This is my first solo soil grow. I chose clones because they were readily available. My clones are about a week and a half into the early vegetative stage. Rooting process was rough. The clones were from great looking mothers, but the gentleman who ultimately gave them to me, left them dark for too long. Most were wilted badly or DoA. I managed to save 7. Everything seems to be getting better since then. I would like some feedback as to anything I can do to improve my setup. I’ll post some pictures. My setup and nutrients are:
Vivosun 60"x60"x80" tent
Viparspectra TC 1200 dimmable veg/bloom
Vivosun 6" inline fan with filter, running low (passive) for now
10 pint dehumidifier (will upgrade to 30 pint)
Hygrometer/thermometer
Box fan/oscillating fan
3.5 gallon food grade buckets, drilled bottom and sides
Fox Farm nutrients: Big Bloom, Grow Big, Tiger Bloom
Ocean Forest soil with Organic Perlite (no nutrient release)
Watering with distilled/nutrient blend=6.35ph
Watering with well on non nutrient days=7.69ph
-well water has 120 ppm TDS + mod. high iron
Average drainage ph from run off after watering=6.85ph
Small electric 1000 Watt heater
Temperature is ranging from 62°F-78°F
Humidity is ranging from 50%RH-68%RH
I am growing in a 40’x32’ Pole Barn inside a grow tent. The ventilation inside the barn is great, so clean air is constantly coming in. Also, it allows me a level of control when it comes to the flowering cycle. The Vivosun tent is nice, but has a few pin holes, insufficient for keeping light out completely. The LED light I am using is about 39" from canopy. Running 75 veg/35 bloom spectrum for now. Plan on moving to 100/60 in a week if ladies are responding well, and possibly drop the light a few inches.
I’ll put some pictures up. I was able to keep 7 clones alive, five are in great shape. I have two Glueberry hybrids, one Cherry Pie, One Platinum Girl Scout Cookie, two Bloodstar hybrids, and one Deathstar/GG#4 hybrid. The Bloodstar beta is pretty small, and the Dstar/GG hybrid is in really bad shape. The other five look great. I would’ve used seeds, but I was offered these clones at the last minute, and their lineage was undeniable. Hopefully I can do them justice. Growing multiple hybrid strains can be a hassle, but I’ll just use LST in case any Sativa dominant hybrid activity peeks through. Can’t have these ladies getting too tall. I was considering one or two tops/fims before the flowering stage. Any words of wisdom for my first soil grow would be great. A lot of veteran growers say you usually fail your first grow, but if I can make it to the flowering stage, I think I’ll be okay. I have a bit of knowledge in the late flowering/drying/curing stages, I’ve just never been a part of the vegetative/early flowering stage in a soil grow. This is exhilarating!
I just realized this entire forum is essentially for growing seeds from your company. I am terribly sorry. I was simply looking for a forum to ask a few questions on vegging clones.
Just make sure to look over them really good with a magnifying glass , that’s the problem with getting clones from someone , they tend to have critters that come along for the ride…
Thanks for the replies everyone. I would’ve posted sooner, but had to wait because I reached my “reply” limit as a new forum member. I appreciate the welcome into the forum. I have absolutely no problem following the rules. I’m actually thrilled to find a reputable seed bank here with support. I will be ordering from here at some point. There are very few reputable seed banks, and even less that deliver to my area. Medicinal cannabis has been legal here since 2007, and recreational was just legalized last fall (2018). Unfortunately, the conservative state Congress here feels that the voters must’ve made a mistake, and have tried everything in their power to thwart the expansion of medical/recreational cannabis. So much that when recreational cannabis is eventually made available to the public, it will only have up to 15% potency, concentrates will be limited, and it will be taxed like crazy. On the other hand, medical cannabis has lower taxes, and there is no ceiling on potency (I think I’ll renew my medical card ) Also, you cannot buy seeds or clones from any of the medical dispensaries here. In Oregon and Washington, this is not the case. Sucks for my state I suppose. Either way, that’s where you guys come in . Thanks.
Getting back on track. Sorry for my rant. @ peachfuzz, your are absolutely correct. I look the clones over daily with a telescoping mirror, and check with magnification if I notice anything. There was also the problem with the guy passing the clones to me. He took forever, and many were dead on arrival. The ones still alive were drooping so badly, I must’ve clipped at least half the leaves from each clone during the first few days. Very sad sight, especially when their genetics are pretty awesome. It’s a bummer that such nice clones were entrusted to such an uncaring fool. Oh well, I saved as many as I could grow anyway. I only used the clones because they were readily available, and I witnessed the end results of some of my lady’s older sisters. Lol. I just couldn’t pass them up. Also, it’s really tough to find seeds for some of the strains I ended up with. With the exception of the Platinum Girl Scout Cookie and Cherry Pie, I’ve never even seen seeds for a Bloodstar hybrid, a Glueberry hybrid, or the pathetic looking GG#4 x Deathstar hybrid I saved. Ultimately, having the opportunity to grow these strains was the deal breaker, and why I went with clones.
Again, thanks a bunch to everyone for welcoming me to the forum. Hoping for a productive grow, and wishing everyone else the same on theirs.
I’ll give you an official welcome! And you have done everything right on your postings; thank you. You can post anything you want; just no links except to affiliates of ILGM. If you want to mention a seedbank by all means do so, just no links. Amazon is also a good affiliate so use it when needed.
That “liquid rubber in a can” works great for pinholes FYI.
I might suggest a couple of things: when small stay in a pot appropriate to the plant size. It simplifies watering greatly. Planting into fabric pots is one of the better things you can do for your girls too. I might suggest 5 gallon. The plastic buckets work (I’ve used them along with others) but there is better stuff out there.
You have adequate light in that 5 X 5 but may run into some crowding. Canopy coverage is going to be your main problem with a single light–maintaining correct distance can get tough with bigger plants.
Clones are not hard to grow and until your eye gets calibrated they can look pretty scruffy. I like to remove 2/3 of each leaf and use a dome over them for the first 10 days. They do appreciate that.
Thanks for the info. Appreciated. After thinking things over, it might’ve been better for me to run two separate 600 full spectrum LEDs instead of the single 1200. Oh, hindsight. They are young, so I can add something within the month to help. I put them into 3.5 gallon buckets and yeah, should’ve used fabric. Also, I should’ve put them into something smaller. I messed up on the first transplant from the rockwool to a small 5" peat pot. Should’ve waited until I had something better for the transplant. I was in shock that I actually got some of the clones to root, and wanted to get them into a medium ASAP. I put way to much perlite in the mix during that stage, so I overcompensated and jumped right to the 3.5 gallon buckets.
A lot to learn here. Thanks for all the help. One other question:
My temperature fluctuates from 70°F(21°C) to 76°F(24.5°C) during the day.
It probably drops to between 65°F (28.3°C) and 71°F (22.6°C) at night.
My relative humidity is between 50% and 65%. Been having trouble locking it down. It is late summer here, and it gets really hot and humid outside.
How much will the data on the attached chart effect everything? I’m within range at most times, but sometimes the temp hits 77°F (25°C) and the humidity drops to 50%. This would put me above the 15 range in the red. Is this bad for short periods if the temp and humidity don’t always line up?
Thanks for the welcome, everyone. Yeah, it’s been brutal getting them this far. In addition to looking awful, most were from pre flowering/flowering plants. It has taken extra time to get them back into the veg state after bringing them back from the dead. Looking forward to it. Thanks again for the replies, everyone. Very much appreciated.
Thanks for the advice on the lighting. After getting started, I realized there would be some end game issues. Would it be problematic to just add two GL8 red spectrum lights on the sides? Or possibly just two more Viparspectra TC 450 lights, to go with the TC 1200 in the middle. My filter is outside the tent, so I have room up top. The TC 1200 cannot get any closer than about 25" from canopy, which severely limits size in the later stages, especially in an 80" tent. That being said, extra lights could help with medium sized, bushy ladies. The TC 450 lights could be set a bit lower, perhaps 18" from the canopy, on a slight angle. The GL8 flowering lights can be set 12" from the colas, but the coverage doesn’t strike me as great. If either of those two options appear viable, let me know. Otherwise, do you have any ideas that might help me when nearing flowering time?
Well I’m not a big fan of the blurple lights and would first suggest you check in on using a quantum board or two rather than spending more money on old tech.
It’s a really long thread but it’s got the best possible information on lights. A lot of us are now using either diy lighting (myself) or one of the QB options available. But you are right that you need more canopy coverage to sustain that many plants.
. Thanks.
to a great forum.
Anytime you want to catch someones attention just put an @ in front of the name like this 