G.I. Jose Grow

[GIjose]

So this is my first real grow and Journal. My first grow turned out to be all male plants. But the Silver Lining is I learned a lot from growing them bloom. I will start off listing what I got to work with and hopefully I can receive some education on continuing my grow. FYI I am doing this grow on a tight budget.
Grow tent:
home made PVC pipe and 2 tarps
measures 7x4x7
Growlight:
Fsgtek dule fan double switch LED 7200LM 600WT
Medium:
2 bags 1.5 cu.ft. Black magic Pro peat
1 bag 8qt perlite
1 bag coco coir
Nutrients:
Superthrive
Xtreme Gardening Azos, Mykos
Sensi Grow A&B
Tools:
HM Digital PH-80 tester
Hydro Crunch moisture meter
Plants:
1 GG4
3 BLUE HAWAIIAN
3 PINEAPPLE EXPRESS
Plan:
8 week Veg
16 week Flower
4 week cure

 

[GIjose]

Day 1 Sat Nov.16 2019
Sorry for the mismatch on days, I started on this date and a few days later I found this blog.
I paper towel germinated my seeds except one Pineapple Express. I wanted to see if I could grow it without germination.
All the seeds I germinated popped in two days! The GG 4 had the longest Tap Root, about half an inch long. I planted them in Solo cups that I burnt the corners off for drainage. I sewed the seeds to the first knuckle of my index finger. I watered with a pH of 6.5 at 70° till runoff, and spritzed the Ziploc bags that cover my cups. The tents humidity was 47% and temperature at 72 degrees at 7:30 p.m. I used faucet water to germinate the seeds for 2 days. Oh my seeds were gifted to me from a family friend. Not sure if they were all feminized. Again I'm sorry I did not have pictures of the tap coming out of my seeds.

 

[GIjose]

D2 Sun November 17
Running on a 24-hour light cycle till all seedlings sprout. GG4 sprouted out of the medium all others are still dormant. It seems that the gg4 has some good genetics oh, it had the longest Tap Root in two days and it sprouted and just as many in the medium. Humidity is 45% in the tent and 70 degrees this was taken at 8:50 p.m.

 

[TurboBucket]

Kind of unusual to mix Coco and peat. It's not unheard of though, promix makes/made a peat based soilless medium with about 20% Coco in it. It may cause some issues later but you should be fine.

16 week flower is insanely long. Your talking equatorial sativa's at that time frame. It should take closer to 8-10 depending on when you actually start counting flowering.

 

[GIjose]

I will definitely adjust my flower time. Thanks for the info. The only reason I mixed Coco was because the first time I had a grow without it the medium was not draining properly. Channels were starting to form not allowed in the Water 2 moisten the rest of the medium throughout the mix. So I figured I'd give this a shot this time

 

[TurboBucket]

Perlite is typically used in that situation. You should be fine. I mix the two

 

[GIjose]

Glad to hear it. Everything I've learned is from books and YouTube. So everything is pretty much Theory as I go along. Nice to be reassured that I'm on the right track.

 

[GIjose]

D3 Monday Nov 18
42% humidity
75° 4:00 pm
GG4 Is growing like a weed!!! if you'll excuse the proverbial pun.
#1 & #2 Pineapple Express have popped and the third Pineapple and #1 Blue Hawaiian popped. All thats left is Blue Hawaiian #2 ungerminated #3 and #3 Pineapple Express to go. I am truly impressed on how fast and tall the GG4 is growing. I can't wait to see if it continues the same momentum when she gets older. Today I spritzed the topsoil and the baggies again with 70° ph 6.5 plain water. pictures are in order as listed above.

 

[GIjose]

Good morning fellow Growers!
Well it's D4 Tue Nov 10:12 a.m.
Humidity 45%
Temp 66°
All pics are in order as described.
GG4 has grown a total of 1.5" and actually reach the top of the cup! She's looking great not too thin on her stretch.
Pineapple Express #1 has grown 1/4". #2 has one bigger Leaf than the other that is slightly burnt at the tip and its top leafs are still down. Im not sureif this is cause for concern yet. It's 1" in height. Has anyone had this issue? #3 she has popped but still has the husk on. I'm not sure if I should have assist in removing the husk. I'll probably give it a day or two to see if she can push it off her self.1cm in length.
On to the Blue Hawaiian #1 has uneven leaves 3/4" tall. #2 she is starting to push out! I can see her bend just underneath the dirt in the pic I'm trying to use a mechanical pencil to point out where the bend is. And last but not least #3 (ungerminated) she still lies in her bed dormant, no dirt hump or anything. Regardless if she pops or not tomorrow I'll start the 18-6 light cycle. Today I watered with a mix of .5 mil of Superthrive with 24oz of water pH 6.5, at 65° I sprayed the topsoil of each plant.
I am reaching eaching out to all those Growers that are fallowing my journal, have you had issues with tiny burnt leaves on your seedlings? How do you handle seedlings that have not shrug off their husks? How long should you wait before assisting the seedling in removing the husk? What type of music do you listen to when you are tending your plants? Till tomorrow Happy growing

 

[TurboBucket]

The best way to help the helmet head ones is to keep the shell moist. After awhile if being emerged and helmeted (a day maybe) you have to make a judgement call. If the leaves don't unfurl it will die. If you pull it all apart trying to remove the shell, it will die. Tweezers/forceps and a spray bottle are my tools of choice if it has to come to that. A little bit of membrane or even part of the shell on the end of the leaf tip is no big deal, they grow through it just fine.

The first one looks wet, try and let the container dry out a little bit she may perk up. 66° is pretty cool for seedlings, your usually shooting for 75-80

 

[GIjose]

The best way to help the helmet head ones is to keep the shell moist. After awhile if being emerged and helmeted (a day maybe) you have to make a judgement call. If the leaves don't unfurl it will die. If you pull it all apart trying to remove the shell, it will die. Tweezers/forceps and a spray bottle are my tools of choice if it has to come to that. A little bit of membrane or even part of the shell on the end of the leaf tip is no big deal, they grow through it just fine.

The first one looks wet, try and let the container dry out a little bit she may perk up. 66° is pretty cool for seedlings, your usually shooting for 75-80

Thanks Turbo, I just watered before I took the pictures. I usually have PH'd water in the grow room so it's the same temperature, Unfortunately I had to PH it this morning. I'll keep an eye on the helmet head and if tomorrow it hasnt falled off I guess it'll be a nail biting experience for me. LOL I will definitely share the outcome thanks for the info!

 

[GIjose]

Hows everyone doing this morning?!
D5 Wed Nov 20 9:30 a.m.
Hume 43%
Temp 65°
Pictures are in order as described
Unfortunately a small cool front came in last night, so the temperature has dropped a little.
GG4 Still is the tallest girl in the bunch, although the smooth leaves are starting to curl downward pretty tightly, I'm not sure if that's something to be concerned about. Stands at 2"
Pineapple Express #1 Is looking pretty good it's stands 1". #2 Has a slight droop to one side but the stem seems pretty sturdy it's not flopping around. When I put it back I'll make sure to rotate her to where her head is facing away from the light to see if she rights herself, she stands 1.5". #3 finally popped his helmet off HOOAH. She seems to be a little on the runt side though, I hope she warms up and starts to stretch like her sisters stands at .5".
The Blue Hawaiian #1 is looking fantastic at a 1.5". #2is looking just as good at 1". #3 (ungerminated) Finally popped out of the dirt! Happy birthday little one! LOL I can't wait to smoke you LMAO. I'm going to start the 18-6 light schedule today. They're wake up is at 4 a.m. and sleep time is 10 p.m. I'll be using the veg setting on my light. I do have a stupid question, I guess it'd be kind of obvious as to why not but wouldn't it work better if I have both the veg and Bloom lights running at the same time? Well until next time thanks for reading and happy growing.

 

[TurboBucket]

Good deal! Yes a lot of folks use both switches. I'd let them get a little further along before you give them too much light though

 

[GIjose]

Yeah my biggest fears frying the hell out of my girls. On my first grow the light I used was not as strong as the one I currently have. I got it off Amazon fairly cheap. It did the job but I wanted something better.

 

[TurboBucket]

Most people start with something cheap. I got a little over a year out of my first lights before I upgraded to real ones

 

[GIjose]

D6 Nov 21 7:00a.m.
Humidity 47%
Temperature 64°
Light is 18" away
Pictures are listed an order as described
GG4 holding at 2"
Pineapple Express #1 1.5". #2 1.5". #3 Just under 1" it seems thatthe "helmet head" stunted my little girl.
Blue Hawaiian #1 1.33" The uneven leaf is getting longer. #2 1.25 #3 2cm
After doing some research online and speaking with @TurboBucket I'm going to run with veg and Bloom lights at the same time starting today. I'll keep watch over them to see if the tips start to burn or if I need to adjust the height of my light.

 

[GIjose]

D7 Nov 22 7:30a.m.
Humidity: 50%
Temperature:63°
Light Distance:18"
All pictures on order as described
Good morning everyone!
This morning the GG 4 is holding steady at 2 in no second node starting at all.
Pineapple Express #1 just under 2" You can barely see the second node starting to form in the center. I find it kind of strange that the GG4 sprung like a lightning bolt and now is kind of stalled out. Well I guess to each their own. Every plant is different right?! #2 is at 2.5" The second node looks a little like a tiny nub in the center of the plant. #3 Is just under 1" I'm starting to get concerned that the fan leaves in the center are not popping up. I do believe the helmethead effect really does seem to stunt the growth of a Seedling even though she Shrugged it off pretty quickly. She seems to be like a preemie, really weak and fragile. I hope it just makes her stronger in the long run.
The Blue Hawaiian girls are doing very well #1 Is 2" you can see the next node pushing up from the center, just a small note this plants fan leaves are the biggest out of all the girls.(honestly not sure if those leaves are called fan leaves, but the rigid set on a Seedlings is what I'm talking about) #2 is 1.5" and not as developed as her sister yet, no second node developing. #3 is 1.25" and is Trucking along nicely.
Is it a good rule of thumb to start introducing nutrients when you see the second node or before? I'm speaking particularly anything that would help the root system develop. Is there any nutrients specifically for seedlings? From research I've done and for my first grow I found that using Superthrive helped the seedlings on my last grow. How many of your seedlings have you had grew one leaf way longer than the other? Finally my Battle Buddy is going to give me 2 $100 OG , and 1 GG4. He hasn't pop them yet. So my question is when will it be too late to integrate fresh seedlings to the grow I just started? Until tomorrow, good luck on your grows!

 

[Emilya Green]

I looked up your Black Magic and confirmed that it is a mixture of peat moss, coco coir, aged bark, and perlite. Add to that the extra perlite and coco and you have a totally soilless grow. This is fine, but you will need to be in the hydro range of pH as you adjust your fluids, and you need to start feeding immediately. Nutes are not supplements in this grow, they are the only food. Follow the hydro instructions for your nutrients. Start your new seedlings as soon as you can so there isnt so much of a gap between them.
Also, plants will flower only as long as their genetics tell them to. If you have an 8 week plant you can not choose anything other than that for it. With photoperiod plants however, you can veg for as long as you like.

 

[GIjose]

They are photoperiod plants. I guess I got some more homework to do on proper pH and nutes for a hydro grow. Thank you for taking the time to look at my grow.

 

[Emilya Green]

They are photoperiod plants. I guess I got some more homework to do on proper pH and nutes for a hydro grow. Thank you for taking the time to look at my grow.

good... well since they are photos you will have at least 4-5 weeks before they are even mature enough to flower, so you have some time to study up. Get a good pH pen and learn to adjust your nutrient mix to somewhere in the hydro pH range of 5.5-6.1. You may want to also invest in an EC meter so you can make your nutrient solutions to a specific nutrient density, as their needs will change all through the grow and you will need to follow the instructions for your nutrient products very carefully. Your medium choice has taken you down this path and there will be plenty of people here on the forum to advise you how to get the best out of this. I am a soil person, and many of the things that I do will not apply to your grow.