Cheap and to the point CFL grow log (First Time)

H

HighGrowLife

New Member
Hey, I just started getting into growing and i cant seem to stop reading up on it. So i decided to start my own little thing. Just to see if i can acaully grow some buds. I decided to go with CFL bulbs because the electric bill is an issue and i dont like how hot other bulbs get. So i went with what i thought was the most basic. I picked up a 4 pack of 23w, Daylight at 1600 lumens each. And i believe 5000K? Not sure what that is but thats why im here. Picked up little things to get my temporary grow box going at home depot. Just some splitters, jiffy pot things and such. Got the cheapest bag of dirt at the Dollar Store. I read somewhere it inst as important to have good soil until the plants get bigger. So i hope i made the right choice. I mean its just dirt right? But these guys are only 3 days in the dirt, and 4 days germinating in a paper towel. Please share some tips and tricks. Let me know if you think my set up is good enough for now.Gonna be posting through out the grow. Almost forgot to mention there just some really good reggie bag seeds i had saved up.
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Shaded420

Shaded420

Well-Known Member
No, it's not just "dirt" right....it's your growing medium and the home of your plant. You need to make sure your medium provides a quality mixture of airyness and the ability to retain water or moisture via perilite or vermiculite. If you don't....then guess what? You're going to have some soggy ass soil and your roots won't get enough oxygen.

6500k for veg, 2500k for flower.

Aluminum foil is bad, it creates hotspots. What are you going to do with all these plants if they all turn into females?...
 
H

HighGrowLife

New Member
What kind of soil would you recommend? And i know what you mean by airyness...this dirt is so tight i kinda had to dig out my seedling cause it looked like they were struggling to break through. And what would be a cheap replacement for the tin foil. i dont have the budget for that expensive mylar stuff. As for if there all females id be happy as hell. but maybe try to keep the not so healthy ones outside since it will be warm here soon.
 
polo the don

polo the don

Well-Known Member
No its not too much light. It's also not the best color to use to start seedlings or veg with. Try to get those 6500k soon. Be sure to manage the heat and keep em close to the top of the plant.
Reggie bagseed is a great way to test your setup and learn ALOT. That's how I started,Reggie and CFLs. If you fuck it up its just Reggie anyway. I'm sure you have more. If not ill send you some.
You really need to re-evaluate that "just dirt" your using. I have always grown soilless even with my veggies outdoors. It's what I know. I like the control. If you want to grow in soil,read up,see what works for others and find something that will work for you and your set-up.
 
rickymac21

rickymac21

Well-Known Member
Honestly i think soil is tougher for beginners. Hydro/passive hydro is much easier. Heres what you should do.
Buy a 1 gallon bucket. Drill 1 hole in the bucket, 2" from the bottom. Buy a bag of perlite. Regerminate some seeds and plant them in the perlite filled bucket just like you would with soil. You now have a hempy bucket.
Now go buy a ph kit. General hydroponics sells one. It has ph up, ph down, and ph tester. Now get a bag of maxibloom. Its cheap so no worries.
When you water your bucket you want to use 1 teaspoon of maxibloom per gallon of water. At first your seedling wont need much water. Maybe 200 ml a day for the first 3 weeks. Once it has grown some you can water it with more water and less often. Probably every 3 days.
The hempy bucket creates a resivoir of water at the bottom of the bucket since the hole you drilled is 2" up the side. Once the roots hit the resivoir the plant will be much more stable and grow like, well a weed.
Be sure to use the ph kit to get the water at 6.0-6.2 ph.
Just do research on hempy buckets if you have a hard time understanding. But honestly, its just like soil only better.
 
Shaded420

Shaded420

Well-Known Member
So...let me get this straight.

You think a hydro setup involving PH and ppm is easier than soil/soiless?....

No offense, but the guy asked for help with his current setup. He didn't ask for someone to tell him to scrap everything he was doing and adapt an entirely new growing method because they think it's better/easier.
 
H

HighGrowLife

New Member
polo the don said:
No its not too much light. It's also not the best color to use to start seedlings or veg with. Try to get those 6500k soon. Be sure to manage the heat and keep em close to the top of the plant.
Reggie bagseed is a great way to test your setup and learn ALOT. That's how I started,Reggie and CFLs. If you fuck it up its just Reggie anyway. I'm sure you have more. If not ill send you some.
You really need to re-evaluate that "just dirt" your using. I have always grown soilless even with my veggies outdoors. It's what I know. I like the control. If you want to grow in soil,read up,see what works for others and find something that will work for you and your set-up.
Click to expand...
Do they have cfls that come in 6500k? and im constantly checkin the heat and growth. i dont have a fan set up yet but i dont think that is really important right now. Thanks for the info though buddy!
 
H

HighGrowLife

New Member
rickymac21 said:
Honestly i think soil is tougher for beginners. Hydro/passive hydro is much easier. Heres what you should do.
Buy a 1 gallon bucket. Drill 1 hole in the bucket, 2" from the bottom. Buy a bag of perlite. Regerminate some seeds and plant them in the perlite filled bucket just like you would with soil. You now have a hempy bucket.
Now go buy a ph kit. General hydroponics sells one. It has ph up, ph down, and ph tester. Now get a bag of maxibloom. Its cheap so no worries.
When you water your bucket you want to use 1 teaspoon of maxibloom per gallon of water. At first your seedling wont need much water. Maybe 200 ml a day for the first 3 weeks. Once it has grown some you can water it with more water and less often. Probably every 3 days.
The hempy bucket creates a resivoir of water at the bottom of the bucket since the hole you drilled is 2" up the side. Once the roots hit the resivoir the plant will be much more stable and grow like, well a weed.
Be sure to use the ph kit to get the water at 6.0-6.2 ph.
Just do research on hempy buckets if you have a hard time understanding. But honestly, its just like soil only better.
Click to expand...
idk how you think soil is more difficult then whatever set up you just explained. You lost me at hydro/passive. Im not 100% even sure how hydroponics work so i dont think that would be right for me
 
rickymac21

rickymac21

Well-Known Member
Shaded420 said:
So...let me get this straight.

You think a hydro setup involving PH and ppm is easier than soil/soiless?....

No offense, but the guy asked for help with his current setup. He didn't ask for someone to tell him to scrap everything he was doing and adapt an entirely new growing method because they think it's better/easier.
Click to expand...

Well for one I'd. Hardly call this a set up. And he has no idea what to expect or do. "The cheapest bag of soil at the dollar store" Soil isnt important". Those dont sound like statements of someone who had done much research. The light spectrum isnt even correct..

Regardless, yes i think hydro is 100% easier. Its too stra8ght forawrd to mess up. And if there is a deficiency, it can be fixed within a day as opposed to soil that you need to flush, and wait a week before the plant bounces back. You get a new grower and they mess up the nutes two or 3 times in flower and the crop suffers dramatically.
Plus hempy has the same basic feel as soil. You hand water every 3 days or so.
This is just my opinion. Ive seen soil grows, ive done soil grows. Hydro and passive hydro is always coming out on top. Not saying hydro is better in general, but for beginners it is much easier to control your plant.
 
rickymac21

rickymac21

Well-Known Member
HighGrowLife said:
idk how you think soil is more difficult then whatever set up you just explained. You lost me at hydro/passive. Im not 100% even sure how hydroponics work so i dont think that would be right for me
Click to expand...
Well don't let your ignorance get in the way of doing something different.
Hempy buckets work virtually the same as soil.

.you hand water
.water till you have runoff
.water every 2 to 3 days

The only difference is the ph of your nutrient solution and the type of nutrients you use.

I gave you a good starting point on what to do. Its up to you if you want to grow quality buds or not. Im not saying i think youll fail if you go the soil route, but at leaste do some more research. L
 
Shaded420

Shaded420

Well-Known Member
rickymac21 said:
Well for one I'd. Hardly call this a set up. And he has no idea what to expect or do. "The cheapest bag of soil at the dollar store" Soil isnt important". Those dont sound like statements of someone who had done much research. The light spectrum isnt even correct..

Regardless, yes i think hydro is 100% easier. Its too stra8ght forawrd to mess up. And if there is a deficiency, it can be fixed within a day as opposed to soil that you need to flush, and wait a week before the plant bounces back. You get a new grower and they mess up the nutes two or 3 times in flower and the crop suffers dramatically.
Plus hempy has the same basic feel as soil. You hand water every 3 days or so.
This is just my opinion. Ive seen soil grows, ive done soil grows. Hydro and passive hydro is always coming out on top. Not saying hydro is better in general, but for beginners it is much easier to control your plant.
Click to expand...
Thank you for proving that you read no other replies to this thread, including multiple of my own which involved the points you brought up...

He's already got his mind set on soil/soiless, he's simply asking for constructive criticism on his current setup...

Yes CFL's come in 6500k - I am using them in my speaker box atm.
 
rickymac21

rickymac21

Well-Known Member
Shaded420 said:
Thank you for proving that you read no other replies to this thread, including multiple of my own which involved the points you brought up...

He's already got his mind set on soil/soiless, he's simply asking for constructive criticism on his current setup...

Yes CFL's come in 6500k - I am using them in my speaker box atm.
Click to expand...
Look, i posted in here to help the guy. Obviously he needs it. I gave detailed advice that could be very beneficial. He doesnt have to use it.
 
Shaded420

Shaded420

Well-Known Member
rickymac21 said:
Look, i posted in here to help the guy. Obviously he needs it. I gave detailed advice that could be very beneficial. He doesnt have to use it.
Click to expand...
Seems like you posted to send the guy on a magical goose chase, flooding his brain with information at this point isn't beneficial.

He just wanted pointers to improve his current setup..
 
H

HighGrowLife

New Member
Shaded420 said:
Seems like you posted to send the guy on a magical goose chase, flooding his brain with information at this point isn't beneficial.

He just wanted pointers to improve his current setup..
Click to expand...
I still appreciate anyone taking the time to take a look at my grow. Even if its a shitty one but hey you gotta learn somehow. Keep visiting there growing fast!
 
rickymac21

rickymac21

Well-Known Member
Shaded420 said:
Seems like you posted to send the guy on a magical goose chase, flooding his brain with information at this point isn't beneficial.

He just wanted pointers to improve his current setup..
Click to expand...
If detailed advice is a wild goose chase, what is poor vague advice? Yours?
And you keep saying "his current set up". But your telling him to go buy different medium as well. I enjoy this conversation, but you have a wall in front of your face and it needs to come down.

O.P. good luck with the grow. If you ever decide to try hempy growing, you wont be dissapointed.
 
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