I'm just experimenting..

dura72 said:

it can take a few days to sprout,no exact way of knowing, give it as much as ten days before you dump it, i put 7 germ'd seeds in yesterday and 3 are thru but its just a waiting game at this point buddy.

Click to expand...

Thanks man, my first one is through!

Though I got some bad news today... we've been given notice, and we're being chucked outta this place in a months time, so these plants are going to have to go before then. It sucks, but with that being said, when I get into a new place, I think I'm ready to do a proper grow. Yeah, that's right... with preparation and everything!

I'm gunna try to keep these guys alive until they HAVE to go.

One sprouted, and I've planted another 7 with pretty long tap roots (one of them had sprouted in the glass + shed it's case already, so I sowed it with the stalk minutely dusted over with soil)

The other 7 are just in 2 bigger pots, evenly spread.. I just want to hedge my bets, as I'm pretty sure they won't all sprout... if they do then I'm fine with the idea of CAREFULLY repotting before they get too big..

My little grow area is pretty cool. Admittedly, rather bodged together, but it seems to be working. I'd add a pic, but it'd just get slated lol.

Because I'm just using an 18 watt cfl... I'm keeping it on 24 hours a day. Dunno whether this'll help... but I really can't see the point of getting a bigger light right now for obvious reasons. I can't fall in love with these plants, they're going to end up homeless..

Sorry for the abysmal grow this time round. Next time I bother you guys with news of a grow, I'll make it worth your while to help out. That being said, this lil experiment is serving its educational purpose..

Anyway, thanks for the support.. Ive been taking notes

Oh yeah, Dura. + rep for believing, and not taking the piss... Aprreciated.

sound buddy, but why ditch the plants, cant u just move them with u? they wont be that big after ur month under a cfl so wherever ur movin to just set up a lill grow area and put them inna box and take them with u . i had to do it with a 3foot plant halfway thru flowering, just waited till nite time sat the pot inna box pulled a binbag over it and drove it elsewhere, mite have shocked it a little but i recon i pulled 3 oz off it. whatever u decide best of luck with it.

It's pretty tempting to try it, but that would be the sketchiest thing I've ever done concerning my parents... It'd have to be one of the last things outta the house and I've have to make up excuses as to why I was leaving a simgle box behind.. plus they faff around so much they'd be dead by the time I had it set up again, even if I timed it just right with the cycle. Guess I won't know what I'm going to do until it's all happening man.. If I get the opportunity to move it safely, then I will for sure..

We'll see

Some pics of the little fellows and my (very) bodged stealth op.

They're stretching like hell to get to the light.. Cause I still havent got a new bulb..

But I'm going to pick the best 3 and repot them into some big pots, and probably bury them upto just before the first set of leaves....goodbye lanky stalks. Before I do that though, I need a bigger light, as the area of the plants is going to be bigger. But I gotta do it before the roots get tangled..

The only real problem with this grow is going to be the light.. and I can't get another one until my mate decides to gimme a lift to town, which is looking unlikely.

I'll sort something out.

Other than the slight lankyness, they're looking like pretty healthy seedlings.

lol welcome to my somewhat haphazard grow. It's fun .

hippychild123 said:

Some pics of the little fellows and my (very) bodged stealth op.

They're stretching like hell to get to the light.. Cause I still havent got a new bulb..

But I'm going to pick the best 3 and repot them into some big pots, and probably bury them upto just before the first set of leaves....goodbye lanky stalks. Before I do that though, I need a bigger light, as the area of the plants is going to be bigger. But I gotta do it before the roots get tangled..

The only real problem with this grow is going to be the light.. and I can't get another one until my mate decides to gimme a lift to town, which is looking unlikely.

I'll sort something out.

Other than the slight lankyness, they're looking like pretty healthy seedlings.

lol welcome to my somewhat haphazard grow. It's fun .

Click to expand...

OK this is how I started.. the lights to small, the seeds will sprout but the stems will be very very thin they'll grow to a max of 8" with not much change in leaf size, and then fall over from being top heavy! 2nd the fan is way to big lol... they ll blow away or snap before they even have a chance... this is what i did when I lived at home in the same sort of cupboard you have! SO heres how to get much better results 1) scrap soil... go DWC all you need is a 5L biscuit tub from ASDA, get a net pot from a garden shop, or use a yoghurt pot, make small 2mm holes evenly all around the pot and fill the yog.pot with marble sized stones (cleaned - strerile) put a rockwool cube in it so it sits flush to the top, OK 2) make a hole a little smaller than the top of the yog.pot. in the lid of the 5L biscuit lid, once done the yog pot and the grow medium will sit nicely in the tub, 3) get a weak ass fish tank pump + bubbler and a meter or so's worth of air line tube, 4) fix the bubbler to the bottom of the biscuit tub with superglue/glue gun, 5) fill the tub with 4L of water, and replace the lid with the pot sunk into it CONGRATS !!! this will grow your little lady at a much faster rate, you can PH balance your water with vinigar (research which one) get a PH test kit from a fish/aquatics shop, 6) put the tub at the lowest point in your cupboard, 7)sit the pump on a sponge at the highest point of your cupboard with th air line going down to your bubble stone in the tub, so the water wont go up the tube, use 3 normal lamps take apart the lamp and use only the fitting and the wire + plug, dont use the shade, (be careful), now find a reliable way to hold the lamp fixings in place, (tie all 3 cables together with a cable tie, and staple gun the bit of cable tie you ve pulled to the under side of your highest shelf now 9) go to home base and buy 3 x 125w equivilents "TORNADO" cfls I think Phillips makes them, add these to your fixtures, ok so thats your set up you need a 4-way extension lead and a 3-way cube plug, add the 3 cfl plugs to the 3-way cube, now put this onto a anolog time switch, 18hrs on 6 hrs off, and connect the cube+time switch onto the 4- way extension lead and then add your air pumps plug onto the 4-way extension lead also, you only need 1 plug socket to connect it to (hide cable in cupboard and under carpet if plug sockets not close to the cupboard) youll be able to veg for a week or 2 then change your light cycle to 12/12 12 hour on 12 hours off the lady will then flower use a basic plant feed at diluted amount, baby bio, certain fish tank plant foods etc.. and within 2 months youll have about a half OZ of fairly good bud, IF you do a little research and buy some cheap nuitrients, If you need any further assistance just ask me man but this will be a good way to start out in a small stealth-ish kind of way - STELTHY

stelthy said:

OK this is how I started.. the lights to small, the seeds will sprout but the stems will be very very thin they'll grow to a max of 8" with not much change in leaf size, and then fall over from being top heavy! 2nd the fan is way to big lol... they ll blow away or snap before they even have a chance... this is what i did when I lived at home in the same sort of cupboard you have! SO heres how to get much better results 1) scrap soil... go DWC all you need is a 5L biscuit tub from ASDA, get a net pot from a garden shop, or use a yoghurt pot, make small 2mm holes evenly all around the pot and fill the yog.pot with marble sized stones (cleaned - strerile) put a rockwool cube in it so it sits flush to the top, OK 2) make a hole a little smaller than the top of the yog.pot. in the lid of the 5L biscuit lid, once done the yog pot and the grow medium will sit nicely in the tub, 3) get a weak ass fish tank pump + bubbler and a meter or so's worth of air line tube, 4) fix the bubbler to the bottom of the biscuit tub with superglue/glue gun, 5) fill the tub with 4L of water, and replace the lid with the pot sunk into it CONGRATS !!! this will grow your little lady at a much faster rate, you can PH balance your water with vinigar (research which one) get a PH test kit from a fish/aquatics shop, 6) put the tub at the lowest point in your cupboard, 7)sit the pump on a sponge at the highest point of your cupboard with th air line going down to your bubble stone in the tub, so the water wont go up the tube, use 3 normal lamps take apart the lamp and use only the fitting and the wire + plug, dont use the shade, (be careful), now find a reliable way to hold the lamp fixings in place, (tie all 3 cables together with a cable tie, and staple gun the bit of cable tie you ve pulled to the under side of your highest shelf now 9) go to home base and buy 3 x 125w equivilents "TORNADO" cfls I think Phillips makes them, add these to your fixtures, ok so thats your set up you need a 4-way extension lead and a 3-way cube plug, add the 3 cfl plugs to the 3-way cube, now put this onto a anolog time switch, 18hrs on 6 hrs off, and connect the cube+time switch onto the 4- way extension lead and then add your air pumps plug onto the 4-way extension lead also, you only need 1 plug socket to connect it to (hide cable in cupboard and under carpet if plug sockets not close to the cupboard) youll be able to veg for a week or 2 then change your light cycle to 12/12 12 hour on 12 hours off the lady will then flower use a basic plant feed at diluted amount, baby bio, certain fish tank plant foods etc.. and within 2 months youll have about a half OZ of fairly good bud, IF you do a little research and buy some cheap nuitrients, If you need any further assistance just ask me man but this will be a good way to start out in a small stealth-ish kind of way - STELTHY

Click to expand...

buy a room deodrant sprayer 8 quid from asda it l spray once every half hour, keep your room smelling fresh just change the batteries and the can once a month...piece of mind - STELTHY

stelthy said:

OK this is how I started.. the lights to small, the seeds will sprout but the stems will be very very thin they'll grow to a max of 8" with not much change in leaf size, and then fall over from being top heavy! 2nd the fan is way to big lol... they ll blow away or snap before they even have a chance... this is what i did when I lived at home in the same sort of cupboard you have! SO heres how to get much better results 1) scrap soil... go DWC all you need is a 5L biscuit tub from ASDA, get a net pot from a garden shop, or use a yoghurt pot, make small 2mm holes evenly all around the pot and fill the yog.pot with marble sized stones (cleaned - strerile) put a rockwool cube in it so it sits flush to the top, OK 2) make a hole a little smaller than the top of the yog.pot. in the lid of the 5L biscuit lid, once done the yog pot and the grow medium will sit nicely in the tub, 3) get a weak ass fish tank pump + bubbler and a meter or so's worth of air line tube, 4) fix the bubbler to the bottom of the biscuit tub with superglue/glue gun, 5) fill the tub with 4L of water, and replace the lid with the pot sunk into it CONGRATS !!! this will grow your little lady at a much faster rate, you can PH balance your water with vinigar (research which one) get a PH test kit from a fish/aquatics shop, 6) put the tub at the lowest point in your cupboard, 7)sit the pump on a sponge at the highest point of your cupboard with th air line going down to your bubble stone in the tub, so the water wont go up the tube, use 3 normal lamps take apart the lamp and use only the fitting and the wire + plug, dont use the shade, (be careful), now find a reliable way to hold the lamp fixings in place, (tie all 3 cables together with a cable tie, and staple gun the bit of cable tie you ve pulled to the under side of your highest shelf now 9) go to home base and buy 3 x 125w equivilents "TORNADO" cfls I think Phillips makes them, add these to your fixtures, ok so thats your set up you need a 4-way extension lead and a 3-way cube plug, add the 3 cfl plugs to the 3-way cube, now put this onto a anolog time switch, 18hrs on 6 hrs off, and connect the cube+time switch onto the 4- way extension lead and then add your air pumps plug onto the 4-way extension lead also, you only need 1 plug socket to connect it to (hide cable in cupboard and under carpet if plug sockets not close to the cupboard) youll be able to veg for a week or 2 then change your light cycle to 12/12 12 hour on 12 hours off the lady will then flower use a basic plant feed at diluted amount, baby bio, certain fish tank plant foods etc.. and within 2 months youll have about a half OZ of fairly good bud, IF you do a little research and buy some cheap nuitrients, If you need any further assistance just ask me man but this will be a good way to start out in a small stealth-ish kind of way - STELTHY

Click to expand...

Thanks man... It's some stuff to think about, but it all presupposes that I can get in my car and spend half a day shopping for all of this stuff, which I can't.

I'm struggling to get my hands on a bigger bulb here. There's no way I can get half of that stuff. I'm moving house in less than a month, I don't wanna have to shift a hydro setup if I can help it.

UGh.. this is truly messy. I'm thinking of moving out soon just so I can grow some, 'cause I'm never going to get it done properly in this house, with the restrictions I have i.e: not being able to send off for 4 new cfls + fitting because my rents will get suspicious upon arrival of said packages and nose around...

I can't drive yet, so I can't get them from a shop either. Well, not easily anyway.

You know anywhere in the UK that sells big cfls (100W+) and the fittings to go with them? 'Cause that's exactly what I need right now...

Ok, first big development, I told my mum

But she's pretty cool with it!

After a little kiss-ass, I managed to aquire an 85w cfl. I failed to recognise how fucking massive they are, but hey, now I know lol.

Now I've got a bigger light, I can repot, and maybe start on a watered down nute mix to help them get really firmly rooted..
When I repot, I'll probably bury part of the stalks aswell, as they've gotten a little lanky under the 18w. Not as bad as I thought they'd get though!

I'll throw some pics up.

Ok, the first 4 are of my old setup. 8 plants, 18 watts. I was using a lamp shade to good effect to keep the grow space to a minimum.. thus maximising the 18watts of supreme power I had harnessed (lol).. Also, I was filling in all of the gaps with thick white card to hardly any light escaped. 18 watts can get you a long way if you seal the light in properly..

The second 4 photo's are of my new setup.. Once again, I've surrounded the grow with white materials to keep all of the light in and bouncing around.. I also made a reflector to replace the lampshade this morning out of a Caburies Christmas selction box and some string lol.. It's actually pretty good.

You can't really see, because I'm using a laptop camera to take this pics, which is awkward and the camera is shit.. but the light is about 1" away from the plants.. and they seem to be fine, though I'm keeping a very close eye on them until I can gauge how hot/powerful this new bulb is.

I'm not watering for a couple o' days so it'll hopefully be easier to transfer them into bigger pots.. though as I've planted several plants in 2 of the small pots (3 in one, 4 in the other) I'm worried about damaging the root system when I try to seperate them. I think that I'm only going to keep the 3-4 healthiest looking plants/plants with least damaged roots. Hopefully I'll pick the females lol.

In the end I only want 2 plants, both female...

Well.. what d'ya think? It's hardly professional, but it seems to be working.. Any advise or CONSTRUCTIVE critisism is more than welcomed. So shoot.

Just repotted with minimal root trauma. Have moved 4 of the biggest and healthiest plants into bigger pots, and decided to keep the other 4 in a small pot for the moment... just to see what happens . The roots were all really long and healthy.. the longest tap root was over a ft long! pretty big considering that the plants are only 3 inches tall themselves.

They seem to be quite happy, haven't noticed any shock symptoms yet, not that I'd know what to look for really. They seem as springy and green as ever.

Now they're just back chilling under the 85w cfl.. I've put the fan on low to encourage strengthening of the stalks/roots. I haven't watered them in, as the new soil is pretty moist.


That's pretty much it for now. My grow space has just about doubled in size... so now a single 85w cfl is seeming a little underwhelming. I may have to invest in another..


Peace.

Little update..

The 3 plants that I put into the biggest pots I have haven't grown much in a couple of days... I think they might be in shock, but the foliage is still looking healthy and green. They're growing, just slowly. 1 other plant is in another big pot, slightly smaller than the other 3, and it has really started to take off. On the 3rd leaf set now.. looking really healthy, and she's already got a root poking out of the drainage hole on the bottom of the pot. Only 48 hours later . She's a beaut.

I've had to move my set up around abit more again to be less light efficient as it was getting above 30*C in there with the 85watter. I had it pretty much light proof, tight around the plants and above the lamp, so there wasn't much room to breathe. Now I've made abit more room and left a few gaps the temp is back down to 26*.

The other 4 plants in the tiny pot are OK. One of them is actually growing really well, the second biggest plant I have.. which is suprising as I traumatised the hell out of the roots on all 4 of those when separating. Kind've a shame it's stuck in the small pot and probably root-tied with the other 3 plants again.. I might repot it by itself and just chuck the other 3, but then I'm going to have 5 plants on 85w of cfl lol. Perhaps not the best choice.. Though so far there's PLENTY of light in there. I've taken to wearing sunglasses when I'm working on them, cause the cfl is too damn bright! It's like staring at the sun... Much more powerful than I thought it would be, it totally pisses on smaller cfls..

Started introducing some nutes. Tomato feed nutes, 4-4-8. Strictly against what everyone says to use, but I want stronger, thicker stalks and better root systems, and from my research, these nutes seem to be about right. Plus, in practise, them stems are thickening, and the roots are growing real nicely . I've also got some miracle grow, 8-5-4, which I'll start using in a week or so.

Oh yeah, I've been spraying the leaves with carbonated water with miniscule amounts of nutes in it.. They love it! It really perked them up, especially before when it was getting hot in there. The humidy in there is only 45-50ish, and I can't seem to raise it... I've tried putting a tray of water in there, spraying, everything I could think of, but it seems to just stay dry in there.. Hence spraying the plants every now and again.

One last thing. They're still on 24/0 lighting, and I really wanna try to get it down to 18/6. Some people have said to do it all at once, some have said to take the light out in hour increments over a week or 2.. I have no idea which road to take with that one.. It'd certainly be easier to give them 6 hours of night all at once, as I'm yet to invest in an automatic timer for my lights.. But I don't wanna risk their health anymore than I already have. If anyone has a definitive answer, that'd be great!

I can post some pics of the new setup tomorrow if anyone's interested. It's loads better. Then and again, no one seems to be even reading this thread after the rocky start..

C'mon guys. Still a newbie here, I need help just as much as anyone else. Perhaps moreso lol. Any advise/critisism would be welcomed.


Peace.

The plants have just started their first night, time for 6 hours of darkness.

All 4 plants in the big pots are looking really great. Only one node one each sor far, but they're really starting to open up and the leafspan is huge!

I've got a little experiment in progress... I put two sodden flannels in the catch tray. Hopefully they'll increase the humidity, especially when I turn the lights back on. Humidty is still about 40-45 in there.. so I need to do something.

So far, I'm seeing rapid growth, and big healthy leaves/roots.. I don't see any reason as to why I couldn't veg 4 plants with just an 85w cfl.. But I suppose as they get bigger, the reflectors will have to move back thus enlarging my gro space and making the light less efficient... But I start to LST them soon, I might not have to move anything but the stems.

S'goooood.

Day 11 pics. My my, they grow up so quickly..

No problems so far really. They're all sat pretty low down in their pots, so I might have to repot them again in same pots.. just with abit more dirt underneath.

Keeping on with low levels of nutes, watering whenever the soil an inch or two below the surface is dry.. I think they look pretty good so far.

That's all folks.

Peace