Looking for advice - New to this

[birdieman456]

I am doing a 6 plant grow in coco. The seeds were started in jiffy pots.The seedlings have been transplanted to small pots a little bigger than solo cups. I am starting these plants indoors and will go outside at end of May when weather permits. I bought house and garden nutrients part A and part b for coco. How often do I feed them the nutes? The pots were watered yesterday but not today they were still heavy with water from the transplant. I was told these nutes would be good till the flower. I also have them under 24 hour light from 2 four foot bulbs.

Please feel free to offer an advise as this is my first grow.

Thanks Birdie

 

[MickFoster]

I was told these nutes would be good till the flower.

Wrong. Coco is inert...it contains no nutes like soil does. I feed every day to run off from sprout and twice a day in flower. Coco is hydroponics.....never let it dry out and never use plain water. Good luck.

 

[Old Salt]

I am doing a 6 plant grow in coco ... I also have them under 24 hour light from 2 four foot bulbs.

Coco is an excellent medium, but as @MickFoster said it's a form of hydroponics. It's almost impossible to over water - if you water from the top and keep the pots clear of the water that drained out. Do not use plain water. Do add a calcium and magnesium supplement to each batch of nutrients. Do start at about 1/4 strength for your nutrients and only increase if you encounter nutrient deficiencies. What water are you using municipal, well, or that from an RO? What are the TDS and pH of the water before and after adding the nutrients?

More light! I'm assuming that you are using T8 or T12 florescent tubes, as the length is 4'. You will need much more light to get the best out of your plants, even in the vegetative stage. Florescents are OK for seedlings or clones, and micro grows. Cannabis does best with lots and lots of light.

Pictures are golden here. Images will illustrate your points. An experienced grower may notice a problem with your grow before you do and help you recover.

 

[birdieman456]

The ph of my tap water is around 6.0. I also have an Ro System in my house but thought i would use tap water as they will be transfered to outdoors at the end of May. I have the Home and Garden Nutes part a and b the one for coco. If i add 2 more t8 bulbs will this be enough light till they go outdoors? I will add a few pictures tonight. Do i feed nutes every time i water or every other?

 

[Old Salt]

The ph of my tap water is around 6.0. I also have an Ro System in my house but thought i would use tap water as they will be transfered to outdoors at the end of May. I have the Home and Garden Nutes part a and b the one for coco. If i add 2 more t8 bulbs will this be enough light till they go outdoors? I will add a few pictures tonight. Do i feed nutes every time i water or every other?

I use water from the RO. Its pH is 7.0 and the TDS is 24. Municipal water is treated with chlorine or chloramine, which must be removed for the best results. You can let it stand for 48 hrs to accomplish this. I strongly recommend using water from your RO instead.

After adding nutrients I adjust my pH to 5.8 from seed through veg, and 6.1 during flowering.

I only use pH down and made a diluted 10% solution I use for small batches. For 16l or about 4 gal it takes less than 0.5ml of the full strength pH down to get my flowering nutrient solution to the proper pH.

I use General Hydroponics Flora trio, Rapid Start, Floralicious, KoolBloom, and FloraKleen at 25% of the label recommended strength. I can mix this up to a week in advance. I mix up a weeks worth or 16l at a time, whichever is a lower volume. Check your nutrients to see if you can do this.

pH control is mandatory to prevent nutrient lockout. I have used a HM Digital PH-200, but found that a cheaper meter such as the Etekcity PH-2011+ is sufficient, provided it's calibrated. I calibrate before every use with GroTek's pH Buffer #7 in a shot glass. I put the meter back in the buffer while I move the nutrient solution to where I need it, then discard the buffer. Note that the meter, or its sensor will need to be replaced every 6 months to a year, which is why I retired the more expensive HM Digital. pH test strips do not provide the accuracy you need, but can be used in an emergency.

When you move your plants outside, you'll still need to feed them. I'd consider a method of keeping the rain out of your grow medium (the coco) so you don't dilute the nutrients further.

I don't think the two additional T8s will be enough, unless you can safely put them in a window that gets lots of sunlight. I used a King X6 Dimmable 1800W COB LED Grow Light at 55% power 18" above the plants during the vegetative stage. This light only draws 300W from the wall at full power. The tent is a 2' X 4' X 5' Fusion Hut. I'm building my own COB based light for flowering as the light distribution and penetration is lacking. The general consensus is that florescent lighting is good for seedlings or clones, and can be used for SCROG grows where the canopy has little depth. Between now and moving your plants outside they can easily grow to take 4 sq ft per plant. You'll need to plan accordingly. I'd recommend a dimmable 600W Metal Halide HID or the LED equivalent in a minimum of a 4' X 4' grow area. You won't need odor control if you keep them in veg until you move them outside.

Good luck with your grow. I recommend that you start a journal here and update it at least weekly. That will make it much easier for experienced growers to help you, as they can see problems develop.

 

[gr865]

I use water from the RO. Its pH is 7.0 and the TDS is 24. Municipal water is treated with chlorine or chloramine, which must be removed for the best results. You can let it stand for 48 hrs to accomplish this. I strongly recommend using water from your RO instead.
After adding nutrients I adjust my pH to 5.8 from seed through veg, and 6.1 during flowering.
Good luck with your grow. I recommend that you start a journal here and update it at least weekly. That will make it much easier for experienced growers to help you, as they can see problems develop.

OS, the only thing I might add to your comments, which were very good by the way, is prior to adding the nutes add 1 gram/gallon of Epsom to the water. Coco is a Mag bitch and I add it from first watering to the end of the grow.
I use reduced rate of Canna A&B, 200 to 250 ppm in veg and 400 in flower, so I end up lacking in Ca and Mag. Along with the Epsom I will add 1 to 2 ml of Cal/Magic per gallon.
From what I have experienced in some of my early coco grow was if you just add your nutes to the water it is funky to pH. When I add the Epsom and Cal/Magic it pH's fine.
And it is best if you make your mix ahead of time as, you stated, and let the sit for 12 to 24 hours prior to pH'ing to let the solution stabilize. I also run passive aeration over active aeration which helps reduce pH swings a lot. I will run it from lights out till just before lights on and then adjust the pH to 5.8. The pH will stay between 5.78 and 5.82 during the complete drip cycle.
This has worked well for me to date. Now if I can stop my stupid mistakes I may have a perfect grow, , hell that ain't going to happen.

Good info you are giving the new grower my friend!

GR

 

[birdieman456]

I use water from the RO. Its pH is 7.0 and the TDS is 24. Municipal water is treated with chlorine or chloramine, which must be removed for the best results. You can let it stand for 48 hrs to accomplish this. I strongly recommend using water from your RO instead.

After adding nutrients I adjust my pH to 5.8 from seed through veg, and 6.1 during flowering.

I only use pH down and made a diluted 10% solution I use for small batches. For 16l or about 4 gal it takes less than 0.5ml of the full strength pH down to get my flowering nutrient solution to the proper pH.

I use General Hydroponics Flora trio, Rapid Start, Floralicious, KoolBloom, and FloraKleen at 25% of the label recommended strength. I can mix this up to a week in advance. I mix up a weeks worth or 16l at a time, whichever is a lower volume. Check your nutrients to see if you can do this.

pH control is mandatory to prevent nutrient lockout. I have used a HM Digital PH-200, but found that a cheaper meter such as the Etekcity PH-2011+ is sufficient, provided it's calibrated. I calibrate before every use with GroTek's pH Buffer #7 in a shot glass. I put the meter back in the buffer while I move the nutrient solution to where I need it, then discard the buffer. Note that the meter, or its sensor will need to be replaced every 6 months to a year, which is why I retired the more expensive HM Digital. pH test strips do not provide the accuracy you need, but can be used in an emergency.

When you move your plants outside, you'll still need to feed them. I'd consider a method of keeping the rain out of your grow medium (the coco) so you don't dilute the nutrients further.

I don't think the two additional T8s will be enough, unless you can safely put them in a window that gets lots of sunlight. I used a King X6 Dimmable 1800W COB LED Grow Light at 55% power 18" above the plants during the vegetative stage. This light only draws 300W from the wall at full power. The tent is a 2' X 4' X 5' Fusion Hut. I'm building my own COB based light for flowering as the light distribution and penetration is lacking. The general consensus is that florescent lighting is good for seedlings or clones, and can be used for SCROG grows where the canopy has little depth. Between now and moving your plants outside they can easily grow to take 4 sq ft per plant. You'll need to plan accordingly. I'd recommend a dimmable 600W Metal Halide HID or the LED equivalent in a minimum of a 4' X 4' grow area. You won't need odor control if you keep them in veg until you move them outside.

Good luck with your grow. I recommend that you start a journal here and update it at least weekly. That will make it much easier for experienced growers to help you, as they can see problems develop.

are you refering to use epsom salt or another product?

 

[Old Salt]

OS, the only thing I might add to your comments, which were very good by the way, is prior to adding the nutes add 1 gram/gallon of Epsom to the water. Coco is a Mag bitch and I add it from first watering to the end of the grow.
I use reduced rate of Canna A&B, 200 to 250 ppm in veg and 400 in flower, so I end up lacking in Ca and Mag. Along with the Epsom I will add 1 to 2 ml of Cal/Magic per gallon.
From what I have experienced in some of my early coco grow was if you just add your nutes to the water it is funky to pH. When I add the Epsom and Cal/Magic it pH's fine.
And it is best if you make your mix ahead of time as, you stated, and let the sit for 12 to 24 hours prior to pH'ing to let the solution stabilize. I also run passive aeration over active aeration which helps reduce pH swings a lot. I will run it from lights out till just before lights on and then adjust the pH to 5.8. The pH will stay between 5.78 and 5.82 during the complete drip cycle.
This has worked well for me to date. Now if I can stop my stupid mistakes I may have a perfect grow, , hell that ain't going to happen.

Good info you are giving the new grower my friend!

GR

I knew I forgot something I also use General Hydroponics CaliMagic at 1/4 recommended strength. When preparing the coco/perlite I do a final flush with it at 1/2 strength.