True newbie question--AG & old bag seeds

[jiminberwyn]

Hi guys,

TeK, first of all, thanks. I was up late one night and an infomerical for the AG came on, I said damn! I wonder if you can use that to grow bud! So, I started doing some google searches, found this site and more importantlly, found your thread. Your information is so valuable to the newbie grower.

I'm not just new to growing bud, but new to growing everything. I've never grown a plant in my life. I have a newbie question here.

AG came in last week. On Friday, the FF nuts came in. I prepped the water, added 1/2 nutes according to the FF schedule for the first week, chk'd PH, etc... (see? I'm new but learned lots from reading your thread...) and started my career as an AG-freak. I didn't germinate in a towel, did so directly in the pods. It's now Tuesday morning, early. I don't see any activity whatsoever. Here's my question -- can seeds go "bad"? I have old bag seed -- probably 6-10 months old, stored at room temp, am trying with those. The seeds for the most part are green, some darker, but I went through and chose what I thought were the greenest. Can someone tell me if seeds can go bad/expire? Thanks!

 

[wafflehouselover]

green seeds? your better off using the brown ones, the best one are the brown ones with tiger strip on them, and put them in a wet paper towel and first sign of a taproot transplant them and you should see them take off.

 

[jiminberwyn]

Thanks for the tip. I was hoping to try the AG for germination, but I'll follow your tip and do the same. I've shipped off seven potential babies in a moist paper towel, into a dark place!

We'll see what happens...

 

[asiankatie]

Im new to this forum as well, and saw an infomercial as well on the AG and thought the same thing, started googling and found this website, ive been reading through posts for the most of the day and still have so many newb questions.

are you JUST using the AG through the whole process? or are you going to be "transplanting" them after a certain point?

are you sticking with the light that came with it? or are you swaping those out too? and are you going to be making any modifications as far as the height of the light goes?

let me know how its going im curious to see if this is a worth while investment

ty

katie

 

[jiminberwyn]

Hey Katie, welcome.

I encourage you to purchase an AG and we can begin the adventure together! I followed the germination rules and so far two have cracked. These have been "planted" into the AG. So, not transplating from soil, pure aerogrow for me! I'll post pics as soon as the little ladies (hopefully) sprout.

As far as the lights, I'm looking into how to manually lower them, but as it stands right now they're simply on the lowest setting. My grow, right now, is limited, so the AG fits perfect. This is merely a test for me, hope to yield some buds for myself. Not out for profit. If this works well, I'll look into a more customized approach and purchase myself some higher quality lighting.

What I've learned so far -- get some good nutes and follow Foxfarm's schedule at 1/2 strength for the first few weeks. Also, don't use tap water. Impurties as well as pH control can create problems for you. Distilled water is giving me more control over everything. Get a digital pH meter. F the test kits.

I'd be more than happy to share my experiences as they happen with you and the rest of the readers...

 

[jiminberwyn]

Also, read this thread in its entirety -- https://www.rollitup.org/hydroponics-aeroponics/1614-aerogarden.html

It has a wealth of knowledge in it. Jim

 

[asiankatie]

Hey Katie, welcome.

I encourage you to purchase an AG and we can begin the adventure together! I followed the germination rules and so far two have cracked. These have been "planted" into the AG. So, not transplating from soil, pure aerogrow for me! I'll post pics as soon as the little ladies (hopefully) sprout.

As far as the lights, I'm looking into how to manually lower them, but as it stands right now they're simply on the lowest setting. My grow, right now, is limited, so the AG fits perfect. This is merely a test for me, hope to yield some buds for myself. Not out for profit. If this works well, I'll look into a more customized approach and purchase myself some higher quality lighting.

What I've learned so far -- get some good nutes and follow Foxfarm's schedule at 1/2 strength for the first few weeks. Also, don't use tap water. Impurties as well as pH control can create problems for you. Distilled water is giving me more control over everything. Get a digital pH meter. F the test kits.

I'd be more than happy to share my experiences as they happen with you and the rest of the readers...

AWESOME! how much are digi pH meters. strips arent horrible. i used to be a hardcore fish enthusiast. ^_- So im used to them. i think its just a matter of constantly changing the water, just like with fish. because until some sort of good bacteria grows in the machine, the pH will probably be spiking all the time, just like in a fish tank.. or at least i would think.

yeah i really want to do this. but my boyfriend is now being a butthole about the whole thing. he doesnt want to have huge cabinets and fans and lights everywhere....

what are you gonna do once they (the plants) get to a larger size, thats too high for the lamp?

do you have them in a cabinet?

 

[jiminberwyn]

AWESOME! how much are digi pH meters. strips arent horrible. i used to be a hardcore fish enthusiast. ^_- So im used to them. i think its just a matter of constantly changing the water, just like with fish. because until some sort of good bacteria grows in the machine, the pH will probably be spiking all the time, just like in a fish tank.. or at least i would think.

yeah i really want to do this. but my boyfriend is now being a butthole about the whole thing. he doesnt want to have huge cabinets and fans and lights everywhere....

what are you gonna do once they (the plants) get to a larger size, thats too high for the lamp?

do you have them in a cabinet?

F the bf. Do what you want. Cut him off till he complies...watch how fast he changes his mind.

I have the unit in a spare closet, with custom vents. Also, some custom mounted fans for air circulation. I use an ionic breeze in there to keep the air pure.

I plan to flower early, assuming things work out. I'm not looking for any grow records, so I'm hopeful my plants won't grow out of their unit. This is about trial and error for me, as a first time grower. So, I plan to make a ton of mistakes, learn, and keep going. My condo is soon to be built, so I'll have more room to define and control a proper area where I'll build out my lights, etc.

You never learn until you try, so go for it! To be honest, since I've never grown shit in my life, I was amazed the goddamn seeds that have been sitting in a bag for over a year germinated. I'm already ahead of where I thought I'd be!

This can become an expensive hobby as I tend to want the best of everything. I do think, however, I'll grow to purchase a fuller size cabinet and really take off, once I learn to cultivate properly. When are you considering the purchase? Do you have a spot chosen?

 

[jiminberwyn]

Quick update --

I've added two side-lights (100W CFL's/daylight), an airstone & pump, and have hung the AG light on chains, lowering the light as close to the little sprouts as possible. I have one popping up now, others are coming. The roots on each of the three plants are growing out and soon to reach the res. Side lights will come in handy when my babies get a little larger. Airstone is rocking....

More to come. I'm about a week in...

 

[Majastee]

Quick update --

I've added two side-lights (100W CFL's/daylight), an airstone & pump, and have hung the AG light on chains, lowering the light as close to the little sprouts as possible. I have one popping up now, others are coming. The roots on each of the three plants are growing out and soon to reach the res. Side lights will come in handy when my babies get a little larger. Airstone is rocking....

More to come. I'm about a week in...

pictures?? i have been giving alot of thought to purchasing an AG so please update weekly with pics

 

[twentytoe]

hello. I have some white widow seedlings that have sprouted, can anyone tell me the best growing medium to start them in?

 

[twentytoe]

what I have is a box that is 4 feet tall, and 19" cubed, it has 2 3" ventilation holes on the side, and a 3" exhaust fan on top. I am using a 150 watt hps system with 4 2' grow lights for two plants, does this sound like a sufficient set up? this my 1st grow any help would be appreciated. NC