Planning My First Grow, I Need Your Expertise Please

[Getting]

Hey guys, I'm planning my first grow and I'd be very happy if you could help me make it perfect.

Space

My growing space is 22x31x59 inches and I was wondering how many plants I should put in there. thats 4.7 cubic feet
I was thinking maybe two 5 gallon plants.

Should I make my box taller than 59 inches if I can?

Also I would be doing that in a hermetic grow box in my closet. if I do it that way, would I have to leave the closet door open not to block the ventillation? ( Yes I did plan the ventillation inside the box )

what do you guys think?

Lightning

I want to go very cheap for my first grow so I was thinking about getting 3 100 watt CFl bulbs.
How does that sound to you guys?

PS : for my first grow I will be trying AK47

 

[AKgramma]

This is about what I did for my first grow (still ongoing). I went (2) 13 Watt (nominal) household CFLs per plant) For vegging you can probably fit 1 more plant in there, but once you start training and pruning them, you will have to have some spread-out room when you go to flower: a separate box, tent, or closet to separate out your veg from your flowering. They require separate day lengths.

CFL is good, much cooler than other bulbs. You can adjust the temperature by turning off or unscrewing as many bulbs as you need to keep the temp within 75 - 85 degrees, without venting. A desk fan (6"-8") blowing on the plants prevents mold, strengthens the stems, and keeps hot spots from forming in your box.

59 inches is fine if you LST (pinching tips) early on to keep the canopy low. Once in flower, your ladies will want to double or triple in height, so tying down will be necessary, which will also spread them out horizontally. Doesn't sound like you have room for a scrog, so LSTing and tying down longer branches will work for you, as it has for me. Strive for a fairly even canopy and a shape that allows light to hit every growing part of the plant.

Do a search for LST and you'll find a couple of very excellent tutorials in this site. How far you go will depend on how much horizontal room you have.

Good luck on your grow, and remember, that Cannibus is hardy and adaptable, and will adapt to any form you prune it. Don't stress over the nutrients. Less is better - diluted tea, old aquarium water, and sugar-water are practically free, and water only when dry knuckle-deep. IMO, Simpler is better, if you want healthy, vigorous plants.

Anyway, this is what I am doing for a mini grow of 3 veg and 3 flowering, as per current Alaska personal use law.

 

[Getting]

Thanks for the great answer buddy, it really helped me chose my light bulbs.

Now I have a question concerning fertilizing.

I am thinking about using Miracle-Gro as a fertilizer, but I don't know how many kind of fertilizers I need.

I see people using mixing powder and sticks that you put in your soil, do I need both?

Also about Soil

Should I get normal soil or a mix of perlite and vermiculite?

 

[Stealthboat]

In your space I'd do 1 plant, 2 will be pushing it and may not work. But with 1 you can utilize some good LST and probably hit a better yield than with 2 plants, it will just take longer. The CFL's sound good, just make sure they are the correct spectrums for veg/flower. With about 5 feet of height to work with, you will want to have a max plant canopy height around 4 feet, assuming you can fit in your CFL's in the 1 foot of wiggle space. The plant will probably spread out to reach the sides of the tent as well, so planning on where fans will be is important too.
Don't use Miracle Grow for anything honestly, there are plenty of better brands out there. Check out a few of the sponsors on this site if nothing else: Sponsors : 420 MAGAZINE ®
Fox Farm and Biobizz seem like popular brands imo.
And for cannabis, I'd go with soil that has perlite in it but no vermiculite.
If you need anything else, just give this page a glance: How to Grow Marijuana Everything You Need to Know

 

[OGxToka]

Hey guys, I'm planning my first grow and I'd be very happy if you could help me make it perfect.

Space

My growing space is 22x31x59 inches and I was wondering how many plants I should put in there. thats 4.7 cubic feet
I was thinking maybe two 5 gallon plants.

Should I make my box taller than 59 inches if I can?

Also I would be doing that in a hermetic grow box in my closet. if I do it that way, would I have to leave the closet door open not to block the ventillation? ( Yes I did plan the ventillation inside the box )

what do you guys think?

Lightning

I want to go very cheap for my first grow so I was thinking about getting 3 100 watt CFl bulbs.
How does that sound to you guys?

PS : for my first grow I will be trying AK47

I Dont Recommend Only 3 100WATT CFL Bulbs,Because CFL's Light Doesn't Travel Far And You Cant Just Have The Bulb Over The Plant Because The Light Wont Penetrate The Bottom/Middle Of Plant.You Also Need More Bulbs Because Once Your Plant Gets Bigger Your Gonna Have To Run Lights On The Sides,Top,Middle Of Two Plants And Any Shadowed Parts Of The Plants.Also You Will Pay Less For More Bulbs That Have Equal Wattage......Are Your Bulbs Wattage Equivalent Or Actual Usage Of 100W??? DONT PAY ATTENTION TO EQUIVALENT WATTAGE ONLY LOOK AT ACTUAL USAGE....I Also Have 1 150W That Is Actually 42 True Watts.So Buy CFL Bulbs Between 30-40 True Watts And You Can Get 4 Bulbs For $8-$9 At Lowes.With Your Grow Space Your Gonna Need At Least 4,000 Lumens Per Sq.Ft. So At Least 8 CFL Bulbs With 2700 Lumens Each.The More Bulbs, You Get Better Results!!!Also Make Sure You Get Bulbs That Are 6500K For Veg. And 2700K For Flower!!!

Also My Grow, I Have 5 Plants In A 4-6 Sq Ft Space...I Have 7 30W CFLs Covering Only The 2 Bigger Plants That I Have! And Need More Bulbs!

5 Gallon Pots Are Also Okay!

GoodLuck!!!

 

[OGxToka]

This is about what I did for my first grow (still ongoing). I went (2) 13 Watt (nominal) household CFLs per plant) For vegging you can probably fit 1 more plant in there, but once you start training and pruning them, you will have to have some spread-out room when you go to flower: a separate box, tent, or closet to separate out your veg from your flowering. They require separate day lengths.

CFL is good, much cooler than other bulbs. You can adjust the temperature by turning off or unscrewing as many bulbs as you need to keep the temp within 75 - 85 degrees, without venting. A desk fan (6"-8") blowing on the plants prevents mold, strengthens the stems, and keeps hot spots from forming in your box.

59 inches is fine if you LST (pinching tips) early on to keep the canopy low. Once in flower, your ladies will want to double or triple in height, so tying down will be necessary, which will also spread them out horizontally. Doesn't sound like you have room for a scrog, so LSTing and tying down longer branches will work for you, as it has for me. Strive for a fairly even canopy and a shape that allows light to hit every growing part of the plant.

Do a search for LST and you'll find a couple of very excellent tutorials in this site. How far you go will depend on how much horizontal room you have.

Good luck on your grow, and remember, that Cannibus is hardy and adaptable, and will adapt to any form you prune it. Don't stress over the nutrients. Less is better - diluted tea, old aquarium water, and sugar-water are practically free, and water only when dry knuckle-deep. IMO, Simpler is better, if you want healthy, vigorous plants.

Anyway, this is what I am doing for a mini grow of 3 veg and 3 flowering, as per current Alaska personal use law.

When Using CFL's And Temps Get Over 80*F Dont Unscrew The Bulbs,Doesnt Really Help/Work....If Temps Get That High Hes Gonna Have To Get A Exhaust Fan...Thats How I Fixed My Temp Problem!

 

[OGxToka]

Thanks for the great answer buddy, it really helped me chose my light bulbs.

Now I have a question concerning fertilizing.

I am thinking about using Miracle-Gro as a fertilizer, but I don't know how many kind of fertilizers I need.

I see people using mixing powder and sticks that you put in your soil, do I need both?

Also about Soil

Should I get normal soil or a mix of perlite and vermiculite?

If Your On A Budget....Get PRO-MIX Very Cheap At Home Depot.And Is Rich In Perlite,I'd Buy A Separate Bag Of Perlite Because The PRO-MIX Has Smaller Perlite Chunks!

 

[Triggle]

Hey Getting, welcome to the 420Fam!

CFL's can grow tasty herbs just fine. You'll hear lot's of poo abouth their shortcomings but there are plenty of examples to show you what can be done. In my opinion they are the fastest, easiest and most customizable setup that you can have when you're trying to get your grow off the ground. Hit some used building supply/thrift stores and you may be able to build yourself a sweet fixture for barely any money (See the journal in my signature for my last CFL/Cabinet adventure and evolution.

Don't use miracle grow. It's fine for what it's for but it's not for cannabis. I am partial to FoxFarm but it's because it works, it's an easy to follow program and it's fairly affordable.

Growing mediums are a little more universal IMO, just don't get a pre-fertilized soil mix.

Stealthboat is spot on, only do one for now. 2 plants is possible but maybe not for a beginner with an unknown phenotype. Keep it simple and they will take care of themselves for the most part!

Trig