SOIL Noob looking for friendly advice

[yorkshire1987]

Alright guys, here goes my first post....

Me and my Mrs have come to the point where were fed up with excusing our medicinal use of cannabis... and to be honest, I'm 32, and I'm tired of filling the local youths pockets every time i need a reload, only to get some hair sprayed shit in return. We've finally decided to sort our problem out our self and try grow some quality cannabis to make sweet CBD oil and possibly edibles. Im a bit of a perfectionist/nerd and like researching stuff beforehand.

I'm on a budget.... but i know fullwell that you get what you pay for, im not greedy but i wanna put the effort into it to get a decent harvest rather than blagging it and wasting time. After a bit or research ive ordered a 800x800x1600 tent, a Mars Hydro 1000w Led Light, a decent extractor fan and carbon filter and some 'advanced nutrients grow and bloom' feed. Im thinking 4 medium sized high indica plants....

Any first time advice, top tips or money saving advice will be appreciated! Im sure theres loads i need to think about

[NuggetMan]

It all depends on what you want. I see you spent a nice little caboodle for your setup, I on the other hand am just a home grower and get what I need without blowing it out of proportion. I am using 4 t5 shop lights and only a ceiling fan for air circulation, that is it, nothing fancy, but gets the job done. I have done 12 grows so far with #12 being the latest and so far have been very happy with my end results. I only use a TDS meter to keep track on how much nutrient is in the water and ph my water from as low as 6.0 to no higher that 6.8. Since I use Fox Farms nutrients, I use very little and get great results.

[yorkshire1987]

looks sweet mate, having to go on the slightly discreet side, and don't want anything permanent installing either so the tent seemed like the best way to go. Want keep the electric bills down too, by the photo you sent, your way sure looks like its paying off though! what strains do you go for?

[Daskahn]

Hygrometer.. they keep track of your temperature and humidity comes in handy and are cheap
a jewelers loop as well.. also pretty cheap and very important for knowing when to harvest I’m not sure what size tent that is but seems pretty large if you have it all already I’d turn on the light and see where the max coverage is and plan not to use it all because edges of light cover is usually much weaker then more central areas.. but again I’m not sure what size that is and your light is probably plenty
mid day you are very well prepared and I look forward to following your grow.. may I suggest a grow journal?

[yorkshire1987]

could you explain how a Hygrometer would come in handy, and what the humidy should be for Cannabis? sorry... really new to this

[Daskahn]

Well you see cannabis grows best in specific humidity and temperature ranges as well as drys and cures best under certain humidity and temperature condition
Preferred growth heat and humidity is like 50-60% humidity and between 70-80 degrees heat
Drying and curing is 50-54 humidity and 70-72 degrees heat..
a hygrometer will keep track of the temperature and humidity ranges in your grow area.. if it gets to dry or hot or cold it could effect the growth of your plants.. .. now I personally believe that cannabis can grow in hotter and colder climates as well as higher humidity and lower as long as it’s properly watered I think it just largely depends on what styles it’s grown in and what not.. but I’ll say this the 70-74 range in heat keeps bugs down but still allows for growth.. much colder then that then the plants growth slows down much higher then bugs multiply quicker..
if your plants start to wilt and it’s 95 degrees you know there’s a good chance it’s to hot in your tent.. basically it’ll also help you eliminate possible problems..

[yorkshire1987]

Cheers mate, thats really helpful!

[dphipps1020]

Looks like you have a good start so far. Fabric pots are great for growing if your budget allows. What size is that tent? Seems big, maybe a typo? I'm guessing it's in mm so it's about 3x3x6'? That light should grow you some decent sized ladies in that size tent. Maybe keep it to 2-3 plants though? It will really depend on the training you decide to do. I grow in a 4x4' tent and have to keep it to 3 or 4 (tops) or I run out of room. Just something to keep in mind. May I also suggest looking into training techniques like manifolding. I use a modified version of this called quadlining (https://forum.growweedeasy.com/forum...356-quadlining) and it cuts recovery time by a lot because I only top my girls once. There's a lot of good information out there to help you be able to take advantage of every bit of your space as you can so research is your best friend in the beginning. Also if you have questions or run into any issues, this forum is a great place to get answers. There are a lot of veteran growers (myself not included) who have a lot of excellent advice and tips to help save time. It's possible to over-experiment at first as well (guilty) which can stunt the growth of your plants, so try your best to keep from doing that if you can help it. Hope this helps you at least a little. Welcome to the forum and happy growing!

[yorkshire1987]

Ill read into manifolding, sounds interesting. Dont wanna get too crazy, but willing to put the work into it to make some nice bud. Yeah, its 80cm x 80cm x 160cm. Cheers for the advice mate

[Daskahn]

Go with quadlining not manifolding..
it’s easier and less stressful on the plant
Also if you do quadlining go with nodes 2 and 3 I just did a comparison grow using these techniques and the plant likes it more or atleast my plant did lol

[dphipps1020]

It will definitely help your yields. Most indoor growers use some form of this. Here's a link to one of my posts. It has some details and lots of pictures that may help.

https://forum.growweedeasy.com/forum/growing-community/396781-different-grows-different-post

[NuggetMan]

Go to the hardware store and get a poolside thermometer. They have humidity dials on them as well. Got mine at Home Depot. Helps me determine my room temp and humidity at the same time.

[duckman]

not a complete list but it will get you started...fabric pots 3 or 5 gallon (vivosun are good quality and cheap), pot elevators, timer for lights, etc., clip fans for tent (do NOT buy vivosun oscillating tent fan), exhaust fan, ducting, pH measuring system (meter or liquid), plastic syringes for measuring nutes, thermometer/hygrometer, lots of perlite in the soil/coco. good luck!

[duckman]

something else that bears repeating...it is VERY EASY to love them to death i.e. kill them with too much attention when you are just starting off...be very careful with overwatering, etc. especially when they are babies!

[Farmall]

I am guessing your not in North America? Yes, I see the world very differently...just an age thing. Only went to a place they call Canada once. So if you have access to amazon...many inexpensive grow items can be had there. If you are measuring nutrient solutions, a cheap set of graduated cylinders or beakers come in very handy. Especially as you will be using only a few ml’s per gallon. This Watch out for the free and cheap timers...they’ll work but if they do fail, you risk ruining your attempts at growing... check them to insure they are working properly...plan on the length of time you are going to grow your plants with their vegging cycle and when you’re switching to the flowering cycle...unless your using auto flowering seed.

The growing tutorials here on GWE are the best out there for anyone starting . Easy plant training will do more for your yield as a new grower than any options out there. Simple topping alone with tying down branches to keep your canopy tabletop flat makes a huge difference and consider more advanced options for the next grow as your experience develops in identifying other potential issues. As a branch starts to grow tall, grab some twisty wire and gently pull it down to the level of the others.

you’ll read all of this in the tutorials. Gotta second those fabric grow bags. Some are really shit thin flimsy and for A few dollars or so more, you’ll find some that can hold up well for years. I know you’ve listed nutrients on your 1st post but (and this is one of my personal favorites) read the tutorial on living soil or super soil. Be on the lookout for fungus gnats...seems like everyone gets them at some point. Yellow sticky sheets work well as does diatomaceous earth powder as a top dressing. Consider being prepared in case.

if you have an option to use a USB powered microscope... you’ll have a good look at your plants readiness for harvest. They are fairly inexpensive as well. Any very close up images you see on the site describing trichome ready harvesting...are typically taken using these scopes.

hey, good luck... your reasoning for doing it yourself is a great one... now you’re the one in control of any and all and that’s a great thing

[Daskahn]

This here my friends is a wordsmith.. very well said farmall
I second the East training for your first grow
Imma add get yourself some yo-yo ties I find when the limbs are tied down allowing for big buds.. they do get heavy later on in flower and sometimes need held up due to weight

[SoOrbudgal]

Welcome to the grow and best of luck

[NuggetMan]

Well, I don't have anything permanent, my light stands I made out of pvc pipe which can be broken down at any time. The ceiling fan, well all my rooms got fans just because it does get hot here where I live. My PG&E bills have stayed in the "normal" range, so my lights must not use up that much electricity. I mainly like to grow Sativa as I like to wake up and smile in the morning! Most of my plants came from back in the day (I am surprised they still germinated!) or from different purchases that was bomb stuff, and I just throw the seeds into a jar for future use, so really I have no clue what I get until harvest time. Indica is fine, but I save that for after dinner when I start getting lazy and sleepy... Since it's a small bedroom, I have blackened out the window using black construction paper which does a very good job of total darkness needed for flowering, you can't see the window cause it's towards the back of the house, very, very discreet!!!

Once you get your first grow under your belt, then you will have a better idea as to what you can do!!!

As you can see from my picture, it took me 11 grows to get to this point, but it only gets better with each grow... as this I consider my best grow yet.

This is after 2-3 days to germinate my seeds and plant them, what I do is print up a calendar and mark the veg time (I use 8 weeks) from the day the seeds first pop out of the dirt, then mark 1 week for "transition to flower", after that week I mark (depending on what is being grown) 8-10 weeks for flower of Indica and 10-14 weeks for Sativa, then I pay attention to the trichomes as this is the last indicator you have before harvest!!! So far , this has worked for me and have been very happy with my end results. Hope this helps! And will also give you a good idea when you would be ready to harvest!

[Farmall]

How far back is back in the day? I have 37 year old seeds that I have tried several methods of failed germination. Sent for something I read about to see if that works ...yes, they’re old but we all hear them say” archeologists have discovered cannabis seed in the 6000 yr old cave and the plants grew.” Under that premise, I ain’t giving up for another 5963 more years

[Gluteous]

Read everything on this site. Then read it again. You're going to need whatever it takes to keep your environment dialed in to what makes the girls happy. Temp, humidity, fresh air, cirulation, food, and water. And you need at least a 30x jewelers loupe. If you take em down too early you've wasted all your time and efforts.

[Damngrower]

Mr Danks Special Boost Secret seems to have had a positive effect on my grow this time round and I've been using Ecothrive Charge and Biosys. The plants love the last two and always look super healthy after they've had a top up. Ecothrive also do a product called neutralise which removes the chlorine/chloramines from tap water, which is useful if you use tap water. Im guessing from your username that we share a country! All this stuff is available here.
I use a scrog for my training, but my tent is only big enough for two medium sized plants. It's a fantastic method for increasing your harvest but you do need to be able to get to all of the parts of your plant so if you have a big tent you may need to get creative to get it done.
Best of luck, it's a thoroughly rewarding experience!