First time low budget

[estranged]

Re: first time low budget..

and about the ph,,
well i tried to test a couple times with this test kit i got,,
its add a little soil then a little water and some powder from capsule,, and shake let sit and supposed to change colour,, only thing is mine never changes colour,,

so ya gotta get some ph test strips and check run-off i guess??

also i couldnt find any 5 gal pails,, so i used these 12" growers on sale for $2 each and just cut bottom out of one and stacked them,,
likely about 6-7 gal in size,,,

 

[dollabill1]

Re: first time low budget..

looking good plants look beautiful keep up the good work

 

[Pericodaking]

Re: first time low budget..

and about the ph,,
well i tried to test a couple times with this test kit i got,,
its add a little soil then a little water and some powder from capsule,, and shake let sit and supposed to change colour,, only thing is mine never changes colour,,

so ya gotta get some ph test strips and check run-off i guess??

also i couldnt find any 5 gal pails,, so i used these 12" growers on sale for $2 each and just cut bottom out of one and stacked them,,
likely about 6-7 gal in size,,,

at home depot, in the garden section they sell a ph tester, it's just a little rectangular black box, and has two metal prongs on the end with the meter on the front, just stick it in your soil and let it stay for a few seconds and the needle will stop moving at the soils' ph level, you're aiming for between 6 and 6.8, if memory serves me correct from past research, any experts care to chime in?

 

[TorturedSoul]

Re: first time low budget..

hey guys,, thanks for your continued support and knowledge on this slow and frustrating grow,,

Thank YOU for sharing!

I took 8 cuttings from the bigger plant,, they were all from the bottom 4" and all had at least 3-4 nodes on them,, they were small tho,, ranging in size from 2.5"-4.5",,so i am doubting they gonna root

You don't need a full-sized plant for a cutting. Should be fine. I liked an inch to go into the medium and a couple of inches to hold the vegetative matter at the top of the cutting off of the medium. 3".

i also broke a branch on the other plant while trying to trim up some dead growth,, so i just cut it and put in glass of water and see if that works

I have rooted MANY cuttings in glasses of water. They don't dry out that way lol. Just make sure that you didn't leave too many leaves on it.

i could not decide which method to use,, so i did an assorment of methods,,lol,, most i did not trim all leaves,, some i did except top two and growing top,, all got clipped 45 degree angle and all got rooting gel,, some got scarred some did not,,etc. etc.

I had much success with cutting the things at a 45° angle (more surface area) and scraping the bottom 3/4" or so of the stem to allow roots to grow easier from it and in more places than just the bottom.]

I also had success with removing most of the leaves except for at the tip - to slow transpiration of what moisture the cutting had and also on the basis that root size should match canopy size and since a cutting by definition has no roots...

Also, I felt it to be less burdensome on the cutting if the excess leaves were cut off a few days before taking the cutting so that the sites could heal while the cutting was still part of the mother plant as opposed to the cutting trying to heal the sites at the same time it was trying to come up with the energy to grow roots.

Rooting gel can be a great help if used correctly or a bane if not. I LOVED Olivia's Cloning Gel but the last two years that I did that kind of stuff I had none and only used Rootone powder for its antifungals. And the last year or so I didn't even have any of that. Kept telling myself that the first time I failed to root a cutting I'd replace the stuff lol but never got to that point.

When it's all said and done, MJ is a plant and nature provided for her plants. Assuming that they don't dry out completely through transpiration or lack of humidity, that they get enough light without being blasted, that they don't rot from too much water and/or newbie misting, and the ones in water get FRESH (and non-chlorinated - if using tap water, let it set out over night) water every day or two, you should be fine.

Some will root faster than others. Sounds like you've got a few different styles going - you can decide which worked best (quickest) for you. Different things work best for different people and although it's true that some strains root cuttings faster than others, trying different things under controlled circumstances with the same genetic stock is the best way that I know of for someone to find the best way for them to do anything.

Just as an aside: Once I cut several lower branches from a mother plant, hacked probably 10 or 12 cuttings from them, set them up to root, and realized that there was a tiny little thing on what was left on a 1.5" piece of the branch. It was late and I was tired so I threw the thing into a glass of straight-from-the-tap water without bothering to remove it from the branch stub. I then set it on the kitchen windowsill. I think I figured it had as much chance staying alive that way than if I tossed it into the refrigerator. Regardless, I forgot about it for a few days and when I saw it and went to dump it into the trash I noticed that it had grown about ten little roots from the stub of the branch it was attached to! Imagine that.

i did not top,, just gonna tie over or something if get to big,,

I topped now and then for various reasons, but to be honest with you, just about every strain I ever messed with - including "pure" sativas - would branch a bit if I tied them down and took care to make sure that the primary growing tip was no higher than any other part of the plant. I generally tried to make sure it was the lowest part. Of course there were a couple of times when I bent the plant TOO far (lmao) until I learned that a bit of flowering nutes during the veg cycle tended to help keep the stems more flexable than otherwise. I don't care how much light you give a plant, tying it down is like telling a little kid NOT to look in the box marked "nasty stuff that kids don't like." The plant will send up branches seeking the sun because it "thinks" that it needs to be closer to it - and the kid will sneak a peak into that box because he/she thinks there must be something worth peaking at since an adult told him/her not to look.

 

[L8tNightSkunk]

Re: first time low budget..

Looking good estranged! keep up the good work! ive seen your grow come along way! +Rep

 

[pan4gold49]

Re: first time low budget..

Your doing a great job.

Nice plants and good job on the cuttings.

Pan4

 

[estranged]

Re: first time low budget..

dollabill- thanks for stopping in with some kind words for the ladies,,

pericodaking- i have not been to home depot lately,, the growing season is just starting here and the garden sections of most stores have been closed or bare minimum stock,, but i would imagine they are open and full swing now,, i will have to go check it out again,, thanks for the tip,,

TorturedSoul- thaks for checking in,, i always appreciate when you stop by,, your posts (here or anywhere else) are always both entertaining and informative, and with a coffee in one hand and a spliff in the other, reading them is quite enjoyable,, thankyou,

l8nightskunk- thanks for all your advice and encouragement from the start,, ya this grow is taking much longer than anticipated,, ,, today is day 50,, i was hoping to be at least 20 days into flowering by now,, but hopefully i can get my act together and get these girls flowered without too many troubles,,but doubtfull,,

pan4gold- thanks for your support throughout this grow too,,if i can get the end results to look even a 1/4 as nice as yours,, i will be a happy guy,,

well i wanted to post side by sides since entered grow cab with hps,,

day 43,, first day under 400whps,, the big girl on left side,, the other girl on right side,,big one is 12"

day 43,, big one 13"

day 50,, the girls switched sides,, big one 20"

was really not expecting that,, over an inch a day growth,, i hope i am able to tie these over enough to finish flower,, if not i guess outside they will have to go,, next grow ,, for sure looking into scrog or something,,

they don't seem to be growing as healthy tho, as they did under the 6500k cfls,,?? i don't know maybe just cause they were rootbound ,, give a few days and see if they look better,,

 

[Ms.Fox]

Re: first time low budget..

Wow! They look great!

 

[Vexer]

Re: first time low budget..

Nice lookin plants estranged, I can only hope mine look that good at day 50 lol.

 

[estranged]

Re: first time low budget..

thanks ms.fox,, but i feel that they are dying,,lol,, umm,, there new growth does not look right,, pale greenish botchy splotchy pattern,, new leaves seem so small and stunted,, old growth fine, except for what i call in my grow normal wear and tear,,

after looking at the plant sickness chart,, im leaning towards zinc or iron blockup maybe because of high ph,, but gonna get better ph tester today hopefully and that can help more im sure,,

thanks Vexer,, they look good in photos,, but in person , there is definitely something wrong,,

 

[pan4gold49]

Re: first time low budget..

Looks great estranged

Nice job.

Pan4

 

[happiehippie]

Re: first time low budget..

looks like a little christmas tree forest!!!!....nice job man.

 

[estranged]

Re: first time low budget..

The plants are looking healthier,, maybe just were rootbound,, i dunno,,

went out to many stores looking for probe ph tester,, home depot, walmart, garden centres, etc,,, nothing,, but after taking 7 samples from the big girl there,, the ph is around 6-7,, as good as can tell with this kit,,

finally got timer,, gonna start flowering tomorrow,,
questions,, as usual,,

1. should i feed veg nutes one last time right before flowering?, or should i flush the soil,, and start on flowering nutes before changing 12/12?,,

2.my plants have grown to big,,,i think i am gonna plant the uglier shorter bushier one outside as it was bagseed and make more room for the one plant to grow and fill the area?? or is there enough room for both?

i have some clones hopefully taking root right now,, for next grow,, maybe i should just transplant these both outside and start fresh with 6 female clones and grow to appropriate heights,, sog,,or scrog,,??

a) should i just start lst-ing the tops over so they grow horizontally across the cab?, can i do that this late in grow?
b) should i just buy some garden fence and try and do a scrog,,when scroging do you have to trim off lower bud sites, and just leave the tops to grow through the screen?
c) any other ideas, as to how to maintain or control size during flower,,

heres some pics as of today,,
both of them in cabinet,, the big one is 11 inches from the glass,, the glass is not real hot,, i can rest my hand on it for well over a minute,,

the sk-s or the sk-5 ,, thats what was one package,,i thought skunk#1 but guess was wrong,maybe skunk #5,, is there such a thing?, these were seeds purchased 7 years ago by a friend who i have not seen in the 7 years, but looks sativa tho,,i really like this one cause its branches are really reaching,, so might be good for scrog,, this is the one i took clones from,, hoping to grow 6 in 6 sq feet scrog next grow more organized,,

the bagseed,,also looking mostly sativa to me,,

thanks for all advice and suggestions to help me get these girls flowered,,

 

[pan4gold49]

Re: first time low budget..

Lookin Good estranged

I would stay with the veg nutes until you start 12/12 then use the flower nutes.

Pan4

 

[estranged]

Re: first time low budget..

ok thanks pan4,,so i don't need to flush before starting 12/12,,good,, so i will just start tomorrow 12/12 and when next feed comes maybe give one last veg nutes,, or just go too flower nutes,, im expecting next watering maybe next 3-4 days,,

and decided to try and lst this one for the flower stretch,, wish me luck,,
do you think that if i keep her going sideways then up i will have enough room for stretch,, i think i will plant other girl outside somewhere just to make sure have enough room, i dunno, ,since im so camera happy today ,, here's what i did so far for lst,,maybe keep going down with top then over and back up??

hopefully will give me enough room

 

[L8tNightSkunk]

Re: first time low budget..

Looking real good estranged! the plants look beautiful! very nice work keep it up!

 

[pan4gold49]

Re: first time low budget..

Nice estranged

Looking good

Pan4

 

[Pericodaking]

Re: first time low budget..

the girls are looking great estranged, alot of growth since the last pics, they seem to pic filling out quite nicely!

 

[estranged]

Re: first time low budget..

just thought i would post pics of the girls after 5 or 6 days of flower,, i cant remember which day i turned the timers on,,my little grow book has been misplaced,,,,

i am also happy to say that all 8 clones have taken root, and are growing strong,, yay!

anyways here some pics, day 59,, 5 days into flower
sorry bout pic quality,, it was just before lights on, and is kinda dark,,and i was kinda rushed for time too,,will post better ones in a few days and with the clones,,gonna get screen for scrog tomorrow hopefully,,

 

[L8tNightSkunk]

Re: first time low budget..

Looking good!