First Time Skunk Grower Could Use Guidance

Yeahh so its my first time growing, i've been reading grow guides and watching vids all summer but really could use some help on identifying problems with water, nutrients, temperature etc.

I first germinated in a jar with paper towel for two days. One of the seeds sprouted a lot more than the other. I planted them in a generic potting soil, because of its availability, and put them under a 430 w HPS with the added blue spectrum. they're far enough from the bulb with good ventilation, though i don't have thermometer. I have a 30-10-10 and a 15-30-15 fertilizer.

Currently, they have been 3 day planted in the soil. One is about 2 1/2 inches tall and the other is about 1/4 inch tall, still with half a seed shell on it. That one came out of the ground today. I will have to take pictures in the morning, because my camera is on my computer and the lighting is pretty bad.

i had a question about watering at such an early stage. I fully watered after i planted the seeds in soil and then left them for two days. Since then i've been spraying the cups with plain water, about 6-10 squirts, everytime the soil feels dry and begins to crack. Any suggestions??

here are my two plants. they are going to bed in an hour and have been in soil for 5 days. As you can see, one of them is growing a lot faster than the other, also the small one is positioned more to the side than the larger one. i think the seed got moved around after the first water, which may explain the slower growth.

any advice is appreciated :thumbsup:

Whats the dimensions of yr grow room?

Currently, its a closet growbox that is 1m high and .75m wide, but i have to make it taller because i under estimated the heat coming off the hps..i think.. i'm getting a thermometer today to confirm that.

Well the girls have been planted in the soil for a week today. Still one is out shadowing the other, but they both look a healthy colour of green.

my grow box is in a re-desgining stage, as a thermometer revealed the inside temp was 40 C :wtf:

Also, i used a verrryy light fertilizer yesterday, and no nitrogen damage is apparent so i will gradually increase the dosage.

Pics are low quality, i'm getting an out of town friend to give me a hand in documententing my grow, mostly because i don't want too many ppl down here knowing i'm growing.

Mono, your plants are looking quite healthy. I would ask if you have adequate drainage out of the cups - make sure there are a few holes to allow water to drain to prevent stagnation at the bottom of the cups. Also, be careful not to overwater; it sounds like you have it under control by waiting for the soil to be dried up; poke your pinky into the soil and if you feel no moisture add water. It's pretty tricky when you're in a small cup, but the good drain holes should help prevent overwatering.

As for the fertilizer, I've read a good rule of thumb is to wait until the plants are on their 4th or 5th node prior to fertilizing, and then only at 1/4 to 1/2 strength. I've burned up quite a few lower nodes by overfertilizing, so be careful and ease into it only once the plants are large enough to absorb the initial shock.

Good luck with your grow. I can't wait to see these lil' ladies poppin' pistils!

yeah i have two cups, with empty space at the bottom, and both with holes. water has been draining out so i hope it is enough.

how deep should the soil be dry before another watering is necessary?

Ya i messed up filling the cups. they were filled to the top with soil but weren't packed down (first time planting anything really) and after the first watering they compressed 1.5''. I am transplanting later this week, i might wait for the 2 week mark, so i need to make sure to do a better job.

Quick question, my grow box has been hitting temperatures of 95 F (the area closest to the light) when the door is closed. the door will always be open except for maybe 1 night a week. Is this going to be a problem?

Here they are at day 11, just waking up. the seed that came out of the soil a day and a half earlier then the other one looks amazing, while the other one has a couple of disfigured leaves, but both are growing at a good rate.

They look ok... Growing kinda slowly but I wouldn't worry about that.... They'll pick up the pace.

No nutes until the cotyledons (those first round leaves you see when they first sprout) turn yellow, usually when they get their 3rd or 4th sets of leaves.

My question is this: Do you have adequate air circulation & ventilation? That would help with your heat issues.

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Originally Posted by dooobster

They look ok... Growing kinda slowly but I wouldn't worry about that.... They'll pick up the pace.

No nutes until the cotyledons (those first round leaves you see when they first sprout) turn yellow, usually when they get their 3rd or 4th sets of leaves.

My question is this: Do you have adequate air circulation & ventilation? That would help with your heat issues.

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ya my first set up was pretty bad, temp was almost at 40 C, so i had to keep my plants on the outside of the box, which may explain the slow growth. i just got an air cooled reflector, and made my growbox a lot smaller so the plants are closer to the light. i could make it taller if i need to, i hope not though.

As for the nutes, my cotyledons are still green and i'm using 1/10th of the solution with no apparent nitrogen damage, should i continue so switch back to plain water until they change colour??

i would keep giving the bigger one low strength nutes and lay off the nutes on the small one

School and work are getting busy, so updates are happening less frequently.

Where to start.. i've went through 3 revisions of growboxes til finally i have something with a temp less than 30 C. The plants have orange-yellowish tips on the bottom/early leaves, so the heat stress did cause some damage.

Nutrient-wise, they are up to full strength, and i have not noticed any apparent damage.

Flowering will start within a week, because i leave the country in decemeber and have to harvest before then.

If the smaller plant doesn't atleast get to the size that bigger one currently is, i might kill it so the bigger one has more room to grow and gets all the light. Is this a wise choice? or is the smaller plant already large enough to produce good bud??

also, on the bigger plant, the leave tips are curling inwards towards the light , i dunno if you can tell from the pics. is this a problem??

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Originally Posted by Mono

also, on the bigger plant, the leave tips are curling inwards towards the light , i dunno if you can tell from the pics. is this a problem??

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Edit: I don't really mean curling forward, its hard to describe but the end of the leaves are raised. From the pics you can see the leaves look jagged, is this normal?

Also, i had a look at this additive Bustan - Toronto Hydroponics Grow Lights Nutrients Hydroponic Supplies Canada

what do you guys think? its pretty cheap and says it will increase yield and protect from heat stress and fungus. Worth it? or just a product that will do nothing in the long run.

..!

Eh Mono- try the search again and let me know if the title change didn't help at all. It might take a day or so to get it out of the cache. If it still worries you, get back at me and I will just nuke it, but let's try this first- hate to lose the thread!