Indoor seedling cfl

[WestSideGrow]

Hello, again 420 members.
A quick question, How long (if at all) Can I keep 1 Seedling under a CFL Desk lamp.
You see I live in Southern Cali Where the weather has gotten to it's peak of 115 degrees, The sun at a full 12 hours would burn her to a crisp. I will be placing her outside in some shade after she grows a little bigger, where she can get about 6 hours of sun a day. Please and thank you everyone.
Extra Info-
Fox farms ocean forest soil,
2 Gallon pot,
Bagseed.

 

[nibec]

You didn't say the wattage. You can go out and get a 65 watt (250 watt equiv)6500k cfl, and that would be fine until she's around a foot tall even. Not optimal for a bigger plant. But keep it close enough that it doesn't stretch , and it will live just fine.

Or you can go buy or build yourself a cheap 4 bulb light fixture where you can move each light around individually , and put 23 watt cfls in it, and you could grow it even bigger without loosing your bottom leaves due to lack of light

 

[Bimmer85]

This is my first grow so I don't have much experience but due to living in ny and planting end of July I decided to go the cfl route. With tight finances I used a fuseable power strip, plug in sockets and Y splitters to make a cheap yet effective means of a light source. I have the powers trip mounted to a pole and hanging by ropes so I can adjust the height. I also made some reflectors from old soda cans and covered them in foil tape for the y splitters on the side. I also have 4 sides surrounded by pieces of plastic I put the aluminum tape one. This is just to get my feet wet and until I get some funds in order. At the points I will invest some time and money and build myself something real nice. During the day or when I'm home I take the plants outside and at night or on a stormy day I bring them inside to my ghetto setup. The point of my rant is that with a little imagination you can do a home setup with just CFLs and do great...

 

[WestSideGrow]

I'm pretty sure it's a 23 watt. just one though. I don't plan to keep her under any cfls or led or anything for long just a few days of seedling really.

 

[nibec]

then you're fine. keep it close, if you really want to get the most out of it... put it half an inch above her, and just have a fan gently blowing the heat up past her and off the bulb.

that should keep the bulb cool enough, AND give her a little breeze to strengthen her stem up a little to prepare for outdoor winds.

 

[WestSideGrow]

How many times a day do you recommend I water her ? The only reason I ask being it's not alot of heat on the soil unlike a sun heating up the soil and drying it out.

 

[nibec]

times a day?! lol.

MJ likes to be a fairly dry plant. water her nice and heavy, then dont water her again until you can lift the pot, and it feels almost like its just dirt and no water...

if you're too late on her watering she will start to droop a little, but will perk up within an hour of watering her again.

when i was growing in soil, and it was a seedling, i would normally only have to water it once a week.

 

[WestSideGrow]

I have heard so many different people tell me so many different things about watering, seems as though every person has something different to say about it.

 

[nibec]

Too much water can cause damping off in seedlings, if you have her in a big pot, just pour some water right at her stem at about a 2" diameter , then let her dry out. You don't want the water sitting there too long.. 5-7 days it the most you want it to last , while I find 3 works the best. Again that's a rough guideline, and up to your discretion

When she gets bigger, filler up and let her dry out. Use either the listing method , or stick your finger in the soil up to your first knuckle, if it's still wet, wait