The Grow Goddess and a Chocoloupe Seed

Hi potheads. I can’t believe it’s been almost a year since my last grow. So I’m starting this new grow journal for all my friends who think it’s just too hard to do – I’m going to prove them all wrong! It’s the easiest thing when you have a great resource of information like ILGM.

I’m going to make this journal for absolute beginners, so if this is your first time growing you’re in the right place. I keep very meticulous notes which makes it easy to follow along and replicate the exact conditions.

So let’s begin with the equipment I’ll be using. There’s nothing fancy and everything I use can be found on Amazon, or here at ILGM. This is an indoor grow using a tiny grow tent of 2’x2’x5’ by Grow Lab. Yes, this is all you need to grow beautiful plants. My last grow had three plants in this tent which I think was a bit overcrowded, this time I’ll be growing only one plant with a possible scrogging… we’ll see.

Since this is my fourth grow in this tent, I needed to clean it out from the last one. After vacuuming up all the dead leaves, I wiped down the inside walls with disinfecting wipes and cleaned everything thoroughly. This is a really important step – everything must be clean! I can’t stress this enough! The environment is for growing, that means anything will grow, including mold, mildew, bacteria and pests, so keep it clean because an ounce of prevention…

I’ll discuss the rest of the equipment as needed along the grow journey.

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So let’s get started. I have one lonely Chocoloupe seed that I put in a glass of water today for a 24 hour soak.


I have this sitting on a heat mat set to 77°F.
The thermometer and temperature probe are set right next to the glass so that temperatures are accurate.
Any questions? :grin:

If you don’t have a heat mat, I’ve always found the top of the refrigerator is perfect for starting seeds.

I know some people like to etch their seeds with an emory board before putting them in water. I’ve never found this necessary, but if it works for you then, whatever floats your boat. :sunglasses:

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Your back…:laughing::smiling_imp::smiling_imp::smiling_imp::wink::joy::blush::relaxed:
Love your confidence… :wink:
Will be waching…

:v: :sunglasses:

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Hey peachfuzz! How are you doing?

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looks as if your heading in the right direction @raustin
i’ll be watching!

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I’d like to pause and just say a big hello to all my old friends here at ILGM. I know I’ve been away for a while and I really missed this place and all the people who helped me through my last grow. Hopefully, I can return the favor.

HELLO POTHEADS! :kissing_smiling_eyes:

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@raustin your back! It’s great to hear from you again! I will be learning more just as I did when I first came to this site last year :man_swimming: Your out of the gate in the lead with no looking back, love your attitude. Since I’m still a beginner it helps having guidance and leadership sail the ship :ship: your updates really show your experience, happy growing!

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Hi, AH! I’m so happy to see you’re still here! I missed you guys so much. :kissing_heart:

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Sunday, December 24, 2017
Merry Christmas, everyone!
Today I’m going to plant my seed into a peat pod.
After a 24 hour soak, you can see that this seed has opened and there’s a tiny, little root poking out.


Because of the root, you have to be very careful not to break it – it’s very fragile. But with my nimble fingers, I manage to pick her up and place her gently into the hole of the peat pod.

I like to pinch off a piece of peat and place it on top of the seed to keep it from drying out.

The tray is still on the heat mat set at 77°F, but now I’m placing a T5 lamp on top of the plastic dome and keeping it on 24 hours a day.

Let’s back up a minute to talk about the dome. You can get these seed-starting kits at any hardware store for about $30, and as you can see, they really work great. My kit came with the tray, dome, heat mat and T5 lamp that sits on top perfectly.

The dome is very important because it gives the little seedlings enough humidity to thrive. The biggest danger to a seedling is drying out! Yet you don’t want to soak it either, so just spray the top with a sprayer filled with plain water whenever it looks dry. I’m also keeping the glass of water in the dome for some extra humidity.

As for the peat pod, I’ve had great success with them, but you don’t have to use them. Any seed-starting soil will do, just make a shallow hole and pop the seed in, then cover it with a little bit of soil, and spray with water.

I’m a believer in transplanting, some people will put their seeds into a 5 gallon pot – whatever works for you, but starting with a very small pot will make it easier to keep your seed moist without over watering. I’ll talk more about transplanting later on. For now, my seed is off to a good start and i expect to see it pop up out of the soil in a day or two. :blush:

Have I forgotten anything? If you have any questions, just ask. I’m trying to be very thorough, but I’m only human and usually stoned.

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Welcome back, i wanna grow chocolope outdoors in spring so ill be following along.

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Thank you, @Familyman420! I’m really looking forward to the smoke of this Chocoloupe. Everyone raves about it.

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Being a sort of new member of less than 6 months anyways. Welcome back! I’ve set this to watching, so I’ll be following along. Nice grow, and great advice/instructions for new growers. @raustin

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Thank you @Covertgrower! I’m glad to see a newbie watching this grow 'cause that’s who I’m writing it for. I remember my first grow I had the dumbest questions about the tiniest details, so I’m really trying to think of everything.

I’m trying to get a few friends to start growing and I want to show them how really easy it is.

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Note:
By the way, don’t worry if your seed doesn’t open and show a root, usually it doesn’t, but it will probably sink to the bottom of the glass because it’s soaked with water. Just plant the seed in soil anyway. Don’t let it soak any longer than 24 hours, it will get waterlogged and won’t grow.

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I’m lurking and learning and love your details. Thanks for sharing and have a very Merry Christmas :christmas_tree:

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Hi @SmoknGranny and thank you. I’m a smoking mom! :sunglasses:
A very Merry Christmas to you too.

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Nothing wrong with being a Smokn Mama !
IMG_0569

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Monday, December 25, 2017
Merry Christmas, everyone!

Even though it’s Christmas and I spent the day in Queens with family, I still had to check on my baby to give her some water. And what do you know, she popped her head out today to say hello to the world.

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Tuesday, December 26, 2017
I always find this part of growing to be fun because every day you can see your seedling change and reach new heights. Here is my one day old seedling…


It’s a little difficult to see, but the seed is still stuck to the seedling, and sometimes it just needs a little help. So very carefully, nudge that seed shell off of the seedling. It doesn’t hurt to leave it on a few days, but I prefer to take out off so the leaves can start to open and get light.

Speaking of light, as you can tell, I’ve turned on the LED lamp. I did this to get the seedling used to the new lighting while it is still under the T5 as well. The T5 stays on for 24 hours, while the LED is on for 18 hours and off for 6 hours, starting the light cycle the plant will stay in for its growing stage.

This lamp is a 300 watt, dual fan that works for both the growth and flower stages of the plant, so it doesn’t need to be changed again. I’m a big believer in these new lamps because they give off very little heat which is crucial in such a small grow tent. The 300 watts is more than enough for the 2’x2’ grow space.

This is the lamp as it can be found on Amazon: Lightimetunnel Led Grow Light, 300W Full Spectrum Plant Grow Light with UV&IR for Indoor Plants Growing and Flowering. I know there’s a way to link Amazon through ILGM, but I can’t remember how.

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Note:
After a few hours I checked the grow tent and found the temperature rising to 89°F. So to compensate for the extra lighting heat, I turned off the heat mat and turned on the fan. I also opened the tent flaps to let in some fresh, cool air. This is the fan I’m using: VIVOSUN 4 Inch 203 CFM Duct Inline Fan with Variable Speed Controller, and I have it set to a medium flow.

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