BOFH's - Indoor Soil - 2 x Jack47 Auto - 2014 - 8 x 25W CFL

[BOFH]

Hi guys,

this is my first experience as a grower. I've been reading around here before starting my adventure for quite a while, but the time has come to share my happiness with you all
Notice that I started this project with "cheapness" in mind. I'm struggling to find the cheapest solutions to every problem that might show up in the process.

I recognize I may not get optimal results but I still believe it's worth a try. At least this approach will make me learn the basics of growing and give me the opportunity to learn from my mistakes without wasting a huge amount of resources.


Details:

Strain: Jack47 Auto - a Hybrid between Jack Herer and AK47, 25% Indica, 75% Sativa
Stage: Seedling
Beginning: seeds planted directly in soil on 15/03/2014
Location: Indoor, Homemade Cardboard box 1,40 x 70 x 35 metres.
Medium:
- Germination: Soil (pH 7)
- Veg/Flower: Soil (pH 7) mixed with perlite (yet to be decided)
Pots:
- Germination: 1/2 litre bottle cut in half
- Veg/Flower: 14 litre pots
Light:
- Early Growth: 2x 25w 6500K CFLs + 2x 25w 2700K CFLs
- Vegetative: 5x 25w 6500K CFLs + 3x 25w 2700K CFLs
- Flowering: 5x 25w 2700K CFLs + 3x 25w 6500K CFLs
Aircooled: No cooling at the moment, but I'll add it in a couple of weeks, probably
Room Temp: ranging between 21°C - 25°C
Watering:
- Germination: about 2 times a day as soon as the soil surface dries out
- Veg/Flower: N/A
Ferts: None at the moment


This is it! I'll be using the next post to upload some pictures and ask for advice from the experts around here. This post will be updated as soon as I add/change something in my setup.

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[BOFH]

Re: BOFH's - Indoor Soil - 2 x Jack47 Auto - 2014 - (8 x 25w CFL)

First of all, here's my setup. It's the cheapest thing my mind could think of, a bunch of cardboard boxes ripped and glued together to make a somewhat solid box the size I desired (1,40 x 0,70 x 0,30 metres).

As you can see I covered the inside of the box with white A4 sheets to make it a bit more reflective. Maybe it's useless, but I guess it's just better than plain cardboard.
There's a Temp gauge on the right, power supply in the middle, and lamps hanging from the top of the box.
Lamp height is adjustable by looping the ropes around the hooks they're hanging from (simple but effective)


Now let's introduce my babies!

This is Jannella:

and this one is Koncetta:

aaaand here they are together under my DIY lamp holder (cardboard rules):

Suggestions are welcome, I'd say "strongly encouraged" , as it's the first time and I might be doing something awfully wrong without even noticing.

 

[BOFH]

First doubt: should I transplant already?

Ok, here I am asking my first question. You've seen what the plants look like, how tall they are, and you even know how old they are (5 and a half days since the moment i planted the seeds).

Now here are two pictures showing the bottom of my temporary plastic pots:

Jannella:

Koncetta:

As you can see, both plants' roots have reached the bottom of the pot and now form a sort of "spiral". I'm worried they can need to be transplanted very soon (if not now) in their definitive pots.
As an unexperienced grower I thought roots should be all over the pot and form a sort of "network", even holding some soil, but at the moment they're a single, long "rope" lying on the bottom of the pot.

Do you think I should transplant them now?
If so, how? (I read the FAQs and guides but some further advice wouldn't hurt)
If not now, when? What kind of "signs" should tell me it's time to transplant?

P.S: I think I could be obsessing too much, but if I do something wrong now that the plants are weak and young I'm afraid I might compromise their growth :/

Thanks in advance

 

[Away]

Re: BOFH's - Indoor Soil - 2 x Jack47 Auto - 2014 - (8 x 25w CFL)

Hi BOFH

The first thing i've got is that when growing autoflowers you should not start them in a small pot and then transplant.
Because of the short vegatitive time of autoflowers you slow down the initial growth by transplanting. Therefor i'd say transplant them right away and in the future start your seeds in their final pots right away For germinating seeds you should have pretty moist soil for the first week or so.. it looks like your roots have struggled to reach water at the bottom of the pot. I'm not so experienced again so i might be wrong though.
Also you should check out my journal for inspiration, because my room focusses on being cheap as well.
For your ventilation you should also look in my journal bro, you can make it very very cheap out of computer fans, like i did
Best of luck on your grow!

 

[Away]

Re: First doubt: should I transplant already?

- also if you dont transplant right away, you should cover up the plastic bottle you use as pots. Roots are not happy with seeing light, so when they hit the walls they might get light-shocked.

 

[BOFH]

Re: BOFH's - Indoor Soil - 2 x Jack47 Auto - 2014 - (8 x 25w CFL)

Thanks very much for your feedback Away, I took a look at your journal and realized my plants might be a bit underdeveloped, maybe due to this very issue. I'll transplant them as soon as possible (read: today) and try to cover the roots with some tape!

P.S.: Nice LEDs I thought I could start with them but I found out they're quite expensive here :/

 

[Away]

Re: BOFH's - Indoor Soil - 2 x Jack47 Auto - 2014 - (8 x 25w CFL)

Thanks very much for your feedback Away, I took a look at your journal and realized my plants might be a bit underdeveloped, maybe due to this very issue. I'll transplant them as soon as possible (read: today) and try to cover the roots with some tape!

P.S.: Nice LEDs I thought I could start with them but I found out they're quite expensive here :/

Thanks man, they turned out to cost a load to ship which i didnt consider, but i was determined at that point so.. yeah

 

[BOFH]

Transplant!

As suggested I transplanted the plants in their final pots!
I disposed a 4cm layer of expanded clay on the bottom of the pots, then filled them with a mix of about 2 parts soil and 1 part expanded clay.
Moreover, a lamp passed out this afternoon, I had to replace it. So I took the occasion to switch to 4x 25w 6500K on top and 2x 25w 2700K hanging on the sides. I'll be keeping this setup from now on (until flowering of course).


Here's the result!

The little plants don't seem to be suffering from the transplant at the moment, I hope this change will improve their growth rate allowing the roots to "spread indefinitely"

 

[Away]

Re: Transplant!

As suggested I transplanted the plants in their final pots!
I disposed a 4cm layer of expanded clay on the bottom of the pots, then filled them with a mix of about 2 parts soil and 1 part expanded clay.
Moreover, a lamp passed out this afternoon, I had to replace it. So I took the occasion to switch to 4x 25w 6500K on top and 2x 25w 2700K hanging on the sides. I'll be keeping this setup from now on (until flowering of course).


Here's the result!

The little plants don't seem to be suffering from the transplant at the moment, I hope this change will improve their growth rate allowing the roots to "spread indefinitely"

The first couple of days you probably wont see tooooo much growth above soil, but dont worry, it's going on beneath

 

[BOFH]

Growth rate

Hi there, I've been quiet for a couple of days so I thought I might come back and ask you a few questions

Here are my little plants now, seven days after sprouting:
Jannella

Koncetta

Q1: Do you think their growth is acceptable? (leaves extension ranges between 6.5 - 7 cm on both plants, Koncetta being a little shorter)

Q2: How should I water them at this stage? As far as I read on the FAQs a common practice is to water once and let the pot fill entirely until it starts dripping from the bottom, then let it "dry" for a week or two, until it weights the same as it did when it was dry.
I have no doubts about the effectiveness of this "practice" but I think that at this stage the plants would not be able to use all the water needed to fill a 12l pot in time and I could overwater them.

Q3: I bought a cheap pH meter, tried to measure the acidity of my soil, and read a value of 7 (it's cheap and analogic, so I guess it's not very accurate). Should I start thinking about lowering my pH to 6.5 somehow or should I wait and see if it causes some deficiency and only act if/when it happens?

Q4: Should I start feeding them any fertilizer at this stage? I have BioBizz's Bio Grow (N-P-K 4-3-6), but I figured it might be too soon to change their "diet", even though the soil I used did not contain any nutrients.

Thank you and

 

[CO Finest]

Re: BOFH's - Indoor Soil - 2 x Jack47 Auto - 2014 - (8 x 25w CFL)

Away has got it covered. Other then that nice growing

 

[Away]

Re: Growth rate

Hi there, I've been quiet for a couple of days so I thought I might come back and ask you a few questions

Here are my little plants now, seven days after sprouting:
Jannella

Koncetta

Q1: Do you think their growth is acceptable? (leaves extension ranges between 6.5 - 7 cm on both plants, Koncetta being a little shorter)

Q2: How should I water them at this stage? As far as I read on the FAQs a common practice is to water once and let the pot fill entirely until it starts dripping from the bottom, then let it "dry" for a week or two, until it weights the same as it did when it was dry.
I have no doubts about the effectiveness of this "practice" but I think that at this stage the plants would not be able to use all the water needed to fill a 12l pot in time and I could overwater them.

Q3: I bought a cheap pH meter, tried to measure the acidity of my soil, and read a value of 7 (it's cheap and analogic, so I guess it's not very accurate). Should I start thinking about lowering my pH to 6.5 somehow or should I wait and see if it causes some deficiency and only act if/when it happens?

Q4: Should I start feeding them any fertilizer at this stage? I have BioBizz's Bio Grow (N-P-K 4-3-6), but I figured it might be too soon to change their "diet", even though the soil I used did not contain any nutrients.

Thank you and

Q1: Well as i'm no expert i cant say for sure, but to me they look nice and healthy. Just watch for growth man. If they grow they're OK. That's how i understand it atleast

Q2: Some1 else will have to answer this more precisely..
but what i can say is that i've been doing transplants and i used the "water till there is run-off" thing. Then i'll check the soil daily to see if it looks moist still. If it doesnt i use my pinky and stick it down a couple of inches and if the soil is feeling dry then i water again.
The plant's will let you know though, again just watch them.

Q3: Are you growing organic? If yes, then your soil is a natural ph buffer. It'll settle itself as far as i know. And i know your nutes are organic (using biobizz as well). But yeah if you get a deffiency your plants will tell you and then you can react accordingly.

Q4: I think it's too early but i dont know for sure. In any case you just need to go light on the fertilisers bro. Normally (as i had to learn the almost hard way) overfeeding is easy and can nuke your plants on first feed. Therefor, go half the dose they recommend to start with. MAKE SURE YOU GOT YOUR MEASURES RIGHT!!! I didnt on my grow, ended up feeding her a 10x dose which stunted her badly. I'm such an idiot and i know it
But since you're using Autoflowers you are going to need to watch fertilising a little bit more and be a little more carefull. Autoflowers likes less nutes than normal plants as far as i know, so go easy on the nutes when you start. You watch for the plants reaction and then you act accordingly
I dont know if you should start feeding yet, i suggest you go take a look at other Autoflower journals on here and see what others have done

- That's what i've got atleast, but i'm no expert at all bro..
Hope you stay high!

 

[BOFH]

Re: Growth rate

Thanks a lot Away, I'll be doing more research in the other journals here and take them as a reference.

Anyway it's good to see your plants are recovering well!

 

[Away]

Re: BOFH's - Indoor Soil - 2 x Jack47 Auto - 2014 - (8 x 25w CFL)

Thanks man, now i just hope they respond well to the upcomming feed!
But yes do that, it deffinately taught me a thousand new things, reading through a ton of those!

 

[BOFH]

New pics - even bladed leaf

Some new pictures for you guys
18 days have passed since I planted those sweet seeds, and here they are now!
I've been away for the last 4 days and as I came back I noticed a very rapid growth

Jannella

Koncetta

Both:

I also made a new lamp holder to improve light efficiency, now the CFLs are better positioned and hopefully my babies will be happier

I noticed a weird thing on Koncetta, there's a leaf which shows 4 blades instead of 5 or 3 as the others. I read it might be a simple genetic characteristic but some other said it could mean the plant suffered a heat shock. What do you think? Here's the picture

Thanks for your support

 

[Away]

Re: BOFH's - Indoor Soil - 2 x Jack47 Auto - 2014 - (8 x 25w CFL)

I think your plants look great man Keep up the good works!

 

[BOFH]

25 days - preflowers

Hello! 25 days have passed now, here's a little update!

The ladies:

Jannella:

Koncetta:

Jannella is also showing some female preflowers

Jannella again:

Koncetta again:

I'll be starting with 1/2 dose Bio Grow (1ml per litre) today, I hope to speed up the growing process a bit. Considering they're autoflowering I'm worried they won't grow fast enough to give a decent yield..

Anyway, they look good, don't they?

P.S.: notice that I'm counting days since I planted the seeds, not since sprouting/end of germination, so they're not actually "25 days old". I still think they're not fully developed, but with my lights (4x25w 6400K + 2x25w 2700K) maybe that's all I could achieve

 

[BOFH]

Day 30 - Uneven growth

Updaaaaaaaaaaaate, day 30, and a question (scroll down for the question)...

Jannella

Koncetta

Both, enjoying some sunlight

Height comparison

I apologize for the last picture, it's a bit underexposed, but the difference between the two plants is noticeable anyway. And this is the question I wanted to ask:
Is it normal for two plants started the same day, of the same strain, under the same light/air/etc conditions to show such an uneven growth rate?
Jannella is ~30cm tall while Koncetta is ~24cm.
But that's not the only difference! Koncetta (the shortest) has developed a (slightly) higher number of nodes and leaves. It seems it's focusing its energies on creating new leaves instead of developing its stem. Inter-nodal distance is significantly shorter than Jannella's.

I read that this is a common behavior among autoflowering strains, and two seeds from the same batch often don't show the same growth rate but differ in many characteristics.
Do you have any similar experience?

Also, do you think they're developed enough for their age?

Thanks a lot for your help!



P.S: obviously I'm not keeping them as you see in the last picture, I put some cardboard under Koncetta to raise it the same height as Jannella and get the same amount of light

 

[Away]

Re: BOFH's - Indoor Soil - 2 x Jack47 Auto - 2014 - (8 x 25w CFL)

Yo BOFH!

Im no expert but as far as i've understood.. When you buy a pack of seeds the result of each seed will be different. The plants will be different phenotypes of the same strain. I cant tell you which of your plants is the better, but i guess some pheno's are better than others
to me your plants look just fine

 

[BOFH]

Day 37

Hi guys, I've been away for about a week, the ladies were taken care of by trusted hands
As I came back I found that the 4 bottom leaves (1 blades and 3 blades) of both plants had fallen.
They started yellowing then progressively shrinked until they died.

I think it's due to the fact that they got no water for ~10 days and they might have suffered some nitrogen deficiency.
The next set of leaves is a bit yellow (it's hardly noticeable from the pictures) as well but after yesterday's watering I guess they're going to recover.
Keep on account that the bottom leaves are not getting as much light as the top ones.

Time for some new pictures!

Jannella

Koncetta

Jannella's top

Koncetta's top