Some basic questions need expert opinions!!

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bangthangonme

Active Member
Let me explain my set-up b4 I ask any question. I have a 4 foot by 2 foot by 5 foot (tall) grow tent, with a 400w hps and also a 200w blue LED panel for veg. Im about to start my my Masterlow and lowryder as soon as they get here, and i'll be using miracle gro seed starting soil, miracle gro potting soil, and for nutes i have the fox farm trio (for soil) and also big bug powder by advanced nutrients. I am using 2 gallon growbags for the first and only transplant, because they are small autoflowers and dont need probably even half that much. I plan on watering the soil, and germinating the seeds directly in the seed starting tray after soaking them in a cup of filtered water overnight. The last detail that may be relevant is I have a little ventilation, but no cooling tube or anything for my light. So, how far should my light be from the seed starting tray at first, how far when they pop and so on? I think I will go with 18 inches away when they get 6-7 inches tall, unless there are better suggestions. Also, should I have my ventilation fan running even when its in the dark cycle? It is a 6in clipon fan, not too powerful. My last question for now is, how much do i water them for the first week, even before they have popped through, and should I start my 18-6 as soon as I plant them in the dirt, or do I wait and leave them in darkness until they pop, and then start the light cycle? Sorry for mixing different subjects and how long this is, but please give me some wisdom! :bigjoint:​
 
LorDeMO

LorDeMO

Active Member
First off, ditch the MG soil as you will run into problems when you begin to start adding your own nutes. For my last grow I used 60% cheap average compost soil, 20% perlite and 20% vermiculite, MG nutes for veg and Big Bud + Bud Blood for flowering and had very little problems except trying to cool my 600w HPS. Just water the plants once the top 3/4" of the soil is dry - I just lift the plants and if the pot feels very light then it's time to water!
 
LorDeMO

LorDeMO

Active Member
nah, it's a bit useless as there are no leaves yet to absorb the light - you're just wasting electricity and possibly drying out the soil depending on your lights heat output. You can leave the pots in a dark place and they'll still sprout, just wait till they sprout and then put them under the light.

Peace.
 
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pokesalotasmot

Well-Known Member
bangthangonme said:
thanks bro, but should i put the seeds under light before they sprout?
Click to expand...
x2 for ditching the miracle grow soil. Go to your local gardening center and pick up an unfertilized soil such as Gardeners Gold. I'm using it without any problems.

Wait until the seeds are sprouted, planted into your medium, and then poking through the top of your medium before you put lights on them. Any sooner than that is just a waste of electricity.

Also you will need to invest in some sort of ventilation system. Your 6 inch fan will NOT be enough to keep your grow area cooled off, all it will do is blow around the same hot air. You need airflow into and out of your grow space to keep temps down and to have a fresh air supply for your plant(s).
 
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