First Official cfl grow

Ok, now I can rest easy, that question is out of the way for the moment lol. I'm pretty anxious about learning what to do with these cola's lol.
HippySmoke, I think she could have been pretty darn potent. I remember about a month ago or so, maybe less, I accidently licked some trichs off my fingers after I handled the buds, and wow, I had a huge body high for like 4 hrs lol. I will find out how good she is here in just a few days, maybe less if I decide one or two of the smaller buds are dry enough to test out
john pickle, I didn't do any clones. I would have, except I only have 1 grow box, and it's not big enough to put any thing in it except 1 plant. Well, if I did smaller containers I could do a small scrog I guess. But ya, no clones
homer371, yes, I am planning on another grow, asap! I want to grow some NL, but since this grow didn't go so well, I am going to invest some of my tax return money (which I got back today, yay!) in proper nutes, and a fan/filter combo, and some soil pH up/down. Don't want to keep using vinegar lol. I want really badly to grow a better strain, but don't want to spend 50 or 60 bucks on seeds, only to have it turn out like this one lol. So, next grow is going to be some mid grade bag seed I got from a friend. I don't know the strain of those either
archminister, I don't know the strain, wish I did! She sure was pretty! I loved those pistils, what a color! It was some brown weed that I got some seeds out of a while back.
So if anyone can help me to figure out what to do with the cola's, I would sure appreciate it! Do I just tear it off the stem in chunks, do I cut it? Sure am anxious to know the next step lol.
Also, if anyone has experience with anxiety, and knows a good strain that cuts down on it, or at least doesn't cause any extra anxiety when smoking, please let me know. I deal with it all the time, and it's not fun to smoke and then get a big anxiety attack lol. Paranoia will destroy ya lol.
She has been hanging for almost 24 hrs now. I am going to check on her in a bit. I am hoping for a smoke report soon. I know some of the tiny buds on the stems will dry faster so I will check those out. I have no idea how to tell if it's dry enough to smoke LOL. I'm such a NOOB!!! lol

Yea I bet she looks like she could have been a legend, oh well.

Now I must ask.... chopping up buds? huh? get a bigger jar my friend. You see I love a nice large cola for one big reason, nobody has touched the middle of it except maybe the grower during growth. The outside of a large bud or any bud for that matter are sensitive to being handled properly just like any other flower but if a bud is kept intact no dealer no middle man ever lays a finger or in any way disturbs the center of the bud.

I deal with a bit of GAD but I am sorry to say I have no idea, my strain research is dedicated primarily to pain research for my old lady and a few people I help with their medication and then munchie / knockout strains for my personal medicinal uses. Also paranoia from smoking reefer is relative to the consumer on a large scale sadly just like the munchies for many strains, it's hit or miss it works for some but not others. Another reason why my research focuses on those field I eventually would like to breed super weeds for those purposes.

Looking forward to the smoke report and next grow! By the way wish I could hook you up with a clone man spring is coming and have been cloning like hell in preparation, if you know someone try to barter for a clone it's much less hassle than bagseed.

hey allforit, i sort of agree with hippy about strains, but generally i think you'll find that indicas have a more subdued effect and will be better to treat anxiety than sativa. most weed you'll get, especially bag seed, will be hybrid, but you can sort of tell by shape of the plant and leaves which side of the spectrum it leans (bushier plant and fatter leaves = more indica).

as for chopping up the colas, i'm not sure bro.... ideally you don't have to break it but if you do, i guess cutting it perpendicular to the cola makes more sense (like in your first picture). try to make as few cuts as you can, and also if you separate the bud with your fingers to get to the main stem, you should be able to cut just the stem without damaging any of the bud/calyxes... hope that makes sense!

i don't remember what soil you're using, but if you have some $$ left, i would also invest in good soil. the fox farms ocean forest that i used was (still is) excellent. everything i drop in there (weed or other) grows.

Thanks HippySmoke and homer371!! I am still a bit confused, but I am beginning to get there lol. I did buy some bigger jars. That way i don't have to cut it or break it to get it into the jars. The buds are still drying, another 2 days or so left I think. The stems are about half way to snapping cleanly. I have a small bud that I "quick dried" in the oven, and I tried it out, tasted like shit. So I put it in a jar, and am curing it now. It actually smelled like bud today lol. After 2 days or so of curing. I am really wanting to cure the whole plant before I smoke it, as it tastes really bad right now. I didnt' smoke enough to really get high, it was just a taste. I might smoke the curing bud tomorrow night, will see. If I do, I will give a smoke report. It's so weird, how bud smells one way, then after curing it smells totally different. Trippy.
Anyhoo. Just checking in. You all have a good one! More to follow! :0)

hell yeah allforit! it's so weird how the smell/taste changes. the first few days of cure will make a huge difference, then it gets better again after 2-4 weeks, and then even better after 4-8 weeks lol (if you can wait that long). if i were you, i'd sample a little bud every few days just to see how the smell and flavor is developing over time. the other cool thing is that not only does the flavor improve, but the potency as well, and it gets you high for longer. not sure how that works chemically, but it's true, i've seen it with mine own eyes lol. take it easy bro.

What was your wet weight?

homer371, I think I will do that, smoke some small buds here and there while the bigger cola's are drying, that's a great idea to help me to see the differences in it. I'm thinking the one I have had in the jar for a few days is going to be the tester tonight lol. The rest I put in jars this morning. I think I might have overdried it, but maybe not. I put it in the jars this morning, and the stems still had water in them because they didn't snap crackle or pop or break, they just bent. The buds themselves were crispy on the outside. I can tell they are drying, they are much lighter now lol. What a difference. Man, I can't wait to smoke this stuff after it's been curing a few weeks, I hope it's awesome
tunaboat, I have no idea on my weight as I don't own a scale. It's just for my medication, and recreation, so I didn't bother with getting a scale. Not a good idea in my State to have a scale either lol. Very strict laws here. It's a good thing I dont' own any guns right now too, cause that automatically makes it a felony. Stupid, but true. That's really dumb though. Cause I am a hunter. So I guess we are not allowed to kill deer and smoke weed. Stupid insane laws. That's ok, it's gonna change. Let me go take some pics right quick, and post em, so you all can see them in the jars. Just 2 jars. Quart size I think, the wide mouth ones.


Sorry the pics suck so bad. I didn't fill the jars all the way up, I wanted to leave plenty of room. You will notice all the brown, you all know what that is from, having followed my journal.
OK IT'S TIME TODAY! Today, I am going to start germing one of those mid grade seeds I got from a friend. No clones in my area, sadly. Hell, I'm the only person I know that grows here. I will keep up the pics on here, after this cures I want to post some pics of it. I will start a new journal once the seed pops the soil and is picture worthy. I have to hurry up and order some pH up/down for soil. Don't want to use vinegar on this next grow.
Question? On this grow here, I noticed the soil seemed to compact quite a bit after a few months of watering. Can I stop that by adding more perlite? I have FF OF that I am using of course, and I have a huge bag of perlite. Should I mix it, like 75% OF, and 25% perlite? Or should I put a few inches of perlite in the bottom of the container, and the soil on top of that? It seems like the best idea is to mix it. But not sure. Any advice would be helpful and appreciated.
If I smoke that small bud I been curing tonight, and it gets me high, I will report back tonight lol.

good luck with the smoke tonight! not sure on the FFOF / perlite mixing... maybe someone else can help you out. looking forward to seeing your next grow, bro. are you gonna update here or start a new thread?

That's a good Question, homer371. I was thinking of starting a new thread, but then and again, since you mentioned it, why not just continue on this one? That way, I can see the pics easily from my first grow, and always re-read the advice I have gotten from all you kind souls out there . What a great idea! Yep, let's just make it on this thread, why not? I got the seed in wet paper towels in a warm dark place this afternoon, so will get the rest of the stuff ready here soon, so I can plant her. Think positive, it's gonna be a her lol. Right from seed, it's a her lol. Put all that positive energy out there, she will feel the love, and grow to be a fine woman! lol. Wow, I really need a g/f. I gotta stop talking about female cannabis this way lol.
No smoke report tonight, yet. It's still curing, and doesn't smell all that good yet. I figure, why smoke it if it smells bad? It will just be nasty tasting, and ruin it. But I am scraping the pipe this evening, as I am out of bud. HAHAHAHA. Out of Bud. With like a half ounce in the bedroom curing LOL. HAHA. Sorry, that was funny lol. I've got more bud than I have ever bought at once, more or less, yet I am "out" lol. I don't want to smoke it yet lol. I do, but I don't. I don't want the bad taste and harsh smoke. So I will scrape the pipe tonight, there is a crap load of resin in there. Smoked 2 or so OZ. through it so far without a scraping, so it's ripe. Well, scraped it a few times already tonight, just little bit and I am stoned LOL. I like that word. Stoned. Baked. High. Dancing with mary jane. She is so nice to me.

nice dude. good luck with the cure and with the new seed! have you tried using a vaporizer? if the cure doesn't do its magic perfectly on your buds, and you can get your hands on a vape (i have a hot box style one, not too expensive), it's the way to go for harsh smoke. it makes it a much cleaner, less smelly vapor, and it's better for the old lungs... anyhoo, look forward to seeing the new seed grow up! have you read micro.grower's grow? he sexed it his plant right away and then revegged it, then flowered it out in two stages. came out really well.

Whenever I am disapointed with the quality of my harvest I do typically 1 of 2 things... edibles or hashish. But since this is your first harvest no matter what it turns out like ya may just wanna smoke it, thats the way I felt with my very very first crop.

homer371, thanks man! I have not tried a vape yet, I might someday, since it is better for the lungs! I did read micro.grower's grow today, was pretty darn interesting! I kinda want to try going 12/12 from seed, but I have 1 concern about it. I read that in order to get the best from your plant, you have to let it mature to it's full sexual maturity, meaning alternating nodes, before you switch to flowering stage. It said your buds will be more potent, etc. Does anyone else heard of that? Or have any thoughts on it?
HippySmoke, yep, I am for sure going to smoke my very first plant! Yeah!! I have been burping it for about 20 mins a day, then sealing it back up. It still smells a bit damp and grassy, etc. But I know it will get there, and I bet once it smells good, I will be happy with the smoke.
And here it is!! My seed has germed, and I planted her tonight!!! YEAH!!! Next grow is starting right now! Yes! I'm very excited, I ordered some pH up/down so I don't have to use vinegar anymore, should get that in the mail next week. I will use vinegar for watering until I get it. Of course, with it just being planted, I won't have to water much for now. Here is a few pics of the seed, sorry it's hard to see it's tail against the white paper towel, this seed popped it's tail in 2 days. Good time I think. I have no idea what strain it is, dang it My friend who gave it to me, gave me several seeds actually, said it's from some mid grade cannabis. If this grow goes well, then next grow I am buying seeds. I am going to research as best I can for cannabis that helps with body aches/pains, muscle cramps, and anxiety/depression. I will grow whatever strain seems best for that. I really want some NL, for some reason, probably cause it's supposed to grow well indoors and have a high yield. When my stuff is dry, I am going to borrow my friend's scale and weigh it, so I can give you all a dry weight, plus I am kinda curious lol. It looks like almost an oz, but there is no way I got an oz out of that horrible first grow lol.



I did change up the soil a bit. I always put small rocks in the bottom of the container, for drainage. This time I also put about an inch or 2 inches of perlite on top of the rocks, then mixed in about 3 cups of perlite with the FF OF soil. Hoping it will help with the compacting issue. Wish me luck all! I am thinking of changing my lights a bit. I am thinking of doing 4 42W cfl at 6500K, and 2 or 4 26W 2700K during veg. What do you all think? Is it worth spending the money to buy the 42w bulbs? I would be able to use less bulbs, but still have over 10,000 lumens. I would like to have 6 bulbs in there instead of 9 or so. Ideas?
Have a great night all! I will have a smokey report as soon as possible. Peace!!

I plan to use more smaller bulbs for the next couple of projects to keep an even light footprint, and I see deals on the 23 watters all the time like 2 dollars a piece.

Wow, awesome HippySmoke! I have never seen cfl's so cheap as 2 bucks! I wish I would! I have no idea if/where to buy 42 watters, the idea just struck me this evening lol.

allforit said:

homer371, I think I will do that, smoke some small buds here and there while the bigger cola's are drying, that's a great idea to help me to see the differences in it. I'm thinking the one I have had in the jar for a few days is going to be the tester tonight lol. The rest I put in jars this morning. I think I might have overdried it, but maybe not. I put it in the jars this morning, and the stems still had water in them because they didn't snap crackle or pop or break, they just bent. The buds themselves were crispy on the outside. I can tell they are drying, they are much lighter now lol. What a difference. Man, I can't wait to smoke this stuff after it's been curing a few weeks, I hope it's awesome
tunaboat, I have no idea on my weight as I don't own a scale. It's just for my medication, and recreation, so I didn't bother with getting a scale. Not a good idea in my State to have a scale either lol. Very strict laws here. It's a good thing I dont' own any guns right now too, cause that automatically makes it a felony. Stupid, but true. That's really dumb though. Cause I am a hunter. So I guess we are not allowed to kill deer and smoke weed. Stupid insane laws. That's ok, it's gonna change. Let me go take some pics right quick, and post em, so you all can see them in the jars. Just 2 jars. Quart size I think, the wide mouth ones.
View attachment 1408814View attachment 1408816

Sorry the pics suck so bad. I didn't fill the jars all the way up, I wanted to leave plenty of room. You will notice all the brown, you all know what that is from, having followed my journal.
OK IT'S TIME TODAY! Today, I am going to start germing one of those mid grade seeds I got from a friend. No clones in my area, sadly. Hell, I'm the only person I know that grows here. I will keep up the pics on here, after this cures I want to post some pics of it. I will start a new journal once the seed pops the soil and is picture worthy. I have to hurry up and order some pH up/down for soil. Don't want to use vinegar on this next grow.
Question? On this grow here, I noticed the soil seemed to compact quite a bit after a few months of watering. Can I stop that by adding more perlite? I have FF OF that I am using of course, and I have a huge bag of perlite. Should I mix it, like 75% OF, and 25% perlite? Or should I put a few inches of perlite in the bottom of the container, and the soil on top of that? It seems like the best idea is to mix it. But not sure. Any advice would be helpful and appreciated.
If I smoke that small bud I been curing tonight, and it gets me high, I will report back tonight lol.

Click to expand...

The FFOG has some perlite and other things in it to keep it light and airy. I add about a half inch of perlite in the bottom of the pots and about 10-15 % in with the soil.

Local supermarket has GE 12 packs for 2 dollars each bulb or $24 plus tax... stock up and save

Allister, that sounds about like what I did, so I am glad I did it correctly! Good to know! Nice Avatar. Damn she is sexy as hell.
HippySmoke, I will have to check my grocery stores out, see what they have. I bet they would be cheaper than Home Depot, which is where I usually buy them. It's expensive at the Depot lol.
I still want to get some 42W lights so I can use less of them, but not sure if that will happen. If I had my druthers I would be using a 250W MH/HPS conversion light.
Question? When you all plant your germed seed, do you leave it in the dark until it pops the soil? That's what I did last grow, and it seemed to work ok, but it took days for it to pop up. Will it pop soil faster if I have it in the cabinet with the lights on?

The depot has higher watters than any grocery store but grocery stores have bulk packs pretty cheap

Wally world, 2.80 each for 26 watters http://www.walmart.com/ip/GE-Energy-Smart-CFL-Light-Bulb-26-Watt-6-Pk/9855132

i tried checking wall world but no 12 packs so my local grocer is still the cheapest.

Right on HippySmoke. I think I might get a new grow cabinet too. I'm looking at this one: http://www.htgsupply.com/Product-Grow-Tent---Size-S-20-x-36-x-64---Silver-Lined.asp
I like it because it's only 20" deep, and my closet is 21" deep, so it would be perfect, and I would be able to grow a bigger plant, bigger yield! At 64" tall, I could grow a nice small tree lol. Would start it with cfl, but eventually switch to a MH/HPS 250W combo.

hey allforit, everything looking good over here. how tall is your current cabinet, i forget? that tent looks pretty good, although i'd like to get something a little shorter, maybe 4 feet tall, so it's easier to put away behind other stuff lol. also +rep for getting that seed popped!! looking forward to seeing "her" flourish!