Suggestions

I'd be grateful for any suggestions with how to get started with a few plants. I have a spare bathroom that has an exhaust fan and plenty of electricity. I was thinking of grabbing an led lamp(s) and starting a few plants by growing them in smart pots in my bath tub.

My main questions are 1- which led lamp has reliability and the power to grow 2-4 plants? Is it best to get one lamp or divide the output and get 2 lamps?

2-Is it a good idea to try and grow 'Jack Herer' or "AK48' for a newbie?

3-Is pro-mix in a smart pot a good way to get started?

4-How do you determine the correct ratios for fertilizer. Do you mix a batch to a certain dilution and use it for a particular stage of development?

Thanks again for any thoughts or suggestions. I have grown many plants successfully but not maryjane.

I would suggest looking for Fox Farm product soil if you can, or Roots Organic.
I am not a big fan of Pro-Mix or Sunshine Mix.

Well to answer your first question LEDs are powerful enough to handle 2-4 plants but they come at a pretty high price.

Id get a 250-400 watt hps or mh bulb and ballast. Way cheaper, but if moneys no option go for the LED (although i know no reputable sellers)

Not saying there arent any. I just havent been to hip to the LED scene. They work but at an inflated price.


ak48 would be a really good strain to start out with. Ive grown it a few times and it is very strong and grows nice.

Jack Herer tends to be a lanky bitch mostly for outdoor growing due to its sativa dom background.


As for pro-mix, i use it regularly in pots similar to smart pots but plastic.

Its been my favorite medium for a while and hasnt failed me yet. haha.

When it comes to ferts/nutes. You kinda gotta guess for your strain.

Id start out with a 2:1:1 ratio of Grow (veg nutes) : Bloom (flower nutes) : Micro (all micro nutes)

Then increase each part by 1 each week or 2 until you start flower

Then in the "transitional" stage (first 2 weeks of flower) use a 1:1:1 ratio so everything gets an even distribution of all the nutes

Then id flip to a 1:3:3 or 1:3:5 ratio for flowering.

Combine that with a bloom booster in the last 2 weeks of flowering and youve got a recipe for success.

My ratios arent really based on any nute brands but more of an educated guess based on all nutes out there.

Hope this helps!

Also check this guy out. He knows his stuff.

[video=youtube;kO6GhtrgxJ8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kO6GhtrgxJ8[/video]

Watch parts 2/3 for extra information

good luck

I got some solid LED lights on ebay for a reasonable price. in my opinion its better to have more units then larger units as leds are at peak effectivness when your right under neath them, so its better to have a light for every 2 or 3 plants imho. myself i have 2 180w 6 band LEDs and 4 plants, so thats 2 for each plant. LEDs are more expensive but they have a long life span and low power usage which balances the high startup cost in the long run. plus they create less heat so that translates into buyign less powerful ventilation setups (you always need some ventilation)
For fertilizers there are 3 numbers to look at to see the ratios of N-P-K,(nitrogen, phosphurous, and potasium). all 3 are needed at all stages of growth, however higher nitrogen is required for veg, and higher phosphorus and potasium is needed for flowering. there are many lines of nutes out there, the common consensus is that foxfarm is the best, but all brands work well if you use them right. i recomend 2 part solutions that you mix together that way you can customise your nutrients throughout your grow. your plants will not need nutes for the first 2-3 weeks of life. most people recomend using less nutes then recomended on the bottles at first and then workign your way up to more concentration as you go along and your plants get used to it.
Whatever LED you buy if you go that route make sure it has at least 5 bands or more, uses 3w or 5w bulbs and has a spectrum suitable for flowering. if you send me a pm ill give you the link for the lights i bought.
most importantly before you buy anything do a TON of research so you know what kind of problems you may run into before you run into them. knowledge is power when it comes to growing. i myself spent about 3 months researching and shopping around before i bought a thing. Good luck and welcome to the community, edit oh and for what strain to grow, pick whatever you like

Guys thanks so much for sharing the knowledge. Learning from your experience is a huge boost on the learning curve.

I'm psyched to get my garden together and start growing. I'm in the planing stages. Before i made any commitments to gear or seeds i wanted to get plenty of opinions.

guess i cant pm you until you have a certain post count, anyways this is ebay store i bought my lgihts from http://stores.ebay.ca/Led-Cree-Sales?_trksid=p4340.l2563 im using a 180w unit for every 2 plants plus i have some sidelighting, if you dont have sidelighting id recomend a 240w for every 2 plants

Thanks again for the info.

Adjorr, I was thinking of using a set of four ufo's just like in that link. Then, i started reading about how fantastic the California Light Works products are. So ...I'm still researching but leaning towards CLW 'Solarflare" or the 357 Magnum. My plan is to use a regular sized bathtub to hold the pots. I need one or more lamps that will be an effective match for the space. Because of the shape I thought the 3 lamps would be a good match. But after looking at few tests I almost think you can't go wrong with the CLW.

budbro when you said "Combine that with a bloom booster in the last 2 weeks of flowering" Do you have a favorite bloom booster?