My First Time Growing

[Smokeater]

Just an update, I harvested Minnie today and have her drying. (Some good buds on her!The branches are sitting upside down in a side compartment of my dresser (Dennise said it's actually an armoire) and I got the best pic I could of the harvest, but since it's so hard to aim the Kindle, I got lucky this one came out as good as it did, I just wish I had aimed it better to see more of the harvest. But here's a pic of the harvest:

The bigger buds are towards the rear. I didn't notice that until I was typing this and posted the pic. I hope you all have a great day!

 

[Lady Cannafan]

The bad seeds were in very saturated soil, but I had just thought it was the best way to make to the moisture in the Solo cup last with the bottom holes. I never thought I was over watering before germination (while getting the solo cup & soil ready) because I have always assumed it would just drain out thru the holes in the bottom slowly. The one I planted today, I decided to try it by just watering it thoroughly like the ones I germinated originally. I know... obvious mistake, so hopefully....... Thanks Canna, I appreciate all the help! If this one doesn't pop, I'll try another your way again since this shell fell off and all I buried was a white bit of fluff with a root coming out of it like I had said when we emailed. I'm tempted to try another one right away because I get the impression that the seeds shell don't come off for other people while in the paper towels. Must have been a fluke. Unless their are any objections I'm going to be behind anyway, so I have room. I'll put a seed in the cup tonight.

If your soil was not swimming in wetness, the one you planted without the shell should be okay. This is also if you didn't damage the taproot handling it. So, give it some time to come up.

I don't see any problem with trying another if you have the room. Experience is good, and are those the WW x MK seeds? If so, they didn't put you out any $$ either. ;-)

When I mix my soil up for a seed, I fill the cup partially with the soil, put a little water on it and mix it up thoroughly just till it sticks together and doesn't look dry. Then repeat the process for the remaining soil for the cup. Plant the seed and wait. Everyone does it differently, but this works well for me. If it's overly wet, there's no reason for the tap root to reach down looking for moisture. IMHO So, it just sits there. Eventually it just rots. (I have discovered this by digging for a couple that never broke soil)

If anyone has any thoughts to the contrary on that, please post it up!



Oh, think of the cup holes as just "run off". When the soil is too saturated to hold any more water, it just runs out. I once made the mistake of not putting holes in the solo cups (first ever grow) and my seedlings were dying. I discovered it in time to save them, but I was basically drowning them because there was no where for the run off/excess water to go.

 

[Smokeater]

If your soil was not swimming in wetness, the one you planted without the shell should be okay. This is also if you didn't damage the taproot handling it. So, give it some time to come up.

I don't see any problem with trying another if you have the room. Experience is good, and are those the WW x MK seeds? If so, they didn't put you out any $$ either. ;-)

When I mix my soil up for a seed, I fill the cup partially with the soil, put a little water on it and mix it up thoroughly just till it sticks together and doesn't look dry. Then repeat the process for the remaining soil for the cup. Plant the seed and wait. Everyone does it differently, but this works well for me. If it's overly wet, there's no reason for the tap root to reach down looking for moisture. IMHO So, it just sits there. Eventually it just rots. (I have discovered this by digging for a couple that never broke soil)

If anyone has any thoughts to the contrary on that, please post it up!



Oh, think of the cup holes as just "run off". When the soil is too saturated to hold any more water, it just runs out. I once made the mistake of not putting holes in the solo cups (first ever grow) and my seedlings were dying. I discovered it in time to save them, but I was basically drowning them because there was no where for the run off/excess water to go.

That explains a lot. I just put a seed in water after I read your post, So now I have 2 I hope will actually germinate! Your the best Canna! Thank you so much! Both seeds were WW x MK. I will use your cup watering style on the soil for the one that's soaking now.
This must sound like day 1 for me again, But it was just a little setback from changing the way I wet the soil first and not getting it right I think, (and never connecting the problem of the cups being over saturated to the failures), we'll know when these pop, But I'm betting they will (at least one).

Clarification: I had been talking offsite with Canna about my problems getting the last 6 seeds to germinate. I planted them in wet (soaked) soil thinking that would make germinating easier on the seeds, but it didn't work. After about a month on each one I tried that didn't germinate, I tossed them in the back yard (I figured dirt in the garbage could be a signal I'm growing since they are really anal about what we put in our garbage).

 

[Lady Cannafan]

That explains a lot. I just put a seed in water after I read your post, So now I have 2 I hope will actually germinate! Your the best Canna! Thank you so much! Both seeds were WW x MK. I will use your cup watering style on the soil for the one that's soaking now.
This must sound like day 1 for me again, But it was just a little setback from changing the way I wet the soil first and not getting it right I think, (and never connecting the problem of the cups being over saturated to the failures), we'll know when these pop, But I'm betting they will (at least one).

Clarification: I had been talking offsite with Canna about my problems getting the last 6 seeds to germinate. I planted them in wet (soaked) soil thinking that would make germinating easier on the seeds, but it didn't work. After about a month on each one I tried that didn't germinate, I tossed them in the back yard (I figured dirt in the garbage could be a signal I'm growing since they are really anal about what we put in our garbage).

Got a kitty cat? Throw some kitty poo in the dirt, they'll think it's just litter box stuff. Just kidding. Actually that good dirt you're throwing out there is going to be beneficial for the yard, one would think.

 

[JimmieJ]

I figured dirt in the garbage could be a signal I'm growing since they are really anal about what we put in our garbage

I don't know if they're anal about the trash where I live, but I do the same thing! I never toss anything related to cannabis. If it can't be flushed, I throw it on the lawn, mow over it and let it decompose. So far so good!

 

[Smokeater]

Good day all!
Good news, My germination problem seems solved thanks to Canna's tweak to my process. I was having a problem getting any seeds to germinate for a while, some seeds got wasted unfortunately. No matter what I did (almost the same stuff I had done with all of my previous plants and with trying other ways) they wouldn't sprout. Canna said that instead of just waiting for it in a dark cup in a dark place or just using paper towels to combine them. I put a seed in a cup overnight (It cracked like almost all of them) but instead of just planting it like PJ had taught me (Not PJ's fault, I'm pretty sure I over-saturated the cups, I trust PJ implicitly, I made the change to watering and didn't think about it really, just a different way to get the solo cup wet), then putting it in between 2 wet paper towels and when I looked today, I have a taproot just starting. I am so happy Canna could help and now I can continue to grow. Thank You Canna again! I will post some pic's of my plants later, My back has been acting up more lately since I started cutting back on the narcs (without telling my Doc yet, I'm saving enough for an emergency or a dry spell of weed) and I just haven't felt like sitting at the PC much lately. As I get used to it I'll be around more. Thank you guys for having so much patience with me, You are the best!

I just hope my screw up teaches someone else what not to do when germinating. It was such a simple (and stupid) mistake. I never thought I could over water the soil (I didn't make mud or anything close to that, just a soak at the beginning) with holes in the cup, but I understand it now and will be going back to the old way of watering my initial soil with this seed.

 

[Smokeater]

I decided to try getting off my butt and getting some pics for you guys. The first is the 4 girls in flower. The pics aren't great, but the best I can do for now. From the left is the 707 Truthband, The Amnesia, DCSSH and the amnesia clone.

in veg I have the Truthband Clone

Then is The Amnesia clone #2 in the cloner

Last pic is the DCSSH Clone

I forgot to snap the New York Power Diesel (NYPD) but I'll get it later.
That's all my ladies with the exception of one in a cup I haven't totally given up on and the one still growing it's taproot. I will be playing catch up for a little while, so the new ones I start after I've got the germination down for 100% sure, I'll be starting with Indica's.

 

[JimmieJ]

Looks great!
Is Amnesia clone #2 a clone of a clone, or a second clone of the original?

 

[Smokeater]

Looks great!
Is Amnesia clone #2 a clone of a clone, or a second clone of the original?

It's a clone of the clone, I thought I'd try it to see if it is like the original or bad like a copy of a copy. But if a clone is basically the same plant I figured it couldn't hurt to try. At least I know it's a female I'm not planning on trying it again until I know the final results in harvest and potency but figured it wouldn't hurt to experiment a little. I suppose I could have just asked, but wanted to try it. If anyone has tried this and it turned out a dud please let me know and I'll end it right away.

 

[Lady Cannafan]

I've done clones of clones and they turned out fine. There are varying opinions on this though.

I think now that you understand the soil moisture for germination, you may be able to go back to Peejay's method at some point if you find it easier. It takes practice and a good feel, in addition to visual on the soil wetness. You will be just fine with it now, I'm sure.
I have always done the taproot in paper towel, then to soil. That way I know for a fact the plant is growing before I put it in the soil.
Everyone has their own methods.

 

[JimmieJ]

I guess since a clone has the same genes as its mother, it makes sense that a clone of a clone would still have the same genes as gramma. I bet it has the same potential, but actually doing it and finding out for yourself is the best way to find out and learn. And you're right about it being female! If you have the space, do it! I'm cloning a clone at the moment too, mine is just starting out in soil and still tender. Looking forward to seeing how yours goes.

 

[Lady Cannafan]

Nice pics Smokey! Everything appears fine as frog hair. Or, neater than a skeeters pete.... er.... well maybe I'll leave that one for you to finish.

 

[Smokeater]

I've done clones of clones and they turned out fine. There are varying opinions on this though.

I think now that you understand the soil moisture for germination, you may be able to go back to Peejay's method at some point if you find it easier. It takes practice and a good feel, in addition to visual on the soil wetness. You will be just fine with it now, I'm sure.
I have always done the taproot in paper towel, then to soil. That way I know for a fact the plant is growing before I put it in the soil.
Everyone has their own methods.

Thanks for the info on cloning a clone Canna, Now I'm more convinced it will work. But I'm sure others will have different opinions which is one of the reasons I love this board. And I've been thinking the same thing, I guess once I've germinated this one and am sure of myself again, I will probably go back to PJ's way. The mistakes made were done by me without even thinking about it and PJ's way most definitely works.

 

[Smokeater]

I have a question, Have any of you heard of growers ever become allergic to weed? Over the last 3 days I have little bumps all over my arms, legs, and back But not anywhere on my head and they itch so bad I scratch myself a little bloody (They look like needle sticks or bites but only after I start scratching them but they aren't, I have looked at the skin as it starts to itch and the skin isn't broken until I scratch it. I even used my magnifying glass to look close at them and into my recliners covering and found nothing there). All the plants are either confirmed females in flower and the ones in veg were grown from feminized seeds also or are clones of the other plants. I don't see how any pollen could have gotten in to my room, so I've ruled that out. I'm very clean (shower daily, miss it once or twice a month if I can't take a shower because of my back. I sleep in a recliner because I can't lay flat that is clean (my wife keeps the house immaculate) and I have checked closely and have no critters/pests anywhere in the house or pets. It finally hit me tonight while talking to the wife about it, maybe it was the grow. And in addition to me getting sick all the time lately, I can't help but think of the only big difference in my life this year other than the new house we've been in almost a year, and no one else is having a problem.

It's ALWAYS worse after I open the flower tent and reach in to rotate a plant or water them. The only thing different in my house is my grow that's 6 months old. Has anyone ever heard of this? I am itchy in all those areas and bleeding all over a matter of 3 days with the exception that last month I noticed it just a little on my arms whenever I touched the plants. It wasn't bad enough then to worry about, but now it's getting bad. I have ruled out everything I can think of except if it can happen with growers and weed. Years ago the narcs used to make me itch if I took more than I normally do in a day (still with the Doc's blessing) but I have cut them way down now. The only other thing that has changed is I quit vaping last week. If that's it it should go away but I'll have to see my doc and find if they have something stronger than itch lotion. Also, It was about 2-3 days ago that I harvested Minnie which is one of the reasons I'm wondering if it could be the weed.

If you ever heard of this, please let me know, Tonight I finally decided enough is enough and I have to do something. I did a search here and found 1 person that asked the same question but just about his head. Nobody knew what it was with him on the thread he started except one guy thought he may have become sensitive to the terpenes, It's only 1 page long. It's right below here if you want to read it.

Smoking it has no effect on it, only contact and proximity (which kind of tell me what it should be) I'm not sure there are allergy shots I could get since I DON'T want to quit growing. I'm going to wash the outer cloth filter on my filter system again, it just shows some dust built up, but it can't hurt. I would like to move the grow into the crawl space, but it's only about 4 &1/2' to 5' tall before I hang a light and even the tent is too tall and the girls sometimes hit my light already not to mention the pain of going up and down a ladder thru a hole in the floor being a pain every other or every day. We have neighbors on both sides of us close so outdoor growing is out too. I just found a bottle of an over the counter allergy med I'm going to try and see if it makes a difference. I hope that helps. Here's the link to the other thread if anyone wants it.
It itches when I'm close to my plants

 

[Lady Cannafan]

It is not uncommon for people to begin having symptoms of "contact dermatitis", Smokey.

Do a search on google titled "marijuana allergy" or skin rash from marijuana, and you will see lots of sites that discuss it.

Read up about some people who have contracted this and what their thoughts are on the medications they were using during the time of handling weed. It might give you some insight.

I'm looking around for natural allergy treatments, as I don't promote anything from drug manufacturers.

Maybe in the meantime wear surgical gloves from the pharmacy, or food grade plastic gloves like kitchen prep people wear (these can be bought by the box full fairly cheap) and long sleeve shirts when handling the plants to keep the bare skin contact at a minimum.

 

[Smokeater]

It is not uncommon for people to begin having symptoms of "contact dermatitis", Smokey.

Do a search on google titled "marijuana allergy" or skin rash from marijuana, and you will see lots of sites that discuss it.

Read up about some people who have contracted this and what their thoughts are on the medications they were using during the time of handling weed. It might give you some insight.

I'm looking around for natural allergy treatments, as I don't promote anything from drug manufacturers.

Maybe in the meantime wear surgical gloves from the pharmacy, or food grade plastic gloves like kitchen prep people wear (these can be bought by the box full fairly cheap) and long sleeve shirts when handling the plants to keep the bare skin contact at a minimum.

I'll search and read about it, But this morning about 4 or 6 am my dog woke me up when she heard thunder, and I got up to go to the bathroom and looked around the bathroom and found a bottle with a dose of an over the counter allergy pill and took a dose. Looks promising, No itchiness today at all. I watered the ladies yesterday and the day before (different plants at different times) so they should be good for at least a day. I'm going to see what happens if I don't touch them at all. I may just have to take those over the counter allergy med as it is doing the job right now. Thanks so much Canna! I want to look into the gloves that go all the way up your arm like a veterinarian for big animals and if they aren't expensive I may just get some of those, but I have been thinking about gloves as a minimum. But since it's not just on the hands, and the allergy tablet seemed to work so far, I may end up counting on the allergy pills. Thanks again Canna!

 

[Lady Cannafan]

I'll search and read about it, But this morning about 4 or 6 am my dog woke me up when she heard thunder, and I looked around the bathroom and found a bottle with a dose of an over the counter allergy pills and took a dose. Looks promising, No itchiness today at all. I watered the ladies yesterday and the day before (different plants at different times) so they should be good for at least a day. I'm going to see what happens if I don't touch them at all. I may just have to take those over the counter allergy med as it is doing the job right now. Thanks so much Canna! I want to look into the gloves that go all the way up your arm like a vet and if they aren't expensive I may just get some of those, but I have been thinking about gloves as a minimum. But since it's not just on the hands, and the allergy tablet seemed to work so far, I may end up counting on the allergy pills. Thanks again Canna!

You could see about a cheap pair of elbow gloves for dishwashers, (can find them in any dollar store or cleaning area in supermarkets) but I think those might be a bit bulky unless you can get them in a small enough size. Now, another thought...I am a hunter....if you've got a local sporting goods shop that deals in hunting equipment they should have field dressing gloves. They are disposable, and very very handy. They go past the elbows.
That might be an option for you.



I used to take allergy pills before I swore off any pharma stuff, they made me groggy all day. Hope they don't do that to you.

 

[Smokeater]

You could see about a cheap pair of elbow gloves for dishwashers, (can find them in any dollar store or cleaning area in supermarkets) but I think those might a bit bulky unless you can get them in a small enough size. Now, another thought...I am a hunter....if you've got a local sporting goods shop that deals in hunting equipment they should have field dressing gloves. They are disposable, and very very handy. They go past the elbows.
That might be an option for you.



I used to take allergy pills before I swore off any pharma stuff, they made me groggy all day. Hope they don't do that to you.

No grogginess from it yet. We have a BIG hunting store not far from me, I will check into those. I can't believe you hunt too! You are an amazing person with all the stuff you do!! Thanks for that idea, I'll check it out.

 

[electro gypsy]

Feed store should have them too

 

[Lady Cannafan]

No grogginess from it yet. We have a BIG hunting store not far from me, I will check into those. I can't believe you hunt too! You are an amazing person with all the stuff you do!! Thanks for that idea, I'll check it out.

There were a LOT of men in my family. My uncles started me out hunting small game with them at around 6 years old. We fished and hunted damn near every day depending on what season it was.