pussum
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Dec 29, 2006
- Messages
- 528
- Reaction score
- 222
Well I looked over my other post and found it to be quite disorganized and messy so I would like to clean it up a bit and start fresh. I am hoping to make this a more of a Q and A thread as problems arise for me and hopefully as I ask questions and receive answers it will also help other people who are having problems but are either unsure of how to ask or afraid to ask .
I will post steps I have taken, concerns I have, and how things are progressing in as much detail as I can. This isn't really going to be a journal, but I will somewhat keep up to date with growth reports. It isn't worth it to make a journal for a single plant.
I will start from the beginning. I used the paper towel method* with a presoak of an hour in room temperature water to germinate my seeds. One sprouted out of 10. I chalk this up to the fact that the seeds were not the best quality and had been sitting out in the open for quite some time. Regardless, one did sprout so I say the method was successful and will prove to be even more successful down the road if I attempt another grow after this one plant, which at the moment is looking like a no, but you never know.
Once set and ready to go I placed the plate on my cable box and let it sit for three days. I checked it once in the middle of the second day to ensure I didn't need to add any water. On the third day I checked again and removed the sprouted seed. I am sure, with time, the others would have sprouted, but I figured I might as well use one as a test run before I invest a bunch of time into multiple plants.
Regardless, I took my sprouted seed and placed it in a one gallon pot filled with the Miracle Grow that feeds plants for up to three months. I used a larger pot right off the bat because I didnt want to shock the plant later down the road by having to transfer it to a bigger container. I pushed my finger into the middle of the dirt about knuckle deep, which ended up being about an inch and a half, and dropped in the seed. I dropped in the seed and brushed the dirt over it. I ran the cold tap for about a minute and filled up a container to water the plant. I watered it and stuck it in the chamber and turned on the light.
Here is where my first few concerns start popping up. First off I am wondering if an inch and a half was too deep to put in the seed. Will it be able to get the light and heat it needs to start the growth process that deep in the soil? The soil is not packed down; it is actually rather loose and airy. Secondly, my next concern is water. How much does a seed need? I dont want to over water it, but I dont want it starving for water either. Is there a set measurement I can use until the plant starts getting bigger and I can just water it until water seeps out of the bottom of the pot?
As of now I have the plant is sitting in the chamber under an 18/6* schedule. I picked up a timer so everything is automated now, except for watering. After one full light schedule I went and checked on the plant. I pulled it out and checked the soil, and it was still damp. I wasnt sure if I should have left it alone or not so I added just a bit more and put it back in its home. When I check the plant again I will check the soil moisture. If it is still pretty damp I will skip watering them just to ensure it doesnt get flooded.
Thus, this is where I stand, the middle of day two. I will keep this going throughout the grow so that questions and concerns can be addressed and maybe even spark a conversation or two along the way. As I do more things I will post what I do in detail and try to give a little background on what the procedure consists of for the people who have no clue what I am talking about.
If anyone sees anything that is wrong with the information I have presented let me know and I will correct it. If my facts are off let me know so that I am not misleading people and causing them to screw up. Your input is GREATLY appreciated in the matter.
I will post steps I have taken, concerns I have, and how things are progressing in as much detail as I can. This isn't really going to be a journal, but I will somewhat keep up to date with growth reports. It isn't worth it to make a journal for a single plant.
I will start from the beginning. I used the paper towel method* with a presoak of an hour in room temperature water to germinate my seeds. One sprouted out of 10. I chalk this up to the fact that the seeds were not the best quality and had been sitting out in the open for quite some time. Regardless, one did sprout so I say the method was successful and will prove to be even more successful down the road if I attempt another grow after this one plant, which at the moment is looking like a no, but you never know.
* For anyone who does not know what the paper towel method is, it consists of gathering a few sheets of paper towels (3-5 depending on thickness). Take those towels and get them wet. (Myself, I used Dasani bottled water at room temp.) Squeeze some of the excess water out of the towels so they are not dripping wet, but still nice and moist. Take the towels and fold them in half one way, and then in half the other way. Now the towels should look as though they are an open book. Place the seeds you wish to have germinated in the towel. Close the towel so the seeds are totally covered and place them on a plate. Take that plate and wrap it with plastic wrap so that there are no gaps where heat and air can escape. I also took a Tupperware bowl lid and covered the seeds before I wrapped them to add just a bit more insulation so moisture couldnt escape. Take the wrapped plate and put it someplace where it is going to be steadily warmed. The back of a television or a computer monitor work well but the top of a cable box is perfect. My cable box is somewhat enclosed inside the television stand so the heat it puts out stays trapped and ensures that the seeds will stay at a certain temp so long as they are on the cable box. Heat and moisture are key for the seeds to germinate. The one seed I got to germinate sprouted a root almost two inches long in three days!*
Once set and ready to go I placed the plate on my cable box and let it sit for three days. I checked it once in the middle of the second day to ensure I didn't need to add any water. On the third day I checked again and removed the sprouted seed. I am sure, with time, the others would have sprouted, but I figured I might as well use one as a test run before I invest a bunch of time into multiple plants.
Regardless, I took my sprouted seed and placed it in a one gallon pot filled with the Miracle Grow that feeds plants for up to three months. I used a larger pot right off the bat because I didnt want to shock the plant later down the road by having to transfer it to a bigger container. I pushed my finger into the middle of the dirt about knuckle deep, which ended up being about an inch and a half, and dropped in the seed. I dropped in the seed and brushed the dirt over it. I ran the cold tap for about a minute and filled up a container to water the plant. I watered it and stuck it in the chamber and turned on the light.
Here is where my first few concerns start popping up. First off I am wondering if an inch and a half was too deep to put in the seed. Will it be able to get the light and heat it needs to start the growth process that deep in the soil? The soil is not packed down; it is actually rather loose and airy. Secondly, my next concern is water. How much does a seed need? I dont want to over water it, but I dont want it starving for water either. Is there a set measurement I can use until the plant starts getting bigger and I can just water it until water seeps out of the bottom of the pot?
As of now I have the plant is sitting in the chamber under an 18/6* schedule. I picked up a timer so everything is automated now, except for watering. After one full light schedule I went and checked on the plant. I pulled it out and checked the soil, and it was still damp. I wasnt sure if I should have left it alone or not so I added just a bit more and put it back in its home. When I check the plant again I will check the soil moisture. If it is still pretty damp I will skip watering them just to ensure it doesnt get flooded.
*An 18/6 schedule is in regards to lighting and how long the plants sit under the light. A plant in the vegg cycle can sit under light for 24 straight hours 7 days a week. The vegg cycle is where the plant is doing what it does. It is building itself, growing, and using the energy from the light to fuel itself to get ready for the flowering stage. People have varying opinions on how long a plant should stay under the light, but the majority go either 24/0 (24 hours a day 7 days a week) or 18/6 (18 hours on and 6 hours off 7 days a week). Generally people use the 18/6 schedule if they want to try to keep their power bills down a bit. A few others experiment with the times slightly, but if you go to low with the amount of light the plant receives it will prematurely go into flower.*
Thus, this is where I stand, the middle of day two. I will keep this going throughout the grow so that questions and concerns can be addressed and maybe even spark a conversation or two along the way. As I do more things I will post what I do in detail and try to give a little background on what the procedure consists of for the people who have no clue what I am talking about.
If anyone sees anything that is wrong with the information I have presented let me know and I will correct it. If my facts are off let me know so that I am not misleading people and causing them to screw up. Your input is GREATLY appreciated in the matter.
