Greetings From Northern Ontario: Getting Ready For First Grow

@metcalfr
This is turning into a Grow Journal, and a good one too. I have moved this thread to Journals in Progress. :goodluck:

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Teddy Edwards said:
@metcalfr
This is turning into a Grow Journal, and a good one too. I have moved this thread to Journals in Progress. :goodluck:

You can also put a link to this journal in your signature. Here's how - How To Add Links To Signatures
Click to expand...
Thanks. I will continue to post and keep track of everything. I will also continue to take any and all input. Thanks again.
 
metcalfr said:
Hi everyone. I am a newb when it comes to growing marijuana. I have been lurking in several forums and have been following Mr. Canucks grow on youtube. I think I am just about ready to start. I thought I would do a quick write up as to my plans and if anyone has any input I would more than welcome it. I picked up a 2x4x6 spider farmer grow tent with the SF2000 LED grow light. It also came with ducting, filter, fan, four fabric 5 gallon pots and digital thermometer with moisture reader. I will also be purchasing a couple of smaller fans. I picked up a water ph tester with ph up and down to keep my water supply at around 6.5. I have pest traps so that I will know if I have any pests. I have vitamin C for de-chlorination of my water supply. I picked up a small pressurized water sprayer. I have a dehumidifier and heater if needed. I plan on installing GFCI receptacles for my power supply. I also picked up a soil reader for moisture content. I will try growing northern lights X big bud auto fem seeds. I am unsure how many I should try growing. I was thinking of 3-4 in case something happens to one of them. My plan is to use all organic. I am looking at using Gaia green living soil blend 1-0-0 with Gaia green worm castings, Gaia green 4-4-4 and Gaia green bloom 2-8-4. I plan on doing 2 top dressings during the grow period so that all I need to do is water, defoliate and train. My final plan is after my first grow I will reuse the soil for planting lettuce, peppers and cucumbers. I will then put the soil outside for flower beds and start fresh with new soil etc for the next grow. I would love any and all comments, criticism etc. Thanks everyone for your time. Cheers.
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Welcome I'm a newbie too nearing the end of 1st grow. 3 5 gallon pots is about all a 2x4 can handle my tent is pretty full
 
Day 8. Ph 6.2 for water. I gave the plants some water before going to bed in the morning and they are almost bone dry. Stuck my finger in the pots and only Alice's soild was mildly damp. I also tried the soil probe which I know is not exactly accurate. I just watered a little heavier just now. I'm worried that Agnes is pooched. She is maybe a quarter of the height of the rest. However she is thicker. When does one decide to pull the plug on a plant that might not be doing well? I have more seeds, but if she still has a good chance who am I to not give her one. Thoughts?

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Day 9. Not watering. Appears to be moist (yes I said the word moist) enough. Especially below the top layer. I dropped the temp to 70, but will bring it back up to about 74. I'm worried that Agnes is not going to do well as she is very stunted. I started germinating another seed on top of my stereo receiver. It is in damp paper towel with a box over top to keep the heat in. Ph 6.5 for water that was added to paper towel. Once sprouted I am going to stuck in a red solo cup and then transplant into Agnes's pot. I might even try to squeeze it in with Agnes depending on how she does. Yes I realize it might stunt their growth, but it will be an experiment. I am trying to decide if I should change up my light schedule to 20 on 4 off. At present it is 18 on 6 off.

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Agnes will make it just give her some time , so these are auto `s then run 24/0 lighting it makes a difference on them especially once they start to flower don't use a 12/12 light regiment on them let them get bushy you can top once only in early veg once they get their 5th set of leaves and then just let them do their thing , you may need some tomato cages to support them or yoyo`s
 
Day 11. Transplanted my new girl Aurora (seems fitting given northern lights strain) into a red solo cup. I wish her root wasn't so long. Hopefully she grows into the soil. I finally watered at 6.4ph. I might have been able to go another day without water, but that would be 4 days. Feels like too many. I gave a very light watering. I also propped up another plant as it had a pretty good curve on it. I also threw in some bug strips just in case as I am using live soil. Light schedule is now 24 hr at 35 percent. Lights I believe are 2.5 ft up.

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metcalfr said:
Hi everyone. I am a newb when it comes to growing marijuana. I have been lurking in several forums and have been following Mr. Canucks grow on youtube. I think I am just about ready to start. I thought I would do a quick write up as to my plans and if anyone has any input I would more than welcome it. I picked up a 2x4x6 spider farmer grow tent with the SF2000 LED grow light. It also came with ducting, filter, fan, four fabric 5 gallon pots and digital thermometer with moisture reader. I will also be purchasing a couple of smaller fans. I picked up a water ph tester with ph up and down to keep my water supply at around 6.5. I have pest traps so that I will know if I have any pests. I have vitamin C for de-chlorination of my water supply. I picked up a small pressurized water sprayer. I have a dehumidifier and heater if needed. I plan on installing GFCI receptacles for my power supply. I also picked up a soil reader for moisture content. I will try growing northern lights X big bud auto fem seeds. I am unsure how many I should try growing. I was thinking of 3-4 in case something happens to one of them. My plan is to use all organic. I am looking at using Gaia green living soil blend 1-0-0 with Gaia green worm castings, Gaia green 4-4-4 and Gaia green bloom 2-8-4. I plan on doing 2 top dressings during the grow period so that all I need to do is water, defoliate and train. My final plan is after my first grow I will reuse the soil for planting lettuce, peppers and cucumbers. I will then put the soil outside for flower beds and start fresh with new soil etc for the next grow. I would love any and all comments, criticism etc. Thanks everyone for your time. Cheers.
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Hello , i just seen you were gonna use this soil outside after this grow ,just wanted to point out that you can reuse this soil over and over again as long as you stay with the organic nutes (gia green etc ), organic soil only gets better with every use , i just remove the large main root ball , add some compost, worm casting and grow again in it ,a little mycorrhiza when i transplant my seedlings in to it , works great, don't worry about having to remove the roots just the main center root ball , the root hairs die off and add even more organic nutes to the soil plus it allows the beneficial bacteria to continue to grow , saves money and time , you can even add some of the other organic nutes gia green has insect frasse soft rock phosphate ,kelp meal etc , i use a felt round pad on the top of my pots to help keep the moisture in on the top of my pots and just water right over top of it , if adding dry nutes i just lift it up and sprinkle them in under it .I was a a die hard coco grower before but this organic soil growing,it is so much easier once you have built a good soil base to work from , no refilling pots , just water ,saves a lot of time and money , my yields with coco were a little bit better and faster but the quality was better with soil and yes you can taste the difference and i find soil buds tend to cure quicker and more evenly ,just my 2 cents
 
NOOOBIENOT said:
Hello , i just seen you were gonna use this soil outside after this grow ,just wanted to point out that you can reuse this soil over and over again as long as you stay with the organic nutes (gia green etc ), organic soil only gets better with every use , i just remove the large main root ball , add some compost, worm casting and grow again in it ,a little mycorrhiza when i transplant my seedlings in to it , works great, don't worry about having to remove the roots just the main center root ball , the root hairs die off and add even more organic nutes to the soil plus it allows the beneficial bacteria to continue to grow , saves money and time , you can even add some of the other organic nutes gia green has insect frasse soft rock phosphate ,kelp meal etc , i use a felt round pad on the top of my pots to help keep the moisture in on the top of my pots and just water right over top of it , if adding dry nutes i just lift it up and sprinkle them in under it .I was a a die hard coco grower before but this organic soil growing,it is so much easier once you have built a good soil base to work from , no refilling pots , just water ,saves a lot of time and money , my yields with coco were a little bit better and faster but the quality was better with soil and yes you can taste the difference and i find soil buds tend to cure quicker and more evenly ,just my 2 cents
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I'm a rookie too nearing the end of 1st grow. 3 five gallon pots is the limit for 2x4 tent

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NOOOBIENOT said:
Hello , i just seen you were gonna use this soil outside after this grow ,just wanted to point out that you can reuse this soil over and over again as long as you stay with the organic nutes (gia green etc ), organic soil only gets better with every use , i just remove the large main root ball , add some compost, worm casting and grow again in it ,a little mycorrhiza when i transplant my seedlings in to it , works great, don't worry about having to remove the roots just the main center root ball , the root hairs die off and add even more organic nutes to the soil plus it allows the beneficial bacteria to continue to grow , saves money and time , you can even add some of the other organic nutes gia green has insect frasse soft rock phosphate ,kelp meal etc , i use a felt round pad on the top of my pots to help keep the moisture in on the top of my pots and just water right over top of it , if adding dry nutes i just lift it up and sprinkle them in under it .I was a a die hard coco grower before but this organic soil growing,it is so much easier once you have built a good soil base to work from , no refilling pots , just water ,saves a lot of time and money , my yields with coco were a little bit better and faster but the quality was better with soil and yes you can taste the difference and i find soil buds tend to cure quicker and more evenly ,just my 2 cents
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Awesome. I didn't think I could reuse. I was going to use for vegetables in between grows. Think I can reuse after that?
 
Hello , judging by these pics if they are current ,i would say you have at least another 3-4 weeks of flower left before they are ready for chop , those pistils are still white , get a usb microscope and look at the trichomes to tell when the plant is ready, they work great , the hairs(pistils ) will start to turn a orange colour that is a good indicator you are getting close to chop but it then is time to look at the trichomes to get to the sweet spot of when to chop , the trichomes under a microscope look like mushroom, the colour of the mushroom heads (trichomes ) will go from clear (see through ) to a cloudy to a dark yellow-orange , when 60-70% of the trichomes are yellow it is chop time , give your plants 24 hrs of total darkness and then chop them in the dark do not let the light hit the plant before you chop as it will start to send fluids back up into your buds , i use a small flash light to see the stalk and chop each plant 1st then remove them from their pots to trim as long as they are not attached to the roots when you turn on the lights again you are fine .
 
metcalfr said:
Awesome. I didn't think I could reuse. I was going to use for vegetables in between grows. Think I can reuse after that?
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Hello , yes i am on my 5th grow with the same soil i just keep adding a few of the additives i spoke of between each grow and also while i am growing in the soil , the only part that sucks is i use cloth pots and they only last about 3 grows before they start to rip but i just pour the soil into a new pot and carry on
 
NOOOBIENOT said:
Hello , judging by these pics if they are current ,i would say you have at least another 3-4 weeks of flower left before they are ready for chop , those pistils are still white , get a usb microscope and look at the trichomes to tell when the plant is ready, they work great , the hairs(pistils ) will start to turn a orange colour that is a good indicator you are getting close to chop but it then is time to look at the trichomes to get to the sweet spot of when to chop , the trichomes under a microscope look like mushroom, the colour of the mushroom heads (trichomes ) will go from clear (see through ) to a cloudy to a dark yellow-orange , when 60-70% of the trichomes are yellow it is chop time , give your plants 24 hrs of total darkness and then chop them in the dark do not let the light hit the plant before you chop as it will start to send fluids back up into your buds , i use a small flash light to see the stalk and chop each plant 1st then remove them from their pots to trim as long as they are not attached to the roots when you turn on the lights again you are fine .
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If you're speaking of the pics I posted they are several weeks old. Here are trichome pics this morning

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Sorry everyone if this journal is somewhat mundane. Day 13. Gave a good watering. Light water at the stem and heavier watering approx 6 to 8 inches from the plants. Aurora popped out of the ground with her helmet on. I lightly watered in and took off with tweezers. I think her root may be coming out of the ground as well. You can see something white to the left of the stem I lightly covered it. Other than that don't know what else to do. Water ph 6.6. Temp 23.7C. Humidity 51 percent which has gone up to 60 post watering.

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