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ALL CFL Semi-Auto Closet Project (FirstGrow) ("Flower" strainseed) **ENDED ABRUPTLY: SEIZED & DESTROYED BY COPS **
Critical Update
Date:May 2, 2010
Early this morning, my living plant, only 2 weeks from finishing flowering was seized and destroyed by a group of cops. It was not at random, but a series of events that lead to this horrible outcome for this grow journal. Basically, bad decisions, incriminating stickers and being in the wrong place, at the wrong time.
------------------------------------------------------------- Original Journal
Well, since everyone else makes a collection of their entire grow on the first page, I'm doing the same. Besides, like my bedsheets, my OP is really messy!
Lets start from the beginning:
The Seeds:
Here are the feminized " Flower " seeds by CH8 breeding company and the strains stats (provided by the website I bought them from).
~ My Babies Lifestory ~
First Lighting Set-Up
Day 0: Feb. 5, 2010 (seed dropped-into-soil date) Notes: Last photo: It was important to me that the seed be planted at exactly 4:20pm, in honor of my goal of harvesting on April 20, 2010. It was a bad choice to use clay pots from the start. They have bad drainage, and they evaporate water too fast thru their clay material. Next time, I will use plastic with bottoms that have plenty holes in them.
Day 3 (I think): Feb. 8, 2010
Day 4: Feb. 9, 2010
Day 5: Feb. 10, 2010
New, and Current Lighting System: Created Day 10 (Feb. 14)
Day 10: Feb. 15, 2010 Notes: Implemented gravity drip system, which is basically a large bottle fiilled with water (see last photo, on Right), held high, near the closet rail (to create pressure via the pull of gravity), that is hooked up to a 1/4 turn ball valve to control dripping. This was a bad idea. The valve was hard to adjust, and was not very precise. And, I later found out that these plants like well-drained, dry soil, not constantly watered soil. The periods of dryness help the roots grow, and the plant from becoming droopy. A quick lesson learned...
Day 12: Feb. 17, 2010 Notes: Still using drip system (have not yet learned its not helpful to my plant). Also, notice the purple color under the leaves on the last photo. Up to this point, I have not being using a fertilizer, just bottled water. I later find out, thru research, that the purple is an early sign of nutrient deficiency (aka she needs food). I wish I learned that sooner. Oh well.
Day 14: Feb. 19, 2010 Notes: Notice yellowing on the cotyledon (baby) leaves on 3rd photo. Sign of nutrient deficiency...should of saw the signs. I also added a pan of perlite (last photo) to aid with humidity. Seemed to help, but not by much (a few % only).
Day 17: Feb. 22, 2010 Notes: First sign of major yellowing on bottom leaves. Again, its the fact I haven't been using food. But today, I buy Shultz(r) liquid plant food (2nd last photo), and with Inverted's advice of using 2 full droppers per gallon (last photo). I also made the mistake of spraying the leaves with the mixture (forth photo from left). That was a Bad idea.
Day 18: Feb. 23, 2010 Notes: Yellowing still getting worst. 2 mistakes pictured here. First, photo 3: I had my fan blowing directly on my plant the entire light cycle. It should have been on rotate-mode. That was a bad choice by me. Second Mistake, photo 4: My taped-up sheathing failed, thank God it was during the day. I learned that thumb tacks are the way to go when putting up sheet stealth.
Day 20: Feb. 25, 2010 (? not sure) Notes: Drooping is getting pretty bad here. The yellowing won't stop on lower leaves. The yellow eats it like a disease, its weird. Added a small 80mm fan to the woodern 'light wagon" to aid in cooling and strengthening the stem with a little wind (a good idea). Also, the last photo is my *fixed* stealth covering using a large cloth sheet. I used push-pins instead of duct-tape, like I used before. Works WAY better! Don't use tape on cloth, it doesn't work. Push-pins or small nails only.
Day 22: Feb. 27, 2010 Notes: Noticeable yellowing on tips on upper canopy (Photo 2). Curling is getting really bad on the bottom leaves. The bottom leaves are dying a little more everyday. I've been cutting them, and smoking them. The smell (before I smoke them) has a unique sun-ripened guava smell. Now I know why its called "Flower!". Smells sweet and pleasant.
Day 23: Feb. 28, 2010 Notes: Still problems with curling and yellowing, but not bad. I posted this one day diff. one because its the end of the month, and I didn't do the 29.
Day 25: March 1, 2010 Notes: Yellowing and dying tips on the bottom leaves are still a problem, and it looks pretty bad here (photo 2, 3). The top canopy is also showing signs too (last photo). But still alive, so its not too bad.
Day 27: March 3, 2010 Notes: Bought a 3-in-1 meter, for light, soil wetness, and pH (photo 3). Light output is off the charts on the needle (photo 4). The pH is about 6.5, not too good (Photo 5). Wetness between damp and dry (last photo).
I also made some improvements to my light-bulb holders (used to have just duct tape) and the light bulb cooling (I added another 80mm PC fan, this time, on top of the wooden light wagon)
Day 30: March 6, 2010 Notes: Lookin' much healthier...
Day 32: March 8, 2010 Notes: Big growth changes. Still growing healthy, but some yellowing on bottom.
Day 35: March 11, 2010 Notes: Growing great now. Really fast. In the last photo, you can see that the roots are starting to come out the bottom of the pot. I thought this meant its ready for transplant: but, according to Inverted, I was wrong. So, I kept it inside the small clay pot. Like he said, Water control is KeY! Large pots mean poor water/moisture control, which should be avoided. So, small pot it is.
Day 39: March 15, 2010 [/url] Notes: Today was the day I implemented my simple CO2 supplementation idea (using the gravity drip system I used for watering previously). I used the classic Baking soda + vinegar chemical reaction to make CO2. The reason why I wanted to use CO2 supplementing was because I had been doing research on it, and what I've learned that plants grow a lot faster when you add it (because plants use CO2 from the air to create carbon-based organic chemicals to grow, thru photosynthesis). And the reason why I started doing this now is because I am moving out of this place around June 5, 2010. And I want to be finished flowering by at the latest, May 15, 2010 and with my plants advertised flowering period of 7 weeks, that means I have to start flowering at the latest, March 20, which is exactly 1 month from the sacred holiday, April 20. So the CO2 is to "catch-up" on the vegging, a last attempt to get as much growth in these last days as I possibly can. So, my *new* plan is to have some immature budz to smoke by that international holiday. We'll have to see.
As for the effective of the CO2. It seems to be working, but it would be unscientific to say its causing more growth. Too many factors to make that claim. But, what I have noticed is that when I soak the soil, it goes almost completely dry in about 1 full day. Before it took 2-3 days to get totally dry. It might be the plant uptaking more water because of the increase in CO2. Who knows. I'll be taking some measurements with a ruler to show how its grown over these days of CO2 supplementation. Hopefully that will provide some interesting observations to this artifical CO2 environment, and if it actually benefits the plant in some observable way...
Later that day, 7 hours from above photos: And here's what a difference water does to the plant. Note how stift and "up" the leaves are now....the difference is stricking!
Day 43 (2 Days before Flowering): Thursday, March 18, 2010 ^Didn't post photos because its only one day apart from the day below, so I put the link instead....the original post has interesting dropping patterns you might wanna look at.
Day 44 (1 Day before Flowering): Friday, March 19, 2010
8 hours later.... ^As you can see, the perking/drooping pattern continues to occur on a regular timeline. Its at the point where I believe it is just natural rhythms of the plant, and is NOT a sign of ill health. However, this pattern is not something I see with other tropical plants I've grown in my place like palms, so this is all new to me.
Day 46 (Day 2 of Flowering): Sunday, March 21, 2010 ^Drooping at its worst (see 1st photo background for date and time). At first, I thought I killed my plant, because the drooping was happening at the stem too, and so was dramatic. I figured with my new lighting that consists of three 42 watters and one 23 watter CFL (total 149 watts, 42 more watts than during vegging), I might have stressed her with heat. Then, I checked the soil, and it was really dry, even thou I just watered her a day ago. So, soaked the water with the usual vegging mixture, and after about 1 hour, she perked back up, like some kind of magical plant life (last photo on right). It seems that this small plant need more water than I realized. It may be the time to transplant to a larger pot.
Day 51(Day 7 of Flowering): Friday, March 26, 2010 - Root-Rip Re-Transplant (From Inverted's Transplant Advice) - ^I was very hesitate to do this, but after considering Inverted's expert advice, I decided to "take the risk" and pull out my girl and man-handle the roots in the purpose of improving the growth of the new roots. The whole process of ripping apart the roots was an aweful experience, not knowing if it would kill her if I ripped the wrong root. But, she survived and she's bigger than ever! I glad I did it, even thou the whole process made me sick to my stomach...
Later that day.... ^After this photo, I went on a 2 day vacation out of town, so she was on her own. I wanted to use my drip system, because thats why I built it, for vacations, but the T.C. advised against it, so I did the soak-and-leave it approach, and it worked great. Thanks guys.
On Same Day (March 26) >>> Lighting Upgrade <<<< I added this ridiculously massive 68 watts CFL (2,700K) bulb to my flower lighting set-up (on right, like you needed to be told)....
Day 54 (Day 9 of Flowering): Monday, March 29, 2010 - Got Home Today from 2 day Vacation - (Its near the bottom of the post link) Main Photo: Well, she survived without me. How cool is that. The soil-soaking trick works very well, even for days. In my experience, its a proven method. Drip-system (aka constant water supply) unneeded.
Photo on Right: As you can see, there's some burn damage on just this one leaf from a vertical-hanging 42 watt CFL flowering bulb. I actually had a feeling my left custom-reflector bulb was too close, but I didn't have time to move it over, so I just left it. But the damages is sooooo minor, I don't even care. I think it looks cool, like a battle scar.
Day 59 (Day 14 of Flowering): April 3, 2010 ^First photo: She's getting so big, its hard to take photos of her. Also, my grow lights aren't helping either. I moved the rH/Temp gauge to the wooden light wagon to make a better estimate of the plants conditions (I wish I had a remote probe). A 1 foot ruler in the bottom-foreground is for reference (Couldn't find my tape-ruler: I hate being lazy and unorganized). She's about 14" tall.
Photos 2 and 3: There's so many little stems and bud sites shooting up everywhere, its crazy. Its hard to keep track of them all. Its cool to see the pre-flowers already: I have an idea what it will look like in the end.
Last Photo: same as pictured above, taken April 2nd. Shows the burns of the bulb on my precious girl.
Day 68 (Day 23 of Flowering): April 12, 2010 ^Photo 1: Those pre-budz are really maturing fast! Looks so hairy now! I can even see some Herb Crystals on some of the small bud leaves. Pretty stoked! Photo 2: She has been doing A LOT of growing over the past week. I almost have to adjust the string every day! I measured the height: Shes about 28 inches (2 ft. 4 inches) tall now. I will try to measure her every time, because the growth I've seen recently is mind-bogging! Photo 3: The bottom canopy looks miniature, and is a great example of what NOT having enough light penetration (i.e. CFL bulbs). Looks like I will be harvesting it a little because it likely won't get anywhere with the little light.
From 13ettlejuice's main post on his 'accidental' GrowLog, I got this idea: use large zip-ties to hold up my wooden light wagon. ^So much better! Never have to take off the string again! Its always supported, even during adjusting! Feels so good!
Day 73 (Day 28 of Flowering): April 17, 2010 ^Photo 1: Wide-view. I added another lamp on the bottom with a 23 watt flower bulb, for a total of 263 watts for all bulbs. I added this bulb because I will be harvesting some lower budz for April 20 in honor of the holiday, and those lower budz barely get any light (should of trained her ). I know for next time.
^Photo 2: Total height is about 35" or about 3 feet tall. This is about a 6 inch increase from last journal. This troubles me, because I am running out of vertical height in my closet. Should I add a 5,000K to prevent this stretching? I still have like 20 days left of flowering...at this rate of vertical growth, I'm going to run out of room. Not good.
^Photo 3: Main Cola (is that the name) is looking lovely. Lots of white hairs everywhere. Fan leaves are looking healthy too. Only bad thing is the top got kinda burnt because of the super-fast vertical growth. But it was minor damage.
^Photo 4: One of the mid-height budz. Only young bud with these dark tips. All the rest are white. Not sure why.
^Photo 5: Finally seeing some obvious trichome "crystal" formation. I hope it gets real frosty later: Looks tasty already...
^Photo 6: I've also been doing some minor Low-Stress Training to just the lower budz (for 4-20 holiday), using some colorful pipe cleaners. They were going outside the lamp range, so I adjusted them closer to the lights. Its pretty fun, I have to say. I might add some more later....
Day 81 (Day 36 of Flower): April 26, 2010 ^What I've noticed with the frosting-effect on the budz is that its directly proportional to the amount of local light there is. So, the top budz are the dankinest now, and the bottom ones are barely showing any frost....
The scent: I've noticed up-close I can smell her really easily. It has a peppery, sweet and sour smell. Nothing like the guava smell I inhaled back in the vegging days...
(Whew! That was a lot! For now. This is really time-consuming! How do other growers do this so easily? Well, now the original, old, super-messy post....)
>>>> I just received my 2 CH8 "Flower" seeds in the mail on Wednesday, Febuary 4, 2010 and I just planted them directly in Fox Farm Ocean Forest soil on Thursday, Febuary 5, 2010 at *exactly* the most sacred time of the day 4:20 PM, Pacific Coast Time. The next journal entry will be discussing what I did to prepare for this wondrous day.... <<<<<<
This will be my first grow (when it starts), and I've always wanted to grow my own all on my own, and this is my attempt.
My Dream Goal for my my first grow
My dream goal for my first grow project is to time it so that when its time to harvest, it will be *right before* be the best International holiday, 4-20 Day, aka April 20 and have a nice abundance of fresh budz that I grew myself. Unfortunately, I've starting this project a little too late (should of germinated in January 1) because budding usually takes a minimum of 2 months (depending on strain), plus a minimum of 1 month Vegetation, so I won't make my Dream Goal on time. Plus, drying out the flowers takes time, so I could be way off.to make it weeks before 4-20, so I can dry out my budz. I should of starting germination back in January. Because of this tight time-scale, I will be searching for a strain with the shortest flowering (with agreement with my budget, of course).
Here's the planning that I have been writing and drawing down...
Here's the closet I plan to use for the project (its needs some organizing: its a little messy right now). That hanger "bar" was tricky to figure out since its not a typical round bar, but more of a metal rail. To hang stuff, I'll need some strong "S" hooks. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Before
2nd Version: January 20, 2010
The Final, Perfected Version:Febuary 16, 2010 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And from those plans and my closet arrangement, here's the material list I made...
***March 16, 2010 Edit: Here's my actual list I'm using right now ***
For Lighting System
For Vegging: Two 26 watt 5,000K color CFL bulbs and two 27 watt 6,500K bulbs (socket adapters to plug into 2-prong plugs). Total:106 watts
For Flowering (Updated April 16):
Overhead: 1 x 68 watt HUGE CFL 2,700K bulb & 1 x 42 watt 2,700K Overhead total:110 watts //
Side-Lighting Lamps, Front 2 x 42 watt 2,700K color CFL bulbs & 2 x 23 watt 2,700K color. Back 1 x 23 watt 2,700K CFL. Side-Lighting Total: 152 watts. Total:263 watts
For Reflecting Light: 3 sheets of Emergency Mylar blankets (in the Camping Section of K-Hole Mart)
4 x 6 ft Extension cords for each bulb independently.
24-hour On/Off Timer (set "on" for 18 hours during vegging, and 12 hours "on" for flowering)
6-outlet power strip. For Gravity Drip-Watering System
Clear soda bottle
Clear vinyl tubing of 3 different diameters
6 - metal clamps of various diameters (to stop leaks at connections)
1 barbed brass On/Off ball valve (to control drip rate, and to fit inside tubing).
Various lengths of string to hold up the hoses and bottle.
Pot and Substrate
1 - small clay pot
Bag of FoxFarms(R)Ocean Forest Soil.
Perlite (from cubenis growing)
3 large manual spray bottle (for spraying soil and wetting perlite for increased humidity)
Stealthing
Black trash bags (which I own)
lots of duck tape (to make one big sheet)
Maybe a simple carbon-filter system for the smell (far future) Cooling & Fresh Air Exchange: For Plant: 1 x 80mm PC fan set on a 12volt, 1 amp adapter. This small fan is also used for strengthen the stem. 1 x 12" oscillating fan that runs during the light cycle only.
For Lighting: 1 x 80mm PC fan set on a 1.5 amp adapter positioned right near the bulbs. ------------------------------------------------------------------------
Old materials (not in use)
Here's the Materials (Top-left: no longer using white "pet" water bottle)
>>>For Lighting System<<<
2 - 42 watt CFL bulbs (one is for back-up, or if I need more light)
10.5" clamp lamp reflector with Porcelain socket (for CFL)
8ft indoor Extension cord
1 - Stainless steal S-Hook (for hanging light off the closet rail)
Here's the Total US dollar amount for everything I bought so far...
From Homey D. ^ Everything pictured/listed above expect the pet watering bottle (see below)
Grand TOTAL thus far (rounded up): ~$65
That's much more than my "hopeful" $40 (not including seeds). The good thing is I already have some 24-hour timers, I own a desktop fan, I already own black trash bags for stealthing, I can use string to hang the light/water systems, and clays pots and soil is pretty cheap.
So, I would say, I basically have everything.
...What do you guys think? Is this a pretty good budget grow or does it need much improvement?
*** I finally got my "Flower" seeds *** Constructive Feedback always accepted!
Thanks to all the growers (especially you Inverted and Harry!) who've help me thus far: your advice is *priceless* (and certainty not worthless!)
I hope its interesting Mr. Brow, but in a "Wow, that was interesting!" and not "Wow, he really failed, big time!" interesting kind-of-way.
And thanks for the Good Luck! I'm gunna need it, for sure!
Well, I've been working on my drip-system, and I found some interesting problems with even more interesting (and better) solutions.
To get the water to flow correctly, I had to first modify the end of the pet water bottle to remove that little ball-bearing.
Here's what I used: Sand-paper (to make it easiler to cut) and a small hand saw...
-> Sanded chrome stem in hopes it would be easier to "grab" with the saw teeth. I was wrong....
-> Now I had to get the ball-bearing out. Time for the hand saw.
-> The sanding didn't help at all with the sawing of the stem, so I skipped it and tried Plan B: fold back the "lip" on the end of the tube with a pair of pilers. This didn't work either, but any measures. The steel is too thick, I give up.
So, I realized that I didn't have the right tools to cut that metal. Also, I found out that the Outside Diameter of the tube is much *smaller* than I expected. I tried the tube on there with clamps on full-tension: it leaked. I'm giving up on the Pet Bottle.
Then I remember the other container I was going to use: those 2.5 gallon drinking water "tubs" with the plastic water "valve" on the bottom. I used to buy these all the time, but sadly I recycle them, so I didn't have any, or so I thought...
After careful searching, I found an old one with the top cut out. I had turn this specific tub into a ghetto cooler, and believe me, it works great! Its got a handle, its cheap, durable, and there's a valve to drain out the melted ice. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anyway, here it is, ready for modification...
(Note: I took like 15 photos showing how I made this, but since it takes so long to upload, I'm just gunna post 5. So if it looks like magic, its not, its just a jump in time)
-> Then I cut the tube so its only 5 inches, then I put A LOT of Telfon(r) tape over the barbs because it fit *very* loose inside the tube, even thou its supposed to fit tight in there like a shinny glove). Then, I tightened those metal straps, and then tested it by filling the tub with water. It held the gravity pressure very well!
-> Here's the final product. Here I tested it to see if I could precisly get a small drip by playing with the 1/4 valve. I did (), but it was tricky. Here's my evidence that it works, but it takes some time to get it right....
Conclusion:
The Drinking Water jug is *way* better than the pet water bottle. I'm returning the silly Pet water bottle on Wednesday. Here's my reasons why:
Pros 1) The best thing, the stem is almost exactly 1/2 in diameter. But, I recomend puting some Teflon(r) tape to waterproof it *completely*. 1.5) Its a lot cheaper at about $3 a jug. (the pet thing was $14) 2) It holds A LOT more water than the pet thingy. A whopping 2.5 gallons 3) Its much easier to modify because the stem is plastic (and not chrome metal like the Pet thingy). 4) The handle is useful for hanging on a closet bar/rail 5) They are easy to find in a supermarket. The Pet thingy is only at pet stores
Cons 1) No easy way to refill it (I might have to cut a hole in the top) 2) Stem is plastic 3) Stem is NOT fixed (it moves back and forth) unlike the stem on the pet bottle which was fixed in place. This makes it hard to install the tubing, because it moves inward while I tried to put the tubing on. Involving a flathead Screwdriver on the inside of the tube to keep it still while you force the tube on the stem. 4) Stem is a little short (which makes it difficult to attach the tubing) 5) Because of the large size of the jug, if it leaks or spills, there will be a lot of water spillage on the carpet, which would be disaster.
So, mostly the stem is not as good as the other pet one, but at least its the right Outside diameter at 1/2" wide. The 1/2" diameter is a common size for tubing and valves, which makes it nice to find parts for.
Overall, I like th jug. A much better alternative.
On Wednesday, I'll set-up the closet (gotta clean too) with all the life-support systems along with a random tropical plant to make sure my set-up can support life.
Date: January 21, 2010. 1:56am Status Report: Light, fan, and stealth system installed and functional. Gravity drip system yet to be set-up.
Wide-view of Closet set-up (thus far):
I hung one of my light fixtures on Tuesday. Today, I bought another, smaller reflector because after reading this quote from thread "number of CFL's", quoted from a post from Sirius...
Quote: Sirius said:
"I think you're going to want at least 100 watts for one plant (the CFL wattage, not the incandescent equivalent). More the better, definitely"
....I knew my 1 - 42 watt CFL wouldn't be enough after reading this quote by the planet man. Also, I noticed that the color temp. on this 42 watt was 2,700K called "Cool White", which is good for budding but not vegi-growth. So, I went to Homey-D and looked for a 42 watt in "Daylight" color temp., which is typically 5,000K+.
The problem is that I could only find a 27 watt model in the "Daylight" color type, but they were *really* cheap at $1.50 a 2 pack, which as nothing short of awesome!
Here's the deatils on the actual package: ^ Color temp. info is in the top-left corner, wattage on the right (the large "100" is the equivalent, NOT the actual wattage).
I also bought another reflecting dish, but this one is smaller at 8.5" diameter. I got the smaller one because these "Daylight" bulbs are smaller than the larger 42 watt CFL's I bought. I installed both 27watt "Daylight" CFL bulbs in the the lamp clamps, then hung them up using construction string.
After about 0.5 an hour of running green string and power cords, I created my lighting system thus far: ^As a stand-in, I'm using a dead tropical plant I had living but died when I went on vacation. I'm hoping this plant I'm using for demostration doesn't become a metaphor to what happens to my *actual* M.J. plant that I attempt to grow.
I used metal hooks to interface with the weird rail bar in the closet for hanging my support strings:
Here's a cool top-view of the strings and lights:
Since the lights were in place and functional, I could now work on stealthing it.
I used 2 large black garbage bags, a tri-pod and some duct-tape to cover some of the light hitting the window in the room.
This is what is looks like from the back:
It works pretty well, even thou its really simple and doesn't cover much.
Here's the effect it has on the stray light coming from the closet:
^ As you can see from the photo, the light is *not* on the window, but around it. This small light-blocker works perfectly! I'm glad it was easy to set-up and didn't cost anything (since I already had the materials for it). I'm happy with it so far.
-> My seed search.
I've found a website and company close to the Pacific Northwest that I have been searching for hours looking for the right seed (they have A LOT of seeds). I will not speak of the website name (in case that's againist the law), so the company shall remain nameless.
However, I will discuss some of the statistics they provide for the seeds I'm interested in getting.
Here's my critieria for my first plant:
- Short vegi-time. (1 month prefered. 2 months max) - Shortest flowering time possible (about 6-7 weeks, because I'm moving out of here in about 5 months or the end of June) - Has to be feminized (because its sexy...no because I don't wanna waste time messing with dude plants) - near 100% Indica (because Indica's have the shortest flowering period. If I had more time, I would go 100% Sativa) - Cheap. $10 a seed or less. - Compact Size (because this is a small closet grow) - Semi-good looking budz (no standard, looks-totally-generic-budz. Wouldn't be as fun or interesting.) - Easy to grow Indoors (can't be touchy with nutrients and lighting. has to be for beginners (because I don't know what I'm doing)) - Can't stink too much (that means No AK-47, Skunk #1, or any other potent-smelling strains)
(^this list makes me sound kinda like a lazy, way-too-picky grower who doesn't have the patience for good budz...oh well.) >>> My Top 3 Choices for my First Grow <<<
1) "Flower"
"Flowering time: 7 weeks/49 Days – 8 weeks Indoor yield: Up to 100 gr indoor with 35-45 days of veg."
Cost: $7.25 per Feminized seed
2) "California"
"Indoor yield: Up to 80 gr indoor with 35-45 days of veg
^ I like this one a lot, but the seeds are a little pricey. But, because Its got a lot of good qualities, I may reconsider, especially with that *very short* 5 week budding period and the fact its an auto-flowerer. I wonder how they make it auto-flower, that almost seems like genetic-splicing or a madd-scientist made it. How do you breed for that trait?
Thats all for now. its 2:45am, and I need to go to sleep now.
Thrusday I will buy a small tropical plant (that I forgot to buy on Wednesday) and install the gravity drip system so I can see if my system can support plant life.
just a thought: why not just put a measuring jug under the drip system for a day to see how much it drips out? then see if thats enough for a marijuana plant each day, The other plant you were going to use might not have the same watering needs as a Cannabis plant. I will be following this grow looks very interesting, Keep up the regular updates and thorough posts i like growlogs which have alot of detail , plus at the end you will have a great journal to look back on best of luck to you
it's funny that Furrowed called this project interesting, because that was the first thing that came to my mind too! you are a very interesting person Mr. Crystal, but you're also very thorough which is doubtlessly the most important thing for finding success in this hobby
I think you might want to consider a different arrangement for your lights. this arrangement is good for seedlings, but in a week or so you're going to want to at least triple the amount of bulbs you have on that plant. Something like this is very easy and cheap to make, but allows you to get a ton of light onto the plant. I've built several of these so if you need help finding any parts just let me know.
Hey harry do you think you could write up a list of the parts needed to make a simple cfl setup like that i am interested in making one of my own for growing some clones in the off season
Thank for the kind remarks Harry_Ba11z and you too Inbred_Gimp.
I was touched (but not in a gay way, in a MANLY way) when I read your quote: "a very interesting person Mr. Crystal, but you're also very thorough which is doubtlessly the most important thing for finding success in this hobby. " I tend to be pretty detailed with everything I do, and this new hobby is no different. Also, by being thorough with my project step-by-step, I hope to inspire or encourage someone who wants to do something similar. Not that my method is revolutionary or unique, but I hope it gives some ideas and insight for anyone doing a semi low-budget project from my success/failures.
Its funny you recommended that 2-way spliter, because just today I thought "Those reflector fixtures are expensive, and I need more bulbs for my plant since 50 real watts of CFL is not enough. What If I bought one of those spilters I saw in another grow journal at the Growery. That will really make use of those reflector dishes!"
And that's what I did. And there so cheap too, it would be silly not to do it. Also, since it puts the bulbs at 90 degree angles, it gives the plant more even lighting instead of just straight top-down lighting like I have right now. There was only one in stock, so I got it. I'll get another one later when I actually have seeds.
Here's the splitter and *right* CFL bulbs. The splitter is a cheap version of the one you pictured, but it should work OK.
^As pictured above, I also found some excellent 26watt 6500K color temp CFL at the store today. I've been reading that during the Vegetation stage, plants like about 6000K color range or above, so I'm going to use a combo of a 27Watt 5000K and now one 26watt 6500K on a 2-way spliter socket connected to one reflector lamp. I hope that makes sense, bascially 2 different bulbs hooked up to one lamp clamp.
To Inbred_Gimp,
Quote: Yousaid: Why not just put a measuring jug under the drip system for a day to see how much it drips out? Then you can see if that's enough for a marijuana plant each day.
Actually, that was going to be the next part of my Gravity Drip project, but since I've (ironically) been having problems with leaks at the water-jug to vinyl hose connection interface, I can't test the drip rate until I find a better alternative. Once I find a leak-free connection, I will be fine-tuning the valve to get the best drip rate, and I will be using time and a measuring cup to see how much water comes out over a period of time. I will also measure the amount of time the container (which ever I use) it takes to drip thru the whole container, to see how long I can be gone from my future plant without having to manually water it. Thats important because I don't want to overestimate and return to a dying or worst dead plant.
But I have found a better alternative, which I will discuss and build (while taking photos) in my next journal entry.
Drip Project has been Re-thought ~ TrueHerbCrystaL ~
***Current Seed Status*** Date of Entry: January 24, 2010
Thanks to a new friend here at the Growery, I will getting some free seeds for my first grow. I'm gunna have to give this nice person something special in return for their very generous offer to a total stranger....
Because I don't the strain, flowering time, feminized/regular, Brand-name/bagseed, etc. of the seeds, I don't know if I will hit my 4-20 goal close enough to sacrifice almost-matured budz. Because of this unknown, I've descided to buy a couple Brand seeds in which I know a little about.
Date of Purchase:January 23
The Seeds I picked are from the "Top 3" list I made in the second post. I choose Flower, a very apporiate name for a cultivated plant...
Here's some details the breeder listed on the website I bought from about...
"Flower"
The prices were all in British Pounds, but the 2 seeds I bought were about 9 BP total. There was 3 choices for the shipping, which caused me to a make a hard choice:
The cheapest one was 5 BP ($8 US) but it had a note by the choice that said "(Not Guaranteed)". The second choice said "Guaranteed - Signiture Required" for 12 BP (~$19.40 US). This choice was a little to sketchy for me considering I had to sign it personally. That seemed like evidence the cops could use againist me in court. And then there was the thrid choice: "Guaranteed - No Signature", which to me sounds kinda like a oxymoron. This was my choice, but at a price tag of 15 BP (~$24.20), it was a hard price to pay. And if it got taken by Customs, I would loose all that money I spent on that shipping. But, they said "guaranteed" so hopefully they pack it well, or whatever that money is going into for the shipping.
Its from a UK website, which means its gunna likely take a long time to travel overseas and make it here. I hope it doesn't get confiscated by US Customs.
Here's the actual "Order Confirm" Total price (with shipping): 24 BP (~$35 US)
Hopefully, the shipping doesn't take longer than 2 weeks considering that its coming all the way from the UK. Only time will tell...
In the meantime, I will be working on perfecting the drip system, looking for quality soil AND most importantly, research the best way to germinate seeds.
*** Construction Update: Gravity Drip System (Success!) ***
Date:January 26, 1:10am
Before I explain how I finally figured out my gravity system, I wanted to share a silly statement the company I ordered from put in their "Order Confirm" email that they sent me about the seeds.
^ Yeah, my bank won't think that company name is unusual. Makes it sound like I enjoy buying stuff for a children's toy store.
And here is the actual total for the shipping and the 2 lonely feminine seeds (values are in British Pounds. The conversation rate as of today is 1.6116 x BP = US $) ^ The total, in US dollars was $35 (including the "promised-it-will-get-there, no-sign shipping")
OK, now to the Gravity Drip Project...
First, I wanted to recap on what I've already tried which hasn't worked because of dripping at connections (in order of attempt)
Methods/Materials I've tried Thus Far...
#1) Hamster/pet water bottle device with long chrome tube ^Problems: The metal ball-bearing inside the chrome tube was too difficult to get out. Tried cutting tube, but it was too thick and smooth for a hand saw. Attached hose for quick upside-down grav. test, it leaked like no ones business. This one would of being a good one because of the screw off fill-lid and long metal stem. The capacity was OK, at a couple litters.
#2) 2.5 gallon Water tub with plastic spout ^Problems: Leaked at plastic valve interface. This would of been the best one, considering the 2.5 gallon capacity, but a leak on a container this big would be a distaster in my rented apartment, and also dangerous with the lights being on around it.
#3) Alcohol "bartender" pour adapter with glass spirit bottle ^Problems: This time, it leaked at the cap/pour stem interface. Also, having to drill a hole into the spirit bottle cap was time-consuming and too much extra work. Pour adapter needed a lot of retrofitting to fit in inside the cap and tightly on the bottle. Since it works best in alcohol bottles, finding a cheap plastic alcohol bottle to use might be a problem.
And finally, last but certainly not least, the one that actually worked....
#4) Water Bottle with On/Off "push/pull" valve loaded with rubber O-Rings
This one finally worked, and all the credit goes to the rubber O-Ring gaskets. I tried just putting the hose on without, it leaked, but once I put on those rubber O-Rings, it cured the leaked immediately. Today was a good day for this "pre-seeds" grow project. Success!
Here's the methods and materials I used....
Materials: ^From left to right: One 1-1/8" MAX diameter metal plumbing clamp ($1). One water bottle with "push/pull" Sport valve ($1.25). One box of 13/16" O.D. x 5/8" I.D. x 3/32" thick rubber O-ring gaskets ($2). 2 feet of 3/4" I.D. x 1" O.D. vinyl tubing (~$5, not shown). Tools: 1 flat-head screwdriver (not shown).
The Procedure:
1) I took the water bottle and emptied out some of the water using the valve. Then I dried the rim of the valve off with a towel.
2)With the water bottle valve fully opened, I started to slide O-rings down the shaft...I mean valve.
3) I made sure it slid all the way to the bottom, where there's a gap between the moving valve and the valve sleeve. This will prevent the valve from closing prematurely during the tubing "slide-on".
4) Next, I slid on as many O-Rings as I could, so that the valve was completely covered with them. Like this...
5) After that, with the 1-1/8" clamp already on the tubing, I slide on the 3/4" ID vinyl tubing, making sure it didn't push down the tip as I thrusted the tube down the shaft...I mean valve.
6) I then made sure the valve was still open after the push-on. Then, I slid down the clamp into position, and tighten it down to "snugness" using the flat head screwdriver.
7) Lastly, I got the already made valve/tubing assembly (made from previous attempts) and I thrust-ed the smaller 3/4" OD into the larger 3/4" ID tubing, and again, tighten down with a clamp.
8) The brass valve was turned off, and I gave it the "squeeze" test, to see if it could hold water under slight pressure. It did, very well actually. This revelation makes me believe with a lot of confidence that (given the right size) the O-rings could work on likely all 3 of the above "failed" projects. Its really the turning point in making a completely tight leak-free seal. This is what it looked like when I tested it.
9) Well, it passed the leak test, now I'm gunna try it out on my stand-in plant, a young coffee plant, to see how it drips. Once the seeds come in, I will be using it on it (at a safe time for the little guy).
10) Very Lastly, I'm going to hang it up from the closet rails. I'm thinking of some string tied around the neck of the bottle. Also, I will be attaching a larger bottle to the valve, because this one is too small in capacity. I'll be back on Tuesday to show the final set-up in the closet area.
*** Lighting Set-Up Changes ***
During my search for the best bulbs, I could not find the right ones I was looking for. The "perfect" CFL bulbs I was looking for were ones with a color temperature range between 5000K-6500K in spectrum in a wattage near 50 watts each. But, all I could find were those 5000K-6500K bulbs in 27 watts.
Because of this, I am likely going to have to get another reflector dish. But, for the time being, I bought a bulb socket splitter, so that I could make better use of my hanging lamp. The one I found was a GE and I later found that not all splitters are made the same, that this GE one had an angle narrower than 90 degrees, while other socket splitter brands were 90 degree connections. I bought the last of the GE type, but I will buy more once they are in stock again.
I had 2 types of CFL bulbs in the end of my search, two 5,000K 26 watt CFl and two 6,500K watt CFL. I also bought some 2,700K "warm white" 42 watters, but those are the wrong color temp. type (should be 5000K-7000K) for the vegetation stage.
Before I installed the bulbs in their 2-way arrangement, I had to mark them so I didn't get them mixed up with eachother.
1) I took a felt pen and wrote the color temperature and wattage on each bulb I'm using.
2) I screwed them into the special, unique 2-way GE splitter.
3) Lastly, I installed them inside the dishes and turned on the power. Works great! And the upside-down "Y" angle of the bulbs will prevent burning on the leaves (I hope it does). Note: The plant in the photo below is just a young, coffee plant I bought for fun, to test out my lights on. A little practice before the real thing with the seeds....)
I was considering using this type of set-up, so I could maximize the use of my "expensive" lamp, but because the bulbs actually stick out beyond the reflecting dish and do not use the reflecting dish efficiently, I scraped the idea. I'm sticking with 2 separate reflector dishes side-by-side with two 26 watt bulbs inside each one.
On Wednesday*** night, I will be working on setting-up the drip system inside the closet.
***Note: Didn't do it today: life (and late sleep) got in the way. Hopefully Wednesday.
I hope it turns out good. Thanks for all your help with my questions so far.
And no Silly BallSack, I'm not a girl. If my video avatar of the hot babe and the last name "Crystal" confused you, then know that the video I choose is of a very hot asian reporter sniffing some dank budz, which to me is the hottest thing I've seen on TV before. And the name "crystal" is reffering to those white "crystals" on kind ultra-dank budz like "White Widow" or "Ice". My entire screen-name is a self-referential to budz and weed, and its a close link to my actual intinals TCC.
***** Construction Updatez: Improving Lighting Efficiency *****
Written Date: Construction Date:
Afte looking at the photos in Harry's CFL log, I noticed that all the walls were silvery, for the purpose of reflecting stray light from the bulbs back toward the plant. This simple principle now seems obvious to me, and there's no doubt in my mind that knowledgable, real indoor growers put these same materials in their indoor set-ups, regardless of the type of lighting they use: its improves any lighting set-up.
So, to improve the light efficiency of my closet, I desicided to add some reflective material. I thought about what to use, then I remembered something I bought for camping a long time ago.....After some searching, I found a emergency "survival" Mylar(R) blanket left over from a camping gear package I bought several years ago. This is was great news because I didn't have to spend any money on it. Now to build a structure to support it.
Here's some of the materials I used for the set-up ^In photo: Sharp scissors, double-stick foam tape, tape ruler, and of course, the Survival Mylar(r) Blanket.
First, I measured the inside of the closet around the 2 walls (next to door, and back wall) to see how much I needed. The closet is about 65 inches tall or 5.4 ft (to the metal rail) and the 2 walls together was about 68 inches long (5.6ft).
Then, I laided out the Mylar Blanket on the floor to see how much material I had to work with.
Then, I took some measurements. Its about 80 inches long and 60 inches wide. It was a little short height wise (the width), but had good lenght.
I measured out a piece 68 inches long (out of the available 80 inches) and cut it with the sharp scissors.
At this point, I realized that the wall was not a 90 degree angle. Its was more like a 120 degree angle, going outward toward the room's door. I knew just putting the sheeting on that angled wall won't do much good, so I desicided I needed to build a simple structure to act as a "wall" to angle the light back into the closet using the Mylar sheeting.
To try to save on costs, I searched around the room and found some left over cardboard and foam from a microwave I bought. The hard foam would make a great wall structure, while the cardboard would make a great flat "wall" to attach the Mylar sheeting to. I also used this poster project board I used (and kept) from a school project. That's why you will see random photos on a white board: thats my no-longer-in-use board.
First, I had to stick together the 2 seperate foam pieces on top of one another. I used double-stick tape and duct tape to attach them together.
After much taping of the boards (to keep them from folding on themselves), I attached the boards to foam "back-bone" structure.
Now the good part: installing it in the closet ^First thing I noticed is that the foam "legs" on the foam structure were gettin' in the way of the wall. Also, note unusual angle on the wall.
So, in order to make it fit right, I had to cut off its legs.... ^It had 3 legs, and I severed all of them on one side.
Time to try to fit it again... ^Fits great! Then I realised it might be best to make like a "V" angle, so that the light reflects and collect, similar to a satillete dish (although mine is not nearly that advance). Only bad thing is it goes a little outside the closet, and gets in the way of the opening door, but the stealthing tri-pod was doing that anyway, so I'm cool with it.
So, I taped the side of the cardboard to the closet wall to hold it in place. I also taped around the stubby foam legs I cut, for added strenght.
As a safety device, I taped a string to the wall and the front of the cardboard "wall", so if the tape failed on one side and the structure started to tip, the cardboard won't just fall on the lights and plants. I hope it works! Maybe I need more safety lines....
Almost done....Now I cut and placed small pieces of double stick foam tape on the cardboard wall and the closet wall. I just put on the top of the walls, so I could save tap and make it flowing and free at the bottom, like a hot Fembot's metal skirt. ...It turns out I used so much tape that I ran out at the very end of where I needed to put tape. Just enough! Whew!
The Best and Final Part: Hanging the Mylar Reflective Sheeting
I pealed off all the tape-backers and hung the reflective sheeting, one tape point at a time. Final hung the whole sheet. ^At this point I realized that I should NOT of cut that little section off: I should of just left it as is. I could of went around the wall and onto the metal cabinet I have inside there to make it more 360 reflective. I guess I'll have to buy another "survival blanket" and complete the job.
So I wanted to see how well it worked with just the CFL's turned on. I switched on the CFL lights in the dark room and got this. ^ When I first turn on those lights, I was mesmerized by how it changed the look of the closet. With this new Mylar material, it looks I'm growing inside a stand-up shower stall of an Alien Space Ship! Beam me up Scotty!
Well, it was complete...sort of. I still wanna do the other half, which is the right side of the wall with the cabinet and the inside "wall" that is the closet door. I might even put reflective material on the sleathing trash bags, to reflect the light back instead of just abosorbing it. I'll have to see how it looks, if it reflects the light or just scatters it everywhere in my room.
I bought some more supplies today, mostly for lighting: My next project is going to be drilling holes into the 2 large 12" lamps I own and putting string inside them so that I can make a " ^ " shape with the lamps facing 45 degrees to one another.
Also, I will be taking my smaller but cheaper 8" wide clamp lamps and attaching wire onto the reflective "dish" and wraping reflective Mylar sheeting around the wire frame. I'm doing this because when I put an adpater to fit 2 bulbs in the socket, the bulbs sticked WAY far out, and wasted a lot of light. This will make it more efficient by directing the light to its rightous destination.
the video I choose is of a very hot asian reporter sniffing some dank budz, which to me is the hottest thing I've seen on TV before.
...Must Not Fail ~ TrueHerbCrystaL ~
Heh Nationonal Geographic's 'Marijuana Nation', great video. Specially love the tour Mark takes her on with the rooms full of 15ft tall trees in DWC buckets. If you guys haven't watched it give it a drool look
Now about the grow log, quite awesome. I don't have any comments really other then a hearty thanks for taking the time to share.
I will definatly be following this grow. Your actually making my journal look bad I have very few details in mine. But I guess I am only half way motivated being that it's not my plants I am documenting.
Keep it up
-------------------- "The proverb warns that, "You should not bite the hand that feeds you." But maybe you should, if it prevents you from feeding yourself."
- Thomas Szasz
"if you arent good with electricity dont go touching it...ive electrocuted myself twice...its no fun"
- mhbound
On Thurday, Febuary 4, 2010, I checked my mail box and my most important package for this project was inside. It took about 8 days total to ship from Europe: not bad.
Here's the critical info on the 2 seeds....
Strain: "Flower" Breeder:CH8 Growing Stats (from company website):
Total Price (for both seeds & "best option" shipping) (in British Pounds):
Because I had to do a homkework assignment on Thurday night, I didn't have time to plant the seeds. So I did it on Friday.
>>> Date & Time of planting 1 "Flower" seed (inside clay pot with Fox Forest soil): Friday, Febuary 5, 2010 at exactly the most sacred time of the day, 4:20pm (Pacific Coast Time)
On Friday, I waited all the way to the magic time "4:20pm" (which by the way, was *really* hard!) as a symbolic act of good luck for my dream goal: smoking my dried, completed harvest on April 20, 2010 (420 day! ). I hope it has some significance, even if just metaphorical.
Here's what I did for planting one of those "Flower" Seeds
First, I took one of the seeds at random from my 2. The second one is going to be my back-up in case this one dies or doesn't sprout. --->
Next, I opened the bag of my Fox Farm Ocean Forest soil and grabbed my dry 3" clay pot.
I was going to use these fiber pots....
...but other "Trusted Cultivators" said not to use them, and I already had some clay pots, so it was an easy second choice. Plus, clay is a good material to get rid off excess water because the water is soaked into the clay and then evaporated, which is good in case I accidentally over-water.
Anyway, I dropped in the seed just right on top of the soil at exactly 4:20pm. It was more of a symbolic gesture, with the time in mind, than a actual planting of the seeds.
The actual preparing of the soil, such as picking out the little bark pieces, lightly misting the soil with a spray bottle, and "fluffing it up" for aeration and the mixing it up to make it "uniform" moist didn't finish until about 4:33pm. Then I made a ~1/2" hole to put the seed in.
^I know, kinda backwords, but I was rushing to get the seed in the soil at exactly 4:20pm, I hope this "rushing the planting" isn't my downfall later. But I think I put enough care to the soil's damp-but-not-wet condition to do the seed good.
After I watered it, I wrapped the top of the clay pot with clear plastic Syran(R) wrap, as recomended by another person here and from some of the readings I've seen about growing in soil. The purpose of the plastic syran wrap is to act as a "mini" greenhouse, keeping the moisture high in the plastic "tent" while letting light in.
Here's what it looked like *just* after I covered up the seed with soil and *lightly* sprayed it with bottled water and then proceded to cover it with the Syran(R) wrap (duct tape around the clay pot for sealing it)....
Now, I put the seeded pot underneath my 3-bulb (2 of 5,000K 27watts CFL bulbs + 1 of 6,500K 26watts CFL bulbs, 80 watts total) hanging lamp. Note that the time is 4:33pm now.
Another photo, this time with my wristwatch displaying the date (2 = Febuary & 5 = Friday)
I also noticed that the temperature was getting too high at 87F, so I descided that my desktop fan would run the entire time the CFL lights do. With some adjusting with the distance between my pot and the fan, I found that a distance of ~3 feet on its Lowest speed setting. ^After about 1 hour or so, the temperature drops to about 75-78F, which is an acceptable range for me.
I left on the light and programed my timer to go off at 7:00PM. I did 1 hour over regular 12-on/12-off because I planted them so late in the day. I changed the time to "6pm" after it passed the 7-hour mark.
After the light and fan went off on the same timer, I watched the temp carefully since I know its going to drop without the lights as a heat source. It dropped to about ~72F. At 11:00pm, the temp reached this 72F mark....
I thought this was an OK temp, but then I read this quote from a very useful Growery document that sadly I can't rememeber or find it now, but the idea was this:
"Many beginniger growers don't suceed with germination because their seeds are not heated in the night, and they get to 60F, which is too cold for germination."
Reading that, I knew I should put a heating blanket under the pot to warm it up. The Bottom "over-flow" clay dish acts like a buffer, and hopefully its not blocking *too* much of the heat from the blanket thast it doesn't reach the seed. I guess I'm just going to have to see in the future.
Here's what the electric heating blanket looks like with the pot on top....
Well, everything, the lights, fan, and the heating blanket, are all on timers, so for now, its semi-automated like I hoped.
I will be checking the "mini greenhouse" in the morning to see how its doing.
Before planting this seed, I made some major improvements to my project set-up. This Saturday or Sunday, I will be going into specific detail into what I did to improve my closet project, which I should of done at least days ago before the seeds would come. Oh well, it got done in time for me to plant one of my seeds only 1 day after I got them in the mail. And I'm pretty happy with my pre-planning I did to make this project work....
The reason why I took some of the bark out is that I read in another post that growers pick out the bark from cheap soils to improve the "quality" of it.
I didn't take out very much bark pieces, maybe a quarter-coin sized worth, and it was just from the top-soil. Other than that, all the soil inside the pot is untouched.
Also, how wet should the soil be to germinate the seeds? right now its "moist" but not soaked, is that how it should be? Could I gauge the "proper" wettness of the soil by the amount of water droppelts collecting on the top of the plastic "greenhouse" wrap?
But I won't be doing it again....thanks for pointing that out Trip.
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). I know for next time.
For Lighting System 
), but it was tricky. Here's my evidence that it works, but it takes some time to get it right....
, plus at the end you will have a great journal to look back on 
...It turns out I used so much tape that I ran out at the very end of where I needed to put tape. Just enough! Whew! 
). I hope it has some significance, even if just metaphorical.
