cfl newbie help: 4 seedling plants how many watts?

[fastmaster]

total newbie, i have 4 seedlings growing in soil, i have 4 - 100 w/equlivent-6500k bulbs
am i going to toast them? i guess what i am asking is there a recommended wattage per plant or square foot.
growing in a home 4x6 closet. i curently have the lights about 4-5 inches from the top of the plants.

 

[David Bowman]

to

50 watts/sq. ft. is considered a decent amount of light for a good grow, that's 50 real watts, not equivalent. What you have now, a little less than 100 real watts, is enough to get your seedlings started. As they grow you will need more light.

 

[yuyo]

well for now you are golden,but as they grow you might plan on more light
and for the latter stages you will want some lower kelvin bulbs like the 2700 variety
there are things that are still to be decided like how big you going to let them get,will you get rid of males.
i think 50w per square foot is the minimum most seem to advise but im not thinking you will need 24sq ft worth
are you planning on only using cfl? im sure some more experienced people will help soon =))
good luck and take care

well there ya go colorado was posting while i was chasing my dogs and posting late

 

[fastmaster]

thank u much gentlemen, for helping an old geezer out. i was shocked to even germinate the seeds a peep had given me. then i was like wtf do i do now. thanks to this site i'm trying the cfl as a beginner. i thought it would be a good use of an empty closet for an experiment. i got plenty of room to keep hanging lights on my ghetto fab shower rod/light hanger. so i guess what your saying is as they get bigger and i repot the plants to 4 larger containers, to flash the bejeasus out of them with 100w per square foot of the area i'm growing in. this site is amazing.

 

[fastmaster]

yes for total space i cant imagine i would need more that 12 sq. i do have another question about the males. i get that at some point i'll be able to tell m from f ( plant that is). are male plants smokeable ? there i gave it away i dont know jack about jack lol.

 

[yttocs1010]

hi fast males are worthless unless you want seeds the flower aka buds is what gets ya high females

 

[fastmaster]

i'm seriously just amazed i got 4 little peeps growing, it seems like back in the day it was all shake so i was just wondering if males were good for anything, thanks for the answer.

 

[yuyo]

as a total newb myself here are some quick pointers
things to watch...
ph you will want it around 6.5 - 6.8 in soil
temperature seems like 78 degrees is a good mark try to stay within a few degrees of this
you will eventually need fertilzer, high nitrogen in the veg stage and for flowering you will want low nitrogen
note that a lot of the cheaper quick ferts dont have magnesium or calcium,plan for that

air flow your gonna need a fan or two

later on they will smell sometimes quite a bit,plan for this

learn from reading,watch for people who are using a set up near yours and you can learn a lot

do not panic and start making too many changes, you might make things worse

once you have a successful run you will most likely get hooked =))
good luck and take care

 

[fastmaster]

u sir are a gentleman. i'm already hooked its crazy, i guess its the growing something from a seed, never done it,
but the scrawney things are my babies already. i get the less is more angle and thank u for that,
as i can definatley be ADD and fiddle with stuff to death.
i put a fan in the closet tonight. i am running the lights 24/7 and will be adding more this weekend.
this site is 100 times more helpful than any golf forum site, my other hobby. this is the best site ever.
my intent is to eventually try growing some medical grade product,
for my honey who serious pain issues with arthritis. she hates taking the HD pain pills, trys to be a hero and ends up suffering.
what do u think if i may ask about auto-flowering seeds, are they pretty easy to grow?
and a pain strain of plant u might recommend?
thank you in advance.

 

[yuyo]

sorry to say i have never tried an autoflower,i have read that they are great for space saving and are easy to grow,
but i am no expert, perhaps an elder will answer that
i like to go with 20/4 on veg light then 18/6 the last week or so when closing in on my switch to 12/12
it all works and different people have different ways
as for strain.almost all indica dominant strains are good for pain,insomnia and appetite
just take it slow especially if never partaking before or if its been quite a while

 

[fastmaster]

thank you again. always take it low and slow