why won't they GROW???

ihavefeet · Sep 30, 2007

hey, so my cousin gave me some seed from her outdoor plants that she has on her farm, so i decided to try my first grow. I have a couple of plants that poked their heads out of the soil maybe 2-3 days ago, and they aren't going ANYWHERE. i'm hoping someone can tell me why?

I have 4 42w CFLs, each giving 2600 lumens. The pots are sitting RIGHT under each light, about 2" away from the soil.

I have built a 2x2x2 frame, which I covered with emergency blankets for light reflection. I keep one side open for ventilation, and the temp sits around 78-80.

I have them in serilized potting soil, and have been giving them just tap water once a day. I'm told not to use any fertilizer for the first 3 weeks or so?

Have a look at my pic and tell me what I'm doing wrong? I've been reading lots and as far as I can tell I'm doing everything I should, but they're just not getting any bigger.

GoodFriend · Sep 30, 2007

ummm... wait

its only been a couple days

patience my friend....

rastadoor · Sep 30, 2007

and dont be afraid to get that light close like an inch away

is that pic of day 3??

ihavefeet · Sep 30, 2007

umm, that pic is day 2-3, depending on which pot I grabbed to take the picture. some popped up a day sooner than others.

BUT, I also have some plants that I started in a window sill, just to test the seeds until I was able to buy the lights and get the setup going. They have been under the CFLs for maybe 6 days, and have not produced more than one set of leaves.

Is it the soil? Should I be buying soil with some nutrients in it?

I look at pics of other people's plants that are a week or 10 days old, and they have already produced multiple sets of fan leaves. I have a hard time imagining that these will catch up in time.

GoodFriend · Sep 30, 2007

rastadoor said:
and dont be afraid to get that light close like an inch away is that pic of day 3??

no need for that now... you don't wanna accidentally scorch the babies or dry out the soil real fast, that'd kill em

just give it a couple more days and the first set of true leaves will come...

ihavefeet · Sep 30, 2007

this is a picture of the plants that I started in the window, and have been under CFLs for 5-6 days. I took this pic 3 1/2 days ago, and they remain virtually unchanged since then.

I have the lights set to 18/6.

Maybe I need to sing to them more? Pray to the cannabis gods? I don't know....

GoodFriend · Sep 30, 2007

umm... whats your watering schedule like?

ihavefeet · Sep 30, 2007

every day i give it enough water to soak into the soil in about 20 seconds. I have them in peat-moss cups, so if the cup is dry, I water. That's once a day, maybe twice.

ihavefeet · Sep 30, 2007

i dunno, should I start some new ones and add perlite and worm castings to the soil? I know that people say no nutes until week 3 or so, but with serilized potting soil, isn't it totally barron of anything the plant can use for food?

ihavefeet · Sep 30, 2007

could the CFLs be the wrong spectrum? The package doesn't say if they are "cool-white" or "daylight" or whatever. they are General Electric, "Energy Savers" 42w.

my appologies for the multiple posts. just thinking of new things....

GoodFriend · Sep 30, 2007

does it list the kelvin temp anywhere?

like 6500k
2700k or anything?

you might be watering too much... i know the pete pots you speak of... you might want to wait a little longer... just stick your finger an inch down in the soil and if its damp still you don't need to water again yet

ihavefeet · Sep 30, 2007

it doesn't list the kelvin temp anywhere, i just inspected the package.

what temp do i want?

GoodFriend · Sep 30, 2007

veg is the higher 6500k or so... the whiter or bluer light...

while 2700 or 3000k or so would be good for flower, a yellowish orangish color...

or a mix of them both

ihavefeet · Sep 30, 2007

alright....the light is deffinitely white, not yellowish/orangish.

if I have the wrong spectrum with they still grow, or not at all? Should I buy some more bulbs that tell me the spectrum, just in case i have the wrong ones right now?

Thank you so much for your help, it is greatly appreciated.

GoodFriend · Sep 30, 2007

you can grow with either spectrum... just warm is better for flower and cool is better for veg... they will both do both...

silk · Sep 30, 2007

I veg under cool white which isn't as effective as daylights, but it works. I've recently had problems with my tap water: it is exceptionally high in mineral deposits and the pH has been fluctuating. Also humidity has been very high. I could get much faster growing times if I upgraded my light and used hydro, but the seedlings I am working on will be vegged for several months, so slow and steady is just fine for me. Patience is your best resource!

Humboldt · Sep 30, 2007

plants don't grow over night, be patient let them grow, do you have any pics of your grow area? poor ventilation, humidity etc. could be slowing growth, also try 24/7 light that will speed up the growth and listen to lumberjack don't keep them so close at that stage, let them stretch a little, when you go to transplant into larger pots you are able to burry the stems up to the first set of water leaves, after you should keep the lights 2 - 3 inches away to encourage tight nods.

Dr High · Sep 30, 2007

water then every day but lightly. dont soak it just make it wet like 80-100 ml.

ihavefeet · Sep 30, 2007

i started the first couple of days with them on 24h light, but was reading about how root development increases if you use 18/6? It makes sense to me; plants evolved to have a night-time, not 24h sunlight. but if you think i should switch back to 24h, i'll do that tonight.

here is a pic of my grow area. 2x2x2 temp around the mid 70s right now, goes up to 80 or so sometimes, if it's a sunny day (up on the top floor of the house)

i don't know the humidity level, but i'm living on vancouver island so it can't be THAT low i'd guess

ihavefeet · Sep 30, 2007

those two you see growing were the ones i started in the window-sill for a few days, before i got my lights. they are very stretched, and have not had any new growth in 3 days or so

why won't they GROW???

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