted to distribute the light evenly. I'm no handyman and I'm as dumb as post when it comes to things like hanging lights. Just that simple chain setup was a miracle for me to have set up with both lights being even. I figure I can grow more plants later after I get the hang of things.

From what I understand, one of my nutes is 100% organic and the other is chemical so I still have to do a little bit more research before I go feeding my plants. Don't want to burn them. Not sure when I'm going to start yet, how often, how much etc... The nutes I'm using are on my first post if you got any advice.

That's a lovely garden you have there man. Plants look so green and healthy. Thx for the help.

I admit I do need to work on my patience. lol

 

[Giblet]

I see yeah I do the whole ph thing my least favorite part is preparing the water I use hard water so it must sit then ph it all and then add nutes sucanat superthrive according to what plants need what oh and we were talking about lst so my plant in flower that wants to die the branches are scrawny and have a lot of ben to them so I started last night bending the whole plant it look really odd right now but awesome will have to get someone to upload a pic for ya

Yeah I forgot to mention I plan on LSTing my plants. Just gonna do the simple circle technique behind the edge of the pot and then top the plant.

Sorry to hear about your plant. Hopefully you can restore it to life. May the Lord of Heaven's Armies be with your plant. I'll look forward to your pic.

 

[rene112388]

Yeah I forgot to mention I plan on LSTing my plants. Just gonna do the simple circle technique behind the edge of the pot and then top the plant.

Sorry to hear about your plant. Hopefully you can restore it to life. May the Lord of Heaven's Armies be with your plant. I'll look forward to your pic.

Thank you as far as your nutes I can look into that love to research have been all day I got mold on my purple lights sad but seems I caught it early enough I poted pics in a friends thread of my circle lst but you already seen that one

 

[Giblet]

Thanks rene! But I actually found their feeding schedule on their website. http://www.foxfarmfertilizer.com/feedingfox.html

I'm still unsure about how I'm going to approach this though. It says feed every other watering 2 times a week! I always read that it's good to let the soil dry out a little before every watering to prevent overwatering. If I water my plants twice a week, my soil will always be wet. And according to their chart I can start feeding my seedlings Big Bloom right away.

 

[LT1RX7 Drifter]

dont soak the the pot with water/nutes, only add what is needed for the growth of the plant i might add a 1-3 qts depending on how much the plants feed and transpire, only time you soak the soil is during a flush

 

[Giblet]

dont soak the the pot with water/nutes, only add what is needed for the growth of the plant i might add a 1-3 qts depending on how much the plants feed and transpire, only time you soak the soil is during a flush

Oh wow ok. I had no idea about this. I just thought you watered until it drains out the bottom. I guess I'm just gonna have to develop a feel for how much to add? Thx man.

 

[Giblet]

So I checked on my seed that hadn't germinated yet and found that it had little green spots on it. Guessing that's mold. Washed it with some H2O2 and then put it back in a cup of water with a bit of H202 mixed in and it popped in a matter of hours!

 

[rene112388]

So I checked on my seed that hadn't germinated yet and found that it had little green spots on it. Guessing that's mold. Washed it with some H2O2 and then put it back in a cup of water with a bit of H202 mixed in and it popped in a matter of hours!

Yay! See patience is a virtue and my seeds just sprouted as well soon I as I get some pics ill let ya know

 

[Damianh777]

i dont use lime and i know this may sound neglectful but i dont mess with soil ph so i dont use lime i just start with a local house blend from the flower shop which has no slow release fert in it then just add fertilizer as directed. i feel you on the paranoid i also chopped up my first garden when a friend came over without calling first i too was high as a kite lol but now i realise as long as you dont tell anyone it is almost impossible for the popo to catch you. i love growing and the growers community is for the most part a friendly one. i grow belladonna and have never messed with ph i have read that so long as ur using soil, the ph can have a larger range also adding lime can cause nutrient burn if you have to add alot. i have also read the mj grow bible 2x and if i have questions i refer to it and this forum usualy the advice here is in line with the book