SOIL GROWING BASIC
cherry popping grow technic for indoor soil growing
(get a few grows under your belt before jumping into advanced cultivation, learn the basic)
a good location, soil, nutes, lights, and co2 can only take you so far
big buds and good yeilds are based on genes and growing skills
plant life is tipicaly (lights on/off)
2wks-1month (which ever you like) veg light 24/0 or 18/6
2-3 month flower lights 12/12
4 months (maybe 3) all together from seed to cured smoke
pregerminate your seeds in a cup of water or a wet paper towel and keep'em in a warm and dark location
check every day untill you see seed crack and or tap root this may take 3-7days
then place in a 0.5 - 1 inch deep hole covered with loose soil, in a 1gal pot full of soil
water plants when soil is dry no sooner then every 2-3 days
now get a digital thermometer, one with a temperature and a humidity gauge
optional items : heater, a/c, dehumidifier
maintain lights on temps of 70F-80f(21C-26C) (with co2 you can let it go as high as 95F(35C)) at lights off stay above 60F(15C).
-during flowering keep humidity around 40%-60% lights on or off (the dryer the better) for vegging plants you want high humidity levels
RE. young plants can live on the nutes that are already in every soil no need to add any nutes at this time just water
water plants when soil is dry no sooner then every 2-3 days, try not to over water and add no fertilizer
when you see a sprout
place lights (26 or 42 watt CFL, or the highest watts you can find with hood and clamp) over it keeping light as close as 4-6 in.
one bulb type can be used from start to finish, but better results can be had by switching bulb color at dirferant growth stages
...........cfl 6500 Kelvin (cool blueish/ white color spectrum) = to mh used for vegging bushing stem leaf
...........cfl 2700 Kelvin (warm redish/orange color spectrum) = to hps used for blooming fruiting budding
as the plant gets bigger add more cfl lights
if you use mh or hps use your hand at the top of the plant canopy as a temperature gauge, lower the light as far as you can with your hand
being comfortably warm, not hot. air cooled light hoods can get a lot closer Start at 18 inches and move it down a few inches a day
until it is within a foot of the canopy. The plants will grow up to meet the light and you don't want them to stretch too much.
A 600 watt fixture will supply enough light to cover a 4 by 4 foot grow area.
A 1000 watt fixture will supply enough light to cover a 6 by 6foot grow area.
get a light with hood (and put it on an on/off timer set for 18/6)
water plants every 2-3 days when soil is dry
after 2 weeks of just plain water introduce nutes at 1/4 strength, every other water
when picking nutes (fertilizer)NPK try to keep it simple
for veg pick a nute high in N and low in PK
for flowering pick a nute high in P and low in NK
N: nitrogen is used to stimulate new vegetative growth and overall health.
P2O5: phosphorus oxide is used to stimulate flower development and rooting.
K2O: potassium oxide is used to stimulate stem growth and overall health
a great fert for beginners are any tomato plant ferterlizer
inrich air with co2 if you got it (not needed if less then 6 plants, just open a window or pump in fresh air)
after 2wks too a month of vegging its time to sex and flower
night cycle is very important at this stage
plants need 12hr of complete "UNINTERRUPTED DARKNESS"
tranpants to a 3-5gal pot
if still using CFL's double or triple the amount of lights (the more light the more dence and bigger the buds will be)
set timer for 12/12 (depending on strain plants can double even triple in size (height) in this stage)
12/12 will show sex and flower your plants, giving you smokable buds
keep the female's only
during 12/12 (1st week) the females will grow white hairs
discard the males they grow grape like ball clusters (pollen filled sacs)
discard the hermi they grow both sex (re. if it has balls on it discard it)
after sex is determined give it 2 wks of 12/12 then increase nutes at 1/4 strength
lights will stay on 12/12 untill finish which could be 8-14 wks (from day of 1st flip) depending on strain dominates :
short plant with fat wide leaf = indica dom = 8-10 wks,
tall plant with long skiny leaf = sativa dom = 10-14 wks
by far the best way to tell when the plant is ready to harvest is by looking at the trichome
trichome are the mushroom shaped glandular sticky THC oil filled cells that grow all over the buds hairs, leafs, and stems
they CAN NOT be seen by the naked eye. you will need at minimum a 30x zoom microscope ($20 radio shack)
you want to harvest at about a 40%-50% red(amber) to white(milky not transparent clear) ratio.
flush plant by feeding plain water no nutes for last 2 wks (improves taste)
harvest by chopping at base of main stem
cut away all side branches
take side branches remove fan leafs and discard them
trim the buds that are left on the side branches,
keep trim for later use (shake can be made into hash or low grade smoke)
hang dry 5-7 days in a dry dark area @ 40%-60% humidity with indirect breeze in room (fan not facing harvest)
or build a drying box and create a passive air intake by pulling air from box on 1 side with fan and on the otherside vent holes
after drying
smoke
or
cure:
place dryed buds in mason jars 3/4filled. sealed tight for 12hr in a dark place
open jar and take buds out and let dry for 30m to 1hr or untill dry to touch
replace in jars resealed in a dark place
repeat this for 2wks to a month or untill buds nolonger become wet in jar after 12hr
now smoke
or seal away for long term store
