I apologize in advance for the length of this. I’m trying to include all the info I can think of. I also don’t get out much & easily go on & on when given the “platform” lol. As with most things in my life, I didn’t plan this out thoroughly & kind of got into this half ass. I honestly didn’t expect these to survive as long as they have, but I’ve really grown to enjoy these plants & would love for them to survive. My main issue has been “doing” first and “researching” second. Unfortunately, It appears I’ve done just about everything wrong since day 1.
Planted seeds on 5/26/20. Transplanted to current pot on 6/1/20. I used jiffy peat pots for my seedlings & a few cheap 65 watt equivalent (8 actual?) LED BR30 bulbs. 5 days later I read jiffy pots were bad and promptly planted these into the current 2.5 gal pots. Also, I used Miracle grow potting mix from day 1. It wasn’t until maybe a week in that I read MG soil is a big no no. One thing I did notice is that these seedlings grew very fast. I had originally planted 2 seedlings in each of the 2.5 gal pots & within a week it became apparent that 2 per pot was 1 to many, which I confirmed once again by researching. So I "removed" 1 in each pot.
Probably a week after transplanting my seedlings I began using a 1000 watt LED, I believe actual usage around 225 watts. This threw more heat than I thought it would, bringing my grow closet (30”w × 20”d × 70”h) to 90° quickly. I had thought 90° at the time was good…again, I read later that was wrong. I added a small clip fan & a 4” inline exhaust fan (195 CFN) with attached carbon filter. I’ve since purchased a 6” fan (440 CFN) & filter to replace the 4”ones, but haven’t switched them out yet. The carbon filter works amazing for odor control, but I’m having real issues keeping the temp under 80°, which I can only accomplish by cooling the room, that the closet is in, down below 65°…it’s cold in here. At night, when the LEDs shut off, I close the vent for the air conditioner and open windows to try to keep the closet above 65°. The closet was at 62° this morning. I live in the northeast & we’ve had unusually cool days and nights this month. I’d leave the lights on longer (they’re at 16/8 now) but my plants droop after about 16 hrs as if they’ve gone to sleep...or dying. It panics me daily. However, in the morning, just before “lights on”, they perk right up. It’s truly amazing & this happens daily.
I’m definitely not over watering. The first week in their 2.5 gal pots I didn’t water at all because the peat pots they were in were saturated, as was the soil inside. When I transplanted them, I removed the peat pots. I’ve only watered the top of the pots a few times, maybe a half liter each. The pots are bottom self watering & I’ve added a half liter to each bottom every 5 days or so, that’s it. I do mist the plants a few times a day with water (6.5 pH). No idea what the soil pH is. I haven’t fed nutes since I’ve read the mg soil has them in there, and they really seem to have grown fast and appear healthy (to me, anyway…but I’ve never done this before). Temperature is steady when lights on at about 75° and humidity fluctuates from 35-50%.
A main concern is if these look healthy. Another is if my light is too close at 18” & should I add nutes (the MG soil worries me) or simply ride it out? I’m hoping these don’t get much taller, as I’m running out of space to raise the light. Should I still be using those 65 watt br30 LEDs for the sides of the plants? I have 4.
Plants are autos & the one on the left is haze xl & the right is gorilla glue.
I really enjoy this more than I could have imagined and ultimately it’s been a good learning experience, regardless of the outcome. I’d definitely be willing to invest properly in the near future to do this correctly.
Plants themselves, as of today (6/21), are 14” tall.
I’d truly appreciate any input…thanks!
Planted seeds on 5/26/20. Transplanted to current pot on 6/1/20. I used jiffy peat pots for my seedlings & a few cheap 65 watt equivalent (8 actual?) LED BR30 bulbs. 5 days later I read jiffy pots were bad and promptly planted these into the current 2.5 gal pots. Also, I used Miracle grow potting mix from day 1. It wasn’t until maybe a week in that I read MG soil is a big no no. One thing I did notice is that these seedlings grew very fast. I had originally planted 2 seedlings in each of the 2.5 gal pots & within a week it became apparent that 2 per pot was 1 to many, which I confirmed once again by researching. So I "removed" 1 in each pot.
Probably a week after transplanting my seedlings I began using a 1000 watt LED, I believe actual usage around 225 watts. This threw more heat than I thought it would, bringing my grow closet (30”w × 20”d × 70”h) to 90° quickly. I had thought 90° at the time was good…again, I read later that was wrong. I added a small clip fan & a 4” inline exhaust fan (195 CFN) with attached carbon filter. I’ve since purchased a 6” fan (440 CFN) & filter to replace the 4”ones, but haven’t switched them out yet. The carbon filter works amazing for odor control, but I’m having real issues keeping the temp under 80°, which I can only accomplish by cooling the room, that the closet is in, down below 65°…it’s cold in here. At night, when the LEDs shut off, I close the vent for the air conditioner and open windows to try to keep the closet above 65°. The closet was at 62° this morning. I live in the northeast & we’ve had unusually cool days and nights this month. I’d leave the lights on longer (they’re at 16/8 now) but my plants droop after about 16 hrs as if they’ve gone to sleep...or dying. It panics me daily. However, in the morning, just before “lights on”, they perk right up. It’s truly amazing & this happens daily.
I’m definitely not over watering. The first week in their 2.5 gal pots I didn’t water at all because the peat pots they were in were saturated, as was the soil inside. When I transplanted them, I removed the peat pots. I’ve only watered the top of the pots a few times, maybe a half liter each. The pots are bottom self watering & I’ve added a half liter to each bottom every 5 days or so, that’s it. I do mist the plants a few times a day with water (6.5 pH). No idea what the soil pH is. I haven’t fed nutes since I’ve read the mg soil has them in there, and they really seem to have grown fast and appear healthy (to me, anyway…but I’ve never done this before). Temperature is steady when lights on at about 75° and humidity fluctuates from 35-50%.
A main concern is if these look healthy. Another is if my light is too close at 18” & should I add nutes (the MG soil worries me) or simply ride it out? I’m hoping these don’t get much taller, as I’m running out of space to raise the light. Should I still be using those 65 watt br30 LEDs for the sides of the plants? I have 4.
Plants are autos & the one on the left is haze xl & the right is gorilla glue.
I really enjoy this more than I could have imagined and ultimately it’s been a good learning experience, regardless of the outcome. I’d definitely be willing to invest properly in the near future to do this correctly.
Plants themselves, as of today (6/21), are 14” tall.
I’d truly appreciate any input…thanks!
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