Hi i am new with questions :)

[skinny minnie]

I have been gardening for about 3 yrs now doin quite well but i have planted some herb n need some questions answered,
1. when a friend says 250 watt bulb, does she mean mercury sodium, many different bulbs? what does HPS mean?
2. i got outdoor seeds I am in england but our days need to b longer apparently, so i need the bulb, but now i read on here dark is important to, so i will probably use the bulb during our days when its not sunny am i right?
3. i didnt feed for the 1st 2 week, then for a week to 10 days i did 50% rec dose, now i have just started full dose, am i right to do this till about 2 weeks b4 they die, right through flowering the lot?

thanks for the help, i just need some advice and i will do this 1st time grower but a very very good amateur gardener

 

[GigaGrew]

welcome to 420 magazine =)
i grow in the uk also, i highly reccomend you consider getting autos from one of our sponsors like herbies whe is also based in the uk.
i grow all manner of auto strains outdoors here as they ignore the amount of hours in the day and behave the same way regardless of the time of year.

to answer your questions a bit better i need to ask a few of my own.
when you say outdoor grow, in the ground or in a pot? when you light your plant, what kind of setup are you looking for, some simple low powered lights you can quickly clip on or near the plant to bolster the light levels or do you have/intend to have your plants in a more controled enviroment such as a green house or some manner of stealth box to prevent your house looking like its trying to make contact with aliens with all the light leaking

also, to light choice, do you want to specialise, ie one type of bulbs for optimum vegitation and another type for optimal flowering, or would you like a one bulb does all style grow.

what food are you using, the plant needs different food groups in different amounts during its life cycle, what can be good in flower, may be toxic in veg in the wrong concentrations.


how this is good food for thought =)

 

[skinny minnie]

good news i have 1 auto
the say on the pack out door seeds, so i grow in my garden but i bring them in as they r in large pots in compost, so like today they r in my conservatory
well u tell me lmao well i thought a light placed nr them at the end of the day might help them, prolong the day kinda idea lol but now i see they like dark too....and with 1 being auto i dont suppose a light is needed or might it just help it along
different bulbs for different times then??
I think i shall just keep doing what am doing i have no clue what it is but it seems to b working, i think maybe it will work but take more time which is fine with me

 

[GigaGrew]

oh btw we have enough hours of light just fine. if the plant gets a reasonable amount of light for more than 12 hours a day (not autos obviously) it will vegitate and we have weeks of that amount of light left so no fear there.
far more of a concern is the rain and pests and general humidity during flowering.

to be completely honest with you, apart from managing to steal a few hours of glorious sunlight where you can, i highly reccomend growing indoors in the uk wherever possible. smell and nosey neighbors are your two current biggest risks.

straight up it costs more to grow indoors no doubt at all, but compared to the cost of buying weed its dirt cheap to grow your own.

we are talking like 50-100 quid an ounce or less once skilled and equiped right


in my honest opinion your best going with the bog standard every day cfls we use in our homes.
the ones we buy here in all the supermarkets are for flowering as they are 2700k (look yellow, but they feed the plant with red).
for vegitation, you need to get yourself online and order the (look white, but they feed the plant blue) 6500k type.

if it ever came up why you have that colour light its commonly used by interior designers to improve the mood of a room and artist love them, lol.

any bulb from 9 watt to 30 is practical and usable in this manner, you can often get 'clip on' light fittings in pound shops that take the bulbs just fine and the only advanced wiring is using multi adapters to manage all the plugs.

cheap and cheerful, very efficient in electric and heat terms and requires no 'drug grower' special lights to explain away

 

[Richard Richardson]

Hi skinny Welcome to

Read this What are common mistakes made by first time growers?

Start a Grow Journal and you will get all the help you need.

You don't need any lights if you can grow outside and have a conservatory.

A plastic not too see through greenhouse at the back of the garden adds privacy.

Don't believe the hype

 

[GigaGrew]

haha you can grow mj in a cup of raw sewage, feeding the plant only pee and a bit of light from a crack in a wall. its about what quality and yield you want at the end that matters

 

[skinny minnie]

when u say cfl and 9 to 30 watt bulb, do u mean any household bulb? like i stick in my ceiling light ??
so basically go on line get the blue one for now and when it flowers give it house bulbs??

thanks much appreciated

 

[Richard Richardson]

Dont get cool white. Get 30 watt warm white stick Cfls and a few clip on holders.

You have an auto which has no veg stage.

 

[Fuzzy Duck]

1. when a friend says 250 watt bulb, does she mean mercury sodium, many different bulbs? what does HPS mean?

HPS - High Pressure Sodium most commonly used for flowering you can find these in the following wattages 150w, 250w, 400w, 600w & 1000w. Size of bulb directly effects yield, light foot print & safe hanging height as not to cause burn problems on plants.

MH - Metal Halide commonly used for the vegitive stage of growth also T5 & cfls in the 6400k (blue spectrum of light are suitable for vegging)

2. i got outdoor seeds I am in england but our days need to b longer apparently, so i need the bulb, but now i read on here dark is important to, so i will probably use the bulb during our days when its not sunny am i right?

Switching from day light to bulb may cause stress for the plant if done regular & may cause the plants to hermaphrodite.

If growing out doors just let the plants get on with it & would be more inclined to use either auto flowering strains or shorter flowering indica strains.

3. i didnt feed for the 1st 2 week, then for a week to 10 days i did 50% rec dose, now i have just started full dose, am i right to do this till about 2 weeks b4 they die, right through flowering the lot?

First part is right... but during flowering nutrients may increase in dosage depending on brand used.



On the other hand you may wish to look at indoor growing with the use HPS etc to keep you with a bit herb 'n' smoke over the winter months

 

[GigaGrew]

Dont get cool white. Get 30 watt warm white stick Cfls and a few clip on holders.

You have an auto which has no veg stage.

that is a myth and not helpful.

an auto vegitates in exactly the same way as a regular plant. and you switch to flowering lights about 2 weeks after the plant displayes preflowers. only real diference between a regular and an auto is that you cant tell the plant to flower by reducing the light to 12/12...it still needs the same foods and lights in the same basic growth stages. =)

 

[skinny minnie]

well when i see out door seeds for use in the UK am avin a turn we will see how it goes it is a little behind comparing it with indoor pics on here but hey i dont care i just want to see what i get wish me luck lolol my conservatory is full of flowers n veg lmao if anyone knew it was just sitting there lmao

 

[skinny minnie]

so what does that mean i have a auto with no veggie stage is that good or bad lol ? proper novice here

 

[GigaGrew]

yup, normal household bulbs =D

 

[GigaGrew]

if you have a 8 week auto and you grow it on 18/6 with a 1kw hps and your electric meter costs 10p per kwh (uk anywhere from 4p to 25p) it will cost you aprox £100 in light electric. =)

 

[Richard Richardson]

that is a myth and not helpful.

an auto vegitates in exactly the same way as a regular plant. and you switch to flowering lights about 2 weeks after the plant displayes preflowers. only real diference between a regular and an auto is that you cant tell the plant to flower by reducing the light to 12/12...it still needs the same foods and lights in the same basic growth stages. =)

That is not a myth and it is helpful.

An auto also needs less food than a regular strain.

Warm White Cfls FTW !

 

[GigaGrew]

An auto needs less food than a regular strain.

true.
you know why for a bonus 10 points?

 

[Richard Richardson]

Because it's smaller? Lol

I'll tell you the right answer for 20 points, no less

 

[GigaGrew]

its because the rubble plant (ruderalis) is built to rapidly dominate and area where the competition is removed like collapsed ruins, dried up river beds e.t.c its learned to thrive on very little food and can withstand much harsher climates than indica or sativa. and various amounts of those traits remain in the modern auto crossbreeds =)

 

[skinny minnie]

well thank you i started confused n now i am slightly less confused lol am gathering info as i go i will continue with my plan which is no lights as much sun as poss n feed until i think in 2 weeks it shall die lololol wish me luck and thanks for the info on the lights n general auto info much appreciated

 

[GigaGrew]

pleasure skinny =)