My First Horticulture Experience!

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xXMrDenverXx

New Member
Hello, fellow growers and tokes alike! This is my first time posting to the 420 Forums and I have to say, I am very excited to be a part of this well educated community with a source of open minds where you pretty much can find any answer to your problem due to the fact this website habors people with numerous years of experience and different environment/styles. I just wanted to thank this community for letting me share my happiness with others!:) I had to say something nice before I went on! You guys deserve it!

As of now, I am in my 5th week of growing and I started out pretty low grade but it did work! I used a florescent light and a cfl. I used that setup for about 3 weeks and it actually did pretty well for my three plants. But now!!:):):):):):):):)

My new set up is one I am very proud of. I know it's not the most expensive one money can buy and I can say this, after putting my plants in my 4x4 they look amazing.
Here is my setup:
4ftx4ftx6.5ft Mylar Lined Grow Tent
4 1000 watt T5 HO 6400k lights (Vegetative Stage)
I just order my 1000 Watt MH/HPS for flowering as well. (Start flowering sometime next week.
I also have a Carbon Filter hooked up. Like I said I am very new to this so I don't know all the specs.

Right now I have them on the 18/6 cycle for veg. During the light time the temp averages around 78 degrees and 45 relative humidity. And the temp and humidity at night, (actually reading it right now is), 68 degrees and 48% humidity. As for nutrition, at the very begining I gave them a 1/4 of the recommend amount of nuts. I didn't realize Miracle Grow isn't that great for pot lol. Lucky since I diluted the mixture it did cause any harm that is visible to the naked eye. I haven't gave them any nutes and am waiting till next week onc I induce flowering. I was just curious on the schedule I should stick to for achieving maximum yield. E.I. What should temp and humidty be during night and day during flowering. Just anything you think a beginner should really understand of he or she wants to be a successful farmer!;) Thank you for taking the time to read this and I can't wait for feedback! This picture was taken today. I know have 9 ants. They all have been going for about 7 weeks. I really do love these plants. I feel like they know it too!
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nice setup. I'm running a CFL rig right now, and for the size of my cabinet, my only other option would be T5 tubes like you've got. I don't have the headroom needed for MH/HPS or LED. That said, I've done really well with my CFL-only. I've had my eye on a 2' 8-tube T5 light for future use, and filling in any shaded areas with individual CFLs.

I know you said your tent is 6.5'... I don't have a tent so I don't know how they're set up... is that full 6.5' height available for growth? the reason I ask is that the pic showing your plants seems to me you're just letting em grow without any topping/FIMming or LST. These plants have the potential to get pretty tall and lanky without any sort of trimming or training.

Lastly, do you know what plants you have? are they known genetics (bought from a seed bank/dispensary)? or are they just bagseed where you're not sure of the genetics? Not a deal-breaker, but sometimes it helps to know for any issues that may pop up. Lastly, if you bought the seeds, were they feminized or regular? if regular you'll want to keep an eye out as they start showing sex so you can get the males out of the tent ASAP - unless you WANT to produce seeds.

Good luck ;)
 
Thank you kind sir! I have to say, I really do love the T5s for veg and seedlings. Works perfect!!! Plus it adds pretty much nothing to your electricity bill! Maybe like 20 bucks at most! And yea! The tent is 6.5 feet tall!! You could sleep 2 small people in there lol! And I actually topped 4 of my females. And I super cropped one just to see how it works lol. That's the only way you learn! Personal Experience! I got most of the seeds from my pot dude lol! I have 4 Sour Ds for sure! And the other 5 are a toss up! But they def are female! I will post pictures when I induce flowering! What would you recommend I do when I first start flowering. As for the Nutes, water, temp and humidity. Anything you think I will need to know! Thanks very much!
 
copied from the "How to make a grow journal" thread...

Consider putting as much of the following information as possible to start the thread with.

What strain is it?
Is it Indica, Sativa or Hybrid? What percentages?
Is it in Veg or Flower stage?
If in Veg... For how long?
If in Flower stage... For how long?
Indoor or outdoor?
Soil or Hydro?
If soil... what is in your mix?
If soil... What size pot?
Size of light?
Is it aircooled?
Temp of Room/cab?
RH of Room/cab?
PH of media or res?
Any Pests ?
How often are you watering?
Type and strength of ferts used?

This info will make it much easier for accurate help to be given when needed and keep the members interested in your grow.
Click to expand...

you don't need ALL the info... but the more info you CAN provide, the easier it will be for us to answer questions you may come up with. Regarding nutes, part of that depends on which soil you're using, as some soils are "hotter" than others so nute recommendations will vary depending on your soil. in general, you'll want to use an instant nute - not a time release like Miracle Grow or any of the pellets. the time release are too difficult to adjust for over/under feeding. When first starting your nute schedule, it's usually advised to start the nutes at somewhere around 1/4 to 1/2 strength, eventually working your way up to 3/4 to full strength over a few weeks.

you water/feed when the soil is dry about 2-3" from the surface. this gives the roots sufficient "air time" in between waterings. if the soil is always wet, the roots won't develop well and they could develop root rot which can easily kill the plant if not caught and treated in time.

Temps, generally you'll want your lows to be no lower than ~65 F, and your highs no higher than 80F. most shoot for a closer range of 70-75 if possible. this gives you a bit of cushion to account for occasional extremes. Some will try to mimic nature a little more... keeping veg temps in the 75-80 range, then flower temps decreasing to a 60-65 (or 65-70) range.... as summer comes to an end and fall begins, temps drop right along with loss of daylight. I don't know if anyone has done a side-by-side to see if that actually makes a difference, but I guess it couldn't hurt to mimic nature as much as you can.

Humidity - in veg you typically want higher - 50-60%, while in flower you want it to drop a little (some drop it a LOT). typically you want to shoot for 40-45% or less during flower, or at least in the last half of flower.... Theory is that with the drop in humidity, the plant will produce more resin to help protect itself from the drier air.
 
Absolutely man! I am Using Fox Farm Ocean Forest. And I believe they all are 3 gallon plastic pots. Like I said this is my first grow so I'm learning a lot! One hell of a learning curve! I know most people do t go all out on there first set up, but I am very determined to produce some killer Colorado Medicio!:) Everything you have told me is very helpful! I just transplanted all of my plants 3 days ago. Literally no shock! I'm just nervous because everything literally has been perfect so far and I'm just nervous that something down the road could happen. I guess you don't have to fix something if its not broken though.
 
Hey guys! nice pics there from Mr Denver. Started a first (proper) grow myself there (well, second if u dont count the 2 plants i had flowering under a 125w cfl....pitiful!) Im using a 120x120cm growtwnt, 2M tall, and am running a 400 MH atm for vegging. passive intake with an oscillating fan near it blowing around the tent and a 5" extraction fan at the top of the tent. I have been topping, supercropping, tying down and had a few lucky FIM's. plants are getting along nicely, but im unsure how much i should let them go before flipping to flower (trying to get a 600 HPS for flowering). The strain is quite receptive to topping and bending, but i have a load of little tiny double or more shoots where ive topped or fimmed, whereas other branches are barely seeing any growth below the cut. the branches have also been tied down for light to get to the lower nodes, some of which have started branching well. I dont want to flip if there's immature shoots from topping...or will that matter too much will they just stretch like mad in flower? (it should stretch about 2x i reckon from the genetics)

Il post some photos here to show you guys and maybe theres someone who could give me advice. Im not in any rush just wondering how long it should take for all the topped branches to become proper independent cola bearing lovelys!
 

These are the 3 plants ive very sparingly defoliated. again, some topped budding sites are growing out some are lagging behind! as you can see theyre all tied down and the main stem has been supercropped but are looking quite healthy

Another 2 of the plants have been slightly defoliated to get light down to the lower budding sites along one of the auxilary stems some of which have nice little shoots. The plant is 60/40 sativa snd should stretch about double the height maybe 2.5x. i can go to 5ft max, but the plants are at their highest about 6" above the top of the pots now and theyve been vegging for lateral growth so height shouldnt be an issue. I just want to know by vegging for another 2 weeks as opposed to 3 or 4 am i looking at a much better yield? the tent is about over half full so should i veg out more laterally and do the incomplete shoots from topping (about a week ago) need much more time to branch out? or will it just go nuts in flowering:)

Any help would be appreciated. cos u guys are awesome. much love.
 
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Sorry it took so long for me to reply! Been a crazy year! This is my first grow as well so I'm learning a lot as I go. I'm using a 1000 watt HPS Ultra Grow, a 4 foot by 4 foot by 6.5 foot mylar lined tent. I am using the GO Box Nutrients. They are turning out pretty well. I Aldo have a small carbon filter hooked up. Mainly so I can smoke inside because, in Colorado, sometimes its freezing lol. I'm happy to answer as many questions as I can! My first grow has been going pretty well!
 
No bother at all man u got back pretty quickly in fairness...

I too im learning the basics, although i have proper savaged the plants with suppercropping, fimming topping etc, but they are bushy heathy lovely girls now( i have a 120x120cm ie 3"x3"), with only 5 plants. i wanna take one out to mother and clone it whilst blooming 4. just hoping i dont have any heat issues when upgrading to a 600 for bloom. did you have any heat issues with your 1000? and what is your airflow setup? (i have zero heat issues with my 400 MH- its wintertime in Ireland!!!). hoping my ventilation is adequate for a possible upgrade in HID - oscillating fan at the bottom blowing around the canopy, passive intake, 5" extraction at the top of the tent with carbon filter attached! i use biobizz nutes. i must say your first grow is looking good man and i hope mine is the same! just wondering how long i should wait to flip to 12/12. one love
 
Once I started seeing little white hairs on the plants that'd when I started to flower. I started off with 9 and 3 were males. I have 6 budding plants. I'm thinking of letting grow about a month longer before harvest. Still am doing research. With my 1000 watt HPS it does get very hot. The lamp puts off around 500 degrees to the touch. Since I am in Colorado and its currently -9 degrees with the wind chill all I have to do is keep my lamp on and I don't have to use my space heater to warm my room lol. At night I do though because temps drop to below 60 some times. If you want the biggest and tighest buds I would recommend the 1000 watt. Bigger the wattage, the more lumens you have. Thus, more lumens more energy for plants to strive. With you question about when to flip them to 12/12. First I would invest in your flowering light and or space heater if you need one. Then once you can determine the sex of your plants I believe that's the best time to flower because you don't have to worry about males pollinating the females. Sometimes you have to wait a couple weeks into flowering to determine the sex. Sometimes it shows really early. The biggest thing I have learned on my first grow is, don't be scared to try new things, and that plants can adapt to about any situation. Don't make it to stressful on yourself. Find something you comfortable with running and continue the same routine adding and upgradging your techniques as you go. P.S I pay about 200 bucks a month to run my HPS on 12/12. That includes all my other utilities as well. I have a 3 bedroom house and 3 gas heaters. And I'm in Colorado. I personally think that its pretty cheap to run. Adds an extra 40 to 50 bucks a month. Not bad at all!
 
Hey mr denver

Looking at your 3 pics above, especially the first, it seems to me you've done some serious defoliation (i could be wrong) - is this the case? if so - which leaves to remove and which to leave on the plant? my girls look really healthy but there is a shit ton of leaf mass and its blocking out some budding sites. i dont want to remove any leaves which are detrimental to bud production however... any advice (unless thats just a pure spindly sativa you got there!!!)
 
Hope all is well in your world.

Is this grow still alive?

We would love to be updated with some pictures and info.

How about posting a 420 Strain Review?

If you need any help with posting photos, please read our Photo Gallery Tutorial.

I am moving this to Abandoned Journals until we get updates.

Sending you lots of love and positive energy.

:Namaste:
 
hello! i looked at the thread again and saw that you asked was the grow still going, how it was etc, so i thought id post an update. I harvested around the 2nd or 3rd week of march. pulled about 250g off the 5 plants, some took a bit longer to finish, and each plant looked slightly different at harvest - leaf colour, bud density etc. i was really pleased with the quality of the bud. it was really tasty, not super dank by any means but quite nice...but the taste - man, it was up there with the nicest ive tasted. now, there is probably some bias there, but there was a really nice earthy taste off it! the strain was chiesel, so nyc diesel and cheese - i found the taste to be leaning more toward the diesel side of things, much more 'jet fuel' than cheesyness i would say. i would try it again, but would like more to do a pure diesel and a pure cheese to try. i did have some issues with nutes, got what im pretty sure was a Mg deficiency due to what i reckon was buildup in the soil of salts etc, but plants budded nice and put on good weight and many trichromes after leaching the soil. the high i found to be quite clear headed, leaning toward sativa, but i harvested when most of the glands were milky and there was maybe only a couple of slightly amber ones - would have leaned more toward indica if i left it later!

all in all i was pleased, now i am trying a couple of different strains - 9 plants in a 3x3 square arrangement - 2 x g13 haze, 2x triple cheese, 2x big bud, 2x vanilla kush, and a blue cheese!

Il be posting a pic or 2 in due time!

Peace n happiness
C
 

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