My first grow, just looking for second opinions

Papa_Squat said:

As embarassing as it is, I am using a 60W 120V plant light from Wally World, I am aware now that this is far less than optimal. I'm going to invest in that T5 fixture that was recommended, as Barry said this plant definitely stretched far more than she actually grew I believe.

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That idea is good. I personally used 14w philips led bulbs for clones and veggin before, also for supplementing white light in flower.
They come in warm and cool white. 1 of each would do much better than the lights you have at the moment. T5 are fine too, i use those to veg also. But this is flowering at the moment and t5s penetration will be abysmal on a plant elongated as this one. You will not have adequate lighting at the lower branches or you will have to get a good t5 setup with high wattage.
Edit; hell, i took another look and you have nothing down there. Man that plant suffered from light deprivation

jonsmith2012ad said:

That’s what I’m doing currently. I got mine a two foot four bulb panel for $40 and it’s been good so far. I will be happy when I can upgrade though.

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Of course. Really good real LED or HID with HID much cheaper.

Papa_Squat said:

Hey thanks man! This place definitely has some wise and willing folks here, gonna be sticking around. I had this plant in veg for about 8 weeks before I switched to flower. Is that enough time or should I have let her go a little longer? The closet I am working with has roughly 5.5' clearance in it. Watching these few buds start to fatten up is encouraging enough, and I shall be trying again. This time utilizing a far better light source and early LST and the like.

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The answer to how long you should veg is really based on a bunch of factors so there's no definitive "this long" to that question. You veg until it's ready for flower is really the only answer but, for your purposes, i recognize this has little to no value haha.

Factors to consider:
Space you have to work with both vertical and horizontal.
Yield you're after... assuming ceteris paribus longer veg typically will get more yield.
Strain... some need more than others
Medium... aero/hydro goes quiocker I believe.
From clone or from seed...: obviously you get a head start with clones and thus need less time to get to the size you want.
Growing style .... SOG v SCROG for example.
Time frame... if you have a limited window better to cut the veg cycle short than any of the following cycles (flower or drying) aside from maybe curing but you can also move your bids around while curing.

And more... FYI more experienced growers, feel free to rip apart this advice if you think you've better advice to offer, I won't take it personally but as a learning experience

Papa_Squat said:

I started this seed I found in some buds and she is now in the 4th week of flowering, I know she's not the prettiest, but keep in mind I have never done this before, going only off what I have read online and keeping in my budget. She's on Floraduo A&B (1:2) nutrients. I was looking for some outside opinions and things that I could do better. Thanks so much for looking!

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Looking good! Lol, she is alive and well! I'm on my first flower cycle as well. I managed to kill a couple of my first plants, only 3 survived. Definitely, like the others said, you need more light. Remember, the light will pay for itself sooner than later. Read all you can, but if you're like me. You just have to learn by practicing techniques yourself. Yep, I usually have to learn the hard way, lol.

crimsonecho said:

That idea is good. I personally used 14w philips led bulbs for clones and veggin before, also for supplementing white light in flower.
They come in warm and cool white. 1 of each would do much better than the lights you have at the moment. T5 are fine too, i use those to veg also. But this is flowering at the moment and t5s penetration will be abysmal on a plant elongated as this one. You will not have adequate lighting at the lower branches or you will have to get a good t5 setup with high wattage.
Edit; hell, i took another look and you have nothing down there. Man that plant suffered from light deprivation

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It's looking to me like light deprivation is the culprit here. Live and learn I suppose So you would recommend the T5 just for veg? Or are you saying that for this plant in particular the penetration would be too much?

Papa_Squat said:

It's looking to me like light deprivation is the culprit here. Live and learn I suppose So you would recommend the T5 just for veg? Or are you saying that for this plant in particular the penetration would be too much?

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T5 is good for veg, but in flower it lacks the penetration needed, unless you train the hell out of that plant and get a very even, flat canopy.
But they are great for veg. For this plant, at this point there is not much to do i’m afraid. Starting over seems more feasible at this point.
2-3 months of electricity bill for a joint.. sorry.