The More You Grow - The More Ya Know! Questions Galore

  • Thread starter thcrootz
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What do you like growing better?


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thcrootz

thcrootz

10
3
Hey everyone - first let me say, I've visited a number of forums like this and, to my dismay, most seemed to be all about the expert growers flexing their muscles and showing off rather than helping and/or teaching the less experienced farmers. I hope ::fingers crossed::: that's not the case here, as I could really use actual, genuine help from humble, willing participants.

That being said, let me introduce myself. I go by Dipper (any Gravity Falls fans in here? lol) and I would rate myself as an advanced novice-intermediate grower. I've grown in both soil and hydroponically, my preference being soil (although I would like to try some soilless mixes at some point, like coco or Pro-Mix is it called?). I just like getting my hands dirty and feeling the "earth". I grow indoors, I'm in the NE part of the USA and my particular area happens to be rainy/humid. The bugs in the summer are the bane of my existence.

Here's some random questions I wanted to throw out there before I even bother telling you all more boring details about myself lol, so maybe I can catch someone's interest and don't lose everyone with my complete and total lack of brevity.

1. Up until this point, I've ONLY grown PhotoPeriod plants. I just started 5 Auto-flowering plants and - I'm not entirely sure how to go about feeding them. I just switched over my nutes to Advanced Nutrients, GMB 3-part base, with a few add-ons, like Big Bud, Sensisym, Overdrive, Voodoo Juice, Tarantula, and a Cal-Mag if needed. If anyone has any input regarding how to feed autoflowering vs. photo-period, I would love to hear it. Also, if anyone has specific details in regards to these particular nutrients, even better.

2. I have a tiny little tent as a "nursery", and a larger main grow tent 4x4x7. Recently, I invested in the ElectricSky 300 from The Green Sunshine Co. (It was a black Friday sale I couldn't look away lol), however currently, it's the only light in there. According to the website, if I'm reading it correctly, it suggests I should have another one for my size tent. Is that correct? I cannot afford another one of those just yet, so I was wondering if I could supplement with one or two of my previous lights (which are essentially brand new as well), the Philizon 600 Watt LED (however these glow pink, as opposed to the ElectricSky). Does anyone have any "thoughts" on this?

3. Furthermore, not so much a question - but just to give you an idea of what I'm working with, I have a 6" duct inline fan bringing fresh air into the tent, along with 2 clip-on fans inside the tent. I have a 4" extraction fan connected to a carbon filter that is filtering air out of the tent. I had found that I was having a humidity problem, so I bought a medium sized humidifier which blows all the time and keeps me at a steady 45-55% RH, is this correct?. My plants are in 3 or 5 gallon fabric smart pots, elevated inside a catch pan. Depending on how many plants I intend to grow and HOW I intend to grow them, I have a trellis net, or I use tomato steak rings for each individual plant. I find, for me it's a little easier on my back. Has anyone heard that slightly higher humidity helps produce females? I know there is a tremendous discussion over stress vs. genetics when it comes to feminized seeds going herm, my last crop I had two herms out of 4 feminized and I'm not sure if it was due to crowding (I had a much smaller tent then) or what, as the pH was always roughly around 6.2-7.0 which was amazing as I didn't really have a good pH reader for soil. Which brings me to another question: Does anyone know of a decent soil pH tester that won't break my bank account? Am I correct or incorrect in thinking that soil with liquid nutrients should stay in a range of about 6.2-7, depending - and as long as the plants look like they're thriving?

4. Finally, if I haven't exhausted all of you by now lol - does anyone top or FIM their auto-flowering plants? Also, I currently have my plants on an 18-6 light cycle. Then I read that automatics do better with 24 hour light. Can anyone shed some light on this for me (no pun intended). Once the auto-flowering plant begins to flower, it doesn't matter what the light cycle is, or is it still better to go 12/12 regardless? As you can see, I'm a little lost with the auto-flower stuff - but extremely interested, as it seems if you have a bunch of auto-flowers growing at once; should light cycle not be an issue, and everything else being the same, it is entirely possible to start plants 1, 2 or even 3 weeks apart (as long as you're strictly doing an auto-flower harvest)?

Dear Lord I hope that makes sense...lol

Thank you all for your patience. I am an avid reader and writer; soaking up information like a sponge. However, I promise my posts won't always be this long. lol
 
1diesel1

1diesel1

Staff
Supporter
11,118
438
Welcome to, The Farm!! Sounds like you’ll fit right in! IMOP 45-55% humidity is ideal. I grow in soil also, sorry though never touched an auto.
Ph for me is ideal at 6.0, I’ve ran this ph pen for years. It’ll set you back $100 but is well worth it. Fire up a grow diary your next run. Lots of peeps here to learn and teach!!
E9F4B94B F735 4673 B247 732CA8CD77F6
 
xavier7995

xavier7995

1,806
263
I like that post man, nicely detailed and well written. Lulz cause my signature line fits with that poll. Here is my take:

1. Clearly not an expert on those varieties, but from what i gather you feed it a veg oriented formula and then switch over to a flower formula once the plant starts flowering, lots feed the higher nitrogen veg formulas through the first few weeks of flower so you should easily be able to tell when you are flower and need to switch. That is a big list of nutrients you have so no advice on what to use when, i prefer a more simple one or two part feed and it doesnt vary much over the life of the plant.

2. If you have them, might as well use them assuming it doesnt cause heat issues or something. Side lighting maybe?

3. The right humidity level to run at depends on temperature. Google up the vpd chart. That said, 50 is good and many argue both sides of vpd being helpful. I try and stay in range during veg and early flower, then i like low humidity during the later half of flower to pevent and mold/fungus issues. Higher humidity will not make for more females. 1diesel got the ph questions.

4. From what i gather, you should not top or fim autos. They have a limited life window and dont bounce back that well from it. I would leave them under 18/6 and not 12/12, but i am guessing someone could give way more useful info on that front. Since they just flower based on passage of time rather than a change in lightcycle, i believe you to be correct that its just a matter of setting it up and then putting plants in there to do their thing. I do really like the idea of autos for guerilla ops.

Happy growing!
 
London bud

London bud

559
143
I grew autos in 24 hour light start to finish. I'm no pro but it was one of my first grows , I since switched to photos but have never grown as much bud on each single plant as I did with the autos under 24hr light
 
thcrootz

thcrootz

10
3
So, here's a quick update for those reading. (I will be making some grow journals soon). The Dark Devil Auto by Sweet Seeds Genetics has thus far been killin' it, producing big bountiful, heavy, sticky buds, and they're still ripening (not quite ready for the harvest yet).

I have a Barney's Blue Cheese Auto, which I planted also from seed the same time as the Dark Devil. This plant started very slow in life, so slow in fact, that I thought it was a goner, and I continued to care for it, but didn't put much stock or hope in it. Then, suddenly, once I started to give her some nutes (Advanced Nutes was my chosen brand for this run) - the frikkin' thing shot up, vegetative growth that I would normally see in a photo-period. What's more is that is hasn't even "pre-flowered" yet, I can barely tell it's female (tiny little nubules let me know. I was concerned perhaps it hermed, but no balls, NOTHING - just very tiny calyxes, almost impossible to see with the naked eye). The thing is growing like a photo-period indica heavy bush now. I haven't pruned it at all because I'm fascinated to see what (if anything) is going to happen. I did top her twice for the hell of it, because once she got passed that weird slow growth phase, I swear the veg growth has been insane.

Now I have this wildly bushy supposedly auto-fem plant that just keeps growing veg and I don't know what to do lol. Any suggestions? I'll upload a few pics and maybe a video.
 
Dan789

Dan789

2,954
263
Welcome, don’t forget the “search” function is a good fast response to any questions along with posting. As your a new member consider that many of your initial questions may have just been fielded by the community an have posted responses which those queries will turn up. Good growing and enjoy your participation in this forum, enjoy the learning environment.
 
crimsonecho

crimsonecho

Self-Proclaimed Don Quixote
Supporter
2,551
263
Hey everyone - first let me say, I've visited a number of forums like this and, to my dismay, most seemed to be all about the expert growers flexing their muscles and showing off rather than helping and/or teaching the less experienced farmers. I hope ::fingers crossed::: that's not the case here, as I could really use actual, genuine help from humble, willing participants.

That being said, let me introduce myself. I go by Dipper (any Gravity Falls fans in here? lol) and I would rate myself as an advanced novice-intermediate grower. I've grown in both soil and hydroponically, my preference being soil (although I would like to try some soilless mixes at some point, like coco or Pro-Mix is it called?). I just like getting my hands dirty and feeling the "earth". I grow indoors, I'm in the NE part of the USA and my particular area happens to be rainy/humid. The bugs in the summer are the bane of my existence.

Here's some random questions I wanted to throw out there before I even bother telling you all more boring details about myself lol, so maybe I can catch someone's interest and don't lose everyone with my complete and total lack of brevity.

1. Up until this point, I've ONLY grown PhotoPeriod plants. I just started 5 Auto-flowering plants and - I'm not entirely sure how to go about feeding them. I just switched over my nutes to Advanced Nutrients, GMB 3-part base, with a few add-ons, like Big Bud, Sensisym, Overdrive, Voodoo Juice, Tarantula, and a Cal-Mag if needed. If anyone has any input regarding how to feed autoflowering vs. photo-period, I would love to hear it. Also, if anyone has specific details in regards to these particular nutrients, even better.

2. I have a tiny little tent as a "nursery", and a larger main grow tent 4x4x7. Recently, I invested in the ElectricSky 300 from The Green Sunshine Co. (It was a black Friday sale I couldn't look away lol), however currently, it's the only light in there. According to the website, if I'm reading it correctly, it suggests I should have another one for my size tent. Is that correct? I cannot afford another one of those just yet, so I was wondering if I could supplement with one or two of my previous lights (which are essentially brand new as well), the Philizon 600 Watt LED (however these glow pink, as opposed to the ElectricSky). Does anyone have any "thoughts" on this?

3. Furthermore, not so much a question - but just to give you an idea of what I'm working with, I have a 6" duct inline fan bringing fresh air into the tent, along with 2 clip-on fans inside the tent. I have a 4" extraction fan connected to a carbon filter that is filtering air out of the tent. I had found that I was having a humidity problem, so I bought a medium sized humidifier which blows all the time and keeps me at a steady 45-55% RH, is this correct?. My plants are in 3 or 5 gallon fabric smart pots, elevated inside a catch pan. Depending on how many plants I intend to grow and HOW I intend to grow them, I have a trellis net, or I use tomato steak rings for each individual plant. I find, for me it's a little easier on my back. Has anyone heard that slightly higher humidity helps produce females? I know there is a tremendous discussion over stress vs. genetics when it comes to feminized seeds going herm, my last crop I had two herms out of 4 feminized and I'm not sure if it was due to crowding (I had a much smaller tent then) or what, as the pH was always roughly around 6.2-7.0 which was amazing as I didn't really have a good pH reader for soil. Which brings me to another question: Does anyone know of a decent soil pH tester that won't break my bank account? Am I correct or incorrect in thinking that soil with liquid nutrients should stay in a range of about 6.2-7, depending - and as long as the plants look like they're thriving?

4. Finally, if I haven't exhausted all of you by now lol - does anyone top or FIM their auto-flowering plants? Also, I currently have my plants on an 18-6 light cycle. Then I read that automatics do better with 24 hour light. Can anyone shed some light on this for me (no pun intended). Once the auto-flowering plant begins to flower, it doesn't matter what the light cycle is, or is it still better to go 12/12 regardless? As you can see, I'm a little lost with the auto-flower stuff - but extremely interested, as it seems if you have a bunch of auto-flowers growing at once; should light cycle not be an issue, and everything else being the same, it is entirely possible to start plants 1, 2 or even 3 weeks apart (as long as you're strictly doing an auto-flower harvest)?

Dear Lord I hope that makes sense...lol

Thank you all for your patience. I am an avid reader and writer; soaking up information like a sponge. However, I promise my posts won't always be this long. lol

Dude, you use what you got. If you have blurples, of course throw them in there. Blurples are fine despite all the hate it receives.
I went with 18/6 with autos all the way because i don’t think the electricity cost of 24 hrs on will cover the yield gain you’ll get. In any case anything can be done, 18-24.
Don’t feed any plant too much at first, start with 1/2, even 1/4 and get a feel for what they like.
50 to 70 rh is fine, 40 will also do. Eventho this is a hot debate and some will say you risk pm at 70 rh thats also the best for plants health and functions. Of course this also changes based on your temps. Vpd is what its called.
 
thcrootz

thcrootz

10
3
Dude, you use what you got. If you have blurples, of course throw them in there. Blurples are fine despite all the hate it receives.
I went with 18/6 with autos all the way because i don’t think the electricity cost of 24 hrs on will cover the yield gain you’ll get. In any case anything can be done, 18-24.
Don’t feed any plant too much at first, start with 1/2, even 1/4 and get a feel for what they like.
50 to 70 rh is fine, 40 will also do. Eventho this is a hot debate and some will say you risk pm at 70 rh thats also the best for plants health and functions. Of course this also changes based on your temps. Vpd is what its called.
Thanks, I’ll look that up (VPD). My rh has now run consistently from 44-54, so I’m pleased with that and the temps go from 73-78 although they seem to like it on the higher side. If it gets too “cool” in there, I’ll just play with the general heat of the room the tent is in, or I might even slightly dim up/dim down the actual light fixture depending on time of day. So far, everyone is healthy as can be - just really wondered about the whole autoflowering plant not even pre-flowering yet and it’s been in veg since early Dec. that’s all. I’m always excited and interested to see what I’m gonna get from any given plant, it’s fascinating!
 
thcrootz

thcrootz

10
3
Welcome, don’t forget the “search” function is a good fast response to any questions along with posting. As your a new member consider that many of your initial questions may have just been fielded by the community an have posted responses which those queries will turn up. Good growing and enjoy your participation in this forum, enjoy the learning environment.
Thanks, I’m aware you can search. I do use it often. Sometimes, questions might seem/feel a little different (even if they’re not) simply bc newbies don’t always know what’s the same and what’s different. If someone doesn’t want to take the time to respond, I’m sure they won’t.

Also, this original post was a “combo” of questions and me introducing myself, something no one can do through the search.

I’m not sure why so many people are bent on pointing out there’s a search option. Anyway, thank you for stating the obvious and if my questions or posts bother you - just ignore me. I’m sincerely sorry if they do. After all, it is s posting forum.
 
Monster762

Monster762

3,270
263
Guess the video didn’t upload? Can’t see from my phone.
You got to load the video n don’t type. Let it load. 100%. Then start your typing and give a second before you post. If you see the moving black bars in upper right corner it’s not fully loaded yet. I had issues too til 1diesel1 told me how I was messing it up. Limit to 1 minute or they’ll be cut. Videos are nice but the still shots definately got their place too. And easier to load.
 
Dan789

Dan789

2,954
263
Thanks, I’m aware you can search. I do use it often. Sometimes, questions might seem/feel a little different (even if they’re not) simply bc newbies don’t always know what’s the same and what’s different. If someone doesn’t want to take the time to respond, I’m sure they won’t.

Also, this original post was a “combo” of questions and me introducing myself, something no one can do through the search.

I’m not sure why so many people are bent on pointing out there’s a search option. Anyway, thank you for stating the obvious and if my questions or posts bother you - just ignore me. I’m sincerely sorry if they do. After all, it is s posting forum.
Wasn’t being snarky, just pointing out sometimes it’s a faster response to your question. The only dumb question is the one not asked...
 

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