Hello every one, its been some time since I've been hanging around AFN so time to get back into the swing of things so I though i would put this post together for the newbie... I now think I got an idea of what I'm doing... kind of.
This is a post to my self, a post to the inexperienced Slater of all his mistakes and successes and hopefully you newbies can take something from it.
1.
Don't buy a pre put together kit of tent, light, fan, filter etc. you will replace it all in month or 2... The tent is the only bit kit you still use, every thing else was just crap. The filter was just pants and couldn't scrub one of your misses most decent farts let alone a grow of some awesome haze plants... I now use Rhino pro
2.
Don't buy cheap. This is one industry that money gets you a product that lasts and does what it say's on the tin (well most of the time). Stick with well used and trusted brands that other long time growers use...
no Chinese knock offs... Remember that LED light you bought Slater, you up graded it within 2 grows and DIY'ed your self and awesome COB led light... the cost was cheaper than most of the Chinese LED imports of the same wattage... should have done that from the start... Go watch Growmau5 on you tube now... I mean it, its the future of growing. You need to understand LED's. If you don't you will be left behind.
3.
Reading as much you can was a great idea as well, getting lost in thread after thread was the best thing you could have done. By learning about all the different grow styles it was easy for you settle on what would worked best for your situation. Also it stopped you from asking those very stupid beginner questions that you read up on on the very first day you decide to do this... to all new growers please do your reading, the basics have been written down so many times and all question have been asked and answered... well most... still, don't be scared to ask for help though, I will always try if I can.
4.
Starting in soil with a simple nute line up of a grow, bloom, cal mag and boaster (Plant magic) was the best thing you could have done to learn how to feed your plants... remember they are auto's and they will take a little less nutes than a photo period, about 1/2 to 3/4 of what the bottle recommends or your gonna get nute burn.
Don't panic keep reading those threads, feeding will make more sense once you have few grows under the belt.
5.
Watering... you'll get in the end, may take a couple of grows to dial it in... remember the pot lifting method... and as you are in soil you need to
remember to let them dry out, you will know, its when that pot becomes super light... don't leave it until the leaves droop you muppet.
6.
Feeding... you can feed with every water if you want but it worked out better when you dropped to a feed, feed, water schedule. Saved some on your on nutes.
7. Good job on
studying the all deficiency photo's, that was time well worth spent. You can now spot one and identify it as soon as the plant show's any sings. No hanging around waiting on a member to answer your question... mind you Slater its good idea to get that secound opinion until you are confident.
8.
Keep that mind open, there is not one way of growing there is only your way of growing and it may not be the best practices. So keep that mind open to all opinions and study both sides of the argument, just because some big time you-tube grower does it doesn't mean its gospel to your set up. Experiment and do side by side (or grow by grow) comparisons if you can. Well worth the effort... remember you found out that leeching at the end of the grow gave you a better smoke.... but that's your opinion Slater, others will whole heartily disagree with you.
You-tube is gold mine in growing tips and tricks, I highly recommend the Grow Round Table hosted by CrazyDago and the GML show hosted by Grand Mater Level. Its all about the photo periods and they don't know they Auto's from there asses but the general growing practices and discussions are priceless. You can apply all that info into growing auto's.
9.
Keeping a journal of your first few grows was a great start, to have some experienced growers follow you helped to give you confidence that you could make a mistake knowing that someone was on hand to help you out... Thank you
@jingo and
@Yeatster
10.
Collecting data... Collecting data on your environment was a good idea, you have now found out when the CO2 level is at the highest (helps me to get the light closer and up the feed). At which point of the year your RH is going to go through the roof and when its at its lowest. You also know everything about the environment around the out side of your tents.
Great tip if your a tent grower - Its so much easier to control the air going into the tent than to try and adjust it once its in the tent.
Also take out share's in a hygrometer company, you now own a shed load, enough to do the whole house... wait a minute that's what you have done, placed a meter in every nook and cranny to study the environment in the house... man your just taking the data collecting thing a little to far now.
11.
Genetics... you got lucky on your first grow Slater and got some nice plants after buying a random packet of seeds from the local head shop (Big Easy by Freedom seeds). So many new growers choose the wrong breeder, get a shit a plant and then blame all auto's. They then go onto a social media platform saying they don't hold up to a photo periods putting all new grows off them.
My list to get great results from the start -
Any Mephisto strain (kings of the auto)
Gorilla Glue by Fast Buds
all the Dinafem menu and Dutch Passion.
They should all get you started with great successes straight out the gate.
12.
Drying / Curing... Man this one is the trickiest to get right, you can read up on it so much. All tutorials say the same thing. Its the one subject most agree on but man its the hardest to master... the trick Slater is to have some patients. If you think its ready for the jar give another day or 2. Give it longer than you think... I will say this, it takes time to get this bit right, I'm still learning to the point I'm now designing a drying cabinet to control temps and RH.
Chill... relax... its just a plant at the end of the day... roll a phat one and get on with it.
Hope some of this helps you out, I'm kind of a big nerd so I take thing to the next level with the effort I put in and I can come across a little keen at times. But what I have learnt is being nerdy go's along way to growing the best cannabis you will have ever smoked.
As a final point, take what ever hydro store owners say with pinch of salt. I'm not saying they can't grow and there advice is wrong, but what I found is that most of the advice I've been given is entrenched ideas around the products they sell. Most of the time AFN has corrected every thing I've been told in a shop... I am talking about UK hydro shops, still bit in the dark ages on the new wave of growing and also geared toward prohibition growing... careful don't bring up LED's or you'll get laughed out of the shop, that did happen to me... that reminds me must drop a nug in to prove him wrong.
