New Grower Aaaand I'm off. First grow. Organic soil with Mephisto beans

[Belle]

Hi guys,

I finally got my first grow going. First group of seeds all died before they got started. I believe due to heat stress. I didn't have a thermometer yet.

Setup:
Light: HLG-600H Quantum Board LED Kit V2 Rspec - I have it about 18" above the top of the pots turned up about 1/3 of the way up
Tent: 5x5 Gorilla Grow
Tent Exhaust Fan: Cloudline T6
Inside Tent: Oscillating tower
Humidifier: 25 gallon bucket with towel hanging out
5 Gallon fabric pots
Organic soil + amendments

2nd attempt is going much better. First time I germinated, I used the suggested Mephisto method. Damp paper towel, in dvd case, wrapped in a t-shirt, put on router. Friend said I was doing way too much work and I just threw them into a cup of distilled water. Put it under a box in the tent to keep them warm. Next day buried them about 1/4" down and moistened the area a bit with distilled water. Drilled some holes in some cocktail cups to help trap the humidity.

All 5 popped up with their helmets still on. A friend suggested burying them a bit with soil and a few drops of water to keep the case moist. The shell came off 2 of them with this trick after a couple days, but eventually I gently pulled the shell and sac off the other 2. The slowest of them was the Double Grape. It was discolored a bit, like maybe it was waterlogged in the shell possibly. I'm not sure.

Birthdays:
Cosmic Gold (24k x CQ): 2/28
Chem Bear (CDLC x 3BOG): 2/29
Ghost Toof: 3/1
Double Grape: 3/1

For simplicity, I'm calling this D1:

D8: After listening to a talk on youtube, I decided to switch from 24 hour light to an 18/6 cycle.

D9: Added a 25 gallon bucket of water. Submerged a towel and draped it half out to increase the humidity. It was hovering at about 40% RH, now it's staying between 70-80% pretty well.

D10:

Cosmic Gold is taking off and Double Grape is hardly doing anything at all. It's absolutely tiny. I'm wondering if this will ever do anything at all.

I'm not sure what else I need to do currently. This is my first grow so I'm trying to learn all I can. I was thinking I probably need to buy a proper humidifier.

I water them every 3 days. Just plain filtered water. I plan to do compost tea when they start to flower, but I just saw someone giving them tea in veg. Does anyone going the soil route have any experience with feeding them compost tea in veg? Good/bad idea?

And what do you think about the DG? Should I just let it go and see what it does? Do they ever produce much after such a slow start?

 

[420Forever]

(pullz up a seat ppp)

 

[Belle]

So, it looks like I have problems. The 2 larger plants are drooping. I thought it might be the light, so I moved it up about 8 inches. Watered them, but they're still really droopy.

D21:

Cosmic Gold, Chem Bear and Ghost Toof are all really droopy.

Double Grape is still absolutely tiny.

I'm seeing little white hairs on some of them, but they're are small. I'm not seeing them sexing yet.

The top layer is happy frog, but the lower 2/3 or so is ocean forest with amendments. I haven't actually fed them yet. I plan to add worm castings, natures pride and compost tea when they start flowering... but should I be feeding them now? How early?

The only thing I think that could really be stressing them is the light off temperature. It's getting down to about 60. Typically 75-80 when the light is on. Is that too low?

 

[420Forever]

So, it looks like I have problems. The 2 larger plants are drooping. I thought it might be the light, so I moved it up about 8 inches. Watered them, but they're still really droopy.

D21:

Cosmic Gold, Chem Bear and Ghost Toof are all really droopy.

Double Grape is still absolutely tiny.

I'm seeing little white hairs on some of them, but they're are small. I'm not seeing them sexing yet.

The top layer is happy frog, but the lower 2/3 or so is ocean forest with amendments. I haven't actually fed them yet. I plan to add worm castings, natures pride and compost tea when they start flowering... but should I be feeding them now? How early?

The only thing I think that could really be stressing them is the light off temperature. It's getting down to about 60. Typically 75-80 when the light is on. Is that too low?

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ya, me thinkz the wild lightz on/off temp flucuationz could def be suspect ppp

 

[Belle]

So, I need to get a heater I guess?! Any suggestions for a 5x5 tent?

 

[Illini4life]

So, it looks like I have problems. The 2 larger plants are drooping. I thought it might be the light, so I moved it up about 8 inches. Watered them, but they're still really droopy.

D21:

Cosmic Gold, Chem Bear and Ghost Toof are all really droopy.

Double Grape is still absolutely tiny.

I'm seeing little white hairs on some of them, but they're are small. I'm not seeing them sexing yet.

The top layer is happy frog, but the lower 2/3 or so is ocean forest with amendments. I haven't actually fed them yet. I plan to add worm castings, natures pride and compost tea when they start flowering... but should I be feeding them now? How early?

The only thing I think that could really be stressing them is the light off temperature. It's getting down to about 60. Typically 75-80 when the light is on. Is that too low?

View attachment 1171002View attachment 1171003View attachment 1171004View attachment 1171005View attachment 1171006

Looking good! Maybe overwatered? Droopy leaves can come from the substrate not fully drying between waterings. If you're concerned with overwatering let them go an extra day before you water, it will be fine as they would probably benefit more from less water than being overwatered. I typically do the pick up the pot test and feel the weight. You will figure out the correct amount and frequency of watering when you learn what the plants want.

One suggestion, fill those bags up to almost the top of the pots with soil, after a full run and waterings that soil level will drop significantly, which equals a smaller area for the root ball, which equals smaller plant. All in all you're doing great though! Those are just some pointers I have for you!

 

[Illini4life]

Oh and start feeding them! At day 21 they definitely need food. They will start to flower here soon if they are true autos and you don't want them to flower that tiny I bet.

 

[Belle]

@Illini4life The top 1/4" or so seems to dry out really fast, but if I brush a little to the side it seems pretty moist. I've been go the point where the bag seems light and dry, but I can wait an extra day next watering to see.

I should have the tubing for the compost tea bubbler in a couple days. Will add a mix of nature's pride and worm castings to the top when I water next.

Thanks for all the tips!

 

[Mizzo81]

60 is way too cold. Especially when they’re young.

 

[AutoWonders]

So, I need to get a heater I guess?! Any suggestions for a 5x5 tent?

A radiator heater would be a good choice. In my previous 4x4 tent I used a DeLonghi TRN0812T Portable Oil-Filled Radiator with Programmable Timer and it was very good. Went back to a 2x4 once again and have a small radiator heater for that one.