Second grow, White Widow X Big Bud Feminized. Hope you enjoy :D!

Well hello everyone. Ocho2 is the name, and I am glad to have you here reading my journal. Of course many of you will not post, but all posts and input are very appreciated as well as given rep ^_^!

My first grow ever was stolen, so I didn't count it as my first grow. My first grow from seed to smoke, I harvested around a month ago, and was just a random bag seed. It was grown under energy saver CFL's, and they were garbage lights. The plant, in my albums, gave me a half ounce. Though it was not much, it was most definitely great smoke.

So now, I have come to this next chapter. Below here is a list of everything I am using, from lights to soil. Everything is the same as my first grow/harvest, also was used in that grow, except the soil (medium) and lighting.

*Also, many thanks to both the Attitude Seed Bank and Female Seeds. Everyone out there that has worries or doubts about the Attitude Seed Bank, you have no reason to . I have seen so many individuals complaining about Attitude stating that they "Received cracked seeds, small seeds, and seeds that will not germinate and were duds." Well I hate to be BLUNT about it, but those people did not do their homework. Attitude is the company that ships and sells for the SEED BREEDERS. If you do not research breeders, and just choose a random one on the site, you'll never know what you will get..or if anything at all. Female seeds is a great breeder, and though my plants as I speak are currently only sprouts, they are VERY green, strong, and healthy babies. Do your research, and do not worry about or talk down on the Attitude Seed Bank.

List of the grow equipment:

-Grow Room: Closet grow. Four foot long, two foot wide, and between eight and nine foot tall.
-Lighting: 400 Watt HPS.
-Ballast: Electronic Ballast. (Allows the output of the bulb to be changed to 100 Watts, 250 Watts, and the maximum 400 Watts)
-Containers: Five gallon buckets x3.
-Medium: Coco-Tek (Coco Coir), mixed with a VERY (I mean VERY) light soil.
-Fan: Honeywell Fan. (Ten bucks at Walmart, this puppy packs power though with it's three speeds)
-Temperature and Humidity: Accurite Hydrometer. (Also from Walmart, costing only seven dollars. I cured with it as well, and its 100% accurate.)
-Nutrients: For Vegging I have Jack's Classic All Purpose 20-20-20 water soluble plant food. For flowering I have Jack's Classic Blossom Booster 10-20-30 water soluble plant food.
-Seeds: Feminized White Widow X Big Bud x3. (No not WW and BB plants, the two were bred together ;3)

So now that I have introduced myself, as well as my grow, I hope many of you will do the same . I know I have very little posts, but when my grow was stolen when I originally signed up on here, I kind of went off of the map >.<.

Below I will continue to write VERY in depth details on what has happened, what I do step by step, as well as hopefully learn more from you more experienced growers. Thank you very much for stopping by, and I hope you guys subscribe and enjoy everything !

-Ocho2

Ill tag along. Good luck with it!

Germination:

I went with a sort of dual method of germination. I tossed all three of the beans onto a paper towel, covered with another paper towel, and then moistened.

My first bean sprouted its tail within eight hours, and was planted a 1/4 of one inch deep in the Coco-Tek. I lowered the light down to ten inches above where the seedlings would sprout, as well as lowered the light output from 400 Watts down to 100 Watts. Many people recommend using a CFL bulb for the babies when they break the soil, but I already installed the light into the ceiling and applied caulking to secure the hooks so no accidents are possible .

The other two seeds were germinating for around 32 hours, and they finally cracked open. Though they cracked open, and I was able to see it's tail inside of the bean, no tail had emerged yet. After reading a lot of information, I decided to plant them without the tail being present, which I have never done before. That is, of course, with the cracked side down.

Twenty four hours after being planted in the Coco-Tek, the first seedling that had a tail was born ^_^. Ironically he sprouted on Easter, and was a great Easter find . And just so you all can see, here is the first sprout I found Easter evening .



Exactly twenty four hours later, as well as exactly twenty four hours from when it was planted, a second seedling was born. It was not as noticeable as the first one above, but looking closely revealed he had made it to the top . Here he is an hour after breaking the soil :3.



The third and final seed, or as I call the Ugly Duckling of the group, is currently emerging the soil. Spotting this guy was VERY difficult, and simply looking like a crumble of soil. Like the first seedling that sprouted on Easter, she still has the seed on her head. I strongly believe that it will shed it within a day, as there is a very noticeable crack almost fully around the seed. Here is a couple pictures of her, look closely !





So there you have it everyone :3. I started writing everything down in a notebook, but now that I finally have sprouts, I want to type it up and share it with everyone. I will continue to constantly update this, please subscribe and stick around if you are interested !

supchaka said:

Ill tag along. Good luck with it!

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Thank you very much supchaka, I appreciate it very much ! +Rep for you, and any input you have (negative and positive) is also very appreciated !

Soil/Medium and Feeding:



Above is the medium I am using. The brick expanded to fill 3 five gallon buckets, and I mixed a VERY VERY light soil in with it. As many of you know, and may not know, Coco has no nutrients whatsoever. That being said, there may be very very slight presence of nutrients in my medium due to the soil mixed in. To me though, that is no guarantee nor enough to rely the lives of these girls on.

So I have read many mixed opinions on feeding in Coco, as well as the life of new sprouts in Coco. Technically I am not growing in 100% Coco, but it is most definitely no less than 95% Coco. Many say that seedlings/young plants have enough energy and life to make it the first 1 to 2 weeks in the medium. Even though that is in fact true, it is NOT so much true with planting in Coco. I read a very good thread, in which I will post its link on here shortly, that explained the individuals problems as well as pictures of his 3 to 7 day old plants. The plants were yellow, and had many deficiencies. Reason being, they had no food in their medium, and was simply feeding them with normal water. The water where I live is hard water, and in my opinion tastes so horrible. In fact, after drinking it, it kind of sends you to the toilet >.<. With what I have read, if the water is not good to drink, don't feed it to your babies/plants. As I did for my last grow, I simply went to the store and bought individual gallons of water. I then marked them accordingly to what they are (Normal, Vegging, and Flowering). Below is a picture of my nutrients, which I used in my past grow, as well as specifications for its feeding.



Vegging: Jack's Classic All Purpose 20-20-20
Flowering: Jack's Classic Blossom Booster 10-30-20

The plants I currently have, when planted and first broke the soil, received squirts of normal water around them. Now that these girls are from a day to almost three days old, one still not completely sprouted as shown in my previous pictures, I gave them a VERY diluted nutrient feeding.

These nutrients state for indoors it is 1/2 of a TEASPOON per gallon of water every other week, or 1/4 TEASPOON per gallon of water every time you water your plants. I made the 1/4 strength in the gallon of water. I use a spray bottle for watering, and do not mist the plants due to risk of burning them. The spray bottle, today, was half full of normal water and I added the 1/4 strength to fill the other half of the bottle up. This solution is not the strength I will start at for vegging, and is pretty dilluted for these brand new babies of mine. Once they are between one and two weeks old, I will use the 1/4 strength and not dilute the solution whatsoever.

After seeing the shape of plants in threads of people growing in Coco, and not feeding nutrients from seedling and when they break the soil, it is quite heart breaking. If anything happened to these girls, I would be devastated </3. As I said before, this is my first grow with an actual light, and an actual strain .

Thank you again everyone for reading as well as tagging along. This is just the beginning of the thread, as well as the lives of these little girls. It's going to be very exciting to experience a completely different grow than before, and I am happy to have you all here ! Updates will happen daily, as I am obsessed with every move they make and taking insane amounts of pictures. Thanks again (,,)^_^(,,)!

-Ocho2

I'm along for the ride. Looking great so far. I didnt count my first attempt either because I had no idea what I was doing and didnt do any where near enough research. So now I am in the middle of my second week of flower in my 2nd First Grow. Also just Germed some Blue Cheese #2 night before last. Keep up the good work.

Cheers

This should be interesting. I am switching to coco base " supersoil"in the near future. I have perpetual grow going and use a 400w hps. I watch...rw

Lighting:

My mistake, as this should have been towards the beginning of all the posts, but I will toss it in here anyways.

My light is a 400 Watt HPS Bulb, with an electronic ballast as well. The electronic ballast allows me to lower and raise the output of the light. The options are 100 Watts, 250 Watts, and the maximum 400 Watts. Also, there is a sheet of glass on the light, which is very helpful. The glass allows you to get the light closer to your plants, and it prevents a lot of extreme heat. Of course both 250 Watts and 400 Watts is too high for these new babies, and it is currently set to 100 Watts. I have the light currently between eight and nine inches above the seedlings, and there is absolutely no extreme heat on the sprouts. I used the very useful test of putting my hand by the seedlings, with the back of my hand towards the light, and kept it there for a minute. Felt perfect, and as if my hand was typing as I am now . Some people do 30 to 60 seconds, but in my opinion the longer you test the more sure you are. Don't burn yourselves though, safety first! The two pictures below is of my light and ballast ! And the picture of the light being operational displays the flowers I bought for my Mrs., and was giving them light while waiting for germination to finish .







I hope you all enjoy what you have seen so far. I am not a professional grower, but I know I and all of you most certainly have the potential to be ! If anyone has any questions, please do ask, and I will help as much as I possibly can. Along with that, if you have any advice or recommendations for me, please do post. Rep is given out to everyone that follows, has input, advice, or just sticks around . Thanks you all so much for following along, as well as simply stopping in and taking a peak and the thread. It is all greatly appreciated ! Thanks again !

-Ocho2

jsamuel24 said:

I'm along for the ride. Looking great so far. I didnt count my first attempt either because I had no idea what I was doing and didnt do any where near enough research. So now I am in the middle of my second week of flower in my 2nd First Grow. Also just Germed some Blue Cheese #2 night before last. Keep up the good work.

Cheers

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Welcome aboard jsamuel, and it is a pleasure to have you here. My old neighbor, who lived above me and moved out last September, was one of the only people that new about my grow. My Mrs. when we began didn't smoke, and was raised on a bad concept of marijuana. I left the back window unlocked when I smoked one evening, and went upstate for two nights to visit family. Came back, there was just a bunch of CFL's hanging and no plants.

Ironically, I saw him face to face, and lectured him like a child. He then proceeded to pay me $500.00 for the wrongdoing, but I still have to contact with him. And the even more ironic thing about it, not knowing anything about growing/drying/curing he took my plants, chopped them up, and just baked ALL OF IT in the oven. Ruined everything, and still lost $500.00 xD.

Remember everyone that is reading and is newer, silent power is the #1 thing to remember. I learned the hard way, but learning lessons is harsh but very helpful in the end.

+Rep to you jsamuel, welcome again !

roofwayne said:

This should be interesting. I am switching to coco base " supersoil"in the near future. I have perpetual grow going and use a 400w hps. I watch...rw

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Welcome roof ! Yeah this is my first grow in coco, and a good light, but I love it so far ..and yet it has only just begun xD. I hope the thread is helpful, and any insight you have of any degree is very useful and helpful . I have an order coming from Attitude again, just to be stocked up. I ordered Bubblegummer Feminized x 4, and Pure AK Feminized x4 both from Female Seeds. The freebie that tagged along with it was feminized and named Critical Mass 33. Also, Attitude had an Easter Promo, and it was through EVA Seeds. So along with all of the above, these freebies from EVA are coming as well.

1x Feminized TNT Kush, 1x Feminized Blue Lemon Thai, 1x Monster, and 1x Feminized Jamaican Dream. And yet the freebie that came with these WWxBB was x1 Feminized Green Bud, but I figured just do an all WWxBB grow, and I'll do multiple strains next one .

Bah, my apologies. I do have a tendency to ramble, but rambling is good to me though XD. Welcome aboard again, and +Rep to you. Thanks again :3!

I ordered from sea of seeds; 5 Maui Wowie fem..It their birthday so they giving like 20 free seeds.I got these because some kid I know, want some grow off, between his brother and me. He bought the seeds, I want to see if it's like 1980 Maui wowie I smoked, I'm old. Be good to talk to you, I am doing my 4th grow. It's in my signature, check it out....rw

Current Setup and Update

So, though I have been typing these posts all in one day, this has all occurred over the past few days. I appreciate everyone following along, as well as showing interest in the grow. Having others tag along adds to the extreme excitement I already have, and thank you again . My Mrs. enjoys seeing everything, as well as hearing about it, and smoking it..but I have a tendency to talk her head off. So now, I will ramble to all of you, and I warn you..I ramble a lot . I love every aspect of the plants, from the scientific aspect, to every bit of it.

So below here is a picture of the current setup. As I said, the light is between 8 and nine inches above. No extreme heat, back of my hand does not get hot or burn, my temperature is at 73F, and does not exceed 77F, and my humidity is currently at 38% and has no exceeded 43%. This is the setup I have, but was taken before the seedlings sprouted. The lamp is lower, and the numbers below on the hydrometer are not correct in the picture.



My first seedling, that popped on Easter Sunday, is nearing three days old. Below is two pictures of her, one from the side, and one from above. I hate how my camera on my phone can be SO good at times, and then other times it won't focus in on something so simple >.<.





Seedling number two, that broke the soil 24 hours ago, is now one day old. The two picture below are both picture from the side and above. My apologies for the top view pictures, as the camera didn't want to cooperate like it did for the other beautiful photos.





As for my third girl, she is still in the same state with the seed on her head. I'll post the two pictures of her again that I posted earlier in the thread below this, but the only difference is that she has risen up a bit more from what you see here in these photos. I am sure it is nothing to worry about, as I can see she is wanting the break the casing off.

View attachment 2116865

View attachment 2116866

Everyone that is following, the seedling with the shell on it is nothing to worry about is it? I know it would be dumb to touch it or try and take it off. I figure that no matter how long it takes, leaving it be and letting it do what it needs to naturally is best. I mean you can see below where the seed is that the growth looks good, healthy, and has made it this far.

Well everyone, that is it for me tonight. Officially typed/posted for three hours, and I need a break xD. Again, I appreciate everyone taking interest and following along. I know these girls are only seedlings, but of course that doesn't last long xD. Have a wonderful evening/day, and I will be sure to update tomorrow !

-Ocho2

If the shell is cracked open far enough I'll take my little fiskar trimmers that are spring loaded, then put my finger on the side of the seed that's still closed and use the trimmer to separate the shell on the other side.

supchaka said:

If the shell is cracked open far enough I'll take my little fiskar trimmers that are spring loaded, then put my finger on the side of the seed that's still closed and use the trimmer to separate the shell on the other side.

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I was very gentle, and went with your advice. The shell came off of her, and number three is officially born . Thank you very much supchaka, helps a lot.

I now face a new issue, and I hope it does not cost me all three plants. I did not realize, nor research, that you are supposed to soak Coco with water before using it. All I did was take the block it came in, broke in down one hundred percent with my hands, mixed it with the light bit of soil, and planted the seeds in it. Also, all I have really seen is that you are supposed to use Coco nutrients for the Coco medium, when I am using Jacks Classic as I posted previously.

I have yet to find anything on the internet about what happens if you do not soak the Coco. Maybe someone can pop in with hopefully good input XD?

The seedlings are looking really good, and no problems even when looking with my hand scope. This being my first time in Coco, I hope everything is not ruined.

Ocho2 said:

I was very gentle, and went with your advice. The shell came off of her, and number three is officially born . Thank you very much supchaka, helps a lot.

I now face a new issue, and I hope it does not cost me all three plants. I did not realize, nor research, that you are supposed to soak Coco with water before using it. All I did was take the block it came in, broke in down one hundred percent with my hands, mixed it with the light bit of soil, and planted the seeds in it. Also, all I have really seen is that you are supposed to use Coco nutrients for the Coco medium, when I am using Jacks Classic as I posted previously.

I have yet to find anything on the internet about what happens if you do not soak the Coco. Maybe someone can pop in with hopefully good input XD?

The seedlings are looking really good, and no problems even when looking with my hand scope. This being my first time in Coco, I hope everything is not ruined.

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Yeah you might have some PH issues. What "I" would do if I were you is prepare the coco correctly then put it into 16 OZ party cups and move the babies to those cups. Then re-do the mix you have in the big pots. Id leave them in the party cups for about 2-3 weeks. Dont worry about hurting the plants, you can move them around now and then, they're more resilient than people think.

That could be a problem, you could put it in bigger pot. I don't see your size pot. you could expand it and transplant into a bigger pot. You can use soil base nutes with coco, It consider soiless soil, I am going to mix a "super soil" and only a top dressing about half way thru....rw

So, the fact that I broke the brick up completely may have saved me a bit, but not fully.

At the top of the soil, there were a few small chunks of Coco that were not broken up. When water touched them, I watched them inflate, and then when touched they collapse into the medium they are supposed to be. I mean, the coco is broken up like this from the bottom of the buckets to the top (except the couple pieces I mentioned). So hopefully, that won't be a problem as I though it would be.

A lot of people say rinsing is also to get rid of the salts, but from what I have read the General Hydroponics Coco-Tek is very low in salt.

Either I am being overly paranoid, or I still may face an issue. Hopefully someone that has used this medium, or Coco in general, will come shed their light and knowledge on the thread. I don't have a PH meter, and the majority of thread ramble about the PH levels. I understand why, but in all of my time growing from seed to bud and even the grow the what stolen, I have never faced any plant issues. Hopefully this won't be the first one.

Also, I sort of understand flushing Coco, because the nutrients you feed the plants get retained and too high eventually. I have seen so many misconceptions on this that people are going as far as saying flush daily after daily watering. Must be completely bogus, or I am an idiot >.<.

I read a rule of thumb is flushing once a month, according to Ask Ed's Coco Guide, but I really want to be certain with someone that has dealt with this..and can also assess my situations severity .

Onward to a picture . I know it's not much, but my third girl was having trouble shedding that seed on her head. Thank you to supchaka, I gently removed it, and here she is below .



Well thank you all for sticking with me and the grow. Hopefully someone with advice on my Coco situation will stop by soon, but until then, I am going to attempt to not worry about the worst possible thing it could be xD. I'll be back for updates, and for chit chatting whenever anyone is around . Thanks again all ^_~.

-Ocho2

I use botanicare organic nutes and mine specifically say soil or coco. But not all are created the same.

Also worth mentioning that you arent using your tap water is that you will probably need a cal/mag supplement. Thats a big thing for coco users. People who use tap water dont usually have issues.