My first grow. California Dream

[Medifreddie]

yeah having side lights seems like it would be a huge help. im gunna keep those flouros going throughout the whole cycle, leave them hangin for added light to the lower parts.
and yeah i see what you are saying about the HID. but i dont want to wait a month to switch them on. from what ive read you can turn the MH on after a couple of weeks right?

what kind of strain is that? they are healthy lookin buggers
and thanks greenblood! i hope it works out as well as im hoping!

Hey Mes, what you read may or may not work for you simply because no 2 set ups are the same. Example: A 400w HD might work in my grow box cause it's X amount of feet by X amount of feet but the same lite in your setup could be too large. Along the same line, your strain X might adapt to stronger lighting sooner than my strain XX. A lot of variables. Just some things to keep in mind.

Personally, the biggest reason I dont use the stronger lite so soon because it has to be positioned too far away from the seedlings due to excessive heat which can cause, as I said in earlier post, unwanted & uncontrollable stretching, especially when workin with seedlings. You can air-cool the HD to get it closer but that can mean more air duct work which you may or may not have room for. Ya just gotta find your own groove.

Everyone develops their own regimen based on their individual setup. As you go along youll learn what works for you and what doesnt. The one thing that no one can short cut or find a way around is patience. You can tweek mother nature, you can even fool her but if ya try to cheat her, she will slap ya down... peace n good luck MF

**That particular strain is Grandaddy Purple (Indica)

 

[dgh420]

Really great growing idea for a cupboard. Well done!

 

[mesrone]

well update. they are 5 days old from seed and are doing well! there was a little bit of stretch in a couple of them that was a little more than i would have liked, but i lowered the lights even closer and already noticed broadening of the leafs.
then a one is growing with an odd bend in the stem so have to see if that straightens out at all.
so like i said i have 5 california dream, and 6 randoms, 1 is WAY behind, and is just now breaking out of its shell, so i might say goodbye to it soon if it doesnt pick up. but i am excited to start guessing which strains i have in the randoms. i can already see differences in the leafs and structure in a couple of them.
anyway here are a couple pics.
all of them

the randoms

and california dream

 

[mesrone]

well, im gunna start giving them some ferts on their next water. probably tomorrow.
going with bat guano to start. im gunna pick up some fox farms GB/TB/BB in the next week or so, but want to start with organic for a little while.
So im i jsut made up a batch with 1/2tablespoon per gallon for the young ones, gunna let it sit over night and water tomorrow or the next day.

 

[Medifreddie]

well, im gunna start giving them some ferts on their next water. probably tomorrow.
going with bat guano to start. im gunna pick up some fox farms GB/TB/BB in the next week or so, but want to start with organic for a little while.
So im i jsut made up a batch with 1tablespoon per gallon for the young ones, gunna let it sit over night and water tomorrow or the next day.

LOL Mes... I fear you are getting way ahead of yourself and your SEEDLINGS with BG and the FF stuff. The BG at this incredibly early stage is by no means necessary or wise and could prove fatal. Your soil should carry the SEEDLINGS the 1st month. The GB might be OK, but Tiger Bloom? The BB has no nitrogen and 50 phosphorus and should not be used until flowering. Maybe your just lookin ahead. LOL, I have to ask, do you have a seedling death wish or are you just tryin to out do Jack and his beanstalk? MF

 

[mesrone]

no no! the fox farms comes later! i realize this! i was ismply explaining what i am planning to do. i have done my reading. i understand at what stages to kick in the big bloom. grow big. and tiger bloom. i understand you DO NOT use those until flowering and MUCH later in growth.
and for what i have read in terms of bat guano. i have read that it IS ok to begin a half strength feeding within the first week to two weeks with organic fert like bat guano. and at 1/2 tblspoon, it is half the recommended strength. also it is high nitrogen, 10-2-1. and im going to do more research on this before i feed of coarse.
but what you are saying about me feeding fox farms ferts to them yet is incorrect. of coarse that would kill them. i was simply explaining what i am planning on doing with fertilizer later in their life.

 

[The Weed]

Hey mesrone about week or so... time to fire up that 600 watter! Hope all is well!

 

[mesrone]

YEAAHHHH! well, theres a problem, my mh bulb didnt want to work in my lamp. upon alot closer inspection, it looked as if it had been used before. anyway, a couple of days ago i re ordered the same bulb from htg, just waiting on it now.
you think it would be alright if i fired up my hps in the meantime while im waiting for my MH, or would it cause to much stress to switch the light spectrum like that?

 

[The Weed]

Yeah I would just wait for MH I think it would be there 5-7 days... I read your first page of post of your Journal and you also had a problems with a 400 MH bulb. So now you got a 600 MH bulb giving Problems? Man tuff luck... So is the Ballast 600 watts? And where is 400 watt ballast did you correct that bulb issue?

 

[The Weed]

Ok I read you got a new elec digi ballast.. Right ok.. that sucks about your bulb problems you think they sold you a used bulb?

 

[retired again dude]

I put my babies under the big lamp 1000watts when they get there first 3 section leafs just a couple of weeks from seed. make sure and give them 2 or 3 feet below the lamp the light is not as intense that way...........have a good grow.

 

[mesrone]

i think they did. it was kind of a janky little shop. but it was super cheap. so i figured id give it a try. well. shit. i actually jsut set up my hps light. so you think its a bad idea to switch back to metal halide after using the hps for like a week?

 

[retired again dude]

Won't hurt them at all go for it.........

 

[mesrone]

great! well set it up. can already tell heat is gunna be a little of an issue though.
but i have to go to work for a couple hours. so gunna leave them be and see how it goes til i come back. ill post pics up as well
so right now i have an eye hortilux 600w hps 88k lumens with another 12k of cfl lumens between 3 cfl bulbs. total of about 100k.

 

[The Weed]

I'm alittle nerves firing up that 600 watt ballast and bulb for the first time in that box, then leaving it unattended. Good luck hurry back.

 

[retired again dude]

It is pretty small for a 600Watt they can build up some heat........I wonder if you plan on sealing it up?....going to need a lot of exhaust air..........

 

[mesrone]

im back. DISASTER! no im kidding
its alright! the temps were a little high though with the door velcrod shut. around 84 when i got back, opened the door, and the temps went right back to around 80.
leaving the bottom part of the door open a little bit seems to hold it steady right around 80, so i will probably just leave the bottom cracked when the lights are on, until i figure out a way to lower the temps a little more. maybe a slightly bigger exhaust fan? mine right now is 105cfm for a 25cubic foot room.
but i think its going to work out alright. i need to work on light proofing the bottom part of my door though, so maybe another strip of velcro should do it at the bottom?
anyway, for now everyhting seems to be ok.

and dont worry weed! i left and everything seems to be in order when i got back, a little warm, but like i said i will do what i can to fix it.

and old grower, yeah i seal it up, velcro closing the side and the top parts of the door, open at the bottom for a little passive intake as well as the fan intake, but im going to need to seal it entirely, but temps were only around 84-86 when i came back after leaving it completely sealed for 5 hours.

anyway heres a buttpload of pictures of my setup and a couple of the plants.
tell me what you guys think!

day 8 from seed

and the setup

 

[The Weed]

Cool mesrone! I was thinking about you at work with one thing on your mind and it was not WORK!

 

[mesrone]

NOPE no way! im ecited, now with this new light hope to see them growing in leaps and bounds! oh well. patience...

 

[mesrone]

.