Tips and Advice for Second Grow

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StickyGreens

StickyGreens

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Hello, fellow growers. Sorry I’m advance for the long post. I’m new to cannabis cultivation having one grow under my belt to date since Virginia fully legalized it last July 1st. I learned a lot during the process including some things I definitely won’t repeat this time. The most obvious being how I start my seeds. So for my first grow I germinated the seeds in little peat pots and transferred them to 7 gallon pots. I put the seeds right into the soil about ¼” deep, moistened it and covered it with clear wrap. The pots were then placed in a bay window and after about 2 days, pop, the first one came up. The second and third came up on day 3 and 4. The last one, that I thought was a dud, finally decided to come up a full 7 days after planting. This method was suggested by a friend who discovered has been growing for at least 10 years. Just think you know somebody right? The germination was fine. The mistake came in when it was time to transfer my girls to the 7 gallon pots that would be their homes. I read somewhere that I could place the seedling, peat pots and all, into the larger pots. I didn’t find out until harvest that this was a big mistake that probably cost me in yield and quality. Yes I was able to grow them to harvest but they never looked like they were thriving. Turns out the roots never penetrated the sides of the little starter peat pots. I did get little tap roots out the bottom but I was not impressed with them.

Now for a little more background on the grow. We’re allowed 4 plants per household in VA so I went for it. I got the seeds from the friend I mentioned above. I had 2 White Widows and 2 Deelites, both autoflowers. I started germinating July 3. This was an outdoor grow except for the couple weeks I kept them in the house. I harvested October 6 and got about an ounce wet per plant. That’s pretty good considering how I stunted them. A couple other mistakes; I totally missed feeding during the veg stage altogether because they were so small I was afraid of burning them. Before I knew it pistols were forming. I did sparingly feed them Neptune’s Harvest 2-3-1 as suggested by my buddy all the way up until I started flushing them. Like I said, after knowing a little more about the process I’m amazed that I got what I did. It does speak to the resilience of these plants that my ham-fisted first attempt didn’t kill them all.

For the next grow, also outdoors, I’ll be trying my hand at three strains. Again they’re all autos. I purchased the seeds from Homegrown Cannabis Co. I forgot to mention that the batch from my buddy came from ILGM. The strains are Blueberry Gusto (indica), Pineapple (sativa) and I got a couple free Deelites with the order. I figure I’ll plant one of these since I have some familiarity with growing that strain from my first grow. I plan to start toward the middle to end of March this time to try and squeeze in 2 grows this year. I’ve purchased a small greenhouse so that I can keep them out of the weather when needed and maybe help with pests and humidity. I threw a couple big buds away the last grow because the trichomes were full of tiny bugs. As I said before I live in VA, more specifically the Shenandoah Valley. The weather could be anywhere from temperate to down right subtropical.

All that being said (sorry if I’m rambling) I’m hoping to maximize my yield and quality for my location. Any and all ideas, suggestions, tips and advice are welcome and appreciated. Anybody here live in the same zone? I have a bag of Fox Farm Ocean Forest that I bought last year. It’s dated 6/21. Is it still viable as far as nutes or should I assume I’ll need to start feeding after the first week or two? Is the Fox Farm trio of fertilizers good for autos? These are just a few of the questions I have. Thanks again for reading if you made it this far. I’m looking forward to the responses.
 
SofaKingHigh

SofaKingHigh

705
143
Hello, fellow growers. Sorry I’m advance for the long post. I’m new to cannabis cultivation having one grow under my belt to date since Virginia fully legalized it last July 1st. I learned a lot during the process including some things I definitely won’t repeat this time. The most obvious being how I start my seeds. So for my first grow I germinated the seeds in little peat pots and transferred them to 7 gallon pots. I put the seeds right into the soil about ¼” deep, moistened it and covered it with clear wrap. The pots were then placed in a bay window and after about 2 days, pop, the first one came up. The second and third came up on day 3 and 4. The last one, that I thought was a dud, finally decided to come up a full 7 days after planting. This method was suggested by a friend who discovered has been growing for at least 10 years. Just think you know somebody right? The germination was fine. The mistake came in when it was time to transfer my girls to the 7 gallon pots that would be their homes. I read somewhere that I could place the seedling, peat pots and all, into the larger pots. I didn’t find out until harvest that this was a big mistake that probably cost me in yield and quality. Yes I was able to grow them to harvest but they never looked like they were thriving. Turns out the roots never penetrated the sides of the little starter peat pots. I did get little tap roots out the bottom but I was not impressed with them.

Now for a little more background on the grow. We’re allowed 4 plants per household in VA so I went for it. I got the seeds from the friend I mentioned above. I had 2 White Widows and 2 Deelites, both autoflowers. I started germinating July 3. This was an outdoor grow except for the couple weeks I kept them in the house. I harvested October 6 and got about an ounce wet per plant. That’s pretty good considering how I stunted them. A couple other mistakes; I totally missed feeding during the veg stage altogether because they were so small I was afraid of burning them. Before I knew it pistols were forming. I did sparingly feed them Neptune’s Harvest 2-3-1 as suggested by my buddy all the way up until I started flushing them. Like I said, after knowing a little more about the process I’m amazed that I got what I did. It does speak to the resilience of these plants that my ham-fisted first attempt didn’t kill them all.

For the next grow, also outdoors, I’ll be trying my hand at three strains. Again they’re all autos. I purchased the seeds from Homegrown Cannabis Co. I forgot to mention that the batch from my buddy came from ILGM. The strains are Blueberry Gusto (indica), Pineapple (sativa) and I got a couple free Deelites with the order. I figure I’ll plant one of these since I have some familiarity with growing that strain from my first grow. I plan to start toward the middle to end of March this time to try and squeeze in 2 grows this year. I’ve purchased a small greenhouse so that I can keep them out of the weather when needed and maybe help with pests and humidity. I threw a couple big buds away the last grow because the trichomes were full of tiny bugs. As I said before I live in VA, more specifically the Shenandoah Valley. The weather could be anywhere from temperate to down right subtropical.

All that being said (sorry if I’m rambling) I’m hoping to maximize my yield and quality for my location. Any and all ideas, suggestions, tips and advice are welcome and appreciated. Anybody here live in the same zone? I have a bag of Fox Farm Ocean Forest that I bought last year. It’s dated 6/21. Is it still viable as far as nutes or should I assume I’ll need to start feeding after the first week or two? Is the Fox Farm trio of fertilizers good for autos? These are just a few of the questions I have. Thanks again for reading if you made it this far. I’m looking forward to the responses.
Your already doing the best thing you can do to learn growing by actually growing. I’m not much of an auto guy but I’m sure others that are will chime in. From what I understand you should start autos in there final pot. Also for germination I like to use the wet paper towel method. I place a wet paper towel in a plastic container and place seeds in the wet paper towel then I put another wet paper towel over top the seeds. Then just make sure the paper towels stay wet but not so wet there is standing water in the container. I like to let the tap root come out and grow a bit then place in soil with tap root down and lightly cover.
 
StickyGreens

StickyGreens

14
3
Your already doing the best thing you can do to learn growing by actually growing. I’m not much of an auto guy but I’m sure others that are will chime in. From what I understand you should start autos in there final pot. Also for germination I like to use the wet paper towel method. I place a wet paper towel in a plastic container and place seeds in the wet paper towel then I put another wet paper towel over top the seeds. Then just make sure the paper towels stay wet but not so wet there is standing water in the container. I like to let the tap root come out and grow a bit then place in soil with tap root down and lightly cover.
Thanks. I appreciate you taking time to respond. The wet paper towel method is what’s suggested by the seed bank I purchased from so that’s exactly what I’m planning to do. Learn better do better right?
 
StickyGreens

StickyGreens

14
3
Putting the finishing touches on my grow tent. Hope to get beans in dirt in the next couple weeks. The tent is a kit from Vivosun; 2x2x4 tent with carbon filter, 4” inline fan and vs1000 light. Still sourcing a nice small humidifier for the space. Any suggestions for one that might work? I also need a light meter or a good ppfd app for my iPhone. Any suggestions for that? As always any advice or suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks
 
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Edinburgh

Edinburgh

2,692
263
Here is what you are doing wrong, I have been running autos 10 years+, first off you never transplant autoflowers, you put germanated seed in the pot you intend to do your whole grow in, smallish autos go in 2 gal pots, medium autos go in 3gal pots, and large autos go in 5 gal pots, you sow your germanated seed 1 half inc deep not 1/4inc, you grow them indoors as they do poorly outside with a couple of exceptions, as they have a limited life span and no they don't keel over and die at day 70 but really don't have enough time to grow in a 7 gal pot, I have chopped as early as 65 days from sprout and as late as 128 days, there touchy and fussy and do not like stress can't emphasize this enough, you want a nice mix with good drainage, you want a nice light food I use botanacare pro grow at 3 sets or 3 weeks withever comes first, 1ml per USgal watered down, for blooming I use Atami Bloombastic same dose but go really light at first or you will fry them, they are not photoperiod plants nor are they run the same way. Pic 1 smallish auto 2gal pot, Pic 2 med auto 3gal pot, Pic 3 large auto 5gal pot, there are super autos that grow slower and longer and could probably go in a 7gal pot but few breeders sell them but I know Flash sells them but never botherd, use fox farm ocean forest autos luv it, some autos don't mind pruning 1 bit some hate it, if you are going to run autoflowers I highly recommend Methisto Genetics they open up every Monday at 3pm est, or Sweet Seeds if you can get them as they do not ship to the US, I allso have had good luck with Crop King, only breeders and banks I mess with, I have a ton of Meth seeds and allot of grape varieties ie double grape, 50 shades of grape, just started spring grow of 2 4 assed monkey and either crystal candy or cream carmel not shure, a good auto bean will germinate in 24 hours and pop in 48 a 72 hour process, if you run into trouble and need help ask, oh yea grow in nursing pots bc they hold water longer have much better drainage and sides don't dry out, have allso run outdoors photoperiod grows and indoors under lights back in the bad old days when the DEA would crash your door, not bragging but have been growing over 40 years but last 10 just autos for my own needs witch are small, our outdoors grow is done in Maine and weed is sold off.
 
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StickyGreens

StickyGreens

14
3
Thanks @Edinburgh for that info packed post. Unfortunately the first few sentences of dos and don’ts that you listed I already learned the hard way. On second thought maybe it was fortunate that I made the mistakes I did. Sometimes hard lessons are the best lessons. I had already decided that this time they’re all going directly into the pots they’ll be harvested from. Those little peat pots turned out to be a big mistake. I’ve attached pics of what was left of them. As you can see they were almost fully intact and basically they were what the plants grew in. It’s amazing they grew and flowered at all. So you’re saying that I shouldn’t use fabric pots? They seem to be the most recommended option that I’ve seen. No more 7 gallon pots of any type for sure. I already got 3 gallon fabric pots but I may just take your advice and grab a couple 2 gallon nursery pots for the smaller blueberry gustos to run along side the 3 gallon pots for a comparison. I ran Fox Farm Ocean Forest for the first grow and that’s what I’m using this time as well. I appreciate you taking the time to reply. I’m also going to look into the nutrients you suggested. I was gonna go with the Fox Farm trio but I’m always open to suggestions, especially from experienced growers like yourself. It’s hard to argue with experience and it looks like you know what you’re doing. Beautiful plants you got there. Do you low stress train at all? Thanks again for commenting.
 
Brownthumb

Brownthumb

259
63
E (rocket man) crushes the autos…! One of the many great sources of info on the farm…
 
strider26554

strider26554

228
63
Hello, fellow growers. Sorry I’m advance for the long post. I’m new to cannabis cultivation having one grow under my belt to date since Virginia fully legalized it last July 1st. I learned a lot during the process including some things I definitely won’t repeat this time. The most obvious being how I start my seeds. So for my first grow I germinated the seeds in little peat pots and transferred them to 7 gallon pots. I put the seeds right into the soil about ¼” deep, moistened it and covered it with clear wrap. The pots were then placed in a bay window and after about 2 days, pop, the first one came up. The second and third came up on day 3 and 4. The last one, that I thought was a dud, finally decided to come up a full 7 days after planting. This method was suggested by a friend who discovered has been growing for at least 10 years. Just think you know somebody right? The germination was fine. The mistake came in when it was time to transfer my girls to the 7 gallon pots that would be their homes. I read somewhere that I could place the seedling, peat pots and all, into the larger pots. I didn’t find out until harvest that this was a big mistake that probably cost me in yield and quality. Yes I was able to grow them to harvest but they never looked like they were thriving. Turns out the roots never penetrated the sides of the little starter peat pots. I did get little tap roots out the bottom but I was not impressed with them.

Now for a little more background on the grow. We’re allowed 4 plants per household in VA so I went for it. I got the seeds from the friend I mentioned above. I had 2 White Widows and 2 Deelites, both autoflowers. I started germinating July 3. This was an outdoor grow except for the couple weeks I kept them in the house. I harvested October 6 and got about an ounce wet per plant. That’s pretty good considering how I stunted them. A couple other mistakes; I totally missed feeding during the veg stage altogether because they were so small I was afraid of burning them. Before I knew it pistols were forming. I did sparingly feed them Neptune’s Harvest 2-3-1 as suggested by my buddy all the way up until I started flushing them. Like I said, after knowing a little more about the process I’m amazed that I got what I did. It does speak to the resilience of these plants that my ham-fisted first attempt didn’t kill them all.

For the next grow, also outdoors, I’ll be trying my hand at three strains. Again they’re all autos. I purchased the seeds from Homegrown Cannabis Co. I forgot to mention that the batch from my buddy came from ILGM. The strains are Blueberry Gusto (indica), Pineapple (sativa) and I got a couple free Deelites with the order. I figure I’ll plant one of these since I have some familiarity with growing that strain from my first grow. I plan to start toward the middle to end of March this time to try and squeeze in 2 grows this year. I’ve purchased a small greenhouse so that I can keep them out of the weather when needed and maybe help with pests and humidity. I threw a couple big buds away the last grow because the trichomes were full of tiny bugs. As I said before I live in VA, more specifically the Shenandoah Valley. The weather could be anywhere from temperate to down right subtropical.

All that being said (sorry if I’m rambling) I’m hoping to maximize my yield and quality for my location. Any and all ideas, suggestions, tips and advice are welcome and appreciated. Anybody here live in the same zone? I have a bag of Fox Farm Ocean Forest that I bought last year. It’s dated 6/21. Is it still viable as far as nutes or should I assume I’ll need to start feeding after the first week or two? Is the Fox Farm trio of fertilizers good for autos? These are just a few of the questions I have. Thanks again for reading if you made it this far. I’m looking forward to the responses.
Maximizing yield is always the holy grail of objectives when in reality some seasons all i can do is minimize negatives, lol but For your germination , seedling process i have developed a technique through the years that is almost perfect, I do use peat pots, and i do think staging plants up to their final pot is critical. ive never had better yields as when i allow the plant to be come minorly rootbound at each stage, the trick is recognizing when it is beginning to STRESS the plant because the roots are congested, so here's my take on peat pots, I love them and use them exclusively for seedlings and small plants , the trick is to alter the peat pot BEFORE you put anything in it, I will take each peat pot and make a series of holes in the bottoms and sides prior to even getting them wet I basically form a type of thick net that encapsulates the growing medium yet allows for water air light and roots to pass through easily, then i will set that peat pot inside of another that only has holes on the bottoms and bottom corners or edges, so one pot to contain the rootball another outer pot to provide support but allow drainage and airflow to the bottom and sides of the interior pot. i know it seems wasteful to use two of them but the outer one , providing it doesn't disintegrate completely can be reused as i remove those often during the growing and rooting process. the rootball tends to gravitate to the holes and openings in the peat pot and i will sometimes remove the outer pot to inspect/arrange the growing roots to my liking, there is no equal when it comes to nurturing root then a slightly soggy spongy peat pot the trick is to urge the root growth through the holes so what you end up with by the end is a very easliy removed or just disintegrated peat pot. I do that with three different sizes of peat pots before they go into their own five gallon plastic buckets, i know plastic, yuck the buckets i alter as well before putting anything in them , i use an Expansive drill bit and makes holes, ALOT of holes in the bottom and lower third sides of the bucket. I have found that growing in buckets is ideal for plants that don't get any bigger than five feet or so and keep the handle oriented during planting so that you can move the plant without the handle pushing on the main stem. the number of holes doesn't matter , but what seems to make the most difference to me is that you put holes in the SIDES of the bucket as well, keeping them confined to the lower quarter so of the bucket, my goal with the holes is to have more hole area than covered area, so once again on the bottom of the bucket you end up with a from of netting instead of a plastic wall the roots find their way around whatever aggregate you use for drainage in the bottom of the bucket and will often become visible through the holes, I personally like being able to SEE what the condition if the rootball is. at least some of it. And what i do is have pre determined bucket locations that are excavated down about one 12 16 inches so the bottom of the bucket is in cool soil that you ues to gauge your watering, you can see the water flow out of the drainge hooles so you know what's degree the plant has been watered. having the shallow holes dug out for the buckets also allows me to slightly angle the plant to maximize the availability of sun in the area as well as making the temps ALOT more stable down there for the tender roots. when the plant is dryer and lighter the holes become a stable place where the wind can do less damage like toppling a five ft monster that catches wind like a sail. theres just no downside to doing indoor outdoor grows except for the critters, big and small that like to eat or precious babies. and the fact that you are the mercy of the elements and i always have to alter my schedule to watch my plants. if i want to be gone for a day or two i acn out them inside under lights and dont have to worry about them.
 
strider26554

strider26554

228
63
Hello, fellow growers. Sorry I’m advance for the long post. I’m new to cannabis cultivation having one grow under my belt to date since Virginia fully legalized it last July 1st. I learned a lot during the process including some things I definitely won’t repeat this time. The most obvious being how I start my seeds. So for my first grow I germinated the seeds in little peat pots and transferred them to 7 gallon pots. I put the seeds right into the soil about ¼” deep, moistened it and covered it with clear wrap. The pots were then placed in a bay window and after about 2 days, pop, the first one came up. The second and third came up on day 3 and 4. The last one, that I thought was a dud, finally decided to come up a full 7 days after planting. This method was suggested by a friend who discovered has been growing for at least 10 years. Just think you know somebody right? The germination was fine. The mistake came in when it was time to transfer my girls to the 7 gallon pots that would be their homes. I read somewhere that I could place the seedling, peat pots and all, into the larger pots. I didn’t find out until harvest that this was a big mistake that probably cost me in yield and quality. Yes I was able to grow them to harvest but they never looked like they were thriving. Turns out the roots never penetrated the sides of the little starter peat pots. I did get little tap roots out the bottom but I was not impressed with them.

Now for a little more background on the grow. We’re allowed 4 plants per household in VA so I went for it. I got the seeds from the friend I mentioned above. I had 2 White Widows and 2 Deelites, both autoflowers. I started germinating July 3. This was an outdoor grow except for the couple weeks I kept them in the house. I harvested October 6 and got about an ounce wet per plant. That’s pretty good considering how I stunted them. A couple other mistakes; I totally missed feeding during the veg stage altogether because they were so small I was afraid of burning them. Before I knew it pistols were forming. I did sparingly feed them Neptune’s Harvest 2-3-1 as suggested by my buddy all the way up until I started flushing them. Like I said, after knowing a little more about the process I’m amazed that I got what I did. It does speak to the resilience of these plants that my ham-fisted first attempt didn’t kill them all.

For the next grow, also outdoors, I’ll be trying my hand at three strains. Again they’re all autos. I purchased the seeds from Homegrown Cannabis Co. I forgot to mention that the batch from my buddy came from ILGM. The strains are Blueberry Gusto (indica), Pineapple (sativa) and I got a couple free Deelites with the order. I figure I’ll plant one of these since I have some familiarity with growing that strain from my first grow. I plan to start toward the middle to end of March this time to try and squeeze in 2 grows this year. I’ve purchased a small greenhouse so that I can keep them out of the weather when needed and maybe help with pests and humidity. I threw a couple big buds away the last grow because the trichomes were full of tiny bugs. As I said before I live in VA, more specifically the Shenandoah Valley. The weather could be anywhere from temperate to down right subtropical.

All that being said (sorry if I’m rambling) I’m hoping to maximize my yield and quality for my location. Any and all ideas, suggestions, tips and advice are welcome and appreciated. Anybody here live in the same zone? I have a bag of Fox Farm Ocean Forest that I bought last year. It’s dated 6/21. Is it still viable as far as nutes or should I assume I’ll need to start feeding after the first week or two? Is the Fox Farm trio of fertilizers good for autos? These are just a few of the questions I have. Thanks again for reading if you made it this far. I’m looking forward to the responses.
In addition to my last post one of the biggest portals i had to pass through to end up at the good yield, good quality, and consistent yields goal line was to master cloning, to have an endless supply of female plants of known quality and origin was invaluable to me, without the ability to clone consistently and learning the advanced techniques of cloning, I wouldnt have the comfort of knowing that if a batch of plants goes south or something bad happens that the worse case scenario is lost time, growing weed would become a costly venture for me ( i have to learn everything the hard way) and experimentation is just in my nature so i make mistakes, and knowing that every grow is just a month or two away from being completely replaceable allowed me to take the chances and push limits i might not have risked had everything been on the line each and everytime. That being said time is money and time is also limited for guys like me ,( ive been doing this nigh on thirty years), but the reward of being able to pick out the queen plants and keep them alive for later use is invaluable, i currently six queens, and maybe one more this year, so my options on strains is growing as well. none of this is rocket science, and yet it seems that way alot..simple quality , consistent yields and tested methods have served me well and i hope to continue to learn and grow .
 

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