Newbie with questions-Should I use them all- T-5s, CFLs, and 600 Watt with MH and HPS

[Foodeefish]

This will be My first grow and I have purchased a 4x2x6 Grow Tent. I have read the frequently asked questions and I could not find exact answers to my questions so here goes.

I have Ten T-5 dual bulb setups for growing my vegetables as I have a large vegetable garden. I just ordered an Apollo 600 watt setup with the MH and HPS bulbs. I have grown thousands of vegetable seeds with potting soil and garden soil with no issues

My questions are:

- I am going to use coco and perlite mixture to grow the cannabis and should I start in a single cell 2 inch X 2 inch pot or start in a solo cup or 5 inch pot?
- If I have highly rich garden soil that I add compost to every year, would I get a Better yield using this soil rather than the coco and perlite mix?
- Does anyone vermicompost ( red worm composting) and if they do, do you add the worm casing to your growing soil/mix?
- How many plants can I fit in this 2x3 tent if I Scrog them?
- Should I use both the T-5s and the 600 Watt and if so how many T-5s and should they be set up vertical or horizontal?
- Would adding 4-6 CFL lights add another light spectrum and add to the yield or is using the FLs just overkill.


Thank a million for your guidance.

 

[Antics]

Re: Newbie with questions-Should I use them all- T-5s, CFLs, and 600 Watt with MH and

If you want to make your life easy, plant into the 5" pots, then transplant into final pots as they get a little bigger. I suggest 5 gallons or bigger.

With the tent being 6" high, minus height of the pot, minus the height of the light, you'll want to keep an eye on the plant to make sure it doesn't get too tall. Or just top it and LST to keep it exactly how you want it.

Make sure you are watering your coco at least once a day.

Depending on how you do things, you can easily get a better yield from coco, as it's going to be treated like hydro, with a 5.8 PH and daily waterings.

A lot of people use worm castings to their soils. Some even use it to amend their coco.

In a 2x3 tent I'd suggest no more than 2 plants, side by side. I always figure a minimum 12x12 for each plant. 18x18 is better. 24x24 is even better than that. In that tent, you'd be looking at a grow space for each plant of 24x18 if you grow 2 plants.

A 600w HID system is a monster, but you can use the T5s as supplemental lighting if desired. I'd suggest a mounting on the back/side wall to give light to the lower areas of the plant. Depending on how well the lights fit, and how tall you allow the plant to grow, will dictate whether you mount them horizontally, or vertically.

If you're following my advice to limit the grow to 2 plants in that tent, I don't think the CFLs will be necessary. Depending how tall you allow the plant to grow, the T5's may not even be needed.

 

[Foodeefish]

Re: Newbie with questions-Should I use them all- T-5s, CFLs, and 600 Watt with MH and

Antics,

Thanks for the quick response and answering my questions perfectly. I will use 5 inch pots and then replant in 5-10 gallon final pots and only have 2 plants growing as you suggest.

- I will LST but if I was to top it, can I use the part I cut off to clone?
- What is the advantage of letting your plants grow tall if you Scrog?
- I will be growing both Afghani and Master Kush seeds
- Can you reuse the Coco/perlite growing mixture over and over again once you harvest?
- If I use 18/6 lighting should I be setting the timer to go dark at night so I am sure there is total darkness, or will I need the heat from the lights as the basement I have the tent in is 50-65 degrees?

- Is it possible to have two plants growing in the Flowering Stage (12/12 lighting I think) while somehow having 2 more plants growing in the Vegetation Stage?
- How do people keep a continuous grow going? Do they have 2 tents?

 

[Antics]

Re: Newbie with questions-Should I use them all- T-5s, CFLs, and 600 Watt with MH and

If the cutting is large enough, then you can absolutely make a clone from it.

If you SCROG, the idea is that they don't grow tall, but instead you train them to grow WIDE, to fill in the net. This seems to be very effective in allowing the same amount of light to access the entire plant evenly, which can translate to a higher yield.

I have seen a few people say it can be reused, but old roots should be removed, and the coco should be flushed to remove any built up salts and nutes.

You can use a small heater to keep the tent warm, if you prefer having the dark period be at night. As long as the tent has no light leaks, you also have the option of letting the dark period go through the day, so the temp stays where you need it, you can skip the heater this way, providing the lights are able to keep the inside temperature warm enough.

Yes, but not in the same tent. The 12 hours of darkness is what triggers the plant to begin flowering. So if you were to put some Vegging plants into a tent with flowering plants that are on a 12/12 light cycle, those small Vegging plants will start to flower also.

Yes, exactly Some people are even fortunate enough that they use 3 spaces. 1 for clones/seedlings, 1 for Vegging, and 1 for flowering. Unfortunately, I have only one space currently. Although I'm working on some plans for a small Veg box, which could be an option for you as well...

My idea is a smaller Veg box, that can hold the plants for just a few weeks, so I can at least give them a small head start. But in a basement, assuming you have the space, you can make almost anything work for a Veg room. Another tent, People have used old armoires and cabinets picked up at garage sales or furniture stores, I've even seen people using old refrigerators, cardboard boxes, and home built wooden cabinets.

You're really unlimited on grow space options. The only limiting factor is how much floor space (Or table/shelf space for small Veg chambers) someone can spare to grow in.

 

[Foodeefish]

Re: Newbie with questions-Should I use them all- T-5s, CFLs, and 600 Watt with MH and

Antics,

Just a few more questions please. Do you water the plants right in the grow tent when you use Coco Coir and perlite and let the runoff just wash down to the bottom of the tent? Are the pots just left on the bottom of the grow tent of should they be a few inches off the bottom?

 

[Antics]

Re: Newbie with questions-Should I use them all- T-5s, CFLs, and 600 Watt with MH and

I'm growing in a closet, and the pots I use have a drain tray attached to them. I am using an old short shelf as a stand to set my pots on. For right now, I have a screw installed between the tray and the pot, that forms a spout and I just tilt the pot and drain it that way.

If I have time this week, I'm going to be drilling into the tray to create a drain hole to use, instead of tilting the pot. I just sit the pot on the edge of the shelf, and allow the runoff to collect into a container just below.