Crazy party cup grow- have some questions.

Hey all so I was starting a NL grow but i had some problems with some shitty starting soil - I think i am going to do a party cup grow - here is the set up.

400W MH/HPS system - digital switchable ballast so i can run either Metal Halide or HPS I also have some 100w CFL's 5000k


3'X3'X6' Mylar grow tent

Ventilation - 2 100CFM inline fans linked pulling through a carbon filter - venting into attic.

Soil - organic miracle grow and perlite in a 3-1 ratio. - I will probably be covering the soil with a layer of sand due to a gnat problem and to cut down on watering needed.

Nutrients - Full line of Fox Farm nutes and solubles.

Containers - 16 oz party cups

I would be open to putting them in bigger pots if i have room after weeding out the males but i really just want to grow as many as possible so if i screw some up i am still good



I have a TON of seeds from many many bags o weed - i was thinking of starting 50 seedlings - I figure if I don't top and get about 20 - 25 females i could spread them out enough for them to get at least some good top cola light. And if my math is right I should be able to stick thirty six, 6" pots in a 3x3 room when I weed out the males and since they would be in party cups or small pots they wouldn't get very bushy.

This is personal medical use only so i don't need to get more than 1/4 of an oz from each of the 20 females to get me through each grow.

Light schedule - This is my first question - since I want to do a lot of plants and i want the quickest finish should i start at 12-12? I figure that should keep them smaller so i can grow more - but i also know that every plant has a veg cycle regardless of starting light schedule - so would it be better to start at 24 hr light or some other schedule -and then when should i switch?

Lights - I have MH and HPS - I was thinking that i would use the MH until 2 weeks after sex first shows then switching to HPS. Anybody have a different suggestion? And please give reasoning ( I like to understand and not just know )

Number of plants - This may be the most important - I really just want to grow a crazy amount of plants it sounds like fun. But i don't want to waste my time on something that just wont work - So given that i am growing bag seed how many plants should i start (I will toss all males to give me more room.).

Posting pic's of my set up. (those pots are gone and i can hang my ballast and fan for more ground room)

47 views and not 1 post?? Common guys - well i started about 60 seeds in paper towels today since some are probably quite old i am sure that some won't sprout. Any way still need some answers guys.

I would start plants on either 18/6 or 20/4. This will give you more ability to dictate when you want plants to begin budding when you reduce cycle to 12/12. As all plants need darkness to produce carbohydrates, I am not in favor of 24 hour light cycles, but thats just me. As to lights, I use floros and LEDs so I'm not competent to answer your lighting question. I have seen the Sea Of Green technique ( which it sounds like you're thinking of trying ) and it does produce some very nice top colas on relatively small plants. With Sea Of Green, plants grown in tight patterns become restricted to upward growth, and consideration for all but the tops of the plants is minimal ( other than diligence for insects as tight grouping means faster infestation ). Like I said, I have seen SOG grows, but having not done it myself, I would advise that you do a search and read up on the specifics to see what else you need to be aware of.

Thanks for the reply, Yes I have been looking at some of these party cup grows here and I specifically wanted to do that type of grow for the reasons i listed above. Really i want the plants to start budding ASAP because with a huge amount of plants space is going to be at a premium and i want to weed out the males ASAP.

Anybody else able to answer any of these questions?

Light schedule - This is my first question - since I want to do a lot of plants and i want the quickest finish should i start at 12-12? I figure that should keep them smaller so i can grow more - but i also know that every plant has a veg cycle regardless of starting light schedule - so would it be better to start at 24 hr light or some other schedule -and then when should i switch?

Lights - I have MH and HPS - I was thinking that i would use the MH until 2 weeks after sex first shows then switching to HPS. Anybody have a different suggestion? And please give reasoning ( I like to understand and not just know )

Number of plants - This may be the most important - I really just want to grow a crazy amount of plants it sounds like fun. But i don't want to waste my time on something that just wont work - So given that i am growing bag seed how many plants should i start (I will toss all males to give me more room.).

Bump bump bump

Dude, heres my 2 cents. Your putting them in to 1/8 gallon sized cups.. At that much root space you can expect 2 maybe 3 grams MAX of each plant. The root mass is in direct correlation to the bud mass. If you were to take a fully grown weed plant and you chopped of the top half and weighed it, it would have the exact same weight as the bottom root mass half. Seriously id do fewer plants in a bigger container. 3x3x6 isnt that much room but you can still grown your plant out to be pretty tall.

If your stubborn and want to do a SOG in red solo cups(chortles a bit 2 self) then go ahead. BUT immediately throw them in to flower, you dont have room for them to veg. Use ONLY an HPS or you will have over crowding and your buds will be fluffy as shit. The MH will cause them to bush out and you just do not have the space to allow that. You want them to grow like poles and the HPS is exactly what you want to achieve this. Im currently doing a SOG and i have 25 female clones under a 1000 watt HPS with each plant in TWO GALLON containers in a 5x8x5 environment. If you want as much weed as you sound like you want your going to need to increase your plant count by about 100 if your going to do it in solo cups. Also your going to need to at the least double your light out put. Its not cheap growing weed indoors, at least if you want to do it successfully.