Well said. Had I not been so stoned earlier, I probably would have asked for more details, like you said.
OP - Try to be as anal as possible going into this next grow. You know what kind of environment they need - try to make it happen. I've realized that since I've been documenting everything with the herbIQ program that my breeding projects, plant rotation and even my end results/nutrient adjustments have drastically increased. Try to get a notebook or google the Herb IQ program and use that to make notes on your grows.
So, to make it very clear:
1. Clean everything the best you can
2. Make sure your soil drains well
3. Find your nutrient manufacturer's feeding program. Loosely follow this at about 1/4 strength after you're leaving the seedling stage, then increase SLOWLY.
4. Measure temps at the canopy or slightly higher (82F is about as warm as you want to get it for most strains - which is pushing it)
5. Don't over-water. You should allow your soil to dry a little. This will depend on how well it retains water. Pick your plant/pot up without water, then water it and see the weight difference. Use this as a reference point.
6. Make sure you're using good water. The best way to make sure you're doing this is to go to the store and buy gallons of RO water. I get mine for 89 cents a gallon at the local grocery store.
7. Get a cheap grow book. Yes the internet is great and has all the information that is in that book, but I've found that having the information condensed down into a book made it a lot more understandable. You're getting information that is tried and tested, not some second hand BS that a 13 yr old kid w/ a HighTimes magazine on a grow forum.
8. Check for bugs. There are tons of pests that will KILL your yield that are rather hard to see.
9. Record everything. Write down when you germinated the seeds, when you planted them, when they popped the soil, when they've entered veg, how long they've been in veg, light schedule, when you change lights to 12/12, when they show sex, make notes about the way the leafs look, rate of growth, how tall they are, grow techniques used (FIM, topping, pinching, supercropping, etc.)
10. Be very observant. You should only have to mess with a plant 1-2 times a day. When a plant starts to become stressed, every wrong move you make puts it that much closer to death. If you don't know what is wrong with it, don't throw something at it without being fairly sure what the diagnosis is.
11. If you see problems happening, bring your recorded info to the forum w/ pics and the problem will more than likely be solved.
I mean, I yielded 113 grams in a 18in X 20in x 33in cabinet with a 150w HPS in soil with my very FIRST grow. I used chicken wire as a screen to spread the tops out. It was just some bagseed. I highly recommend using bagseed until you figure out what is holding you back. Bagseed isn't something to knock, you can end up with awesome results like I did. I wish I would have had the proper nutes and a larger pot. This was a single plant, mind you.
My second grow, I had upgraded to *almost* the same setup that I do now (400w hps), but the temps were out of control. I didn't think anything of having 87 degree temps because my mexican bagseed strain handled it so well. I figured my awesome Nirvana White Widow, Aurora Indica, and random freebies were going to rock out with their pistils out. I ended up killing over 10 plants. I made it to flower with about 5 plants and yeilded 134 grams of semi-decent B- bud. After inspection, I had a number of problems - 1.) They didn't drain well enough, so the nutes would collect in the soil. 2.) It was wayyy too hot 3.) I was overdosing them on nutrients b/c I was following the instructions. I've since learned to ease into the nutes and let your plants tell you if they need more. 4.) there was apparently a minor bug infestation because I was trying to keep the WW from flowering by taking it outside during the day and putting it in my flower room at night.
Hell, with this current grow I accidentally bleached my top leafs a little. I had my cooltube about 3in from the canopy (it's warm to the touch) because the bulb was old. Well, it went out and I replaced it with a new Hortilux. Obviously I should have backed the light off a little, but I didn't. I was sick for about 3 days, so I was only poking my head through the bottom of the tent to do hydro maintenance - I couldn't see the top of my canopy. Long story short, I bleached my beautiful ChemDawg leafs
. You can make silly mistakes that you don't really think about even after years of growing is all I'm saying, so don't get down on yourself at all, bud!
ahah
