I'm so confused...

growvirgin

growvirgin

Active Member
So I really want to grow, I'm tired of always having to buy and constantly looking for a good dealer. I only want to go basically to smoke, I don't want a massive harvest or anything, just something simple. I have 5 seeds, I have pots and bought Fox Farm Ocean Fresh potting soil. I have a 6 pack of 100w compact fluorescent light bulbs. I'm planning on setting up a small area under my stairs. I have roommates that are also going to be helping with this and they keep giving me different advice. I read everywhere online and my roommate tells me I'm wrong... I'm getting discouraged :sad:

Germinating- one says no air at all: wrap in wet paper towels, put inside Ziplock baggie and put in dark drawer for few days. one says air is fine: put damp paper towels on plate and place seeds on top of plate and put bowl upside down over seeds for a few days.... what works best to germinate?

After the seeds grow roots we plant them into the soil 1/4" from top and keep lights about 12" high. Do we start them off in 24hr darkness and then start with a 12on/12off light cycle? Do we need a fan in the space? How do we get fresh air in? What's a good odor control and when will we need to start using it? What are the different stages the plant will go through and how long does it take? I just want to know what to expect and don't want to screw this up. Please help...?
 
Florida Girl

Florida Girl

Well-Known Member
growvirgin said:
So I really want to grow, I'm tired of always having to buy and constantly looking for a good dealer. I only want to go basically to smoke, I don't want a massive harvest or anything, just something simple. I have 5 seeds, I have pots and bought Fox Farm Ocean Fresh potting soil. I have a 6 pack of 100w compact fluorescent light bulbs. I'm planning on setting up a small area under my stairs. I have roommates that are also going to be helping with this and they keep giving me different advice. I read everywhere online and my roommate tells me I'm wrong... I'm getting discouraged :sad:

Germinating- one says no air at all: wrap in wet paper towels, put inside Ziplock baggie and put in dark drawer for few days. one says air is fine: put damp paper towels on plate and place seeds on top of plate and put bowl upside down over seeds for a few days.... what works best to germinate?

After the seeds grow roots we plant them into the soil 1/4" from top and keep lights about 12" high. Do we start them off in 24hr darkness and then start with a 12on/12off light cycle? Do we need a fan in the space? How do we get fresh air in? What's a good odor control and when will we need to start using it? What are the different stages the plant will go through and how long does it take? I just want to know what to expect and don't want to screw this up. Please help...?
Click to expand...

Here's a link to a post I did a while back about how I germinate my seeds. There is no ONE WAY ONLY.... many different ways will work. The one thing I will say is they DO NEED AIR! Do not listen to the person who told you no air. https://www.rollitup.org/outdoor-growing/67450-germinating-glass.html#post765477

After the seeds 'pop' you are going to plant them either in soil. Keep the seeds in a warm, humid DARK place place until they break the surface. Seeds will drown if you water them too much (most common noob mistake).... so make sure the soil is moist only... NOT drenched. Watch the soil... if it starts to dry out... moisten it... do not drench it!

Once the plants pop through the surface you want the light schedule to be either 24 hours a day or 18 hours on / 6 hours off. Either works... it's your choice... I do 18/6.

Lastly.... since you are going to use CFLs you will need the lights MUCH closer then 20" from the plant tops.... seriously.... they need to be 2 or 3 inches from the plant tops. CFLs hardly put off any heat so this is perfectly fine. If you have the CFLs further away then that your plants will stretch and you don't want that.


Happy Growing :D
 
growvirgin

growvirgin

Active Member
Thank you very much. Will a small oscillating fan in the room be enough air for them? I'm worried about ventilation. I was planning on setting them up close together and hanging the light fixtures above them. I have 2 hanging light fixtures, do you think that's enough for 5 small plants? Do the walls really need to be white or can you grow regardless of the walls?
 
Florida Girl

Florida Girl

Well-Known Member
growvirgin said:
Thank you very much. Will a small oscillating fan in the room be enough air for them? I'm worried about ventilation. I was planning on setting them up close together and hanging the light fixtures above them. I have 2 hanging light fixtures, do you think that's enough for 5 small plants? Do the walls really need to be white or can you grow regardless of the walls?
Click to expand...
Yes, you want an oscillating fan on them.... but keep it on low while they are young and not strong. CFLs don't give off much heat at all so the oscillating fan should be enough air movement while they are young. As they get bigger and bushier you may need to add a second and maybe third fan. The fan will help build the stems get fat and strong.

You need more then 2 lights... DEFINITELY! I use HPS for flowering and CFLs for my clones/early veg. I have 6 100 watt CFLs on 3 clones. You don't need light fixtures... go to Home Depot or Lowes and get some Y splitters and plug attachment.... you can plug them straight into a power strip. If you don't know what I'm talking about then let me know and I'll go take a pic of mine and post it for you.

White reflects light best so it would be good if the walls are white. If you don't have white paint and can't afford it.... tape up printer paper around the walls. I haven't done this but I've seen others here who've done it in a pinch. I use mylar and I'd suggest you get some when you can afford it.
 
GrowTech

GrowTech

stays relevant.
You will want to wait until the plant produces enough nodes to support growing the flowers during flowering before switching to 12/12. You will also want a fan to exchange air in the room. Odor control would best be a carbon filter / fan which will likely be needed the most after you begin flowering.

In regards to exhanging air, I would just throw a box fan into the space and let it pull air from around the room, if you have access to ducting, and an inline fan, you could use that as well.

flgirl said:
There is no ONE WAY ONLY.... many different ways will work
Click to expand...

might confuse you a little bit... so to be pretty clear, I would just stick your seeds in a very damp paper towel, and then leave it on a glass plate in an area that will remain warm, yet consistent. Remember to check every day to make sure the towel is still wet.

I keep my seeds on a heat mat specifically set to the ideal temperatures for germinating seeds, and I always have success assuming the seeds aren't 5+ years old... that's when I start running into the occasional failed germ. Rapid rooters work well for germinating seeds if you decide this is the route you want to go.
 
GrowTech

GrowTech

stays relevant.
The "plug attachment" she is referring to is called a keyless lampholder socket. They make it possible to just plug the light socket directly into the power source.
 
growvirgin

growvirgin

Active Member
How many lights should I have? I have the 100w cfl. I could definitely get those sockets that plug into the power strip. So I should have a box fan circulating air and a small oscillating fan that blows directly on the plants?

Assume the plants started growing, how do you find out the sexes and what's the next stage and time frame? My roommates weren't explaining in stages and I think it makes more sense when everyone talks about the different stages. How do you know when your ready to move to the next stage?

So leave the newly planted seeds in the dark until they break soil and then have the light at 16 hours on and 8 hours off...? Then switch to 12/12 when?

Thanks so much for all your help!! I really would like to germinate my seeds tonight.
 
GrowTech

GrowTech

stays relevant.
I would get 4-6 of those 100W CFLs bare minimum. Your concept of what to do with the fans is correct and will work fine.

The sexes are simple to judge, a female produces a flower with pistils (white hairs) and a male produces multiple pods along the stem.

Leave your newly planted seeds under the light, there is no harm to that. Switch them to 12/12 once you feel they are big enough to support the production you expect.
 
GrowTech

GrowTech

stays relevant.
Depends on the strain, but if you clone a branch of the plant, and put it into flower it could be as little as a month and a half.

It's not really about flowering it as fast as possible, as the larger the plant is, the more available bud production sites exist.
 
growvirgin

growvirgin

Active Member
Shouldn't you wait to clone until after you know the sex your cloning females only?

What are the different stages? How do I know which stage I'm in and when to move to the next?
 
Florida Girl

Florida Girl

Well-Known Member
growvirgin said:

So leave the newly planted seeds in the dark until they break soil and then have the light at 16 hours on and 8 hours off...? Then switch to 12/12 when?
Click to expand...

No... it's either 24 hours on OR 18 hours on / 6 hours off. (not 16 / 8 ). You can switch to 12/12 whenever you like..... HOWEVER.... the longer you veg... the better the harvest. My first grow I vegged for 7 weeks from seed. My next grow I took clones from the first grow and was able to cut down on the veg time to 5 weeks.

I'd encourage you to start a Grow Journal (there is a special forum just for grow journals) on this site. It's a thread you start and explain your setup and grow and you can post pictures along the way.... people will subscribe to your thread and give you help and pointers along the way. It's fun to have others watch your grow and be excited with you. :D
 
GrowTech

GrowTech

stays relevant.
You can clone it, and then put your clone under 12/12 to see what sex it produces, this will be the sex of the mother plant.

You will find a variation of answers here about your questions. I recommend looking at the Grow FAQ, as it has a wealth of information.
 
D

docd187

Well-Known Member
growvirgin said:
Shouldn't you wait to clone until after you know the sex your cloning females only?

What are the different stages? How do I know which stage I'm in and when to move to the next?
Click to expand...
i think some people tend to clone first that way they can find out if the plant is male or female without having to flower the potential mother plant. once you start flowering the original plant, find out it's female, and put it back to vegging to keep it as a mother you have stressed it out. now this doesn't mean everything will get screwed up, it's just extra stress to the plant that is avoidable.
 
growvirgin

growvirgin

Active Member
My roommate said that you can wrap some of the leaves with plastic or saran wrap and then see if it grows red hairs or not, if it grows hairs it's a male... is this true?
 
growvirgin

growvirgin

Active Member
So all clones will be the same sex as the main plant? Would you just put the clones through the flowering stage sooner and keep the mother plant in the vegging stage?
 
Florida Girl

Florida Girl

Well-Known Member
growvirgin said:
Shouldn't you wait to clone until after you know the sex your cloning females only?

What are the different stages? How do I know which stage I'm in and when to move to the next?
Click to expand...


Yes... wait until you know the sex to clone.

The stages of the plant life from seed are:

Sprout - The seed started with taproot popped... planted. It's in this stage until it breaks the surface and you see the first 2 leaves

Seedling - ... this stage generally lasts 2 to 3 weeks. During this stage you will see very little TOP growth as the plant is busy growing and establishing its roots down below the surface.

Vegetative - this is the next stage and you will see much more top growth during this stage. The plant will stay in this stage until you switch the light cycle to 12/12.... so YOU control how long it's in this stage.

Flower - Changing light to the 12/12 cycle signals to the plant that fall is coming and it's time to flower. What it's really doing is preparing for the end of its life and going into it's reproduction mode... flowering waiting for pollination to grow seeds. Generally the flowering stage lasts 8 to 12 weeks.... but really you can't control that.... the plant will finish when it's good and ready. Get a small hand held microscope from Radio Shack $10.... so you can keep your eye on the trichs... which is how you determine when she's done.
 
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