What do you think?

[Vaporiserlover]

Hi people, I started this project about 5-6 weeks ago. I completely forget the name of the plant. I also didn't keep a date of when they sprouted from seed. It took about a week or more for that to happen.

Anyway, I really haven't a clue what I am doing :P

Everything is going well so far and I used miracle grow, which I find to be ok. I just transplanted the plants lastnight into their permenant pots. I am using PURple lights, (brand name) they are floresents which I got from the head shop. I also have a 400W high density sodium bulb. The plants have been growing for about 4 weeks now I would say. When should I change from the flouresent bulbs to the sodium bulb?

What do you guys do about the smell? I live in an apartment block and I have a good few air freshners around the place.

This is the setup, the small pot is what they were planted out from.

http://i974.photobucket.com/albums/ae227/vaporiserlover/Picture124.jpg



The size:

http://i974.photobucket.com/albums/ae227/vaporiserlover/Picture129.jpg



The distance the light is from the plants:

http://i974.photobucket.com/albums/ae227/vaporiserlover/Picture128.jpg



Top down view of my babies:

http://i974.photobucket.com/albums/ae227/vaporiserlover/Picture127.jpg

http://i974.photobucket.com/albums/ae227/vaporiserlover/Picture126.jpg



I am heading away in 3 weeks for one week, any suggestions for keeping them watered? My girlfriend doesn't want me to let anybody into the apartment when we are away, I was going to let my mate water them. I think in the bigger pots they might be ok if I water them before I go. Might be a bit dry when I come home but I don't think they will die. I might be wrong though :P

[Vaporiserlover]

I understand that I am new here, but I have read over the great material that is here. I have learned from my mistakes and from what a lot of ye guys have said alread. Does anybody have any comments on what I am doing at the moment?

Anybody know how to post an image instead of a link?

Your help is much appretiated :) Thank you.

[GetThisOrDie]

Whats up??

What kind of soil is that? Maybe next time you transplant mix in some perlite? I used some floros when I first started and I had to keep them almost touching the plants to get good growth. They are small for the age but they look very healthy. Im sure if you lowered it they would show positive signs. How hot does it get?

If you have the proper ventilation then I would suggest using the sodium bulb. You will get much better growth than the floro. It will work for veg cycle and flower cycle so no worries.

Are you giving them nutes?

You should look into a carbon filter for the odor. There are several other options as well that vary in cost. You will need one thats for sure. Dont under estimate the smell...especially living in an apartment.

Good work so far. Keep it up! :stoned:

[Vaporiserlover]

Thanks for the reply mate, I appretiate it :)

I live in Ireland so you may not have heard of the soil, it's "miracle grow". It's a compost that has nutes in it already. I used it before for planting bedding plants and they grew 2 or 3 times their normal size. Not expecting the same with the weed plants, but this is my first time so I really didn't know what to get. I was unsure about the nutes, but I think I will try that the next time. It's also another â?¬50+ I saved.

I was going to leave the plants in the pots they are in now, or are the pots I have too small? If needs be I can get new pots (i'm unemployed so money is a bit of an issue, trying to do this on the best budget I can).

I don't have any thermometer but I might buy a simple one and let you know the temp. There will be a big increase in temp when I use the sodium bulb, that's for sure :P The weather we are having now is great and the apartment is pretty warm, but I don't see any signs of over heating.

I wouldn't have anywhere for the carbon filter unfortunately :( Would be impossible to lead the duct out of the apartment.

Thanks for the feedback, I was thinking they look a bit small but very healthy. I will keep you posted and take pictures every so often :)

When is the best time to top them?

When is the best time to take clones?

[Vaporiserlover]

Oh, and I have a problem with my sodium bulb set up. I got a digital ballast and reflector from the same shop. When I plug in the lamp it won't turn on for a while, when it does come on it only stays on for a few seconds, then it turns off, about 60 seconds later it turns on and then a few seconds later it turns back on.

I think there's a problem with the ballast, but this could also be normal? I have no idea.When it turns off the light is very weak blue, but when it comes on fully (after going on and off about 3-4 times) the light is a very strong orange, which I think is normal.

I have no idea about these ballasts and gadgets... :(

[bigtopsfinn]

Oh, and I have a problem with my sodium bulb set up. I got a digital ballast and reflector from the same shop. When I plug in the lamp it won't turn on for a while, when it does come on it only stays on for a few seconds, then it turns off, about 60 seconds later it turns on and then a few seconds later it turns back on.

I think there's a problem with the ballast, but this could also be normal? I have no idea.

Not normal at all. Check to make sure it's wired correctly or just return it.


When it turns off the light is very weak blue, but when it comes on fully (after going on and off about 3-4 times) the light is a very strong orange, which I think is normal.

I have no idea about these ballasts and gadgets... :(

Light blue to strong orange is normal, but it should only take a few seconds from when it's turned on the first time. Something's wrong, I wouldn't mess around with it too much, since I'm 'electrically challenged' also :jointsmile:

You had some good advice already, but not much to recommend if you don't have the money to spend on the equipment that you desperately need for a successful grow :( If growing good buds indoors were so simple, no one would be spending hundreds or even thousands of Euros on their setups.

From an older post...


Things you'll need:
An enclosure to grow in - light proof and air tight for the most part (you'll have an intake and exhaust)
Perlite (even if the soil already has some, its usually not enough)
Nutrients (MG nutes will probably work for you)
3 or 4 different size pots, with the largest being 4-5 gal
a fan for moving fresh air around
ph strips
ph up/down (depending on your water, get the strips first and test it out)
***most important IMO- ventilation. Fan + carbon filter. Getting rid of hot and stinky air while pulling in fresh air to the enclosure. If you do this right the first time, it's easier to scale up (add lights), but most noobs never do.

When you go out of town, give them a heavy watering, raise the lights and use maybe just one fluoro.

Sadly, no money and no idea what you're doing = most people won't take the time to help. :wtf: Keep reading the stickies, especially the noob guide to growing the dankness as well as the noob guide to growroom setup.

[Vaporiserlover]

Not normal at all. Check to make sure it's wired correctly or just return it.

I rang the shop and I will return it tomorrow and get a new ballast, they will test it in their shop to see if it is faulty. When I get the new ballast I will hook up the 400w high density sodium. Should start seeing some really nice growth out of them. Since I took the above pictures my girls have grown almost an inch. Lowering the light helped a lot, thanks for that :)




Light blue to strong orange is normal, but it should only take a few seconds from when it's turned on the first time. Something's wrong, I wouldn't mess around with it too much, since I'm 'electrically challenged' also :jointsmile:

You had some good advice already, but not much to recommend if you don't have the money to spend on the equipment that you desperately need for a successful grow :( If growing good buds indoors were so simple, no one would be spending hundreds or even thousands of Euros on their setups.

I spent about 450 - 500 euro already on materials, (it's expensive here and everything adds up, from the chains to the thermometer). Today I got a PH tester and thermometer. I will get new pots and perlite when the time comes :).

I only have a small setup so I think the equipment I have is enough. Apart from the carbon filter I think I have everything?

My mate grew some beautiful plants with just a sodium bulb, an old reflector, small fan and basic soil/pots/nutriants. He didn't use a ballast, floresent lights or propogator. Nor did he use a ph tester.


From an older post...



When you go out of town, give them a heavy watering, raise the lights and use maybe just one fluoro.

Sadly, no money and no idea what you're doing = most people won't take the time to help. :wtf: Keep reading the stickies, especially the noob guide to growing the dankness as well as the noob guide to growroom setup.


When I said I have no idea what I am doing, I meant micro managment. Such as the height of the lights at different stages, when to change to the sodium light etc etc. I have gone through lots of information and looked at your grow logs (very very impressive and inspirational). There are still things that I am learning as I am a first time grower. I will take onboard everything you guys suggest as best as I can. Unfortunately some things I cannot add, like the carbon filter as I have no outlet. I selected plants that wouldn't grow big. 60cm - 70cm is the range of these ladies, if I remember correctly.

The temprature in the closet now is 82F. The PH level is 7. I think that is a bit high maybe, but the plants look very healthy. It should be around 6, right?

The closet is well preped for light. Used several types of tape to make sure no light gets in during dark hours. 12 hours of light with the flouresents is good now?

I just checked my bank account and I bought the materials on the 1st of June, it took me about 5 days to get the rest of the materials together and to set everything up, then a further 3 days to germinate the seeds. That leaves me with approximately 4 weeks of growth from sprouting.

Where the new branches begin and at the tops of the plants there are these long hairs, are they pre flowers? If they start growing buds now is that too soon?

Here is a picture of the hairs.


http://i974.photobucket.com/albums/ae227/vaporiserlover/DSC00188-1.jpg



The help is great, thanks a bunch, as a first time grower I am just excited and looking for support I guess :) I will let you guys know how I am doing over the comming weeks. Your advice and support is most appretiated. Thanks :)

[bigtopsfinn]

Glad to help if I can and happy to hear that my trials have been an inspiration to some people. Apologies if I came off condescending at all, as it was not my intention. It's just that there are soooo many noobs coming through that think they can throw some seeds in dirt and grow dank. But I think you're definitely on the right track and doing the right things :thumbsup:

I'm still a little unclear about your enclosure, if it's light proof you should be able to make an exhaust hole and intake hole. Unless of course there are walls and doors that you don't want damaged. Regardless, that HPS will bring the temps up over optimum without good ventilation.

My very first grow I only had a 400w hps and a large fan blowing on my plant. I had a cab that I could close for the night, but no way to keep the door closed or even slightly ajar without huge heat spikes. By the end of flowering, my whole apartment building stunk like a skunk.

Even without venting, you can still use a carbon filter/fan combo to clean the air, it just won't work as efficiently. Growers using CO2 do this in closed rooms since they don't want to vent out the CO2. As long as the temps are in range and the plant gets plenty of fresh air, the ventilation is not really a problem. The problem comes with the paranoia of thinking everyone who passes your house knows what's going on in there. Even worse is that you get used to the smell, so you won't really know how much it stinks until someone else tells you.

I don't see preflowers which are very small, fine, white hairs. Check here: Text (http://cannabis.com/growing/sexing-what-are-preflowers.html) This whole guide is really a good place for almost anything you want to know. I just click CTRL + F and type in something like "preflowers" and it takes me to it. CDOT guide (http://cannabis.com/growing/index.html)

Hope things go well for you and just keep reading and asking questions along the way.

[Vaporiserlover]

Checked the pictures, yea my plants have pre flowers on the top and first leaf set.

I'm off to get my new ballast hopefully, then gym then to my mates house who just got in some quality Amsterdam weed via post. I will give you a proper reply tomorrow.

Ciao for now guys. :) :rasta:

[Vaporiserlover]

Just an update, any opinions or suggestions?

I found out the plant name, it's called "Fast Bud", doesn't grow that high and is ready to harvest in just over 7 weeks. That just gives me 2 weeks left, although I can't see that happening... Here's the plant, hope it's ok to post this link. Fast Bud (Sweet Seeds) feminized - Azarius (http://www.azarius.net/seedshop/autoflowering/fast_bud_sweet_seeds_feminized/)

I've noted a few things I done wrong so far and I will be more prepared for the next grow, which will start in 4 weeks.

http://i974.photobucket.com/albums/ae227/vaporiserlover/DSC00191.jpg

http://i974.photobucket.com/albums/ae227/vaporiserlover/DSC00190.jpg

http://i974.photobucket.com/albums/ae227/vaporiserlover/DSC00190.jpg

http://i974.photobucket.com/albums/ae227/vaporiserlover/DSC00193.jpg

[GetThisOrDie]

Ahh...

Well that strain is an automatic. That means it flowers by itself according to age and not photoperiod.

The best lighting schedule for those are 24hrs or 20/4 at the most. They need all the light they can get because their time is basically limited since they flower automatically.

One of the main reasons they are so small with no bud yet is probably because of the floros and them being so high. Your best bet would have been to use the sodium from the start. Also im guessing you had them on 12/12 because I thought I saw you mention you were... That would be bad for them.


If those are really fast bud plants then the only real thing you can do is wait and see if they make more bud but they probably wont...

Auto flowering plants and regular photoperiod plants are very different so you must know these things before you start!

What seeds are you planning for the next run?

[flyinhi]

Hope you don't mind me popping in here.....a noobie here too, but getting there with first grow, amidst several hiccups along the way!

Just a thought regarding venting....the closet - is it a built-in closet or a free-standing closet? If it's a free-standing closet and you are able to jigsaw out venting holes.....you can use a carbon filter no problems. We're using an air intake fan on one side of our tent, and the carbon filter exhaust at the other. The air intake has tumble dyer type hosing, which we have pinned on a window ledge, with the window open, thus allowing natural air intake. For the exhaust hose, we have that carefully tucked behind the curtain pole, so the exhaust air gets blown out the top of the window. As it's slightly higher than the window recess, it can't be seen from outside....and as the air intake hose is slightly lower than the top of the window frame, it can't be seen from outside either :thumbsup: If there is a way you can get both fans and sets of hoses to hook up from the closet to the window, then go for it. Also, have a look on ebay and see if you can pick up some bits cheaper....we got a lot of our setup from ebay (make up a false name, and make sure the seller takes postal orders, then ask a mate to take the delivery at his address if you're worried about items being sent to your own addy - that's mainly what we been doing!). Be careful buying electrics on ebay though...even new items can be dodgy - we got 2 ballasts and both overheat within a few hours and cut out....thank god for safety measures! We now have 2 fans blowing on the ballasts to keep them cool until we can afford better quality ones.

Also, keep an eye out for friends getting rid of wardrobes etc (or try something like freecycle) as you can always adapt them to become your growing room!! (Quite amazing what you can grow weed in....I've seen photos of people using old freezers etc).

Good luck with the grow, and remember - you're always learning, no matter how experienced you become :) Even the veterans on here pick up new tips and tricks and methods to try, so keep reading the boards ;)

[Vaporiserlover]

Ahh...

Well that strain is an automatic. That means it flowers by itself according to age and not photoperiod.

The best lighting schedule for those are 24hrs or 20/4 at the most. They need all the light they can get because their time is basically limited since they flower automatically.

One of the main reasons they are so small with no bud yet is probably because of the floros and them being so high. Your best bet would have been to use the sodium from the start. Also im guessing you had them on 12/12 because I thought I saw you mention you were... That would be bad for them.


If those are really fast bud plants then the only real thing you can do is wait and see if they make more bud but they probably wont...

Auto flowering plants and regular photoperiod plants are very different so you must know these things before you start!

What seeds are you planning for the next run?

Oh, that's not good at all. Should I up the lights to 20/4 though? I have a 400W high pressure sodium light on them. I didn't use it when they were young because they are sensitive to light? That amount of light and heat might damage them, or is that wrong?

I doubt I would be able to keep the lights on that long, due to heat and people noticing it.

I have 3 seeds left of the fast bud, but I can't see myself putting on the lights for 24 hours a day for 7-8 weeks, I might just get some "normal" seeds. I will have to learn about the lighting then. Would a 400W HPS use a lot of electricity?

What seeds would you suggest a first time grower should use?

Is there anything I can do now to increase yeild? I want to get a little out of them at least. Put a lot of effort into getting them this far.


Hope you don't mind me popping in here.....a noobie here too, but getting there with first grow, amidst several hiccups along the way!

Just a thought regarding venting....the closet - is it a built-in closet or a free-standing closet? If it's a free-standing closet and you are able to jigsaw out venting holes.....you can use a carbon filter no problems. We're using an air intake fan on one side of our tent, and the carbon filter exhaust at the other. The air intake has tumble dyer type hosing, which we have pinned on a window ledge, with the window open, thus allowing natural air intake. For the exhaust hose, we have that carefully tucked behind the curtain pole, so the exhaust air gets blown out the top of the window. As it's slightly higher than the window recess, it can't be seen from outside....and as the air intake hose is slightly lower than the top of the window frame, it can't be seen from outside either :thumbsup: If there is a way you can get both fans and sets of hoses to hook up from the closet to the window, then go for it. Also, have a look on ebay and see if you can pick up some bits cheaper....we got a lot of our setup from ebay (make up a false name, and make sure the seller takes postal orders, then ask a mate to take the delivery at his address if you're worried about items being sent to your own addy - that's mainly what we been doing!). Be careful buying electrics on ebay though...even new items can be dodgy - we got 2 ballasts and both overheat within a few hours and cut out....thank god for safety measures! We now have 2 fans blowing on the ballasts to keep them cool until we can afford better quality ones.

Also, keep an eye out for friends getting rid of wardrobes etc (or try something like freecycle) as you can always adapt them to become your growing room!! (Quite amazing what you can grow weed in....I've seen photos of people using old freezers etc).

Good luck with the grow, and remember - you're always learning, no matter how experienced you become :) Even the veterans on here pick up new tips and tricks and methods to try, so keep reading the boards ;)

It's a built in wardrobe in a rented apartment so I can't put holes in it unfortunately. I have the ventilation sorted, so not too worried about that now. Thanks for the tips though. I will be using a carbon filter and extraction fans when I get my own place. I might even buy a grow tent, see how that works out but I think they are pretty expensive.

[flyinhi]

Pity it's built in :( woulda saved you a load of hassle.

We bought a tent when we started getting our bits together, and have to say - best money ever spent :) Yep, not cheap, but means it's all done for you, no having to cut and saw and hammer to build a grow closet. Also, becuase it's in a room and not in a loft we're not having any issues with spidermites. And, if you decide to stop growing, it's easy to dismantle and can be sold on.

We're just about to get a wardrobe from a mate so we can put the growing clones in it, thus allowing us to use the current office type cabinet to dry out the big girls when they get the chop in a few weeks. The wardobe is only for the clones, as soon as they are ready to go on 12/12 lights they'll go in the soon-to-be-empty tent. It's a white el cheapo wardrobe, so will save on having to buy reflective materials too.

From what I know (which isn't much lol) things are very expensive in Ireland, and the euro/pound conversion isn't too great, which is why ebay might be value for money. Anyway, hope you get your own place soon so you can really get the growing bug! :thumbsup:

[Vaporiserlover]

I'm waiting for some money to come through, so when it does I am going to buy a grow tent, a cool tube and maybe a carbon filter, depending on how much all that is. I'm not 100% about ebay because I would like to see the tent first before purchasing it, you know? So I might have to buy the thing in a shop, I know it's going to be a lot more expensive, but such is life.

I tried to get as much information as I could, but it's kinda confusing, lots of conflicting information too. From what I have been told by other growers I know is that I am doing it right, I just messed up at the start with the flouresents and the height of the lights. These things I know now for future.

Can somebody tell me how to grow the fast bud? is 24 hours of HPS light (400w) from when they are seedlings the only way to go? I'll be slightly pissed off if GetThisOrDie is right about the yeild being extremely low, I hope some bud grows. Is it still too late for bud to grow after 5 weeks of an auto seed? Could buds grow in the last 2.5 weeks? The healthier looking plant looks like it will have bud, but i'm not 100% sure because i'm inexperienced :(

At a closer inspection, it seems to me that the damaged plant has some small buds on it. The healthier plant may, but they are quite small and that plant has much more foliage.

[bigtopsfinn]

You can use any light cycle you want, but the more light the better. Even 18/6 is perfectly acceptable.

For your next seeds look into easy to grow strains like Nirvana White Widow, Northern Lights #5 or Pure Power Plant (PPP) for example. Those are non-autoflowering with good yields and plenty of potency.

Don't get too hung up on the times. I think the plants are taking longer to mature from the problems you had earlier. The times the breeders give are for ideal conditions so don't worry about it. Just get things the way they want them, and let 'em do their thing :thumbsup:

[GetThisOrDie]

Bigtops is right. The more light the better so 24 hrs is best but if you cant do that you have to cut the time down.

You will lose yield by lowering the light time...no way around that. 12/12 though might not be worth the time... ive seen this before, someone using 12/12 on an auto in a different forum. The end result was 3g of bud dried.

Like bigtops said... dial them in and let the go. Thats all you can really do and learn.

400w can be used on seedlings, it just needs to be raised up higher. When they get used to it and get a little bigger you can start to lower the light as needed.

A 400w on 24hrs can add up on the power bill... especially when you factor in the fans and ventilation and what not.


I just finished some automatics like yours... the link is in my signiture down below if you want to check em out and see how I did it. I also used a 400w sodium but I used 20/4 light schedule.

[Vaporiserlover]

You can use any light cycle you want, but the more light the better. Even 18/6 is perfectly acceptable.

For your next seeds look into easy to grow strains like Nirvana White Widow, Northern Lights #5 or Pure Power Plant (PPP) for example. Those are non-autoflowering with good yields and plenty of potency.

Don't get too hung up on the times. I think the plants are taking longer to mature from the problems you had earlier. The times the breeders give are for ideal conditions so don't worry about it. Just get things the way they want them, and let 'em do their thing :thumbsup:

Ah ok cool, thanks for that. I absolutely love white widow. Any time I am in holland, that's about twice a year, I always get a few grams of whit widow, it's odd too as it's their cheapest one.

My concern was holidays, I started this with enough room to harvest a week or two before my holidays. I'm only taking one week, but not I am a little bit worried about them maturing past the harvest stage while I am away. Silly I know, but I am anxious :P

I have noted what I have done wrong this time and will be more aware with my next grow. Hopefully when it's time again, I will have the grow tent, carbon filter and cool tube.

So how many weeks do I leave them in veg stage before putting them into flowering? I would love to keep one as a parent and take clones from it. (normal seeds)

I have searched the net for some grow tents with extractor fans and I am wondering what you think.

I can get an 80 x 80 x 160 for about 100 euro. I think this would be the ideal size. Approximately how many plants could I get in that? I would be using a 400w HDS bulb. I am thinking between 2 and 4 average sized plants. There is also a 60 x 60 x 140 for about 70 euro, but I think that might be a bit small? With this I will be getting an extractor fan with carbon filter for about 60 euro and a cool tube (I looked at the thread on how to make your own but I lack the patients and skill to make it). I will only be growing for my own personal use. I would like variety in my tent so 4 plants max would be nice. I don't want a massive set up :P

Is there a difference between a hydroponics grow tent and a soil grow tent?


Thanks all for your help, it's great :)

[bigtopsfinn]

Here's a good site with decent prices on equipment to check out: Growshop (http://www.head-nature.com/seite?wg=102&id=yPyuFPnx)

Not sure what the difference between a hydro and soil tent is, maybe there are more places to run wires or tubes through (???).

As for the size of the tent, you have to figure that growing from seed you will need at least 15L containers, preferably 20L to finish your plants in. If you want to go the clone route you can get away with smaller containers, but you will need a separate veg area for the mother plant and clones where you can keep the light on at least 16 hours a day. That way you can keep a mother for a long time. So you will need to find the containers first and measure them to see how many can fit in the tent. Square containers work better to make the most out of the space. With all that said, I think the 80 x 80 will be plenty big enough. The smaller one might be OK also, but 140 is pretty low and will be a pain to maintain such a low canopy.

For vegging regular seeds, you can go from 4 to 8 weeks depending on how much room and what strain. In that time frame you can also take clones and then flower the mothers. Then while the mothers are flowering you can veg the clones, then repeat once you harvest the mothers. That way you can harvest every 2 months or so. But that means two grow areas and might be a bit much for you. You can always just buy seeds and grow start to finish from them, figuring about 4 months in between harvests.

Many options to think about! :jointsmile: