How tall should plants be after two weeks - Mine are only 2"

[ryanadeadhead]

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This is my first grow. I have two plants that are two weeks old and are about the same size. I think they look healthy but they are only 2 inches tall. From what I've read they should be about 8 inches tall. They are both auto flowering feminized Northern Light (Northern Storm) by Victory Seeds under a Viparspectra 1200W LED light. Is there something wrong with them?

 

[Droopydroors]

re: How tall should plants be after two weeks - Mine are only 2"

For reference this is a blue himalaya auto at day 15 that was under 150w cfl

This is a +Speed auto under Viparspectra 450 day 14

What I can tell you is they are both around 2" tall. At around day 19-24 they start stretching at a very rapid rate. I'm sure every strain is differant so I would give it time. Make sure the light is 24" above the plant and that you are not over watering or too heavy on nutes depending on medium. Hope this helps.

 

[ryanadeadhead]

re: How tall should plants be after two weeks - Mine are only 2"

Thanks for the advice. I'm waiting another week to add nutes since I think that the Fox Farm Ocean Forest soil should have plenty for the first 3 weeks. I have a feeling I may be overwatering them. They are both in 4 gallon pots and I water them when the top inch of soil is dry. This is about every 3 days. Does that sound like to much for a 4 gallon pot?

 

[Droopydroors]

Re: How tall should plants be after two weeks, Mine are only 2"

With FFOF you are correct for the first 3 weeks. So we know that's out, good. Watering is a tuff one because it will depend on what type of pot, humidity and temp. I have my new girls in 3 gallon fabric pots, temps around 80f, humidity around 40% and I have to water around every 3-4 days. I put my finger as deep as I can and if it feels damp then no water. If I do the same and it just feels cold but not damp I will water. Also I water my girls till I see a little water come out the bottom once they got bigger. When they were the size of yours I would use around 32oz of water in a circle around 2-3 inches around the plant so the roots grow out to find the water. Have you checked pH? All this said it could shoot up tomorrow and grow like crazy!!!!

 

[Droopydroors]

re: How tall should plants be after two weeks - Mine are only 2"

How high is your light and are you using both veg & bloom switch?

 

[Oldbear]

Here is a two week old - its a Channel+ and grows like an auto. I hope you keep on with updates because I have some NLAs to grow.

 

[ryanadeadhead]

I have been testing the PH. I've been using regular tap water that is 7.0 and bringing it down to 6.5 with General Hydroponics PH Down. The runoff test at 6.5. I'm under the understanding that it should be between 6.5 and 6.0. I don't want to bring it down because once I start adding nutes it will probably go down anyhow. As far as the height it has been at 24" and I've just been using the Veg switch. I was just thinking about turning on the bloom switch as well. I haven't really looked into it that hard. Do you think I should turn them both on? I think I read somewhere that it might help them stretch but I'm not sure. Another question I have is that since they're autos, will they start flowering in a week or two regardless of their size? I planned on hitting the bloom switch then. Victory Seeds claims my Northern Light strain can be ready in as soon as 65 days from seed. I'm worried that my yield may end op being tiny. Also I'm just growing two plants in a closet with the 1200W Viparspectra LED with a couple of fans circulating the air on an 18/6 light schedule. I have a 4x4 tent and a 420 cfm exhaust fan that I plan on using with my future grows but I happen to be staying at my parents house for a couple of months and I didn't want to freak them out with too elaborate of a setup. I'm thinking that that setup may improve the amount of CO2 and help the plants grow more vigorously. When I can finally set everything up with a tent I will start trying to grow 6 photoperiod plants at a time since I live in Massachusetts and we can have up to 12 plants growing at a time but only 6 can be budding. Also I'm wondering if the fans I have blowing around may be causing the top of the soil to dry out faster than usual and as a result I may be over watering. I used to water until I saw runoff but now I just water until the water starts to raise the soil at the surface. I'm thinking I should experiment with the two plants and water one less frequently than the other so I can learn what is the right amount of water. Even if one plant suffers I'll know better what to do for all my future grows. Thanks for the advice and feedback. I look forward from hearing from you more.

 

[GrnThmbs]

Thanks for the advice. I'm waiting another week to add nutes since I think that the Fox Farm Ocean Forest soil should have plenty for the first 3 weeks. I have a feeling I may be overwatering them. They are both in 4 gallon pots and I water them when the top inch of soil is dry. This is about every 3 days. Does that sound like to much for a 4 gallon pot?

I just finished a grow in FFOF soil and didn't need nutes until the last month of flower. Now I wasn't growing any specific strain (bag seed) and I was only under 2 300 watt LED lights in a closet similar to your situation. Had two plants as well (one light on each). I pH'd my water to 6.8 roughly. My understanding on soil pH is it should be between 6.4 and 7.2 so you're on the low end, maybe try bringing it up a couple points and see what happens. For the water, if you have the time, I would look into what underwatering a plant looks like and make your goal to come close to underwatering but not quite there. These girls love a dry medium after it's been soaked real good. I'm also not familiar with viparspectra lights but I kept my light about 18" above the canopy to try and reduce the stretching between nodes, but you aren't having that issue. I'd also keep in mind your plant is going to develop its root systems much more rapidly than the above soil growth until it has a sound root system..then, and only then, can and will the top side blow up in size. Here's a link to my grow journal you can check out for some references.

LED Bag Seed Closet Grow

 

[Droopydroors]

Re: How tall should plants be after two weeks - Mine are only 2"

I have been testing the PH. I've been using regular tap water that is 7.0 and bringing it down to 6.5 with General Hydroponics PH Down. The runoff test at 6.5. I'm under the understanding that it should be between 6.5 and 6.0. I don't want to bring it down because once I start adding nutes it will probably go down anyhow. As far as the height it has been at 24" and I've just been using the Veg switch. I was just thinking about turning on the bloom switch as well. I haven't really looked into it that hard. Do you think I should turn them both on? I think I read somewhere that it might help them stretch but I'm not sure. Another question I have is that since they're autos, will they start flowering in a week or two regardless of their size? I planned on hitting the bloom switch then. Victory Seeds claims my Northern Light strain can be ready in as soon as 65 days from seed. I'm worried that my yield may end op being tiny. Also I'm just growing two plants in a closet with the 1200W Viparspectra LED with a couple of fans circulating the air on an 18/6 light schedule. I have a 4x4 tent and a 420 cfm exhaust fan that I plan on using with my future grows but I happen to be staying at my parents house for a couple of months and I didn't want to freak them out with too elaborate of a setup. I'm thinking that that setup may improve the amount of CO2 and help the plants grow more vigorously. When I can finally set everything up with a tent I will start trying to grow 6 photoperiod plants at a time since I live in Massachusetts and we can have up to 12 plants growing at a time but only 6 can be budding. Also I'm wondering if the fans I have blowing around may be causing the top of the soil to dry out faster than usual and as a result I may be over watering. I used to water until I saw runoff but now I just water until the water starts to raise the soil at the surface. I'm thinking I should experiment with the two plants and water one less frequently than the other so I can learn what is the right amount of water. Even if one plant suffers I'll know better what to do for all my future grows. Thanks for the advice and feedback. I look forward from hearing from you more.

Ok so first I would turn on the bloom switch as well. More light the better. Because remember with autos that light spectrum isn't going to cause them any harm. And then I would suggest keeping them at 24" above until they get a little bigger then move them to 18" then 12". I keep my pH from 6 - 6.5 without issue. As far as nutes go you probably don't need them with FFOF but if your plants take them without signs of burn then they will help them get bigger and thicker. I just wouldn't go over 1/2 strength although I have seen people give full strength with certain strains. Yes your girls will probably start showing pre-flowers around day 21-28. The girl I'm pulling now is supposed to be 49 days from seed to harvest but she is on day 65 and she is just ready to harvest this weekend. She also showed sex on day 14. So whatever the breeder says at least add 2 weeks...lol. I think they put those numbers low so people buy them. But under perfect conditions and 24/0 light maybe they would be done in that time. The right time to harvest with autos can be tricky because on some strains the trichs will not amber on the calyx so you have to look at the plant overall. But again this all said I'm sure you're fine and she will probably start going crazy in a week or so!!! But putting all the lights on will definitely help that process along.

 

[Droopydroors]

Also one thing that I have not seen mentioned is your temps? Your leaves seem to have a bit of a twist too them. High temps seem to do that. You should be around 75-82 if possible.

 

[Scientific]

How high is your light and are you using both veg & bloom switch?

That's what I was wondering. 1200 watts listed, 600 watts actual, only half the lights on takes it down to 300. Put it too far away and boom, not enough light and slow growth?

 

[ryanadeadhead]

I just read your replies. So, I just turned on the bloom switch. I'm sure they're close to flowering anyways but if I ever grow autos again I think I'll turn on bloom from the start. I think my lights are 524W actual. As far as temps, it has been around 75 degrees. The humidity has been on the low side at about 37 percent.

 

[Scientific]

I just read your replies. So, I just turned on the bloom switch. I'm sure they're close to flowering anyways but if I ever grow autos again I think I'll turn on bloom from the start. I think my lights are 524W actual. As far as temps, it has been around 75 degrees. The humidity has been on the low side at about 37 percent.

I would be more of a fan of spectra customized for growth phase if it didn't mean reducing the amount of light by half. Given the choice of more light or the "correct" color of light, I'll take more light.

Anyway, 524 watts sounds about right for one listed as 1200, and now you should be getting all of that, so rock on. I wonder if the temp will rise?

37 RH is pretty low. If you have a fan blowing on the plant (and you should of course), you could have it blow over a baking dish full of water to increase the humidity. (That can also lower the temperature by the way.) Anything you can do to increase the wet surface area--sponge in the pan, paper towel wicks, even circulation pumps sending water to the top of an evaporative cooler element--will increase the humidity that much more (and the cooling).

 

[ryanadeadhead]

I've had the bloom switch on for about an hour and the temp is up from 75 to 80. I did put out a bunch of trays full of water about a week ago to try and get the relative humidity up. It brings it up about 3%.

 

[Droopydroors]

Ya with the full spectrum on my tent gets above 80 real easy if the exhaust isn't cranked up. I can't get my humidity up above 40% and most of the time it's sitting at 30%.

 

[Scientific]

Ya with the full spectrum on my tent gets above 80 real easy if the exhaust isn't cranked up. I can't get my humidity up above 40% and most of the time it's sitting at 30%.

More wet surfaces with a fan blowing on then! You can rig a little pump to wet paper towels or an evaporative cooler element. It really works!

 

[Droopydroors]

More wet surfaces with a fan blowing on then! You can rig a little pump to wet paper towels or an evaporative cooler element. It really works!

I have a few wet towel racks that I can through in the tent but I don't really see a problem at 35-40. Also since I'm growing autos I have some babies as well as fully grown girls in the same tent so for me I don't want it higher than 40% because of a possible mold issue with the buds. By no means am I an experienced grower but what does the higher humidity give you? Does it help the plant grow bigger, faster, fuller?

 

[Scientific]

I have a few wet towel racks that I can through in the tent but I don't really see a problem at 35-40. Also since I'm growing autos I have some babies as well as fully grown girls in the same tent so for me I don't want it higher than 40% because of a possible mold issue with the buds. By no means am I an experienced grower but what does the higher humidity give you? Does it help the plant grow bigger, faster, fuller?

I think low humidity is good when the buds get big and prone to mold (although I had a bud with mold inside with an RH of about 40).

I would guess that the plant just evolved in and is best adapted to an environment in which there is more moisture, but I would also guess that as long as it is well watered that it should be OK. (I do remember the leaves on my indoor plant getting kind of crinkly at the end after a long period of low humidity and 80+ F. They can only adapt so much...)

 

[ryanadeadhead]

Well, it's been another week and a half. Now my plant is 3 1/2 weeks old. It gotten a lot bigger. It's now 7" tall and has pre flowers. I'm not to concerned about it growing to slowly now.

 

[Scientific]

Well, it's been another week and a half. Now my plant is 3 1/2 weeks old. It gotten a lot bigger. It's now 7" tall and has pre flowers. I'm not to concerned about it growing to slowly now.

It's small but it looks healthy. Now that it has preflowers it should start its stretch and start getting bigger fast.