another rookie

  • Thread starter dean1963
  • Start date
  • Tagged users None
D

dean1963

646
93
thanks to flu 19 my wife is working from home in the only place i could put my grow tent. i've put it outside in a protected spot for now but the temps get down to 6C a night still.
it's set up with a mars 3000 light and an infinity fan and i will put a space heater in it when i'm ready.
my question is, when do i put the seedlings under the light? they're up about 1 inch now and the true leaves are just starting to show

thanks
dean

purple kush auto if it matters
 
Moe.Red

Moe.Red

5,044
313
Hi Dean, welcome to the farm.

Posting pics from your cell phone is super easy and a great way to get good feedback.

So the deal with seedlings is that if you don't give them photons they will get leggy - meaning the stalks will stretch and they will get spindly and weak. This is a response from the plant where it thinks it has not reached the surface yet so it puts its effort into going vertical to reach the light. So yes, you need light once they pop thru the surface. How much light will have an impact on how quickly they grow vertically. Reaching the sweet spot is something you learn with practice. Be prepared to move your light closer or further depending on how the seedlings react. Post pics and we'll help. Cheers.
 
D

dean1963

646
93
20220330 105207 HDR
20220330 105207 HDR
 
20220330 105207 HDR
D

dean1963

646
93

sorry for 3 photos of the same thing, it takes my awhile to figure this out.
this 1 is about 2 inches tall and only planted 3 days ago. they are just in the house now with regular lights as i was scared to put them in the cold just yet. i guess i should put a heater in the grow tent and put them under proper light.
mars 3000 goes from 0 to 100 percent so any suggestions on the power setting?
 
Moe.Red

Moe.Red

5,044
313
Well, I could write a book here, but I'll just make some points to consider.

First, the one in front seems OK. Watch it close to make sure the vertical growth slows down or stops. What you want at this point is the plant to stay roughly the same height for a couple days while your roots develop. Current lighting is OK as long as this is what happens. After the roots are established and you start to add nodes, the current light is not enough.

Using a clear pot is OK at this point, but you do not want your roots to see light. It really confuses the plant. So once the roots start to be visible thru the glass, you may have to transplant. People use solo cups because they block light so they can decide when to transplant rather than the pot making that choice for them. If you had lots of roots (think about a potted plant you get from Home Depot where the roots have filled up the container) light would be a problem for you hitting those roots.

Also, a little breeze would be helpful. You want the plant moving back and forth throughout the day to strengthen it. Those high walls on your cups prevent that. The leaning would be less if they were a bit stronger (unless they are growing towards the light, in which case spin the cup to make them come back the other way, and try to increase the light a bit. Seedlings searching for light means they don't have enough.)

Go ahead and gently remove that seed hull.

Soil looks a bit damp to me, keep an eye on that.
 
D

dean1963

646
93
Well, I could write a book here, but I'll just make some points to consider.

First, the one in front seems OK. Watch it close to make sure the vertical growth slows down or stops. What you want at this point is the plant to stay roughly the same height for a couple days while your roots develop. Current lighting is OK as long as this is what happens. After the roots are established and you start to add nodes, the current light is not enough.

Using a clear pot is OK at this point, but you do not want your roots to see light. It really confuses the plant. So once the roots start to be visible thru the glass, you may have to transplant. People use solo cups because they block light so they can decide when to transplant rather than the pot making that choice for them. If you had lots of roots (think about a potted plant you get from Home Depot where the roots have filled up the container) light would be a problem for you hitting those roots.

Also, a little breeze would be helpful. You want the plant moving back and forth throughout the day to strengthen it. Those high walls on your cups prevent that. The leaning would be less if they were a bit stronger (unless they are growing towards the light, in which case spin the cup to make them come back the other way, and try to increase the light a bit. Seedlings searching for light means they don't have enough.)

Go ahead and gently remove that seed hull.

Soil looks a bit damp to me, keep an eye on that.
thanks for the reply, i'm just using those cups until i can see any roots then they go into 5 gallon pails.
i just put them in the tent with light set at 50% and 18 inches above them and i also put a heater in the tent. i set the fan to 25c high and 20 low and shut it off for humidity as it's 70% here
 
Top Bottom