New Grower First Time Growing Ever

[Pasty84]

hello ive been watching you tube reading tons of how to websites and just found this forum and would love as much advise, tips, knowlege as i pop my cherry. I never grown any type of cannibus so im very new so feel free to make me look stupid if im doing something stupid. I have a 400w hps light and im using a 8 to 10 gallon 13 inch pot. its all set up and any day this week i should recieve my auto seeds and planed to start with the 60 day auto lemon seed. Im just growing one plant at first so i can get a feel for it and since autos are fast they need attention.
So i mixed up some pro mix potting soil,miracle grow potting mix, and miracle grow organic soil and put it in the pot last friday. i used about 2 gallons of water to get it nice and moist and make sure it drains good Saturday and just been getting the top nice and wet yesterday and today. I boiled a couple gallons of water and bought lemon juice and bought miracle grow all purpose plant food (24-8-16). Ive also been testing my grow closet and with the door open it gets to 84 degrees under the light with a fan blowing and with the door closed it gets to 90 plus with the fan so i plan to keep the door open during the light cycles and closed for dark (18-6) from seed to harvest. I was going to ph my water too with the lemon juice does anyone have a mix ratio for mixing lemon juice and water. So please if anyone wants to help me out through this grow it would be greatly appreciated.
Oh and i ordered from Bonza seeds one auto 60 day lemon and one Auto Jack 47 i wanted to try the 60 day lemon first unless the jack 47 is better suited for a newbie.
thanks
Matt

 

[wg]

So one plant going in a ten gallon pot? That'll be quite impressive if all things go as planned for you..

First and foremost, starting a journal is a great idea.. so hopefully you keep us updated here. :thumbs:

Your soil mixture sounds like fun, it could work and in theory it should.. I'd ad a bit more perlite to it and make sure at least 50%+ is ProMix..

There's no way to tell exactly how much lemon juice to mix in your water because all water is different and your starting pH could be anywhere.. At the very least invest in some aquarium or pool pH testing strips.. they won't be extremely accurate if your fertilizers are dyed.

That plant food is OKAY you need to dilute it to 1/4 or less of the dosage. It's pretty strong and is just too crappy of a ratio for autoflowers. At 1/4 diluted you're only going to get it down to 6-2-4 so even then I would not use it until the end of the second or start of the third week. "My 2 cents"

That's a lot of extra work to keep your temperatures good - don't forget if you're not sealing the area the smell will get out and about much easier. Not sure if you're growing legally or not but if smell is a concern you should find an alternative way of dealing with the temperatures.

Lemon Juice isn't the most stable pH down you can find - it changes very quickly and doesn't hold pH for long. Keep that in mind.

Some other things I'd invest into would be Epsom Salts, Molasses and Alaskan Fish Fertilizer, Mircale Grow Jump Start (it's good for bloom).. these can all be found locally in grocery stores or hardware stores.

Also, keep in mind even though it's a "60 day" strain expect it to run at least 75-80 for an optimal plant. You want your soil moist, not drenched or even "wet" but moist and warm for the seedling. I'd put a clear plastic cup over the seedling and keep the light at least 36-40" from the top of the pot until the seedling is at least a week old, then slowly bring it down 2" a day until it's 14" from the top or where the back of your hand doesn't get really hot over the plant.

Why are you boiling the water? Just let it sit and get an air pump for a fish tank and let it bubble for 24 hours. Unless your water isn't suitable for drinking conditions.

Look forward to your grow bro and both seeds appear to be pretty new user friendly so whichever one you'd like to grow first, go for it! .. No food for the first 3-4 weeks by the way, especially using that soil mixture.

 

[az2000]

I was going to ph my water too with the lemon juice does anyone have a mix ratio for mixing lemon juice and water.

I can relate to that. My first grow was a few weeks ago. I tried to get by with guessing at PH, plant-store nutrients, tap water, etc. It didn't turn out well. The only way to know how much lemon juice to add to your water is to use a PH meter to test it before and after adding the juice. (Also, I've read these things don't hold their ph well. I tried white vinegar and ended up buying "ph up" and "down."). You might not even need to lower the ph because the nutrients are probably acidic and will lower it.

I've had good results with this inexpensive "best deal USA ph-009" meter on Amazon. The only downside is that it ships from China. It takes awhile to arrive. Next option is the Milwaukee PH600. You can get that faster, but I don't like it as much. Either way, you'll need to bite the bullet and buy calibration solution, potassium chloride storage solution and probe cleaning solution. I can tell you the cheapest stuff I found. It's difficult to buy into all this when you're not even sure growing will work out for you. But, the meter won't be reliable nor last long without this stuff. And, not using a meter will be total guesswork. Probably won't turn out well unless you're lucky.

You should also consider the ppm (parts per million) tds (total dissolved salts) of your tap water. Mine is up in the 700ppm range, leaving little room for nutrients. I use reverse osmosis water which is about 40ppm. There are meters, like this one. These are useful not only for measuring the water to know whether you should use RO, but also the final nutrient strength (to relate burning problems to high ppm nutrient mixtures).

What ratio did you mix your soil components? I use 3 parts ProMix HP, 1 part Kellogg Patio Plus outdoor potting mix, and 1 part perlite. (I use a heaping part of Kellog, and a shy part of Perlite. So, it's like 60%, 22%, 18%.). You can see my gallery (in my profile) for photos of how that's working out.

My first grow, I mixed 50/50 ProMix and Kellog. It didn't drain well enough. It seems MJ likes extreme wet to dry in a short time. I water about every 2 days now. Sometimes 3 days.

I'm using GH Flora series, a 3-part nutrient. It's supposed to be 3-2-1 (tsp) during veg, and 1-2-3 in flower. Most people do about 1/4 strength in early veg, and work up to 1/2 strength. However, I decided to follow the useless variation of this schedule. It runs a little hotter. If you go to the General Hydroponics website and look at the labels for the Flora series you'll see a general outline of the 3-2-1 and 1-2-3 feeding schedule. You can compare that to useless and see how it differs slightly.

When I was in your shoes I was afraid of this level of control over the nutrients. But, it's not bad after getting past the learning curve. One thing you should be careful of is that Miracle Grow soils are reported to be too fertilized for MJ. Since you're mixing it with ProMix you should be ok. But, it's something to keep in mind when considering when to begin adding nutes to your waterings.

Also, consider adding 1 Tbsp dolomite lime per gallon of soil. It helps stabilize your ph. (I do it.).

My first grow was pretty much a failure. But, if you look at my gallery, you can see my 2nd grow is nearly perfect. So, don't get discouraged. Always look at it as a learning experience. This stuff's easy to grow if you just get your mind around a few things and settle on a *process* that your comfortable with.

But, I really think you'll need a ph meter. Also consider an aquarium air pump and air stone. Aerate your water for a day. Not only does the air in the water help the roots, but it helps stabilize the ph of your water. For example, my tap water is about 7.8. If I leave a glass full out on the counter for 2-3 days it rises to 8.6. From what I've read, water absorbs carbon from the air, creating carbonic acid. If you bubble the water you'll accelerate that process so it doesn't happen during the 2-3 days the water sits in the plant's pot.

PM me if you have any questions.

 

[wwwillie]

Hey and Welcome!
Nothing to add that wg did not cover! Keep the journal updates coming and don't forget pictures, lots of pictures!!
Peace and happy growing!! Here's some :karma Cloud: to get you started

 

[az2000]

so i plan to keep the door open during the light cycles and closed for dark (18-6) from seed to harvest.

Something to consider is that AFs aren't photo sensitive. The "lights out" period doesn't have to be pitch black. Some AF growers do 18/6, others 20/4 or even 24-hour light (no dark). Therefore, if you do 18/6 it shouldn't hurt anything if those 6 hours are exposed to ambient light. (A photosensitive plant could be wrecked if this happens during flowering. But, it sounds like an AF doesn't care. There's some debate whether anything useful happens during lights-out, whether an AF needs it. But, if people are doing 24-hour lights on, a twilight'ish 6-hour lights out shouldn't be too bad.).

 

[Pasty84]

Thanks I just figured boiling it got any sediment and stuff out I may just buy 99 cent gallons of water I have a pump I actually have a whole hydro flood and drain hydroponics set but ive been struggling to find rockwool other than the internet and soil growning autos seems simplier then hydro for my first time cause if a problem arises the autos tell u almost immediately and if I dont have the fix ready I could lose some yeild and id rather have a nice tasty smoke then huge buds with no flavor but tracking shows them coming in the mail tomorrow but most likly Thursday. Girminating can I just put it in the soil and put a cover over area I planted it or should I go for putting it in water till the tap pops out then drop it in the soil I watched jay the grow pro on you tube and im workinf off his basic rules to growing autos so I got the biggest pot I could find I lined it with coco liners and yea its def 50+ pro mix and like 30 organic MG and 20 reg MG I am gonna go out and get a ph meter they have a soil meter for like 20 bucks is it worth it or with pool strips work just the same or I guess they are for two diferent things one for water and one for soil I dont mind having to make a few investments cause It will pay in the long run if I can yeild couple ounces a plant its gonna be for personal use for two people and im in it more for the learning to grow and produce good medicine so thanks for the advice I will def have some questions and if this grow goes good I may try the hydroponic way with the free seeds that come with order since they are thw photo type

 

[mjdregba]

Just to add to az2000's excellent advice; I use the PH pen recommended and it works great - goes weeks between calibrations and even then its only like 0.1 out.

I use PH Up/Down too as it was far easier than the organic ones - with Lemon Juice and Baking Soda you have to wait at least 30 mins for it to settle; this is the PH Up/Dn I use PH UP AND PH DOWN 250ML BOTTLE PACK | eBay

Also, a soil probe has come in handy a few times - especially when mixing your soil - just make sure to scrub it with a scourer to ensure accuracy Amazon.com: BestDealUSA 3in1 Plant Flowers Soil Tester Moisture Light PH Meter: Patio, Lawn & Garden - in fact I just spotted a PH problem on my current grow using it.

 

[stylez]

Happy and safe growing to ya Pasty:smokebuds: best of luck on the first grow..... patience is a virtue when it comes to growing.....

 

[Pasty84]

First time grow auto 60 day lemon journal

Seeds came in put seed in glass of bottled water and some tap water gonna check if it sank after work put in water @ 1128am est

 

[A4]

Hey welcome to the NGF Pasty. Glad to see you getting a journal up. Wishing you much success on your grow.