CFL closet grow (cheeeeap grow)

lee2k8

Active Member
can one of you give me some advice i have been given a plant and some seed the plant doesnt seem to be growing and the seeds havent sprouted yet, they are in my a cubboard with a heat bulb at 60 watt and several other bulbs at 40. the seed have been in there for about 3 days and still not sproouting how long should it take ?
 

Thivi11

Well-Known Member
It can take a while for seeds to actually show some root. Mine took about a week. Just keep them between moist paper towel. Read the grow FAQ and see if that helps.
 

lee2k8

Active Member
cheer for that mate nd you say put them between damp paper towels is that the best way as i have already put them in pot ??
 

Thivi11

Well-Known Member
You can do it in soil but it makes it harder to see whats going on. I used 2 paper towels. Just fold them, wet them and let them drip dry. Put one paper towel on a plate and put your seeds on that one, then put the other paper towel over top of them and put a second plate over top to keep moisture in. I kept mine on top of my xbox while it was on for 3-4 days to keep them warm.
 

Thivi11

Well-Known Member
It's in a closet, surrounded by a box wrapped in mylar, not much of a hazard. The box won't spontaneously combust lol
 

BigBudzEdubz

Active Member
That sucks there male bro so far one of my best plants is male killed it today. Atleast it showed early, get urself some more bag seeds and plant as many as you can. Not a big investment on your part and you got some experience look at it that way:blsmoke:
 

MACCLAD

Active Member
Hey thivi11 bin following ya thread dont give up try it wiv clones i did it wiv brill results got nl x early girl no preflower time strain just buds from day 1 used 3 cfl 20 x 100 eco bulbs 1 light per plant harvested in 6 weeks from start of 12/12 wish i ad taken pics but believe me it works
 

Thivi11

Well-Known Member
I think I needed more side lighting too though. They look tall but there's not much growth on them. Oh well, it was a learning experience, and it's not like it cost me much.

By the way has anyone heard of drying your males and using them to make butter? Would that even be worth doing, even with such a low level of THC?
 

Budweaver

Well-Known Member
You can make butter or hash out of males, but it's a process and you won't get much return. Many would consider it a waste of time. Personally, I'd rather use it than waste it, but that's just me.

Next time, I'd toss in a few more lights, use white paint instead of foil or mylar, keep the lights almost touching the plants, and, if you're feeling experimental, put a banana or an apple in with the girls when you're about in the third week or flowering. Ethyline gas given off by those fruits ripening can cause a plant to decide to be female. I don't think there's scientific proof of this, just anecdotal evidence, but many swear by it.

Good luck with the next plants. :eyesmoke:
 

Thivi11

Well-Known Member
Yeah deff more lights, I'll try the paint and as far as proximity to the plants goes I think I did pretty well. They kept burning a little on the leaves at the top because they grew so fast. I'll try the fruit thing, anything to get a female now lol. Thanks.
 

ImissATARI

Well-Known Member
Hey man, noob myself but You havn't shown any pics since they were 2 in tall. Unless there is something I missed I really think it is much to early to tell.

Props on the paper towel, there are a bunch of ways but I don't understand why one would put it right in the dirt. Take a few seeds, let them germ real good with a lil root about a half inch tall. Put them in some dixie cups with pin holes in the bottom. That way you can be selective of which ones make it.

if you put one seed in a big pot with dirt, you are putting all your eggs in one basket. Plan for the future ( i know you said it was just a quick grow but I guess i'm talkin to others).

For instance, germ 10 seeds, say only 6 make it. Put 6 in dixie cups, say 4 make it. Without much experience, you may be lucky to see 1 out of the sprouts be a female (assuming you will mess up at some point as well as it being 50-50 male-female). Remember, worse case scenario you can ALWAYS chop if you get too crowded but you cannot make them magically appear again.

As far as the fert, remember that it can grow wild under natural conditions just fine. Most noobs mess up by over watering or over fertilizing thinking that there is something they can do to fix it. Some times the best thing to do when put in the best environment possible is just letting them be.

Also as far as using cfls put them as close as possible without burning them (what I read is you may be able to get away with 1 inch but 2-4'' is recommended.

Thiv: to answer your question about stretching it could be not enough light but it also could of been you having enough light not close enough to it. But your right in saying the plant will stretch in an attempt to reach for it. Also to help combat that (and is also preferred though I have no idea if you did this or not) put a fan on the plants. It will help with air circulation as well as making the stems stronger.
 

McMurphy

Active Member
Yea man I agree with ImissAtaria. It sounds like its too early too tell. I'll give you props on your setup--cheap and simple. Loved it! Keep us updated. I'd liked to hear about any other grows in the future. Thanks. :blsmoke:
 

Thivi11

Well-Known Member
Yeah no the plants have balls all over them there just haven't been pics up for a while. I germed them fine, 5 were in the towel and 2 sprouted so I put them in the soil once they sprouted and after I transplanted. I'm confident that I did everything well but they just ended up being males. The only thing I needed was more side lighting. They did have a fan and everything else was fine, I just got males.

I'm buying new seeds new and starting again so hopwfully that journal will be better and have more pics/updates. Thanks.
 

hackel

Well-Known Member
Man... I checked in to see how things were going... Sorry to hear about the males... You got that far and for a smallish grow it was damned far along! Better luck on the next cycle and keep it up!
 

ganjaluvr

Well-Known Member
Day 4

I'm going to go get some wrapping paper today for the inside of the box. Here's come really shitty pics from my laptop.




A third set of leaves opened on both the plants today.
Ehh you mean a second set? Nice plant,
but eh its only got one 'true set of leaves.'
true set of leaves.. are like leaves with the jagged edges. I dont think that the plants sprouting "leaves" count in the MJ growing culture. I've never heard of it.

later. :)
 
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