Ukulele Haze
Well-Known Member
To get advice on a grow light to purchase for my next grow.
Grow Light Upgrade Assistance Request
- Thread starter Ukulele Haze
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Ukulele Haze
Well-Known Member
Things are going well, thank you. I did over-water last time unfortunately, and have been dealing with the fallout of that. Though, the leaves seem to be perking back up again. I believe the plant may have topped out at 25 in. / 63.5 cm. height. Normally Wonka Bars finish in 4-6 more weeks. But, some people suggest hermies are done faster (we'll see). Did yours finish early?
Photos I took today:
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SpideyManDan
Well-Known Member
Ukulele Haze
Well-Known Member
That's how I feel about my experience, too. I find there are many things which can be done different ways. But, there are also some fundamental ways of going about the growing/training processes that always ring true.
Thank you very much! That's understandable on the photographs. As for the hairs, I have read that 80% amber or so can be an indicator of ripeness. But, that may not always be the case. They say it's wise to view the trichomes too before harvest.
Interestingly. I found out today the same top in the first two photographs actually has a fair amount of amber hairs already. Whether this development happened overnight, or if it was a camera angle thing, I am not sure. But, none of the other tops have this yet. I posted a photo of this change below.
I would be surprised if these buds did not enlarge significantly more. The flowering time is 8-10 weeks. I'm on day 1 of week 5 of flower. Then again, it's a hermaphrodite so who knows.
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SpideyManDan
Well-Known Member
I should have let mine keep going a little longer because its like the last 2 weeks when they really fatten up, but i got impatient. I think i see what you mean about some of the hairs. In the picture some of them look white, but the others seem a little off white, which probably just the camera and they could be amber. Im still learning about when to harvest really, but i have heard many times to look at the trichomes under a loupe. If you havent already i would suggest getting a jewelers loupe.
Word of advice, go with bigger one if you can because these damn things are so tiny and hard to see through, especially while examining stuff thats on the plant. If you can try and get a affordable microscope like the ones you can hook up to a laptop or phone because they really zoom in which can make seeing the trichs easier and you can use it too spot pests as well.
Oh and my plant did herm but it doesnt seem like it affected the entire plant because the stamens must have formed in the buds themselves.
Las thing, what type of soil do you use? I used miracle grow natures care organic and found out it is super acidic a little too late and now im having ph problems.
Ukulele Haze
Well-Known Member
I harvested too early with auto-flowers in the past. But, after being burned enough times, I got the minimum flowering time down for this particular strain. That helped give me a ballpark, at least. Thanks for the equipment suggestion. But, I do already own a loupe. You're right - trichs are very small (my eyes are no exception), even under 60x magnification. I do also have one of those cheap, handheld pocket microscopes. It seems like I can never keep it steady on the flowers while they are still attached to the plant, though. I'll see trichomes, make one slight move, then they're gone from view. It frustrates me.
I see. I guess I only have the opposite so far (male flowers on the outside). I haven't seen any "nanners," on my plant, as they call them. I wonder if that's what you had - "bananas."
I started out using really expensive Fox Farm soils. First it was their "Happy Frog," then I "upgraded" to their "Ocean Forest" mix. I happened to be growing an auto-flowering plant of the same strain right beside the fancy-soiled pots. But, this plant was dressed with cheap organic PROMIX soil from Menard's. Both plants grew the same and yielded roughly the same. I never looked back.Las thing, what type of soil do you use? I used miracle grow natures care organic and found out it is super acidic a little too late and now im having ph problems.
I haven't personally tried Miracle Grow products for cannabis. But, I did read an article from a guy who had good success with their nutrients. It makes sense to me you would want to start a grow with a soil that doesn't have pH issues to begin with. So, I understand why you would want to switch. I'm a big proponent of fabric pots and and adding perlite to the soil to reach a 1/3 perlite to 2/3 soil ratio, too.
I should add that I do pH adjust my water to 6.0-6.5 every time I feed the plant (i.e. every watering). But, I don't currently have a reliable instrument to check the pH of the soil.
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Ukulele Haze
Well-Known Member
Hey guys,
I decided to break down and buy the Mars Hydro TSW 2000W.
I know some of you recommended detachable drivers, high quality LEDs, and avoiding this company altogether. But, honestly I liked the way it looked the moment I saw it. I dig the reflective hood, and it seems functional. I was impressed by the customer reviews and YouTube videos I have seen these lights in. Also, I thought it had good coverage.
After unboxing the product, I do think the dimmer box feels too cheap. But, so far I am satisfied with the performance of the light. I know it will be a while before I can determine how the plant fares.
I might upgrade my tent at some point from: 32 x 32 x 62 in / 81 x 81 x 157.5 cm to: 48 x 48 x 80 in / 122 x 122 x 203 cm. This light feels like a little bit of overkill. I can't even use the included metal plant hangers because they are too long.
For now, I feel like I've splurged enough. Hopefully I didn't get too ripped off. It is nice to retire the goosenecks. Though, I feel bummed I'll never know what yield I would have gotten with those. I have doubts the plant will reach it's full potential since I am starting the Mars light this late in the game. But, maybe it will boost the haul somewhat.
Thanks for reading, and again, I appreciate all of the advice. I still believe I learned a lot despite the ultimate decision.
I decided to break down and buy the Mars Hydro TSW 2000W.
I know some of you recommended detachable drivers, high quality LEDs, and avoiding this company altogether. But, honestly I liked the way it looked the moment I saw it. I dig the reflective hood, and it seems functional. I was impressed by the customer reviews and YouTube videos I have seen these lights in. Also, I thought it had good coverage.
After unboxing the product, I do think the dimmer box feels too cheap. But, so far I am satisfied with the performance of the light. I know it will be a while before I can determine how the plant fares.
I might upgrade my tent at some point from: 32 x 32 x 62 in / 81 x 81 x 157.5 cm to: 48 x 48 x 80 in / 122 x 122 x 203 cm. This light feels like a little bit of overkill. I can't even use the included metal plant hangers because they are too long.
For now, I feel like I've splurged enough. Hopefully I didn't get too ripped off. It is nice to retire the goosenecks. Though, I feel bummed I'll never know what yield I would have gotten with those. I have doubts the plant will reach it's full potential since I am starting the Mars light this late in the game. But, maybe it will boost the haul somewhat.
Thanks for reading, and again, I appreciate all of the advice. I still believe I learned a lot despite the ultimate decision.
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SpideyManDan
Well-Known Member
If its a newer model then you should be able to remove the driver. It should come with an extra long cord where you can loosen the nuts on top that hold the driver to the board and take the it out of the tent. I have a TS1000 which i like but with a big tent it definitely needs supplement side lighting so a tsw2000 should do you well. With all the deals last week i hope you got some money off, if not its not the end of the world.
Oh and any extra light will help no matter when you bring it in. Is there any house plants you can use the goosenecks for?
Ukulele Haze
Well-Known Member
Hi Dan. For some reason, it did not occur to me that it might not be necessary to attach the drivers to the lamp. That's amazing! I feel better about my purchase now, and will probably rig it up like you suggested tomorrow.
I dunno about the deals. I saw a Thread on rollitup last week talking about Black Friday sales in the Mars eBay store. But, when I went there, the light prices didn't seem any better to me than Amazon's. It's possible I misunderstood their pricing.
Do you grow any other types of plants? I have a couple of older Poinsettias I am fond of. They seem to get adequate light, so I don't think they need the geese treatment. However, I was considering buying a bigger tent and the necessary innards. This way, perhaps I could rig up two tents at once. The larger tent would get the Mars, and the old tent would be stuck with the Frankenstein setup.
If I remember correctly, you recently completed a harvest. I was wondering if you are growing anything currently? Or, do you have any strains in mind you might want to grow in the future?
SpideyManDan
Well-Known Member
I think youre correct tho with the discount codes they were giving out, they were on ebay and another site im not super familiar with. I had some personal shit come up so i couldnt get any additional lighting, but i got some household LED screw in bulbs that im using for supplemental lighting right now and i figured when i am done i can just use them for the house. If you take the plastic gloves off they work pretty well. Lol.
Lmao "Geese Treatment".
No I am not growing anything else, but im really considering it. I read that keeping other plants with the cannabis kind of creates a little "ecosystem" where they can all kind of benefit each other. I heard marigolds are pretty good for keeping pests away, so shit like that.
You could rig up two tents together with ducting if you have a strong enough fan, if thats what you meant. Ive seen it done so its definitely possible.
No particular strains im interested in, really just grow anything. Come spring im thinking of making a little raised bed outside to grow tomatoes or strawberries. What about you?
Ukulele Haze
Well-Known Member
Someone I know is a big proponent for companion planting like you are talking about. I do think it's something person could get very creative with. However, I personally think it t makes the most sense outdoors, where you are much more likely to encounter pests. Although it depends on the strain, I believe cannabis is pretty insect and disease-resistant. I don't have trouble like that indoors. But, it could be a problem in other parts of the globe.
I thought about that, but lack the space unfortunately.
I like the "grow anything" approach you have right now with cannabis. There seem to be so many different tomato and strawberry varieties, too though. Do you have any ideas about which one(s) of those you might want to grow?
I read there are two main types of tomato plants - Determinate or Indeterminate. From my understanding, Indeterminate plants keep vegetating and producing fruit all throughout the grow. They are usually viney and harder to contain. But, Determinate varieties like Rutgers (one of my favorite tasting) are more like Auto-flowering cannabis. They top out at a specific height, and have a set harvest time frame. So, I gather Determinate plants are usually better candidates for indoor growing. I was thinking about seeing if catsup and chronic could get along under the same roof. As for strawberries, the sweetest and most delicious I ever had was the Sparkle variety. Berries from grocery stores always paled in comparison.
For my next cannabis grow, I'll probably do 2 x Pineapple Express Auto and 2 x Gorilla Cookies Auto. I ordered a larger tent, so I might also run an additional 2 x LSD Auto plants. I've decided to switch back to Auto-flowering cannabis so I can easily drop in new beans a-la "perpetual" style. I couldn't do that if I was stuck on a 12-hour flower cycle like I am with the Wonka Bars plant. I don't have all of the necessary parts to juggle two tents right now.
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SpideyManDan
Well-Known Member
Yeah the whole companion planting is probably better for outside growing, but ive seen a couple pictures of people growing marigolds and other small house plants inside their tents and grow area as well and it just got me thinking.
Ill take your suggestions about tomatos and strawberries, two of which ive been looking at to grow. Most fruits i get from the store absolutely suck and are expensive as hell so i figured this way i could not only help control the outcome but i can eat from the fruits of my labor haha.
I know what you mean about auto flowers as well. I have 5 seeds that i am really considering planting, but im going to hold off for now and just keep an eye on my two photoperiods that i have going. I was thinking of getting a small tent, maybe 2 by 2 by 4, and use that to start vegging seedlings so i can have a perpetual harvest, akin to what you are trying to do. Use the small tent to grow them to a certain size and then transfer them over to the 4 by 4 to finish with harvest. The only thing is if there is a small hiccup in the flower tent, more then likely the small seedlings will easily outgrow a small tent like a 2 by 2.
What type of tent did you buy recently?
Ukulele Haze
Well-Known Member
There is something immensely satisfying about producing your own food. I also have found grocery store produce to be lackluster. With the Rutgers, my favorite way to have them as a kid was to slice them about 0.5 in / 1.27 cm thick, slather them in mayonnaise, then dust them with black pepper. They were so juicy, they should have been illegal.
Ah, I see. I was wondering what you were currently up to. How far are your two plants along now? Any issues going on? I have unfortunately been dealing with what I believe to be light burn since getting the Mars Hydro. I dialed it back quite a bit, but now I am afraid I dimmed it too much.
Although very inexpensive (and maybe a bit cheaply made), I decided to go with this one:
I needed a 4 x 4 tent that could exhaust out the right side due to space limitations. This one seemed to be really generous with the ports. It's a shame to see more money set sail though. Even though I buy most of my gear from Amazon, it feels like an expensive hobby sometimes; especially when I'm impulsive.
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SpideyManDan
Well-Known Member
Hmm what type of burn is it? I noticed with the Mars Hydro turned up all the way the plant needed much more nutrients then before and I think I ended up hurting it in that way. I would turn it up slowly over the course of the week and see how it responds.
I went with a cheap 4x4 and havent regretted it. Just go easy on tent and the zippers especially because thats a weak point on a lot of the cheap tents. I know what you mean with the hobby part. Its probably why I saw on multiple occasions people saying dont start growing to save money. Haha. I could buy the stuff if I wanted to, but I have someone helping me out kind of "investing" in me if you will so it helps keep me in check. I try to ask myself if its something I need or just something I really want. IMO most things can be held out on for a while.
My only concern with prices is I have seen cannabis legislation come up in the house of representatives so if something was to pass at all federal, demand for at house growing supplies would sky rocket thus increasing prices. I think we are a long way from it passing the senate tho.
Ukulele Haze
Well-Known Member
In truth, shortly after I made my previous post, I decided to cancel the order on that tent. I was actually very sketched out by the zippers. I didn't want to roll the die on it.
That didn't occur to me, but now you have me concerned! It seems like it's only a matter of time now, right?
You know, honestly I am not sure what I am dealing with. The problem you had, and the conclusion you came to, seems plausible to me. But, I am really afraid to crank up the nutrients. What if the leaf condition was caused by me overdoing it already? I will say the discolored leaves are strong (they don't fall off when you push on them). I thought maybe I would share some photos I just took. This way, you could see what's going on. My hope was it's the classic "chlorophyll dump" the plant does a few weeks before harvest. But, I fear something more heinous is afoot. I should have 2-4 weeks left to go.
Flower, Week 6, Day 2:
Too bad I didn't name it "Grow Light Upgrade Assistance Thread." So much more staying power. Maybe I'll do a grow journal next time. I think deep down, that's what I really wanted to do with this plant.
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SpideyManDan
Well-Known Member
What type of light do you have in there again? Whens the last time you fed and how much? Have you been checking ph lately? They dont look bad but if youre under feeding it, it could be pulling nutrients from its lower leaves to help with the buds. They definitely look like they still have some time left on them too. They generally do their most fattening in the last couple weeks.
Edit: after looking at the pics the other growth does look pretty green pretty could be a sign of overfeeding. When you have problems you need to run down the check list and make sure its not each individual thing. On the bright side its happening at the lower foliage which suggests its a mobile deficiency so that should narrow down the search.
Edit: after looking at the pics the other growth does look pretty green pretty could be a sign of overfeeding. When you have problems you need to run down the check list and make sure its not each individual thing. On the bright side its happening at the lower foliage which suggests its a mobile deficiency so that should narrow down the search.
Ukulele Haze
Well-Known Member
I'm using the Mars Hydro TSW 2000. I'll get into the regimen in a bit. I always check my pH when I feed. And yeah, there is DEFINITELY some time left I think.
Not to "Mom and Pop" you as they say. But, I actually created a Thread about this shortly after asking you about it. In my defense, I was worried sick about "Wilma Wonka" and didn't want to blow it this late in the game. After reviewing the Thread comments, I get the sense everything is going to be alright. I plucked the handful of bad fan leaves, and carried on:
Week 6 of Flower - Leaves Yellowing / Spotting / Browning
Greetings, Everything seemed to be going alright with my Wonka Bars bagseed grow. That is, until I upgraded from a blurple light to a Mars Hydro TSW 2000 last Thursday (12-3-2020). At first, I thought the brighter light was simply showing me preexisting leaf problems I wasn't aware of. Then, I...
www.rollitup.org
(The answer to your question about feeding is in my first post in the Thread )