Newbie in California

Hello, everyone. I'm a soon to be new caregiver grower. I've never actually used cannabis, but I do buy it now for my teenage autistic son, his older autistic brother, and my wife. I won't try it due to possible testing at work. Here in CA dispensaries are expensive and are a long trip. I could go black market but want to keep everything legal so I'm growing.

I have seeds including OG Kush (I hear it's a hard grow), OG Kush CBD (1:1 strain), Purple Orange CBD (2:1), Northern Lights, White Widow (freeby but good for energy), and Blueberry (freeby) and soon to include Durban Poison (for THCV), Harlequin (5:2), and Pennywise (another 1:1). All are fem seeds. I will not be growing all at once. Depending on tent size (thinking 5x10 ft) I'm thinking 4-6 plants and trying to keep grows that lean more sativa or indica when possible. I want to do harlequin and OG Kush CBD first grow but not sure what else to grow first. Will be either 4 or 6 plants. Sorry to include info in ( ) but trying to let you know my rationale for each based on my research.

I've learned more in the past few months than I thought was possible and it's still less than some of you have forgotten. IOW, I know just enough to be dangerous.

Potential set up (yet to order):

5x10 tent, possible with a second 4x4 with intake filters at both the first tent intake and in that tent with air routed to second tent (filtered to prevent spread of nasties). Smaller tent would be for drying in the beginning and could be converted once I get some experience to a mother plant tent. Filters and fan 8". It would look like this:

Intake l__l filter outside and inside small tent l______________l

(that didn't come out as I wanted so I edited - hope it makes sense)


Two to three portable metal grid (not solid top) tables sitting 20" off the floor to elevate for easier reach and to allow better airflow to roots.

Plan to scrog each plant with individual 2x2 to 2.5x2.5 ft scrog's.

Going with CMH 315 watt x2 and LED 200 watt real power draw x2, placed in a reverse mirrored arrangement like:
______
l l
l xo l
l ox l
l______l

and spaced to maximize light evenly.

Will grow in organic "super soil" from seed in the beginning and plan to only have mothers and clones once I get the hang of it if it makes sense. I'll germinate in a dixie cup then transplant to a 7 or 10 gal smart bag/fiber pot.

Will have a small oil-filled heater and AC (under 7 amps current draw) because summer daytime temps can get high and night temps quite low. Planning on plugging them both into a min/max thermostat so only one can be on at a time. I'm guessing 68/75 is a good place to be temp-wise?

One fans blowing air over the top and one circulating air under the plants. I plan to carefully direct air to minimize drying out the roots.

Considering seedling warmers to warm the roots (mainly at night), but realize this could either be genius or disastrous.

I guess that covers the basics of the setup.

All my people have medical cards.

The younger son has issues ranging from depression and anxiety to social to appetite/pickiness to meltdowns/tantrums. I plan to fill capsules with dry decarbed flower and coconut oil to aid absorption and a natural preservative (have to talk with a pharmacist friend first).

The older son has depression, anxiety, and chronic pain. Same method of delivery as the younger son.

The spouse has depression and anxiety as well as some insomnia at night and low energy in the day. Smoke, vape, and capsules for her.

I read about bud washing on here and plan to do that as I promised the wife it would be a smoother experience than she is used to and it seems to make sense. That 111 page thread is what drew me to the site.

I have neem oil for possible threats to the grow. Not quite sure how to use it to the best effect.

The decision to place my sons on this was not taken lightly, especially the younger one. Desperate times call for desperate measures and it has paid off in the two months since moving from CW CBD and adding THC in equal measure (roughly 5 mg each). It has helped in every way I had hoped.

I am putting a lot of expense into this but it should pay for itself within a year. I really just want to do a good (great) job and provide what they need with as good or better results with less expense overall. That's not too much to ask, is it?

If any idea is truly bad please let me know. I expect to make mistakes but want to avoid those I can. This probably looks like a trainwreck waiting to happen and it may very well be unless I receive some welcome reasoned advice.

Thanks for having me here.
 
Hello, everyone. I'm a soon to be new caregiver grower. I've never actually used cannabis, but I do buy it now for my teenage autistic son, his older autistic brother, and my wife. I won't try it due to possible testing at work. Here in CA dispensaries are expensive and are a long trip. I could go black market but want to keep everything legal so I'm growing.

I have seeds including OG Kush (I hear it's a hard grow), OG Kush CBD (1:1 strain), Purple Orange CBD (2:1), Northern Lights, White Widow (freeby but good for energy), and Blueberry (freeby) and soon to include Durban Poison (for THCV), Harlequin (5:2), and Pennywise (another 1:1). All are fem seeds. I will not be growing all at once. Depending on tent size (thinking 5x10 ft) I'm thinking 4-6 plants and trying to keep grows that lean more sativa or indica when possible. I want to do harlequin and OG Kush CBD first grow but not sure what else to grow first. Will be either 4 or 6 plants. Sorry to include info in ( ) but trying to let you know my rationale for each based on my research.

I've learned more in the past few months than I thought was possible and it's still less than some of you have forgotten. IOW, I know just enough to be dangerous.

Potential set up (yet to order):

5x10 tent, possible with a second 4x4 with intake filters at both the first tent intake and in that tent with air routed to second tent (filtered to prevent spread of nasties). Smaller tent would be for drying in the beginning and could be converted once I get some experience to a mother plant tent. Filters and fan 8". It would look like this:

Intake l__l filter outside and inside small tent l______________l

(that didn't come out as I wanted so I edited - hope it makes sense)


Two to three portable metal grid (not solid top) tables sitting 20" off the floor to elevate for easier reach and to allow better airflow to roots.

Plan to scrog each plant with individual 2x2 to 2.5x2.5 ft scrog's.

Going with CMH 315 watt x2 and LED 200 watt real power draw x2, placed in a reverse mirrored arrangement like:
______
l l
l xo l
l ox l
l______l

and spaced to maximize light evenly.

Will grow in organic "super soil" from seed in the beginning and plan to only have mothers and clones once I get the hang of it if it makes sense. I'll germinate in a dixie cup then transplant to a 7 or 10 gal smart bag/fiber pot.

Will have a small oil-filled heater and AC (under 7 amps current draw) because summer daytime temps can get high and night temps quite low. Planning on plugging them both into a min/max thermostat so only one can be on at a time. I'm guessing 68/75 is a good place to be temp-wise?

One fans blowing air over the top and one circulating air under the plants. I plan to carefully direct air to minimize drying out the roots.

Considering seedling warmers to warm the roots (mainly at night), but realize this could either be genius or disastrous.

I guess that covers the basics of the setup.

All my people have medical cards.

The younger son has issues ranging from depression and anxiety to social to appetite/pickiness to meltdowns/tantrums. I plan to fill capsules with dry decarbed flower and coconut oil to aid absorption and a natural preservative (have to talk with a pharmacist friend first).

The older son has depression, anxiety, and chronic pain. Same method of delivery as the younger son.

The spouse has depression and anxiety as well as some insomnia at night and low energy in the day. Smoke, vape, and capsules for her.

I read about bud washing on here and plan to do that as I promised the wife it would be a smoother experience than she is used to and it seems to make sense. That 111 page thread is what drew me to the site.

I have neem oil for possible threats to the grow. Not quite sure how to use it to the best effect.

The decision to place my sons on this was not taken lightly, especially the younger one. Desperate times call for desperate measures and it has paid off in the two months since moving from CW CBD and adding THC in equal measure (roughly 5 mg each). It has helped in every way I had hoped.

I am putting a lot of expense into this but it should pay for itself within a year. I really just want to do a good (great) job and provide what they need with as good or better results with less expense overall. That's not too much to ask, is it?

If any idea is truly bad please let me know. I expect to make mistakes but want to avoid those I can. This probably looks like a trainwreck waiting to happen and it may very well be unless I receive some welcome reasoned advice.

Thanks for having me here.
Welcome Alafornia, sounds like you made a good plan and have your hands full. This is the right place. @SweetSue has lots of studies for you in her signature if you haven't found her yet. Get your journal up and keep reading and talking.
 
Thanks, stoneotter. Good to hear that my plan isn't totally off the rails. I'll check out SweetSue and eventually get a grow journal going once I get going in earnest.
 
Good to know as a caregiver and someone who works in the medical field. My conversations have grown more in depth RE: mmj as I've learned more. Most have limited understanding of the medical side of things. As I learn I try to bridge that gap as part of the overall conversation.
 
Welcome Alafornia, you should be off to a smooth start. Get with some of our concentrate people to ensure you’re making the best concentrates possible

Took me a minute to figure out how the quote function works (sorry, stoneotter).

Thanks, Pennywise. I'm sighing in relief that the two of you are in agreement on my plan.

I'll definitely check out those parts of the board for info on concentrates.

I'm glad this forum is here. It's the only cannabis forum I've joined to this point and appears to have a lot of good information and people.
 
I checked out the other forums but they are mostly a war zone like IG. I ended up here and never left!

I don't even know what forum that is (and it doesn't matter). Haha!

I mod on a sports related forum that tries to create a more welcoming and controlled atmosphere and noticed similar qualities here so I joined.
 
IG is Instagram and it can be brutal at times.

I don't have an IG but do know what it is, now that you mention it. I have a twit but only rarely get on for sports info or to follow an unfolding event.
 
I pared things down a bit. Went with a 5x5 tent, dropped one CMH light, and went with 6" exhaust fan/filter. If things go well I may add on later. This will keep the costs down a bit while I learn. Also going to forget about the scrog until I get the hang of it.

Thanks again to everyone for the helpful comments.
 
So one concern I have is low humidity, especially with summer approaching. June and July may not be that bad but August will be brutal with humidities at times in the single digits. I'll have enough room in the 5x5 to put in a humidifier. The possibility of mold concerns me.
 
Shouldn't be much of a problem, but we've been in a rainy pattern lately. Almost wish I had started my first grow with the high humidity. Oh, well.

Any thoughts of a preferred humidifier or of best practices regarding cleaning them?
 
So I got the water pH tester today and it's reading about 7.4. This is in a glass or plastic cup. I'll be growing in "super soil", so will this be a problem? Will I need to buffer it somehow? Or will it be OK? PPM is about 160, give or take. It is well water.
 
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