D Rocks T5 grow

Hey everyone, I have a small grow going on right now for my own personal stash. These plants that Im currently growing are nothing more than bagseed. I have attempted to grow before but was unsuccessful this time I want to do it right.
anyway on to buissness. As of now they are on day 13 from when the split there seed. I think they are a bit small for 13 days but hey Im no expert. I have these seedlings in a 4x4 homebox. Up until yesterday (day11) they were growing with the help of some CFL's then I put them under what I had hanging in the homebox a 1000 watt HPS( I got rid of it due to the tremendous heat it was producing) I had it with exhaust helping to expell any hot air but it didnt help. So after a day (day11) under the HPS I decided it was way to hot and put the CFL's back up and they were up almost all of day 12. Now (day13)My New Wave 8 bulb T5 lighting system is up and it produces little heat.
Yesterday the soil felt pretty dry so I saturated the soil until I had runoff water from the bottom so I could test my Ph level. It was around 7 so I added a little bit of PH down to my gallon of distilled water Im using to water the plants with and got it to 6.0. Now My plants seem droopy and a couple look like they have a case of leaf curl. Is this from too much water? Included are some pics of my equipment and set up. Please any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

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here they are under the T5 lights.

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Pulled them down from the light to get a overhead shot and to stir up the top layer of soil.

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different angle

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although not the best pic this one seems to be the worst with the leaf curl and saggyness.

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This one seems to be my biggest plant.

I have the cups numbered to try and keep track of which plants are which.
Will post more pics.

Forgot to mention that Im using a mix of Fox Farms Ocean forrest potting soil with some pro mix mixed in with the fox farm. Nutrients will be Technaflora BC (plants have not recieved any nutrients yet) only a capful of superthrive went into my gallon of water. They will be grown in 3 gallon grow bags(they were cheap and work well) Also forgot to mention the bulbs that are in my New Wave hood are the blue ones 6500k, when its time to flower I will be putting in the red bulbs 3000k. Let me add some more pics.

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Nice shot from under the hood looking down the lights.

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A shot from outside the homebox with the doors open, I will close them when its time to flower.

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Random shot.

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Here are my nutes that I will be using.

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Fox Farms Ocean Forrest Soil.

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Pro mix that is mixed in a 2:1 ration with my Fox Farms soil.

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Good reading material, also a bottle of superthrive down in the corner.

When do you think its safe to start giving nutes to the plants I have always read week 2-4 in veg stage. Tommorrow will be 2 weeks. I think I might wait a little longer though.

Looks good!

Thanks evertking, but Im a bit worried about the saggy leaves and the curling.

They are looking nice and green. Low heat bulbs are the way to start. :thumbsup:

I wonder if your leaf problem (non-problem) is because of the light being so close to the plants? It could be that they are growing alot outward. You have large healthy leaves for the size of the plant. If you raise the light a little, they will grow more up instead of out. I'm not suggesting this, just pointing it out if you have an issue with the leaves. I think your leaves look good and healthy.
Good Luck!!! :jointsmile:

thanks Pass that shit. I will raise it up a little but I thought that was one of the reason most people bought these bulbs was so they can get the light alot closer to the plants.

It's true. They are much closer to the light with a cool bulb. They would have died already if you had an HPS/MH that close to them.
Because of soil fertility, I probably wouldn't feed for another 2 weeks. The leaves look large and green for their size.

Now go look at the difference between your plants and the plants in that other thread at 2 weeks. I was trying to point out to the readers that they would NOT get their plants like that in just 2 weeks. He was not being honest with us. Good Luck with your grow!!!

Looking good. I wouldnt worry those leaves yet. Plants look healthy.

nice neat set up. Keep at it. I'd be looking to put them into bigger pots right off.

Shovelhandle

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Originally Posted by Pass That Shit

Now go look at the difference between your plants and the plants in that other thread at 2 weeks. I was trying to point out to the readers that they would NOT get their plants like that in just 2 weeks. He was not being honest with us. Good Luck with your grow!!!

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I knew what you were saying. I thought he said he got those as clones and those pics were taken 2 weeks after he put them into his system. anyway I never thought those plants were 2 weeks old anyway. Just giving him props for having a T5 thats all, Im no idiot I know he was stretching the truth a little.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Shovelhandle

nice neat set up. Keep at it. I'd be looking to put them into bigger pots right off.

Shovelhandle

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Thanks shovelhandle. The next time I transplant will be into my 3 gallon grow bags. do you think they are ready for this? I will take one out of the cup and see how the roots are doing, if they are circling the inside of the cup then I will transplant.

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Originally Posted by forcus master

Looking good. I wouldnt worry those leaves yet. Plants look healthy.

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Thanks for the kind words. Im just a little paranoid thats all. I dont like it when the leaves are starting to curl makes me think something is wrong with them.

Oh yeah Pass that shit, I raised my light up about 3 inches.

Well I checked My smallest plant I took it out of the cup and looked and the roots are all on the outside of the dirt so I say its time to transplant. I looked at my smallest plant to make sure I havent looked at the bigger plants yet. Well Im off to Transplanting.

Good Luck with transplanting man, I like your grow setup. What size pots did you move them to?

Thanks, I put them in 3 gallon grow bags Im about to upload pics check back in a few minutes.

Here are some photos after transplanting them into bigger Grow bags. They sure look like they are pissed off at me for transplanting them into the bags but I guess thats just a part of transplanting. Hope that they kick back ok and start growing. It seems that they have been growing very slow for the past 2 days. My light is about 15 inches away from tops of plants, I read in Jorge cervantes Grow Bible that after transplanting when under a Fluro set up to have light 12-18 inches away. Hopefully I can start giving them nutes next week.

DAY 14
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And just a couple more.

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Comments are welcomed.:jointsmile:

Hey, nice setup.
7 was too high but 6 is too low- aim for 6.7 +/- .2
That's why the petioles are reddish. But the plants look good overall. Wehn you lock in your pH they will start looking better.

Thanks stinky attic. Today was a pain in the ass with the whole PH thing, transplanting and all. I had to adjust my PH level several times due to me running out of distilled water. I had to use tap water so I was adjusting my ph level so that I could give my plants a good soaking after transplanting them, I also added some thrive alive B1 to my water. Its suppose to help with transplant shock.

Ok Stinky I have a question that maybe you or anyone else that wants to chime in can answer. Here goes.... I have a relative cheap PH meter, the kind where you stick the probe into the soil and read the needle on the actual meter.... well never mind here is a pic of the thing.
http://img166.imageshack.us/img166/8176/1001177ot1.jpg
I always check my PH level before watering my plants I have the little test vial that you add drops to and watch for the color and match up the coresponding color next to the Level, well I always get it to where its suppose to be, but then I water and check with the PH meter by sticking the probe into the soil and its almost always above 7.0 what is causing this and how do I fix it? I think this might attribute to my slow progress lately in my plants growth. I know the digital ones are better, but as of right now Im Broke as hell and cant afford to buy anything else right now plus if my wife finds out that I spend another dime on this growing thing as she like to call it then I will be either sleeping outside or on the couch.
When the plants were in the cups I tried saturating them till I had runoff water but I kept watering and watering and felt like I was going to drown my plants so that didnt work. I feel as if this is going to cause a big problem if I dont nip it in the bud right now. Someone please help.

What is the ph of the soil mentioned in the Foxfarm bag? In 3gallon grow bag ph level shouldnt change much after only few waterings. Unless you've put something else in there.

Curling of the leaves maybe a symptom of K Cu Zn B or Mo shortage. Try giving nutes to some of them and see if theres change to the others.

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Originally Posted by forcus master

What is the ph of the soil mentioned in the Foxfarm bag? In 3gallon grow bag ph level shouldnt change much after only few waterings. Unless you've put something else in there.

Curling of the leaves maybe a symptom of K Cu Zn B or Mo shortage. Try giving nutes to some of them and see if theres change to the others.

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Im not sure of the PH level on the soil as I dont see it anywhere on the bag, It does say it has oyster shell in it for PH adjustment. ususally the soil PH level is around 7 or higher when I stick the needle in the soil.

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Originally Posted by D Rock

Im not sure of the PH level on the soil as I dont see it anywhere on the bag, It does say it has oyster shell in it for PH adjustment. ususally the soil PH level is around 7 or higher when I stick the needle in the soil.

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"Ocean Forest® is pH adjusted at 6.3 to 6.8 to allow for optimum fertilizer uptake" FoxFarm Soil & Fertilizer Company
Quick google :thumbsup:
So the soil seems to be optimal for its pH level. Have you add garden lime to the soil? If you have, that might have raised the pH to seven or over. Nutes usually bring the pH a bit down. To lower pH and increase acidity you can add sulphate of ammonia or urea which are high nitrogen fertilizers. Maybe try it to one or two plants and see if that helps. If your pH meter still shows 7 or over, test it to make sure It really works(unless you already have). You can pee on it ;)

Oh and keep the needle in the soil for good five minutes.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by forcus master

"Ocean Forest® is pH adjusted at 6.3 to 6.8 to allow for optimum fertilizer uptake" FoxFarm Soil & Fertilizer Company
Quick google :thumbsup:
So the soil seems to be optimal for its pH level. Have you add garden lime to the soil? If you have, that might have raised the pH to seven or over. Nutes usually bring the pH a bit down. To lower pH and increase acidity you can add sulphate of ammonia or urea which are high nitrogen fertilizers. Maybe try it to one or two plants and see if that helps. If your pH meter still shows 7 or over, test it to make sure It really works(unless you already have). You can pee on it ;)

Oh and keep the needle in the soil for good five minutes.

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I have a PH UP and down buffer solution, this should work its what Ive been using to bring it up or down when I have to use tap water.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by D Rock

I knew what you were saying. I thought he said he got those as clones and those pics were taken 2 weeks after he put them into his system. anyway I never thought those plants were 2 weeks old anyway. Just giving him props for having a T5 thats all, Im no idiot I know he was stretching the truth a little.

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LOL, He was shady from the start. He failed to tell us that he was working with clones until he was questioned about it. He also stated in his first post that it was the best grow he's had in years because of the T5, but yet, he was only 2 weeks into the grow. :wtf:

I wouldn't rely on the accuracy of that pH meter. I have the same one actually, but it's sitting in my shed somewhere. I always add some peat to help keep pH down in pots. I also use coconut husk chips which have a natural pH of 6.5 and hold water well.
I bought the chips over 3 years ago, and I've been re-using them since.

By the way, if the number to the right of the temp is for humidity. During veg, they like it high, during flower, they like it low. You may want to mist them when you visit them to keep humidity up during veg. If your room is dry, make sure they are moist.
By the way, nice grow bags!!! :jointsmile:

Thanks Pass that shit. Well the plants have perked up a bit since yesterday. I had them on a 24 hr light schedule. I have now cut it back to 18/6 light/dark schedule. As far as the PH meter as mentioned before its the only one I have for now and it will have to do. Im currently unemployed and have spent so much money already and wouldnt get another dollar past my wife. Eventually I want to get a hanna meter or something similar to that.

havent added anything to the soil but Pro mix and from what I under stand is that promix can screw with the PH level. If I would have know this I would have left the Promix alone and went with just the fox farms soil. I guess I was trying to strech the soil or make it go further by adding the Pro mix to it. I now know for my next grow its going to be just Fox Farm soil and thats it, might also go with their nutrients too.

D rock. I have been following along and I am not sure if we are at the same stage. I used Northern Light seeds and sowed directly into cocosoil. I put my Tek light down about 6 inches and keep things moist. They all popped within a day. I think I told in another post that I really screwed up the first time and kept them way to close. So I am keeping them way off about 24". I went with the General Hydropoics Flora series just cause they make it very close by.
But here is my novice question. Am I comparing apples to apples as I keep thinking about the heat. I have the tek light 48 and I am using all 8 tubes. I am running T-5 HO 54 watt. Are we running the same??
I am curious because our timing seems to be the same on this batch and I like to compare. Thanks Penn

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Originally Posted by Penngrove

D rock. I have been following along and I am not sure if we are at the same stage. I used Northern Light seeds and sowed directly into cocosoil. I put my Tek light down about 6 inches and keep things moist. They all popped within a day. I think I told in another post that I really screwed up the first time and kept them way to close. So I am keeping them way off about 24". I went with the General Hydropoics Flora series just cause they make it very close by.
But here is my novice question. Am I comparing apples to apples as I keep thinking about the heat. I have the tek light 48 and I am using all 8 tubes. I am running T-5 HO 54 watt. Are we running the same??
I am curious because our timing seems to be the same on this batch and I like to compare. Thanks Penn

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You have the tek light T5 and I have the New Wave T5. I also have the 8 bulb system as you. They are the same wattage and Lumens. Your hoodis Black and mine is white that is the only difference, Mabey your is a little lighter than mine since you are able to use the retractable hangers and Im not. I actually have my light about 13" from the tops of the plants. Im at day 16 naow since the seeds have poped. some look good and some look likr they did 3 days ago. Guess thats what you get with bagseed though. Next grow is definately going to be somethingf better maybe strawberry cough.

after I posted that I went and got my little catalog that I picked up from the grow shop and it says that your is made of aluminum and mine is steel. No wonder I cant use those hangers for my light.

Ok mystery solved. Like I said my buddy was really on edge because they each are rated at 22 pounds but the guy in the shop swore they would hold fine. We still have the chain as a safety but so far no problem.

Mine is in a 4 ft by 5 ft room and you saw the top I think with the ventilation. With that running that room is a minimum of 75 degrees but usually higher and like your situation, it gets hot outside. Big ass box fans are the best I can do but I can keep the temp below 95 during the high sun.

Still learning about nutients. I use well water and the best I can do at the moment is use a pool kit and the ph looks like 6.7. I need to get a better method. My next step is figuring this out. The guy from the Netherlands swears by this Flora series and up until now I have pretty much used a blend of CoCo soil and planters choice. He said just use the moisture meter and keep them happy. Use nutrients everytime. Gave me another product called Sweet. Mostly Magnisium as far as I can tell.
I know I can do much better because the last batch had some pretty sorry looking leaves towards the end. I am trying to catch on to the right stuff to use in the medium I use.

I guess I should start a grow log so you can see what I am doing and can laugh you butt off. The pack had fourteen seeds and all fourteen popped. So far they look good but I don't quit have the leaf sets you have just yet. Maybe moving the light lower?? Do you use a light meter??

Thanks for sharing your log, it helps.. Penn

I dont use a light meter.

And you should start a grow log... you will get tremendous help and suggestions on making your grow a better one, Im glad to see someone other than me has taken a step to T5 lights.
Oh and why would I laugh at your grow. We all start somwhere. As a matter of fact this is only my 3rd grow and This one has done better than the previous 2, there is a hell of alot to learn but thats what makes it so fun and enjoyable. Go ahead and start a grow log so we can see your progress. Good luck!

[align=center]Day 19[/align]

Here are a couple updated pics of my grow at day 19 from when the seed split open.

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All plants are doing pretty good some are better than others with the 2 biggest plants being up front and to the right in the picture. I guess every plant is going to be a little different cause it came from a mixed container of bagseed that I collected overtime. There are a couple of seeds that were from some hydroponic grow weed that was dank as hell, those are probably the ones that look the best. Will update when there is more to show.

Hey D Rock your looking good. So tell the new guy some stuff. How rigid are those grow bags? What is the capacity your using? Is the white specs Perlite??
How close is your light at this point. Everyone says lower so I am at 18" now. Temp is 86 at plant top and fan is running now right next to the plants.
Are the cups of water for humidity? I live in a fairly dry area and I am curious on humidity.
Sorry for all the newbie stuff. I will shot some shots in a couple of days as I think you are 6 days ahead of me.

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Originally Posted by Penngrove

Hey D Rock your looking good. So tell the new guy some stuff. How rigid are those grow bags? What is the capacity your using? Is the white specs Perlite??
How close is your light at this point. Everyone says lower so I am at 18" now. Temp is 86 at plant top and fan is running now right next to the plants.
Are the cups of water for humidity? I live in a fairly dry area and I am curious on humidity.
Sorry for all the newbie stuff. I will shot some shots in a couple of days as I think you are 6 days ahead of me.

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the grow bags are good to use they are extrememly inexspensive, and are a little thicker than a heavyduty black garbage bag and they are 3 gallon grow bags. Yes that would be perlite although the fox farms soil has vermiculite in it too. the perlite you see is from the ProMix that is mixed in with the fox farms. Im at about 12-15" right now and I was going to lift it up another 2-3 inches tonight. The cups are for humidity, the humidity inside my house is at 40ish% and I put the cups in there to keep it right about 50@ thats as High as I can get it with all the fans I have blowing around in there.

Most excellent. 18" has worked today. Hottest it got was just under 90. They took a good jump today.
The growbags are perferated on the bottom, correct?? Wonder if I should try those. As long as they are stout I will be in good shape. Probably it more in the room by the look of yours.

Maybe I should pull the humdity up to match you. Probably 30% in there as a guess so I could up in some water as well.

How many fans are you running on yours and how big? I use the 7" Target two speed specials. Up to two per room.

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Originally Posted by Penngrove

Most excellent. 18" has worked today. Hottest it got was just under 90. They took a good jump today.
The growbags are perferated on the bottom, correct?? Wonder if I should try those. As long as they are stout I will be in good shape. Probably it more in the room by the look of yours.

Maybe I should pull the humdity up to match you. Probably 30% in there as a guess so I could up in some water as well.

How many fans are you running on yours and how big? I use the 7" Target two speed specials. Up to two per room.

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You should try and stay 85 deg and under. Yes the bags have holes on the bottom and on the sides just before the bottom of the bag, they are cheap as hell at like 15cents a piece or something like that is what i paid for mine they ,make them in 1 gal, 3 gal, 5gal, and 7 gal Im going to just use the 3 gallons as I wont let my plants get to big.

As far as the humidity tommorrow Im going to get a big container to fill with water and put behind the bags. The cups with water just aint cutting it. I really need my humidity to stay above 50% and its only at 50% or higher when I water or mist the plants down with a b1 vitamin that was designed for misting the plants down with.

Fans I have 3 right now. One is a small 4" clip on fan that is cliped on the inside of the tent. One is a tower fan that moves back and forth, and the other is like a 6" fan that I have on the floor right in front of a A/c vent that is drawing all the cold air from the A/c vent and blowing it into my tent. Im going to have to figure out how to keep it cool like this when I have to shut the doors to the tent when its time to flower. Keep updating your crop man so we can see each others T5 grow. :thumbsup:

great job D!