First Grow - CaliforniaOrangeBud <> BigBud <> RedShiva

[PeaceKiller]

What grow medium are they in?

Also that first carbon filter thing you made to eliminate smell, was it attached to a fan and have airflow through it or was it just attached? It looked pretty simple

Hi Torn,

Medium is 45% MG potting soil/45% Scotts Organic Choice potting soil/10% Perlite. These were what was available to me at the time.
I would like to try the Fox Farms Ocean, I hear good things about it.

The first carbon filter has a 120mm computer fan blowing into it.

Be well.

 

[Timmyjg6]

Wow, bro.. That grow tent is full... You see its a good reason to stay with the same strains so you can have an even canopy... And with that air cooled hood you should be able to have the tops within inches of your plants top... I keep mine about 3" away with no prob.... But i do keep my room chilly..

 

[Ilikebigbuds]

:holysheep: those are some nice BIG BUDS! I love it!

great grow! thank you so much for sharing with us!

 

[PeaceKiller]

Thanks for the feedback everyone.

You're totally right timmy, my next grow will have strains that are all on the short side (I hope). I have moved the light down to about 6" over the tops since I tied the girls down a few days ago.

I couldn't find any info on the "Red Shiva" (the site I ordered this grows seeds from, threw those 5 seeds in for free, and removed the info from their site) so I have been going by the info on Nirvanas site for their Shiva, and it states 9/10 weeks flower.

However I remembered this website, http://www.archive.org (archives websites), so I was able to go back a few months and find info on the Red Shiva. Now it seems that I have a 7/8 week flowering window. I can't wait cause thats 2 weeks sooner than I expected , considering it's correct info.

I checked the trichs of each strain yesterday and all are clear still.
Will post pix and update on Friday.

Be well all.

 

[Ettesun]

:woohoo:
Very nice. Glad I could help with the cloning... I've certainly learned through trial and error. But those EZ cloners are great.
I like your perlite on the tops of the planters. I've had a problem with a little algae on my new planted babies, so I think I will try sprinkling perlite on them like yours. Someone told me it cuts down on the green yucky stuff. And you say it helps the gnats also...that's cool. Now for sure I will try it.
I started using H2 O2 and I think that has helped with gnats and spider mites also.
Good luck. Looking forward to the photos Friday.
Take Care...
eace:

 

[PeaceKiller]

Thanks for the feedback everyone.

Yea, ettesun, the clonning was a success .
The perlite helped in the vegging stage 100%, and was working until about a week ago, when, I'll assume it was gnat mating season, like overnight there was a whole civilazation in there. Maybe the gnats got hip to the perlite . I have some neem oil, which I don't want to spray on the leaves/buds this late in the game. So I figured, screw it, I'll just get some fly traps. I hate killing anything (large, small or even annoying as a gnat), but when the whole darn neighborhood moves into my tent, enoughs enough. 1 or 2 I don't mind, you know, just go about your business, but c'mon.
Any way, I hung a fly trap roll last night and 8 hours later i must have got a good majority of them. The other 20 inches of the tape wasn't pretty either, lol. I just replaced with a new roll. I'll do a search on here and see if I can find some other solutions to help aleviate the situation.




4 California Orange Bud (I checked the trichs on these and a few are just starting to get cloudy, I'll just plain water these from here on out. Also, they are absolute reakage, the tiny peice of leaf I just cut off to put under my fabulous $10 world class radio shack microscope, has my fingers stank, I love it . Good thing I got a clone of these. These ladies stand only 18-24 inches high above the soil. Nirvana recommends another 1 to 2 weeks flowering):



Group shots on the 2 Big Bud and 3 Red Shivas cause they are a tied down tangled mess of goodness.

The 2 Big Bud are showing lots of red pistils and some yellowing leaves (the only ones of all the ladies so far), however the trichs are still crystal clear, so we'll see. Nirvana recommends another 2 to 3 weeks.

The 3 Red Shiva are really packing the flowers on, not super dense but abundant. Everyday I can see 1/4 to 1/2 of legnthwise bud development on the cola tops. The info I was able to find on the site I got these seeds from states 7 to 8 weeks flower, so I'm now in that window. The trichomes are still clear and the new growth suggests otherwise, but we'll wait and see. Thanks to megan23247's thread I learned that I should go by the trich color only, regardless of other maturity indications. I'm not in too much of a hurry, cause I like to learn and watch them grow (plus the Cali Orange Buds should hold me over).



So to sum it up, it looks like I'll be chopping the California Orange Buds soon, maybe a week, I don't know since this is my first grow, but I will know after . I'll keep on top of the trich indications. I'll prob go 50/50'ish on all the ladies. And we'll see how the gnat situation pans out, so stay tuned.

Be well everyone and take care.

 

[PeaceKiller]

Okay, quick update.

The 4 California Orange Bud are getting close, I think.
Checked on the trichomes and some are starting to get amber, most are cloudy, and a couple are still clear. Imma probably chop in the range of 50/50 to 75 amber/25 cloudy. The pistils are starting to turn orange as well.
So it could quit possibly be this weekend (I hope ), we'll see. These girls leaves are sooo sticky and rank, it's rediculous. They might go nuclear upon chopping, we'll see.



The rest of the ladies are comming along well. Finally they stopped growing length wise (cola, branches, etc...), so if they are anything like the California Orange Buds, it should mean they they are wrapping it up. It looks like the 2 Big Buds will be the next to chop, followed by the 3 Red Shiva. Im going to start to use plain water from here on out on all of them.

Will post update on both journals on Friday.

Be well everyone.

 

[stoner]

Those are some impressive plants keep up the good work

 

[PeaceKiller]

Hello everyone.

Here's an update...

4 California Orange Bud (They are really close now. All trichs are cloudy, a few are amber, maybe another few days, then chop. Thank god I got a clone of this (of the best plant too), they are short, stocky, really fills in, stinky & sticky as heck.):


2 Big Bud (They are totally different. These have clear/cloudy trichs, though the pistils are starting to really red'n. So maybe another week, we'll see.):


3 Red Shiva (The trichs on these are still mostly clear.):


And finally the whole grow room:


Darn gnats wont leave me alone. Have multiple fly traps around and seem to be picking them off like crazy, but still.... Fortunatly, they seem to be leaving the plants alone . After these are harvested, I'm going to have to really clean out the area.

Besides that all is well.
Take care everyone.

 

[bigbudsbruddah]

Nice work and nice strain selection. Hope you enjoy the smoke. Good Luck

 

[slowwriter]

hi everyone, my first post! yay! Peace killer, very nice work on this, I wanted to make a suggestion that works wonders for me keeping my plants short and really bushy using the same bulbs you have there. I purchased a shield from a hardware store for all of my lights that focuses the light straight down and into my lower branches. They are meant for using the bulbs to work in a garage for example, and by putting one facing sideways at the bottom of the plant as well, I have plants that are almost as thick as they are tall.

again, great work and thanks to everyone in these forums for their input!

I attached a pic of what I'm talking about, but have no idea where an attachment comes up

 

[PeaceKiller]

Update time...

4 California Orange Bud (well, now 3 :hubba:. I chopped the lady on the top right):


2 Big Bud (the small one is so, bleh... The one that's big is a little airy in the bud department, but I'll give it another week. Hopefully it'll swell up):


3 Red Shiva (trichs on these are starting to get cloudy, buds are decent):


Here's the first one down. She was about 2 feet tall from the soil line:


Here's a size reference shot of the cola:


I don't even know what to do with this thing, haha, I've never had one before.
But seriously, I have it in a homemade drying box, so we'll see how that works out. I'll post pix of it another time considering it does it's job here.

Until next time, be well.

 

[FLA Funk]

That is absolutely amazing for a first grow. I mean wow, really. I know your gonna enjoy that soo much. Awesome grow pk, mad props.

 

[PeaceKiller]

Many thanks Funk

I couldn't have done it without the help from all the wonderful souls here at MP.

 

[toke@smoke420]

yeah man your first grow is sick..... sick like catching a 10 foot wave, damn mann amzing how much total did you spend on everything setup, seed strains, lights,? how doesnt your roomate now, or does he and only he.... i would say thats a well kept secret if he doesnt...

 

[PeaceKiller]

Here's a few pix of the dry box.

It's 2 small rubbermaid containers with the bottoms cut out and taped together to join up. This worked out well because it wound up having a small 1/2" ledge around the middle. I also covered all exterior areas of the containers with black contact paper (the stuff you line the bottom of draws with) to keep out any light or brightness.


This ledge allowed me to construct a screen platform with small 1/2" walls all around, to put small, un-hangable peices upon. The screen comfortably sits upon the ledges and is easily removeable. I used some foil tape to make the walls which also covers the sharp cut edges of the screen, so it's child friendly .


The box measurements are 14" H x 14" L x 10" W. There is a small computer fan blowing in at the bottom.

It has very low CFM, probably around 10-15 CFM, which is perfect because it allows for some air movement but won't necessarily dry buds out quickly, just enough fresh air to keep things moving and not stagnent.
At the top of the box is a small cut out (about 2" x 5") with 2 layers of the active carbon pre-filter stuff I used on my veg box exhaust (you can find pix on my first post on the first page of this grow journal). The air gently exhausts through here with no odor so far, as far as I know.

Here's a pic of my first plant harvest inside:


Until next time, be well everyone.

 

[PeaceKiller]

Hi toke, thanks for the feedback. I kinda inpressed myself a little too .

I'm kind of affraid to calculate the total on materials spent, but considering I started from scratch it's okay, it pays off in the long run. Plus a good, proper investment will show itself in the results it produces if you know what your doing.

Here's an approx. breakdown:
Tent: 180
Lights (Bulb, ballast, reflector): 250
Fan and Fan Controller: 120
Carbon Filter: 60
Soils: 40
Nutes: 30
Seeds: 60
Light Hangers: 15
Timer: 10
And Misc. items: 50

So it looks like I spent between $700-$800, ouch, lol. The time spent is also crazy, as you know, it can almost become a 2nd job.
If I lived under different circumstances, I could have saved some substancial money. For example, if I had an extra room or closet, I could have spent only $100 (insidesun.com)on the lighting set up (light, ballast, and reflector) instead of $250. Maybe I would not have needed the inline fan & controller, save $120 right there, just get a circulating fan or something. $60 on the carbon filter. And of course, save $180 on the tent. A few hundred bucks (around $300-$400) difference right there based on the circumstances, it's pretty interesting to compare.

My roommate does not know, though may have a thought about what's inside the tent, the only suspicious new thing in my room, however never really comes into my room, and whenever I'm not home I lock my door wich could also be suspicious, but there's no way I'm going to leave it unlocked. However 1 person does know as of recently, and that is my true, closest, and oldest best friend since we were 6 years old. I knew from the pre-beginning that it would be inevitable that I would have to tell him, or he would find out either way since we see eachother so often. However once I did, we have never spoke about it since as I explained the seriousness and severity that this entails. He doesn't even ask me how how it's going along. We're both grown adults and I trust that my secret is safe.

Be well buddy.

 

[toke@smoke420]

yeah i hear ya bro.. im on more of a budget and dont know if stayin around or movin soon so i dont wanna invest more then 200 on proper lighting and all... 180 for grow tent imthinkin i could build one for under 50 hopefully.. I dont know though ill see where life takes me i guess..

becarful man with that roomate if you dont trust him with keepin doors unlocked when your gone you must have reason too.. around harvest time dont go showin extra nugz or he mite take down the door and see whats up...

 

[PeaceKiller]

Around $200 can go along way if you spend it right, I'm sure you know. You could definatly pull off a tent/cabinet for well under $100. If it wouldn't arouse suspision I would have totally built something from scratch. I love that kind of stuff.

I can trust my roommate, but I take no chances.
You are totally right about the flashing of nugs around crib. I'll have to contain myself and maintain the casuality of things .

 

[Ilikebigbuds]

very nice! Yhanks for sharing with us!