Getting set up for my first grow, another couple of questions came up

Hi again everyone, I'm getting set up for my first grow and I'm waiting on the lights now. I'm waiting on three 400w set ups (2HPS, 1MH), I'm using a compost/dirt potting mix. Got the perlite, PH/light/watering meter combo, micro sheers, simple timer, thermometer/hygrometer combo, mylar, ordor eating CFLs, 5 gal containers & 12" saucers. I'll be flowering with the 2 HPSs in a big walk in closet & veging with the MH in a different room and I'm starting with Citrus Diesel, Sour Diesel, Grape Ape, Blueberry, and Oak Leaf (8 plant total not including veg)

Since this is my first grow I'm a little short on cash and I may have to get a 3 month harvest, 1 mo. veg & 2 mo. flower. I'm sure I'll get a lower yeild which sucks, but as long as I flower for the full 2 months I shouldn't loose any potency, right?

I was told by a worker at Home Depot, that I should pre-soak the perlite so it doesn't soak up the water when I water the plants. (of course this would be PH balanced bottled water). Is there any truth to this?

Does anyone know if perlite has a PH level that has to be taken into account?

I'm also going to try to get a digital camera so I can keep a journal. I firgured on the first grow this may end up being the most important tool of all.

i had always thought this was one of the reasons to use perlite aside from it making more room for oxygen for the roots, it also helps your soil to retain water, no? and i am pretty sure that perlite is ph neutral, which is also one of its advantages, but i am not 100% sure about this one..
good luck with your grow..

DannyGreenEyes said:

Hi again everyone, I'm getting set up for my first grow and I'm waiting on the lights now. I'm waiting on three 400w set ups (2HPS, 1MH), I'm using a compost/dirt potting mix. Got the perlite, PH/light/watering meter combo, micro sheers, simple timer, thermometer/hygrometer combo, mylar, ordor eating CFLs, 5 gal containers & 12" saucers. I'll be flowering with the 2 HPSs in a big walk in closet & veging with the MH in a different room and I'm starting with Citrus Diesel, Sour Diesel, Grape Ape, Blueberry, and Oak Leaf (8 plant total not including veg)

Since this is my first grow I'm a little short on cash and I may have to get a 3 month harvest, 1 mo. veg & 2 mo. flower. I'm sure I'll get a lower yeild which sucks, but as long as I flower for the full 2 months I shouldn't loose any potency, right?

I was told by a worker at Home Depot, that I should pre-soak the perlite so it doesn't soak up the water when I water the plants. (of course this would be PH balanced bottled water). Is there any truth to this?

Does anyone know if perlite has a PH level that has to be taken into account?

I'm also going to try to get a digital camera so I can keep a journal. I firgured on the first grow this may end up being the most important tool of all.

Click to expand...

pearlite does not absorb water, it is a crystalline substance . it is used because of its large surface space. if u look at it in a micro scope you will find the surface to be very pitted. The purpose of this is to hold water on the surface, you can use it to humidify a terrarium and things like that. you can add it to soil to increase drainage in your soil. I use about 4 parts foxfarm and one part pearlite. and pearlite does not change the ph of ur soil.

as far a a three month harvest. you may be able to get good results with that plan. depends on the strains really, if you are growing indica then chances are it will only need about 2 months of flower to get good results. but if u are growing a sativa with a longer flowering period you may be harvesting much to early. some sativs take 70 days to complete the flowering stage. my advice would be: if your going thru all this trouble to grow, you might as well let you plants reach full maturity so that your work really pays off.

perlite does not retain water. it aerates your medium in a sense. and it has a neutral pH. try and drop water on a couple rocks of perlite. it will not absorb. VERMICULITE retains water, and i hate using it in my grows. it like my soil to dry out quick.

i hear you though dude, i'm short on cash, my girls are 3 weeks from sprout and looking beastly. i hope i can wait for another 2 weeks veg. might just say F*#K IT, and flip the switch next week, LOL. gimme da loot, gimme da loot!!!!

ooppps... me bad .. got vermiculate and perlite mixed up.. sorry about this.. won't let it happen again..lol..
and i agree with ksmo about the three month plan.. if you are using indica dom strains, three months time should be plenty of time.. if anything, you could always veg them for a shorter period of time as you would want to make sure you don't cut them down before they reach peak maturity.. ie, cloudy and amber trics.. as if you did pick them before seeing this, it would surely affect potency.. a shorter veg time would more than likely just affect overall yeild, but not potency. a shorter flowering time will definitely affect potency..

Sour diesel is a sativa, grape ape is sativa, blueberry is indica, and oak leaf i have never heard of. So ur diesel strains and grape ape may want to grow medium to tall, so u may end up with plants that are close to 3 feet at the end of flowering, unless u train them or somthing

I was told by the dispensories selling the clones that one of the diesels is indica and one is sativa, can't remember which was which. Didn't ask about the blueberry (I just like the taste - better than blueberry pop tarts) and I know nothing at all about the grape ape or the oak leaf except the grape ape probably has a grape smell & taste that may have some consumer appeal. I got talked into them to tell the truth. Needless to say I'll be growing 2 of each of the diesels & blueberry and 1 of ea of the grape ape & oak leaf.

I didn't really ask the clone sellers which plants were indica & which where sativa, I just asked about flowring cycle and all these plants are supposedly around a 60 day cycle. I think one of them was 67 days, but 7 or 10 days one way or the other I can manage, a whole month is a different story.

Thanks racerboy, you reminded me that I need a magnifier/microscope of some kind, I knew I was forgetting something.

Oh, I'll also be vegging this first batch with all 3 lights. When I put them into flower I'll take clones and move the MH out of the closet to grow the clones. The 3rd light (MH) will help them grow faster in veg I'm sure.

I'm going to try to go the whole 4 months if I can, but I only have $3k left in the bank. I guess it all depends on how much the electric bill is, and how many PB&J sandwiches I can stomach. I guess I can also get a job, but I really didn't want to leave the plants unattended for 10 hours a day.

By the way, I'm using a pre-mixed potting soil. It says it's a compost mix, but the lady said it also uses chicken poop, which is almost as good as guano from what I've been told. Is that enough fertilizer for a full grow, or should I get some guano pellets?