What's your grow, pilgrim?

[mpd]

I want the Johnny Walker commercial to change and add "keep growing"...

The reality is that whatever you are doing now, growing should be part of your world. Whether it is a guerrilla grow in the Great Outback, or a SCROG in a basement in Moscow, or a micro-grow in Pasadena, you have to keep growing.

What's my grow program?

I've just switched. I was growing using a 4-station DWC but had to take it down when my son and his husband came back to live with us, so now I have a custom built cabinet grow underway.

Tell us about your grow and your grow plans. It doesn't have to be 10,000 watts or a jungle of plants - unless it is. It doesn't have to be a microcomputer case grow - unless it is. Growing should be an important part of your life; it frees you from street crime and reduces the chances for getting busted at a buy. Everyone wins.

As the Duke would have said, "what's your grow like, pilgrim?"

 

[Hal]

As the Duke would have said, "what's your grow like, pilgrim?"

That right there is one hilarious image...John Wayne lording over a nice indoor grow, talking the lingo in his iconic voice. Hehehehe.

Thanks for putting that in my head.

edit: oh yea, forgot...I'm growing in a small cabinet with CFL's, but seriously considering an upgrade to some sort of HID in the 600 watt range, probably in a tent. This is being considered because I want to start growing more conniseur level weed, which tends to be on the low-yielding side, and if I grow these strains in my current cab I'll get such measly amounts that it won't be worth the effort, and I won't be able to grow amounts large enough to even supply my small requirements (I'm kind of a lightweight compared to a lot of you )

 

[Yes4Prop215]

mine is still in construction but im gonna be running two 150 watt closets, organic soil, hopefully some Kush. Just popped some el nino seeds frmo amsterdam i have no idea what to expect.

 

[mpd]

@Hal - it's not the size of the dog in the fight...

I'm running CFLs in my cabinet - the bloom chamber has 75 watts/square foot of CFL fun (almost 4 square feet) and the moms/vegging cabinet has a 26 watt CFL for each plant. I'm doing the exterior finishes on the cabinet now (see my thread in Old Stoners).

@Yes - love those closet grows. My last grow program was a 400 watt closet grow for a 4-station DWC. Did a soil grow or two there as well. I love trying different things when it comes to growing. Good luck with you construction project.

 

[Hal]

There is a reason for having a more powerful light source, you may not have read about this. The strains that I want to start focusing on are those from DJ Short. He's written, in one of his articles, That the distance of the light source from the canopy is an important component in getting the most out of the genetics. Basically, what these plants have historically been exposed to, and have evolved with, is the light of the sun, and the changeable path of the sun, which is related to the distance too.

DJ believes that when we grow our plants with indoor lighting, and place our lights as close to the canopy as possible (without burning the canopy), it causes the light to hit the plants in a way that the plant actually recognizes as being foreign. This causes changes in the plant, basically AWAY from the plant maximizing its potential. Things like odor and flavor are impacted, and quite possibly buzz potency and quality as well.

With a more powerful HID light source, I will be able to raise my light quite a bit (obviously not even approaching solar distance), and hopefully grow even better grass. I've been growing with CFL's from the beginning, I love them, I've grown weed with real solid nugs too. But...almost all of my harvests have given me weed that lacked in smell and taste.

But another big reason, is total yield, and DJ's strains seem to only yield well after you've given the girls a substantial veg phase, which results in larger plants. Larger (taller) plants do not work with CFL's as well because of the limited penetration (10") of the CFL bulb.

I'm not knocking CFL's, but they won't work as well for what I want to do.

 

[mpd]

I agree, you can overdo it with lighting. I did a closet grow with 1,400 watts in 13 SF and the strain was actually retarded in growth. Basically, once you get to around 45,000 lux (at the canopy height) you can see most strains dropping off.

In my case I'm doing the grows in SCROG with each plant having its own screen so I can get everything out of them I can get cuz we all know that height restricted grows have to do what you can do. By giving them their own screens I can cycle the grow much easier and adjust the height to keep them as close to the lights as is necessary. If I have to add sidelights, well goddammit we will have sidelights. I have no problem with the concept of adding some U-6 fluoros as side lights on the sides.

I'm a dedicated, tinkering sob who is not afraid to have at it.

 

[Yes4Prop215]

damn so you are saying DJ short says to not put the lights up so close?? me and my roomie have been gettin in hella arguments about light distance. i think that my 400s caused my heat stress on the last grow. but he says we gotta keep them close.


what was funny is that we got a bigger better yeild off our little 150watt closets than our 400 HPS. weird stuff.


together we have 4 closets total, each with 150 and we usually get a QP per closet so thats a pound off only 600 watts. the closets are 70tall, 35wide, and 24deep. fits about 18-20 plants with a short 2 week veg. organic soil enhanced with bat guano, watered with molasses RO water.

 

[Yes4Prop215]

im gonna post a grow journal in a couple weeks once i actualy fill them up, only got 6 in there so far not worth posting...

 

[Hal]

damn so you are saying DJ short says to not put the lights up so close?? me and my roomie have been gettin in hella arguments about light distance. i think that my 400s caused my heat stress on the last grow. but he says we gotta keep them close.

Hey Yes...

First off, I don't want to make myself to be anything near a DJ expert, just been doing a bunch of reading on his stuff to prepare myself for my first DJ grow (Flo). But I did encounter an article that was written by DJ himself that spoke directly to this issue.

He commented that the best grow room to grow his pot in would be a building like a high school gymnasium with 30 ft ceilings, with rows and rows of 5K HID lights (each bulb 5K) illuminating the garden below. Additionally, this garden would somehow simulate the track the sun takes on its daylight path, doing everything possible to make the plant think it REALLY is sitting under the sun.

So, he does say Keeping the light high up is the way to go, but he also says, as much as is possible, keep the light intensity up there too.

Unless one has a gymnasium or similar sized grow room, we'll have to shrink down the concept to fit what we can fit under an 8 ft ceiling.

There is a nice little sticky on DJ Short articles, I think all of them are written by DJ himself. There are a few more on IC, but I never know how to find them (forgot to bookmark), always stumble upon them.

Here is the link:

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=42050

Happy reading!

 

[j6p]

He commented that the best grow room to grow his pot in would be a building like a high school gymnasium with 30 ft ceilings, with rows and rows of 5K HID lights (each bulb 5K) illuminating the garden below.

In his 2002 article "Breeding Tips" , DJ advocated precisely the same gym/500K setup in order to emulate tropical sunlight and maximize sativa pheno potentials.

Something akin to a gymnasium building with high ceilings and super 5000W lights hung far from the growing plants, set at a Sativa-tweaked photoperiod, would be the ultimate indoor grow-op to coax Sativa phenotypes.

I hope that I am able to live long enough to once again experience the joy associated with the fine herbal products from the great regional sweet spots of near ancient lore. It has been a long time and I am looking forward to the day.

I know just how DJ feels. Happy growing!

 

[sparkjumper]

I tried to keep it simple but still have great results.In my 8 by 8 flowerroom I have 3 1K vertizontal fixtures,a 12,500 BTU window AC,a 45 pint dehumidifer,a CD-6 burner and a cap PPM-3 controller.Thats about it pretty simple and real effective for growing large plants

 

[Stevius]

I am trying to hide my love in a speaker...

 

[mpd]

sparkjumper rocks the indoor world and Stevius is rocking on!

 

[Helis]

I am enjoying my first grow with the lovely giving green plant, it has taught me a lot and I am only excited to improve.
Running CFLs in a micro cab but I would like to move to something else lightwise, and if I move in the future, I think I'd like to pitch a tent.

 

[sorcival]

Do you honestly think I am going to get on a forum, on the world wide net, with everybody
and their friggin governments reading every word I write and describe my 10 foot by 10
foot grow room located in my house? With the 6000 watts hps of lighting located on a light
mover and rotater, complete with separate germ and cloning room sporting 1000 watts
of 6500K cfl's, and my irrigation system hooked up to the timers, that the lights are on,
with the climate controlled heating/cooling internal room system, including the air-tight
security doors and windows, with the caulking around each crack and crevice in the room,
walls painted white, ceiling painted white, window completely covered with false inset,
also white, with the 15 different strains in flower and 122 clones 18 inches tall with
the 250 seedlings 6 inches tall ready for veg, with 4 inline 375 cfm
fanns pulling through 4 carbon scrubbers through vented ductwork?
Do you really think I am so dumb as to tell you all about my 'secret grow' room?
Do you honestly?
Well, I WON'T, so there........my lips and fingers are sealed !!!! HA!

note: the above is a work of fiction and imagination and in no way should be construed
as a reality except in the drooling minds of paranoics.

 

[kaotic]

FWIW, my biggest yield yet from my cab was when it was running 8 cfl's and a 70 watt hps. I've also found that the sativas I've grown do not like intense light. They're happy propped up in the corner.

 

[facelift]

I've been growing a perpetual garden for about a year but now it's coming to a close. I find myself with one plant. I don't know if I'm going to just toss it or flower it. With so little, it's a perfect time to clean up and rebuild.

I am thinking about starting many seeds as a I wish to give me a head start on building a stash. This year I harvested 20 plants for a total of 350 grams. If it wasn't for Christmas, I would have that head start. My sister got a 1/2 ounce of White Widow and my nephew is getting the same amount in Papaya. This will leave me with less than an ounce for 3 months. Good thing my mom doesn't smoke. Mother's Day is right around the corner.