Growing pains

This is my first time trying to grow anything. All I know about growing is what I've learned from reading your posts over the past month or so. On 12/4, I germed a few seeds from a bag of regular commercial stuff in a paper towel. A couple days later all 3 popped and I buried them in one pot of Miracle Grow potting mix. When they started coming out, I went to Home Depot and bought 2 cheap 24inch T5 grow lights for them. I taped them together and hung them inside a box I had lined with aluminum foil (the first picture).

2 weeks later I germed 4 more seeds and put them in little cups with the same soil. About this time I started reading on here about CFLs so I went back to Home Depot and picked up 6 27W CFL’s. I put them in “Y” sockets and plugged them into a power strip and hung it up in a little shelf that’s in my office closet (second picture). I learned on here that aluminum foil is bad and that white is more reflective so I thought this set up would be perfect. I put the 4 little ones under the CFLs and left the 3 bigger ones under the T5s.
I left them both on 18/6. About 2 days later the plants under the CFLs started to look sick. The leaves turned really light green and they got all droopy looking. I had them about 2 inches from the light. It didn’t feel hot to me, but I thought maybe they were too close so I moved them down to about 6 inches from the CFLs. A couple days after that they looked like they were totally dead so I just unplugged the CFLs and forgot about them for a week or so. On 1/5 I tried to transplant one of the 3 original plants into it’s own container. It died too.

So the whole project seemed to be going to shit so I thought I’d experiment with the 2 plants I had left and see how they did under the CFL’s. I stuck them in there 4 inches from the lights with a thermometer. It said 82 degrees so I put a fan on them and it stayed around 75. Within two days the same thing started happening to them. They got all droopy and light green and the bigger leaves got yellow/brown spots on them (third picture). While the 2 bigger ones were under the CFLs, I threw some water in the four little ones that I thought were dead and put them back under the T5s just for fun. I was amazed that they actually came back to life. So I took the big ones and put them under the T5s along with the other 4 and they all seem to be doing ok now, but I don’t think they’re getting enough light to really amount to much so I think I’m just going to bag the whole thing and start over the right way.

I went back to Home Depot yesterday and bought enough plywood and 2X4s to build a box 7ft long, 3feet deep, and 6.5 feet tall. I’m going to put it together this weekend.

I know a guy in California that owns a Hydroponics store. I have attached the list of things he’s recommending I start with. From what I can tell so far, the prices he gave me are really good, but shipping to Michigan is $300. If anyone knows where I can get a better deal on any of this, I’d really like to hear about it. If there’s anything you think I should add to or delete from that list or if there's anything I should watch out for, please post as well. I get paid Friday and I want to get my order in before my wife spends the money.

And if anyone knows why those CFLs are doing that to my plants I’d like to hear about that too.

Thanks in advance for any advice you guys can offer.

I anyone is interested I'll post updates and pics of how it works out.

Superior Growers Supply Inc . Two locations Livonia and Lansing / If you are going to spend that much on grow supplys then spend A little more and get some good seed at Attitude seeds. Why grow mystery buds

Build 3 rooms if it was me, if u know what I mean?
Are u going hydro?

There is also The Cultivation Station located in St Clair Shores, MI. Really nice helpful people and seem quite knowledgable.

im not sure that the lights are causing the problem, sounds like more of a soil or pH problem IMO. good luck!

Thanks for the replies. I ended up just ordering it from the dude out in California.


I also took your advice and ordered some seeds from Attitude.

herbie1020 said:

im not sure that the lights are causing the problem, sounds like more of a soil or pH problem IMO. good luck!

Click to expand...

I would have thought so too, but the problems started when I put them under the CFLs and they all got better when I took them out from under the CFLs. I didn't change anything else and they're all turning nice and green again.