i started with bagseed, 2 26 watt cfl's, and no idea what I was doing.
If you want one plant i can tell you what to do, so you have relative success, on a budget of 120-ish...
Get the following from walmart:
4 Clamp Lights - 5 bux a piece - 20
3 42 watt softwhite CFL - 8 bux a piece - 24
1 4 pack 26 watt softwhite CFL - 5 bux - 5
1 4 pack 26 watt daylight CFL - 6 bux - 6
1 9 inch fan for exhaust of circulation, it's cheaper to get it here - 8 bux
Emergency Blankets, get two just in case, camping section - 6 bux
Elmer's Spray glue, - 3 bux
Duck tape - 4 bux <-- your best friend
*the emergency blankets are to install withing your box, to help with reflectivity. install this with the elmer's glue, as flat as possible.
from Home depot
Scotts Garden Soil - 3 bux for a square foot <-- very cheap and it didn't burn my plants, light on nutes, no bugs in mine...
Y splitters - 4 - 2 bux a piece - 8
5 gallon bucket - 3 bux. (I found this in Lowes, but i'm sure they have them at HD too).
4 extenders - 2 bux a piece - 8
Now you need to build a box. that's up to you.
to install the clamp lights + bulbs:
clamp light - extender - y splitter - light bulbs. <-- so the bulbs will fit inside the reflector.
Now just put the bulbs on the clamp lights as follows:
C. Light 1: 42W Softwhite; 26 Watt Daylight
C. Light 2: Same as above
C. Light 3: 1 26 W daylight; 1 26 Watt Soft White
C. Light 4: Same as above.
Now find out how to install these puppies around 1 plant and put them on 18 hrs on 6 hours off for 45 days.
During your grow, top them at the 4th node, and use LST <-- look these terms up.
When you switch to 12/12 for flower, take all the Daylights you can off and switch for softwhites, and switch 12 hrs on 12 hrs off...
do this and you will have a good harvest.
Total invested: $20+$24+$5+$6+$8+$3+$4+$3+$8+$3+$8= $92
Now you need a PH testing Kit for the Water you use, and the nutes...
Find a local Hydro shop and get the REAL PH drops, 10 dollars.
Nutes, it's up to you, you can use the expensive shit, or the cheap shit... "it's not the bow or the arrow, it's the indian"
I can guarantee you will fail if you start out not knowing anything. I suggest you start reading, and reading and reading and reading and reading and reading. This is a cool hobby, but it's work, and a lot of details go into it.
stay thirsty my friends....
p.s. this photo is my first grow, bagseed, ain't looking too "bag" now...