Mother Plant Set Up

Hey everybody.

I am just about ready to germinate the seeds I got form Nirvana (Blue Mystic, Northern Lights, Papaya, Skunk #1, Super Skunk). My goal is to have my own kick ass mother garden that I can clone from (I've gotten the groClone clone machine, and a 2ft, 2 bulb florescent light for rooting the clones); I want to have 6-8 mother plants eventually...

I am not handy at all, so I am looking into purchasing the equipment so that I can just plug and grow.


Homebox XL
the-homebox.net

Waterfarm 8 pack/Contoller Kit
GENERAL HYDROPONICS

EcoPlus 4" Blower
EcoPlus In-line Blowers from 4 hydroponics.com by Growco Indoor Garden Supply

New Wave T5-24
New Wave T5 High Output Fluorescents, a grow light option for plant cloning / plant propagation from 4 hydroponics.com by Growco Indoor Garden Supply

Does this look like a solid plan to having a killer mother garden? Your thoughts and comments are appreciated.

When you buy the New Wave T5 look here: Hydroponics | Hydroponic Supplies

It's much cheaper than the site you listed.

Pseudonym said:

When you buy the New Wave T5 look here: Hydroponics | Hydroponic Supplies

It's much cheaper than the site you listed.

Click to expand...

Thanks. I did check out what BGHydro had, and did some price comparison. They didn't have the Homebox, but the Hydrohut is just fine.

BG HYDRO:

ItemItem NameUMQtyPriceAmountDelete

New Wave T5 System - 2', 4 Bulb

EA $119.95 $119.95New Wave T5 Fixture Only - 2', 4 Bulb1 2nd two T5 Lamps - 24W, 2', 6500K2 2nd two T5 Lamps - 24W, 2', 6500K2

WaterFarm Controller Kit by G.H.

EA $274.95 $274.95

EcoPlus 4" Centrifugal Fan 170 cfm

EA $129.95 $129.95

HydroHut Original Grow Room

EA $249.95 $249.95

Total Weight: 141.00lbs. Total Qty: 4 Total: $774.80 Shipping is an extra $39, bringing the total to $813.80.


4HYDROPONICS.com:

then clickNew Wave T5-24, 2-foot, 4-lamp, 6500K COOL$159.95 ea.1 $159.95 change qty
then clickEcoPlus 4 inch in-line blower - 170 CFM$111.95 ea.1 $111.95 change qty
then clickHomebox XL$250.05 ea.1 $250.05 change qty
then clickWaterfarm Controller KIT$269.95 ea.1 $269.95 change qty
[SIZE=-1]Order Subtotal:[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]$791.90[/SIZE]

• Shipping weight: 88.50
• Shipping cost is estimated.
• Orders will be confirmed via email.

[SIZE=-1]shipping:[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]$0.00[/SIZE]Grand Total:$791.90

The free shipping with 4hydroponics.com keeps the total at 791.90... even though I am paying more an individual item or two, with the shipping factored in I am saving $21.90 with 4hydro. Free shipping rules!!!

Thanks for the info/link. Comparison shopping is the way to shop!

Just my two cents, and maybe i missed the upgrade. You will want more than 2-2ft' bulbs to use for your clones. Check out Al B's picture of his cloning area. VV

VictorVIcious said:

Just my two cents, and maybe i missed the upgrade. You will want more than 2-2ft' bulbs to use for your clones. Check out Al B's picture of his cloning area. VV

Click to expand...

The plan is for (4) of the 2 footers... I will check's Al B's cloning pics - thanks for the 411.

others may not like this response, but this is what i do, and i have great results.

moms need very little light and space. only enough to survive and put out shoots. i keep my mothers in a 6'' pot for a year+ with no problems, which keeps them small and managable (bonzai).

the largest mother i have is 12x12x12 inchess, and that's even a little big for me. i get thirty+ slips per pruning with these bonsai mommas...

now, for lighting... this is going to sound bassackward, as everything you've ever read or heard says that pot needs as much light as you can possibly give it.

this is not true for mothers. with moms, the idea is to take cuttings, and you want 3-4'' slips. to acheive this, place one 23w cfl about a foot above each mom. if your moms are small, you can fit two per 23w cfl. this will allow the shoots to stretch a little, providing you with the "perfect slip".

i keep my mothers in my veg room, and just stick them in a corner somewhere, and forget about them for two weeks at a time. then, i water (prepares the slips), let sit for two hours, then take cuttings. on average, my moms are 4-6 feet away from the 400w mh.

if i left anything out, or you have any other q's, let me know; i hope this helps you.

kp

Killer stuff. Much thanks to all.

Once I sell my Mesa/Boogie Triple Rectifier 1/2 stack I'll have the cheddar to make my mother garden a reality... should be within the next week or two.

...then I will have 3 Homeboxes (mother/clone, vegg, flower) kickin ass in the name of THC.

Anyone wanna buy a guitar amp?

I just placed my order for my mother garden materials.

I changed/updated some pieces, but I am confident I am gonna be pretty stoked with the 6 different mothers. I'll start germinating some of the seeds I got from Nirvana after the goods arrive.

Homebox
Sunleaves Lightwave Batwing w/400MH
General Hydroponics EcoGrower
EcoPlus In-line 4" exhaust fan
Sunlift Reflector Hanging kit

I'll start looking for a "lazy susan" for the EcoGrower to sit on, so I can just spin it around to tend to the different plants.... hopefully a local thirftstore will have one for me. I'm hoping to keep each of the mothers between 12 & 24 inches tall, nice and bushy. We'll see.

I also want to keep my groClone & clones (and the 2 2ft shop lights) in there some how, too. Hmmmm....

Your thoughts and opinions are welcome!

You can get a swivel stand for a television, so it's sturdy enough to hold some weight.

potroast said:

You can get a swivel stand for a television, so it's sturdy enough to hold some weight.

Click to expand...

Dude, exactly!!
Thanks for the idea.

kindprincess said:

others may not like this response, but this is what i do, and i have great results.

....

for lighting... this is going to sound bassackward, as everything you've ever read or heard says that pot needs as much light as you can possibly give it.

this is not true for mothers. with moms, the idea is to take cuttings, and you want 3-4'' slips.

...

i keep my mothers in my veg room, and just stick them in a corner somewhere, and forget about them for two weeks at a time. then, i water (prepares the slips), let sit for two hours, then take cuttings. on average, my moms are 4-6 feet away from the 400w mh.

kp

Click to expand...

I just wanted to revist this thread and give it a good bump. its been a while. I tried the ecogrower thing under a 4 in the hut... kinda sucked pretty bad. maybe its the drip thiing i don;t know, but in my EXPERIENCE that is not the best action to take for keeping mothers.

what i do now is exactly what I quoted from kindprincess (where is she anyways... did i miss something? please fill me in i am late to the party ha ha)... i like to keep my production mommas in 7g pots of 2:1 Fox Farms Ocean Forest to Fox Farms Light Warrior. I keep my moms at the side of my veg table, catching the scrap lighting. they get enough light to produce 40 quality 8" cuts every 2 weeks.

I could not/would not reccommend any other way to take cae of your mother plants. in pots of soil catching your veg room lighting (400mh is the shit for this application)- the way to go.

Pics??????

will have some updated snaps soon

dammnit, i missed it.

shoulda got a darkroom

anywho, nice equipment.

you know walmart sells lazy suzans right? i think they are like 5 bucks

Personally bro i would saved the cash and went with a Bonsai Mother garden. I dont know what your flower room will look like, but it must be grand to have such a mother room. I made my mom room,which contains 6 strains with 1, NOT 2, but 1 Rubbermaid 50 gallon container, 2- 4in PC Fans, 12- 6500k 23watt cfls, 6- 5in square pots with MG Soil and Ferts.The mothers are between 8-12 inches tall, and trained usind this method: http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=31919 . The clones are veg/flowered hydroponicaly In a seperate rubbermaid box but are rooted right next to the mothers. I usually only need about 20 clones every 2 months. Just one of these bonsai ladies could provide me with that plus more(I use 24/0 lighting). All together(taking into account i already had light sockets and fixtures) costed about 75 bucks. And i always have clones to give or experiment with. Ill keep these mothers for 2 years then flower them and start more from seed.

yea bonsai moms are cool... thas how my mothers are

I keep my moms in the vegg room....i guess not everyone is fortunate enough to have a dedicated veg room.

I see the advantages of keeping bonsai moms. especially when you are trying to run multiple strains. I cut my strains down to 2, for commerical purposes. I have a good size veg area to feed my flower area every 3 weeks. I USE 20 CLONES EVERY 3 WEEKS I NEED BIG MOMS for my perpetual operation. My flower room has 2 1000 & 1 600w hps

i gotta say i don't like using little 2-3" clones. I know it takes an extra day or 2, but i like BIG cuts 6-8" long. another reason for bigger moms..

heres a shot of a freshly loaded veg table with moms on the side cathcing side rays.
the 400wMH is on 24hrs a day getting my girls ready for flower...
the 400 is the light on the right... the light on the left is a 250 that i turn on when the tabkle is fully loaded...

Tools make life easier! Love the TOOL. Starting mothership myself, best of wishes!