New to Growing in the Valley of the Sun

  • Thread starter Erfling
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Erfling

Erfling

22
13
Hey.. Erfling.

I'm very happy I've stumbled onto this cultivation network. I don't have anybody to talk cultivation with mostly due to not being very social. I haven't met anybody since moving here 7 years ago so I'm hoping this will fill that void. I'm now able to legally grow my own crop and since AZ went recreational, I haven't enjoyed going to the MMJ dispensaries like I used to so I decided to take responsibility for my own needs and cultivate like everybody else on THC Farmer. This is a great forum, btw. I spent 6 weeks reading and gathering information before starting my hobby farm. I would have gained much more knowledge had I found this place before I planted.

I'm my wife's only child and my allowance is well funded, so I invested for the long haul. I figure if I buy quality products then my failures will be just that, my failures and not because of the products I bought. I can still afford cannabis monthly until I'm self-sufficient, which is great because I'm not having beginner's luck. Bruce Banner autos never popped, luckily the Cindy Jack autos did. I had to go out of town for 4 days while my mother-in-law made it rain in my tent for 2 days. Now, one plant doesn't look like the other and each have their own issues. It's a challenge but eventually I'll succeed. I'm hoping to up my game by reading about other growers' mistakes before I make them and maybe get some feedback on how to fix or avoid my own problems.

Thank you for reading my introduction. I hope to be an adequate cannabis farmer someday.
 
ReeferRon

ReeferRon

300
93
Haha great intro! Welcome to the farm! Lots of love here for sure. I spend some time here every day and can honestly say a day never goes by that I don't learn something new or reiterate an old idea. Glad to make your acquaintance! -ReeferRon
 
Goblinkiller

Goblinkiller

658
143
I'm my wife's only child and my allowance is well funded, so I invested for the long haul.

Thats an interesting relation you got to your wife

Welcome:) the plant is resilient and we are learning, always
 
growsince79

growsince79

9,065
313
Hey.. Erfling.

I'm very happy I've stumbled onto this cultivation network. I don't have anybody to talk cultivation with mostly due to not being very social. I haven't met anybody since moving here 7 years ago so I'm hoping this will fill that void. I'm now able to legally grow my own crop and since AZ went recreational, I haven't enjoyed going to the MMJ dispensaries like I used to so I decided to take responsibility for my own needs and cultivate like everybody else on THC Farmer. This is a great forum, btw. I spent 6 weeks reading and gathering information before starting my hobby farm. I would have gained much more knowledge had I found this place before I planted.

I'm my wife's only child and my allowance is well funded, so I invested for the long haul. I figure if I buy quality products then my failures will be just that, my failures and not because of the products I bought. I can still afford cannabis monthly until I'm self-sufficient, which is great because I'm not having beginner's luck. Bruce Banner autos never popped, luckily the Cindy Jack autos did. I had to go out of town for 4 days while my mother-in-law made it rain in my tent for 2 days. Now, one plant doesn't look like the other and each have their own issues. It's a challenge but eventually I'll succeed. I'm hoping to up my game by reading about other growers' mistakes before I make them and maybe get some feedback on how to fix or avoid my own problems.

Thank you for reading my introduction. I hope to be an adequate cannabis farmer someday.
Welcome to the forum. If you want to avoid mistakes, you should have bought regular seeds. Seems like autos are a lot harder. Most of the problems I see here is newbies growing autos with led. You should use a hps and a fast indica to learn. IMO Autos are a marketing scam.
 
Erfling

Erfling

22
13
You're on to something because I did use LEDs on autoflower. I haven't had too many big issues other than the repercussions from the 2 day rain shower in the tent. I'm going to follow your recommendation of growing photo indicas after I use up all of these auto seeds on the next grow. Do you have any thoughts on what high thc photo strains I should look into?
 
growsince79

growsince79

9,065
313
You're on to something because I did use LEDs on autoflower. I haven't had too many big issues other than the repercussions from the 2 day rain shower in the tent. I'm going to follow your recommendation of growing photo indicas after I use up all of these auto seeds on the next grow. Do you have any thoughts on what high thc photo strains I should look into?
I don't know. I mostly make my own or what friends and family give me. In 42 years of making buds, I only bought seeds twice and never in the mail. Plenty of seed junkies here can recommend strains better than me. I would look for something short and 55-60 days flower.
 
growsince79

growsince79

9,065
313
I don't know. I mostly make my own or what friends and family give me. In 42 years of making buds, I only bought seeds twice and never in the mail. Plenty of seed junkies here can recommend strains better than me. I would look for something short and 55-60 days flower.
Oh and a 150w hps is $79 and will make 4-6 oz easy.
 
coherent

coherent

146
43
I usually grow photo's but auto's are no issue. I use LEDs in coco/perlite with GH nutes. I think some soils can be a bit harder to water correctly and lots of folks over water when starting out. Peat and peat pellets can be especially troublesome (at least they were for me). If you decide or have the option of an outside grow, autos can be a big plus outside offering nearly year around growing in AZ and you won't be at the mercy of the sun to induce flowering. Of course plants are smaller and yield is less, but these shorter cycle traits can be good a thing depending on your needs.
As far as high thc strains, take the listings on the seed banks with a grain of salt, but they will tell you which are higher or lower than others. You will get a million different opinions as to which is a good or best photo strain. Best bet is to research and find a plant that meets your desires based on thc, size, grow period and the numerous other traits (smell, taste, affects and so on). A good source is reviewing grow diaries with similar light, medium nutes etc you use and see their results with different strains. Good luck!
 
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Erfling

Erfling

22
13
I don't know. I mostly make my own or what friends and family give me. In 42 years of making buds, I only bought seeds twice and never in the mail. Plenty of seed junkies here can recommend strains better than me. I would look for something short and 55-60 days flower.

Newbie question - 55 to 60 days flower time.. Is that from pre-flower to harvest or is that from seed to harvest? I see that time frame used on both auto and photo plants but I've read conflicting information about the meaning of that. For example, does 60 days for auto mean seed to harvest and 60 days for photo meaning the flowering cycle for photo plants? I probably have this all wrong but your years of experience tells me you know what's up.
 
growsince79

growsince79

9,065
313
Newbie question - 55 to 60 days flower time.. Is that from pre-flower to harvest or is that from seed to harvest? I see that time frame used on both auto and photo plants but I've read conflicting information about the meaning of that. For example, does 60 days for auto mean seed to harvest and 60 days for photo meaning the flowering cycle for photo plants? I probably have this all wrong but your years of experience tells me you know what's up.
Autos start counting from seed. Photos start counting when you change the light to 12-12
 
Erfling

Erfling

22
13
I usually grow photo's but auto's are no issue. I use LEDs in coco/perlite with GH nutes. I think some soils can be a bit harder to water correctly and lots of folks over water when starting out. Peat and peat pellets can be especially troublesome (at least they were for me). If you decide or have the option of an outside grow, autos can be a big plus outside offering nearly year around growing in AZ and you won't be at the mercy of the sun to induce flowering. Of course plants are smaller and yield is less, but these shorter cycle traits can be good a thing depending on your needs.
I'm planning on using 90% coco and 10% perlite with GH nutes on the next grow, your comment is giving me hope that I'm making the right decision. I'm currently using Happy Frog with the bottom 1/3 Nature's Living Soil and HF. I'll continue to use grow bags and Mars Hydro TS 3000 led.
 
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coherent

coherent

146
43
The seed banks may list some autos as short as 8-10 weeks from seed to harvest. I'm not sure what perfect growing conditions they are using to get these results, but you can usually add 2-4 weeks or more on their stated times frames for a realistic guess.
 
growsince79

growsince79

9,065
313
I'm planning on using 90% coco and 10% perlite with GH nutes on the next grow, you're comment is giving me hope that I'm making the right decision. I cyrrently using Happy Frog with the bottom 1/3 Nature's Living Soil and hp. I'll continue to use grow bags and Mars Hydro TS 3000 led.
I wouldn't recommend coco for a new grower. I use cocoloco (NOT COCO) and water like soil with good results. I don't need to feed anything until after the flip to flower.
 
coherent

coherent

146
43
I'm planning on using 90% coco and 10% perlite with GH nutes on the next grow, you're comment is giving me hope that I'm making the right decision. I'm currently using Happy Frog with the bottom 1/3 Nature's Living Soil and HF. I'll continue to use grow bags and Mars Hydro TS 3000 led.

I germinate in water/paper towel and start directly in coco/perlite in solo cups and when bigger/ready transplant to 3 gal grow bags. Water/feed to 10-15% runnoff. Water & 1/4 nute mix ph'd daily from day one. Increase during veg. Don't forget cal-mag. Most use a 70-75% to 30-25% coco/perlite ratio. Although you will see a few use higher or lower ratios. Remember perlite doesn't retain water it helps the roots get oxygen by not having as much water retention or compaction. That also makes it hard to over water which is a good thing when watering/feeding your coco daily or even more often. Once bigger in the 3gal bags, I water/feed 1/3 to 1/2 gal per plant per day and adjust more or less as needed based on growth and runoff. We're pretty dry here in AZ (especially lately) and once you start using these increased amounts of water, keep a fan circulating the air and if using fabric grow bags the humidity levels in the tent goes way up and makes it much easier to keep at desired levels.
 
Erfling

Erfling

22
13
I germinate in water/paper towel and start directly in coco/perlite in solo cups and when bigger/ready transplant to 3 gal grow bags. Water/feed to 10-15% runnoff. Water & 1/4 nute mix ph'd daily from day one. Increase during veg. Don't forget cal-mag. Most use a 70-75% to 30-25% coco/perlite ratio. Although you will see a few use higher or lower ratios. Remember perlite doesn't retain water it helps the roots get oxygen by not having as much water retention or compaction. That also makes it hard to over water which is a good thing when watering/feeding your coco daily or even more often. Once bigger in the 3gal bags, I water/feed 1/3 to 1/2 gal per plant per day and adjust more or less as needed based on growth and runoff. We're pretty dry here in AZ (especially lately) and once you start using these increased amounts of water, keep a fan circulating the air and if using fabric grow bags the humidity levels in the tent goes way up and makes it much easier to keep at desired levels.
I'm printing this off, it's really good information.
 
growsince79

growsince79

9,065
313
I germinate in water/paper towel and start directly in coco/perlite in solo cups and when bigger/ready transplant to 3 gal grow bags. Water/feed to 10-15% runnoff. Water & 1/4 nute mix ph'd daily from day one. Increase during veg. Don't forget cal-mag. Most use a 70-75% to 30-25% coco/perlite ratio. Although you will see a few use higher or lower ratios. Remember perlite doesn't retain water it helps the roots get oxygen by not having as much water retention or compaction. That also makes it hard to over water which is a good thing when watering/feeding your coco daily or even more often. Once bigger in the 3gal bags, I water/feed 1/3 to 1/2 gal per plant per day and adjust more or less as needed based on growth and runoff. We're pretty dry here in AZ (especially lately) and once you start using these increased amounts of water, keep a fan circulating the air and if using fabric grow bags the humidity levels in the tent goes way up and makes it much easier to keep at desired levels.
Cant argue coco doesn't make great yields when done correctly. But it's too much work for me. I don't grow for big yields. But if I did, a flood and drain table is the best way I know.
 
Erfling

Erfling

22
13
Welcome aboard... I dont think you give yourself enough credit.... plants look very good for a new grower and experienced grower alike.
They really are resilient but thank you. If I did 2 thing right in the 5 weeks I've been growing, it's using grow bags and a bathroom scale. I don't think I would have gotten this far without either. Again, thank you for the compliment and words of encouragement.
 

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