Planning on Growing my First Plants!! Need Advice.

[xRedkiller03x]

Hi guys im Really new to this website and i have spent all of today researching how to grow weed(which i have done many times before but once i found this website i have a feeling i can really do it). I have always wanted to grow my own plant and tried to help my cuz with his but failed horribly. So now after reading up on many threads and alot of products i think im ready. I just have a few questions that i know u pro's can answer.

1.) What soil is the best to grow in?

2.) What light is the best for 4 plants(small operation)

3.) Is it ok to plant the Germinated Seed into a big pot and never transplant or will that cause problems? (if i do have to transplant how do i do so without destroying my plant)

4.) Nutrients(soil and water?) and PH? i def. need help whit this part.

5.) How long should i light them? i know there is different stages but not sure how much light they should receive.

6.) Watering... I dont want to drown or starve my plants, whats the best way to do it and provide nutrients?

6.) Stages... How do i know i got from one to the other?

I have sum more but first i need to fully grow them before i ask those. lol
Thnxs to whoever helps, i really apriciate it

BTW, this is going to be my Grow Specs:
24"x48"x60" Grow Tent)
4" Incline Air System
4" Carbon Filter.
6" Cooltube (will get 2 4" Attachment's for it).
4 Seeds, still thinking of which ones to buy(will be indica thou)
2 Timers one for light, the other for the ventilation system.

Also will make my journal once i get all my stuff in that i ordered:hubba:

 

[Rosebud]

I started to answer all your questions, but you really need to read in the resource section and all the stickies at the top of each section.
Do you want to grow organic? do you want to buy a bag of soil or make your own. I use Fox farm ocean forest. Read all you can. Good luck..
Yes, it is ok to plant a seed in a big pot and not transplant.
You water when they start to droop. Read read read. and good luck and green mojo.

 

[dctodave]

added my two cents in ur quote

Hi guys im Really new to this website and i have spent all of today researching how to grow weed(which i have done many times before but once i found this website i have a feeling i can really do it). I have always wanted to grow my own plant and tried to help my cuz with his but failed horribly. So now after reading up on many threads and alot of products i think im ready. I just have a few questions that i know u pro's can answer.

1.) What soil is the best to grow in?foxfarm ocean

2.) What light is the best for 4 plants(small operation)400watt

3.) Is it ok to plant the Germinated Seed into a big pot and never transplant or will that cause problems? (if i do have to transplant how do i do so without destroying my plant)u can plant in large pot

4.) Nutrients(soil and water?) and PH? i def. need help whit this part. u will need dynogrow "grow" and dynogrow "bloom" and "ph down" nuits.

5.) How long should i light them? i know there is different stages but not sure how much light they should receive. 20 on 4 off until u bloom... then 12 and 12

6.) Watering... I dont want to drown or starve my plants, whats the best way to do it and provide nutrients? use ur brain. touch the soil. when dry add water.

6.) Stages... How do i know i got from one to the other? u can control it with the light cycle and nuits. when u want to bloom start feeding bloom and 12/12. kinda depends on strain yr growing also.

I have sum more but first i need to fully grow them before i ask those. lol
Thnxs to whoever helps, i really apriciate it

BTW, this is going to be my Grow Specs:
24"x48"x60" Grow Tent)
4" Incline Air System
4" Carbon Filter.
6" Cooltube (will get 2 4" Attachment's for it).
4 Seeds, still thinking of which ones to buy(will be indica thou)
2 Timers one for light, the other for the ventilation system.

Also will make my journal once i get all my stuff in that i ordered:hubba:

 

[Locked]

Rose is right....we help those who also help themselves.....read through this >>>>http://www.marijuanapassion.com/forum/showthread.php?t=9396

 

[xRedkiller03x]

K, thnxs for link. I have read up on alot of things. but i do have a quick question. what watt lightbulb do i need for 4 plants in my grow tent? i dont want to over spend.

 

[SensiStarFan]

1.) What soil is the best to grow in? I use Promix BX. There is no "perfect" soil. Basically you want a soil that is not too fine and contains NO added nutrients. It should also have limestone and perlite.

2.) What light is the best for 4 plants(small operation) You want to use a light that is the correct size for your grow space. At 8 square feet your tent would house a 400 watt HPS very well, giving you over 5,000 lumens per square foot.

3.) Is it ok to plant the Germinated Seed into a big pot and never transplant or will that cause problems? (if i do have to transplant how do i do so without destroying my plant) Transplanting is easy. Start the plants in small 16 ounce plastic cups or something similar. Cut holes in the bottom. This way when the plants are small it is easier to fit them under fewer lights while vegging. I go from 16 ounce cups to 2-liter bottles with the tops cut off, then to 2,3, or 5 gallon pots for flowering. When you go to transplant just squeze the cups so the plant will slide right out of the cup, rub the base of the root ball so that the roots are not bunched up, and transplant away.

4.) Nutrients(soil and water?) and PH? i def. need help whit this part. You will need to buy a ph tester (for liquids, not soils) and ph adjusting solution (up and down) as well as calibration fluid for your ph tester. For nutrients the options are many. Keep it simple and go with something like the Lucas formula which is 2 parts. I have always used the GH 3 part and I love it.

5.) How long should i light them? i know there is different stages but not sure how much light they should receive. Veg them under 24 hours of light until they reach sexual maturity (4-8 weeks after germination). Vegging plants need at least 3,000 lumens per square foot of light, flowering plants at least 5,000 lumens.

6.) Watering... I dont want to drown or starve my plants, whats the best way to do it and provide nutrients? This is another reason why I start seedlings in small pots instead of large pots. Smaller pots make it easier for the plant to use the moisture in the soil. Soil that stays moist for days and days is an invitation for molds and fungi. The "wet-dry" cycle is important. I fertilize my plants in soil every time I water.

6.) Stages... How do i know i got from one to the other? Assuming you are talking about vegging and flowering, you are in total control of that. As long as you leave your plants in veg under 24 hours of light they will not flower. The day you flip your lights to 12/12 is the first day of the flowering stage.....sorry if this is not what you were asking about.

I have sum more but first i need to fully grow them before i ask those. lol
Thnxs to whoever helps, i really apriciate it

BTW, this is going to be my Grow Specs:
24"x48"x60" Grow Tent)
4" Incline Air System
4" Carbon Filter.
6" Cooltube (will get 2 4" Attachment's for it).
4 Seeds, still thinking of which ones to buy(will be indica thou)
2 Timers one for light, the other for the ventilation system.

Also will make my journal once i get all my stuff in that i ordered:hubba:

LASTLY: If you want to grow 4 plants order at least 10 seeds. Even if you are going with feminized seeds (I wouldn't) some may not germinate. It would suck to order four regular seeds, germinate them, 2 survive and they both turn out male. Hope this helps!

-SSF-

 

[Locked]

K, thnxs for link. I have read up on alot of things. but i do have a quick question. what watt lightbulb do i need for 4 plants in my grow tent? i dont want to over spend.

How many watts you need is dictated by the size of your grow space, not the number of plants....you want at least 3000 lumens a sqr foot in veg and 5000 lumens a sqr foot in flower.

 

[xRedkiller03x]

im not that advanced, i will have them in the same place at all times. so my veg will be my flowering. will that work?

 

[SensiStarFan]

im not that advanced, i will have them in the same place at all times. so my veg will be my flowering. will that work?

If you want to veg in the same 8 square foot area you flower I would just buy one 400 watt light with a switchable ballast (meaning it can run metal halide and HPS bulbs). Buy one 400 watt HPS bulb and one 400 watt Metal Halide bulb and then all you have to do is switch the bulbs and your timer when you go from veg to flower. If you need to use the same area for veg and flower and want to keep the costs on lighting down, that would be an easy option.

-SSF-

 

[xRedkiller03x]

Sweet! Thnxs SensiStarFan ur info deff. Helps alot. And about the seeds i already bought 4 "Female" Seeds from attitude seed bank, so i really hope atleast 2 are female.

and quick question... u said buy a switchable ballast, which bulbs do i use for veg and for flowering? Also u said buy 10 just to have a better chance but would i have enough room in my grow tent for that much?

EDIT- If i buy a HTG 400 watt HPS Grow light can i just get MH Conversion Bulb for its selected growing phase?

 

[woodydude]

Hi Red, welcome to MP,
A metal halide bulb has a blue spectrum, which is used for the vegitative stage.
A HPS bulb has a red spectrum which is used for the flowering stage.
Just to confuse you, you can also use a "dual spectrum" bulb, which means no changing bulbs however these can promote stretch in plants. I have friends who do this and they get good results.

Buying 10 seeds, regular not feminised, is a "safer" option. I just had a plant grown from a feminised seed "hermie" on me. Thankfully it did not pollenate any other plants but it is one of the dangers of femmed seeds.
Buy 10 regs, you will probably get 5 females from that. In an 8sq ft space, thats 1.6sq ft per plant. This can be done if you get Indica's, depending on how big you let them grow before flipping to flowering light cycle.

Many of the good quality digital ballasts do not need a conversion kit to run either MH or HPS, I would look into those. Buy quality, you will only buy it once, buy cheap stuff and you will be buying a replacement very soon.

Green mojo my friend. W

 

[SensiStarFan]

Hi Red, welcome to MP,
A metal halide bulb has a blue spectrum, which is used for the vegitative stage.
A HPS bulb has a red spectrum which is used for the flowering stage.
Just to confuse you, you can also use a "dual spectrum" bulb, which means no changing bulbs however these can promote stretch in plants. I have friends who do this and they get good results.

Buying 10 seeds, regular not feminised, is a "safer" option. I just had a plant grown from a feminised seed "hermie" on me. Thankfully it did not pollenate any other plants but it is one of the dangers of femmed seeds.
Buy 10 regs, you will probably get 5 females from that. In an 8sq ft space, thats 1.6sq ft per plant. This can be done if you get Indica's, depending on how big you let them grow before flipping to flowering light cycle.

Many of the good quality digital ballasts do not need a conversion kit to run either MH or HPS, I would look into those. Buy quality, you will only buy it once, buy cheap stuff and you will be buying a replacement very soon.

Green mojo my friend. W

woodydude has you covered, good advice right there. I also just noticed at the end of your first post that you are going to be running two timers with one running your ventilation system? I would run the ventilation fan 24 hours a day. Unless you are running a CO2 system I do not see why you would need to be shutting your ventilation fan on and off.
I see you went ahead and ordered 4 feminized beans? What did you get? Are they all the same type?
-SSF-

 

[xRedkiller03x]

Thnxs for the help Woodydude, i was thinking of getting a digital one but thats pretty expensive, would it work with a 400 watt HPS grow light and i get a MH conversion Bulb?

Sensi yea i prob should keep it on all the time since its getting hotter up here. and yea i bought the Super awesome "White Widow" "Critical" (cross from Critical Mass, Brazilian, South Indian) "Early Widow" and "Sweet Deep Grapefruit" (3 Indica and White Widow is mostly Sativa) all four are photoperiod.

 

[SensiStarFan]

Thnxs for the help Woodydude, i was thinking of getting a digital one but thats pretty expensive, would it work with a 400 watt HPS grow light and i get a MH conversion Bulb?

Sensi yea i prob should keep it on all the time since its getting hotter up here. and yea i bought the Super awesome "White Widow" "Critical" (cross from Critical Mass, Brazilian, South Indian) "Early Widow" and "Sweet Deep Grapefruit" (3 Indica and White Widow is mostly Sativa) all four are photoperiod.

If the ballast is able to run MH and HPS bulbs it will say so on the website or in the ad for the product. I have two digital ballasts that have been running well for over 4 years now. Don't skimp on the ballast. Buying a good one will save you money in the long run because you will have fewer problems, the ballast will make less noise, and it will put off less heat.

-SSF-

 

[xRedkiller03x]

Hey Sensi i just called and they said it would work, this is the one im looking to buy. hXXp://www.htgsupply.com/Product-HTGSupply-400-watt-High-Pressure-Sodium-Grow-Light.asp

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

That is not a digi ballast (it will not run a metal halide bulb) and it is not aircooled. I would be looking for a digi ballast with an air cooled reflector.

Amazon has a 400W with a digi ballast in a 6" cooltube for under $150 with free shipping.

 

[xRedkiller03x]

nice, thnxs hemp i wass looking for cooltubes but only found the tube without socket and ballast.

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

Here is a link to the cooltube set up. Change the XX to tt

hXXp://www.amazon.com/LED-Wholesalers-GYO2009-3-Piece-Hydroponic/dp/B004HNPGKA/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1305984866&sr=8-2

 

[xRedkiller03x]

nice thnxs for the link, i will deff buy soon.