Please Help - First Grow Ever

[Absurd97]

Hi
Im a new grower first time im growing some unknowns under a 400 watt hid im abiut 4 weeks from sprouting for both my plants i had 3 one died do to the rough trearment i ripped it up trying to main line too early. Also temps are between 78-88 Fahrenheit and humidity always above 40 lowest 35. I am using ocean forrest in my final smart pots i startes off seedlings in happy frog. Ok so im having problems with my plant which stem ripped in half while i was adjusting my main branches i tapped it up for awbout a week it heal all the way to the top part. I have fed them grow big once fox farm nutes at 6.7 ph and after the soil water was about 6.5 only a gallon each. My other plant is lpoking nice if i may add but the other started been droopy and saggy and im not sure can anyone help me please and ill take any advice and also love criticism thank you good luck on your grows

 

[electro gypsy]

high ClassyBud, welcome to 420

as for droopy, watch your watering habits. make sure you lift the pot every time to make sure she is dry before you water. the droopiness ... omg that's a word? ehem, anyways the droopiness is probably over watering.

the split one will likely need some kind of support. looks like it healed ok, but when those branches get buds or even grows longer it could lead to troubles and split again. it may grow fine but i would support it and let it grow that way for a while.. kind of like low stress training. pipe cleaners might work but will have to be adjusted every week or so. i think my remedy would be to make a hardware cloth ring or something similar to prop them up from below. old stems work for LST also. you can see an example in my sig.. book 1. you could also add a little aloe to that wound. may be a bit late but shouldn't hurt.

wait for more feedback on ol' droopy though. that's just my guess based on what i see.

 

[Absurd97]

Thanks for the advice man. Im having trouble im not sure if the bend is right yeah thats what i was using pipe.cleaners it looks like its working on my other plant but who knows im no expert that why im here but im not sure if it might be the feeding since ive inly purchased grow big thats only thing i added. Im not sure how.nodes.or.colas work i dont even know.where the weed is going to come out of i still need lots og research that i havent done i know the feeding schedual and that i must use half of fox farm nutes since they are strong from what i read. I was going for 8 nodes on each or maybe 16 to try to maximize but also notba very big tent i got with only 400 watts. Im not sure if my plants are where they're suppose to be what do you think for 4 weeks since popping out the ground? Ive also got the two main lines down im just having trouble with the next step what am i aiming for in to have in those two main lines? Thansk for the help may your fruit. Be plentiful

 

[electro gypsy]

they look about right for 4 weeks under 400w mh. especially with FIM and training. the stems are pretty thick for that age so i wouldn't try further training, but try and keep them flush (flat across the top) to the light like that for penetration. when they get bigger you could trim out or pin some larger fans.. but not yet.

are they all the same strain? droopy looks pissed lol. the more i look at it the more i wonder about nute issues.

 

[electro gypsy]

oh and as far as counting nodes etc for LST.. it's just a basic rule of thumb. gets you in the ball park

i mostly look for some elasticity when bending. don't crank too hard as you probably figured out lol. remember you can always crank and adjust as the plant gives. most of my training sessions last for a few weeks with adjusting almost daily.

the one with the pipe cleaner looks like it could be fun to pony tail in a few more days

 

[Absurd97]

Yeah it might have been the grow big maybe two early? But i thought she might need them since the step ripped it it says its from vegetation growth im pretty sure she mad at me.i ripped.her in half �� i took the pipe.cleaners off the ripped.one thinking it will help it grow better and.afraid to tie them back up. i recently.just did that today not sure if it was a good idea? The other one is still tied up. I was thinking i wssnt going to do anything more and jsut let vigorously grow till flowering? Or what should i do?

 

[lexort420]

What you do is entirely up to you, that's one of the things that makes growing cannabis so rewarding, but to be honest i think that as long as you have the room let it recover from any stress maybe look into some LST as stated before also don't forget to get familiar with the weight of your pot when it is wet and dry to prevent overwatering otherwise you have a very nice looking plant there

 

[Absurd97]

I think i might overwatered.them the last time i watered my plants but she seem to be the only one affected. Anyways her leaves just look to light greenish and in some top leaves there tips are beginning to brown? I havent gave no nutes except for half a tablespoon of fox farm grow big diluted with a gallon of ph downed water which was 6.7 after it was mixed and the soil ph was around.the same thanks for that is.my first grow.so i dont even know what everything.suppose to look like

 

[Emilya Green]

I think i might overwatered.them the last time i watered my plants but she seem to be the only one affected. Anyways her leaves just look to light greenish and in some top leaves there tips are beginning to brown? I havent gave no nutes except for half a tablespoon of fox farm grow big diluted with a gallon of ph downed water which was 6.7 after it was mixed and the soil ph was around.the same thanks for that is.my first grow.so i dont even know what everything.suppose to look like

Hi Classy... I too see signs that you have overwatered. You say that your tips are burning too and I see a bit of clawing downward of your leaves.

First, let's address your pH. You are growing in good soil and using synthetic nutrients. Synthetic nutrients can only break down and be mobile in the soil, and mobile into your plant, between a specific range of pH, depending on which nutrient we are talking about. I will provide a chart that illustrates this at the end of this message.

Adjusting the pH of water before you add nutes to it is a waste of time. I have heard new growers of weeds call this "balancing" the water, but unfortunately this is a myth... the only balanced water is water stable at 7.0... or basically distilled water. Every time you mix up something to give to your plants, whether it is water or water mixed with nutes... adjust the pH right before you apply it to the plants... and adjust it to 6.5 pH. Every time. Nitrogen, your current macronutrient, is mobile over a very wide range, from just about 5.0 all the way to 8.0. This is why your pH maladjustment has not hurt you so far, but just as you get into flower the nutrient needs will change... and at 6.7 pH, you are going to start having problems. Start practicing now... 6.5, every time.

Next, the need for nutrients at this stage. The burnt tips and the downward clawing are both clear signs that what you have provided is too much for your plants. They are complaining at you, and that burn, right in the top growth (the currently growing part of the plant) shows that your last watering was too hot, nutrient wise. Please read the last lines in black in my signature for my feelings on nutrients for young plants... but if you insist on using them, consider cutting the dosage in half for now... later the plants will become very hungry and will be able to handle full strength nutes... but you are not there yet.

Lastly, watering. Consider this carefully:
It is impossible to overwater a plant by giving it too much water in any one watering... any extra water that the soil can not hold simply runs off out of the bottom.

Actually it is the goal when we water to saturate the soil... we attempt to fill it up like a sponge to hold every last drop we can get in there. If you water slowly, it is possible to do this, even in a cloth container... it is the job of the soil to do exactly this.

From the moment that you water, the plant begins to uptake it, and as the plant uses the water, gravity pulls it toward the bottom and a water table forms, that over time descends toward the bottom of the container. To properly care for a weed, it is absolutely necessary to allow that wet/dry line, the water table, to fall all the way to the bottom inch of the container. The roots down there actually need to get oxygen at the end of each wet/dry cycle, and the diaphragm that the water table creates, causes a very strong suction that pulls oxygen right down through the soil from the top and the sides in cloth pots.

When you water too often however, especially if you only give small amounts that do not saturate the soil and do not form the suction diaphragm, it simply drops to the bottom. This causes the water table to rise before it provides oxygen to the lower roots, and after a week or so of this, the plant has no choice but to think that it accidentally rooted in a floodplain. Evoking its survival mode, the plant puts a special coating around the lower roots to protect them until the flood waters recede, and the lower roots become less efficient. The longer this situation continues, the more completely the lower roots shut down, until eventually the dormant roots begin to rot. If you get to this point, usually your plant is a gonner. Let's teach you instead, how to recognize where the water table is.

If you have one of those nifty 3 way meters, you can use its moisture setting to find the wet/dry line. The meters are not very accurate, but they can show you when the tips are actually sitting in water (pegs to the right) or when they are just moist. Track this wet/dry line over several days and you will get an idea how fast your plant can use water.

You can also use the lift method to determine how much water is still in the container. When it is actually time to water, your container will have very little water left in it, and it is very hard for a human to determine the difference in weight of a ready to be watered container, compared to a similar container filled with dry soil. The best way to describe how this will feel is feather light... NO water weight that you can feel.

Watering too often is the major complaint of your plants... i can see it in the crinkled top growth trying to evaporate as much water as possible. It is also discernable by the general downward droop of your plants... different from the clawing mentioned above. Figure out the lift method and stop watering your girls so often... you have to be a little cruel to be kind to a weed. You have to entice this deep rooting weed to spread out roots laterally in your container, and you do this by teasing out the water... making them work for it a bit.

Play with these ideas for a couple of wet/dry cycles... you will definitely see the difference.
Good luck!
Emmie

 

[electro gypsy]

'bout time you showed up i was gonna direct them towards your thread

 

[Absurd97]

Wow emilya great help thank you. I kind of got.lost with the water table and using i dont think i got a 3 way meter? Im not sure if it was too early which it probably was huh i thought maybe the nitrogen will help my split stem but that happen ive actually been trying to master the lift method its usually been about a week when i feel they had to be watered i have only watered twice in the final pots? May i ask why the other plant wasnt affected by the nutes if you know? I gave them all half the recommended amount. I still got alot to learn i already had one plant die but have learn so much for the future thanks for the great advice

 

[Emilya Green]

a pat on the back for waiting as long as you have in the big containers to water... but a week is excessive and during that time the upper roots can dry out and atrophy before the lower roots have a chance to dry out. They should start taking up water faster now that you have waited a couple of times however, and if you water correctly to saturation next time, I think the roots will start expanding out into that container big time. I would recommend however to everyone who insists on putting a plant in a container way too large for it, to only let the top roots go for about 4 days before coming in with about a cup or two of water spread out along the entire surface or around the edges, just to keep the upper roots alive and growing laterally while the bottom dries out, and please take special note that I am suggesting just a very small amount when you do this... not a gallon.

As far as the other plant goes, it is rare for two plants even of the same variety to act the same in a grow room. I have 2 AK-47 plants in my grow right now... one went tall on me and the other stayed short... it seemed I had no control over the process. In your case, one plant just got a better start than the other one, and was able to handle the conditions a little bit better than the other one.

 

[Absurd97]

Thanks.for the great advice emilya. So i should just water them with some.corrected.ph water right? Yes thank you for.the advice for.the top roots i felt.the top will dry out too.quickly and wasn't sure if.that would affect.my.plant

 

[Emilya Green]

Thanks.for the great advice emilya. So i should just water them with some.corrected.ph water right? Yes thank you for.the advice for.the top roots i felt.the top will dry out too.quickly and wasn't sure if.that would affect.my.plant

yep, slowly... saturating that soil from top to bottom. If at 4 days you are still heavy, add a cup or two, concentrating on the outer edges... and then wait for them to dry out again. If you are still waiting right now, add that cup or two now. It's all about the roots.