first grow, seems ok

hey everyone, i think his is my first post lol, i tried a few minutes ago, but my computer almost blew up

k, first grow ever, 5 bag seed, 5 plants, 4 female, 1 male (male quarantined to collect pollen), lights are
2 46w cfl- red
1 25w cfl-red
7 13w cfl-red with 2 or 3 blue
(im using mostly free stuff and theres alot of cfl's in exterior light fixtures)

lamp fixtures are pieces of lamps from bulk cleanup days that i rewired,

buckets are dirty old pissbuckets from a old shed

soils from grocery store

firtilized 2 times with 1/2 strenth miracle grow 25 10 10 (its all i can afford, but i dont want garbage tasting smoke)

veg for a month, maybe a month and a week, 2 weeks into bud- buds are doubeling in size every 24 hours, is this normal???

i noticed a beige color patch on one of the leaves that is worrying me, it looks like chips of beige paint fell on the leaf- but it's accutually part of the leaf-

i know i should of vegged for longer, but i needs a bunch of seeds to catch the last bit of summer


im just wondering if they look normal (there like bushes to me lol

but im also wondering if someone can guestemate time until harvest and yield (not alot of yield im shure because i never vegged long enough lol, but how much would ya say looking at pics and age

any comments tips, advice or info is greatly appreachated, but remmember, this is only my first grow, so im getting seeds if i can from this, then upgradeing to fluro tubes, then im thinking about m.h lamp over hps, but only because i see a huge difference in veg with a blue light but buds seem to like red light, so im trying to deside whats better for later on down the road lol

Your plants look alright, You are lacking sufficient lighting, but you probably know that. Move the lights closer... always always closer. HPS>MH always.

You should really only veg for 15 days or so with CFLs.
Time until harvest: 7 weeks with your limited lighting probably.
Yield: Assuming you move your lights closer to the buds, maybe a little over 2oz from all four.

Your started off weak. Your lighting arrangement doesn't fit the CFL style, you'd be better off with a HPS. CFLs surround the plant and stay within 4" inches of foliage at all times.

But for a first grow? Fantastic job.

first grow great job move lights 18-24in away from plants

18-24? Hes using CFLs not HPS. 3-5"

ok, i needs more advice, i HAVE 3 locolux lu-150/med bulbs, i have a tight budget, like REALLY tight ($20/week MAX), i need a balast that will work, what do you reccomend i do

my optiond are

save up 3 weeks and buy a 4 foot double floro shoplight

save up for a ballast for my bulbs

keep collecting lamps and cfls (can get lamps $2 eah MAX and get a 13w cfl in each


i only got 7 weeks max before my next grow so what should i buy lighting wise (best option on my budget ($120 for everything)

oh ya, im puting up mylar over the "light canopy" to reflext light back down and lights are closer to plants

nfld420 said:

ok, i needs more advice, i HAVE 3 locolux lu-150/med bulbs, i have a tight budget, like REALLY tight ($20/week MAX), i need a balast that will work, what do you reccomend i do

my optiond are

save up 3 weeks and buy a 4 foot double floro shoplight

save up for a ballast for my bulbs

keep collecting lamps and cfls (can get lamps $2 eah MAX and get a 13w cfl in each


i only got 7 weeks max before my next grow so what should i buy lighting wise (best option on my budget ($120 for everything)

Click to expand...

I would keep getting cfl's. Go for 23 watters.

lights need to be way closer. I wouldn't agree with hps>mh. Technical reasons aside, MH lamps are available in a wide variety of colors (spectrum), and more easily suited to a veg to flower switch. HPS naturally have a good flowering spectrum, but not so good for veg. Part of the whole advantage to MH is their spectral options, something that HPS lack. If you can get one of each, if only one then do some research and weigh the options.

well, my concern is only with price, the best option for cheapest price, i can usually only get 13w bulbs for free

am better off getting 40 13w cfls or 4 4 ft florescence (2 double fixture shop lights)

what's better???????

i agree with desertrat cfl's r great for veg ive used them for flower (42watter )also and had pretty impressive results u would be surpised what cfl r capable of. 23 watt cool or soft white cfls will be your friend threw veg the 42 watter would be what ya want to flower 3 to 5 inches away is key tho.
and if money is an issue emergency blankets a ya local mega store 2.50 cents a pack

thanks for the help everyone, i just got 3 new sockets, now i gotta get some bulbs later on tonight, but i bought some "optimum hydrophnix a (6-0-3) and b (1-4- now, i only used like 2 cups of 1/4 strenth 25-10-10 miracle grow, so i thinks its time for more, it's a blooming nute, how do i i properly mix it???? what strenth should i mix????

whatever it says ti mix on the back..for example...> if it says mix 2 teaspoons per gallon of water, do 1 teaspoon per gallon, just to make sure you dont burn the plant, then next time you feed them you can mix 1 1/2 teaspoon per gallon. and so on and on

nfld420 said:

ok, i needs more advice, i HAVE 3 locolux lu-150/med bulbs, i have a tight budget, like REALLY tight ($20/week MAX), i need a balast that will work, what do you reccomend i do

my optiond are

save up 3 weeks and buy a 4 foot double floro shoplight

save up for a ballast for my bulbs

keep collecting lamps and cfls (can get lamps $2 eah MAX and get a 13w cfl in each


i only got 7 weeks max before my next grow so what should i buy lighting wise (best option on my budget ($120 for everything)

Click to expand...

If you are on a budget I highly reccomend T5 HO lights. You can pick up a single bulb with ballest for around $25. It would not take you long buying one at a time to have plenty of light. You can also start with the 6500K bulbs and then switch out for 2700K to flower. You also do not have to run T5 HO as close as CFL so less moving the lights around. You are doing great, keep up the good work.

https://www.jollygreenhydro.com/onlinestore/product.php?productid=16901&cat=252&page=1
https://www.jollygreenhydro.com/onlinestore/product.php?productid=16837&cat=395&page=1

thx everyone, i got 4 new sockets, but i tryed to wire 4 in parralell and i dont want to risk dying.... so im getting someone else to plug it in first lol,

im getting a shop light on monday so i hope im gonna have enough light by next grow..... im starting to see crystals which is good, plants dont stink very much yet- not shure if thats good or bad,

the hydro nutrients seem good, should i still use hydro nutes every 2nd water?

also, im seeing lots of brown hairs in the bud with little tiny white hairs comming out, but the brown hairs is worrying me, i wants seeds and by leaving the male there, how much longer should i have to wait for pollenation to happen?????, and how many seeds should i get on average???

nfld420 said:

thx everyone, i got 4 new sockets, but i tryed to wire 4 in parralell and i dont want to risk dying.... so im getting someone else to plug it in first lol,

im getting a shop light on monday so i hope im gonna have enough light by next grow..... im starting to see crystals which is good, plants dont stink very much yet- not shure if thats good or bad,
the hydro nutrients seem good, should i still use hydro nutes every 2nd water?

also, im seeing lots of brown hairs in the bud with little tiny white hairs comming out, but the brown hairs is worrying me, i wants seeds and by leaving the male there, how much longer should i have to wait for pollenation to happen?????, and how many seeds should i get on average???

Click to expand...

make sure your shop light is hps. No worries with brown hairs. You will get hundreds of seeds if you leave a male in with females.