Newbie First Grow [06/16/2008]

Ok so, I'm just getting started with my first batch of homegrown herb. I've already begun germinating my seeds as of last night and I'm already seeing a few start to sprout . The seeds were picked myself from bags I've rolled up over the past few months and there were maybe 15 - 20 (I don't expect them all to sprout, many seeds were small. I'd only expect 7-10).. but I only smoke the finest so I'm confident on my batch.

Well since this is my first attempt I'm not gonna go all out, my original plan was to grow them in a large plastic cups until they were maybe 12" tall and transplant them to a path in the woods nearby my house. I know a perfect place to start a garden that offers a good amount of sunlight.

To start off indoors however, I only have two desk lamps - they do, however, generate a very good amount of heat for such small lamps. I'm confident they can help my plants grow until there transplanted outside, maybe I can even put them under the lamps by night and in the sun by day (remember this is just my first grow mostly for experimenting, I'm not looking to go out buying lights just yet).

Ok so here's my update:



I checked on my babies, and 6 sprouted so i went ahead and planted them.



the pics are off my phone so not the best quality. Like I said, I've got two desk lamps.. they generate a lot of heat for the size, and I'm not tryna go all out buying lights and everything. This is only until they're about a foot tall so i can plant them outside.



I used Miracle-Gro garden soil That I found in my garage. I also found some fertilizer called Lebenon Landscape or something like that. It's not liqiud so I'm guessing I shouldn't use it? It reads 15-25-16.

Theres a window right by where my plants are so I can keep the fresh air coming in, and it's in a large container right next to my bed so I can quickly hide it from anyone. The only person that knows is my brother.

Question - should I keep them away from the light until they pop up?

Can someone please help me out, I don't want the lights on them before they pop up if its not good.

bumpp......

Hi there, put it this way - they don't need light UNTIL they pop up. Then it's really important to get light on them asap so the seedlings don't stretch. However, I would get CFL bulbs (the cool / daylight ones, high wattage) rather than those desk lamps. You need to get your lights as close as possible (a couple of inches) to the seedlings to prevent stretching, and those lamps will be way too hot to do that. Also the more CFLs you can afford the better. They thrive on LIGHT!!!

Also if you are using MG soil then be aware that it usually contains a lot of nutrients, so whatever you do don't feed the seedlings any more nutes otherwise you will most likely burn them.

An open window is OK as long as there is a breeze on the seedlings - this is necessary to promote thick, strong stems. If you can't get a breeze a moving fan to simulate an outdoor breeze will do the job.

Otherwise, good going so far. All the very best to you and your seedlings

greenb.

Thanks a lot for the advice man. I think I'll go pick up those bulbs this week.

No probs, it will definitely be worth it, honest
Good luck, hope everything goes well.

greenb.

UPDATE:

Just checked on them a few moments ago, and two of them are starting to pop!! I'll post some pics up when they grow a little more. I also had some more seeds germinating for another little experiment that have sprouted, so I just planted them right outside my house. Theres about 4 of them, and if they survive I'll transplant them when they get bigger.

QUESTION:

So I checked out some CFL bulbs on home depot's website, and I'm not too bright on the watts and everything. What wattage would I need and would I need to buy entirely new lights or can I just screw in new CFL bulbs?

Heres the link to the websites CFL bulbs: http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Navigation?Ntt=cfl+light+bulbs&Ntk=AllProps&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&N=10000003+90401&Nty=1&No=12&rpp=12&langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053&style=A

any suggestions?

Hi again, glad to hear your seeds have popped - well done! I'm a strictly outside grower so not the best person to advise on lighting, but I think you should look for something better than what is on offer on that site. You would be looking at the blue packet there, ie "daylight" bulbs, but I would suggest you go for a higher wattage. eg 27W minimum, and as high a lumen rating as possible. Have a read at this page in the FAQs and you will get a lot of real good info which will help you: GROWFAQ

You might get away with those lamps for a short while, but you might need a bigger spread of light as your plants get bigger. Ideally you'll want lights above AND in among the plants so all the leaves get share. If you have a look arounf the Grow Journals you'll see pics of peoples' set-ups. As I said, the more lights the better!

greenb.

Man, thanks a lot again greenb!! All this info is helping me a lot.

And yeah, I'd prefer to grow outdoors but since this is my first I wanted to make sure they start growing first for a guaranteed start. After maybe a week or whenever they're a good size I'll move em outside. Any tips on outdoor growing?

No problem juelz, that's what it's all about This is my first grow as well BTW, although I'm a bit further on. You learn a hell of a lot very quickly on this forum - it's a truly excellent resource and the people on it are well able and more than willing to be of as much help as they possibly can.

When I said I grow outdoors I mean in pots in the back garden. I'm very fortunate in that we are basically surrounded by fields here, and in addition the garden is really secluded. Not sure whether you are considering a garden or a guerilla grow, but either way my first piece of advice would be security at all times. If at home make sure no-one is going to see your plants, and if in a forest or somewhere, be really careful you're not spotted going to and from your site(s). Also, no-one even knows I'm doing this, not even my best friends - it's the only way as people WILL talk no matter how much you trust them. It makes for good conversation

I have two batches of plants going at the moment, one at 38 days the other at 19 days. I've learned a lot. I did like you, started them inside and then moved them out but a lot sooner. The first batch I grew under a kitchen strip light (LOL - not recommended) for a week or so and then put them outside during the day and back under the light at night for another week or two. Definitely recommend this man. The sun is the best light source, the wind will strengthen the stems etc and then they get the benefit of even more light at night. If you are in a position to do this you'd be off to a great start. I put my second batch out 24/7 two days after they sprouted (LOL) - they are doing really well, but definitely a slower start than the first batch.

At some point you will be re-potting into bigger pots or transplanting into the ground. Prepare your soil well, mix about 20-25 per cent perlite in with good quality soil, it will help with drainage. And find out about watering - they love lots of water but if you overdo it the impact can actually be worse than them not getting enough. A good watering every three or four days is usually about right for me.

Well I could go on and on LOL, but I really recommend that you have a read at the GROWFAQ. You will learn a hell of a lot there. And don't be afraid to ask if you get stuck. I have to do it all the time LOL. You may want to look at my grow journals to see what I'm up to. The plants are pretty resilient - they must be if I haven't killed mine yet hehe. But there are things to watch like watering, feeding etc that can get you into a mess if you don't get it right.

https://www.rollitup.org/grow-journals/75638-first-grow-outdoor-uk.html
https://www.rollitup.org/grow-journals/79255-first-grow-outdoor-uk-phase.html

Keep up the good work - you've done well so far. It really is fun so just relax and enjoy

Speak to you later,
greenb.

Hey, I just recently started my first grow as well (about 1 month ago). Ive been planning it for a while but def. wasnt ready when my friend showed me the 3 plants growing outside his porch. i transplanted 2 of them, one which smells VERY skunky, the other not so much and have been growing them since. Ive learned sooooooooooooooooooooooo much about growing that i never knew before and would def still condsider myself a newbie grower. but i can give you some good advice seeing as how we're quite close as far as stages of growth/mistakes to be made.

1) Get fluorescents- home depot has them on sale, the bright white or daylight 23w (100W) screw ins. i have 1 on either side of my two plants and a twin 24in tube hang light in my closet. the skunk got sick for a while (crappy fertilizer/over warering- i think) but the other is getting HUGE. i hope to have pictures up soon.

2)LEDs - Gallium Indium Nitride UV, violet, purple, blue, aqua, turquoise, green, white. Also Gallium Arsenide and others. New LED MUSEUM! GaN, InGaN, SiC, GaAs, GaP, GaAlP, ZnSe, flashlight, flashlights. That website shows spectrums for many many bulbs. look for spikes in blue (400-500) for veg growth and the red for flowering. also- try Miracle Grow 24-8-16 water soluble fert early on. 4 days after switching to it my plants Exploded. literally doubling in size (mass) in a week. anyways i hope you're successful in your endeavors



BTW- EXPERIENCED GROWERS:

How big of a container do i need for my plant? its 16in tall and had 3 main shoots on top, others on lower nodes ~6-7 nodes total. and still veggin. im plannin to take some of the shoots for clones. ... pictures soon

Yeah I'm planning on transplanting to pots in the woods... it's a huge area tho, like the entire woods are all inter-twining paths like a friggen city lol and me and some of my childhood friend are the only one who knows those woods so I feel I'm down with the security. As for your grow journal, i'm checking it out now.

Lol and it's funny you mention the miracle grow Brute, I have the exact same water soluble that reads that. It's a hose attachment though so I'm going to have to fill a few bottles up with it - thanks for the tip tho, I wasn't sure if it would be a good idea to use that. I'm gonna throw that into the watering when I move them outside in about a week or two.

UPDATE:
So a few of my plants have sprouted and grew leaves!!

I'm so happy about this, as you can see in the pic above (not too good quality) a few are poking out. One of them is growing really well! heres a pic:

3 others have sprouted and the leaves are visible but that one is the best looking. I'm gonna be heading to Home Depot today to pick up some CFL's.

Hi guys,

Be careful with those nutes. I wouldn't feed them until they are AT LEAST 3 or 4 weeks old as even nute free soil will have enough nutes and trace elements to keep them going for a few weeks or more. And if you are using Miracle Grow soil make sure you check if it has added nutes (as far as I know it almost invariably does) If so then be aware that there can be enough in there to keep your plants going for much longer, eg several months. Feeding too many nutes can severely damage your plants, especially when they're young. There are people on this forum who used MG soil and it burned their plants without them even adding any nutes .....

greenb.

Yeah, so I've heard. The soil I'm using has some smart release that releases a good amount plant food n nutes after like 2 weeks or something like that so i prolly won't add many nutes if any for a while. Thanks for the reminder, I just ran down and checked the bag for the soil to get this info.

Here's my day 10 update:

The plants haven't gotten much light over the past few days because I was out of town..








There were only 4 that survived. Praying for good things...

They look pretty stretched out. You definitely want to get cooler lights, and put them closer.

You should also add more soil to those cups. Fill them up to just below those little round leaves (cotyledons) - looks like you can afford to just fill the cups almost to the brim. That will help to strengthen them and roots will eventually grow from the newly buried stems.

tryin to find my pics so i can show you my veg set up with cfl and an led panel,

i took a milk crate and made a platform then placed the lcd panel about 2 inches above the sprouts, the cfl lights ( look like a curley q) work great, they hit the light directly non the plant but dont put off any heat like a regular 60 watt bulb does, like when you unscrew the bitch after its been on like 30 mins? thats hot, the cfl? not so hot. so i put my cups under the light led/ cfl whatever you have, thats gonna keep your girls nice and short. i used the milk crate cause i can wrap a mylar car window reflecter 3/4 around it and still have my fan oscilating onto them to develop sturdy stems. hope this helps in some way

these are under 3 weeks old, and had a really rough start, but they were only under 6 cfl light. i lst'd em