1st time grower seeking guidence.

Good afternoon everyone,

I am using a hydro set up. It is the Superclost Superbox stealth grow box. The following is the set-up that i got with this system.

200 Watt Feliz Grow Lamp (Red)
8 Plant SuperPonics System
Technaflora Recipe for Success Nutrient Kit
Industrial Grade Carbon Filter
General Hydroponics pH Control Kit
Eco Air 2 Air Pump
132 Gallon Per Hour Water Pump
Adjustable Internal Circulation Fan
TDS Meter
Hydroton Clay Grow Rocks

I have read a lot, including plenty of "1st grow" journals in order to try to figure out what to do and what to avoid. Hopefully I am on the right track.

I am growing 3 photo-flowering Bubblegum. They are random seeds, so hopefully I will get at least 1 female or this grow thread will be pretty short.

I germinated the seeds using rockwool inside one of those small plastic germination domes you get for $15 at walmart. There is a heating pad under the tray to keep things around 75-80 degrees. I replaced the clear plastic lid with a solid piece of plastic in order to keep as much light away from the seedlings as possible.

I am 4 days into the germination and so far so good, I think. 2 out of 3 have sprouted about 1/2 an inch above the rockwool and I can see the 3rd is just below the surface. I will upload an image tonight when I get home.

So far, I have only been feeding it small amounts of water that has a pH of 6. I only give them about a teaspoon per cube when the rockwool feels dry to the touch, which amounts to 1 or 2 times a day.

The next step I am planning is as follows:

Once the small round leaves appear, which should happen in the next day or 3 I expect, I will place the clear plastic dome back onto the germination tray and put them under 2x25w CFLs (basically a 2 light nightstand lamp) until the roots get established in the rockwool and the first set of jagged leaves appear. Based on what I read, this should take a few weeks until I get it to the point of putting it into the hydroponics setup. Is that correct?

When should I put the rockwool cubes into the plastic net pots with they clay grow rocks? and when do I put the pots into the hydro setup?

When should I start feeding the rockwool cubes nutes at 1/4 strength? Or should I just keep using water until I move the cubes into they hydro setup?

Thanks in advance for your advice and all of the excellent posts in these forums by all the talented growers.

I feed a small amount of nutes the whole time, like 10% strength. Once you have a couple of real leaves you can bump up to 1/4 strength. At this point you are best served by putting it the cube into your hydro setup so it can root out of the cube and get full access to nute water for much faster growth. Transition to full lights, be careful about sudden lighting level changes, you can shock the hell out of them by jumping to a much brighter light.

nomofatum said:

I feed a small amount of nutes the whole time, like 10% strength. Once you have a couple of real leaves you can bump up to 1/4 strength. At this point you are best served by putting it the cube into your hydro setup so it can root out of the cube and get full access to nute water for much faster growth. Transition to full lights, be careful about sudden lighting level changes, you can shock the hell out of them by jumping to a much brighter light.

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Thanks very much Namo. I will start feeding a 10% nute solution tonight and make the slow transition to light. Do you think I should move them into the hydro now when they are so small?

Noober420 said:

Thanks very much Namo. I will start feeding a 10% nute solution tonight and make the slow transition to light. Do you think I should move them into the hydro now when they are so small?

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I would wait until you see at least 4 real leaves. After that if you put one in your hydro and keep one in the cube after a week the difference will be significant. They can stay in the cube for 3+ weeks, but after the first week they won't grow near as fast as if in the hydro system. Keep them just in the cube for 5-10 days then hydro time. I only do this with fem seeds though, non-fem go into a party cup full of vermiculite and get sexed before going into hydro.

nomofatum said:

I would wait until you see at least 4 real leaves. After that if you put one in your hydro and keep one in the cube after a week the difference will be significant. They can stay in the cube for 3+ weeks, but after the first week they won't grow near as fast as if in the hydro system. Keep them just in the cube for 5-10 days then hydro time. I only do this with fem seeds though, non-fem go into a party cup full of vermiculite and get sexed before going into hydro.

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Much appreciated Nomo.

Noober420 said:

Based on what I read, this should take a few weeks until I get it to the point of putting it into the hydroponics setup. Is that correct?

When should I put the rockwool cubes into the plastic net pots with they clay grow rocks? and when do I put the pots into the hydro setup?

When should I start feeding the rockwool cubes nutes at 1/4 strength? Or should I just keep using water until I move the cubes into they hydro setup?

Thanks in advance for your advice and all of the excellent posts in these forums by all the talented growers.

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Really it should only take a few days for your first node of real leaves to sprout. Once you have a root showing on the outside of the rockwool cube then you can put it into your net pot and cover it with the clay rocks.You can start feeding 1/4 strength right now. Go to half strength when in the hydro system. Wait for roots to pop out of the net pot before upping the nutes.

Once you have at least 3 nodes of leafy growth going you can go to full strength nutes. Some people stay at half strength until they have more growth, it depends on the plant.

If things go well it will be 1- 2 feet tall in 2 or 3 weeks.

NoDrama said:

Really it should only take a few days for your first node of real leaves to sprout. Once you have a root showing on the outside of the rockwool cube then you can put it into your net pot and cover it with the clay rocks.You can start feeding 1/4 strength right now. Go to half strength when in the hydro system. Wait for roots to pop out of the net pot before upping the nutes.

Once you have at least 3 nodes of leafy growth going you can go to full strength nutes. Some people stay at half strength until they have more growth, it depends on the plant.

If things go well it will be 1- 2 feet tall in 2 or 3 weeks.

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Thanks NoDrama. Love your quote by the way. My favorite from the Patton movie...I am probably dating myself by that.

Noober420 said:

Thanks NoDrama. Love your quote by the way. My favorite from the Patton movie...I am probably dating myself by that.

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Naw, 40+ is the best age to be.

Here's my girls (hopefully) and their light set up. 2 x 23 watt bulbs about 14 inches away from the top of the tallest seedling. Is that too much of a light jump? Should I go w/ 1 x 23 watt for now? If so, what should the lights schedule be? A few hours on a few hours off?

Noober420 said:

Here's my girls (hopefully) and their light set up. 2 x 23 watt bulbs about 14 inches away from the top of the tallest seedling. Is that too much of a light jump? Should I go w/ 1 x 23 watt for now? If so, what should the lights schedule be? A few hours on a few hours off?

View attachment 3364625 View attachment 3364627

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With those little lights you better put them within 4-5" max (almost touching is fine) or you will just grow long lanky weaklings.

These are your friends for CFLs: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Leviton-White-Outlet-to-Socket-Light-Plug-R52-00061-00W/100170446

I usually find 2 packs at that price at the store though, $1 a piece.

These too: http://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-150-Watt-Incandescent-Clamp-Light-CE-300PDQ/100354511

Thanks Nomo. I put them about 5 inches away from the light. I have a 200w light on order which should be here in a day or so. Until then, I will use these or get something stronger.

It looks like the first set of jagged leaves are staying tio appear, but they are very slightly brown at the tips. I turned off the lights for now in case they are too bright for the young plants.

Should I be concerned?

Here's a pic.

You should find this at least a little helpful. I certainly did!

Also on a side note I read a study on vitamin d in plants and since then I've been giving it to my pineapple kush plants. The growth is phenomenal and their calcium intake is crazy.

Ok, my sprouts continue to grow so I think it's time to start adding a bit of nutes to their water. What PPM should I be aiming for? I have read anywhere from plain water to 150ppm at this point with a pH of 5.8.

I would NOT add nutes until the coty leaves fall off or start turning yellow. I hold back on nutes until the mainstem starts peeling

Thanks jb4.

Np bro. The only thing more sad than a male plant is a seedling that got burned