FloridaRasta
Member
My auto kush plant is 2 weeks old or so and this is my first auto grow so I'm not sure when to make it bloom. I will REP+ for advice
Should I flower now? (picture included)
- Thread starter FloridaRasta
- Start date
mony24
Member
If you are using cfl here is some info 
The first thing everyone should know is that you CAN grow cannabis with CFL(compact fluorescent light). The end yield and plant size won’t be anywhere near what the HID(high intensity discharge) lamps can grow but you will still be able to produce some fine cannabis flowers and do it all not spending hundreds of dollars on sophisticated light systems. The CFL bulbs are perfect for beginners or growers who have small growing space or heat problems.
So what exactly are These CFL lights?
The compact fluorescent lams are basically the same as the regular fluorescent light tubes. The way that this lamp works is similar to the regular fluorescent tube: The low pressure gas (typically argon) and a bit of mercury are sealed in a glass shell that has a coated inside with phosphor. When electricity is provided to the lamp it excites the mercury vapor that is in the glass shell. This Excited mercury then produces ultraviolet light that causes the inner coating (phosphor) of the bulb to fluoresce, producing the light that we can see. Typically the compact fluorescent lights are designed to fit into the regular household light fixtures and they are typically 5 times more economical than the incandescent bulbs. Another bonus for these CLF lights is that they will last five times longer than the incandescent bulb.
Wattages
Some people may confuse the wattages that are shown on the bulb and think that the incandescent equivalent wattage is the real number to look at but you should really be looking at the actual compact fluorescent lamp wattage. The actual wattage that the CFL uses is the thing that you need to check and that is the real amount of watts that the bulb uses and that you need to pay for. The incandescent equivalent of the CFL is almost 5 times higher and that means that if you buy a 20 Watt CFL with 80 Watt incandescent equivalent then the actual number of Watts that your bulb will use is 20. The 80 watts is only a number that shows what wattage incandescent bulb you can replace with your CFL and get the same amount of light and lumens.
Lumens
The lumens are basically the mount of light that the bulb can emit and the more the better. 1 lumen basically is the light that one candle can emit multiplied by one steradian. Usually CFL light bulbs have a lumen to watt ratio of somewhere between 50 and 80 and that is a good number compared to the incandescent bulb lumen to watt ratio of 10. Basically you need 2000 to 5000 lumens per square foot of growth. The lumens that are emitted by a CFL light diminishes very quickly (exponentially) and you need to get the bulb as close to the plant as possible. If you have your plant very close( 1 to 4 inches) to the CFL bulb then it will receive the stated lumens but if you move is 2 times farther it will receive 4 times less lumens (the start lumen count divided by 2 squared). This means that you need to have multiple CFL bulbs around your cannabis plant at a very close proximity.
Color temperature
The color temperature basically is the temperature of an idealized physical body that absorbs all incident electromagnetic radiation (think of a black metal) when it’s heated to the specific temperature like for example if the temperature is 2700 K then the “black body” would glow at a warm yellowish white color (warm white) but if the temperature of the “black body” is more than 5000k then the light is “daylight”.
In nature the “daylight” or the 5000+ K shines for the plants early and mid stages of growth but when the “warm white” 2700- K light start appearing as the sun’s light is scattered more and more by the atmosphere when the sun is not as high as it is in summer, the plant is going into flowering. This mean that the majority of the CFL bulbs must be “daylight” when your plant is growing and producing leafs and steams( for the first 2 to 4 weeks), but when it start flowering you should switch to the “warm white” bulbs.
Heat
CFL bulbs are perfect for growers who have a heat problem because they emit very little heat and you can even touch the bulb and not get burned. The cannabis plant can be very close to the CFL bulb and not get any heat burns. Basically the closer the light is to the plant the better - the best distance between the plant and the CFL bulb is 1 to 4 inches (2.5 to 10 cm)
The first thing everyone should know is that you CAN grow cannabis with CFL(compact fluorescent light). The end yield and plant size won’t be anywhere near what the HID(high intensity discharge) lamps can grow but you will still be able to produce some fine cannabis flowers and do it all not spending hundreds of dollars on sophisticated light systems. The CFL bulbs are perfect for beginners or growers who have small growing space or heat problems.So what exactly are These CFL lights?
The compact fluorescent lams are basically the same as the regular fluorescent light tubes. The way that this lamp works is similar to the regular fluorescent tube: The low pressure gas (typically argon) and a bit of mercury are sealed in a glass shell that has a coated inside with phosphor. When electricity is provided to the lamp it excites the mercury vapor that is in the glass shell. This Excited mercury then produces ultraviolet light that causes the inner coating (phosphor) of the bulb to fluoresce, producing the light that we can see. Typically the compact fluorescent lights are designed to fit into the regular household light fixtures and they are typically 5 times more economical than the incandescent bulbs. Another bonus for these CLF lights is that they will last five times longer than the incandescent bulb.
Wattages
Some people may confuse the wattages that are shown on the bulb and think that the incandescent equivalent wattage is the real number to look at but you should really be looking at the actual compact fluorescent lamp wattage. The actual wattage that the CFL uses is the thing that you need to check and that is the real amount of watts that the bulb uses and that you need to pay for. The incandescent equivalent of the CFL is almost 5 times higher and that means that if you buy a 20 Watt CFL with 80 Watt incandescent equivalent then the actual number of Watts that your bulb will use is 20. The 80 watts is only a number that shows what wattage incandescent bulb you can replace with your CFL and get the same amount of light and lumens.
Lumens
The lumens are basically the mount of light that the bulb can emit and the more the better. 1 lumen basically is the light that one candle can emit multiplied by one steradian. Usually CFL light bulbs have a lumen to watt ratio of somewhere between 50 and 80 and that is a good number compared to the incandescent bulb lumen to watt ratio of 10. Basically you need 2000 to 5000 lumens per square foot of growth. The lumens that are emitted by a CFL light diminishes very quickly (exponentially) and you need to get the bulb as close to the plant as possible. If you have your plant very close( 1 to 4 inches) to the CFL bulb then it will receive the stated lumens but if you move is 2 times farther it will receive 4 times less lumens (the start lumen count divided by 2 squared). This means that you need to have multiple CFL bulbs around your cannabis plant at a very close proximity.
Color temperature
The color temperature basically is the temperature of an idealized physical body that absorbs all incident electromagnetic radiation (think of a black metal) when it’s heated to the specific temperature like for example if the temperature is 2700 K then the “black body” would glow at a warm yellowish white color (warm white) but if the temperature of the “black body” is more than 5000k then the light is “daylight”.
In nature the “daylight” or the 5000+ K shines for the plants early and mid stages of growth but when the “warm white” 2700- K light start appearing as the sun’s light is scattered more and more by the atmosphere when the sun is not as high as it is in summer, the plant is going into flowering. This mean that the majority of the CFL bulbs must be “daylight” when your plant is growing and producing leafs and steams( for the first 2 to 4 weeks), but when it start flowering you should switch to the “warm white” bulbs.
Heat
CFL bulbs are perfect for growers who have a heat problem because they emit very little heat and you can even touch the bulb and not get burned. The cannabis plant can be very close to the CFL bulb and not get any heat burns. Basically the closer the light is to the plant the better - the best distance between the plant and the CFL bulb is 1 to 4 inches (2.5 to 10 cm)
FloridaRasta
Member
I'm growing it outdoors. The fertilizer said it feeds the plant for up to 3 months but should I eventually start adding phosphorus?
FloridaRasta
Member
Great thanks for the help mate
That depends on if your 3 month fertalizer has a good phosphourous supply.