Canuckgals 60 Day Autoflower Closet Grow

[CanuckGal]

Heyooo! After a ton of research from reading at least 50 journals on here, I ordered all of the equipment, and decided to get started. Since this is my first grow, I decided to do a 60 day autoflower, I will only have a single plant growing this time, so everything should go quickly and let me learn the ropes.

What strain is it? Williams Wonder x Ruderalis
Is it Indica, Sativa or Hybrid? What percentages? 90% Indica: 10% Sativa
Indoor or outdoor? Indoor Closet Grow
Soil or Hydro? Soil
If soil... what is in your mix? Potting Soil and Perlite
If soil... What size pot? Starting in a solo cup, then up to a 4 Litre pot
Size of light? 2 household CFLs to start, then moving up to 400w HPS
Is it aircooled? I have a 100 CFM bathroom fan pulling air out of the top, and a smaller household fan on the bottom
How often are you watering? When she gets dry
Type and strength of ferts used? Nothing yet, hoping to have some help from my fellow members on here!

I'll take some photos, and post them shortly.

 

[donpaul.p]

good to see a new journal cant wait to see how your auto goes, i got to growing at the minute, a g13 poisen dwarf that didnt grow above 2 inches in 7 weeks so i lst it and now it turned into a monster in 48 hours, the other is greenhouse seeds auto bomb, its just come into flower also, i started with cfls but now using hps for flower

 

[CanuckGal]

Here's the set up, 100 CFM fan at the top, not hooked up yet, I'm not comfortable with how it's mounted, so I need to get a power drill to put some holes in to secure it.

Another view of the empty space, just a small household fan on the wall to blow onto my girl

I germinated my seed in a wet paper towel inside a ziplock bag on my counter, took about 48 hours for her to pop. I had the seed in the palm of my hand while I wet the paper towel in the sink, and of course I DROPPED it in the sink!! I may or may not have said a few profanities, but luckily she was right on the edge of the drain and I managed to save her.

She's alive!!!! Like I said, took about 48 very impatient hours to get to this point

Popped her in a solo cup, about an inch into the soil, and covered lightly with soil.

Then I put her in her new home, with a 13 watt CFL over top and the fan blowing.

No fertilizers or anything yet, I will be picking them up, sometime this week, I know there is a local dealer who sells the Canna-Nutes brand, so I think I will go and pick up some Veg/Bloom Nutes. All feedback is much appreciated!

 

[CanuckGal]

Thanks for the support Don.Paul! This is my first rodeo, so hopefully all goes well, and I will be sure to keep everyone updated on her progress.

Since it's an autoflower, its also feminized, so it is very likely that it will be female. But the negative side of the autoflower is that I will not be able to take clones. (This is why its very popular with dispensaries, people have no choice but to buy more seeds)

I'll leave her on 24/0 light, I might find another CFL to put over her, depending on the feedback I get from you guys.

 

[donpaul.p]

right ok, good start, you say its auto, are you also saying its an auto femenised seed, or just regular auto as they do sell regular as well for breeding purposes, i got 1 reg auto that turned out fem and one femenised that turned out fem, but even femenised seeds are not always female, they usually are but thats why they call them femenised and not female seeds as their is also a chance it can be male, ive not come across any but it does happen.

i get me seeds for herbies head shop, even if you buy 1 seed for £1.24 or $2.48 you always get 3 free, usually 2 x big bud#2 and 1 x any other usually auto fem or femenised seed, ive been buying off them since i started and always had great seeds.

i just want to pick you up on a few things, over watering, you dont want to drown the seed, these plants prefer less water i over watered at the start and it stunted growth and you dont want this with an auto, so only water when the whole pot is dry, usually 3 or 4 days but as your starting in smaller pot it may need it every 2 days, just poke your finger down about an inch and if it comes out damp dont water, if nothing sticks to your finger then water the plant then leave it to dry out.

the fan, not a good idea to have a fan blowing just yet, if the temps are high then face the fan away from the plant, the plant cant take a fan for a few weeks yet, so if it is temp issues then have the fan blowing above the pot or up in the air so its moving the air, the fan will dry out the soil and seed very quick and when its got leaves the fan dries the leaves out and this stunts growth loads, im only using a 12v computer fan about 1foot away from my plants, but now its summer i have a 8inch desk fan blowing on my plants from about 4 ft away and it rotates so its not blowing constant on the same plant, so for now you wont need a fan unless you have heat issues and if you do then have it blowing anywhere other than on the plant,

1 cfl is ok for now, is it 23watt 6500k, these are the best watt to lumin ration, you would roughly want 4 or 5 of these per plant, but at seedling stage one is ok, i just noticed you did state its 13 watt, this will only be ok till the seed has broken the soil you need to get bigger bulbs, the 23 watt are the best or the 30watt for the whole grow you will need at least 4 or 5 30 watt 6500k cfls and as its an auto you need to mix the lights, so you need both 6500k and 2700k cfls.

autos grow under any schedule ok, most people use 20-4 so 20 on and 4 hours off, a few people have grown them under 24-0 till the end when they harvest but most growers say they wont flower under 24-0, so i use 20-4 for mine and it works perfect, but for seedling stage i also used 24-0 to boost growth, some growers who grow auto switch to 12-12 when the plant show sex, this will decrease yield, keep the lights on the same cycle through all stages of growth so from day 1 till the day you harvest stick with 20-4 apart from the 1st week at 24-0,

now if this wasnt an auto you could have to sets of lights, you could have the 6500kelvin cfls for the veg stage then for flower you use the 2700kelvin cfls the normal house hold type, so you would normally use the blue looking one like you got for veg, then when you flip the lights you would usually use the 2700k cfls as they have the red light to help the flowering, although some growers have used 6500k all the way through and some used 2700k cfls as well.

but as your growing an auto id say you would be better off having both sets at the same time, so if you have any add them once the plants starts growing, so you are really looking at a 50-50 mix of 6500k and 2700k cfls, you might need 2 x 30watt 6500 and 2 x 30watt 2700k or even 3 of each if you go with the lower watts.

so keep the lighting schedule the same you only switch to 12-12 if your using regular seeds or femenised seeds, auto seeds flower due to age and not due to the lighting schedule, none auto plants show sex after about 4 to 7 weeks, auto show sex around 2 weeks old and when they are only 3 inches tall, so you will need both kelvin light rating after it has broke soil.

looking at the pic with the seed, do you have it sitting on top of the soil, if so you need to have the white root thats sticking out facing down and bury the seed twice as deep as the size of the seed, so slightly under the soil, light damages the roots so you need the seed under the soil and not on top.

also does the cup have drainage holes poked at the bottom, you dont want it water logged, in the pic it looks like its swimming in mud, this will drown the root, so make sure the cup has holes poked in the bottom and now dont water it for at least 2 or 3 days or possibly 4.

if i have left anything else out just give me a shout back, ill keep checking in so good luck with your grow and hope it all goes ok for you, i had a few problems but dont be afraid to ask as we are all here to help

 

[donpaul.p]

double check if you have got an auto seed or an auto femenised seed, the place you bought it from would have labled it as auto or auto femenised,their is a huge difference, i bought auto and got lucky and got a female, and i bought a auto femenised seed and it turned out fem

 

[CanuckGal]

Wow thanks for the reply Don.Paul!

I ordered it off Manijuana Seeds Canada, the description says: "Our commercial growers have kept asking us to produce a feminized strain that will yield and finish FAST. Well that time has come, we’re proud to introduce the 60 Day Wonder!"

So it should be a Feminized Autoflower.

My plan was to leave the lights on 24/0 until she pokes through, and then set it at 12/12 til the end.

The seed is covered in dirt, I poked a hole about an inch deep, and put the seedling root down. I am concerned that it may be too deep, but I think at this point it would be more dangerous to dig the seed up and damage the root, than to just leave it.

As for the fan, I wound up unplugging it, because as you said it dries the soil, and could stunt the growth. Heat is not yet an issue, but once I flip over to the HPS, I'll turn it back on. That's still a while from now, so you should be able to follow along with me, and I'll definitely take your feedback.

 

[Deege420]

i wouldn't do 12 12 till the end. they are auto flower and will flower with any light schedule. I would go with an 18-6. A lot of people believe this is best for autos.

 

[Deege420]

theres people that have grown autos 24-0 but dark period is pretty important too. Its when the roots thrive too grow!

and don't be afraid to stop by my journal and have a read! ALOT OF GREAT INFO IN THERE! all criticism and comments are highly appreciated

 

[Deege420]

autos grow under any schedule ok, most people use 20-4 so 20 on and 4 hours off, a few people have grown them under 24-0 till the end when they harvest but most growers say they wont flower under 24-0, so i use 20-4 for mine and it works perfect, but for seedling stage i also used 24-0 to boost growth, some growers who grow auto switch to 12-12 when the plant show sex, this will decrease yield, keep the lights on the same cycle through all stages of growth so from day 1 till the day you harvest stick with 20-4 apart from the 1st week at 24-0, (quoted from donpaul)

The info was already there. guess you missed it :x

 

[Firetulip]

Woah whats this Auto thing you guys are talking about? i thought there was only Fem and regualt?! o.0

 

[Greenhouse250]

to Very nice start, you did your research, your girl will give back the love that was given. Can i suggest using just cfl's for your auto? I'm concerned that the 400w might be a bit much for your grow box. If it was air cooled you might get away with it but my thoughts would be no. To find out just run some tests without your girl inside. Good luck!

 

[CanuckGal]

This auto flower seemed the most forgiving for a newbie like myself, I had read about 12/12 and by saying it will do well with any light cycle I figured that would be safe. But I am definitely all for a higher yield, so I'll switch over to 20/4 as per your advice.

I do have good air movement, the fan at the bottom, a bathroom fan at the top, and I've been working on making a carbon filter. I bought these HPS and really want to use them!

The auto flower is a plant where genetics determines when it flowers as opposed to light cycles. (is this right?)

 

[Ozman]

Looks like you have plenty of room for 1 plant should get decent size ,as for 24 /0 i dont like 24/0 imo its better to let them sleep for a few hours but thats just me i find they like it better that way.

 

[CanuckGal]

Day 2, no updates, soil is still wet, probably no water til weds. I turned off the fan, so it won't dry up too quickly. Going to the hardware store tomorrow to make a minimum 3 socket cfl light, she hasn't poked through yet, so I'm still good only having the single light.

I read somewhere that cat litter has activated carbon in it, would I be able to push air through kitty litter from my top vent to help with odors later on? I hope that makes sense...

 

[James 1st]

Next time when you germinate your seeds wet the paper towel then wring in out you really don't want too much water around the seed. I only say this because when I germinate my seeds for 48 hours they break through the shell & the root is about 2 inches long. Just food for thoughtbut so far your looking good there.

 

[CanuckGal]

Thanks for the reply James. Yea I knew the root was quite small, but I agree that there was probably too much water in there, and after 48 hours, it had just popped that small bit. I felt that it wouldn't hurt to put it in to the new medium, I have more knowledge about the soil than a paper towel lol.

 

[donpaul.p]

no probs, just trying to help, mate, i see deege420 and a few other usual suspects have come over, so any advice just ask they all really do know what their going on about, i also believe plants need dark even if its only 4 hours, most people use 24-0 when they first take clones and when they have grown they drop them down to 20-4 or what ever else they are using, i mean you could use any light schedule, 22-2, 19-5, as deege and i said autos will flower under any light schedule, 12-12 will restrict growing time, but i have read they do need some dark period to go into flower so i went with 20-4 and mine are both flowering so it works.

i have found that autos do tend to stink the place out, not sure why but they do, both my autos stink a lot more than my big plants and the 1 autos is only 2 weeks old.

i noticed you said your switching to hps, if you are going to do this then make sure you have enough distance between the plant and the light as it can damage a young plant due to the heat, so keep it raised and an eye on temp then lower it a bit each day till you find the right spot, mine is about 1ft away from the top of the plant,

cfls will work also for this auto, but i would use both spectrum from day one as auto dont have veg and flower schedule as they flower due to age, my 1 auto says 55 days till finished, but after 7 weeks it still didnt show signs of flower, it was only 8 weeks when it started and its well in flower now, but it has taken a lot longer, my 2nd auto flowered after 2 weeks and is about 6 inches high,

i lst my 1st auto and now its growing like crazy, if you want to use 24-0 then id use it for say the 1st week just to boost growth then switch to 20-4 so the plant can start to flower in week 2 or 3, you should be ok, you will need some smell control, hps will give out loads of heat in the small space you have so bare that in mind when you want to use it, it sounds like you buried it a bit deep as well, it really only needs to be buried about twice as deep as the size of the seed, but you should still be ok, let the pot dry out that its in as it looked a bit water logged to me, try not to over water, i did and it badly stunted growth on my bigger plants, when my bigger plants where in veg i was only watering once a week then as the weather got hotter it went to every 3 days, so try not to over water.

if you have any questions just ask as you have got plenty of top growers here to give you advice so im sure their will be no problems, just keep a check on the plant and see how it goes, it should poke its head out after 3 or 4 days as its buried pretty deep, but as soon as it hits the top of the soil then it will start growing so thats when you will need as much light as you can get, id go with 4 cfls around 20 to 30watts each, 2 x 2700k and 2x 6500k cfls and use them, then use them till the end if you like but the hps will give you firmer buds and should give you a bigger plant, but you need to check the temps if your going to go with the hps.

give us a shout back if you have any problems and we all do our best to help you get the best from these plants.

some one asked about the types of plants and said only thought their was reg and fem, i thought the same, i never even knew about fem seeds till i came on this site as my last grow was 9 years ago, so here is a quick heads up on the types.
regular seeds, as you know these will either be male or female,

femenised seeds, these are usually always female plants but its never 100% and a male could turn up every so often, they use chemicals to either make a female plant grow male parts then collect the pollen and then pollenate a female plant, this should produce fem seeds as no actual male plant was used to make the seeds, the other way it has been done is to collect the pollen from a hermie plant, both male and female and use this to get pollen from and polenate another female plant, this should also produce fem seeds, its never 100% and thats why they sell them as femenised and not female seeds, ive not had 1 male yet from femenised seeds and ive not come across anyone who has, but it can happen.

auto seeds, these come in 2 types, auto regular, both male and female seeds, and auto femenised, which is the same as above and should produce a female auto plant.
an auto is a mix of usually an indica strain and the ruderalis strain, due to where the ruderalis plants come from this is where they get their auto gene from, they grow in places that dont have defined seasons or are in places that get the same amount of light for long periods so they flower due to age of the plant and not lighting schedule, they usually say their grown from start to finish in 60 days, give or take a week either side of this, im not sure why they dont cross them with sativa strain, i know they cross sativa and indica then they cross that with the ruderalis, this gives them the auto seeds, ruderalis on its own is not worth growing but as its crossed with regular cannabis it means its not an auto cannabis plant that will grow under pretty much any lighting schedule from start to finish, you dont need to flip it to 12-12 to make it flower, you can use 20-4 from start to finish and it will flower.

now yield for the autos really vary by loads, some people get as little as 1/8th per plant and some got upto and over 5oz per plant, so it really does depend on the strain and how stable the cross is, also what lights you use and temps and things like that will reduce or increase yield, one thing i would like to know though is this, ruderalis grows in places that are cooler than where indica and sativa plants grow, so would we get bigger yields if the temps where slightly cooler, hoping some one can jump in and offer something about that.

 

[CanuckGal]

Thanks for the reply don.paul, I've been stalking everyone who's replied, and I am definitely thrilled to have found such a great support system here. I feel like a mcdonalds employee asking Gordon Ramsey cooking advice! So much knowledge here, its really great, thanks again.

Just to make sure I understand, the only reason I am getting suggestions on using CFL for the grow is due to heat, correct? So if I am able to get good airflow, and keep the room cool, the HPS will help me get a larger yield, right?

I'm not in a rush to have these guys grow, I am not expecting to harvest in 60 days, I am just going to go by what the plant wants.

She hasn't come through the soil yet, once she shows her pretty face, I would like to keep her under the CFL for 7 days, as I do understand the heat can damage the young plant. After the 7 days, I would like to switch to the HPS, using my trusty hand as a tester to ensure it is not too close to the plant, and it has good airflow.

I plan on buying a second set of lights at some point as my closet has a sturdy wall which cuts it right in half, in the future I would like to have a perpetual grow going with one half dedicated to Veg, and the other half for Flowering, light escaping is easy to overcome. This won't be done for a while though, as I would like to see how this grow goes, and once I have learned more, then I will expand. Ideally I'd like to keep it in the closet, but I have also been looking at grow tents. Again, this wont be done for some time, so I'll try to keep on topic with this current autoflower.

 

[donpaul.p]

its just the heat issue, if their is no heat issue then the hps will give you better buds and firmer buds, so if you can keep the temps around 78f then the hps will work wonders, but dont worry if its below 78 or over as mine where below in veg and are slightly above 80f now im in summer where i am, but if you can keep the temps down go with the hps, is your hps a dual spectrum hps or just the normal hps, a normal hps puts out 2700k range which is best for the flowering stage, although it can be used for both stages with good results. if i was you and i could keep the temps down then id use the hps, but the cfls will also work so dont knock them to much, they got my plants well into flower so they do work, so just see how the temps go, remember the hps needs to be a lot higher above the plant than the cfls, mine is about 1foot above the plants, any lower and it feels warm on back of my hand and the temp gauge is up towards the 90s.

now the only problem with using the back of your hand is its not that acurate, if the weather is hot then your hand will feel ok even if its to hot for your plant, the best thing to do is get a temp gauge and hang it at the same height as the top of the plant and just keep checking it, then you could lower the light and keep checking the temps