Curling leaves problem

[mr.duck]

Hello everybody

First I would like to thank you all for helping and answering my previous post, she is doing much better now
But now I have a new problem with a second plant,about a week ago I noticed that the plant's upper leaves started curling down, although the plant is still growing in a good rate, I am concerned what could have caused this?
About at the same time this started I changed my grow light from 250MH to 250HPS in order to flower my first plant, the second one is still on a 18-6hr scedule, I do this by taking it out of the grow area a few minutes before the light goes off and putting it under regular room light(I plan to grow it like this until it is ready to join the flowering).
So now I am wondering if this could be the problem? I am using balanced water and a good temp at the grow area so I doubt it to be the cause..

Also I want to know how soon can I put the second one into flowering, do I have to wait until it reaches 30 cm? or is it enough to wait until it has 7 splittings?(if it's only 24 cm?) and what happens if I put a smaller plant into flowering(only 16 cm and 5 splittings), will it flower?

I was also wondering if I can water my flowering plant with fertilized water every time or should I do it alternately?

If anyone has any thought or Ideas about what could cause the curling or has answers to my other questions I would really apreciate your replies!


Thanks in advance,
Mr.duck

P.S
Here are some pics of the curling:

 

[SciFi]

well... none of your pics links are working, but aside from that, there could be a few issues causing that.
Too much change in relative humidity... or your "other" room lights suck would be my guess. I've also heard overwatering and high heat can exhibit themselves in the leaves as well can nutrients.

Fix the pix?

 

[mr.duck]

Thank you for the quick reply, I fixed the pics and now you can see the problem.
The "other room" is a regular room not a grow room so the light there is pretty bad
(I am only doing this to keep it from flowering too soon by exposing it to some light)
but the plant is exposed to this light only 6 out of the 18 hours of it's day,
can those 6 hours really cause this problem? the problem cannot be overwateing or heat
because I havn't changed anything about those things before the problem started,
the only change is the lamp and the relocating for the 6 hours.
So after seeing the pics what do you think it could be?

 

[Be Irie]

Check the PH of your soil...

 

[Roseman]

i am not knowlegable in soil growing, but I can tell you for sure

When leaves curl UP, they are asking for more of something.

when leaves curl down, they have had too much of something.

I don't see any yellow tips, so it is not nute burn. They either got too much water or too much acidity.

 

[mr.duck]

will flushing the plant help it?

 

[SciFi]

Use a meter or test strips, water, and check the ph of the run off.

Also, how far is the 250 away from the plants? Is there good ventilation? It could be heat too, I'd suspect. What's your ambient air temps and relative humidity?

I vaguely remember reading somewhere that HPS was hotter then MH by quite a bit, that could be my imagination.

 

[Roseman]

SciFi gave you great advice!

 

[mr.duck]

Thank you all for your replies about the problematic plant,
but can anyone give me an answer to my second question,
about how soon can a plant go into flowering and what happens if a plant is put into flowering too soon?
Also if a plant is found male, how soon will it start pollinating the female?

mr.duck

 

[Be Irie]

You can flower it whenever you want... as for to soon, that is a personal opinion, so whatever suits your grow. The sooner you put it into flowering, the smaller it will end up. The males should show between 1-3 weeks and some longer. Once the flowers start opening up, you will have seeds. If you don't want seeds, then chop it sooner then later.

 

[mr.duck]

but how soon after showing sex will the male start pollinating?
when is it best to chop it if I don't want there to be seeds?

 

[SciFi]

Seedlings show their sex 5-8 weeks with a 50X microscope.

You can put a plant into 12/12 anytime but it won't show you it's sex until it's sexually matured.

Males usually start to drop their pollen about a week after they show you their big, glorious balls WHILE flowering... the males in veg don't drop pollen, yet.


If you put a female into 12/12 light before she's sexually matured enough to give you flowers... she'll flower when she wants and she won't be as big compared to if you left her under 24H until she showed pre-flowers, then put her into 12/12.

 

[Roseman]

The longer the VEG cycle, the more the yield.
Consider that in nature, outdoors, we plant a seed in mid to late April. It grows through April, May, June, July, and in mid to late July, as the sun's rays change, and the lenght of the daylight changes, the plant naturally changes from VEG to FLOWER, with the diminishing sun's rays. (It is not hte new nutes taht changes the cycle) That is nature's way. The plant grows and matures to an adult plant for about 3 to 4 months. THEN, it makes flowers. That is nature's way.
Indoors, in HYDRO with feeder tubes, we cut that time in half, by using 24/7 LIGHT. instead of 3 months, or 13 weeks, it takes about 5 to 6 weeks to become a mature plant in HYDRO, with 24/7 LIGHT. Pot plants growing as young plants, make what we call nodes, or a set of two leaves, one directly across form the other. When a pot plant is mature, it will make new leaves one at a time, not directly across from an other leaf, but staggered. The new leaves "alternate" instead of appearing in pairs.


OK, also in nature, in addition to plants, we see animals and humans reproduce at maturity or adulthood. If a human, (or dog or any animal) is forced to make babies before maturity, like getting a 12 yr old girl pregnant, or a dog in her very first heat, then the babies are weak, or runts, or deformed, and just not at their best or strongest.
It does not make sense, it is not wise, it is not logical, to make a child have a child, and it is not wise or smart or logical to make an immature baby plant, have babies if you don't have to. LET THE BABIES GROW AND LET THE ADULTS MAKE BABIES. Of course, if you are doing a SOG Grow, or have limited Height Space, well you ahve to do what you have to do, when you have to do it. But if time and space allows, then VEG that plant to maturity before starting the 12/12 Flowering Cycle..
If you will VEG for 5 weeks, to 6 weeks, you will have more time for proper TOPPING, PRUNING, AND FIMMING, and you'll get bigger plants, a much larger yield, and you will also have a mature happy adult plant, ready to make healthy, stronger babies (flowers) .

If you begin Indica Flowering, after VEGGING 3 or 4 weeks, you will harvest about 70% of what you would have harvested, IF you had waited and VEGGED for 5 or 6 full weeks before starting 12/12.

This info applies to rapid growing in Hydro, and to Indica strains. NOT slowly in SOIL, and NOT Sativa strains.

I average 3 to 4 ounces per plant, VEGGING 5 to 6 weeks, and I have gotten 7 ounces from one plant. I have pics to show it. I got that with a long VEG Cycle, planned, proper Topping and Pruning and Fimming, and creating more tops or cola sites.

I have seen grows done where 12/12 was started the very first day, and they got 24 to 30 inches tall by harvest time, and yielded an ounce to two ounces per plant of dried manicured buds. That can be done in 8 weeks and there is nothing wrong with that. But I want more.


Let me add here, I suggest you do not change to Flowering Nutes the first day you start 12/12. I always wait 3 or 4 days to change nutes from VEG nutes to BLOOM nutes.