A starter's quest for the good good

Monyo · Feb 9, 2015

Hello ICMag!

I am a newbie, a first time grower somewhere from South East Asia. I have never tasted bud or anything out of the ordinary... I once posted this picture at a similar forum site and they've all said it's the worst weed they've ever seen lol and I know that... Someone posted a picture of his own grown tree and it was very nice. So I decided to have my own and read some tuts from here and there.

I managed to have 2 Afghan seeds and 2 local seeds germinated successfully.

These are the seedlings at around 2-3 days old.

I also made a "grow closet" which I covered the inner side with isolation mats for reflection. The seedlings here are at their 5th day.

Bought 19-19-19 fertilizers for the seedlings also 30-10-10 and 10-40-10.
Also bought 2 daylight CFLs and 2 warm whites. 18/6 cycle. I put it out when sun is up.

I know I am making a lot of mistakes here and I wish you guys could point it out and have some advice for me.

Questions:

When I am at the stage of cutting down male branches, can I smoke those leaves? lol
When do I officially start budding stage?
Do I have to make holes for my ventilation? Putting 120mm computer fans for intake and exhaust. 24hrs a day?
What would you advice me to buy to add up nutrients for my plants?

And you know, the list goes on cause I have a lot to learn.

exploziv · Feb 9, 2015

First of all, Welcome to IcMag!
I see you talk about the fert you got for THE SEEDLINGS. Seedlings don't need fert for at least their first 2-3 weeks.
Also, those cfl bulbs need to be much closer to the plants. Just test if you can feel the heat from them with the backside of your palm, if you can't feel it, the plants can sit as close as that to the bulb. And, if you manage to put the bulbs horizontally, they will be much efficient at spreading the light.

Now, I'll try respond to your questions:
1: You will have to cut down male plants, not male branches. Cannabis is a dioecious plant species, so male and female reproductive organs are usually found on separate plants. And yes, you can smoke the leaves of males, but they will be harsh on your throat and lungs, and not so potent as female flowers.
2: After you switch the lighting schedule to 12 hours on and 12 hours off, plants will start to flower. Once you start to see buds forming, you have started budding stage.
3: Yes, you need ventilation. Putting an active exhaust (with a fan) means you can just make a hole for the intake, air will enter in the growbox by negative pressure created by the air that is exhausted by the exhaust fan.
4: You could search for a better flower nutrient, with higher P & K, and lower N. (remember, numbers on the nutrients represent N-P-K ratio)

Good luck with your grow! Better start reading around the forums! :wave:

stoned-trout · Feb 9, 2015

I have seen worse starts....remember those bulbs throw light to the sides more than down ..orient bulbs accordingly

Monyo · Feb 9, 2015

First of all, Welcome to IcMag!
I see you talk about the fert you got for THE SEEDLINGS. Seedlings don't need fert for at least their first 2-3 weeks.
Also, those cfl bulbs need to be much closer to the plants. Just test if you can feel the heat from them with the backside of your palm, if you can't feel it, the plants can sit as close as that to the bulb. And, if you manage to put the bulbs horizontally, they will be much efficient at spreading the light.

Now, I'll try respond to your questions:
1: You will have to cut down male plants, not male branches. Cannabis is a dioecious plant species, so male and female reproductive organs are usually found on separate plants. And yes, you can smoke the leaves of males, but they will be harsh on your throat and lungs, and not so potent as female flowers.
2: After you switch the lighting schedule to 12 hours on and 12 hours off, plants will start to flower. Once you start to see buds forming, you have started budding stage.
3: Yes, you need ventilation. Putting an active exhaust (with a fan) means you can just make a hole for the intake, air will enter in the growbox by negative pressure created by the air that is exhausted by the exhaust fan.
4: You could search for a better flower nutrient, with higher P & K, and lower N. (remember, numbers on the nutrients represent N-P-K ratio)

Good luck with your grow! Better start reading around the forums!

Thanks for the welcome and for the fast reply!

Okay, I will stop mixing up ferts with my water for a week.

What do you mean by separate plants if not branches? I'm sorry if this is quite a dumb question for you but I don't really know. Do I have to cut down leaves? Shit, I don't even know if my seeds were feminised. Does it mean I have to destroy my plant?

Thanks again man!

I have seen worse starts....remember those bulbs throw light to the sides more than down ..orient bulbs accordingly

Thanks! I will think of a way to do that.
Do you have any more suggestions or advice for me? Or something I can change or improve?

(I'm sorry for the double post admin but I cannot edit my own post)

exploziv · Feb 9, 2015

I mean some plants will be females, and good to produce buds to smoke, others will be male and should be killed before giving out the pollen & pollinating your female buds.

You could read this to find out more helpful info:
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=112662

You will be able to edit posts once you get over 50 posts and become a regular member.

Monyo · Feb 9, 2015

I mean some plants will be females, and good to produce buds to smoke, others will be male and should be killed before giving out the pollen & pollinating your female buds.

You could read this to find out more helpful info:
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=112662

You will be able to edit posts once you get over 50 posts and become a regular member.

Thanks for the info. Bookmarked.

So what if all my seedlings are males then I have to abandon this? lol

Another question is I would like to protect my seedlings from Borgs... Where do I spray my insecticide? Around the grow room or directly onto the plant?

Thanks!

exploziv · Feb 9, 2015

Female/male ratio should be around 50%/50%, so it's really hard to have 4 males from 4 plants, but yeah, it can happen.
Well, I don't recommend you to spray insecticide on your plants or near them, cause you'll end up smoking it. Better to keep the space clean and don't get insects in there than spray plants with insecticide.

Monyo · Feb 9, 2015

Female/male ratio should be 50%/50%, so it's really hard to have 4 males from 4 plants, but yeah, it can happen.
Well, I don't recommend you to spray insecticide on your plants or near them, cause you'll end up smoking it. Better to keep the space clean and don't get insects in there than spray plants with insecticide.

Yeah, I just watched a video with a man cutting his whole male marijuana tree down lol.

I'm gonna order my feminised seeds sooner so it's sure lol. Do you recommend that?

exploziv · Feb 9, 2015

If space and time is a problem for you, then yeah it's better to start with fem seeds. It's a bit easier.

Monyo · Feb 10, 2015

Hello again...

I've some questions. I will be going to an aluminum and glass shop later and thinking of fabricating an A/C Hood... It was hard thinking of a way to make the CFLs horizontally lol

I have designed one using Photoshop (sorry for very low skills).

Can you advice me what to add or remove in it?

exploziv · Feb 10, 2015

Do you really plan on using cfl bulbs in the future so this is worth doing?
You could just make some kind of reflector with bulb sockets and use a fan to take heat away from plants.
I would not put glass in my growspace. It can be broken and can be dangerous, and it takes some of the light that passes through it, too. :2cents:

Monyo · Feb 10, 2015

Do you really plan on using cfl bulbs in the future so this is worth doing?
You could just make some kind of reflector with bulb sockets and use a fan to take heat away from plants.
I would not put glass in my growspace. It can be broken and can be dangerous, and it takes some of the light that passes through it, too.

Yes, I plan on using CFL bulbs all through out. HID is too expensive...

I am not going to use glass or mirrors, I would be using Aluminum sheets to use as the reflector and the hood itself. If it becomes too expensive for me I would be using wood and cover it with isolation mats like what I used to cover my grow closet.

Do you think that is good?

exploziv · Feb 10, 2015

You could do a DIY hood for cfls using a wood frame on the side on which to put the sockets, then half cut beer aluminium cans as reflector for each bulb. Or just order it at the aluminium shop if that is easier for you. but it is better to have a reflector for each bulb than have a straight piece of aluminium over many bulbs.

Former Guest · Feb 10, 2015

I would dilute the 19-19-19 down to 2.5-2.5-2.5 but using less of the recommended dosage but not changing the amount of water. so if it calls for 1 teaspoon I would start with 1/8th teaspoon and gradually work up to only 3/8th teaspoon. I agree with explosive that the bloom fertilizer needs to be returned and exchanged for something with the same ratios as 5-10-10 or 2-5-5 or 2-4-3 or even 10-20-20 but that would need to be diluted.

also, could you use the drip pans for electric stovetops??

Hicksticky has built a few cfl and led reflectors and hoods. his nugs fooled me and I had no idea they were grown with cheap bulbs. he's a really nice dude so if you have any questions go to this link and say hi. he still uses them in his cabs but has since upgraded to a large room with HIDs.
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=295812

Monyo · Feb 10, 2015

@exploziv
Nice! Thanks again man! Will do that tomorrow! I'll try making reflectors for each bulb if I don't like it I'll do the wood frame with beer cans coverings.

@ladyluckbean

I have used 1/2tsp of 14-14-14 in a bucket and just watered the plants 2tsps in a day lol so I think I didn't over watered it.

I think it's gonna be hard to find drip pans here. So I will stick to what @explosiv suggested, the cans.

I really like his posts but it's sad I cannot PM him. I didn't see his hoods and reflectors.

Former Guest · Feb 10, 2015

I think he has an album detailing it. just post on there and then you can get your post count up to 50 plus being a member a week will give you PM access.

wildgrow · Feb 10, 2015

Your reflector can be as simple as a shelf. Install rails/guides every 6" up the side of your cab and back. The back rails don't need go across the entire space. They are just there to add strength to the back of the shelf, not to support any real weight. Cut a shelf to fit, cut a slit for wires (1/2" will do) and some holes for air circulation. Cover the bottom of the shelf with reflective material. Don't block the slit or holes.
You could even mount your lights to the bottom of the shelf. Cut a center hole for wires instead of a slit.

Quick drawing of the shelf from above.

Monyo · Feb 11, 2015

@wildgrow

I cannot understand or visualize that hood's concept.

Monyo · Feb 11, 2015

Hello again...

On the seedlings' 9th day, 2 have died. I don't know what caused it. There has been signs of white on the leaves. The other 2 are healthy.
I should let you know that the seeds I used might be not healthy because they are from the local weed here which is dried and not looking good when it gets here in the city. Could it be just because the seeds are not good?

Also, what soil should I buy? I am planning on changing mine.

Former Guest · Feb 11, 2015

mold from overwatering them. if there is too much water in the medium you suffocate the roots and it leads to dampening off which is why they died. next time get a seedling mix in a bag or add a lot of perlite to the soil you have.

most soil doesn't have much food source except fox farm ocean forest that's available to me at least. there is also BioBizz fertilizer that you add to a bag of soil that has no nutrients. if you choose to do that, I suggest picking a soil that includes coir which will help you with overwatering. if you buy the fox farms, I suggest buying some extra perlite to cut it with as peat only soil compacts.

good brands of soilless mixes are Promix with the coco. I think it is the BX, not HP but can't be sure. just be prepared to that compressed bales can be messy to work with if you're forced to store part of it compressed. Roots also makes a few different bags but essentially they're mostly the same thing so just go by price.

I've used fox farm and I like it, it's simple and you just have to add an organic bloom booster during flowering. I cut mine 50/50 with happy frog and then I load up on perlite.

A starter's quest for the good good

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