Helio ogk grow journal

H.A.F.

Well-Known Member
I re-read the description, and I think I get it. I would definitely get a cheap fabric pot to transplant it into when it gets bigger. They are a lot more forgiving than a plastic or ceramic pot.
 

Fatmat19

Active Member
Checked ph of soil slurry, it’s betwee 6-6.5 that’s not my issue. Leaves are still curled slightly maybe a touch droopy today o I used a stick to fluff up the soil around the edge of the pot to let it air out, can’t imagine I overwatered her but it’s a possibility. Still growing fine another day another set of leaves starting.

Was browsing ff website noticed they are sold at my local meijer of all places so I picked up a bottle of big bloom for extra micros even though there is only 3 listed on the bottle I guess it might do some good will give them some at my next watering in a day or two. Partially set on flowering with tiger bloom even though it’s not organic $14 at meijer worth a shot.

Another thing to note is she hasn’t been growing vertically since I added the 4th bulb. Right now the lights are 5-6 inches from her but they are about an inch away from each other, possibility of too much light? 6400 lumens 10 days old can’t imagine that’s my problem...
 
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Fatmat19

Active Member
Day 11

Well she is still growing, leafs are getting worse. Light isn’t the issue so that leaves me with stress from to much temp/humidity variation, or possibly a fungus idk that’s the least of my present concerns.

Checked her last night and noticed the outside walls are sweating behind the insulation, had to stop adding humidity will have to let it air out for a couple days at least and figure if I’m going to put up plastic walls or make a plastic tent. Started misting leafs with ro water, hoping I can avoid mold but not very optimistic.
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Fatmat19

Active Member
Day 15

I was able to get my walls and insulation dried out after 3 days of hell and help from a blow dryer. Put enough plastic up to ensure the moisture from my grow can’t reach the walls, disaster averted for now.
Temps dropped to 53 one night as heater couldn’t keep up without insulation and -30 wind chill, my girl didn’t like it has a few wrinkled leaves, other than that still growing.

Leaves feel dry to the touch, working on humidity still, hopefully the plastic will help keep it in the air rather than on my walls and she will be healthy looking again in the next few days.
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Fatmat19

Active Member
Day 17

Added two more bulbs 2700k and the second hood, going to add two more bulbs in a couple days.

Bottom leaves are turning yellow probably from not getting enough light, the two hoods hung vertical is getting light through to the bottom still trying to position it just right.

Adding 1/4 strength nutes with half strength big bloom today we will see if she likes it. Seriously considering jumping the gun on flip, still weighing my options. I want some smoke, and I’m not convinced this Michigan weather isn’t going to throw a storm that will knock power out for a couple days and kill her lol. Will see what she looks like at the end of week 3, she is looking healthier with humidity coming up poor girl.

She is pretty stinky already, makes my mouth water when I go in there.
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H.A.F.

Well-Known Member
Day 17

Added two more bulbs 2700k and the second hood, going to add two more bulbs in a couple days.

Bottom leaves are turning yellow probably from not getting enough light, the two hoods hung vertical is getting light through to the bottom still trying to position it just right.

Adding 1/4 strength nutes with half strength big bloom today we will see if she likes it. Seriously considering jumping the gun on flip, still weighing my options. I want some smoke, and I’m not convinced this Michigan weather isn’t going to throw a storm that will knock power out for a couple days and kill her lol. Will see what she looks like at the end of week 3, she is looking healthier with humidity coming up poor girl.

She is pretty stinky already, makes my mouth water when I go in there.
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First, have you thought about transplanting? Some of your issues will be from soil staying moist for too long. As far as flipping, it's usually about a month after she can take her first veg-feed. Patience is tough, but you are going to be waiting 7-9 weeks on flowering, then another week for drying, and 4 weeks to cure. You can get a good bit of pre-cure from all the trim, which will be the best smoke you've ever had, until the buds cure ;)

You have about 3 months from today if you flipped right now. In that pot you will get a half an ounce to an ounce dried if everything goes well - which probably won't get you through your next grow, so you stay behind the curve.

If you transplanted into a bigger cloth pot (3-5gal) and wait the extra month to veg you can get 3-4oz per plant easy. So it's always up to you, but think long term. Personally, when I was getting started, I just bitched and moaned and kept track of what I was spending on bud. I then vowed to spend that amount on upgrades when I no longer had to buy flower. I'm self-sufficient now, with the exception of buying seeds for new strains to try and buying nutes. It took about 3 grows. 1st sucked and I learned, got 3/4 oz. Second was better but still with inferior gear. So I saved a few months of bud-money and got better lights, then ventilation, etc.
The 3rd grow with the good lights was the 1st that produced bulk.
 

H.A.F.

Well-Known Member
Oh, the other thing I was doing during those 3 grows was reading on forums and seeing what other people did.
 

Fatmat19

Active Member
I hear ya man, I started growing outdoors when I was 17-18 my friend and me grew some amazing plants in 5 gal buckets. Unfortunately we were to uneducated to let them finish and we didn’t have the internet back then so we grew some amazing chronic that was never allowed to produce thc. I can only laugh about it now.

I’ve been using this pot since i started growing indoors it does alright, no doubt bigger would be better. To my knowledge I haven’t had any problems with overwatering with it, my soil is very fluffy and drains really good it seems to hold just the right amount of moisture. I had only been watering once a week until now it seems she was dry after 3 days. I can sure tell where the roots stop as there was some heavier soil in the bottom 2-3 inches, ironically I like to poke holes all the way to the bottom of the pot to feel the soil and help air flow once in awhile but somehow dislike the idea of transplanting for fear of damaging the roots. I know lol it sounds dumb I think I had a bad experience transplanting at some point.

I’m used to growing in my basement I’ve done around 5 grows in my old house before I had a family, my biggest challenge has been growing in a different environment. Having to heat and add moisture to my grow room is totally new to me, in my basement all I had to worry about was sterilizing the room and running a dehumidifier temp was a constant 60 and never a shortage of humidity in the Michigan basement I had. I had a 300 or 400 watt MH/HPS ballast I bought ten years ago for over $300 imagine what I could get today lol got rid of that when I got married as my wife found me growing in the basement and wasn’t happy about it to drastically understate it. So cfls I’m new to as well, it’s ok though I’m happy doing what I’m doing.

Honestly I spend most of my free time doing research on growing, it’s not the first time either I have a pretty good idea of what to expect with this setup. I have a slight obsessive personality when something peaks my interest right now canna, In a few months it will be back to beekeeping. That I don’t hide from my wife so on my 3rd straight week of reading about bees and being like hey babe did you know a male bees dick explodes and he dies after mating a queen my wife will possibly divorce me haha.

In all seriousness though if I get a half oz I will be happy with it, my days of wake and bake are over. I literally have been smoking the same half oz for a little over a year, i smoked the last of it shortly before dropping this seed. I had one toke off the smallest roach you could imagine, and that ashy charcoal lining my empty roach jar is looking pretty good. It’s actually harder to go without smoking when your out than it is if it’s available. I have to stay clean for my job so at most I will go on a bender and smoke one or two hits a night for a week. It’s more common for me to smoke once on a Friday so I know I’ll be clean by Monday.
I do miss the days of smoking nonstop all day everyday sometimes but I find happiness getting high af off one hit and too stoned to properly function off two or three hits.

Hopefully my next grow will be outdoors and if it’s a good year I can have more smoke than I’ll know what to do with for several years lol
 

H.A.F.

Well-Known Member
I spent 25years enlisted and travelling with no flowers in my life. My retirement while still young is my bonus. Just over 50 and my job is to be happy and busy ;) the weed actually is a therapeutic thing because you have to stay on top of it, keep track of things, stay somewhat mentally sharp. Doing it while stoned is the 'happy' part LOL.

I also just bought a house last year that was built in the 1890's on a couple of acres of hardwoods, but it was flipped and renewed right before I bought it so not much work there. I have mainly yard-work and forestry stuff, but plain gardening for tomatoes and peppers and such is in the future. Those seeds drop sometime this month.

I do woodworking as well, so I may end up that old dude selling stuff at the flea market ;) not for the $$, just to be busy.
 

H.A.F.

Well-Known Member
As far as the cloth pot, I'd still recommend it. Some of the leaf yellowing you see is probably from if not draining as well as you think. The cloth pots weigh nothing (and are cheap) and you can really tell when the soil is dry both from weight and feel. You know it's good for the plant to get pretty dry between watering's. It isn't good if it takes 4-5 days for that to happen. The good soil will drain through easily, but it also retains a lot because of the peat, coco, perlite, and stuff that absorbs it on the way through. If those things don't dry out of get used by the plant it could start issues. And some of these issues you won't see until you flip, then everything goes sideways. That is also about when she'll become rootbound because the roots have nowhere to go.
 

H.A.F.

Well-Known Member
To keep it small and stealthy, just go with a smaller pot. I have a plant that is only 12" high 4 weeks into flower (might make it to 18" or so) and only
about 18" in diameter.
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But I am done bugging you about pots. ;) so any other questions I can try to help.
 
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Natethenewb

Active Member
I'm with h.a.f cloth pot for sure, I'm only on my first grow these are my two auto's only had 5 cloth pots so had to use a plastic as my 6th, so I used that as an expirement to see which kind of pot I liked more. Amazon has 5 packs of cloth pots for under 20$ , local hydroponic store may have singles but probably 5+$ each at least around here they are lol.
 

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Fatmat19

Active Member
I enjoy gardening also HAF, add one more to the list my wife doesn’t like. She’s a city girl I’m from the country... She does enjoy the produce ironically just doesn’t like that it takes attention away from her, give me a break. We all need our hobbies and need something to do for sure. My grandma worked up till she was 99 owned her own business, that kept her going and her mind was sharp.

That short girl looks nice and healthy! You shouldn’t have any problems with a vegetable garden except maybe the weeds lol.
 

Fatmat19

Active Member
What size pots are those Nate? The one definitely looks more filled out... your not pushing the one in plastic to the back corner all the time are you? Lol just kidding
Looks like you didn’t top or train her just let her grow? Did you exfoliate any fan leaves?
 

Natethenewb

Active Member
Fabrics 7gal the plastic said 5 gal on the shelf at Lowe's but looks smaller to me lol. & nope left the autos alone haven't touched a leaf on them, topped one of my others and tried training on another.

This pics a bit older, mid January but its the most recent one that shows the full tent its a 4x2 I over did my self by putting 6 in but 4 were random bag seeds and I didn't think theyd all live lol .
Bottom 2 pics are Feb 1st to give you an idea of how crowded it is :p
 

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H.A.F.

Well-Known Member
I am more worried about critters and crawlers in my neck of the woods, so I'm going with F#BR#C pots for the tomatoes and stuff too LOL

Actually thinking about a greenhouse in the future, once my new shed is paid off.
 

Fatmat19

Active Member
Ok you guys I bought a 3 gal fabric pot for $3. Will watch some videos so I don’t fuck up transplanting I really don’t feel comfortable doing it and I don’t know why lol.
What do you guys put your pots on? It looks like you got some kind of rigid stoneware baking pans Nate?
 

Natethenewb

Active Member
Ok you guys I bought a 3 gal fabric pot for $3. Will watch some videos so I don’t fuck up transplanting I really don’t feel comfortable doing it and I don’t know why lol.
What do you guys put your pots on? It looks like you got some kind of rigid stoneware baking pans Nate?
Old car winter mats lol. The plant risers for my pot size was like 12$ on Amazon and for 6 i figured nope try what I have in the garage first . just be delicate put a bit of dirt in New pot and try and scoop it out all in one so you dont disturb the roots to much. I had to transplant my 'long stretchy stems' in the beginning and the stickied forum for that worked wonders for me , applied similar method when transplanting into the fabrics and had success on all of them. Another cheap riser someone else used was a milkcrate .
 
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