NLnovice's Northern Lights - Soil - CFL - Cabinet Grow 2012

[GreeenFingers]

Oh just a suggestion, If you want a HPS for veg your girls are gonna stretch like crazy because they wont be getting the right spectrum to grow in the grow phase properly. All the branches will grow long and thin and they wont be able to support much weight.

I think you should stick with CFLs for veg and the HPS for flower, the CFLs as we know, do a very good job at keeping the internodes nice and tight.

I also think that you should LST or SCROG for your next grow to create an even canopy of tops so that you will be able to utilise as much of the HPS light as possible. By being able to spread the light evenly so that no top is too far away from it you should be able to greatly increase your yield because of the even light distribution

Just some thoughts ha ha

Have you any idea what she yielded ?

 

[donpaul.p]

i got to agree with green fingers, ive got a dual spectrum hps, which is meant to contain the blue light needed for veg or so the box says, but when i put my hempies and 12-12 from seed under it they all stretched like crazy and the one is 4ft tall now, but the plants i am harvesting now was also under glr under the hps, yet these did not stretch at all and im harvesting them at around 2ft tall, now the only thing i did different with these is to start them under cfls, so from now on ill start all my seedlings under cfl's for the first few weeks and then they will go under the hps, this stopped the stretch and kept the nodes close, so every time i plant a seed or grow clones i start them under the cfl's, then they get 5 nodes high and are only 6 inches high, people say cfls make the plants stretch but keep the clfs close to the plants and they wont stretch at all, now i have only got 2 6500k 30watt cfls, in my small grow cupboard and them 2 bulbs are enough to keep 6 plants growing with no stretch, so once i have harvested my other plants ill be moving these plants into the big grow room and they will be under glr till i flip to 12-12, i have found that starting the plants under cfls stops them stretching and keeps the nodes close,

so id say starting plants under hps causes them to stretch loads, mines a 400watt dual spectrum and should not make them stretch but it does, maybe a 150watt hps might stop them stretching as you can get the light closer to the plants, the only other thing i can suggest is if you go out and buy a 150watt hps and buy the type with the digital ballast then this means you can use a mh bulb in that ballast, but it dont work the other way round, if you buy a mh ballast and bulb then you wont be able to put a hps in the mh ballast, but if you buy a hps with digital ballast which most of them are now, then this means for veg you can put a mh bulb in of the same wattage so if you buy a 150watt hps ballast and bulb then you can buy a 150mh bulb and put this in the hps ballast and this will then power that bulb, then you can use the mh for veg and get even better results then when you flip to flower put the hps bulb back in.

i have also been reading about growers putting the mh bulb back in for the last 2 weeks of flower, this is suppose to make the buds more dense but i have not tried this myself yet but ill keep finding out what i can then ill give it a try,
im running other tests soon and have several experiments i want to try, im hoping to get some really huge buds with one of the tests, but ill talk more about this when i start the experiment, if it works then it will change the way we flower plants off, if it dont work then its no big deal, but if it does then ill be sharing it with you all so you can give it a try yourself,

 

[GreeenFingers]

I have also been reading about growers putting the mh bulb back in for the last 2 weeks of flower, this is suppose to make the buds more dense but i have not tried this myself yet but ill keep finding out what i can then ill give it a try,

I was thinking about running my HPS up until the last 1 - 2 weeks of flower and then begin to alternate between the HPS and the MH on a daily basis for those last 1 or 2 weeks.

The theory is that HPS or red light is great for packing on mass but the MH or blue is better at developing the quality and quantity of the THC compound as it also contains more UV than a HPS which contains almost none, the THC acts kind of like a sunscreen to protect the plants. The addition of a UVB bulb also has the effect of increasing the concentration of THC within Trichomes.

Apparently when a HPS and a MH are used in a grow room the plants with the highest concentration of resin production and THC are the ones that are under the light path where both spectrum's cross over each other, if you know what I mean ? ha ha

Ideally both a HPS + MH together would produce the best quality along with quantity but my situation will not allow for both bulbs together until the next grow.

I hope this helps in your lighting decisions somewhat I have read quite a few articles that have stated the same information.
Just thought it might be helpful for you and everybody else

 

[Smokemupm8]

On day 103 flower 68 the lights were shut off for 48 hrs. Day 105 shot some pics, chopped down, and hung in closet. It took 6 days for it to dry. Temps in the closet were about 75 and 50% humidity. Been in jars curing for about ten days. A few more pics from just prior to final trim and placed in jars.

Main cola

Sorry for quoting this.. BUT IM SURE EVERYONE WONT MIND SEEING THESE PICS AGAIN Lol.
Nice mate, i love lookin at those pics you have.. Theyre similar to some i have And seeing the remainder of the plant hangin there with all the tiny leaves starting to envelop the calyxes.. MAJIK!! After i took my larger branches off and i had the smaller ones going bout 48hrs longer, i chopped mine the same way and hung it after removing the dead larger leaves n givin slight trim.
I let her hang there for nearly as long as i cured some of my buds, and when i trimmed them the smelled lovely and smoked just as good!! I still have her roots and stem base just outside in the garden JUST CANT LET HER GO.... Lol..
But yeah, you should have a good smoke there mate, nice effort! I cant wait for Cindy to hope fully flower well and grow some buds.. But im a little while off that stage for now, well maybe 3 weeks..
Ok mate take it ez, and enjoy ur ganja! Smokem..

 

[NLnovice]

Thanks donpaul.p and greenfingers, I will stick with cfls for the first four weeks. Change to the hps about a week before the switch to flower.

As for a final weight... I would estimate it at around an ounce.

 

[NLnovice]

Looking good NLnovice

Have you any idea what strain you would like to grow for next time ?

Another journal I hope ha ha

I loved following this one.

A long time ago I had a couple grams of bud that smelled like I was carrying a skunk in my pocket. Overpowering smell, incredible taste, and euphoric, trippy, and visual high. Since then I have never smelled anything like it. I want to grow something that comes as close to it as possible.

 

[GreeenFingers]

You should be lookin for a skunky sativa man

I would still suggest NL5 X Skunk by Mr Nice for your next grow it really is supposed to be the Crème de la Crème I would love to grow it out ha ha

 

[Jfault20]

Read this whole journal and everyone's insight has me excited I can't wait to start growing..

 

[GreeenFingers]

Read this whole journal and everyone's insight has me excited I can't wait to start growing..

I wish you the best of luck

I hope we see a journal from you

 

[NLnovice]

Good luck with your grow Jfault20.

GreenFingers, thanks for the suggestion. Don't think I am experienced enough for the super genetics yet. After lots of practice and a better growing situation I will consider trying a NL#5 x SK#1, Shiva, The Pure, or RoadKill Skunk. For now I am leaning towards trying Skunk #1. It seems like a good strain for beginners, easy to clone, and mold resistant. Thanks for your input and help.

 

[Truth Seeker]

Thanks for sharing your grow with us.

Don't forget to head over to the 420 Strain Reviews forum and post your smoke report there too!

I’m moving this to Completed Journals now.

Have you started a new grow you would like to share with us?

If so, please start one here:
Journals in Progress

In the future, whenever you complete a journal, please use the Report Post feature found at the bottom left of every post, so we can be alerted to move it for you.

Hope all is well in your world.

Love and respect from all of us here at 420 Magazine.