Part 1 Cannabis Fact Contributed by: Motor Bike Angel
Part 2 : Bush_Grower
First time growers frequently:
over-water their medium based plants. When you
pot your plant, judge its weight dry by hefting. Then,
water the plant completely, until water runs through
the drain holes. Heft it again. When your pot feels as
almost as light as it did dry, its time to water again.
Overfeed their plants. As Home School says,
beginners rarely under do anything. When all else
fails, follow the directions on the fertilizer
bottle. [og's note: dont follow General Hydroponic's
instructions! Use @ 1/4 their recommended strength,
or follow recipes in the Fact]
Overanalyze their grow. A first grow is like a
first born child: you pay attention to every little
thing that happens. Further, you worry at the first
sign something may be wrong. Pay attention to what
happens in your grow, but do not try and find a
remedy for every yellow leaf. Frequently, the remedy
of flushing your medium causes more problems than it
solves. Be responsive when things go wrong, but be
conservative in your remedies.
Overspend on grow supplies. New growers
frequently commit themselves to unrealistic and
expensive first grows. It is much more efficient to
learn to grow and then invest in high end equipment
rather than the other way around. Most experienced
growers don't have room for all of the grow
paraphernalia they aren't using. As you will see
throughout this Cannabis Factoid: K-I-S-S.
Overpost. Try the search engine first. Chances
are good that any question you can think of has been
asked and answered before.
Talk about their grow. Don't tell anybody that
does not have to know. How can you expect anybody
else to keep a secret that you cannot.
Part 2:
Cannabis Fact Contributed by: Bush_Grower
1. Don't over-water
over-watering kills marijuana plants. Water once the
top few inches of the soil dries out.
Hydroponics is harder to over-water than soil, due to
the abundance of water roots.
2. Don't Tell People
Why? They will only be jealous. People love to feel
elevated and that is why they will tell other
people; because others will listen to them.
Keep it to yourself.
3. Touch/kill Germinating Seeds
It can take up to 10 days for a seed to sprout. The
paper towel methodology is not recommended because you
must handle the seeds when transferring them from the
paper towel to your growing medium.
4. Grow seeds from seeded marijuana (hermaphrodite
seeds)
Unless you are prepared for possible disappointments
don’t use "unknown" seeds. This is why people buy
seeds from seedbanks.
Self-seeding Marihuana is produced from hermaphrodite plants
or a very stunted and late flowering male the grower
did not notice. Flowered hermi seeds will produce
tall late flowering females coupled with early
flowering males.
5. Don't Over-fertilize
Fertilize after first 2 spiked leaves appear.
Start with 25% of recommended label strengths and
work your way up. If the leaves suddenly twist or
fold under, Leach and Spray with pure water for
several days!
Don’t fertilize your plants every time you water!
(Soil)
A common watering schedule is to fertilize at full
strength, then water at half or quarter strength.
This prevents excess salt buildup, leaf and root
burn. In addition, don’t water at full strength if
the medium is too dry – root burn can occur.
As a precaution, leach the plants with lots of pure
water every 2-4 weeks.
6. Don't Under-fertilize
Under-fertilizing is less common. If you prefer to
give the plant ‘just enough nutrients’, use a
cannabis plants mixture with blood meal and bone meal or
some slow release fertilizer with micro nutrients.
7. Don't Start with Clones
Start with seeds. Bugs are a pain, as are plant
diseases. Many growers are able to grow indoors
without pest problems for years. Another grower’s
cuttings are almost guaranteed to have diseases
and/or pests.
8. Don't Provide A Bad Environment
Always provide air circulation and fresh air even
during the night cycle. All the air indoors should be
replaced every 5-10 minutes.
Humidity between 30-70% temp aim for around 75-85'
Even seedlings need a gentle fan to strengthen the
stems.
9. Don't Harvest Too Early
25% of the weight will form in the last 2 weeks.
Begin flushing with 100% pH’d water when the pistil
are 25% brown. Harvest when the plants have totally
stopped growing and the white pistils are at least
50-75% brown.
*NOTE: Outdoors if security is a factor make your own
call on when to sacrifice the fields. Also take buds
continuously in case of thieves.
Common questions:
Q. Can marijuana grow in a northern
climate?
Marijuana plants can grow anywhere corn can grow. All
it needs is three growing months - seed to harvest. 2
if started indoors!
Q. Why do I have to buy seeds? Why can't I use my
own that I picked from my own stash?
Most people desire, and want to be guaranteed,
certain characteristics in their mature female
plants. The seeds from any marihuana will all grow into
something different. This is unprofitable and
inefficient. As opposed to knowing the single set of
requirements for your entire crop, you must provide a
different set of requirements for each of your
plants.
Q. What is better for a new grower - hydroponics
or soil?
I believe the all around "better", more convenient
setup is soil. Hydro makes plants grow faster, but
won't make your buds more potent than soil. Hydro
should be attempted after you have a few successful
soil crops under your belt.
If you are starting from seed and growing for
personal, soil is the practical growing medium. If
the crop is started with clones and is commercial, a
hydroponics setup is more practical.
Q. Why are my seedlings stretching?
Low light propertys. They also need a gentle wind.
Plants will also stretch when subjected to propertys
of high humidity.
Q. What kind of lights should I use?
Cheap 4 ft. cool white fluorescent tubes : for
germination/seedlings
400 watt Metal halide/HPS : for personal home
growers
1000 watt Metal halide/HPS : for some personal
growers and commercial growers.
*Use at least 40 watts per sq. foot of grow
space.
Q. How far should the lights be from the
plants?
Fluorescent: tips of leaves almost touching
bulbs
400 watt halide : two feet away from seedlings and
one foot away from grown plants
1000 watt halide: four feet away from seedlings and
two feet away from grown plants
Q. How often should you water?
Once a week or once every two week for soil and twice
a day with a hydroponic flood and drain system.
*When top 2 inches of the soil dry out.* Occasionally
provide periods of extra dry and wet soil.
*Allow 10% extra water to drain out of the bottom of
the tray.* This will prevent toxic fertilizer build
up.
Q. How long do your seeds last? What's the best
way to keep them?
Seeds can last over 5 years if kept cool and dry.
They may last up to 10 years if sealed and frozen,
but fewer will germinate.
