What's up my Steem family! I am so happy to have something to post about on a regular basis again! Last post I started the germination process of a F1 cross that I am calling Santa's Kandy. Now it is time to set the wheels in motion to get a garden going indoors. As of right now I am just working in a broom closet. Here in about a month I will be upgrading into a tent. But until then, I got to work with what I got. Also I figure that if I explain what I am doing, maybe you can realize that you can do the same thing. Heck maybe you have no space outside, and you want to just grow some vegetables, you can grow basically anything indoors! So my inspiration with this new grow log is to not only grow the best possible medicine, but to hopefully inspire someone to grow their own as well.
Ok, let's get started!
So after setting my seed in water for 24 hours, it is time to transfer into the growing medium. I like to use Rapid Rooters. It is important that they stay moist. So I let them sit in PH'd water.
I keep my PH slightly above 6 the entire grow cycle. Cannabis grows best soil that is slightly acidic. I do plan to do Living Soil soon, and with Living Soil you do not have to worry about PH as you do with growing in non Living Soil. So until then, I will continue to monitor my PH.
While I let my Rapid Rooters absorb water, I took this time to wash out my seed tray. I am proud of the fact that this seed tray is the same seed tray that I have used over and over. I would say that this seed tray has started over a hundred plants!
So after a good cleaning, it is time to set the seed into the Rapid Rooter. It is very important that you use sterile tweezers. You do not want to contaminate your delicate seeds. As you can see in the illustration, I set the seed down into the Rapid Rooter, with the with spot pointed down.
It is important to not let your growing medium dry out. So in the seed tray I filled with a little water. It is important that you keep the environment moist, and not drenched in water. Basically think Goldie Lox, you do not want it to dry, nor to wet, you want it just right.
Ok so now my seeds are ready. Now time to get my broom closet ready. As you can see, it is small! But it is enough to do what I need to do in order to grow some plants. So before I set my seed tray in here, I mad sure to clean and disinfect. It is very very important that you do this. A CLEAN GROW, IS A HAPPY GROW!!
Now that I have the room clean, it is time to hang my light. Luckily for me, my old roommate, did this for me, way back when he first started to grow. This was in Oct of 2016! Thank's Lethal, also thanks again for giving me the gift of growing. You know the saying, "Give a man a fish, he will eat for a day. But if you teach a man to fish, he will eat a lifetime." Same thing applies to growing.
Ok so now the light is hung, it is time to bring some electricity into the room. A simple extension chord is enough to do the trick.
In the past I ran the veg room at 24 hours a day. Meaning the light was on the whole time. This round I will use a 20/4 cycle to cut back electricity costs. So what a 20/4 means, is 20 hours on, 4 hours off.
Since it has been cold, I will use a heat pad to ensure my seeds stay happy.
So for your plants to have the proper environment, a fan is crucial to move air around. Just like outside there is a breeze. But I will not have to use it for starting seeds. This is just to show you what is standard for starting an indoor grow.
Now I will let these sit in the dark, until I see some seedlings popping their heads up.
I would also recommend a book like this when starting your first grow. The internet is great and all, but there is something about having a physical book on hand. Again I am lucky, this is something my old roommate got, @Hotsauceislethal, boom double tag!
One final note for getting your grow setup. Make sure you have an area for all of your supplies handy. One thing I am leaving out in this post, due to misplacing it, it is crucial to have a hygrometer. A hygrometer measures temp and humidity. Other supplies that will be measuring tools, such as tablespoons, or an oral syringe for your fertilizers and additives. Another thing I am leaving out that I do hope to get soon, is a nice dehumidifier. Humidity is your enemy when growing cannabis, and it is something that I am not going to put up with this time around.
Ok so I do hope this is helpful for you to get started your self. I am sure I am leaving out a few things, but that is the beauty of doing a grow log on a social media platform, you the readers can help me out. Please do. Like I said before, I am a noob, and need to learn all I can. Maybe you have some info that nobody else has, maybe I just over looked something, or maybe I am just wrong, or I just do not know. I am an open minded person, and I never think I am better then anybody. Those type of people that do think there so much better, and just snub their noses at you, or maybe laugh behind your back have no space in my life, or in the growing world IMO. For the most part I have come across some great people, and in the past I did learn a lot. This time around I hope I do learn more. So thanks for taking the time to read, and stay tuned for more updates. Hopefully these damn seeds grow, but you know what. If they do not, I got more seeds, and will just repeat the process again.