Seedlings 10 days old- a log

[hybridlove420]

2 things:

1) they are big enought that you MUST give them thier own containers before they strangle eachother

2) it appears they are lit by a very orange glow. is it hps or warm flourescents? either way, buy at least 4 daylight cfls and use those instead, or else theyll stretch horribly

[denial102]

Hi hybridlove

To answer your questions
1) Yeah... you're right, I am a bit limited on space but giving serious consideration to giving them their own pots.
2) As I said it is a HPS Grolux with blue and reds which is ideal for people like me who want a bulb they can use through veg to flowering.. it's 400 watts and it's approx 18 inches away, I don't think I should be worried about stretching @ 18inches? no? :-)

I am quite worried about transplanting again.. but you are indeed right regarding the pots :-( I need to finish the grow box first really. Any other advice is welcome by the way, how do the plants look? healthyish? Less water perhaps? If I put my finger 1 inch deep in the soil or at the bottom of the pot it is damp.

Thanks a lot hybrid and others who have taken the time to comment,
Peace,
Denial

[Mr. Clandestine]

Hey Denial,

Those plants are reacting just fine to the HPS. Later on down the road you can always get a conversion MH bulb, but what you have now will work just fine for veg. Keep the light as close as possible without stressing the plants, and you'll keep the stretching as minimal as possible.

Those plants are looking healthy, but I think you're going to need to make a decision concerning another transplant pretty soon. It won't be long until those roots are intertwined, if they aren't already. As you can imagine, ripping the roots apart to separate into individual containers is most likely going to cause mild-severe stunting...and possibly deformed growth for a while. If the damage is severe enough, it could kill the plant altogether.

A last-ditch option for using a single container could be to wait until the plants are mature enough, then force-flower them. If two of them happen to be males (or one female is much more vigorous than the others), you can dispose of them and allow the female the much needed container space. Switch back to veg lighting, if you wish, and grow the one known female out some more before flowering.

If more than one ends up being female, maybe there are other options available. This'll definitely need to be a question for someone more knowledgeable about cloning than myself, but I wonder what would happen if you tried to clone an entire female plant that has been snipped at the base of the main stem? If it's theoretically possible, maybe you could still end up flowering them all in separate containers without having to disturb the roots you have now. Just a thought. Either way, I wish you the best with this grow and the others that follow. :jointsmile:

[denial102]

wow dude, some really good points there. Yeah, I am seriously considering taking these out and repotting them. If not now, once I get the box room ready for it. I considered using the 3 plants as a "big momma" for all the cuttings and flower it at the end as an experiment. you know, super dense packing. etc.

Well, the idea of cutting some off at the stem and transplanting hsa really got me thinking, a bit of clonex and that could be made a reality easily. The only thing that'd concern me is the initial heat trauma under the HPS without a proper root system - it'll be a whole case of leave the hps on it/move it further away OR sit and pray ;-)

things are coming along I 'guess

Thanks so much for the advice. I'll let you all know what I decide to go with, as for anyone else who is an expert, what do you think I should do?

Important Notes: goddamn they are starting to smell already! *where is that rvk100A I need to find the money for so badly?!*

[denial102]

god damnit I'm itching to try and transplant two out ;( but got a bad feeling i'm going to kill all 3 Has anyone got any guidance/moral support lol


Denial

[Rusty Trichome]

Let the soil dry-out a bit, have the new pots, soil and ph'd water ready. Gently tap the transplants out of the pot, lightly spray the roots with water, and gently seperate them from the soil ball, one at a time. Lightly mist the roots again, to prevent moisture loss and air pruning of the roots.

When prepping for transplanting, I add damp, not wet, soil to bottom and cake it all around the sides of the new pot. I place the seedling in, visualizing my leaving only 1/4 to 1/2 inches below the cotlydons, yet filling the container to about 1/2" from the top. (for future waterings)
Total plant height after transplant...about 1".
After visualizing how deep I want it, I collapse the dirt that is caked around sides, around and over the top of the roots. Then gently pack more soil. Do not pack so hard that it'll break or over-compress the roots. Water and grow as usual.
99% sucess rate.
HTH

[denial102]

thanks a lot for the help rusty_trichome, I'll owe you one! Well, if I can get it to work. I'm going to let this cycle finish off I think, get a few hours sleep and give this a try.. oh man.

Also got another seedling on the way incase this dies :-(

Wish me luck.


Peace,
Denial

[stinkyattic]

god damnit I'm itching to try and transplant two out ;( but got a bad feeling i'm going to kill all 3

At this point I usually advise people NOT to try to break up the plants. When you re-pot, train them AWAY from each other. When males show, DON'T yank them; cut them off instead.

[Rusty Trichome]

At this point I usually advise people NOT to try to break up the plants. When you re-pot, train them AWAY from each other. When males show, DON'T yank them; cut them off instead.

Not that I'm arguing, but it works for me.
When times warrant, I will start two seeds per 1 cup pot, just to make sure all the pots have at least one seedling. I keep them this way till I transplant into a 1 gallon pot, at which time I coax the small rootball apart, and re-pot into seperate pots. Kinda like an insurance policy. I hate bare spots under the lighs.
Have gently done it many, many times. No worse that skewering the roots with a bamboo stake, trying to find the right position for it. Yes, I usually hear some roots 'snap', but I try and keep it to a minimum, and very rarely see any problems as a result.
Granted, you don't want to just rip 'em apart, but I would much rather seperate them before they grow up mainly because the dying roots of the cut-down plant start to rot, don't they?

[denial102]

just as I was going to do it too!! I will have a look at them and weigh up everyones advice, thankyou very much!

I'm a little worried about yield, so I may just use these 3 as mothers and take cuttings for the other pots, and see if i can do a perpetual grow.. guess I'll need to get a CFL and a seperate room for the mother..

Thanks again, more pictures on the way soon!
Denial