Darkhorse Gardens
420 Member
Good morning Everyone. I am going to attempt to write up a grow journal. This is my first attempt so be gentle. I am almost at harvest but I am hoping to get some good feedback from some of you more seasoned pros out there.
Planting Date: March 20th
Strain: White Widow - Pre-Feminized
Seed Supplier: 420
Grow Type: Outdoor, Southern California Coastal
Soil Used: Fox Farms Happy Frog soil (6 cubic feet per planter, two seeds per planter, three planters for a total of 6 plants)
Lighting: I use CFL Lights to supplement the sunlight and help hold the plants in veg. The lights are on a timer and i made sure that the plants had 18 hours of light per day (If the natural sunlight was for 13 hours during the day, i make sure that the plants are getting an extra 5 hours of CFL lighting to give them their 18 hours of light during the day)
NUTRIENTS: I use the full Fox Farms Soil Grow Spectrum and follow the feeding Schedule provided...with some tweaks which i will explain In more detail below.
I start my seeds directly in the soil where they will stay until harvest. I have not done the transplant method or indoor start. The climate and sunlight in North Coastal San Diego County is such that I have been able to start and finish my girls in my current grow boxes.
After the seedlings pop up I keep an eye on the moisture content in the soil and let that dictate how much and how often I water my girls throughout the whole process. The goal is to follow the schedule as closely as possible and make sure that the girls are getting fed twice a week and that the soil doesn't get too saturated for good root oxygenation.
When the the second node appears, i start the nutrients at 1/4 strength for 2 weeks and bump that up to 1/2 strength for 1-2 weeks (Depending on how the girls react) after that I switch to full strength and start the week 1 full nutrient schedule. Keep in mind, i am not on strict timeline, so I try and hold the girls in vegetative state for an extra 3-4 weeks with extra lights and pausing the week 4 feeding schedule. At week 4 I use the Sledgehammer to clean the roots and then keep the week 4 nutrients on for an extra 3-4 weeks for extra size.
When I switch from veg to flower, I turn off the supplemental lights and let the sunlight handle the rest.
PLANT TRAINING
I have not been doing much topping (Except by accident), instead I put a post next to each seed when it is planted and once the plant gets about 8"-10" tall, I secure it to the post and start bending it over with Low Stress Training. I keep training the main stalk in one direction and work to keep the canopy all at the same level. When the plant has stretched to the other side of the box, I put up a SCROG net and try to arrange all of the tops to go through the net at the same level.
At this point I begin stripping the lower branches to allow for good air flow. I will even put in fans, below the plants blowing up to give extra air flow, especially when i am treating the girls for pests.
PESTS AND TREATMENT'
Since this is an outdoor grow, I have to deal with pests..no way around it. I built some bug screening boxes to keep the moths out but I am worried about reducing the amount of PAR (photosynthetically active radiation) that the plants need for photosynthesis. That being said, I would open the boxes during the day to let the light in and and night, when i switch on the supplemental lights i cover them up since the bugs flock to the lights. This seems to work well, that is until the plants started busting out of the boxes when the get too big.
In addition to the bug netting, I also treated the girls, with preventative spraying of BT, Spinosad and Neem Oil to address the Worms, Thrips, Aphids and Spider Mites that I observed throughout the grow. There was never any sort of major infestation, but I would inspect the plants daily using my Microscope Glasses ($15 on amazon) and if i spotted anything, I would spray immediately. I highly recommend getting a pair of these glasses. They are great for inspecting the buds for any problems but they are also good for inspecting the trichomes to make sure you are harvesting at the right time for maximum potency.
I didn't take a lot of photos from the beginning of my grow since I never planned on writing a journal. However, big shout out to my good friend and fellow Guerrilla Grower, SoCal Homie, who turned me onto this site. We are constantly trading notes and working together on our gardens.
I will update you all with how my harvest and bud wash goes over the next few weeks. Hope you enjoy the photos and would love any feedback on my process etc.
I am including some more photos of the current state of the garden as well as a harvest shot from my winter grow, which was Jack Herrer (420 PreFem Seeds as well as some XJ13 that i grew from a bag Seed)
Planting Date: March 20th
Strain: White Widow - Pre-Feminized
Seed Supplier: 420
Grow Type: Outdoor, Southern California Coastal
Soil Used: Fox Farms Happy Frog soil (6 cubic feet per planter, two seeds per planter, three planters for a total of 6 plants)
Lighting: I use CFL Lights to supplement the sunlight and help hold the plants in veg. The lights are on a timer and i made sure that the plants had 18 hours of light per day (If the natural sunlight was for 13 hours during the day, i make sure that the plants are getting an extra 5 hours of CFL lighting to give them their 18 hours of light during the day)
NUTRIENTS: I use the full Fox Farms Soil Grow Spectrum and follow the feeding Schedule provided...with some tweaks which i will explain In more detail below.
I start my seeds directly in the soil where they will stay until harvest. I have not done the transplant method or indoor start. The climate and sunlight in North Coastal San Diego County is such that I have been able to start and finish my girls in my current grow boxes.
After the seedlings pop up I keep an eye on the moisture content in the soil and let that dictate how much and how often I water my girls throughout the whole process. The goal is to follow the schedule as closely as possible and make sure that the girls are getting fed twice a week and that the soil doesn't get too saturated for good root oxygenation.
When the the second node appears, i start the nutrients at 1/4 strength for 2 weeks and bump that up to 1/2 strength for 1-2 weeks (Depending on how the girls react) after that I switch to full strength and start the week 1 full nutrient schedule. Keep in mind, i am not on strict timeline, so I try and hold the girls in vegetative state for an extra 3-4 weeks with extra lights and pausing the week 4 feeding schedule. At week 4 I use the Sledgehammer to clean the roots and then keep the week 4 nutrients on for an extra 3-4 weeks for extra size.
When I switch from veg to flower, I turn off the supplemental lights and let the sunlight handle the rest.
PLANT TRAINING
I have not been doing much topping (Except by accident), instead I put a post next to each seed when it is planted and once the plant gets about 8"-10" tall, I secure it to the post and start bending it over with Low Stress Training. I keep training the main stalk in one direction and work to keep the canopy all at the same level. When the plant has stretched to the other side of the box, I put up a SCROG net and try to arrange all of the tops to go through the net at the same level.
At this point I begin stripping the lower branches to allow for good air flow. I will even put in fans, below the plants blowing up to give extra air flow, especially when i am treating the girls for pests.
PESTS AND TREATMENT'
Since this is an outdoor grow, I have to deal with pests..no way around it. I built some bug screening boxes to keep the moths out but I am worried about reducing the amount of PAR (photosynthetically active radiation) that the plants need for photosynthesis. That being said, I would open the boxes during the day to let the light in and and night, when i switch on the supplemental lights i cover them up since the bugs flock to the lights. This seems to work well, that is until the plants started busting out of the boxes when the get too big.
In addition to the bug netting, I also treated the girls, with preventative spraying of BT, Spinosad and Neem Oil to address the Worms, Thrips, Aphids and Spider Mites that I observed throughout the grow. There was never any sort of major infestation, but I would inspect the plants daily using my Microscope Glasses ($15 on amazon) and if i spotted anything, I would spray immediately. I highly recommend getting a pair of these glasses. They are great for inspecting the buds for any problems but they are also good for inspecting the trichomes to make sure you are harvesting at the right time for maximum potency.
I didn't take a lot of photos from the beginning of my grow since I never planned on writing a journal. However, big shout out to my good friend and fellow Guerrilla Grower, SoCal Homie, who turned me onto this site. We are constantly trading notes and working together on our gardens.
I will update you all with how my harvest and bud wash goes over the next few weeks. Hope you enjoy the photos and would love any feedback on my process etc.
I am including some more photos of the current state of the garden as well as a harvest shot from my winter grow, which was Jack Herrer (420 PreFem Seeds as well as some XJ13 that i grew from a bag Seed)
