Too much for a 3x3?

firstgrowdontknow · Sep 22, 2025

I have these two plants going, but I think I was optimistic with the size of the containers. The plant closest to the door is showing sex and seems to be loving life while the one in back isnt handling the light as well, and doesnt seem as developed either.

Both plants are in ocean forest soil in 10 gallon bags. (I may have added 3-4-4 organic fert but I dont remember lol) Both watered with aquarium waste water.

Light: ks3000 at 100% ~22 inches from the canopy

Temp ranges from 65-70f at night to 86f with lights on(if its hot outside) If it isnt hot outside temp is ~80-83f. Ambient temp ~78f outside of the tent

Humidity ~55%

I was thinking about culling the one in the back and only doing 1 plant this run but I thought I would post here as a sanity check on myself. Does anyone else agree? Im not super confident that the plant in back is going to bounce back anytime soon, and I dont want to turn the light down with the other plant doing so well.

Galgrows · Sep 22, 2025

Sorry about the problems you are having. I grow in a 3x3x6 many years now and i've used 3gal to 5gal pots for photos and grow 3-4 at a time. First grows were 1-2 plants until i learned more about light distance, feeding and tent enviornments. I've not used anything larger to grow them to me 10gal is abit much. Think about getting them off the floor an onto risers. My tent with lights on never goes about 82f and i crack the tent leave open all port holes and flaps. My fan is on the outside blowing lightly above the tops. What strains are those?

MileHiGhost · Sep 22, 2025

Galgrows said:
Sorry about the problems you are having. I grow in a 3x3x6 many years now and i've used 3gal to 5gal pots for photos and grow 3-4 at a time. First grows were 1-2 plants until i learned more about light distance, feeding and tent enviornments. I've not used anything larger to grow them to me 10gal is abit much. Think about getting them off the floor an onto risers. My tent with lights on never goes about 82f and i crack the tent leave open all port holes and flaps. My fan is on the outside blowing lightly above the tops. What strains are those?

My fans are low, blowing the cool intake upward.

firstgrowdontknow · Sep 22, 2025

Galgrows said:
Sorry about the problems you are having. I grow in a 3x3x6 many years now and i've used 3gal to 5gal pots for photos and grow 3-4 at a time. First grows were 1-2 plants until i learned more about light distance, feeding and tent enviornments. I've not used anything larger to grow them to me 10gal is abit much. Think about getting them off the floor an onto risers. My tent with lights on never goes about 82f and i crack the tent leave open all port holes and flaps. My fan is on the outside blowing lightly above the tops. What strains are those?

These plants are both supposedly a la mode by freeworld genetics. The last time I ran this strain it was a failure that hermied terribly, but I still had seeds on hand so Im trying it again.(bad idea, I know)

I got the 10 gallon bags impulsively without thinking about their footprint...oops.

I have 2 6 inch fans blowing above the canopy below the light. The tent temperature is a bit high but ambient in the room is 77-82f. This should improve a lot as it cools down outside, so I expect the temperature during flowering to be a lot lower. I usually run 2 fans, one below the rim of the bag and one above the canopy, its just not possible right now with the 10 gallons(I dont like direct airflow onto the plants/bags blocking air)

Whats the logic of getting the bags off of the ground? Ive never had a problem with the bags staying too wet or anything. Maybe theres somethign I dont know?

My last grow posted here was a failure but my avatar shows my best grow drying in the tent. That one was done in a 5 gallon bag but it needed a ridiculous amount of watering/fertilizer so Im trying out larger containers.

firstgrowdontknow · Sep 23, 2025

Alright, today is much cooler so I have a good idea of what the temp will be moving forward.. Ambient temp is 70.5F and the temperature in the tent at that the canopy is 77.4F. It gets as low as 66f at night.

firstgrowdontknow · Sep 25, 2025

This thread wasnt supposed to be posted in grow diarys.... but I guess this is my diary now!

Decisions were made. I dont like the way the other plant has been reacting to the light/soil and I'm not going to fight a plant that doesnt want to be in my tent. I also pruned the 2 lowest sets of branches because I didnt like the way they were looking.

I think Im going to switch the lighting schedule to 12/12 in about a week. I also found my notes about this soil mix and I did mix in a couple handfulls of 3-4-4 organic fertilizer. I wonder if that will carry this plant through harvest or if I should amend with something when I switch the lighting schedule....I'll probably hold off depending on how bad this clawing of the leaves starts to get. A little N toxicity isnt surprising to me given the soil/fert mix. Instead of aquarium waste next watering will be done with tap water. That might not be for a few more days though. As a sidenote this might be the first soil Ive gotten from fox farms that wasnt filled with fungus gnats.

7munkee · Sep 25, 2025

firstgrowdontknow said:
I have these two plants going, but I think I was optimistic with the size of the containers. The plant closest to the door is showing sex and seems to be loving life while the one in back isnt handling the light as well, and doesnt seem as developed either.

Both plants are in ocean forest soil in 10 gallon bags. (I may have added 3-4-4 organic fert but I dont remember lol) Both watered with aquarium waste water.

Light: ks3000 at 100% ~22 inches from the canopy

Temp ranges from 65-70f at night to 86f with lights on(if its hot outside) If it isnt hot outside temp is ~80-83f. Ambient temp ~78f outside of the tent

Humidity ~55%

I was thinking about culling the one in the back and only doing 1 plant this run but I thought I would post here as a sanity check on myself. Does anyone else agree? Im not super confident that the plant in back is going to bounce back anytime soon, and I dont want to turn the light down with the other plant doing so well.

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I also grow in a 3x3x6. I started by using 4 five-gallon airpots and flipping after a 30 day veg with 2 toppings each. I'd fill my tent nicely and get 3 harvests per year.

Now I use 2 fifteen-gallon boxes in that same 3x3 and veg a little longer.

I can get more quantity with 5 gallon pots but more quality with the fifteens. Either way one good run will pull a lb.

amneziaHaze · Sep 26, 2025

i usually do 4 plants and a month of veg.last year did 2 plants and 2 months veg. with only one plant yea you can fill the tent but i would rather use 2 plants for quicker results.doesnt matter if one plant takes 1/3 and other takes 2/3

Izzy2626 · Sep 26, 2025

*personal opinion* : I would top the plants first and foremost, secondly, I would veg for another week or two if expecting to fill out a 3x3. 3rd : Are you ph adjusting aquarium water /tap water? Also getting a feel for your ppfd numbers at current plant height + expected stretch numbers can help decide when to flip : strain dependent but usually 2-3.5x current plant height at time of flip. You’ve got nice big pots, I’d let them grow out a bit more if possible.

firstgrowdontknow · Sep 26, 2025

Izzy2626 said:
*personal opinion* : I would top the plants first and foremost, secondly, I would veg for another week or two if expecting to fill out a 3x3. 3rd : Are you ph adjusting aquarium water /tap water? Also getting a feel for your ppfd numbers at current plant height + expected stretch numbers can help decide when to flip : strain dependent but usually 2-3.5x current plant height at time of flip. You’ve got nice big pots, I’d let them grow out a bit more if possible.

I've grown cannabis and peppers with this light before so I have a pretty good idea of what I can get away with, depending on the plant. According to the manual it will do 1000ppfd in the center at at 100% power 12" above the canopy, with the corners of the tent at like 700 or something. I have no idea if thats accurate, and I dont have the equipment to measure it anyway. Right now I'm just letting the plant grow towards the light, it will tell me when its had enough. I might veg a little longer than next friday, depends on how the plant is looking and how I feel about it. Nothing I do is ever set in stone when it comes to gardening.

I dont bother to ph at this point because its not worth it to me, its just too much time for too little benefit. Once I get closer to flower I'll start, but I know from experience roughly what I can get away with. My tap water is high EC so I mix it with RO water every once in a while, but thats the most tinkering I do until I start feeding or getting further into flower. I know the aquarium water is a little softer than the tap water but I dont remember the ph. Also I havent taken care of my ph pen so its likely busted...or it just needs to be calibrated.

I could top it but I kinda wanna try to get a big main cola again. I know its not the best for yield(and depends on genetics etc), but its dry here so bud rot isnt really a thing Im worried about and I like the way it looks. My last decent grow may have spoiled me though.

amneziaHaze said:
i usually do 4 plants and a month of veg.last year did 2 plants and 2 months veg. with only one plant yea you can fill the tent but i would rather use 2 plants for quicker results.doesnt matter if one plant takes 1/3 and other takes 2/3

Thats a fair point. My original plan was to have both plants in the tent but I dont like the way the other one looks. Its got bad vibes.

amneziaHaze · Sep 27, 2025

firstgrowdontknow said:
I've grown cannabis and peppers with this light before so I have a pretty good idea of what I can get away with, depending on the plant. According to the manual it will do 1000ppfd in the center at at 100% power 12" above the canopy, with the corners of the tent at like 700 or something. I have no idea if thats accurate, and I dont have the equipment to measure it anyway. Right now I'm just letting the plant grow towards the light, it will tell me when its had enough. I might veg a little longer than next friday, depends on how the plant is looking and how I feel about it. Nothing I do is ever set in stone when it comes to gardening.

I dont bother to ph at this point because its not worth it to me, its just too much time for too little benefit. Once I get closer to flower I'll start, but I know from experience roughly what I can get away with. My tap water is high EC so I mix it with RO water every once in a while, but thats the most tinkering I do until I start feeding or getting further into flower. I know the aquarium water is a little softer than the tap water but I dont remember the ph. Also I havent taken care of my ph pen so its likely busted...or it just needs to be calibrated.

I could top it but I kinda wanna try to get a big main cola again. I know its not the best for yield(and depends on genetics etc), but its dry here so bud rot isnt really a thing Im worried about and I like the way it looks. My last decent grow may have spoiled me though.

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Thats a fair point. My original plan was to have both plants in the tent but I dont like the way the other one looks. Its got bad vibes.

You waste a lot of light doing it like that picture.one single cola gets 1000 and rest of them get 500 you shoild train more to have it all level

firstgrowdontknow · Sep 27, 2025

amneziaHaze said:
You waste a lot of light doing it like that picture.one single cola gets 1000 and rest of them get 500 you shoild train more to have it all level

You are absolutely correct, I do waste a lot of light. Im wasting light right now by having the light at 100% instead of lowering it and having it set to 50% or so. Im wasting time and space and light by not filling the tent to the brim and topping/training all of the plants under a net...But much like my lemon tree Ive grown from seed, I grow for fun. efficiency isnt a concern of mine. If I get one good healthy plant and a decent harvest I'll be happy with it.

amneziaHaze · Sep 27, 2025

firstgrowdontknow said:
You are absolutely correct, I do waste a lot of light. Im wasting light right now by having the light at 100% instead of lowering it and having it set to 50% or so. Im wasting time and space and light by not filling the tent to the brim and topping/training all of the plants under a net...But much like my lemon tree Ive grown from seed, I grow for fun. efficiency isnt a concern of mine. If I get one good healthy plant and a decent harvest I'll be happy with it.

Well then have fun

firstgrowdontknow · Sep 28, 2025

amneziaHaze said:
Well then have fun

aaaaaaaand Ive changed my mind lol. Spending time on the forum and talking/thinking about the grow more has made me more interested/excited to take more time/effort with this plant. Also remembering how much that other plant stretched....I may have waited a bit too long to have a comfortable amount of space left at the top of the tent.

I do need to use this tent to get my outdoor veg started...Preferably in february but I can probably hold off for a month or two. I have some cheaper lights I could use. Peppers take a long time to mature and the growing season is pretty short, but it also takes a while to get mature enough to be worth putting under a proper light.

Anyway...I havent done a ton of topping or training, at least not since my tiny grow box experiment. What node would you top this plant at? I was thinking just above the node at the 9" mark. Do you like to top side branches or is it not worth it? I was just gonna spread them out under the net.

amneziaHaze · Sep 29, 2025

I dont like to top at all i lst it all.you end up with one fat bud but rest are not bad as well.if you have to top then just the tip and spread her in 4 directions.
If you have a net make it tight and push them under the net.i like to use the stretch at least half its time to still pull her under the net.

Yea above 9 looks like a nice place

You can flip her now or next week and you would have a free box in february

firstgrowdontknow · Sep 30, 2025

amneziaHaze said:
I dont like to top at all i lst it all.you end up with one fat bud but rest are not bad as well.if you have to top then just the tip and spread her in 4 directions.
If you have a net make it tight and push them under the net.i like to use the stretch at least half its time to still pull her under the net.

Yea above 9 looks like a nice place

You can flip her now or next week and you would have a free box in february

I decided to top the plant, and trimmed a few of the first nodes on lower branches and I pruned the lowest 2 sets of branches the other day.

I was wondering...how do you deal with how strong these plants get as you pin them down using lst? Do you cut holes in the grow bag and tie the plant off to it? I've only done a lot of lst for my grow box and I found the plants very quickly ripped anchors out of the soil...and the plants quickly got strong enough that I was worried I'd snap the main stem. Maybe I wasnt training often enough? I know some people use clips but I always thought that would constrict the plant stem too much.

Ive got a net, I think its actually in one of those pictures above. I waffled about how much effort I wanted to put into this grow so I had the net in the tent on standby. I lost my grip on the net and smacked the plant with it but at least we are now clear on who is in charge lol

I'll probably post a pic or two later if I get the time.

amneziaHaze · Sep 30, 2025

You can drill a hole or buy aligator clips or tie it to a rock haha.
Or you can use wire to make a little 8.when they are young they are like rubber but when they get harder you can supercrop basicly break the bones without opening the skin.
As for the net just dont make the mistake of putting one branch in more than one hole.harvest will take longer

7munkee · Sep 30, 2025

firstgrowdontknow said:
I decided to top the plant, and trimmed a few of the first nodes on lower branches and I pruned the lowest 2 sets of branches the other day.

I was wondering...how do you deal with how strong these plants get as you pin them down using lst? Do you cut holes in the grow bag and tie the plant off to it? I've only done a lot of lst for my grow box and I found the plants very quickly ripped anchors out of the soil...and the plants quickly got strong enough that I was worried I'd snap the main stem. Maybe I wasnt training often enough? I know some people use clips but I always thought that would constrict the plant stem too much.

Ive got a net, I think its actually in one of those pictures above. I waffled about how much effort I wanted to put into this grow so I had the net in the tent on standby. I lost my grip on the net and smacked the plant with it but at least we are now clear on who is in charge lol

I'll probably post a pic or two later if I get the time.

I use Bud Trainers.

firstgrowdontknow · Oct 1, 2025

Gave her some more aquarium waste, maybe about a half gallon and finished watering with tap water.
She looks droopy but these pics were taken right before lights out.

KG1 · Oct 1, 2025

That fans far too close, looks like too much wind you using extraction as well?

No need to run humidifier, but if you must outside the tent use extraction to pull in air.

Is that a temp and humidity probe, is it under the light? If so reads wrong and a bad place for it needs to be shaded from all light and wind, can place that outside the tent too.

Lots of reason it's struggling probably blame that fan in first instance if it's being used.

Good luck!

Too much for a 3x3?

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