First Grow~ Cabinet Setup. Help me improve it!

mshade

Active Member
I started this grow about a week ago from clones. The one on the left is a Northern Lights/Big Bud and on the right is a Jack The Ripper. They are in Scott's Potting Soil and I water with Age Old Grow (12-6-6). The square metal thing in the second pic is a bathroom ventilation fan for wind. So far they both seem healthy, aside from a spider mite problem with Jack that I'm pretty sure I took care of.

I have a few questions for experienced growers...

How much and how often is it ideal to water? I've been watering every time the soil dries out but that seems to be 1-2 times a day.

In one of the pictures you can see some yellow/brown leaf damage on Jack. I believe it could just be damage from the spider mites but are there any other possible causes?
 

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joe4444

Member
What you have going now is alright, but as purplehazin said you will eventually need much more light. I would recommend a whole different kind of light: high pressure sodium (HPS), which is what you see in the orange-ish street lights. It more closely matches the natural sunlight spectrum and produces much more light than fluorescent bulbs. For a little while you can continue to veg those plants with those lights, especially if that shelf adjusts to give you more height as they grow.

As for watering my rule is to wait until they feel empty. Lift the pots every day to learn their weight right after being watered compared to days later. This may be difficult with heavy terracotta pots, which is why I prefer cheap plastic, but give it a try. You'll figure out what "empty" feels like the day the plant's leaves begin to droop slightly. In those small pots you may need to water every 3-4 days. Once the plants' root systems fill out you can transplant to larger pots that hold more water and only require watering once every 5-7 days. Don't try to transplant for at least a couple weeks though. When you do wait until they need water. It's much easier to move a dry root ball.
 
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