Germination

Experience is the best thing for germination.  Here's some advice and tips on how to get good growing, healthy, flowering plants you'll enjoy smoking.

Rockwool Plugs:  A very good medium for germinating .  Make sure to move the rockwool plug to a block or soil in a matter of 2 to 3 days.  This gives the taproot a good shot at developing fully.  It's cool to directly sow into the bloc to prevent less work.

Rockwool Blocks:  Great for the large scale grow ops.  Flush blocks well to lower the pH and stack the rockwool on top each other.  Water draws away from the top to prevent saturation.  Make sure you regulate your humidity.  Place your blocks in a Duma tray and fill the holes with germinating soil.  Sow your seed .5 to 1 cm. deep.  Cover so dry out doesn't occur and keep in a warm place.  Make sure the tray gets lit after 2 days. For a temperature around 23 degrees Celsius germinating should take place in 2 days.  The plants won't lose growing potential when you put your blocks on the slabs after 12 to 14 days.

Jiffy Pots:  A more expensive method for germinating seeds.  The pots dry out quickly and are only suitable for soil growing.  Molds develop very quickly when too humid.  It's a pretty good medium but you have to take care closely everyday.  Make sure you move your germinated seedlings into bigger mediums quickly.  Not great for large scale grow ops.

Pots With Soil:  The most natural and easiest medium to germinate seeds.  Use pre-fertilized potting soil.  Fill your potters about 3/4 with this soil and the remaining 1/4 fill with germinating soil.  Gently press down so you have a little ridge to prevent water from getting over the edges.  Plant seeds .5 to 1 cm. deep.  It's best to use disposable pots you can cut the bottom out to allow an easy transfer to bigger pots.  A plant releases it's waste in the top layer of the medium and it's not a good idea to flush this waste back into the drinking roots every time you water.  Fix drippers at the back of the slab and not in the .

Outdoors:  Success depends on the weather.  Autumn can bring too much humidity.  Sow only when you realize there will be no more frost.  When outside temperature increases the plants will start to grow fast.  Sow only 1 cm. deep in airy type soil.  Extra fertilizer should not be necessary.  Do not water directly on the stem which prevents unwanted extra salt and minerals from reaching the drinking roots.  A good practice is to germinate indoors and then bring the strong seedlings outside to mature.  Pay attention to light hours, if you transplant outside make sure the light hours are the same.  If you bring out seedlings used to 20 hours of light and all of a sudden they are only getting 16 hours during spring time, they will flower sooner.

NOTES:  Use a fine sand for germinating soil, airy let's the roots grow fast.  Keep water to  6.3 pH, keep the seedlings humid but not drenched.  Use a water sprayer on the underside of your dome.  Full light for 20 hours a day for the first few days.  Hang your lights as close as possible to your seedlings.  Test the light with the back of your hand like testing baby milk.  Keep spraying until the husk comes off the germinating seedling naturally.  Do not pull off that husk.  Make sure you keep your lights as close as possible to prevent thin stems.  Give nutrition only after there has been light on them for 2 days.  Always be checking the soil and water pH with your new pH meter you're going to buy right now.

GERMINATION