new grower

[virus]

ok couple questions thanks for all help in advance

1. Germinating best method?
2. how long after the plant first sprouts should i change to 12/12?
3. What should i water plants with ( eg water plus fertilizer ) an how often?


Wish me luck!

virus Reviewed by virus on 04-14-2005. new grower ok couple questions thanks for all help in advance 1. Germinating best method? 2. how long after the plant first sprouts should i change to 12/12? 3. What should i water plants with ( eg water plus fertilizer ) an how often? Wish me luck! Rating: 5

[JohnnyPotGrower]

1. Personally I have had success with simply dropping a couple seeds into a glass of water and waiting a couple days (4-8). Some people will say it has to be in a dark and/or warm place, but so far all my seeds have germinated fine in a glass filled with water sitting on a counter - so thats one way. Others will say you should put a couple seeds in between wet paper towels for a couple days. Again, some say it has to be warm/dark, but i wouldnt know. So try just droppin a few in a glass of room temp. water and waiting a couple days until the tap root is nice and long.

2. Changing the lighting to 12/12 is effectively what makes the plant begin its flowering stage of growth (it begins to produce buds). Most of the time you want to wait about 4 weeks before putting the plant into 12/12, this is because you want the plant to be big enough and hearty enough to not only grow alot of bud, but so that it is strong enough to sustain them. So when to switch to 12/12 is really up to you, if its been 4weeks and you want your plant taller or it is looking a little thin, you can wait another week or two to begin the 12/12. On the other hand if you are tight for space or only want a small plant you can begin the 12/12 between the 3rd and 4th weeks. Personally, I would wait 4 weeks AT THE LEAST to begin 12/12.

3. Once your guys sprout you should make sure not to water them too often. Sometimes its easy to get carried away - Ive heard a good rule of thumb is to water every other day. Don't water if the top 2-3 inches are still moist. You want your plant to "search" for water so that it expands its root system because thats what will be sustaining the nutrient intake of your plant. As far as fertilizers go you should NOT use Miracle-Gro. I don't know why but just about everyone I have talked to has said it is bad. You want to use a fertilizer with a ratio of 15-30-15. Ive also heard that 20-20-20 is good too. Don't begin fertilizing your guy for a couple weeks, maybe 3 weeks. This is because most soils already have fertilizer or nutrients in it and if you add more you will shock your young plant and it may die. After week 3 when you do begin fertilizing make sure you follow the directions carefully, if you think adding more fertilizer than the directions say will make it grow more you are wrong... over fertilizing will kill the plant. Finally, don't fertilize too frequently, once every other week is plenty.

-- Just out of curiousity how many plants are you growing? What kind of light are you using?--

Hope all that helps you buddy

[virus]

what the light or the number of plants for a first grow??

what sorta soil should i be usin, i've heard of a few recipes to make great soil.

[virus]

a 400w HPS light, probably only grow 3 the first time round

[JohnnyPotGrower]

Perfect

[JohnnyPotGrower]

Im not too sure about soil - that is one variable I am still trying to figure out. I have heard only good things about FoxFarm so if you can find it I would go with that... beyond that I dont know.

[Psycho4Bud]

Had real good luck using 2 parts miracle grow potting soil...bake at 275 for a half hour to sterilize

one part peat and one part perilite. Good luck!

[tomgirl]

if you dont have access to a lighting situation cant you just use natural sun? I mean if they are sitting by a window or something? and if i could find a way to grow would it be okay if i put them in a well lit window cill. does anyone have any helpful hints on how to get started

[virus]

where i live ( scotland ) we aint get a whole lot of sunlight so man made is the only choice except movin