1st Grow, multiple strains, learning experience!

Hey all,

I am trying my hand at growing a few strains including Afgooey (Afghani #1 + Maui Haze), Gee Love (Romulan + OG Kush), White Out (Ghost + Permafrost), and what was sold to me under the guise of Bubba Kush, but am not certain that is what it is as it does not look similar to other grows I have watched. If anyone has any input on this I would really appreciate it! So, I'm posting my progress of my first grow in all it's mistake filled glory. I plan on learning from my mistakes and I hope others can learn from them too. Okay, first up I have my 5 "Bubba Kush" I grew from seed. I planted them in Black Gold seedling soil and four of them broke ground after 2 days. The fifth one came up about 2 days later. These I just germinated on the windowsill before bringing them inside and put under a normal fluorescent light for about a week and a half.

I found a deal for some equipment and bought it all and realized I am in over my head. I'm not certain how to use half of it (the hydroponics stuff specifically). I have 4 switchable ballasts now with three 1000W HPS and a 1000w MH. Some vertical tube thing (nice looking piece of glass) with fixtures for each end that I think is to supplement undergrowth. Two 432 watt HydroFarm FLP48 4 foot-8 lamp fixtures with 6400K bulbs. An additional fixture (HydroFarm RD Luminaire) with a 1000W HPS bulb. Two HydroFarm 2' x 4' flood tables and stands, along with a bunch of tubing and stuff. A single Vortex 130W (449? cfm) and a silencer. A nice hanging drying rack, a couple 60" reflector thingies and some other assorted stuff. I am currently growing in a dedicated 16' x 11' room, but may move to 1200 square foot room if needed. I welcome any suggestions as I am doing this by myself and am feeling a bit overwhelmed.

Currently, I have all my plants in soil/pots sitting in the flood tables as I believe it is too late to start hydro (PLEASE tell me if I am wrong). I have the two 8 lamp fixtures suspended over them by adjustable ratchet straps, which I got at Lowes (9 bucks for 4) and they are sturdy and easy to adjust height. The current room is 8 feet tall, the 1200 sq foot room is 16 feet tall. With the current lighting, the heat is at a minimum, but if i turn on one 1000w HPS, it gets pretty hot. I need to figure out how to vent it properly...I will update as I figure something out.

Here are some pics of the ones grown from seed...



As you can see in the close-up, there is some yellowing that I cannot figure out. I was thinking it was manganese, but I am not sure if it's suppose to return to normal after "correcting" the issue or if it just shows in new growth. Any chance this could be pH? I will be picking up a meter later in the week, so I am not sure what the pH is, but my water (well) is 7.0.

Here are some pics of the Afgooey...





I like how bushy it is, very interested in the smoke.

Some pics of Gee Love (who comes up with these names?)



As you can see in that last pic, some strange spotting has occured, not sure what it means...if it means anything. New growth is fine as far as I can tell and is growing strong. The spotting could have been there prior to when I purchased it a couple weeks ago, I do not know.

Some pics of the White Out...



This one is not quite as bushy as the other strains, but it wants to grow tall! I'm not sure if that's nutrient burn or light stress, but I am leaning toward light stress as it is only on the top leaves.

Sorry for the cluttered room, but it is under construction and will be much neater once I figure out what the Hell I am doing. Thanks for looking!

transplant out of those lil square pots, the plants need more room fo they roots. and yeah its too late to do this batch in hydro.

As for light heat get that glass tube (cool tube) over your bulb (as it seems to be in that one pic) and get it hooked up to your fan to pull air through the tube if temps become an issue.

as for the tip burn yes it could be a pH issue. A decent (functional, reliable pH meter will be 100ish dollars ) pH meter will allow you to find the run off waters' pH but dont half ass the meter (eg buy a cheap one), as the company that produced that meter has half assed it as well. It wont work well/ help but you will still be out of blank amount of money.

Thanks for the tip on the pH meter, I will make sure to invest in a high quality one. As for transplanting, I have transplanted all but the Afgooeys as I ran out of soil. I will be on that tomorrow when I get to town. I live in a valley in the middle of nowhere so I like to consolidate my trips.

Just got done transplanting...I think I may have killed one, only time will tell. Other than accidentally dropping one, everything went smoothly. I found a soil that I wanted to try (I usually use Black Gold for everything from turnips to tomatoes), it's by Cedar Grove and it has a good mix including worm castings and it is widely available. I am amazed at how fast the roots have grown, as I had just transplanted some of them a couple weeks ago. Anywho, here are some pics of them in their new homes...



So, the Kush is a little traumatized, but I am sure they will persevere. The rest seems to have a new breath of life in them, including the largest tomato! Tested the soil before transplanting and I got a 6.7 pH reading...I can live with that. Can anyone give me a tip on how to make my White Out (the tallest one) more bushy? I am aiming for a 3 foot total height, but I can deal with it if they get bigger.

Edit: Those are 3 gallon pots btw

Ok, got caught up with work for a bit, but I have been documenting everything so far. To start, I definitely prefer Black Gold to the Cedar Grove soil. This is mainly due to their drainage capabilities. Man, I'm sorry if this post doesn't make sense...really high!

Welcome to my new grow room (week 3):

Turn out I didn't kill any...

Ran into a problem as I was about to enter week 4:

Looks like manganese deficiency to me, but there is evidence of calcium deficiency too...



Come to find out, my well water doesn't have calcium in it so I need to add CalMag with every watering (picked up some General Organics CalMag). I didn't understand the magnesium deficiency at first then I remember that I moved my grow room and have been getting my water from the spigot before the filter and water softener. Tested the pH of the water and it was 5.5! I picked up some baking soda and some pH down in case I overshoot and that seemed to do the trick!

I second that on buying a good ph meter. I bought a cheap one the first time, it only worked for a few weeks. Then spent the money on a good one and have had it for a while now and still working good. Also make sure you read the do's and don'ts on them. They can can go bad from user errors very easy. There is a thread on here about ph meters it is very informative.
A couple quick tips, never let the tip dry out, and do not try to ph plain R/O water. If you are using R/O water add a little cal/mag or tap water. R/O water has no minerals or anything in it, and will ruin your meter.

The beginning of week 7:

They are really starting to bush up and all pre-flowers are showing! All 5 of my seedlings are girls!!! They've all bounced back from the pH lock-out. I topped the White Out as well as one of the seedlings.



Those back two Kush look identical, don't they? Can you see my new friend in the last pic? His name is Daniel.

Week 8:

I got my PowerBox 7500!!! It feels and looks to be very well built. I love the timer they are using, when the cover is closed, it acts as a switch. Got one of my 1000W HPS plugged in and the ventilation turned on. Found Daniel stalking and catching a big moth...I love that guy!

I forgot to mention, I have been using a teaspoon of CalMag and Botanicare Kind Base and Botanicare Kind Grow.



I added two 1000W HPS on the side. I'm working on getting another for the other side. For those of you with iPhone 5's, you can really decrease the lines you get in pictures by taking pictures while recording video.

Still a work in progress, will have more plants later on as well. Going to be adding the other cool tube on the other side and some reflective insulation along the back wall. Black light air hockey table is also being put up.

Ogracious said:

Thanks for the tip on the pH meter, I will make sure to invest in a high quality one. As for transplanting, I have transplanted all but the Afgooeys as I ran out of soil. I will be on that tomorrow when I get to town. I live in a valley in the middle of nowhere so I like to consolidate my trips.

Click to expand...

I would get a combination meter that does both PH and PPM. Peace

Jimdamick said:

I would get a combination meter that does both PH and PPM. Peace

Click to expand...

That sounds like a good idea! Any particular one you would recommend?

Hello. You have got some nice gear there. Plus plenty of space.

I bought a ph meter once. I still have it. All it does is tell me the PH.

I have tried using GH ph down and dolamite lime for adjusting ph. I messed stuff up really good. They dont like ph swings.

I noticed my ph is in a better range if I use more coco and less peat moss.

A good nutrient regimine and healthy soil/root zone will take care of your ph all on its own.

I still check often, but I never change. My water has gone into the soil between 8.2 and 5.6. Everyone is very different you will notice.

Its more about your learning curve.

I woud like to point out that the majority of the advice you might recieve is straight crap. I have been led a stray a lot.

I wish you luck, and Ill check back soon.

Before you flower I would like to recomend a little bug/mold prevention. Those things always sneak up on me in flower. Not the end of the world. But stressful, as growing can be.

I'm WA too

I just saw the new pictures. Bad ass.

Is that a praying mantis. Im jealous.

looking good.you could do with mylar on the walls though,it makes a big difference

blackrecluse said:

Hello. You have got some nice gear there. Plus plenty of space.

I bought a ph meter once. I still have it. All it does is tell me the PH.

I have tried using GH ph down and dolamite lime for adjusting ph. I messed stuff up really good. They dont like ph swings.

I noticed my ph is in a better range if I use more coco and less peat moss.

A good nutrient regimine and healthy soil/root zone will take care of your ph all on its own.

I still check often, but I never change. My water has gone into the soil between 8.2 and 5.6. Everyone is very different you will notice.

Its more about your learning curve.

I woud like to point out that the majority of the advice you might recieve is straight crap. I have been led a stray a lot.

I wish you luck, and Ill check back soon.

Before you flower I would like to recomend a little bug/mold prevention. Those things always sneak up on me in flower. Not the end of the world. But stressful, as growing can be.

I'm WA too

Click to expand...

Thanks for the comment and tips! Good to see a fellow Washingtonian here (I actually don't even know anybody that smokes). As for bugs, I have sticky traps out and I treat with peroxide and Mosquito Bits (kills fungus gnat larvae) and my praying mantis, Daniel. As far as mold prevention, I am not sure how to prevent it outside of good airflow.

burning desire said:

looking good.you could do with mylar on the walls though,it makes a big difference

Click to expand...

Thanks! Yep, I had mentioned that I will be putting up reflective insulation, just need to go buy it.

blackrecluse said:

I just saw the new pictures. Bad ass.

Is that a praying mantis. Im jealous.

Click to expand...

Hah, thanks! Yeah, he has been around over a week (he's free to go), and I have seen him catch a few bugs. His name is Daniel if you didn't catch that. Also, going to be putting some carpet around, as I like to lounge around the grow room in my slippers and anti-gravity chair. Nothing like sitting around, smoking a bowl, wearing sunglasses at 1 in the morning. I'm pretty sure it's the closest you can get to a sunburn in the Northwest!

Also, the PowerBox that I am using converts the 240v to 120v so I can plug in anything 120v and run at half the amps (easier on the circuit). Four of the sockets are timed with two that can switch between timed and constant power (I have them running constant until I get the new cool tube for the other side, then I'll plug in the other two ballasts and move the fans to another socket.