First time growing..

I grew this plant from seed.
Not sure if it's an auto flower or not, but she's a female Pineapple Express.
I've been putting it out on the back porch during the day, inside at night.
Her pistils are visible, so I brought her in for the 12/12 switch.
Wondering if this ghetto setup will do the trick?
I'm crippled and supporting a family of three on my disability income, so extra money is nonexistent.
Was forced to use things I found in the shed to build this, so please go easy with the critiques.
It's ghetto, I know..

Outside before the move..







The 12/12 setup is made more to keep the cats out.
Lighting is (all I could find) 8 ~ 4ft ~ T12 fluorescent bulbs.
Grow box is built around the AC vent in the room. So conditions are the same day and night.
78-82*F 50% humidity.

Will this work? I don't want to try flowering my first plant in the backyard. Just too much can go wrong..
Plant is 6"-8" from the lights.

you would have way better luck outside the light you have wont produce much bud just set it outside for 12 hours then bring it into a dark closet or shed for 12 hours only down side to that is you have to be there to move the thing everyday you could also get a dark trashcan and put it over the plant take it off when it get dark

jman23 said:

you would have way better luck outside the light you have wont produce much bud just set it outside for 12 hours then bring it into a dark closet or shed for 12 hours only down side to that is you have to be there to move the thing everyday you could also get a dark trashcan and put it over the plant take it off when it get dark

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Thought about that.
But I don't wake up until late. So I miss out on sunrise and first 4-5 hours of light. Call me nocturnal..
Only option would be to plant it in the yard and let mother nature have her way with it.
Which would suck because we have LOTS of bugs here and I can't afford pesticides.
That and daytime temps are in the 90*s everyday.

^^^^agreed...and you'll get a better canopy/denser plant if you LST. just tie the stems down and watch the lateral shoots emerge...which will give you more bud sights. the T8's you have ther are NO comparison to 100,000 lumens of sun action. bring it in after 12 hours.

i wouldnt worry to much about bugs your plant has a nice start on it and if you do run into some pest there are some good home brews you can get the stuff for it at you local grocery store

So it is the general consensus here that I should just plop it into the ground out back?
What about rain, heavy winds, THE WILD?!?!?!
I'm nervous.. this is my first baby. So even little nugs indoors would make me happier than no nugs outdoors.
Would be better than finding my plant ate up by rabbits or something.

CPmass said:

So it is the general consensus here that I should just plop it into the ground out back?
What about rain, heavy winds, THE WILD?!?!?!
I'm nervous.. this is my first baby. So even little nugs indoors would make me happier than no nugs outdoors.
Would be better than finding my plant ate up by rabbits or something.

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hahahaha...u think the plant hasn't already figured that out in the last million years? put it into the ground and stand back and watch in amazement as you see nature do what nature does.

Nice looking plant.
But, your foot needs help....trim those toe nails...Eweeee.
LOL

Ringsixty said:

Nice looking plant.
But, you foot needs help....trim those toe nails...Eweeee.
LOL

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lmao.
OMG I already love it here.
What you can't see is my legs, which are covered with skin graphs and scars.
I'm disabled from the knees down. Suffering from EXTREME nerve damage/neurological pain.
One thing is that my feet are now hyper sensitive due to the nerve damage.
Words can't even describe how bad it hurts to cut those toe nails. So I only do it every so often.

dannyboy602 said:

agreed...and you'll get a better canopy/denser plant if you LST. just tie the stems down and watch the lateral shoots emerge...which will give you more bud sights. the T8's you have ther are NO comparison to 100,000 lumens of sun action. bring it in after 12 hours.
hahahaha...u think the plant hasn't already figured that out in the last million years? put it into the ground and stand back and watch in amazement as you see nature do what nature does.

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no no no.. I'll never dispute that natural sunlight and natural methods are ALWAYS best.
I just tend to be really over protective of my babies. As of 10 min. ago I shut down the grow junk box, and put her back outside.
I figured she's done so well this far being put out when I wake up and brought in at sunset, why not go all the way.
I'm sure she won't reach a size that is immobile. Not like it's very far from one side of the sliding door to the other.

What about the nugs on rain days? Should I keep her indoors out of bad weather? OR.. is it fine and I should find a place to plant her? Will it shock her being potted into the ground at this stage of growth?
We have 5-6 straight days of rain and thunderstorms starting tomorrow. You sure this is a good idea?
Michigan weather is pretty brutal.

So many questions.. I know.

you could bring it in if it rains that would be one way to make sure it dont mold ones buds start to form

jman23 said:

you could bring it in if it rains that would be one way to make sure it dont mold ones buds start to form

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Will I need to give it some sort of extra light while indoors in the day?
I know we're supposed to have thunderstorms here for the next 5-6 days. I imagine that's a lot of lost light time it needs during preflower.

yeah just use the lights you got they will work good for when there is stormy days

thanks for the help.

a few update pics from my last post, to now.

last month:







and today:

lookin good you been keeping it out

jman23 said:

lookin good you been keeping it out

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It's in the dark from midnight to noon.
outside on the porch from noon to sunset.
then inside under lights from sunset to midnight.

Seems to be liking the rotation of light during the 12 hours on.

12/12 is what you want to bring on the flowers, natural light or otherwise. Your macro shots are awesome dude.

update time.. pics are from today.

getting there man i bet you cant wait to harvest her good job so far