New Grower Complete first time grower. 20 days in. Advice/comments & help welcome on my setup and grow.

[c0reforce]

I suppose that depends on what your runoff reads at... If you pour 6.7 in, and get 5.7 out, that means your soil is extremely acidic, and you may need a supplement to fix that.. However..... If you pour in 6.7 and get out anything in the "safe" range for runoff (which IIRC should be ~25% of the volume you fed to prevent salt buildup or pH swings), then you're all set!!

I will measure the run-off water after the next time I feed the plants and let you guys know. As far as I can tell the yellow bottom leaves and increasing yellow spots are caused by 1 of 2 things. Either I have PH problems in the medium or its an "N" deficiency, after the feeding today I will be able to see if its really a nitrogen problem or a PH problem.

 

[Muddy]

I am doing my best to improve ventilation, but the tent is not in a separate room to my actual living & sleeping space in my apartment (I am actually sleeping next to it I find the fan noise quite relaxing actually) So its really hard to control both the ambient temperate around the tent and the light if I am at home while the ladies are sleeping. This is why I have just 1 passive in take open at the back which is against the wall to minimize light leakage when they are sleeping. Also the overall room temperate around the tent is usually 26-27 so its not actually pulling in very cool air in the first place. This is why I have the active intake sucking air from outside when I have my window open (obviously not possible all the time, due to reasons already stated) If its cold outside and I've got the window open the tent temperate drops to a nice 25-26. This is something that I will have to fine tune and find a balance. Maybe a small portable AC next to the tent should do the trick. I was told by the grow shop guys that I shouldn't really have to measure my humidity, I guess I'll have to pick up a humidity meter of some sort.

The high heat from HPS lighting is why so many of us have switched to T5 and LEDs. Had you talked to us first we would have tried to persuade you to go with those over HPS for that reason. Can you perhaps run a duct directly to the window so you can pull outside air directly into your tent?

Most people working in grow shops have little to no experience growing autos, so take what they say with a grain of salt. Getting the correct balance of heat and humidity is important so that the plants transpire, or sweat properly. High humidity late in the grow can also contribute to mold on the buds.

Roger that, on the nutes front. I have only given them 1 feeding of the general organics grow nutes but at full strength as recommended on the bottle. Wasn't aware auto's can't tolerate nutes as well as normal plants. I currently have root stimulator (given with every feeding at 1ml/1ltr) and General organics BioThrive Grow & Bloom. As well as General Organics BioBud. If you were in my position right now, what course of action would you take with the nutes.

The root stimulator is fine. Right now and until vertical growth stops, you should be following the manufacturers schedule only at the reduced rates I recommended in my previous post. If you haven't already, take a look at this thread: https://www.autoflower.org/f44/life-cycle-auto-flowering-cannabis-5113.html

I have been really strict with water and they are only getting water every 4-5 days when I feel the soil is really dried out. I think this is why the soil level has dropped inside the pots and the girls are kind of struggling to get over the top of the pots. When I do water I keep going until I see water flowing from the bottom and stop there.

The soil always compacts a bit once you start watering regularly. Next time, fill them all the way to the top when you start and they will be fine.

I did buy a PH meter pen. Exactly this one http://www.amazon.co.uk/Essentials-PH-Meter/dp/B008BHYD3Y

I wasn't sure exactly the best way to use it, and since I was just using lukewarm tap water to feed my plans I figured PH wasn't a big problem. How is the best way to go about testing the PH using the pen model listed above.

If your tap water contains chlorine it can be harmful to the plants. Best to let it sit in an open container for 24 - 48 hours before use so the chlorine can evaporate. Better still is to put an air stone in the bottom of the container and bubble it to help the chlorine dissipate.

Use your pH pen to test and record the base pH of your water. When you feed, add your nutrients and test, then lower the pH to around 6.5 before you feed. Then capture and test the water that runs out the bottom of the pot. That will give you a reasonably accurate indication of your actual soil pH. I suspect your soil pH is off, which is what is causing the yellowing. Once you know the pH of your run off, then we can specifically address the problem.

 

[c0reforce]

The high heat from HPS lighting is why so many of us have switched to T5 and LEDs. Had you talked to us first we would have tried to persuade you to go with those over HPS for that reason. Can you perhaps run a duct directly to the window so you can pull outside air directly into your tent?

The grow shop guys actually talked me out of buying a similarly priced L.E.D panel saying that its still an unproven technology and while HPS is higher heat and energy costs it still gives the best results. Maybe I will regret listening to that advice in the long-run as you guys here are the auto experts.

I am already running a aluline duct directly from my in-take fan to the window and it pulls in nice fresh air from outside directly in to the tent. When outside air temperature is below 16-17 it cools the tent nicely, but above that and I still have probs with temp.

Most people working in grow shops have little to no experience growing autos, so take what they say with a grain of salt. Getting the correct balance of heat and humidity is important so that the plants transpire, or sweat properly. High humidity late in the grow can also contribute to mold on the buds.

Fairly sure I don't have a humidity problem as I have a lot of very good air circulation in the tent. But I will definitely purchase a humidity meter as soon as I get a chance. I spent many hours with one particular guy in the shop who I know has been growing indoors for 5-6 years himself and has good experience with Auto's and especially the Dutch Passion auto's. But of course they are out to make money from you purchasing so advice can be a little biased. I personally will not order any grow equipment on-line for security reasons and prefer to buy it cash and carry

The root stimulator is fine. Right now and until vertical growth stops, you should be following the manufacturers schedule only at the reduced rates I recommended in my previous post. If you haven't already, take a look at this thread: https://www.autoflower.org/f44/life-cycle-auto-flowering-cannabis-5113.html

Followed your instructions from the last post and gave them a feeding today with the root stimulator and BioThrive Grow at 1/2 of the recommended dose. We'll see if the girls show some improvements.

The soil always compacts a bit once you start watering regularly. Next time, fill them all the way to the top when you start and they will be fine.

Yup beginner mistake from me, forgetting it was a very light mix. Already corrected in the 3 Mazar which I started after.

If you tap water contains chlorine it can be harmful to the plants. Best to let it sit in an open container for 24 - 48 hours before use so the chlorine can evaporate. Better still is to put an air stone in the bottom of the container and bubble it to help the chlorine dissipate.

Use your pH pen to test and record the base pH of your water. When you feed, add your nutrients and test, then lower the pH to around 6.5 before you feed. Then capture and test the water that runs out the bottom of the pot. That will give you a reasonably accurate indication of your actual soil pH. I suspect your soil pH is off, which is what is causing the yellowing. Once you know the pH of your run off, then we can specifically address the problem.

Yea my tap water is standard Euro city treated water so will contain chlorine. I have been giving them water straight from the tap so far but next watering I will follow your advice and keep a bucket of water out for a couple of days before.

I used the pen today to test the PH of the water with added nutes. With everything added and settled came in at 6.7, which I've been told is in a pretty safe range. After the next watering I will test the PH of the run-off water as well and get back to you.

Thanks again for the help. What a great community this is. I've been using reddit to get most of my information, but the crowd here seems a lot more informed and passionate about indoor gardening.

 

[Anthropolis]

In regards to water, from someone who has battled all kinds of different waters lol, this might sound stupid but if you can make a system to collect rainwater, your plants will love it! For me this was as simple as putting a bucket under the edge of the house lol, and it solved the problems I was having with tap water and buying store waters. (Now of course if you're in a big city with bad pollution, like LA or Beijing or something, the rain might be toxic lol so don't do it). There's something about rainwater specifically, I haven't figured it out exactly, but it makes a difference. I suspect it is ion charged and has beneficial micro life in it. Just my two cents, or two quid lol.

 

[Gonzo]

In regards to water, from someone who has battled all kinds of different waters lol, this might sound stupid but if you can make a system to collect rainwater, your plants will love it! For me this was as simple as putting a bucket under the edge of the house lol, and it solved the problems I was having with tap water and buying store waters. (Now of course if you're in a big city with bad pollution, like LA or Beijing or something, the rain might be toxic lol so don't do it). There's something about rainwater specifically, I haven't figured it out exactly, but it makes a difference. I suspect it is ion charged and has beneficial micro life in it. Just my two cents, or two quid lol.

Rain water is very acidic in most parts of the world, in EU definitelly.

 

[c0reforce]

In regards to water, from someone who has battled all kinds of different waters lol, this might sound stupid but if you can make a system to collect rainwater, your plants will love it! For me this was as simple as putting a bucket under the edge of the house lol, and it solved the problems I was having with tap water and buying store waters. (Now of course if you're in a big city with bad pollution, like LA or Beijing or something, the rain might be toxic lol so don't do it). There's something about rainwater specifically, I haven't figured it out exactly, but it makes a difference. I suspect it is ion charged and has beneficial micro life in it. Just my two cents, or two quid lol.

Yea it would figure that natural untouched rain water would probably be the best way to go considering that is what these plants get naturally when growing outdoors. Unfortunately I live in a high rise apartment building in a large European city that suffers from horrible pollution problems, especially in the winter. So I think rain water is out of the question for me. My apartment building is brand new though and so are all the pipes so there should significantly less pollution in the water than in older houses and buildings. I will try leaving the water out for 48 hours in my bathroom to let any bad stuff evaporate off.

 

[c0reforce]

The ladies seem to have responded well to the feed yesterday and I moved the biggest girl out to the side, to give a chance for the others to catch up. So far they have been doing a pretty good job themselves of keeping an even canopy.

Edit:

Forgot to mention. Some pots are drying out like 10x faster than others, despite all having roughly the same amount of medium in them. Some pots feel really light today like they need to be fed again and some are still wet on the surface. Even you can see it on the pictures.

Any particular reason for this?

 

[c0reforce]

DAY 25 SINCE SPROUT.

Everything seems to be going pretty smoothly *knock on wood* the yellowing has stopped since I gave the ladies a nice veg feed with plenty of "N". I have been been really strict with water. Holding back for 4 days until the pot is completely dry and the plants really look like they need it.

They have started to really pack on the size and began some vertical growth as well, which they desperately need to get there lower nodes out of the pots.

Oh, and its really starting to smell good in there

 

[Muddy]

Looking good. On the watering, obviously not all plants grow at the same speed, so can uptake the nutrient feeds at different rates. Bigger plants will use it faster. There could also be some slight differences in your soil from pot to pot, so some might dry out a bit quicker. That pretty normal and nothing to be concerned about.

Just an FYI, when you take your pictures, turn your lights off so we can see the true colors of the leaves. If there is an issue, we can spot it better that way.

 

[ramone515]

They look great, pretty healthy and big for just 25 days. I think you are off to a great start for a first time grower, much better than my grow, for sure.

Don't worry about vertical growth, after day 28-30 they start taking height like crazy. Just make sure you have space at the sides as they will most likely outgrow the pots at width.