Struggling with seedlings.

[Furbrain]

Greetings all.

I am trying to grow outside however for some reason or another I can't even get a decent seedling let alone a plant!. Ok, so I'm definitely not an expert but have grown with success before in Spain. First grow now I'm back in SA and things are not going well!.

All seeds so far have been Auto's. I live near Oudtshoorn and the weather has been far from stable since I started trying to grow in October!.

I wonder if there are any other people who are struggling to grow auto's outside this year?.

Maybe it's just a poor batch of seeds that I paid top dollar for?.

Some seeds didn't even propergate!. Anyone else having problems this year with weather or bad seeds?.

Time is marching on. Is there still time to plant weed outside?.

Any comments welcome.

 

 

[Khakibos]

1 hour ago, Furbrain said:

 

I am trying to grow outside however for some reason or another I can't even get a decent seedling let alone a plant!. Ok, so I'm definitely not an expert but have grown with success before in Spain. First grow now I'm back in SA and things are not going well!.

 

Just to clarify, so your seeds germinate but your seedlings just die off ?

1 hour ago, Furbrain said:

Time is marching on. Is there still time to plant weed outside?.

 

Indeed there is still plenty of time

Edited December 16, 2021 by Khakibos

[Marzcanna]

Hey there, assuming you have success with germination and it's the seedlings you finding a trouble with than it could be a number of things so to rule them out I would start by asking you what type of medium are you using? 

Edited December 16, 2021 by Marzcanna

[Bay Seeds]

Get one bag of premium soil like Orgasoilux or Freedom Farms that you keep just to start seeds in. Wet the soil once and then plant the seeds 1 cm down. Keep inside in a warm spot until they germinate.They should pop the surface before needing to be rewatered. If the surface dries out before then you should spray the surface with a mist bottle. With good soil and not overwatering you shouldn't have any issues for the first two weeks. You really only need one seed.

Four days later. Today

 

 

[Naughty.Psychonaut]

17 hours ago, Furbrain said:

Greetings all.

I am trying to grow outside however for some reason or another I can't even get a decent seedling let alone a plant!. Ok, so I'm definitely not an expert but have grown with success before in Spain. First grow now I'm back in SA and things are not going well!.

All seeds so far have been Auto's. I live near Oudtshoorn and the weather has been far from stable since I started trying to grow in October!.

I wonder if there are any other people who are struggling to grow auto's outside this year?.

Maybe it's just a poor batch of seeds that I paid top dollar for?.

Some seeds didn't even propergate!. Anyone else having problems this year with weather or bad seeds?.

Time is marching on. Is there still time to plant weed outside?.

Any comments welcome.

 

 

hey buddy, welcome to the forum, hope all is well your side

who/where did you get your seeds from? you got any more?? this is not recommended for auto seeds when growing them, but you can test their viability by leaving them in a cup of water for 12 to 24hrs. if after 12hrs they're still floating, give a slight tap with your finger tip to see if any sinks to the bottom. the sinkers are for sure viable, leave the floaters till the 24hr mark, give another small tap to see if any sinks. the sinkers are viable and should pop (though maybe not with the autos) the floaters have high probability of being duds. if they all float, contact the seed supplier to see if they don't wana be generous enough to replace them. technically they don't have to, but some seed banks do.

the reason I say it's not recommended when growing auto seeds is because generally with autos you wana pop the seed right in its final pot with no intention to ever repot and never interfere with them or else you hinder them too much and they turn on you, but in your situation you kinda need to test if they're any good at all.

if you growing autos you have no need to concern yourself with what time of the year it is since autos grow and flower independant of light cycles. some seasoned growers keep auto seeds on hand so they have something to pop in winter when they can't pop photoperiods, specifically for the reason that they don't have to worry about what time of year it is.

only when growing photoperiods outdoors you need to follow the seasons. sowing in spring, vegging through spring and summer, flower in fall through winter. 

but really if you look at the seasons here in SA, we start spring in Sept, but this year everyone who had plants outside in Sept. had early flowers, because the seasons are all fucked cause of that global warming thing. so we focus more on hours of light. any spot in your garden that gets 16hrs or more of sunlight will be the spot to veg a plant, anything less than 16hrs you probably gona induce flowers. so even if you got a photoperiod it will act as a auto, starting to flower really soon. 

seeing as you dealing with auto seeds, in your defence, they have a reputation of being full of shit. one wrong move and they flip you the finger. I really feel that photoperiods leave more room for error, and even if you mess them up you have a greater chance of fixing your problem and still ending up with some bud.

I would also chime in on the whole growing medium thing, seeing as it's autos and you don't wana repot, don't think popping in one medium and then repotting to another is an option. you gona have to get one and stick to it. let us know what you using right now and maybe some pictures? 

I would recommend a lower/lesser nutrient soil, because you can always add nutrients and topdress with worm castings and all that, but because you going to pop a seed you putting yourself at risk when using hot soil. seedlings don't need much food, they get enough food from clean tap water untill they start showing first set of true leaves. just a note, it's harder to remove nutrients from hot soil than it is to add nutrients and in a organic situation the golden key is "less is more" 

hope you get something going sooooon

✌

 

 

[West Coast Vaper]

Greetings all.
I am trying to grow outside however for some reason or another I can't even get a decent seedling let alone a plant!. Ok, so I'm definitely not an expert but have grown with success before in Spain. First grow now I'm back in SA and things are not going well!.
All seeds so far have been Auto's. I live near Oudtshoorn and the weather has been far from stable since I started trying to grow in October!.
I wonder if there are any other people who are struggling to grow auto's outside this year?.
Maybe it's just a poor batch of seeds that I paid top dollar for?.
Some seeds didn't even propergate!. Anyone else having problems this year with weather or bad seeds?.
Time is marching on. Is there still time to plant weed outside?.
Any comments welcome.
 
 

Howzit man.
Oudtshoorn, remember those school days, hot and dry.
First time growing autoflower my side.
I popped into shot glass for 24 hours then into final pot outdoor in a shade house. Similar condition where I live hot, dry and strong winds to top it off.
I put a 2l coke bottle humidity dome over the one's I planted early spring when it was still freezing until seeds popped above ground and kept them on for a few days.
The one's planted a week or so back went into shot glasses, final pot but no dome this time.
I did have to check twice a day to make sure the soil was not dry though.
I kept the area where the seed was moist until it broke ground with a spray bottle and continued for the first week.

Out of 50 planted about 8 did not break ground.. Unfortunately I had a high male count.

Sent from my S40 using Tapatalk

[Ill_Evan]

20 hours ago, Furbrain said:

Anyone else having problems this year with weather or bad seeds?

Out of 15 auto seeds I popped for summer outdoor season, only 6 were successful and 4 of them growing decently. 

Bought some feminised seeds, 4 out of 5 were successful. 

I have a feeling there is a lot of old stock out there and it's just luck of the draw. 

[Furbrain]

26 minutes ago, Naughty.Psychonaut said:

hey buddy, welcome to the forum, hope all is well your side

who/where did you get your seeds from? you got any more?? this is not recommended for auto seeds when growing them, but you can test their viability by leaving them in a cup of water for 12 to 24hrs. if after 12hrs they're still floating, give a slight tap with your finger tip to see if any sinks to the bottom. the sinkers are for sure viable, leave the floaters till the 24hr mark, give another small tap to see if any sinks. the sinkers are viable and should pop (though maybe not with the autos) the floaters have high probability of being duds. if they all float, contact the seed supplier to see if they don't wana be generous enough to replace them. technically they don't have to, but some seed banks do.

the reason I say it's not recommended when growing auto seeds is because generally with autos you wana pop the seed right in its final pot with no intention to ever repot and never interfere with them or else you hinder them too much and they turn on you, but in your situation you kinda need to test if they're any good at all.

if you growing autos you have no need to concern yourself with what time of the year it is since autos grow and flower independant of light cycles. some seasoned growers keep auto seeds on hand so they have something to pop in winter when they can't pop photoperiods, specifically for the reason that they don't have to worry about what time of year it is.

only when growing photoperiods outdoors you need to follow the seasons. sowing in spring, vegging through spring and summer, flower in fall through winter. 

but really if you look at the seasons here in SA, we start spring in Sept, but this year everyone who had plants outside in Sept. had early flowers, because the seasons are all fucked cause of that global warming thing. so we focus more on hours of light. any spot in your garden that gets 16hrs or more of sunlight will be the spot to veg a plant, anything less than 16hrs you probably gona induce flowers. so even if you got a photoperiod it will act as a auto, starting to flower really soon. 

seeing as you dealing with auto seeds, in your defence, they have a reputation of being full of shit. one wrong move and they flip you the finger. I really feel that photoperiods leave more room for error, and even if you mess them up you have a greater chance of fixing your problem and still ending up with some bud.

I would also chime in on the whole growing medium thing, seeing as it's autos and you don't wana repot, don't think popping in one medium and then repotting to another is an option. you gona have to get one and stick to it. let us know what you using right now and maybe some pictures? 

I would recommend a lower/lesser nutrient soil, because you can always add nutrients and topdress with worm castings and all that, but because you going to pop a seed you putting yourself at risk when using hot soil. seedlings don't need much food, they get enough food from clean tap water untill they start showing first set of true leaves. just a note, it's harder to remove nutrients from hot soil than it is to add nutrients and in a organic situation the golden key is "less is more" 

hope you get something going sooooon

✌

 

 

Many thanks for all the responses. Looks like I will start over and try again!.

Rather not say which supplier because it may well be me at fault and not their seeds and so it wouldn't be fair to mention their name.

I understand fully that Auto's can be 'picky' with the whole outside growing thing. Have a friend who has given me some photoperiod seeds and so will try with them along with some more auto's from same supplier but different brand.

I didn't realize the type of soil could be an issue!. First off I used 'ordinary' off the shelf stuff (photo attached). My mistake here....I think....is I should have added a decent amount of Perlite to this soil?. I realize also that last time I grew I had access to bags of soil that were specifically designed for cannabis. Seems I have to be a little more inventive now!.     Yesterday I got a bag of 'Rose soil' from the local agri to try. From what I gather after reading these forum suggestions is that this 'rose' soil would probably be way too rich in nutrients?. 

When I propergated my first 6 auto's they went straight into the big pots as I knew they don't like to be transplanted. They popped no problem then a day after we had a rain storm and the soil was drenched  even though there is drainage the soil remained wet in my pots for too long!. 

I have some photoperiods germinating now. The weather has stabilized. Will use normal potting soil with perlite mixed in (+/-35%). Will start photoperiods in small containers and try auto's again straight into finishing pot.

Happy days,.....live and learn.....never give up, OR , there's always the rasta on a corner somewhere.

Will post an update on progress OR lack of.

 

 

 

[SAgrower]

Many thanks for all the responses. Looks like I will start over and try again!.
Rather not say which supplier because it may well be me at fault and not their seeds and so it wouldn't be fair to mention their name.
I understand fully that Auto's can be 'picky' with the whole outside growing thing. Have a friend who has given me some photoperiod seeds and so will try with them along with some more auto's from same supplier but different brand.
I didn't realize the type of soil could be an issue!. First off I used 'ordinary' off the shelf stuff (photo attached). My mistake here....I think....is I should have added a decent amount of Perlite to this soil?. I realize also that last time I grew I had access to bags of soil that were specifically designed for cannabis. Seems I have to be a little more inventive now!.     Yesterday I got a bag of 'Rose soil' from the local agri to try. From what I gather after reading these forum suggestions is that this 'rose' soil would probably be way too rich in nutrients?. 
When I propergated my first 6 auto's they went straight into the big pots as I knew they don't like to be transplanted. They popped no problem then a day after we had a rain storm and the soil was drenched  even though there is drainage the soil remained wet in my pots for too long!. 
I have some photoperiods germinating now. The weather has stabilized. Will use normal potting soil with perlite mixed in (+/-35%). Will start photoperiods in small containers and try auto's again straight into finishing pot.
Happy days,.....live and learn.....never give up, OR , there's always the rasta on a corner somewhere.
Will post an update on progress OR lack of.

 
 
 

I might be wrong but is rose mix not on the acidic side, something which cannabis would not actually like to grow in?

[Furbrain]

1 hour ago, DamDave said:

Howzit man.
Oudtshoorn, remember those school days, hot and dry.
First time growing autoflower my side.
I popped into shot glass for 24 hours then into final pot outdoor in a shade house. Similar condition where I live hot, dry and strong winds to top it off.
I put a 2l coke bottle humidity dome over the one's I planted early spring when it was still freezing until seeds popped above ground and kept them on for a few days.
The one's planted a week or so back went into shot glasses, final pot but no dome this time.
I did have to check twice a day to make sure the soil was not dry though.
I kept the area where the seed was moist until it broke ground with a spray bottle and continued for the first week.

Out of 50 planted about 8 did not break ground.. Unfortunately I had a high male count.

Sent from my S40 using Tapatalk
 

Hi Damdave, I appreciate the feedback. I have posted some text for reply to others and will try to start all over again. The propergation is going well using some photoperiods!. Will start these in smaller pots to start with using normal potting soil + a decent amount of Perlite this time. I will also try a few auto's again and plant straight into finishing pot, however this time I will try and cover pot if we have heavy rain and keep control of the moisture content.

Time will tell......

Have a groovy Christmas....

[Furbrain]

42 minutes ago, Ill_Evan said:

Out of 15 auto seeds I popped for summer outdoor season, only 6 were successful and 4 of them growing decently. 

Bought some feminised seeds, 4 out of 5 were successful. 

I have a feeling there is a lot of old stock out there and it's just luck of the draw. 

I appreciate your comments.

Have posted a general reply to all. 

[Furbrain]

23 minutes ago, SAgrower said:

32 minutes ago, Furbrain said:

Many thanks for all the responses. Looks like I will start over and try again!.
Rather not say which supplier because it may well be me at fault and not their seeds and so it wouldn't be fair to mention their name.
I understand fully that Auto's can be 'picky' with the whole outside growing thing. Have a friend who has given me some photoperiod seeds and so will try with them along with some more auto's from same supplier but different brand.
I didn't realize the type of soil could be an issue!. First off I used 'ordinary' off the shelf stuff (photo attached). My mistake here....I think....is I should have added a decent amount of Perlite to this soil?. I realize also that last time I grew I had access to bags of soil that were specifically designed for cannabis. Seems I have to be a little more inventive now!.     Yesterday I got a bag of 'Rose soil' from the local agri to try. From what I gather after reading these forum suggestions is that this 'rose' soil would probably be way too rich in nutrients?. 
When I propergated my first 6 auto's they went straight into the big pots as I knew they don't like to be transplanted. They popped no problem then a day after we had a rain storm and the soil was drenched  even though there is drainage the soil remained wet in my pots for too long!. 
I have some photoperiods germinating now. The weather has stabilized. Will use normal potting soil with perlite mixed in (+/-35%). Will start photoperiods in small containers and try auto's again straight into finishing pot.
Happy days,.....live and learn.....never give up, OR , there's always the rasta on a corner somewhere.
Will post an update on progress OR lack of.

 
 
 

I might be wrong but is rose mix not on the acidic side, something which cannabis would not actually like to grow in?

Makes sense!.

 

[Khakibos]

2 hours ago, Furbrain said:

Will start these in smaller pots to start with using normal potting soil + a decent amount of Perlite this time.

 

Culterra also has a germination mix which works well, I haven't used it much but I mixed it in with their professional mix one year for a few seed I bought and literally just top dressed with their herb mix and then got something for flower

 

Edited December 17, 2021 by Khakibos

[Naughty.Psychonaut]

34 minutes ago, Furbrain said:

 

 

this clears things up  

the soil you use is nearly the most important part of it all brother! those bags of soil are generic premixes, not really suited for cannabis growing, you can use it but you going to have to change it a lot before your cannabis will be happy in it. buying soil that is premixed for growing cannabis is going to change your game for sure! I'll recommend freedom farms premium classic. it costs a whole lot more than those bags you got, but for good reason!

soil science is crazy important when growing any kind of plant, I have used a lot of generic brands of soil and have found the most important thing is consistency. those bags you got there are also cheap for a reason, it's highly inconsistent. some bags are very sandy, some bags have a lot of bark, some bags will form clay or mud after a while and clog itself and become anaerobic and "dead". buying some cheap soil you really gotta know how to use it, like sifting out the bark, because cannabis wants literally no bark by its roots, adding the right amount of stuff such as perlite, vermiculite, coco peat aswell as doing runoff testing to see what PPM you working with and if it is suitable for what you wana do and know what to do if it isn't, like flushing your medium with correct PPM water till you reach desired PPM if it was too high. or if it's too low you gona have to add an array of different organic ammendments to get it up to the right PPM you need. 

also, you mentioned drainage, big part of soil science is aeration and the availability of fresh oxygen at the root zone. every plant desires a differnent condition, cannabis likes a 40 to 50% moisture around its roots, but luckily it's one of the more versatile shrubs when looking at watering schedule, although the most notable thing here is that on a moisture scale of 0 to 100 it prefers it on the lower side below 50%. the easiest take from this is you'll need to cycle wet/dry periods every 3 days or you might risk depriving your roots of oxygen. if you have a different situation you might need to change up your conditions. Move the plant around if it's in a pot, get it out of the storms, out of long rain cycles and all that. If the plant is straight in the earth, make sure they're covered during those times, they handle water better, although wouldn't be able to grow in dead/no drainage soil either. 

so really just way easier buying cannabis crafted soil, I promise you

if your roots aren't happy, your plant wont be happy, and the only way to get good roots is with good soil. the soil is literally your foundation brother, the soil needs A LOT of your love and attention ✌

 

[Ill_Evan]

1 hour ago, SAgrower said:

1 hour ago, Furbrain said:

Many thanks for all the responses. Looks like I will start over and try again!.
Rather not say which supplier because it may well be me at fault and not their seeds and so it wouldn't be fair to mention their name.
I understand fully that Auto's can be 'picky' with the whole outside growing thing. Have a friend who has given me some photoperiod seeds and so will try with them along with some more auto's from same supplier but different brand.
I didn't realize the type of soil could be an issue!. First off I used 'ordinary' off the shelf stuff (photo attached). My mistake here....I think....is I should have added a decent amount of Perlite to this soil?. I realize also that last time I grew I had access to bags of soil that were specifically designed for cannabis. Seems I have to be a little more inventive now!.     Yesterday I got a bag of 'Rose soil' from the local agri to try. From what I gather after reading these forum suggestions is that this 'rose' soil would probably be way too rich in nutrients?. 
When I propergated my first 6 auto's they went straight into the big pots as I knew they don't like to be transplanted. They popped no problem then a day after we had a rain storm and the soil was drenched  even though there is drainage the soil remained wet in my pots for too long!. 
I have some photoperiods germinating now. The weather has stabilized. Will use normal potting soil with perlite mixed in (+/-35%). Will start photoperiods in small containers and try auto's again straight into finishing pot.
Happy days,.....live and learn.....never give up, OR , there's always the rasta on a corner somewhere.
Will post an update on progress OR lack of.

 
 
 

I might be wrong but is rose mix not on the acidic side, something which cannabis would not actually like to grow in?

Rose soil should be between pH 6.0 - 6.5, so it would work but might struggle in the beginning depending on strain as Nitrogen is more easily absorbed at about pH 5.5 - 5.8, but if he is growing outside then rain water will easily lower the pH slightly enough to be perfect for cannabis. 

Edit: @Furbrain should still pH test his soil though. 

Edited December 17, 2021 by Ill_Evan

[Naughty.Psychonaut]

21 minutes ago, Ill_Evan said:

Rose soil should be between pH 6.0 - 6.5, so it would work but might struggle in the beginning depending on strain as Nitrogen is more easily absorbed at about pH 5.5 - 5.8, but if he is growing outside then rain water will easily lower the pH slightly enough to be perfect for cannabis. 

Edit: @Furbrain should still pH test his soil though. 

I'm trying to get him away from that stuff completely  

@Furbrain use it for your roses, spoil yourself and get something nice like Freedom Farms Premium Classic, can't go wrong brother.

for popping autos in their final pot, here is a tip to avoid over saturation - nothing smaller than 20L pot space, fill the pot 80% with the FF soil, take a cup/small pot, place it in the soil right in the middle and fill the rest of the pot around the cup to create a shape mould of the cup/small pot in the soil, then lift the cup/small pot out and fill that hole with coco peat/sphagnum peat or any kinda inert medium with no nutrients. now make a little 1.5cm deep hole with a tooth pick or small object, drop the auto seed and close it lightly. now most importantly here, ONLY saturate the inert medium and cover with a dome/cut off plastic bottle (something seethrough to retain moisture, but allow light to pass through) if the sight of the inert medium dries you can spray it with a water sprayer just enough to wet the surface and place dome back over. 

because you're only wetting the inert medium you'll decrease chances of over saturation, placing a dome will prevent it from drying out, it being inert medium will decrease chances of any bacteria or mold taking over before the seedling has sprout, once the root is out it will reach into the FF soil and go on as normal. 

if things are a bit unclear, here is what I mean (just grabbed a picture off the internet) - 

your situation will just be a smaller hole, because you're not repotting, but only planting a seed. I would say half the size of the hole the person in the photo above made in comparrison to the rest of the pot. then fill the hole with inert medium.

[SAgrower]

Rose soil should be between pH 6.0 - 6.5, so it would work but might struggle in the beginning depending on strain as Nitrogen is more easily absorbed at about pH 5.5 - 5.8, but if he is growing outside then rain water will easily lower the pH slightly enough to be perfect for cannabis. 
Edit: @Furbrain should still pH test his soil though. 

Thanks for the clarification

[West Coast Vaper]

If he hasn't got access to cannabis soil could he not try soil for tomatoes at the local nursery and work from there.

Sent from my S40 using Tapatalk

[Furbrain]

19 hours ago, Naughty.Psychonaut said:

I'm trying to get him away from that stuff completely  

@Furbrain use it for your roses, spoil yourself and get something nice like Freedom Farms Premium Classic, can't go wrong brother.

for popping autos in their final pot, here is a tip to avoid over saturation - nothing smaller than 20L pot space, fill the pot 80% with the FF soil, take a cup/small pot, place it in the soil right in the middle and fill the rest of the pot around the cup to create a shape mould of the cup/small pot in the soil, then lift the cup/small pot out and fill that hole with coco peat/sphagnum peat or any kinda inert medium with no nutrients. now make a little 1.5cm deep hole with a tooth pick or small object, drop the auto seed and close it lightly. now most importantly here, ONLY saturate the inert medium and cover with a dome/cut off plastic bottle (something seethrough to retain moisture, but allow light to pass through) if the sight of the inert medium dries you can spray it with a water sprayer just enough to wet the surface and place dome back over. 

because you're only wetting the inert medium you'll decrease chances of over saturation, placing a dome will prevent it from drying out, it being inert medium will decrease chances of any bacteria or mold taking over before the seedling has sprout, once the root is out it will reach into the FF soil and go on as normal. 

if things are a bit unclear, here is what I mean (just grabbed a picture off the internet) - 

your situation will just be a smaller hole, because you're not repotting, but only planting a seed. I would say half the size of the hole the person in the photo above made in comparrison to the rest of the pot. then fill the hole with inert medium.

Wow..........thanks for your advice. All makes perfect sense!.

Like mentioned earlier, I used a proper mixed soil specifically made for Cannabis on my last grow in Spain and had absolutely no issues from seed to harvest!. Got to admit I did wonder if the stuff I've been trying to use here was any good?............... obviously not!.

The only thing I'm still not sure of is what 'mix' I should use for the 'centre' of my big pots?. Can I get this premix from FF also and if so what is it called?.

I could well be in a difficult time now. FF has closed for Xmas along with many stores but will try to find somewhere. Failing that, looks like it could be another few weeks before I can get hold of decent stuff!. In reality that would mean my grow wouldn't be starting until end of January!. 

At the very least I am learning about what I need to do to grow here in SA.

Appreciate your help and will post an update as and when.

Have a lekker Christmas.

 

 

[Marzcanna]

If all fails, than make your own mix. Infact all soils you buy are made up of recipes, I used to spend alot on soil until I got into mixing my own and down a few years, I can honestly say there's nothing on the market that beats your own mix especially if going organic and you reuse it over and over. Decide on your base coco/soil (remember each have different requirements as to the frequent use of nutrients and watering) than do a 33% of soil/coco, 33% perlite, and 33% compost/earth-worm castings. That's mix will give you decent results if you decide to do a synthetic run if you want to do a more laid back grow you can go organic & add amendments to your mix  (can also add some elemental blend which will have enough amendments) 

 

It's up to you what you prefer to use. Freedom Farms is a good brand if you want to skip the work of mixing your own soil but in the long run you get better quality for your money with your own mix. ("there goes Marzcanna blabbing about mixed soils again ) 

 

All the best for your grows

Edited December 18, 2021 by Marzcanna

[Furbrain]

3 hours ago, Marzcanna said:

If all fails, than make your own mix. Infact all soils you buy are made up of recipes, I used to spend alot on soil until I got into mixing my own and down a few years, I can honestly say there's nothing on the market that beats your own mix especially if going organic and you reuse it over and over. Decide on your base coco/soil (remember each have different requirements as to the frequent use of nutrients and watering) than do a 33% of soil/coco, 33% perlite, and 33% compost/earth-worm castings. That's mix will give you decent results if you decide to do a synthetic run if you want to do a more laid back grow you can go organic & add amendments to your mix  (can also add some elemental blend which will have enough amendments) 

 

It's up to you what you prefer to use. Freedom Farms is a good brand if you want to skip the work of mixing your own soil but in the long run you get better quality for your money with your own mix. ("there goes Marzcanna blabbing about mixed soils again ) 

 

All the best for your grows

Many thanks Marzcanna . I'll see what I can get in this area.

Regards.....

[Furbrain]

On 12/17/2021 at 9:08 AM, DamDave said:

Howzit man.
Oudtshoorn, remember those school days, hot and dry.
First time growing autoflower my side.
I popped into shot glass for 24 hours then into final pot outdoor in a shade house. Similar condition where I live hot, dry and strong winds to top it off.
I put a 2l coke bottle humidity dome over the one's I planted early spring when it was still freezing until seeds popped above ground and kept them on for a few days.
The one's planted a week or so back went into shot glasses, final pot but no dome this time.
I did have to check twice a day to make sure the soil was not dry though.
I kept the area where the seed was moist until it broke ground with a spray bottle and continued for the first week.

Out of 50 planted about 8 did not break ground.. Unfortunately I had a high male count.

Sent from my S40 using Tapatalk
 

Hi Dave. You mention putting a 'dome' coke bottle to protect the young seedlings. This maybe handy for the odd rainstorm also. Do I need to make ' some' holes in the side of the bottle so the plants can breath or not bother as the dome won't stay on long.

[Ill_Evan]

6 minutes ago, Furbrain said:

Hi Dave. You mention putting a 'dome' coke bottle to protect the young seedlings. This maybe handy for the odd rainstorm also. Do I need to make ' some' holes in the side of the bottle so the plants can breath or not bother as the dome won't stay on long.

No holes necessary for seeds/young seedlings. 

[Furbrain]

On 12/16/2021 at 3:04 PM, Khakibos said:

Just to clarify, so your seeds germinate but your seedlings just die off ?

Indeed there is still plenty of time

Most germinate and pop. 'Some' die and yet others get as far as 4 tiny leaves and simply don't get any bigger but don't die!.

After reading all suggestions on forum I am now convinced it's the crap growing medium I've been using. I'm in the process of 'trying' to get some decent stuff.

Cheers...

[Furbrain]

4 minutes ago, Ill_Evan said:

No holes necessary for seeds/young seedlings. 

Thanks for that.