First Time Grow

[FoF1985]

posting this for a friend of a friend . hence the name FOF lol .

Here are the vitals


What strain is it?
25 plants , all different seeds eliminating as we go

Is it Indica, Sativa or Hybrid? What percentages?
no idea .

how old are the plants?
the plants are 2 weeks old

Indoor or outdoor?
indoor

Soil or Hydro?
soil

If soil... what is in your mix
75% schultz potting soil plus , 5% pearlite ,20% peatmoss

What size pot?
3.5 quart larger pots , 500ml/1L pop bottle starter pots .

Size of light?
Dual 400Watt Metal halides

Is it aircooled?
yes, dual fan + vent to outside

Temp of Room/cab?
80F 28C

RH of Room/cab?
not sure

PH of media or res?
not sure

Any Pests ?
no , all from seed first time grow

How often are you watering?
once or twice a day , when pots feel / look light

Type and strength of ferts used?
20-20-20 plant prod twice a week

a bunch of shots for yea guys . no Mylar yet did the best we could with the white.

1 male i think . the rest havent shown anything. still on 24HR's of light so im thinking this is a auto flowering strand . if i get enough fems i may seed one with this plant just to have my own strain . im kinda newb so if im wrong on thinking its a male please correct me ! i like ladies ! lol

the following are all from the same plant .

looks male to me. any feedback welcome . would love to hear what you all think the plants look like or how many different strains you think you see!

 

[a4sheckler]

Re: First Timer , Feedback Welcome

its a 24 hour light think its 2 early to auto flower i might be wrong but it dont look to be male im new too this also mines been flowering for a week. i just found the sex out,

 

[Fuzzy Duck]

Re: First Timer , Feedback Welcome

Plenty of plants to play with &

As far as i'm aware that last photo is a male.

Also some of the plants are displaying signs of nutrient defeciency/might be burn ???

You may want to give a half strength feed to be on the safe side, as that 20/20/20 stuff is pretty old school nutrients & more likely chemical based salts 'n' stuff, may want feed/water/feed regime sort of thing to start with !

It will work tho, but i'd have look around at others journals to see what they use & which nutrients are aviable, always worth a lil research to as MJ got some funny lil querks in their growth peroid veg/flower and often needs additional micro/macro nutrients such as Ca - calcium & Mg -magnesium to keep em good


Most brand name soil PH is between 6.2 to 6.8 & normally noted on the bag it self, dolomite lime is some times used as PH stabilizing addittion to soil grows.


Just a note on MH, CFls 6400 kelvin (blue) can prove just as effective for vegging MJ & a hell of alot cheaper to run !!!. You can purchase horticultarel grade cfls from 125w to 300w plus most modern house hold lighting cfl/flouresents can provide roughly the same spectrum of light baring in mind most house hold cfls are 2700 kelvin thats like orange in the light spectrum.

Side note of 24 hour lighting...

When artificial light is used, from the germination until the flowering stage, the plant typically remains under a regime of 16–20 hours of light and 4–8 hours of darkness, although the plant can use a full 24 hours of light without harm. It is worth noting that there is an ongoing debate over the importance of the "Dark Period". It has been proven that, when subjected to a regimen of constant light without a dark period, most types of flora, including Cannabis, will begin to show signs of decreased photosynthetic response, as well as lack of vigor, and an overall decrease in vascular development.

 

[FoF1985]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

I had some early problems with over watering and I think over ferting . Once the sprouted I alternated beetween a 1/4 the recomended fert and just water. The leaves / new groth have stopped going yellow since I changed to more water less weak fert mixture . I also had my temp around 90 for the first 2 weeks but have since changed rooms to something much more ventable . The plat I have shown / think is male was 1 of five big green seeds as the rest were all random tiger striped seeds of different shapes and sizes . I will look for some better fertlizer tomorow but I diddnt think it would matter which brand I choose as long as I stuck to a 20-20-20 untill I'm flowering . As for the light I picked them up for free . 800watts total s, they are the (super) bulbs clear finish , should be around 70- 90,000 lumens and hopefully good for 4-8 plants in the end . I plan on getting mh conversion bulbs when the time comes and later seperating the lights for a 3 stage SOG. As far as I've read ide need quite a few CFL's to come close to the power theese ballists can make . I could be wrong but hey can't complain about free lights right ? Lol. I also have a humidifer I run , less now in the new room as its much more humid . I've been finding mixed answers on weither or not a high humidity 70-90. Will hurt growth . I assume so due to over hydrated water making it hard for the plants to perform photosynthesis but again I am just a new to this lol. Keep the tips and pointers comin . Greatly apreciated . Tomorow ill upload a photo catalog of each pot to further help everyone give me pointersor help me identify strains or atleast sativa / indica/hybrid .

 

[preprodigy]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

NO that looks female to me, they arent round sacs that dangle, those are tear shaped pods that grow upward and form buds.

well thats what it looks like to me! could be wrong though, however i have had a few plants herm out on me so ive seen pollen sacs first hand. there are two shapes of pollen sacs that im aware of, one looks like this:
(look like dangling balls)

and the other looks like this:
(look like bananas)

personaly id wait a few more days and see for sure before you kill it, because honestly i think its female. again, just mho.

 

[Fuzzy Duck]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

Free bulbs & bits 'n' bobs are always a bonus when first starting up, even i've adopted some hand me down equipment

Don't get to wrapped up in lumens as its only a measurement of light visable to the human eye only !

Plants see & use a different spectrum of light (PAR - Nm) at different stages of growth, think of a rainbow

Mainly shades of blue at veg some where between 7000k to 6000k (kelvin)

Flowering is shades of orange, red pushing deep red between 3000k to 2000k (kelvin)

Please give or take a 100 or 2 kelvin here or their.

The yellow and green spectrum is hardly used by the plant, this is about as
much info in Nut shell with out rabbling on for to long.



Well humidity, Mmm...

Seedlings/cuttings prefer a high humidity 80% to 90% doesn't hurt.

In veg between 50% to 70% will be fine, going to high may induce mold !
Flowering 30% to 40% is ideal but can get away with under 50%, going higher can induce bud rot !

Please note that in different parts of the world, out side humidity levels are some what different to others & this can effect ambient humidity of indoor grow areas...
The above is a general guide line only & some strains of MJ prefer/tolerate different levels of humidity & this can include temperature also.

 

[FoF1985]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

I was under the impression lumens were a rating of how much life the light can give off ? Like 1-3000 lumens per plant per foot of plant . I understand the different light colors and I'm only planning on using theese lights untill there sex is determined . Then yank the males and switch to a hps conversion bulb or pick up a 600w HPS. I keep the temps around 80 now as I have no extra source of c02 so I try and stay away from 90's . Humidity stays around 50-70 .

As for the plant with the sacks . One more has devloped them . My baby bonzi plant , more pics to come today !

 

[Fuzzy Duck]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

Heres a worthy read for ya...

In a nutshell…

Lumens per square foot:

Minimum amount of lighting needed is around 2000 lumens per square foot.
Mid range is around 5000 lumens per square foot.
Optimal is 7000-7500, or higher, lumens per square foot.

Watts per square foot (wattage per sq ft WILL vary by light source):

Minimum wattage per sq ft.: 30w
Mid Range wattage per sq ft.: 50w
Optimal Range wattage per sq ft.: 50-80w

To most accurately ascertain the proper amount of lighting needed for your space, there are several things that you have to know. At this point, a couple of definitions are in order.

Lumens - one lumen is equal to the amount of light emitted by one candle that falls on one square foot of surface one foot away.
Watts – A measure of the amount of electricity flowing through a wire. Watt hours measure the amount of watts used in one hour. A kilowatt/hour (KWH) is 1000 watt/hours.
Light Spectrum – In simplest terms – Blue (425nm – 460nm, think a 6500k CFL or MH) & Red (630 – 660nm 2700k CFL or HPS). Blue wavelengths are associated with vegetative growth, and reds with rooting & blooming.

What to do with it all
To determine how many lumens per square foot you have:

Find out the square footage of your space.
Width x Depth = Square feet. Divide the lumens available by your square footage.
This will give you lumens per square foot.

Example: Say your space is 3 feet deep by 4 feet wide, 12 square feet. The total lumens available from your light(s) is 45000 lumens. 45000/12 = 3750 lumens per square foot.

What if you want to determine how much light you need in watts?
The general rule of thumb for providing light for an area is a minimum of 30 watts per square foot. 50+ watts per square foot is optimal. You can determine the proper lighting for your area by using this formula:

50 watts (or the total watts you are using) x (your square footage). Example: You have an area of 10 sq. ft. – 50w x 10 s.f. = 500watts/sq.ft minimum or 50 watts x 10 s.f. = 500 watts/sq. ft. (optimal). Also, remember that fluorescent’s are weaker and emit less light than an HID. This means you will need 5 times the amount of wattage to equal the output of an HID. So, 30 watts of HID would equal 150 watts of fluorescent’s. This is why it is advised to provide a minimum of 30 watts per square foot for HID lights and aminimum of 150 watts per square foot for fluorescent’s.


unfortunaly the link was not working very well.

 

[FoF1985]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

1#

2#

#3

4#

5#

6#

7#

8#

9#

10#

11#

12#

we also have one or two growing half retarded lol .

 

[FoF1985]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

Heres a worthy read for ya...

In a nutshell...

Lumens per square foot:

Minimum amount of lighting needed is around 2000 lumens per square foot.
Mid range is around 5000 lumens per square foot.
Optimal is 7000-7500, or higher, lumens per square foot.

Watts per square foot (wattage per sq ft WILL vary by light source):

Minimum wattage per sq ft.: 30w
Mid Range wattage per sq ft.: 50w
Optimal Range wattage per sq ft.: 50-80w

To most accurately ascertain the proper amount of lighting needed for your space, there are several things that you have to know. At this point, a couple of definitions are in order.

Lumens - one lumen is equal to the amount of light emitted by one candle that falls on one square foot of surface one foot away.
Watts — A measure of the amount of electricity flowing through a wire. Watt hours measure the amount of watts used in one hour. A kilowatt/hour (KWH) is 1000 watt/hours.
Light Spectrum — In simplest terms — Blue (425nm — 460nm, think a 6500k CFL or MH) & Red (630 — 660nm 2700k CFL or HPS). Blue wavelengths are associated with vegetative growth, and reds with rooting & blooming.

What to do with it all
To determine how many lumens per square foot you have:

Find out the square footage of your space.
Width x Depth = Square feet. Divide the lumens available by your square footage.
This will give you lumens per square foot.

Example: Say your space is 3 feet deep by 4 feet wide, 12 square feet. The total lumens available from your light(s) is 45000 lumens. 45000/12 = 3750 lumens per square foot.

What if you want to determine how much light you need in watts?
The general rule of thumb for providing light for an area is a minimum of 30 watts per square foot. 50+ watts per square foot is optimal. You can determine the proper lighting for your area by using this formula:

50 watts (or the total watts you are using) x (your square footage). Example: You have an area of 10 sq. ft. — 50w x 10 s.f. = 500watts/sq.ft minimum or 50 watts x 10 s.f. = 500 watts/sq. ft. (optimal). Also, remember that fluorescent's are weaker and emit less light than an HID. This means you will need 5 times the amount of wattage to equal the output of an HID. So, 30 watts of HID would equal 150 watts of fluorescent's. This is why it is advised to provide a minimum of 30 watts per square foot for HID lights and aminimum of 150 watts per square foot for fluorescent's.


unfortunaly the link was not working very well.

both my lights should be in between 36,000-46,000 lumens each . so 70- 90000.maybe a little less due to not having reflectors . reguardless with a 2 1/2 by 4 foot space , roughly 8- 10 sq feet and around 4000-8000 lumens per foot . as i said earlier , and all i was trying to say is to get that kinda power from CFLs or LEDs ide need alot of them .

 

[FoF1985]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

12 is the one i posted pics of first . i only took pics of the ones in big pots . if i re pot the rest ill number them accordingly or if i find males i will repot the smaller potted plants .

 

[FoF1985]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

i think i have 5 males now including pot 12 .there all starting to show little balls . as long as i get 4-6 girls ill be happy ! ill post some pics tonight . havent yanked any of them but i am going to come the 4 week mark right

 

[Icemud]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

Hey Fof...nice job on the grow journal so far!! You have a clean looking setup going so far... just a few pointers if I may...just friendly advice, I'm still fairly new to growing, but believe I may be able to help..

I would suggest as soon as you know for sure you have any males...pull them and get them clear away from your females..you don't want to let them go and give them a chance to release any pollen at all....

I noticed that your leaves have a little discoloration in them, a slight rusty look on them, almost looks like a Ca defficiency to me....not a pro in diagnosis though...may want to have a few opinions.. I noticed that you didn't mention if you are checking PH or not...PH even though not nearly as important as hydroponic growing, still is important in soil and not monitoring it or checking can result in your soil getting too far out of range for the plant to be able to use the fertilizer your feeding..
Here are some good links to info on Nutrients, PH issues and deficiencies.

Cannabis Plant and Pest Problem Solver - Pictorial

I also might recommend getting some kind of parabolic reflectors going for those lights...a ton of light that is usable is being directed almost 360 degrees and much of that if directed downward, will increase the intensity that the plants are receiving...thus faster growth and better light penetration. You may even be able to fashion something up like some old metal salad bowls or even some photography umbrellas... it definitely will help you get the most out of your light and plants

Well don't mean to intrude on your journal, just wanted to throw out a few pointers that I thought up while reading along...

Great job so far and excited to see them grow!!!

 

[FoF1985]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

pots 11 and 12 are both male i think . my banzi plant is also showing a ball but it is to early to tell 100% due to the location . to me anyway . heres some pics

pot 11#

pot 12#

my first bonzi plant

thanks ice mud ! help is all we are looking for ! the big question im asking is how soon do males start putting off pollen ? the fact that both 11 and 12 went male and they were side by side along with the other male suspects makes me think they might be spreading it allready but i dont want to pull a plant that might not be 100% male yea know ? lol . ANY input on theese pics is greatly appreciated !

as for the discoloration . i had some early problems with over watering and over ferting and since ive changed too twice a week and none of the new leaves have been any color but green .here is what im using for fertilizer once a day, twice a week . between watering.

not sure if its good or bad as i said earlier its 20-20-20 general stuff .

also . RH is about 40-60 depending on the time of the day. i usually put my humidifier on for a hour or two each day and itll get up to 70 the plants seem to wake right up when i do this aswell . i get the same reaction on days i use fertilizer haha.

im going to check the PH of my run off tonight . i havent been able to find a soil PH meter locally but i havent been to a dedicated grow store yet either lol .

reflectors , them make them for my lights but they are discontinued as a lgiht so im not 100% sure i can order them . i know im loosing light like that but i can also get my lights alot closer without burning my plants " never more then 3 inches" . i plan on covering the room with mylar eventually and i will keep an eye out for some old cookware haha . i know exactly what u mean lol .

p.s. no intrusion felt .once again all comments or pointers are greatly appreciated . cant wait to see what i get outta this as its been pretty much all free minus power .

 

[FoF1985]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

 

[FoF1985]

Re: First Timer, Feedback Welcome

i also pulled pot 12 and my banzi plant . pot 12's sacks were growing stems .

 

[FoF1985]

Re: First Timer - Feedback Welcome

alot more look like males , im switching the lights to 12/12 to force flower and see if i get any females and if not i might buy some legit seeds and start over sadly .

 

[FoF1985]

Re: First Timer - Feedback Welcome

after 2 nights of 12/12 . . .ive pulled about 10 plants , down too 5 that havent sexed yet . 5 maybes , and 5 seedlings . really hoping the 5 non sexed yet are females ! i also made a parabolic reflector for my lights that spans over both of them . looks like it was ment for it haha .

pots 5,6,7,8 and 10 are the pots not showing sex yet .

one of theese was a highstress plant that ive been cliping the leaves on since it was a seedling . im suprized it diddnt turn male from stress considering my bonzi plant did lol .
heres a few more pics of the non showers .

and heres the ones that are maybes . only have 1 ball showing . i could probably pull them but i just want to be 100% sure .

any input greatly apreciated!

 

[FoF1985]

Re: First Timer - Feedback Welcome

3 females 100% forsure YAA so happy . 4 possibles that need another day/night to tell 100% and 3 seedlings left i might just throw away or leave in when i go back to veg and watch for preflowers . that birngs my total to . 44 seeds -33 germinated - 28 sprouted - 23 grew well - beetween 3 and 8 females . all from seeds found in random bags . i owuld post pics but my 5.0mp camera isant detailed enough to pick up the hairs .

next step . im kicking it up a major notch . theese will be my mother plants to take clones from and dial in a new 2 step homemade hydro setup .i plan on ordering or buliding somethign similar to a EZ Clone then using DWC system with sprayers . in the end ill probably split the lights a buy a HPS conversion bulb of some sort to make it a 3 stage system or maybe just go all out and buy a good HPS and keep my dual MH strictly for flowering . allready sitting around 900w so i dont know how much more power i want to run .

going to be building the DWC and sprayers from various parts as opposed to buying a pre made one as it much more cost effective .individual pumps and sprayers for each plant will be used for veg/ flower . going to try and keep the total for it all under 1000$ .

sometime in the middle of it all im going to order some real seeds to get some high quality bud . super excited though !

any tips or pointers once again are greatly appreciated !

 

[TorturedSoul]

Re: First Timer - Feedback Welcome

Please stop posting off-site image links. As clearly stated in the site's guidelines, this is a violation.

If you need help with the proper image-posting method (uploading images to your user gallery and inserting them into your posts), either ask for help or read one of the tutorial-type threads. Thank you.