What are common mistakes made by first time growers?

hello all...well its back in the saddle for me.i love Christmas but it can be too much sometimes..anyway....my "kids"are starting to show signs of being normal.the leaves altho being small look good,perky and alive.......i may have made a mistake though...the plants are in 5 gal plastic buckets with 1/2 inch holes drilled around the base for drainage.they sit in a 1 inch deep tray to catch the drainage. so far i have been sponging the drained water into a bucket and throwing it out on the ivy outside. tonight i was thinking that maybe this could be a waste pouring the runoff outside and poured 2+ cups back in the big plant...Oh no,did i screw up?..... is this really bad for my plants?..... should a man reuse his plant water with nutes in it? i have been using 1 teaspoon per gal of foxfarm "grow big" with good results. it took a while for everything to settle down after the dreded mirical G did its work.....so the question is .....is it wise to re use the run off from my "watering program"(does that make sence?) or better to use it on the ivy outside? again thank you to all.this place is great,Happy New Year and God Bless America...todd
 
TonyStark said:
If you don't recommend the paper towel sprout method, then what would be better?
Click to expand...

High TonyStark and :welcome: to 420Mag!

For germinating I just soak in RO or distilled water in a shot glass or small beaker. I add a few drops of hydrogen peroxide and just a tiny bit of soap, like dish soap or Ivory to break the surface tension. Once the seeds sprout and have a 1/4 or so tail they can be planted in the media of your choice.

Personally I find the paper towel method too easy to screw up. If the seeds have sprouted and dry out a bit they can die or mold can easily get started. It works fine for lots of folks and they usually start with a water soak for 24 hours first. Many just stick the seed in dirt or rockwool and go from there.

If they get wet they will sprout unless they're no good.

I hope that helped.

:peace:
 
I use the paper towel method out of habit. After doing it for years I've got a feel for it. Putting them in a warm place w/ fresh air and checking often is the key,IMO. If the seeds are fresh and mature you should get 80-90% germination no matter what method you use.

SpeeCees has an interesting germ method I'd like to try. Check out the No Mercy Growing stub in this section.
 
Depending on where you live in the country you may have difficulty getting the seeds to germinate if the temperature is to low.... You may want to consider a heating pad or something to keep it warmer... I am going to use a 17 watt heating pad for my cloning station to keep the temperature up.
 
hi this goddidmary i just went out and purchased a 200 watt light and timer for my closet. I was wondering if you could tell me everything i need to to grow and get started from vegetation to budding. The lowest costing budget please.
 
Goddidmary, Welcome to 420!
Is the 200 watt bulb a CFL? It is the lowest cost to operate and the plants like them.
What kind of soil do you plan to use.
Do you have seeds and have they germinated yet???
 
Joe Coffee said:
Goddidmary, Welcome to 420!
Is the 200 watt bulb a CFL? It is the lowest cost to operate and the plants like them.
What kind of soil do you plan to use.
Do you have seeds and have they germinated yet???
Click to expand...

its a CFL and i got it at walmart for 15 bucks i have all purpose soil and no seeds yet trying to get this set up frist can u help?
 
Joe Coffee said:
Goddidmary, Welcome to 420!
Is the 200 watt bulb a CFL? It is the lowest cost to operate and the plants like them.
What kind of soil do you plan to use.
Do you have seeds and have they germinated yet???
Click to expand...

i dont know what to get for all this and how to start it up if you could tell me what i need for 4 plants and to get it stared
 
Bare basics growing I would suggest.
1. 300 watt CFL bulb (200 watt will do fine to start)
2. A planting pot with a overflow on the bottom
3. potting soil

Next step.
1. obtain seeds
2. germinate seeds in warm water (generally 24-72 hours) till they crack and a white pistil emerges from the seed.
3. plant seed in ground (The white pistil is the root)

note: cannabis plants are true light hogs. My biggest early mistake was not giving them enough light.
note: no nutrients (especially not miracle grow ever) until 4-6 weeks.
 
Joe Coffee said:
Bare basics growing I would suggest.
1. 300 watt CFL bulb (200 watt will do fine to start)
2. A planting pot with a overflow on the bottom
3. potting soil

Next step.
1. obtain seeds
2. germinate seeds in warm water (generally 24-72 hours) till they crack and a white pistil emerges from the seed.
3. plant seed in ground (The white pistil is the root)

note: cannabis plants are true light hogs. My biggest early mistake was not giving them enough light.
note: no nutrients (especially not miracle grow ever) until 4-6 weeks.
Click to expand...

how long should lights been on how much water to use and what else should i go and grab ,whats lights to use after vegatation rember im only going to be growing 3 to 4 plants to start, nomal water will do fine? can you answer these question? and thank you again coffe joe
 
goddidmary said:
how long should lights been on how much water to use and what else should i go and grab ,whats lights to use after vegatation rember im only going to be growing 3 to 4 plants to start, nomal water will do fine? can you answer these question? and thank you again coffe joe
Click to expand...

1. when germinating seed in the water use no lights. PS. Water needs to be warm

2. Plants need a little bit of "dark" time every day. We could go on for weeks about the right "time" mix try 18 on 6 off or something like that. I would go no less than 4 hours dark for every 24 hours.

3. After your plants are 4-6 weeks old and you wish to trigger the flower state lighting should be 12 on 12 off.

4. Before using any soil sterilize it first.

5. Tap water is fine it is preferable that it stands in the open air for 24 hours to dissipate chlorine. If it is well water it needs to stand out anyway to warm up to room temperature.
 
A couple of tips for your water.

When I get water from my distiller it is flat. In other words it has zero dissolved oxygen. I move it into my grow room and drop in an air stone with a little air pump and the bubbles oxygenate the water while warming it up faster with the room temperature bubbles. This way when I add water to the tubs it's already fully charged with DO. If you're using tap water the air will force the chlorine out faster as will the addition of hydrogen peroxide.

Just some random thoughts from the dusty old attic in my head. lol

:peace:
 
LabRat said:
A couple of tips for your water.

When I get water from my distiller it is flat. In other words it has zero dissolved oxygen. I move it into my grow room and drop in an air stone with a little air pump and the bubbles oxygenate the water while warming it up faster with the room temperature bubbles. This way when I add water to the tubs it's already fully charged with DO. If you're using tap water the air will force the chlorine out faster as will the addition of hydrogen peroxide.

Just some random thoughts from the dusty old attic in my head. lol

:peace:
Click to expand...
hey do u know how to chang your log in name?
 
goddidmary said:
how long should lights been on how much water to use and what else should i go and grab ,whats lights to use after vegatation rember im only going to be growing 3 to 4 plants to start, nomal water will do fine? can you answer these question? and thank you again coffe joe
Click to expand...

hey what temp should it be in the grow room i have an ivey plant to test whats good lighting and the temp i have desbosable cookie sheet that im puting around the plants area dose this sound goood???thanks again friend peace
 
For cannabis they will grow in ordinary room temperature... they do like a lot of light... For a newbie grower using CFL's is the most economical answer. Home depot and Lowes sell a 300 watt CFL for about 15 dollars or use multiple 100 watt cfl's. As your plants begin to grow they will need more than the 200 watts of CFL's you are currently using.
 

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