Found a grow kit. First grow attempt

Let me start by saying Wow! This forum is amazing, so many humble, knowledgeable growers available for a rookie. I’ve been reading for a week, going down the proverbial rabbit hole of threads here. Absorbing information as i go. (Also losing 3 hours)

This will be my first grow ever of any kind. I will be starting from seed. Yes, i found all the equipment years ago and never used it. I acquired some seed with a known lineage and it made the idea of growing incredibly enticing. I only expect to produce for my own use.

Equipment
1 waterfarm 4 gallon 2 piece system (gh4120)(i have two) Holds 8.3 liters to the fill line
Expanded clay pebbles
Hydrofarm hood and ballast 120v 40a 60hz
Bulb Cew 360w retro ace nh360ra USA JO-1
Advanced Nutrients ph perfect technology 3 part system (grow, bloom, micro)
Water will be provided from a local source with chorine removed.

Plant Rock Candy
Germination Shot glass topped with tap water and 3 drops of h2o2. 1 seed (24 hours later, it cracked open!)
Small pot with seed soil. No progression after 72 hours
Game plan
I plan to use a LST training method plus topping, without netting. As per information gained i plan to only use a 50% of the recommended (advanced nutrients brand) solution for the duration of the grow. (Its just glorified water that they are in the business of selling, right?)
Light schedule and drip cycle
I will run a 24/7 light and drip schedule until the plant reaches 3 to 4 set of leaves.
At this point i will turn the cycle to 18-6 with the drip cycle only running with the light on mode.
Once the plant reaches 2x2 i will attempt to switch to the 12-12 on the light-water cycle

So now you know what i “plan” to do.
I haven’t found much information on the waterfarm running cycle for feeding. I read this information on a similar forum, but i think this forum is the right one for me.( more active)
I don’t want to modify or alter the waterfarm in any way. They made it like this for a reason.
I plan to update every week when i do a water change or when a problem may arise.
Any and all suggestions are welcomed, maybe others will learn the step by step process as i do!

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After 24 hours seed 2 in the shot glass cracked open. Seed 1 in soil has shown no signs of life. Seed 2 will go directly into the expanded clay pellets without a medium to force her to reach for the water. I will soak the pebbles in the nutrient water before doing the final setup, while waiting for the tap rot to show.

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First let me Welcome you to ILGM forum and your instincts are correct this is a great forum. Many good people here to encourage you and help if needed. You’ve started a grow journal which is something that I always encourage new growers to do. You’re correct also in getting lost reading about growing cannabis. There’s a vast wealth of knowledge here. I’m on my third grow the first 2, I was flying blind. I started a journal here on my 3rd grow and it’s the smartest thing I’ve done so far as far as growing goes. It seems like you have a pretty good handle on how you want grow. So Good Luck and happy growing. I’m set to watch. :+1:

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Thanks for the quick reply. This is exactly why i knew this was the forum for me. If i ever get in trouble, i know i have a good place to troubleshoot and ask some experienced growers like yourself. I wont fill my own thread with spam already, so see ya next update. Unless someone notices something im not paying attention to. Thanks @Bulldognuts for the early boost of confidence!

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I was on a couple other forums and they just didn’t feel right for some reason. I felt welcomed here immediately. I grow in soil and use DIY build lights so I won’t be much help along the way, but I enjoy watching how everyone grows. :v:

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Sounds like you’ve done your research, good start and as the Gentleman above me stated, this forum IS awesome!
I have only been here a couple of months, but have already learned more than I did in 20 years of bumbling around blindly.

Monkey’s underpants (IOU likes :+1:)
I will also ride with you,
if you don’t mind?
Welcome to ILGM.
Good vibes, good luck :v:

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Welcome to the forum. As all above have said there is a vast amount of experience here and a tremendous amount of knowledge. I am set to watching and gonna tag along, that is if you don’t mind :+1:

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Welcome! Sounds like you’ve done your homework and have a solid plan, good luck!

Welcome to the forum! Happy growing!

Are you in a legal state, welcom to the forum and … Is the name - “not liquor” or “not like her” .
Both are funny…:joy:

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Hey gang, thanks for all the support. You people are too much. So did a few things to update on. Both seeds took off and i had an extra bucket and supplies. Figured double the reward for the same cost. This is a post for new growers looking for rookie mistakes. . Transplanting from soil to a hydro bucket is a bad idea.( The root system will develop too fast in soil to make a switch easy.) Stressed one from the switch, but we’re still growing. Those of you looking for information on the hydrofarm feeding cycle. Lucky for me, my water guy knows these system. Its a continuous feed system, you will never shut off the air pump through all cycles of growth. The soil seeds first leaves wilted but it continues to grow healthy. I am noticing a nutrient deficiency and will be following the nutrients directions for now on, 50% for a new grower may leave many variables to equate. Sorry if this post has severe spelling and grammar issues, i broke my sceen and cant see it proper.

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This is 3 days later. The one on left is transplant, wilted leaves. One on right has white tips on each ridge of leave. The pics are bad and I’ve yet to setup white backdrop over black plastic. (Would that cause discoloration?) Light is approx 12 inchs from canopy. Barely feel the heat.

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@peachfuzz sorry to randomly tag you in my journal. I have read a lot of advice you’ve given so far. You’re the hydro guy I’m hoping to learn from. I would appreciate you just hiding in the shadows and responding if im getting myself in trouble. If this is bad juju on the forum, I apologize.

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The leaves seem to be wilting more on the transplant. Maybe the lights are too close? The plants are not getting a lot of heat off the lights. What do you guys think? Playing it cool, not going to stress myself.

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Sorry, didnt mean to post all the pics, one with clear tube is the transplant(wilted), one with the white tube i assume is a nutrient deficiency causing white tips on leaves? Maybe my water source isn’t what im told? Would a brita faucet filter be a better choice?Tyia

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I’m glad to help if I can , no worries…
For the most part , they look just fine and they are young and starting to vegg , so at this stage they are pretty resilient…
To be honest , I’m not a big fan of those systems , but since that’s what you have to work with , let’s see what we can do…
The one that you keep saying is wilting , looks more like a overwatering issue , so what I would do is try to put the ring a little lower down into the pebbles , your trunk might be staying a little to wet for them right now…
What are your room temps running…?
You want to try and keep your water temps around 66 to 72 degrees I think would be fine with that system …
In vegg I like to keep my ph around 5.8 to 6.4 and yes I know that your in water…:wink:
What nutrients are you using…?
Right now I would have them at about 125 to 200 ppm since they are so young right now… :+1:
How high is the water level under the pebbles…?
You want your water level to be about 6 inches lower than the top of the pebbles , if that make sense… :+1:
Also , don’t have a fan blowing on them constantly , if you have an oscillating fan that would be great , if not and your fan is stationary , try to point it at a wall so that the air just swirls around them… :+1::wink:
@Notllihkor
:v::sunglasses:

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Cool thanks. I did have the ring higher up. Will lower it asap. The drain tubes have a marker on them that gives you the water level, its right about your recommendation of 6 inches. The nutrients are Advanced Nutrients ph perfect grow bloom and micro. I’ve been doing a 50% of the recommended amounts to start them. So about .5 ml per liter. My two buckets hold exactly 16.3 liters. The tent has stayed a constant 70 degrees from what little i could measure. I do have a fan, its a small 8 inch fan, i mounted it above the lights to just skim all sides of reflector. It keeps the light cool to the touch on the outside. It really just circulates the air. I intend to move a fan to give the plants better air flow but thought it was a bit early for that.

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One thing i haven’t mentioned. I have been patiently waiting for a timer to the lights. They are currently 24/7. This mondays water change, they will be going 18/6 even if i have to do it manually. Sorry for spam, just want to be honest and clear so i get the best of help from everyone. Thank you so much for the reply @peachfuzz.

Are they auto’s or photo’s…?
Either way , I would run 18/6 and yes you will definitely need a timer… :+1::wink:
:v::sunglasses:

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The strain is alien genetics rock candy. It was bag seed from a dispensary. So…unknown if auto or photo. I was going to run as photos to be safe. This is really just a test run before going off the deep end. Its hard to make a partner who has never smoked understand this is every pot smokers dream.

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