Pack your bags people, we're going on a journey. Our destination? The flowering room, of course,
and hopefully we can arrive there laden with happy, healthy plants that have
enjoyed the ideal indoor vegetative growing environment, and this means strong
stems, healthy green leaves, and compact internodes. The journey starts off slow, a
bit like me before my morning dose of caffeine, but ends up moving at a quite
frantic pace like an unnervingly muscular speed walker doing endless laps
of Central Park. I mean WOW! Just wow. All jokes aside, the vegetative stage is important. I'm mean
really important, really, really important. Arguably the size of your harvest is set
in stone during this time. Relative humidity starts off at around 80 or
90% inside the propagator. We open vents and lift the lid gradually to
bring it down to the ideal-- around 65%. Young plants prefer higher humidity
because they don't have developed root systems, my friends. A minimum-maximum
thermometer like this is a must. Be sure to reset it every day so you have
regularly updated snapshots of your environment. Better yet, invest in a
quality environmental controller-- they cost less than you might think. And when your
plants are small you may need to use a little humidifier to add humidity to the
air, depending on the ambient humidity of your location. Domes work well, too.
Just be careful it doesn't get too hot in there. Dial down your fans during
early veg to safeguard that precious humidity. You don't need to be exchanging
your room's air once a minute at this stage. Next, let's look at light. Too much light early
on is a horrible waste of time and energy. Unrooted cuttings have the lowest
light requirements: just 100 micromoles or more could stress them. Shoot for 50 to 75,
max. In practical terms, a single 6400 Kelvin T5 lamp above a full-size propagator is
sufficient. And alternatively, you could just even position the propagator in non-
direct light in the corner of your veg room. For seedlings, just developing
their first few sets of true leaves (aaah) around 100 micromoles is fine. You can use
something like a Sunblaze T5 multi-array fixture raised about a foot above the
propagator. Full spectrum plus UV lamps like PowerVeg by Eye Hortilux are ideal.
Alternatively, an LEC 315 fixed with a 4200 Kelvin Phillips CDM lamp raised up
a few feet. From there, gradually lower your lights, rather than let your plants
stretch towards it. We're building up to around 400 or 500 micromoles and you can achieve
this by getting a T5 multi-array fixture up close, a few inches from the top of
your plants. They commonly come in two, four, six and eight lamp models; up to four
feet long and cover the same area as the fixture itself. Alternatively, you could
go for 400 or 600 watt metal halide, or my favorite, an LEC 630 ceramic metal
halide. Next temperature: 75 to 77 degrees Fahrenheit
is generally ideal. You can get away with a few degrees more if you're
supplementing with carbon dioxide. Nutrients: soil growers can relax as it
should all be taken care of in the potting mix. Just water them regularly
with tepid water, around 66 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit. If you're growing
hydroponically, use a vegetative formula, of course, high in nitrogen. Start
seedlings and cuttings in water with a very weak nutrient. An EC of 0.4 mS,
or 200 parts per million, some growers elevate the micro component
slightly when using very weak solutions like this.
1.0 mS, or 500 ppm, for rooted cuttings. Heavy feeders, like tomatoes, can
take a little more, rising to 1.8 mS, or 900 ppm, once your plants
are a foot or two tall. Heavy feeders, like tomatoes, can take it 50% higher that is
... I mean, really. Okay, I use a 3:2:1 ratio of grow micro bloom at
this point. It's difficult to keep up with the rising nutritional needs of
your plants at first, but it gets easier with practice. Plants directly under your
lights often show up deficiencies and toxicities first, so they should be your
canaries in the coal mine. If older leaves start going pale in between the veins, this could be a
sign that you need to up the concentration, just do it gradually. If
midsection leaves are deep green and show discoloration at the tips, look really
closely, you might want to ease off a little. The trick here is to regularly
compare your run-off with your feed solution with an EC or TDS meter. Your run-
off tells the real story of your root zone. If you're using a silica product,
like Armor-See, to help build strong cell walls, add it to the reservoir first, then
add your Cal/Mag-- a must for reverse osmosis-- or very soft water-- and then your base
nutrients. Other tips: foliar apply seaweed products weekly. Floralicious Plus,
Floralicious grow, or Bioweed are awesome for relieving the stress in your teenage
plants. Always ensure that your growing media is evenly and regularly watered;
establish mycorrhizae from the get-go, and don't forget to top prune and train
your plants so that they form a wide canopy with multiple growth sites at
the same height. One final word on timing: don't get carried away watching your
plants grow! Get them into your flowering room before they get too big, otherwise
they will be too big to light efficiently. Okay, that's it for now. Don't get lost in the
technicalities. For those of you who are crying right now that I went too fast,
don't waste those tears, use them to water your plants. Remember to have fun and simply
learn to observe your plants. I'll drill down into some specifics and feature
videos. For now, peace, love, and stress-free plants to you all. This is
Everest, out!