First time grower here - Day 12 plants looking small

Hi all, first time poster here with some super basic questions.

First off, the plants 12 days since emerging from the soil and being put under light:


They look a little small to me for being almost 2 weeks, wondering what people smarter than me think of them. I’ve seen grow diaries where people’s plants are looking like this at the 1 week mark.

Also wondering about light height - I have a 4’x8’ Vivosun tent with 2x Viparspectra 1,200w LED grow lights. For the first 9 days they were hung about 5’ above the plants while I waited for a rigging system to arrive, now I’ve got them about 30" above the plants. Just wondering if 30" is about where they should be.

Some setup details:

  • 4’x8’ Vivospectra tent
  • 2x Viparspectra 1,200w LED lights
  • 70-82* ambient temps
  • 40%-60% RH
  • 2/3 Soil 1/3 Peat Moss growing medium
  • ~2.2 gallon pots
  • 6.4ph
  • ILGM nutrients on their provided schedule

Thanks in advance!

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Thanks for the information, I suggest next time when taking a photo, do it under white lights instead of the blurple. Nonetheless, It looks like you might be overwatering, in addition to the weak light intensity. It looks like they may be too far, they are beginning to stretch. Are they the true watts on the LED? I know mine’s has 450W. Also, to build up any cellular/stem growth, you must have some kind of passive air on them.

The main thing you need right now, is ample light, air flow, and the right moisture for your seedlings. I would lower the lights, have have a clip fan on your seedling, And water a circle around the plant, starting at little quantities. Not so much at this stage. Make sure that the top of the soil looks dry enough for the next watering. Here is my day 10 for reference


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Thanks for the reply! I definitely overwatered the first couple days as I was watering every day. The actual power draw on the lights is 530 watts, if I remember correctly. On that topic, that 530 watts is with both the veg and flower lights on, but right now I’m only running the veg lights. Should I be using both veg and flower from the start since it’s an auto flower?

I should have mentioned, I do have a clip fan circulating air and a 450CFM in-line fan pulling fresh air in. Currently have one bottom vent open with the inline fan on the opposite side pushing air out from inside the tent.

Do you think this grow is salvageable? I’m worried they might already be small enough that I should just uproot them and try again.

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I got you! Don’t stress out about it, I really don’t see the harm if putting both lights on in veg, especially since they’re autoflower. 18/6 throughout the whole grow. You want them to get as big and as many nodes before they automatically go into flower. I would put at least another clip fan in there… you want your plant to “shake” not whirlwind. I feel like that help growth almost immediately.

Ive heard that autos doesn’t like a lot of water in the beginning, slow down a little. Maybe every other day until you can work up the tolerance of everyday. The tent seems to be okay for your current grow.

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Welcome to the community , Seedling looks fine. She is throwing down a root system before you see a lot of foliage. Good luck :v:

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Patience is your best friend when doing this VERY addictive habit. But, ohhhh, so much fun.

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I think they look good. Self-professed overwatering is the reason most new plants get stunted. She is having to spend more time battling the over saturated soil to get oxygen to her root system and develop meaningful roots.

Early on, seedlings get their moisture from the air, not the dirt. The tendency for newbies to water the soil way too much just slows things down a lot.

The good news is, it’s perfectly normal and just allowing her more regular wet/dry cycles will allow her to finish building up the root structure.