Hello All, just want to preface this by saying, as the title states, this is my first grow ever. I was intrigued after keeping aquariums for about 6 years now, to challenge myself in a whole different aspect of biology and chemistry. I have a fascination with science and appreciate hobbies that allow these observations. I have no degrees related in said field (or at all lol) but I enjoy learning new things from scratch. I’m no stranger to Marijuana (avid smoker for 2+ decades) and of course the obvious intrigue of where it comes from and how. My goals are to grow the best plants to the best of my ability, and potentially provide some of nature’s best medicine to very close ailing relatives.
I also apologize in advance if my post breaks any forum etiquette as this is my first group forum as well, but I’ll learn as I go.
What I Started with:
VIVOSUN
-2’x4’x53inch Grow Tent
-
Digital Dimmable Ballast:
600W - Super Lumens (110%), 600W, 400W, 250W -
HPS Grow Light Bulb & MH Grow Light Bulb 600 watt ( Extra-low lumen depreciation: maintaining over 90% of initial lumen output after running for 5,000 hours.)
-
Grow Light Reflector w/ Cool Tube <— Without glass lens since it smashed during shipping. I read several articles that stated the lens can cause about a 5% refraction in light and most people remove it anyway.
Regardless, I wasn’t concerned with overheating issues and kept the hood.
Ventilation:
- 4 Inch 350 CFM Duct Inline Fan Blower
- 4 Inch 1050+ IAV Australia Charcoal Filter
Complete Setup-Hardware
← Vent fan on a carbon filter in 3x5x7 sump room separate from grow room.
<–Low breeze fan running 24/7.
← Vent fan if tent reaches >=80F if tripped the fan will shut off at 75F.
Started germinating :
Ironically on 4/20/20 all 5 seeds successfully germinated and were then planted in solo cups using: Coco + Perlite mix
And started the following application schedule I found doing research. I followed this schedule to a T from the start as well as tested my ph which was always around 6.8 (around 6.5-6.6 out of tap).
Sprouts @ 04/25/2020
Seeds used : I used autoflowering seeds to start based on said ease for beginners. I have also read the cons such as stunted growth, limited time frame windows to ‘top’ or apply methods that will increase yields, and of course the early bloomers. None of the cons really concerned me plus this won’t be my last grow.
I planted (2) “THC Bomb” and (3) “Red Russian XXL” both plants are said to have large yields with high THC content.
I don’t have pictures but once the first fan leaves were showing I placed them in the tent under 250watt MH about 12 inches above. Once the first fan leaves were touching the edges of the solo cups I transplanted them into 3 gallon fabric pots. They spent about a week and half under the 250watts and in the fabric pots until I turned it up to 400 watts.
At this point I also bought a LUX meter and have been keeping the LUX between 25k-30k, being more on the higher side. I based this off my findings below.
Lastly these are the following metrics, temps are in degrees fahrenheit. My all time recording since the tent has been up and running. The 73.9 at the top was the current temp when the picture was taken.
Averaging ‘All Time’
- Temp low 56.5F ← when it arrived and the battery was put in.
- Temp high 87.3F ← Changed wattage to 400 and needed to adjust fans and access to fresh air. This was noticed and adjusted within 8hrs.
- RH low 25% ← First putting the meter in the tent.
- RH high 91%← Changed wattage to 400 and needed to adjust fans and access to fresh air. This was noticed and adjusted within 8hrs.
Now fast forward to the beginning of week (4) 5/18/2020:
I’ve been able to maintain the following metrics for pretty much the entire grow.
Averaging ‘24 hr’ ←Light = 20hr on 4hr off.
- Temp low 64F.
- Temp high 78F.
- RH low 40%.
- RH high 50%.
Watering about every 3 days (or when the top inch or so of Coco is dry), and applying nutrient schedule every other watering. I do my best to accumulate 10-30% runoff.
This was taken 05/18/2020 after watering and turning their ‘weak’ sides towards the light.
Shots of some growth.
Issues:
Only leaf I could find with what looked to be a calcium deficient at one point ?
My questions at this point would be
- What are some opinions of some fellow growers on my progress, and how I can improve.
- I wanted to do some LST (low stress training) but not sure if I am too soon or too late with autos.
TIA, I appreciate any tips/tricks and advice and it would be great to connect with some other growers to share knowledge.
Thanks, GGT
