[Capt. Crip]

I'm putting this thread together to help new growers get started in this wonderful hobby..
I will try to keep the subjects short and easy to understand.
I will try to cover all aspects of growing while keeping everything as simple as possible to help make their first grow a success..
Things that will be covered will include growroom construction,lights,fans,soil or hydro,watering,nutrients,PH,te mp control,plant manipulation,genetics and safety..

The first thing a new grower must do is save a little money for the construction of your growspace.Do not try to build a growspace on a shoestring budget.It is important to save and buy the proper equipment.You do not want to come home to a fire!Save and buy the proper equipment to do the job properly..

Grow Space and Growroom Construction

Closet,bedroom or BIGGER......

The first thing is going to be deciding on your growspace.
Take your time with this and a good idea is to think about this from harvest and work backwards from here.Find your space and decide how many mature plants you want to end up with in the givin' space.

Plants stink and lights create a lot of heat so these problemswill have to be addressed..Plants also must have fresh air to grow properly so you have to decide how you plan to expel this warm,humid skunky air and replace it with fresh CO2 rich air.Small squirell cage or inline duct fans both work well for this problem..It is best to install an inline carbon filter to your exhaust.Inline ozone generators also work quite well.(high dosages of ozone are not good for the human body so it is best to use these devices to treat air being expelled from the growroom)
If you plan to use air from the outside to cool your growspace you will have to use some type of filter to keep unwanted insects from entering the grow.An air conditioner also works well for cooling the growspace but you must make sure that it does not draw unwanted attention from nosey neighbors.This is why I always try to choose a space on the back side of a house for building a growroom.The air conditioner also helps with removing unwanted humidity.If you plan to use an air conditioner you will still need to vent the growspace a couple of times per day to get rid of stagnent air and replenish CO2.A CO2 tank works very well in this type grow because you are not losing all your gas to the exhaust fans constantly running.

Mount exhaust fans close to the ceiling because this is where the air is the hottest.Use a long thin nail to find your ceiling studs and attach small(12" to 24")pieces of 2X4 to the ceiling to mount your fans and lights.I like to use long sheetrock screws for this job as it does not require banging with a hammer and is easy on ceiling material when it comes time to ttear down the growspace.You can screw hooks into these 2X4's for hanging fans and lights very securely.In addition to exhaust fans you will need a circulation fan.This fan is used to circulate the air around the plants allowing them to take in CO2 and also to strenthen the stems and branches of your plants.You want the circulation fan strong enough to make all the plants move a little.It does not have to be so strong that it is knocking stuff over but you do want to see the plants moving.This will create strong stems that will support big juicy buds.If you are using a small space try to find a way that you can move the ballast out of the growspace as this will help with cooling.If there is carpet on the floor it will be best to either roll it up and remove it or cover it with a HEAVY gauge plastic.(wet carpet is a mess to deal with)


Soil or Hydro

If this is your first grow it would be better to use soil although there are some easy to use hydro systems availible to buy or build if you insist on this method.
Hydro systems are much cleaner to use but also less forgiving to mistakes of a new grower.
Soil is capable of buffering many mistakes made by new growers and this is the main reason for me recommending it over hydro.
There are many easy to use soil mixes and I will provide links to them but will steer clear of going into detail in this thread to keep it simple and easy to read.I have a good soil mix and nutrient program that is extremely easy to use and new growers should have few problems from sprout to harvest using this system.You must decide what style of plants you wish to grow.Sea of green or multibranched plants?Due to the legal climate in most countries I usually recommend growing multibranched plants unless you are doing a cabinet grow or something else very small where SOG is the only style that will work.Multibranched plants will need to be finished in 2 to 5 gallon pots depending on how big you want your finished plants to be.If you want to end up with 12 mature female plants you will need to start with 30 or 40 seedlings.Count on half being male and you will usually want to discard runts or poorly growing plants.This will allow for some leeway when choosing your final 12 plants.


Lights


Choose a light that will best fill your space.This is one of the main expenses in building your grow and you want to buy the best light you can afford as it has a lot to do with the quality of your finished product.
Cabinet growers usually use a 250 watt lamp and closet growers usually use a 400 or 600 watt lamp.1000 watts for bedroom grows.Generally speaking a 400 watt lamp will cover an area
4' X 4',a 600 watt lamp will cover an area 6' X 6' and a 1000 will cover 8' X 8'.
There is a lot of debate about which lights work best, Metal Halide or High Pressure Sodium.The HPS bulb is a little brighter than the Super MH bulbs.The MH works a little better in the vegative stage and the HPS works better in the flowering stage.If you will be using a 1 light setup be sure to get the best light you can afford.If choosing a HPS try to get one with the hortilux bulb as this bulb contains more blue light than the standard HPS bulb and will keep plants from stretching during vegative growth.The Sunmaster and Son T Agro bulbs work very well also.
Be sure to mount a piece of 2 X 4 to the ceiling to hang your lights.Use 4 or 5 inch sheetrock screws and be sure to screw them into the ceiling studs.This is very important to have a secure place to hang your lights.
Plug 250,400 or 600 watt lights to a standard timer.1000 watt lights should use an appliance timer as they have a tendency to melt standard timers.
(You can buy appliance timers from home improvement stores such as Lowes or Home Depot)
I personally like to use as much light as possible in a growroom to insure big,fat,juicy buds.Just be sure you are able to cool the space with the lights on.

[Capt. Crip]

Soil mix and nutrient program.

(This is the mix and nute program that I use but there are many out there to choose from..This just happens to be quite simple..)


You can use any quality soil to grow cannabis.I prefer Pro-Mix which is availible from most plant nursuries or garden supply stores.I have a complete soil mix and nutrient program that is very easy to use and gives outstanding results.You can grow perfectly green plants from seed to harvest with this easy to use program.


SOIL MIX

This mix only has 3 components to purchase .
1.Bale of Pro-Mix
2.Bag of worm castings-15 to 30 lbs(wiggle worm comes in 15 and 30)
3.Bag of perlite(most are 8 quart bags)


NUTRIENT MIX
Only 3 nutrients to purchase,consisting of General Hydroponics new nutrient called the Flora Nova Series.(These are one part mixes and require NO mixing!!!)There is one bottle for Grow and one bottle for Bloom.To add an ORGANIC kick I use Original Pure Blend.This is a thick organic tea solution.

I'm going to post pics of the soil ingredients and nutrient bottles.

OK,now to mix the soil.First you are going to need a kiddie pool or something of equal size for mixing your soil.If you don't need a whole bale as in a small grow,just break it into quarters and plan on splitting your worm castings and perlite at the same ratio.(if you are going to use 1/4 of the soil,be sure to add 1/4 of the castings and 1/4 of the perlite.)Throw the three ingredients together in the kiddie pool(or a container to fit the size of your project),being sure to go easy with the perlite,the dust is very bad for you,it's fine when wet.For the whole bale it will take at least 5 gallons to wet the mix,probably 6 gallons.You will want to use a 5 or 7 gallon bucket for mixing your water.You will need to add 1 tablespoon of Flora Nova grow and 5 tablespoons of Pure Blend (grow or bloom) to your water to wet the soil.You must mix the soil well,until it is uniformly wet and mixed.It will take some time and energy to do this job well.You can transplant your seedlings or clones into this mix.I use 1 gallon pots for vegative growth and then move to 3 gallon and the to 4-1/2 or 5 gallon to finish big plants.If you are growing smaller plants you can use smaller pots.The key is to let the soil in the pots dry out pretty well.You want the whole top layer dry and down a couple of inches dry also before you water.This is very,very important!The plants need oxegen and can't get it from soil that is constantly wet.I like them to be almost dried out,but you can still see that the leaves have not started to droop indicating that they are out of water.This is a little to far.This is something that you have to learn to judge by the feel of the pots and soil.I like to water until 15-25% of the solution comes out the bottom insuring that all the excess nutrients get washed away.This is also very important!You will use the same nutrient mix for growing plants,except if using only a 5 gallon bucket,you will have to back off the Flora nutrient to 3/4 of a tablespoon and 5 tablespoons of Pure Blend.If growing pure sativa's,you will have to drop to 1/2 to 1/4 of a tablespoon of flora nutrient as it is extremely concentrated.For every 4th or 5th watering ,I use plain water and drain at least 25% out the bottom of the pots.This gets rid of accumulated nutrients and keeps the PH stable.
When it's time to bloom,you will switch to bloom flora nova after you have been in 12/12 for 10 days or so.I switch when flowers start appearing well.You may have to use a little less bloom mix than you used during grow.Start with only 1/2 of a tablespoon of flora nutrient and keep an eye on the tips of the leaves.If they start to get a little burn,you know you need to back off a little and use plain water for the next watering.
When you get 1/2 to 3/4 of the way through flowering,you can discontinue the Flora Nova and use just Pure Blend so you will have awesome tasteing organic buds.This gives the plants plenty of time to use up the chemical ferts.Be sure to flush with plain water for at least 2 waterings and more if possible.The more flush you give them the more flavor and color you will be rewarded with.



Seed Germination


Everyone has their own method for germinating seeds and I will give you my technique here as it is relatively easy and yeilds very good percentages of heathy sprouts.
I start seeds by placing them in a cup of distilled water for 24 hours being sure to stir them around a couple of times to help them sink to the bottom.(Fresh seeds will usually start to crack open during this first 24 hours)
Then seeds are placed in a moist paper towel(not wet)in a small tupperware container for another 24 hours at which time they are checked to see how many have cracked and sent out a tap root.You must keep this moist paper towel in a warm place to insure proper germination of your seeds.Some seeds may take longer to crack and you must check daily and keep the paper towel moist.As the seed puts out a tap root you can place it in a shallow hole in the soil(or rockwool cube if growing hydro)in the center of the small pot.3" or 4 " square pots work perfect for seedlings.I like to have anywhere from 1/4" to a 1" tap root when I plant my seeds.The easiest way to make a perfect planting hole is to use a pair of tweezers or another tool I like to use a paper clip straitened out,this is a great little tool for working with very young plants.It works great for stirring the soil surface in small pots also..Just slightly pull the soil apart and stick the tap root down in this hole leaving the seed level with the surface of the soil and gently close the hole around the tap root.You want this soil moist and it is good to use a little bit of nutrient water to dampen the soil.Use just a little nutrient because seedlings are fragile and burn easily.After getting your seed planted make sure the soil is not packed tightly by lightly stirring it with your paper clip.Being careful to stay clear of the seed in the middle of the pot.


The Seedling Stage

You must remember to feed seedlings with only 1/4 strenth nutrients.Keep seedlings under 24 hours of light as there is no reason for a dark cycle at this point.Since you have planted the seeds directly into 3" or 4" pots you can grow the plants until they have 5 or 6 sets of leaves at which point you will transplant them into 1 gallon pots.During the early seedling stages you will have to keep the soil moist but you should also make sure you keep the surface well cultivated to allow air to the roots.You can use your paper clip to stir the surface of the soil easpecially after watering.
As the plants get 2 or 3 sets of leaves you must start allowing the pots to dry some between waterings.

IMPORTANT STATEMENT
This is the most important thing you will see me write.Once small plants get established you MUST let the soil dry between waterings.Plants must have oxygen to the root system for rapid growth.This is why I like to use extra perlite in my soil mixes because it allows the soil to dry faster which leads to faster growth!Once plants are placed in 1 gallon pots you should be able to scratch down an inch or two before finding any signs of moisture before it is time to water again.The pots will feel noticeably lighter when you pick them up.If you pay close attention you will notice the bottom 2 leaves start to droop when a plant is desparate for water.Once you figure out how dry they can get before drooping you will have figured out one of the hardest parts of growing for new growers.The more time you spend with your plants the more you will begin to understand about the life cycles.
When you do water you want to make sure to let some drain out of the bottom.This will keep nutrients from building up and keep your plants growing strong!Continue feeding lightly until you transplant into the 1 gallon pots at which time you can go to full strenth.

[Capt. Crip]

Security

When I say security I'm not referring to Light leaks shining into the street or skunky smell surrounding your house..
I'm referring to people.PLEASE Please please do not tell a single person you are growing.This is the most important thing you can do for your safety!Not your best friend,not your girlfriend not your mom or dad,not even your priest!!
A person will use you to get their ass out of trouble.Other people like to brag about their grower friend that always has the killer.You are going to get in trouble if you ignore this advice!!
Keep your lips sealed about your hobby!
Come up with a story for how you get your killer buds.
You met this cool person but you have to drive out of town to get it.
What ever it takes,just don't take credit for it no matter how proud you are of your hard work.Period!
You can brag to your friends here online and talk about growing all you want..Let this site be your outlet for talking about your grow.
Please I beg you to do this one thing right,keep it to yourself..

Also beware of what you throw in the trash..do not throw plant material or growing materials in your personal trash..If you are suspected of growing the first thing they do is pull your trash..Take all types of plant material and dispose of it yourself..It's quite easy just throw it away somewhere that will not be linked back to you or your address.Try to be intelligent when throwing away materials such as rockwool and plastics..


Plant Manipulation

This subject should probably be left to more advanced growers but the benefits are too hard to deny so I will go into one type that I like that is easy to do.You just have to go slow until you learn how much a plant can take before you damage them.
You will not start until you have transplanted to 1 gallon pots and the plants are at least 12 inches tall.(6 to 10 sets of leaves)You will have some plants that are growing faster than others and this type of manipulation will help with this problem.

Start by placing one hand on the main stalk about halfway up and take your other hand and gently bend the top back and forth and side to side.Work up and down the main stalk from the halfway point and up.After you have worked up and down the upper portion of the plant it will seem a little floppy and rubbery and lean a little to one side or the other.You do not want to bend so hard that you cause the stalk to make a crack or snap.This is breaking the inner part of the stalk.You want to bend gently and it will bend more and more as you work the stalk.
This will cause the stalk to strenthen a bunch!The stalks can double in thickness and get so strong that you cannot even bend them!This will cause the plant to produce bigger buds and the plant can support these bigger buds with the enlarged stalks and branches.As the branches reach 5 or 6 inches you can do the same thing to them and the will strenthen and fatten up also.The plant will take a day or 2 to fully recover from the bending.You only have to do it a couple of times to reap huge benefits.
If it seems complicated just wait until you have a couple of harvest before trying this technique.
This is really an advanced technique for more experienced growers but a little bending is OK as long as you are careful and don't over do it.
If you do happen to snap a stalk you can prop it up using a plant stake or what ever it takes to support the plant for a couple of days.It will fix itself and keep right on growing strong.Cannabis is a strong plant if you treat it well from the start.The first couple of weeks are the hardest and it's all downhill from there..

[Capt. Crip]

Flowering Stage

Once the plants have reached the desired height you will have to plug in the timers and decide what 12 hours you want the lights burning.Your plants have got to have 12 hours of total uninterrupted darkness.This is very important.You need to turn out all the lights and step inside the room and let your eyes adjust and see if you can see any light leaks.Seal up any light you see leaking into your growroom.
Many growers prefer to run their lights at night to help combat the heat.
If temps are not a problem then you can decide what works best for your schedule.

Remember that pure indicas may not stretch at all or just a little when they are flowered but hybrids may double or even triple in size.You can use your bending technique described earlier to help with plants that are trying to get out of control.You can bend the top of the plant over to 90 degrees and tie it to the pot it is growing in.Just pop a little hole in the edge of the plastic container and tie you twine there.
It will also be time to switch to a flowering nutrient to promote flowering in your plants.I will sometimes wait a couple of days before going to the flowering formula especially if I am trying to get the plants a little bigger.


I plan to add more to this soon and if you think there is something important to add please do so...I will try to add it to the info above..
Thanks all.....
Take care and grow safe.......................... .............CC

[sproutco]

Ph of your soil and nutrient solution (fertilizer + water) is very important. Using promix like he suggested requires a ph of 5.6 to 6.2 The light recommendation is too weak. You should use about 50 watts of hid like metal halide per square foot. A 400 watt light, for example, would cover an area 3' x 2' rather than 4' x 4' (overgrow facts god rest its soul). I will give you some more input later so we can help the new guys. Great thread to start.

[Capt. Crip]

I do no PH adjustment what so ever...Flora Nova is self adjusting..But great point as PH is extremely important for nutrient uptake..I use 5.8 -6.2 for hydro but 6.0 -6.6 works best for me in soil...It's just not something I have to worry about using my program..Plants stay extremely healthy through harvest so I don't mess with it...And on the lights you are probably correct.I was using a catalog for light coverage quotes...I use mostly 1000 watters so I am really no expert in coverage of 400 watters..But you can grow excellent bud with less than 50 watts per..I do use a 430 son-t-agro over some mothers that seems to cover a 4' X 4' pretty well but I'm not trying to produce tight flowers in that small area...Good points.
Take care and grow safe...........CC

[Babbabud]

Great thread Capt thanks for taking the time

[PassTheDoobie]

Thank you CC!!! It is so wonderful to have you back on the boards and back on board!

Thomas

What a great idea Cap! Keep it up!

[Maj.PotHead]

very nice cpt