CannaKitty
Well-Known Member
CannaKitty's Spring 2017 First Timer's Mixed LED/CFL/Greenhouse Grow
Hello all!
My name is Kitty. This will be my first true committed attempt to grow. When I was in college, my live in boyfriend and I set up a closet but I wasn't able to reap the benefits of that grow after moving out and ending it with the guy I was growing and living with. That was almost 10 years ago anyway so a lot has changed (lights, laws, my patience, my location, most of all ME). I moved to Italy 3 and a half years ago. I live a kilometer from the Mediterranean sea. It is the middle of February and as the days get longer I am starting my grow. In Italy it is not illegal to consume marijuana but it is illegal to purchase or sell it mainly because big bro can't collect tax on it. It is legal to cultivate personal amounts of marijuana technically limited to ONE flowering plant at a time following a 2011 ruling by the Supreme Court, that it is for personal use and provided that the defendant's "conduct in committing the offence was not 'offensive', i.e. harmful to public safety". Okay before I continue my babblingaling, let me give y'all the deets.
What strain is it? Seeds were gifted to me by a friend/grower in Florence. He says they are his combination of "N. lights x A.Indica x White widow". They come with no guarantees and are by all means 'unstable'. I have smoked the product they produce and its quite nice and heady. He gifted me about 50 viable seeds... These, I believe, are the best choice for my first 'learner's grow'. (I already, murdered my first 8 seeds by being unprepared and too eager)
Is it Indica, Sativa or Hybrid? What percentages? Hybrid but obviously unknown.
Is it in Veg or Flower stage? We are starting at the very beginning here my friends. I am trying to get 7-10 plants, and then hoping for half ladies, and hoping I can keep at least half of those ladies alive. I only have the lights for 3 ladies but I also have a greenhouse (glass enclosed balcony) so anything I can't fit will be going outdoors for a traditional Italian summer harvest . Because I kicked off my grow with a germination shit show Now, I am taking it slower and adding patience. I have 5 seeds I soaked in water for 24 hours. They then went between moist but not soaking wet paper towels on a plate covered with saran wrap. I wrapped them up in a big black beach towel and put them just close enough to my radiator to get warm for 48 hours. 4 out of 5 popped their tap roots and were moved to wet but not sopping peat pellets. Only a couple cm down lightly (but completely) covered in a pinch of the peat. I have another 5 seeds running 48 hours behind these ones (currently in moist paper towels). I am doing this so that if I make a mistake on the first wave. I can correct it on the second. I figure 48 hours is enough time for them to grow together but for me to possibly correct minor mistakes. It's like having a second kid... just in case. (bahahaha I obviously am not a mother)
If in Veg... For how long? My long winded prior paragraph is enough right?
If in Flower stage... For how long? -
Indoor or outdoor? Indoor + Greenhouse (glass enclosed balcony) when temps allow.
Soil or Hydro? Soil Mix
If soil... what is in your mix? Rooted in Peat Pellets then the plan is to go into 70/30 BioBizz All Mix/Perlite. (My Hydro shop guy shop recommended strait to BB Allmix but I have read that can be too much on seedlings) Then probably straight BioBizz in my big pots.
If soil... What size pot? Peat Pellets to Square 10/10s(cm) then I have 5 Square 20/20cm for my most successful girls... Not quite sure where I will jump from there... depends how things grow. (hehe get it? Go=Grow I am a total nerd sry)
Size of light? Right now I have one Mars 300 LED (True watt +/- 140) I have 2 150 watt CFL's (3200k) on their way (ordered online) that will be added towards the end of veg when the arrive. I also have two little 30 watt cfls (also 3200k) I found at a 'Chinese' market here. These are the highest watt CFL's I could find locally. CFL's are very hard to find in the EU as absolutely EVERYthing has been replaced by LEDs here. I plan on doing DIY reflectors for the 150's. Right now I have the 30's in ghetto old lamps I found around the house. They aren't even necessary yet but I have them in there. I took photos so you can see just how ghetto rigged I've got things.
Is it aircooled? Right now I am using my second bathroom to grow the seedlings. The temps in my enclosed balcony are too low for seedlings this time of year. Then, ironically, it will get too hot. As the plants grow I will be creating my grow closet from a basically unused big amoire (sp???) in my spare room that has air conditioning. (very rare in Italy). Nonetheless I am working with LED and CFL so heat isn't a big issue... as of yet.
Temp of Room/cab? As they are only plant babies I am keeping them above 25° which is 77° for my US friends.
RH of Room/cab? I live in a very humid area, less than a klick from the sea. I don't foresee having to monitor humidity at this point. Once the temps get high enough for humidity to be an issue the plants will be flowering in a dedicated flowering closet in an air conditioned room.
PH of media or res? The ph of my tap water is very neutral around 6.5. With near perfect tap PH and using organic soils and nutes, I don't foresee PH being any issue nor do I feel I have to monitor it at THIS point in my journey. That may change. We shall see. When talking to the guy at my hydro shop I wanted to buy some strips or a ph kit and he said they would be a waste of money because the nutes themselves change the color of the water even if only slightly and this will give you an inaccurate reading. The shop is 15 minutes away and the guy says our water is as perfect as it gets but to let it sit a bit to let the chlorine dissipate.
Any Pests ? My condo is on the 2nd floor of the building and have no current bug problems. This may change, We shall see.
How often are you watering? Because I have the luxury of being home with my plants all day I am able to water as needed. Everything I have read tells me to water as needed and to wait until the soil is dry one knuckle deep.
Type and strength of ferts used? Talked it over with the guy at my hydro store. I was so happy to find this place. It's so close and so chill. We talked my whole plan over a spliff in the store (in Italian though) and he really thought BioBizz was the best for a first grow. Sticking to organic means I should not have to worry about PH. (If I see signs of issues i will of course address them) They have much more expensive products for sale in his shop but dude kept it real.
So those are the basics... On to a short summary of where I am at.
I have never lived in a climate quite as naturally brilliant for marijuana as I do now. I own my own condo. I do not have any 'private' outdoor area to garden but as I have mentioned I do have an enclosed sort of sunroom/greenhouse room. My original plan was to do a true seasonal grow in my sunroom/enclosed balcony but the more I read and the more information I absorbed the more I realized that I was going to have to still create a separate indoor grow space to ensure a successful grow.
I work from home. I am home all day to tend to my new hobby.
I don't have ton of money to spend on my grow right off the bat. I was gifted seeds by another Tuscan grower. These are the seeds of a strain he has been growing in the Tuscan outdoors with success for over 15 years. No auto fem auto flower etc. I know good genetics ARE important and I may receive a bit of flack over not going to a seed bank. Nonetheless, these are not just some bag seed I collected. I have smoked the product the seeds can create. For a first time grow, I think these seeds will be a good learning experience (growing from seed, sexing plants, finding what works). He generously gave me enough seeds for me to compensate for their instability. I would hate to spend a ton of money on seeds, have them all die, and basically lose any investment. (I already murdered 8 for god's sake!) Murder Deets: I got really excited when the seeds arrived (before I had my lights, soil, anything). I read put them in a wet paper towel and put them in your window sill. And so 8... very seemingly viable (the healthiest looking of all my seeds) sat in a sopping wet waterlogged paper towel inside a ziploc bag on a very cold yet SUNNY window sill. After reading more and more and waiting day after day... I realized I had fucked up. The 4 seeds that did pop (only barely) I put in completely soaking wet peat pellets. THEN, I was trying to be thrifty and used what I thought was a thoroughly rinsed out old windex bottle to spray the little guys. What the FUCK was I thinking there? If I didn't drown all my seeds I definitely killed them as no matter how many times I rinsed that windex bottle that windex chemical smell just didn't go away. Could you IMAGINE if they had been 8 seedbank priced seeds? I'm genuinely not a stupid person but I did some stupid things not thinking things out thoroughly. This hobby will be a practice in the patience I quite obviously need to work on.
A little about my equipment. It sucks... I know... but I am trying. I am trying so hard I spent a long time typing this up in hopes someone out there will want to help this little lady find her green thumb
As I mentioned before I am using what little start up funds I have on items I consider more of an investment. My first expense was the very basic Mars 300watt LED on ebay. I know it is bare bones but it is a little lamp that I can build upon if necessary and for the price... can't be beat. I thought about purchasing two but decided instead on supplementing with CFL. These 30 watts are place holders until my 150s come. Also, don't forget, these plants will be getting at the very minimum 6-8 hours sunlight a day (more than likely a lot more). I have read a lot about sunlight versus lamps and everything, including my gut tells me pure mediterranean sunlight whenever possible will beat the most expensive grow lamp.
So I probably forgot a bunch of things but I will add over time. As far as photos I don't have much for you except my ghetto bathroom seedling setup. I'll show you that though. As I grow, I too will grow. Right now my spare bathroom is the best space for them with a south facing window and white paint/tiles everywhere. As I mentioned I am working on turning my ikea closet into a grow closet but I have to wait till I get paid as I have sprung all my spending money on the lights, soil, pots, nutes, etc.
I can't tell you how THANKFUL I am for this site and these forums. I have read so so so much. I also want to thank ANYONE who has taken the time to read this. I know I can be very very longwinded... but I just have a lot to say. Any and all suggestions, hints, help is WELCOME. Please don't be mean... that is my only request. I'm just trying my best here.
So... CannaKitty grow from seed? We shall see! I will be updating as frequently as I can. Here are the pics of my bathroom setup. Please don't laugh! I took one photo with the shutters open and one with them closed. They are complete black out shutters which are convenient as the glow from my bathroom is pretty intense at night
That's all I got for now!
xxKitty
Hello all!
My name is Kitty. This will be my first true committed attempt to grow. When I was in college, my live in boyfriend and I set up a closet but I wasn't able to reap the benefits of that grow after moving out and ending it with the guy I was growing and living with. That was almost 10 years ago anyway so a lot has changed (lights, laws, my patience, my location, most of all ME). I moved to Italy 3 and a half years ago. I live a kilometer from the Mediterranean sea. It is the middle of February and as the days get longer I am starting my grow. In Italy it is not illegal to consume marijuana but it is illegal to purchase or sell it mainly because big bro can't collect tax on it. It is legal to cultivate personal amounts of marijuana technically limited to ONE flowering plant at a time following a 2011 ruling by the Supreme Court, that it is for personal use and provided that the defendant's "conduct in committing the offence was not 'offensive', i.e. harmful to public safety". Okay before I continue my babblingaling, let me give y'all the deets.
What strain is it? Seeds were gifted to me by a friend/grower in Florence. He says they are his combination of "N. lights x A.Indica x White widow". They come with no guarantees and are by all means 'unstable'. I have smoked the product they produce and its quite nice and heady. He gifted me about 50 viable seeds... These, I believe, are the best choice for my first 'learner's grow'. (I already, murdered my first 8 seeds by being unprepared and too eager)
Is it Indica, Sativa or Hybrid? What percentages? Hybrid but obviously unknown.
Is it in Veg or Flower stage? We are starting at the very beginning here my friends. I am trying to get 7-10 plants, and then hoping for half ladies, and hoping I can keep at least half of those ladies alive. I only have the lights for 3 ladies but I also have a greenhouse (glass enclosed balcony) so anything I can't fit will be going outdoors for a traditional Italian summer harvest . Because I kicked off my grow with a germination shit show Now, I am taking it slower and adding patience. I have 5 seeds I soaked in water for 24 hours. They then went between moist but not soaking wet paper towels on a plate covered with saran wrap. I wrapped them up in a big black beach towel and put them just close enough to my radiator to get warm for 48 hours. 4 out of 5 popped their tap roots and were moved to wet but not sopping peat pellets. Only a couple cm down lightly (but completely) covered in a pinch of the peat. I have another 5 seeds running 48 hours behind these ones (currently in moist paper towels). I am doing this so that if I make a mistake on the first wave. I can correct it on the second. I figure 48 hours is enough time for them to grow together but for me to possibly correct minor mistakes. It's like having a second kid... just in case. (bahahaha I obviously am not a mother)
If in Veg... For how long? My long winded prior paragraph is enough right?
If in Flower stage... For how long? -
Indoor or outdoor? Indoor + Greenhouse (glass enclosed balcony) when temps allow.
Soil or Hydro? Soil Mix
If soil... what is in your mix? Rooted in Peat Pellets then the plan is to go into 70/30 BioBizz All Mix/Perlite. (My Hydro shop guy shop recommended strait to BB Allmix but I have read that can be too much on seedlings) Then probably straight BioBizz in my big pots.
If soil... What size pot? Peat Pellets to Square 10/10s(cm) then I have 5 Square 20/20cm for my most successful girls... Not quite sure where I will jump from there... depends how things grow. (hehe get it? Go=Grow I am a total nerd sry)
Size of light? Right now I have one Mars 300 LED (True watt +/- 140) I have 2 150 watt CFL's (3200k) on their way (ordered online) that will be added towards the end of veg when the arrive. I also have two little 30 watt cfls (also 3200k) I found at a 'Chinese' market here. These are the highest watt CFL's I could find locally. CFL's are very hard to find in the EU as absolutely EVERYthing has been replaced by LEDs here. I plan on doing DIY reflectors for the 150's. Right now I have the 30's in ghetto old lamps I found around the house. They aren't even necessary yet but I have them in there. I took photos so you can see just how ghetto rigged I've got things.
Is it aircooled? Right now I am using my second bathroom to grow the seedlings. The temps in my enclosed balcony are too low for seedlings this time of year. Then, ironically, it will get too hot. As the plants grow I will be creating my grow closet from a basically unused big amoire (sp???) in my spare room that has air conditioning. (very rare in Italy). Nonetheless I am working with LED and CFL so heat isn't a big issue... as of yet.
Temp of Room/cab? As they are only plant babies I am keeping them above 25° which is 77° for my US friends.
RH of Room/cab? I live in a very humid area, less than a klick from the sea. I don't foresee having to monitor humidity at this point. Once the temps get high enough for humidity to be an issue the plants will be flowering in a dedicated flowering closet in an air conditioned room.
PH of media or res? The ph of my tap water is very neutral around 6.5. With near perfect tap PH and using organic soils and nutes, I don't foresee PH being any issue nor do I feel I have to monitor it at THIS point in my journey. That may change. We shall see. When talking to the guy at my hydro shop I wanted to buy some strips or a ph kit and he said they would be a waste of money because the nutes themselves change the color of the water even if only slightly and this will give you an inaccurate reading. The shop is 15 minutes away and the guy says our water is as perfect as it gets but to let it sit a bit to let the chlorine dissipate.
Any Pests ? My condo is on the 2nd floor of the building and have no current bug problems. This may change, We shall see.
How often are you watering? Because I have the luxury of being home with my plants all day I am able to water as needed. Everything I have read tells me to water as needed and to wait until the soil is dry one knuckle deep.
Type and strength of ferts used? Talked it over with the guy at my hydro store. I was so happy to find this place. It's so close and so chill. We talked my whole plan over a spliff in the store (in Italian though) and he really thought BioBizz was the best for a first grow. Sticking to organic means I should not have to worry about PH. (If I see signs of issues i will of course address them) They have much more expensive products for sale in his shop but dude kept it real.
So those are the basics... On to a short summary of where I am at.
I have never lived in a climate quite as naturally brilliant for marijuana as I do now. I own my own condo. I do not have any 'private' outdoor area to garden but as I have mentioned I do have an enclosed sort of sunroom/greenhouse room. My original plan was to do a true seasonal grow in my sunroom/enclosed balcony but the more I read and the more information I absorbed the more I realized that I was going to have to still create a separate indoor grow space to ensure a successful grow.
I work from home. I am home all day to tend to my new hobby.
I don't have ton of money to spend on my grow right off the bat. I was gifted seeds by another Tuscan grower. These are the seeds of a strain he has been growing in the Tuscan outdoors with success for over 15 years. No auto fem auto flower etc. I know good genetics ARE important and I may receive a bit of flack over not going to a seed bank. Nonetheless, these are not just some bag seed I collected. I have smoked the product the seeds can create. For a first time grow, I think these seeds will be a good learning experience (growing from seed, sexing plants, finding what works). He generously gave me enough seeds for me to compensate for their instability. I would hate to spend a ton of money on seeds, have them all die, and basically lose any investment. (I already murdered 8 for god's sake!) Murder Deets: I got really excited when the seeds arrived (before I had my lights, soil, anything). I read put them in a wet paper towel and put them in your window sill. And so 8... very seemingly viable (the healthiest looking of all my seeds) sat in a sopping wet waterlogged paper towel inside a ziploc bag on a very cold yet SUNNY window sill. After reading more and more and waiting day after day... I realized I had fucked up. The 4 seeds that did pop (only barely) I put in completely soaking wet peat pellets. THEN, I was trying to be thrifty and used what I thought was a thoroughly rinsed out old windex bottle to spray the little guys. What the FUCK was I thinking there? If I didn't drown all my seeds I definitely killed them as no matter how many times I rinsed that windex bottle that windex chemical smell just didn't go away. Could you IMAGINE if they had been 8 seedbank priced seeds? I'm genuinely not a stupid person but I did some stupid things not thinking things out thoroughly. This hobby will be a practice in the patience I quite obviously need to work on.
A little about my equipment. It sucks... I know... but I am trying. I am trying so hard I spent a long time typing this up in hopes someone out there will want to help this little lady find her green thumb
As I mentioned before I am using what little start up funds I have on items I consider more of an investment. My first expense was the very basic Mars 300watt LED on ebay. I know it is bare bones but it is a little lamp that I can build upon if necessary and for the price... can't be beat. I thought about purchasing two but decided instead on supplementing with CFL. These 30 watts are place holders until my 150s come. Also, don't forget, these plants will be getting at the very minimum 6-8 hours sunlight a day (more than likely a lot more). I have read a lot about sunlight versus lamps and everything, including my gut tells me pure mediterranean sunlight whenever possible will beat the most expensive grow lamp.So I probably forgot a bunch of things but I will add over time. As far as photos I don't have much for you except my ghetto bathroom seedling setup. I'll show you that though. As I grow, I too will grow. Right now my spare bathroom is the best space for them with a south facing window and white paint/tiles everywhere. As I mentioned I am working on turning my ikea closet into a grow closet but I have to wait till I get paid as I have sprung all my spending money on the lights, soil, pots, nutes, etc.
I can't tell you how THANKFUL I am for this site and these forums. I have read so so so much. I also want to thank ANYONE who has taken the time to read this. I know I can be very very longwinded... but I just have a lot to say. Any and all suggestions, hints, help is WELCOME. Please don't be mean... that is my only request. I'm just trying my best here.
So... CannaKitty grow from seed? We shall see! I will be updating as frequently as I can. Here are the pics of my bathroom setup. Please don't laugh! I took one photo with the shutters open and one with them closed. They are complete black out shutters which are convenient as the glow from my bathroom is pretty intense at night
That's all I got for now!
xxKitty
cheers
Can't wait to take some good pics later today 
