Hi everyone! I live in Maine and have never grown any plants before. I was given 3 feminized Triple Cheese seeds in June that I germinated and moved into my grow containers. My soil was a rich top soil mixed heavily with lobster composite. The containers have been outside pretty much the entire time and the plants have really thrived. I’ve used the blue crystal Miracle Gro for nutrients a few times and so far they seem very healthy. The seeds popped after only 2 days of germinating and are currently 60 days old from sprout.
The nights are beginning to cool down and my plan is to construct a basic grow container in my garage using 2”x4”s and other scrap wood I have laying around. I plan on making the box 7 feet tall, 6 or 7 feet long, and about 4 feet deep. The walls will be 1/2” plywood lined with tin foil. It will have in/out airflow from a small fan. The light I’ll be using is a a Roleadro 1,000 watt led full spectrum light.
Given the fact that the plants are right at 2 months old, if I were to move them into the grow box in the next week or two, what would you suggest the light schedule be? Should it be somewhere around 14-16 hours on, 8-10 hours off until buds begin developing? And once I see buds developing would I adjust the light to 12 on, 12 off?
Thank you all for any advise you could offer to a first timer!
First of all no where near enough light you’ll need at least a hydro ts1000 + that blurple you have ,secondly dont use tin foil either get mylar or paint everything matte white , third I’d start them at 16 hours and use lux readings and try to get 30-40k lux(free phone app) then 12/12when you’re ready there will be no buds forming until you start that schedule then up lux to as close to 60k as you can. Fourth make sure theres no light leak during the dark periods. And fifth trim those lower and inner leaves they re just leeching nutrients ESPECIALLY in a grow room
Thank you for your advise! I’ll go with matte white paint instead of tinfoil.
I’ve literally done zero trimming to the plants but will get on the ball today and get rid of the bottom leaves.
This is the only light source I intended to use based on articles I’ve read. You said it wouldn’t be enough. Can you suggest a better light to use instead of or in conjunction with this one?
Led Grow Light, Roleadro 1000W Grow Light Full Spectrum Plant Grow Light for Indoor Plant Dual-Chip Growing Lamp with ON/Off Switch,Daisy Chain for Hydroponic Veg and Flower Amazon.com
The Mar Hydro 1000 is a 150 watt light, you will need at least 500 watts in a 4’ X 4’ area to get nice tight buds.
I don’t use watts per square foot but many do. Consider 30 watts per square foot to be a minimum target. I use PAR values to determine my light needs. I shoot for 700 uMoles/m^2/sec throughout my grow. Many folks use much less light during veg but the 700 number is still valid for flower.
Yea but par is so much harder to definitively measure by beginners but I do agree it is a more true number for growth the prob with watts per square foot is efficiency of diodes mars uses some pretty dam efficient diodes and then theres blurples that can use severely inefficient diodes
Downsizing the box from 7’x6’x4’ to 7’x4’x4 is what I’ll do. Would 7 feet tall be a good height? The plants are pretty tall already and I want to be sure I have enough height to lower/raise the light as needed.
I really appreciate the light tips … I had misunderstood the lighting articles I’ve read. I was under the impression that a 1000 watt “blurple” full spectrum would do the job. They sound very beginner friendly with a switch for seedling light, a switch for vegetative light, and both switches on for flowering light.
This whole grow was an unplanned experiment and I’m at the point where I’ll be putting money into it now. Spending a few extra bucks on the right light definitely sounds like the right way to go. I’ll read up on the Mars style light and try to figure out the right settings.
I am currently using a mars hydro ts2000 in a 4x4 for veg until my new led arrives today. It’s hanging at roughly 24-26 inches from the tops.
While this light was much more effective in a 3x3 it’s struggling to get to get enough light to the plants on outside/edges In a 4x4 - these plants are only a few weeks old
In a 3x3x8 it worked just fine to produce cannabis from seed to smoke.
I would not recommend this budget led for any space larger than 3x3. Also worth noting that mounting the dual drivers for the TS2000 outside of the tent is ideal as they put out quite a bit of heat at its highest setting (manual adjust with a screw driver). It was difficult to maintain temps and humidity with the drivers mounted to the back of the light causing me to run my intake/outake at higher speeds. Here are a few pics from a grow under the the TS2000.
Wasn’t anywhere near the best harvest of my years growing, but was relatively inexpensive to run and did produce some quality cannabis.
If you can spare the expense (tough times for many) I would recommend investing in higher quality lighting. Especially for a 4x4 and if this will be a long term hobby.
I agree with @merlin44 that @dbrn32 is a great resource for lighting questions. Has helped me in the past (thanks).
