Here's to 2018 being a great year for all growers!
The first babies of the year, a few minutes ago, I snipped a pair of (4th generation) M.O.C. Carnival clones.
When they grow roots, they will join their sisters in early veg - either in perlite or Hi-Brix soil.
Since this is post #1 in the thread.. I'll ramble on a bit about my setup
The veg area is a 3x8' stall in a corner room in a 120 year old midwestern basement near the Mississippi river.
The floor is an OSB plywood panel nailed into 2x4 studs, on top of a poured concrete floor.
2 walls are thick red brick spray painted white. 1 wall is OSB panel and 2x4 studs. 1 wall is an OSB panel 'door' that I flop open to go in and out.
Open 'door' of the veg area showing 50 gallons of second run Hi-Brix soil soil cooking in a rain barrel
The Veg area uses a single 4x4' CFL fixture to light early veg and late veg (transplanted) plants.
Drying herb also hangs above the veg lights (Hi-Brix Ace Guawi - buds being weighed and jarred as I type.)
In late veg, Ace Guawi in the 6" tube is suffering. Delicatessen Lily (back) is not much better. Carnival (front) is growing like a champ.
The flower area is also a 3x8' stall with (2)OSB walls, a 3' Brick wall, and tilt forward OSB panel door.
I run two 600W HPS lights, a thermostatically controlled 6" exhaust fan and carbon filter for cooling, and a small ceramic heater.
The two growing areas sit in a stone foundation, brick walled, concrete floor, unheated 15x30' basement room.
The room is full of old doors, sinks, and other old house parts.
High summer temperature in the basement reached 62F (16C.)
Outdoor temps are currently -5F (-20C) to 5F (-15C.) Today set a new record low basement temperate of 45F (7C.)
The heater air intake runs near my flower area. I have a cold pipe near the ceiling.
Heating and cooling inside the grow areas is simple and not too expensive.
Last night was the first time temps in the flower area dropped below 59F (15C) and it only dropped to 50F (10C)
The heater is a dial type with no markings that was bumped last summer. I turned it to a warmer setting
I've been raising humidity in the veg area with lots of standing water. I'm going to start doing that in the flower area too.
The New Year finds me in a transition from Doc Bud's Hi-Brix soil growing to a blend of Hi-Brix soil and perlite hempy growing.
I was planning to switch from soil to perlite hempy for the winter, but as you can see, I am pretty much sucking at hempy nutrition. The only packaged nutes I have are osmocote+, a time release solid food and I don't feel like learning all those PH and nutrient deficiency things so many of you understand - so I'm cooking soil and should start planting in soil next month.
I'll keep growing in hempy the strains that look good in hempy - so far that is only Carnival.
First dry buds of the year, Ace Guawi, harvested 5 days ago. A true Sativa, she was 112 days of veg (from seed) and 93 days of flower.
Test buds - Yep, she is dry!
Ace Guawi - Time to clip the rest of her.
That's my first update in a new thread for a new year.
I hope we both enjoy the new thread.
