I've searched everywhere for an answer....

[philskill]

1st time grower of anything, I ordered some "blue Mystic" feminized + autoflower seeds to grow inside of a PC grow case. I'm in the 3rd week of flowering. I started the 12/12 light cycle once i noticed some white hairs (pistils) start showing up on my plants, also switched the lights out to the yellow color lights instead of the white colored lights. I'm using 4 of the new energy saver bulbs, can't remember what they are called (CFLs maybe). They're the cheap ones you can buy at walmart, although mine came with my pc grow case.

Here is my problem. Once flowering started, I noticed a spot about 2 weeks ago on one fan leaf at the tip of the leaf started turning light green. Then several more on each plant started turning light green. The light green slowly over the course of a few days started turning brown (only on the tips of the leaves, the rest of the leaves look nice and healthy). Right now about half of my fan leaves or shade leaves have these browned tips, while the other half the tips are turning light green. Well a couple days ago, starting the 3rd week of flowering, I've noticed that the leaves growing out of the buds (the ones covered in little white trichomes) started turning the light green color. Now a couple of them, are turning brown, again only on the tips.

At first I thought maybe I was using too strong of a nutrient mix. (little less than half strength of tyger bloom and big bloom from fox farms) so I lowered it to about half strength again (so 1/4 strength) and would water with that every other watering. Been doing that for 2 weeks now and the problem hasn't spead up or slowed down, just remained steady.

The other thing I've noticed is, that compared to most other plants I've seen, my buds are really small and don't seem to be growing much...... I mean I definitely notice growth, but these buds are SKINNY and short. I couldn't even imagine smoking it now its mostly white hairs still. Thats another thing, some of the newer white hairs coming out on the buds are brown. I'd say about 20 percent of the white hairs overall are brown.

Could this be a case of root rot? Nutrient build up in my soil? When I first noticed this a couple/few weeks ago, I flushed my soil with tap water twice over the course of 4 days with no other watering really.....problem didn't change much, no improvement, no significant worsening.

Could this be a problem with the strain I am growing? One plant has big shade leaves and very few bud sites, the other plant is taller with much smaller shade leaves and several more bud sites. I have taken pics with my cell phone and can post them if need be. I need some help on how to fix this issue before it takes over and kills my plans that I've worked over 2 months on. Not to mention I am in horrible pain and really need this medicine......I can't afford to buy it on the street, mostly because its super overpriced mexican brick where i live. A quarter of mexican brick crap weed costs 45-50 bucks!!!! And a quarter of that shit lasts me about 3 days......so again, can't afford it. Thanx for reading this and responding.

philskill Reviewed by philskill on 08-29-2010. I've searched everywhere for an answer.... 1st time grower of anything, I ordered some "blue Mystic" feminized + autoflower seeds to grow inside of a PC grow case. I'm in the 3rd week of flowering. I started the 12/12 light cycle once i noticed some white hairs (pistils) start showing up on my plants, also switched the lights out to the yellow color lights instead of the white colored lights. I'm using 4 of the new energy saver bulbs, can't remember what they are called (CFLs maybe). They're the cheap ones you can buy at walmart, Rating: 5

[SoHigh420]

pictures would deff. help alot
also whats the PH of the soil youre using?

[scrumby]

Yep PH is first, and foremost. You are looking for a finite answer for a problem that could be a plethora of stuff. I will say however that typically in a grow situation like this there is a tendency to use as little soil as possible, and the problem you can run into a lot is peat in the soil breaking down rapidly, and causing the PH to plummet rapidly in the middle of a grow. Especially when the soil is drying up between waterings.

[headshake]

wow, all this advice and no one hits on the obvious points. wtf?! first off, you are growing an AUTOFLOWER, meaning the plant flowers on it's own, NO NEED TO CHANGE THE LIGHT CYCLE! the recommended light cycle for autoflowers is 20 on/4 off. so change your light back. if you have been growing your plants for 2 months they should be finished or damn close. most are done in the 45-60 day range, again, on their own.

secondly, you are using CFLS to flower with. they have horrible canopy penetration and you will have airy, light buds.

thirdly, your plant could be root bound. a root bound plant will show many signs of other problems, pH, deficencies etc. so look for that as well.


-shake

[bluesteve]

A couple of points here. First, as the other gentleman told you, put your lights on 20 hrs on and 4 hrs off, and leave them there until you're ready for harvest! Then turn the lights off for 48 hours before you take the crop. This period of dark can sometimes cause the plants to generate a bit more resin. And stop giving these plants fertilizer. They only live from 60 to 80 days, and if you put them in a reasonably sized pot, it'll have all they need to go all the way to harvest, just don't make the pot too small. I've grown them in 1 Gal plastic milk cartons that I cut the tops off of & had put drainage holes in the bottoms. These are the easiest, most fool proof plants you can grow. Just plant them, and leave them alone to do their thing, and I'd be far more concerned about total lumens of light than any color spectrum. Trust me on this one. I've gotten great flowering with just metal halide lights, which don't put out the reds that everyone says you need to get flowers, though the HPS lamps put out even more light than a metal halide--and it's in the "flowering spectrum". But, again, total light will do you more good than limited light in a specific spectrum.

Also, I recently purchased an, "AeroGrow", kitchen tomato/pepper garden. It's a small hydroponic set up with three 27 watt CF type lights providing over 3000 lumens, and I've found some higher wattage bulbs that I think will fit into it, as well. I just need to check out their heat signature first. I bought the Elite 6+ model. This has six grow holes and uses a constant immersion system with an aquarium pump, plus, I've added a second aquarium p[ump that is batter operated and doesn't come on unless there's power outage, so I'll have aeration even with a blackout. But, it's being replaced by a newer model that uses a pump to flood the baskets and has 7 grow holes. The lights on this only raise to 24", their tallest model, but, most auto flower plants don't get even that tall, so it's kind of a cool way to keep producing about an ounce every 60 days, or so. Keeps me in different varieties & flavors without having to do a big grow.

[headshake]

and I'd be far more concerned about total lumens of light than any color spectrum. Trust me on this one. I've gotten great flowering with just metal halide lights, which don't put out the reds that everyone says you need to get flowers, though the HPS lamps put out even more light than a metal halide--and it's in the "flowering spectrum". But, again, total light will do you more good than limited light in a specific spectrum.

what's good steve? your right that total lumens would be more important than color temp. from what i've read flowering with a MH vs a HPS, same wattage side-by-side is that the MH yield is about 25% less but with better resin production. granted, an HPS is a bit more efficient than a metal halide, but still. these results seem pretty standard.


-shake

[philskill]

This is the most information I have recieved based on my specific situation. I've stayed silent the last 2+ months while growing these two plants, not wanting to sound like a noob who is bothering people with questions that have been answered 25 times in the last week. So I've done it all on my own.

So how bad I wonder have I messed up my plants by doing 12/12 lighting for the last 3+ weeks? Have I significantly lowered my yeild? I already expected to have a small yeild. I am only growing these for myself as medicine essentially.

They are in small pots and have never been transplanted.......and are probably root bound.....how imperitive is it that I try to transplant them into a bigger pot at this stage? Transplanting them is something I have no clue how to even begin to do without hurting the plant or making a huge mess. The pots I have are about the size of a 3 liter soda pop bottle cut off about half way up.......about the same length as they are wide. So as wide as a 3 liter soda bottle and as tall.

Something interesting I noticed is that last night my nap turned into being alseep all night and the plants got an extra 4 hours of light, and when I checked them today at noon to turn the lights back on, some of the problems i had mentioned had improved a bit.

So some more questions, first of all, how do I post pictures? Second of all, I am using 4 of the yellow type lights, should I put back in a white light bulb or two for a better spectrum? Would it hurt the plant to put it on 24 hr light since its an autoflower strain? I want to get this thing ready for harvest ASAP and start 2 more plants of the same breed (blue mystic feminized autoflower).

Is it better to stick with autoflowering strains considering I live in an apartment that has family members (inlaws) visit often who would literally call the cops on me if they knew I was growing plants? Thats also why they are in a PC grow case in my computer room, but my inlaws (who babysit often) are nosey as hell..... My seed bank sent me some "New York Power Deisel" seeds that aren't feminized or autoflower.....I suppose I could just start the flowering light cycle with those very early to keep it a small plant? How early is too early? Suggestions on what to do with my NYPD seeds? Save 'em till next spring maybe and plant them in some woods in the country and hope for the best? Give them to you? (J/k of course)

Guys thanks for the great advice! Heres hoping I can put them on a 20/4 or a 24 hr light cycle and harvest 'em up in a couple weeks. Will post pics when I figure out how. Thanx again.

[philskill]

A couple of points here. First, as the other gentleman told you, put your lights on 20 hrs on and 4 hrs off, and leave them there until you're ready for harvest! Then turn the lights off for 48 hours before you take the crop. This period of dark can sometimes cause the plants to generate a bit more resin. And stop giving these plants fertilizer. They only live from 60 to 80 days, and if you put them in a reasonably sized pot, it'll have all they need to go all the way to harvest, just don't make the pot too small. I've grown them in 1 Gal plastic milk cartons that I cut the tops off of & had put drainage holes in the bottoms. These are the easiest, most fool proof plants you can grow. Just plant them, and leave them alone to do their thing, and I'd be far more concerned about total lumens of light than any color spectrum. Trust me on this one. I've gotten great flowering with just metal halide lights, which don't put out the reds that everyone says you need to get flowers, though the HPS lamps put out even more light than a metal halide--and it's in the "flowering spectrum". But, again, total light will do you more good than limited light in a specific spectrum.

Also, I recently purchased an, "AeroGrow", kitchen tomato/pepper garden. It's a small hydroponic set up with three 27 watt CF type lights providing over 3000 lumens, and I've found some higher wattage bulbs that I think will fit into it, as well. I just need to check out their heat signature first. I bought the Elite 6+ model. This has six grow holes and uses a constant immersion system with an aquarium pump, plus, I've added a second aquarium p[ump that is batter operated and doesn't come on unless there's power outage, so I'll have aeration even with a blackout. But, it's being replaced by a newer model that uses a pump to flood the baskets and has 7 grow holes. The lights on this only raise to 24", their tallest model, but, most auto flower plants don't get even that tall, so it's kind of a cool way to keep producing about an ounce every 60 days, or so. Keeps me in different varieties & flavors without having to do a big grow.

Thats awesome! Everything I do needs to go in the PC case unfortunately. Thats why I picked up the autoflower feminized seeds. can't waste time with a male plant or worse yet 2 male plants seeing as to how I'm growing 2 plants at a time.

How much yeild after drying should I expect from 2 autoflower plants using CFLs in a PC grow case? I use the "veg box" from pcgrowcase.com.

[philskill]

Ok, more questions.......One of these 2 plants is about a half inch from actually touching the lights......Any thoughts on what to do? Right now I have it sitting in the back part of the pc grow case with a space in between 2 of my lights for the top part to grow through and not hit the light. If I cut the top off now, A) will I have anything smokeable from it.....in other words, there are buds, just small up there......covered in white trichomes with some small leaves growing from it covered in white trichomes as well.....If I cut it, will I screw up the yeild on the rest of the plant?

Which brings me to my next question. Can I harvest the top half of the plant and let the bottom part continue to grow with this kind of seed? In other words, if I harvest like 5 inches of the main stem, will the rest of it continue to grow? The plant has the main cola and 4 big stalks growing from the bottom with flowers on them as well.......those are smaller and underdeveloped compared to the center stalk. Thoughts on a double or triple harvest from that one plant? The buds on the main stem will be ready for harvest I believe before the buds on the other stalks coming from the bottom. Thanx again guys!

[bigtopsfinn]

So how bad I wonder have I messed up my plants by doing 12/12 lighting for the last 3+ weeks? Have I significantly lowered my yeild? I already expected to have a small yeild. I am only growing these for myself as medicine essentially.

Not sure about how much yield you messed up, but with CFL's, you figure about .3 grams for every watt, maybe less. I would be a little worried about changing the light schedule, as it could trigger hermaphrodism, which is no good. Maybe bump it up again gradually.

how imperitive is it that I try to transplant them into a bigger pot at this stage? Transplanting them is something I have no clue how to even begin to do without hurting the plant or making a huge mess.

Would be easier to tell you with a pic of the entire plant with pot, but transplanting is easy. Palm the soil, turn the plant upside-down, give the bottom a few taps and slide the pot off. If the roots completely fill up the bottom and tangle up, then put in larger container. Just pre-fill a larger container with soil on the bottom, place plant on top, fill in sides, done.

Something interesting I noticed is that last night my nap turned into being alseep all night and the plants got an extra 4 hours of light, and when I checked them today at noon to turn the lights back on, some of the problems i had mentioned had improved a bit.

From reading your first post it sounded like nute-burn (Fox Farm is pretty strong), so that won't heal. Just check the new growth. Don't worry about the color of the hairs.

So some more questions, first of all, how do I post pictures?

Need 25 or 50 posts, can't remember. Go on photobucket.com, upload pics there, copy link, click the globe/paperclip thingy at the top of the reply box, and paste it there.

Second of all, I am using 4 of the yellow type lights, should I put back in a white light bulb or two for a better spectrum?

I see a lot of people mixing spectrum with CFL's, sure why not?

Would it hurt the plant to put it on 24 hr light since its an autoflower strain?

Could cause hermies... go slow if you do it.

Is it better to stick with autoflowering strains considering I live in an apartment that has family members (inlaws) visit often who would literally call the cops on me if they knew I was growing plants?

Depends how much they smell. Do you have a carbon filter? Even though you can't smell them, you might be used to the smell, so others can smell it right away coming in your house. You should check up on this before the wrong person smells it.

Thats also why they are in a PC grow case in my computer room, but my inlaws (who babysit often) are nosey as hell..... My seed bank sent me some "New York Power Deisel" seeds that aren't feminized or autoflower.....I suppose I could just start the flowering light cycle with those very early to keep it a small plant? How early is too early?

Starting 12/12 from seed is fine, it'll just take a while before you see flowers.

Suggestions on what to do with my NYPD seeds? Save 'em till next spring maybe and plant them in some woods in the country and hope for the best?

Might be a good idea, start reading up on guerrilla outdoor growing, plenty of info out there.

Happy growing :jointsmile: