Some help w/ Grow #1 for me

[Treehorn]

Beans are germinating while I rigged this temp home for the seedlings. Using plastic hot dog trays from 7-11 and a turkey roaster pan for a light reflector (8 CFL) - the plan is to put seedlings in a cube of Rapid Rooter (2 per container) with a little water and get them started. no nutes at all yet but my question is what should the light cycle be for the babies when i put them in and as they get a few inches tall before the veg. Thanks in advance for any help and comments on my installation.

 

[Cultivator]

light cycle is 18/6. its proven to work, people may tell u different but i guarantee 18-6 will give u solid growth. check out the grows in my signature for tips on dwc and other types of growing, ask any questions u want.

 

[BigIrishDoode]

as cultivator said 18/6 is proven, but i would like to offer another proven veg time system that i and many other growers swear by called glr aka gas lantern routine aka superior light schedule, i have been using this method for around 2 years and have never had any issues at all, heres a copy paste you may find very useful in understanding it, my favorite thing is they grow faster,saves $$ and after starting flower they begin flowering much faster, i have had plants in full flower as fast as 1 week after the flip

something i found over at UK420:

The Gas Lantern Routine

This information will seem quite revolutionary to growers who have been using the standard cycles to produce cannabis, seemingly with little or no trouble at all. Actually, in a grow that more closely mimics the outdoor growing environment under indoor lighting conditions, the plants may be maintained in vegetative cycle using only a total of 13 hours of light daily, which dramatically reduces the cost of production.

The less is more approach of the Gas Lantern Routine provides the growing plant with adequate darkness to promote health, and by inserting a full hour of light in the center of the dark period, the plants are tricked, and neither flower nor express hermaphrodites. The growing plants get more than the average amount of rest, thus reducing stress, and improving plant yield, overall performance, and medicinal quality.

Seedlings and Cuttings

The Gas Lantern Routine is applicable in seedling phases of plant growth. As stated before, nowhere in nature does the springtime ever provide an 18-hour photosynthesis length; rather, the growing spring light may in fact be 12 hours or less. Lighting for seedlings and cuttings needs to be bright, but compact fluorescent or T5 lighting may be used while in the seedling phase. Rooted mature cuttings can immediately light with HID lighting.

The Vegetative Schedule

This method is quite simple: 12 hours of light, followed by five and one half hours of darkness, a single hour of light exactly, and then a second period of five and one half hours of darkness. Placing a full hour of light in the very center of a 12-hour dark period tricks the plant and interrupts the buildup up of sensitive floral hormones, which would normally trigger flowering by destroying them. The grower simply raises the plants to the desired size before switching to the fall schedule to bloom.

Using this method, vegetative duration may be also reduced, and with a shorter growth cycle comes more frequent and better production. Vegetative cycles can be shortened by one to two weeks, and flowering may also be shortened a week or more using this method in con- junction with a diminishing light schedule.

For patients growing their own medicine or for compassionate cannabis providers, production turnover may be increased from four to five crops per year or more using rotation, and power consumption can be reduced even further by the use of high-intensity fluorescent lighting during vegetation, and overall, power consumption savings can be 50 percent or more.

The Flowering Schedule

Plants that have been grown up using the Gas Lantern Routine are now supercharged with floral hormones, and ready to go into flower with the slightest provocation. The interruption of the dark period has been destroying enough of the naturally building hormones to keep the plant from expressing sex, and the well-rested plant now has plenty of stored nutrients and energy to finish its life cycle and flower. Triggering the plants is essentially just a matter of removing the interrupting light period, so the plants may now experience the full buildup of hormones that will trigger blooming.

In keeping with providing all the correct organic biological and environmental needs of the plant, the diminishing fall schedule should be employed to take full advantage of the hormonal preparation created by using the Gas Lantern Routine. The diminishing hours of light in nature trigger acceleration in the production of hormones in the plant, making it flower with increasing speed and power.

The Diminishing Lighting Schedule

The diminishing fall schedule begins with an evenly halved light schedule, using 12 hours for the first two weeks to trigger the plant into bloom, and then further reducing the lighting for increasing darkness time by one half hour every week.

The final week of flowering will provide the plants with a mere nine hours of light, with 15 hours of darkness, forcing a resulting final explosive hormonal buildup. This sends the plant into blooming overdrive and produces resin far beyond the normal plant’s limits.
When the Gas Lantern Routine and Diminishing Light Schedule are used together, they create healthier, more naturally robust plants. These important and historical botanical techniques are soon going to become very important techniques in the coming years as medicinal cannabis research continues to advance. When viewed from cost of production, organics, and medicinal needs, the methods currently being promoted can be seen counter to the interests of growing healthy plants. Understanding your plants is the best way to grow the best medicine, and looking for solutions to growing problems by observing nature always provides the right answers.

Pro:

Saves electricity (11hrs of saving from 24/0, 5hrs of saving from 18/6)
Promote healthy plants. Any deficiency it has the plant will be able to bounce back with new growth after adjustment is made
Promote plants growth, 2x more than 18/6, and 3-4x more from 24/0
Cuttings will root much faster with thicker roots and more hairs
Clones under bloom (12/12) will induce flowering much sooner
Less on hours = less heat = stealth

Con:

Must have good ventilation if the tent is closed or the tent has to be left open for the 1hr on between the dark cycle.
Must have good odor control. Healthy plants produce more aroma even in veg.
Plants in small container may get root bound due to rapid growth

Some tips using GLR (theory):

Have the light on a timer so the on/off is consistent daily. Manual on/off may induce flowering.
Use mix light or MH. Try not to use just HPS. The spectrum from HPS may induce flowering even with the 1 hour on between the dark cycle.
For the 1 hour on use a cheap light source like Fluorescent light or CFL instead of using HID light. Have it on a separate timer only turn on 1hr between the dark cycle and have the HID light set at 12/12. Normally with any other light cycle the ballast is turned on once in 24hrs, with GLR it turned on twice. This may shorten the lifespan of the ballast and bulb. If you decided to run Fluo/CFL then make sure the tent is well lid any shaded area or area left in the dark may induce flowering. The 1 hour on between dark cycle help destroy floral hormone, lack of light will not be able to destroy the hormone and will send your plants in bloom.

 

[Cultivator]

i disagree with ur statement bid, but i respect that u choose to use glr. in my experience it doesnt veg faster and doesnt flower faster. i too get the start of flowers in a week or less which ive documented using 18/6. glr may save u a little $$. but it was super irritating to me mainly because i had to time when i could enter veg room. prob seems like nothing but im real busy so wen i go to my grows i want to be able to turn up knowing i can go in without having to wait for lights to come on or off at diff intervals. But for some people it works well, just sharing my experience of it.