88 Miles Per Hour

[Josh]

Well, it feels as if it was only yesterday that I was starting my grow log for the 2009 season. Now it is 2010 and time to do it all over again. While it is not quite time for me to start seeds, I just could not resist. I have ordered and received a 400 watt HID grow light. I plan to build a grow box during one of the upcoming weekends. Until then, I have a couple of sprouts under a 42 watt CFL. It took 13 days for all of them to come up but overall I am pleased. I did not use my heat mat and I must admit the moisture level was inconsistent. These seeds came from pods that I isolated last summer with tulle. I am hoping they grow true.
Here's to a great season....

Trinidad Scorpion

 

[Matt50680]

Looks good to me. Imagine how well they would grown with the heating mat? Like wildfire I would bet! Whats the soil you are using? No offense but it looks kinda like the cat hacked up a nasty, bloody hair ball.

 

[Josh]

Whats the soil you are using? No offense but it looks kinda like the cat hacked up a nasty, bloody hair ball.

Hhahaha. No offense taken. I believe it is coconut coir. I had a couple of Burpee's dehydrated pellets from last season and used them up. The "container" consists of two cut down plastic cups. Not the prettiest thing but it is getting the job done.

 

[wordwiz]

a nasty, bloody hair ball.

If the pH is good, it might make a great growing medium! Certainly would not have any aphids in it!

Mike

 

[Noshownate]

looks like Coco fiber, seems like a good medium, Hey Patrick uses it must be good!

Hope this season is bountiful for you Josh!
where do you get your tulle?

 

[codykrr]

coco fiber is great medium for growing. only it contains almost no nutrients. so id say at best it should only be used for germination/seedlings. it hold moisture well and is cheap enough. also good for tatantulas. lol

 

[Josh]

Hope this season is bountiful for you Josh!
where do you get your tulle?

Thanks. I am planting the majority of my plants into raised beds so this season should go a lot smoother for me.

I bought the tulle at Walmart. It came on a roll and was 12" wide by, I believe, 50' long. I cut off pieces approximately 18" long, folded them in half, and sewed the two sides. That was the easy part. The tough part was waiting for flowers to set pods within the bags. I experienced a lot of flower drop within them. If you plan on doing this good luck and try to stay patient. It can become a bit frustrating.
I have posted this several times already but here is a shot of what I am talking about. Ignore the yellowed leaves, as I said things did not go exactly as planned last season.

 

[Josh]

coco fiber is great medium for growing. only it contains almost no nutrients. so id say at best it should only be used for germination/seedlings. it hold moisture well and is cheap enough. also good for tatantulas. lol

Yea, I haven't had any success actually growing in it. I didn't use Coco specific nutrients so that may have been a big factor.

 

[JungleRain]

Good luck with your new grow season Josh

 

[Josh]

I figured today was a good day for an update. I still have not started my main batch of seeds, but the Scorpions are working on their second set of true leaves. The leaves are not as dark as I would like them to be but doing alright. It isn't the most exciting shot but here you go anyway.

 

[Silver_Surfer]

Nice start Josh.

I'm still waiting a bit longer before burying any seed but they are starting to talk to me at night.

 

[moyboy]

they look really good and healthy mate.....good luck and have fun with your season!!!

 

[cmpman1974]

I tried coco-coir. I HATED it. lol.

Chris

 

[wordwiz]

Josh,

I'm thinking of using my GH for any plants I want to save seeds from. It would only be a variety or two and I could move a plant inside for a few days when it is getting ready to bloom, they after the pod is set, take it back outside.

Mike

 

[patrick]

Good to see you back at it Josh. Best wishes for a fantastic year.

Does feel like time just leaped ahead a few months doesn't it?

 

[HawaiiAl]

great looling plants.i used coco for some plants it works good ,some plants it sucks.i guss its whatever you like.good growing to everyone.

 

[Josh]

Nice start Josh.

I'm still waiting a bit longer before burying any seed but they are starting to talk to me at night.

Thanks.
Yea I hear you. I am going to wait until February 14th to start the other chinenses but it is tough resisting.

they look really good and healthy mate.....good luck and have fun with your season!!!

Thanks. Yea I am pretty pumped for this year.

I tried coco-coir. I HATED it. lol.

Chris

I have used it to germinate seeds successfully but have not done well growing in it. I only tried this with two plants and did not use coco specific nutes though.

Josh,

I'm thinking of using my GH for any plants I want to save seeds from. It would only be a variety or two and I could move a plant inside for a few days when it is getting ready to bloom, they after the pod is set, take it back outside.

Mike

That sounds like a great idea Mike. It also gives me another reason to be jealous of your greenhouse.
My only concern would be the openings you use to vent the heat. Are they covered with insect screen?

Good to see you back at it Josh. Best wishes for a fantastic year.

Does feel like time just leaped ahead a few months doesn't it?

Thanks. Yea I was surprised just how fast this season had arrived. That is actually why I gave this thread the above title. I just couldn't resist a Back to the Future reference.

great looling plants.i used coco for some plants it works good ,some plants it sucks.i guss its whatever you like.good growing to everyone.

Thanks. As I stated above, I am not a fan of growing with coco but I feel the same way you do. People should use what medium they are happiest with.

 

[Josh]

I also should have mentioned that my goal this season is to take more pictures of pods. Last season I provided plenty of pictures while the plants were growing. Once the pods began to arrive and ripen I took less and less pictures. It made my grow log a bit boring. Hopefully I can change that this season.

 

[boutros]

That's a good primer for somebody on tulle, especially with a pic. Thanks. I'm planning on using this method some plants this year. Nice scorpions too.

I have to say coco coir has been very good to me, but I always used coco specific nutrients once the plants were in their second or main container after transplanting sprouted plants. I used Botanicare for coco/soil. The nutes really seemed to add up $ wise after awhile. I should have bought them in the larger quantities offered which would have been cheaper, but didn't know if I wanted to commit to it that majorly or not then. I will definitely use coir again sometime, would like to use it in a greenhouse setup. I kinda like how it is a nutrient free medium and it is up to you how to adjust it.

 

[Josh]

I am probably overdo for an update so here goes...Since last time I have built a grow box. I currently have it set up for germinating but I plan to grow during the winter next season. Here are a few shots of what I built. The pictures aren't that great for a bunch of reasons but I think you will get the basic idea.

As you can see in this shot, I have an inline duct fan hooked up to my light fixture. I originally had it running continuously while the light was on, but the box was staying too cool for my liking. To deal with this problem I picked up a thermostat, which you can see in the back left corner. In this pick you will also notice an incandescent light. I have my box setup so I can turn the power off to the grow light when I am checking out my plants.

You can't see too much in this next shot, but I have a GFI wired in on the back right corner. I have a heat mat and the oscillating fan plugged into that.

Here is a shot of my wiring setup. The top receptacle isn't being used. I just figured I might as well wire in an extra one just in case. This first light switch turns the incandescent light on. That is followed by the timer for the grow light. The second switch is so I can turn the power off to the grow light while I am looking inside. That bottom box is where I tied the power for the grow light and the fan together.

This last pic is of some of the plants I have going at the moment. Nothing too impressive.

The plants are currently sitting on a little shelf I built. It isn't secured in anyway so I can remove it as plants get larger. This really won't be a concern now but I will need more vertical space next winter.