Beginning the Plants

so i already know everything i have to do AFTER the plants have been transplanted. but what about when the seeds have just been planted in their individual cups? some people are telling me to keep them away from sunlight until they sprout and some people are telling me they need x amount of sunlight to sprout. but then after they do sprout how much sunlight are they going to need and whats the best time to transplant them into the pots ill be growing in?

There are many germination methods described throughout this forum, feel free to use the search function or check stickies.

its best not to let the roots start to bunch up in the small container. im sure there are other better containers, but i tend to use the cut off bottoms of 20 oz soda bottles (after they are cut they are about 5 in tall with 3.5 in of soil) so i can see root growth. once the plant is 2-3 inches tall and i can see roots reaching the bottom of the bottle i transplant using a box cutter to slice the bottle in half. if done correctly the roots should have formed enough to hold together the little bit of soil that they have been growing in without being restricted by their current area.

as for light, assuming you are incubating the seeds in a warm damp area first, once planted i find its best to have a 24 / 0 or 20 / 4 light / dark ratio to get the little guy pumping along.

am i a pro grower? hell no. the use of cut off bottles alone should tell you i use whatever is handy. but 3 plants in and so far so good. if someone else more experienced feels strongly in a different dirrection i look forward to reading it.

i have looked around in various threads and read the sticky on how to grow, but im still not getting all the answers im looking for. the only things i found on germination are about the papertowl method and then planting the seeds into the soil to start the plants, which ive already done. if you could post a link to a thread that will help me on the questions i asked it would be greatly appreciated.

can anyone help me out real quick? bout to head off to work in an couple hours, so should i put the cups on the window sill to get some light? the seeds haven't sprouted yet btw so don't think im trying to grow plants in the window lol

after you've germ'd the seeds and planted them in soil, you should keep them warm and moist, light isn't required at this point but it'll do no harm either, as soon as theyve popped thru the soil, the chances are the shell case will still be attached to the stalk with the first set of leaves in it , these leaves are called cotylidons( shit at spelling!!), either let them fall off naturally or gently, and i do mean very fuckin gently!!, take them off, at this point the plant will want light, not too strong and as close as possible, too far away and the plant will stretch for it and its stalk will be skinny and fall over, u weall want a gentle breeze from a fan goin on them quite soon to help strengthen the stalk. humidity is a major requirement, if u dont have a propogator then a large coke bottle cut in half and cover the seedling, dont water the soil direct instead spary the inside of the coke bottle, propgator hood, with pure water. do not try to use nutrients for at least 2 to 3 weeks.

ahh thank you very much!

no problem buddy, any other questions just pm me, it was thru people on here that i learned most of knowledge, its good to help other people out when u can.

alright i will. but yeah i joined this site a few days ago just to ask one question and i ended up browsing a ton of threads and learned a million things that will help me in my grow. stuff that if i didn't know i would have probably ended in disaster. so im quite fortunate and plan on staying throughout my grow to keep things running smooth.

lol, i know exactly what you mean, i did the same, now i virtually live in here, i'm usually in here around 8-10 hours a day, i just read and read and read.ive surfed loads of mj sites but this is easily the best, lotta people more than happy to answer your questions and point u in the rite direction. doesnt matter if ur a beginner or an expert theres fuckin tons of info.