36 Watts or Bust!

[zap_rowsdower]

Hey Overgrow,

I finally managed to get some decent genetics, and have decided to give it another go. I decided on some feminized Blue Mystic from Nirvana seeds if I remember correctly.

I tried the paper towel germination this go round, so I first scraped one of the littlest seeds with an emery board, then stuck it in a ziploc bag with a folded dampened paper towel.

I used a neodymium magnet to keep the ziploc bag stuck to the back of the fridge where it was sorta warm in the house. Man, after only one day I saw the taproot emerge.

I then stuck the seed in the pot I’ve created and waited about 3 days for it to finally break ground.

I moved to a half of a half gallon milk carton this time. I cut a bunch of holes in the bottom and put a piece of landscape fabric, then about 1/2 inch of sand at the bottom. I filled the rest with Fox Farms Ocean Forest.

I don’t know why I can’t just be happy with something off the shelf or a solo cup. I think because I have such a squat grow space and it’s square; I can’t really abide by anything at the store or round!

I’m watering with filtered tap water, I’m using three teaspoons of Fox Farms Grow Big, and one teaspoon of superthrive. I’ve also dropped the ph a little since we have pretty hard water here. I’m using a few drops of phosphoric acid to bring the ph down to 6.2~6.5 range.

It seems like I can go almost a week from waterlogged to light and dry.

I stuck the seed in the pot on 11/25

Here it is this morning:
( You can see it’s a little droopy, and I can tell when the leaves get crispy )

It’s fairly bushy! I’d like to LST this thing, and eventually top it, but it’s so compact right now, as far as I can tell I’ve only got one node, maybe two.

I’m guessing I’m going to have to veg for at least a month before I can even think of topping this thing.

Anyways, I’ll keep you posted with maybe a photo more frequently than every week!

[anon86068642]

Have you looked into nursery bags? They sell plastic ones that have holes pre punched in them and they also have biodegradable nonwoven cellulose ones like fabric pots. Very easy to pot up. It doesn’t stop any roots in the slightest and is just passive to roots poking at them. You don’t want a fabric mat directly beneath the bags. Roots will weave in the mat. You don’t even remove the bags. Just add to another bigger bag. You can finish in a final pot type of your choice that won’t let roots through it. Nice and stress free transplant this way. Just don’t break up the rootball. It won’t have one in these bags. Not the kind you need to fuss with. Roots grow freely through them completely unimpeded. The plastic ones are not the same rules. They’re more of a final pot type, but crazy cheap to buy and double sided too. Black on the inside and white on the outside or vice versa if desired.

They’re $10 for 400 bags on Amazon and the plastic ones are about 100 for $15.

Amazon.com : BcPowr 400 PCS 4 Size Biodegradable Non-woven Nursery Bags Plant...

Amazon.com : Viagrow 1 Gal Grow bags, 50 Pack, 1 gallon : Garden & Outdoor

I’m excited to watch your grow regardless. This is exactly why I started growing. It’s not as expensive as it seems

[zap_rowsdower]

Hey Oni,

That would probably make too much sense lol! That’s kind of the idea I’m ultimately shooting for. What I’m going to do is sew a custom sized bag from landscaping fabric. I’ve already sewed (sewn?) together a bag with fishing line. I found some Spiderwire braid which is more flexible (Horrible for fishing by the way) and will be perfect for bag sewing.

Here we are this morning, and yeah the white balance snuck back to it’s old settings. After the last watering it’s standing at attention again!

[anon86068642]

Just make sure to be careful with woven materials as a pot. The nursery bags are nonwoven to not pinch roots like woven ones have a bad habit of doing. I’m sure they’re not the hardest to make if you looked into it. All you need is something breathable and paper thin that won’t disintegrate after filling with soil.

I’m in a situation myself where money is too tight, so I understand about it not being a option ATM. I had to remove my nursery bags from my cart when I got my fabric pots and perlite. They weren’t needed, so out they went. I’ve been trying to fix my soil for the last month with a idea what I have to do and fussing over why my soil took so long to dry for half a year now🤦🏻‍♂️ I blame the autism here straight up. I don’t control when it takes hold of my mind. Not without a good strain like Zkittlez and about 200mg CBD if it’s been awhile 500mg minimum after a week. CBD is expensive. I’d rather grow.

I’m not deleting that as a example of what I was saying while it was happening

Back on point:
Regardless of what you do just be nice to the plant roots. They are why you get that good yield you want. Be kind to the roots and they will love you back and show you their potential.

[anon86068642]

Also looking really good now!

Just give it some time. It’s almost ready to top. Is it a Photoperiod or Autoflower?

[ReikoX]

@zap_rowsdower

What I’m going to do is sew a custom sized bag from landscaping fabric.

If you go to the fabric store you can buy ecofelt. It is the same material they use in fabric pots. It is made of recycled water bottles.

Also pick up some nylon thread. I have been using my bed for well over a year with no issues.

ReikoX's Workshop

First I built the frame out of PVC, then I measured and cut the bottom felt. It is 16"x31" so I have room for a 1/2" seam all the way around. [image] Next I measured out the felt for the sides. This piece is 13"x92". I folded and pinned 10 1/2 inches up, making the top loop for the PVC, then pinned it around the frame to mark my circles for the joints and the corners. [image] Next I cut out the circles for the joints and sewed the top seam. Then, using the marks drawn for the corners, I sewe…

[anon86068642]

Thanks for the sage advice on that🤔 one day I’ll make one too. Yours turned out great in that

[zap_rowsdower]

Yeah, I like improvising since it gives me something to do, and it’s sort of in the spirit of creating custom grow equipment that just isn’t off the shelf. The construction part is the slowest most challenging thing for me. It’s also half the fun!

I envision a grow bag about the same size as that milk carton but from some black landscape fabric doubled up. One layer is a little too fragile.

I can tell now that the plant is defiantly drinking more now that it’s leaving the seedling stage. I’ll have to start watering every other day. That’s a good thing!

Reiko to answer your question this should be a feminized photoperiod seed. So no autoflowering. I’m on an 18/6 cycle right now.

Lets see if I can get the white balance right this time.

Here it is this morning:

[zap_rowsdower]

Plodding along, I moved the plant down since I could see the edges of the leaves getting a tiny bit light bleached.

I’m counting five nodes now, if I top it, would I snip at the fifth node or the sixth? I’d like to espalier the plant to make it grow laterally with some bamboo sticks, since I have two other lights which could help out.

I should have mentioned but I’m on an 18/6 light cycle right now.

Here she is this morning:

[Stusatwork]

Hey @zap_rowsdower I say people pinch the very top growth down to the next node. Just pinch and crush lightly. That should stimulate the plant to “bush out” some. Then after a week or so you should be able to see what you are working with and whether you will need to top to fill the space. If you pinch delicately enough you will keep the top it will just take a while to veg back out… Then you can apply @Mr.Sparkle FlopTek as needed. Nice project by the way!

[beacher]

I agree with Stu, I think you might want to top and start training now to keep low and bushy

[zap_rowsdower]

Hey fellas,

So when you pinch, do you mean pinch with thumb and fingernail as in “pinch off”, Is this sorta like FIMing? or just pinch the whole shoot above the fifth node off?

[anon86068642]

If topping with pinching I’d personally fim over full top. Topping on average makes 2 branches while fimmed tops tend to show 4 or more per top. Someone correct me if I got it wrong, but fim>top in most cases?

[Stusatwork]

Yes, the ultimate goal is to FIM basically but if you are gentle enough you could pull off 5 tops…

[MomOnTheRun]

There are many ways to train to get you to your end goal of espalier …i’ll add another which is my preferred way when I want to keep them short and go wide: Nebula’s Manifold. This technique does take a bit longer to fill out than fimming or flopping (supercropping) so many shy away from it though it is another tried and true method

[MisticHaze]

You could also try bondage… I mean LST!..
I mean…I’m just gonna…
(walks away)

[anon86068642]

Now I need to grow a strain called Wonder Woman just to lst her and have the original character in plant form🤣

[MisticHaze]

(peeks in)
Seedsman and Nirvana can help you with that LOL. Had never heard of that strain until now. Sounds sexy…I mean tasty…I mean…
(leaves room again)

Alright, I’ll stop haha.

[anon86068642]

I believe I’ve actually heard of the strain before. Worst case if it doesn’t exist I find one that loves LST so much it deserves the name. Tie her up and she’ll reveal all to you🤣

[MisticHaze]

Just looked up a lot of old Wonder Woman comics and umm…she definitely is tied in many of them LOL.
So…getting back on topic:
Nice plant you got there @zap_rowsdower. I’m a little disappointed that I’ve yet to grow a short plant well, they always seem to stretch with the way I grow them. I was always used to hot lights so I tend to keep them a little far away from the bulb. Now with LEDs I’ve yet to see my seedlings and young plants get heat stressed (meaning I could lower the light), but old habits…

Love the PC case too. Always wanted to have a stealth grow, just for the wow factor.

Let me get you a soda from my fridge: Weed!
Wanna play Fortnite on my new PC: Weed!