Indoors
PLANTING INDOORS
A small indoor space should be found that can be used to germinate seeds; these vegetative starts are placed outside to mature
in the spring after last freezes are over. The space can be a closet, a section of a bedroom, a basement area, an attic or unused
bathroom. Some people devote entire bedrooms to growing.
The space must be light leak proofed, so that no suspicious light is seen from outside the house. This could invite fuzz or
rip-offs.
The space should be vented. Opening the door of a closet can be enough ventilation if the space is not lit by big lights that
generate a lot of heat. Separate exhaust and incoming air vents are best. One at the top of the room to exhaust air into the attic
or out the roof, and one to bring in air from an outside wall or under-floor crawl space. Use fans from old computer cabinets,
available from electronic liquidators for $5 each. Dimmer swithes can be used to regulate the speed/noise of the fans. Use
silicon to secure the fans to 4-6" PVC pipe pushed thru a round hole cut in the floor and ceilings. Use lots of silicon to damp the
fans vibrations, so that the walls do not resonate to the fans' ocsilations.
Line the walls with aluminum foil, dull side out to diffuse the light and prevent hot-spots, or paint the walls bright white to reflect
light. Aluminized mylar, 1 mil thick is best.($20 for 25 feet of a 4' wide roll.) Mirrors are not good to use, since the glass eats
light!
Line the floor with plastic in case of water spills, etc. Set up a voltage interrupt socket and be sure the electrical wiring will
handle the lamps your going to use. Always place ballasts for HID lamps on a shelf, so they are above floor level, in case of
water spills. Spacers place on the floor under a ballast will work too.
A shelf above the main grow area can be used to clone cuttings and germinate seedlings. It will allow you to double the area of
your grow space and is an invaluable storage area for plant food, spray bottles and other gardening supplies. This area stays
very warm, and no germination warming pad will be needed, so this arrangement saves you $.
Hang a light proof curtain to separate this shelf from the main area when used for flowering. This will allow constant lights on the
shelf and dark periods in the main grow area. Velcro can be used to keep the curtain in place and ties can be used to roll it up
when tending the garden. Black vinyl with white backing works best.
Now you need light. A couple of shop lights will be fine if you just want to start plants inside and then take them outside to
grow in a small greenhouse. They can be purchased with bulbs for about $10 each, or without bulbs for around $8. Try to find
them on sale. Use one Cool White and one Warm Light type bulb in each to get the best light spectrum possible for plant
growth. Do not use expensive Grow Lux type bulbs, as they do not put out as much light, and therefor do not work as well in
most situations (go figure). If Cool White is all you can find, or afford, use them. They work fine, and are by far the
cheapest.(About $1-2 each.)
SHELF GROWING
Shelf gardening with fluorescents may be the trend of the future, since the materials are so inexpensive, and easy to obtain.
Fluorescent lamps are great for shelf gardening. In this system, many shelves can be placed, one above the other, and
fluorescent lamps are used on each shelf. Some shelves have 24 hour lighting, some have 12 hour lighting (for flowering). Two
areas are best, perhaps with one other devoted to cloning and germination of seed.
Shelf gardening assumes your going to keep all plants 3' or shorter at maturity, so all shelves are 3-4 feet apart. Less light is
necessary when you have plants that are this short and forced to mature early.
One drawback to a shelf garden like this is that it is very time consuming to adjust the lamp height every day, and it is harder to
take a vacation for even a week with no tending of the garden. This applies mostly to the vegetative stage, when plants are
growing as much as an inch per day. Lamps on the flowering shelves are not adjusted nearly as often.
Normally, the lamps should be kept within 2 inches of the tops of the plants, with the plants arranged such that they get
progressively taller as the end of the lamps go up, so that all plants are within this 2" range. This is an ideal however, and if you
do go on vacation, adjust the lamps so that your sure the plants will not be able to grow up to the lamps within that length of
time. If enough flourecents are used to completely saturate the shelf with light, the spacing issue will not create spindly plants.
They will mearly grow a little slower if the lamps are not very close to them.
An alternative is to use fluorescent lamps for cloning, germination and early seedling growth on the top shelf of a closet, then
switch over to HPS for heavy vegatative growth and/or flowering in the main closet area.
Position the HPS such that it won't need adjustment, at the top most possible point in the closet or room. Most HPS
installations will not require lamp height adjustment. Just attach the lamp to the underside of shelf or ceiling as high as possible,
and if you want to get a few plants closer to it, put them on a temporary shelf, box or table to get them closer to the lamp.
A shelf is all that is necessary with this type of setup, preferably at least 18" wide, up to about 24" maximum. This area must be
painted a very bright white, or covered with aluminum foil, dull side out to reflect light back to the plants. (Dull side out prevents
hot-spots; diffuses light better.) Paint the shelf white too. Or, use aluminized mylar, a space blanket, or any silvery surface
material. Do not use mirrors, as the glass soaks up light.
Hang shop lamps from chains and make sure you can adjust them with hooks or some other type of mechanism so they can be
kept as close to the plants as possible at all times (1-2"). If the lamps are too far from the plants, the plants could grow long,
spindly stems trying to reach the lamp, and will not produce as much bud at maturity. This is due to internode length being much
longer. This is the length of stem between each set of leaves. If it is shorter, there can be more internodes, thus more branches,
thus a plant that provides more buds in less space at harvest time.
Shelf gardening is sometimes referred to as Sea of Green, because many plants are grown close together, creating a green
canopy of tops that are grown and matured quickly, and the next crop is started and growing concurrently in a separate area of
continuous light. Clones are raised in a constant light shelf, until they start to grow well vegetatively, then placed on a 12 hour
per day shelf to flower.
LIGHT
Indoors, 2000 lumens per sq. ft. is about as low as you want to go indoors. If you get under this mark, plant growth will
certainly not go as fast as possible, and internode/stem length will increase. Also, light distance to plants will be much more
critical. Daily adjustments to the lamps will be necessary, meaning you get no vacations.
2500 lumens psf should be a good target, and 3000 is optimal if your going to inject or enrich CO2 levels (more on that later).
High Intensity Discharge lamps are the best solution for most indoor growers. HID lamps come in 3 basic flavors: High
Pressure Sodium (HPS), Metal Halide (MH) and Mercury Vapor. Metal Halide is an improved spectrum, higher intensity
Mercury Vapor design. HPS is a yellowish sort of light, maybe a bit pink or orange. Same as some street lamps.
HPS lamps can be used to grow a crop from start to finish. Tests show that the HPS crop will mature 1 week later than a
similar crop under MH, but it will be a bigger yield, so it's better to wait the extra week.
The easiest HID to buy, and least expensive initially are the flourescent and mercury vapor lamps. MV will put out about 8000
lumens per 175 watts, and 150 watts of HPS puts out about 15k lumens, so HPS is almost twice as efficient. But the color
spectrum from MV lamp output is not as good. HPS is high in reds, which works well for flowering, while the Metal Halide is
rich in blues, needed for the best vegetative growth. Unfortunately, MV lamps provide the worst spectrum for plant growth, but
are very inexpensive to purchase.They are not recommended, unless you find them free, and even then, the electricity/efficiency
issues outweigh the initial costs saved.
400 watt HPS will output around 45k lumens. For every 500 watts of continuous use, you use about $20 a month in electricity,
so it is evident that a lamp taking half the power to output the same lumens (or twice the lumens at the same power level) will
pay for itself in a year or so, and from then on, continuous savings will be reaped. This is a simple initial cost vs. operating costs
calculation, and does not take into account the faster growth and increased yield the HPS lamp will give you, due to more light
being available. If this is factored into the calculation the HPS lamp will pay for itself with the first crop, when compared to MV
or fluorescent lamps, since it is easily twice as efficient and grows flowers faster and bigger.
Lamp Type Watts Lumens per bulb Total efficiency
Fluorescent Bulb 40 3000 400 watts = 30k lumens
Mercury Vapor 175 8000 400 watts = 20k lumens
Metal Halide 400 36000 400 watts = 36k lumens
High P. Sodium 400 45000 400 watts = 45k lumens
Notice the Mercury Vapor lamps are less efficient than the fluorescent (FL), and can not be positioned as close to the plants,
so the plants will not be able to use as much of the MV light. The light distribution is not as good either. MV lamps simply are
not suitable for indoor gardening. Use flourecent, MH, or HPS lamps only. Halogen arc lamps generate too much heat and not
very much light for the wattage they use, and are also not recommened, even though the light spectrum is suitable for decent
growth.
There is a new type of HPS lamp called Son Agro, and it is available in a 250, 1000, and 400 watt range. The 400 is actually
430 watts; they have added 30 watts of blue to this bulb. It is a very bright lamp (53k lumens) and is made for greenhouse use.
These bulbs can be purchased to replace normal HPS bulbs, so they are an option if you already own a HPS lamp. The beauty
of this bulb is that you do not give up most of the advantages of MH lamps, such as minimal internode spacing and early
maturation, like most HPS users do, and you have all advantages of a HPS lamp. One bulb does it all.
Internodal length of plants grown with the Son Agro are the shortest ever seen with any type of lamp. Plants grown under this
lamp are incredibly bushy, compact and grow very fast. Son Agro bulbs however, do not last as long as normal HPS bulbs.
There is something like a 25% difference in bulb life.
Metal Halide (MH) is another option, and is available in both a 36k and 40k lumen bulbs for the 400 watt size. The Super Bulb
(40k) is about $10-15 more, and provides an extra 4000 lumens. I think the Super Bulb may last longer; if so, that makes it the
way to go. Halide light is more blue and better than straight HPS for vegetative growth, but is much less efficient than HPS. It is
possible to purchase conversion bulbs for a MH lamp that convert it to HPS, but the cost of the conversion bulb is more
expensive than the color corrected Son Agro bulb, so I would recommend just buying the Son Agro HPS. Even though it costs
more initially, you get more for your energy dollar later, and it's much easier to hang than 10 fluorescent tubes.
If you have a MH 36k lumen lamp burning at 400 watts and a 53k lumen HPS burning at 430 watts, which is better efficiency
wise? Which will provide a better yield? Obviously, the Son Agro HPS, but of course, the initial cost is higher. Actually, the
ballast will add about 10% to these wattage numbers.
The Son Agro bulb will prove much better than the MH for any purpose. The MH bulb does not last as long, but is cheaper.
Compare $36 for a 400 watt MH bulb vs. $40 for the HPS bulb. Add $15 for the Son Agro HPS. The HPS bulb life is twice
as long. 10k hours vs. 21k hours. The Son Agro is 16k hours or so. Still, longer bulb life and more light add up to more for
your energy dollar long term.
Horizontal mounting of any HID is a good idea, as this will boost by 30% the amount of light that actually reaches the plants.
Most HID's sold for indoor garden use these days are of this horizontal mounting arrangement.
HPS is much less expensive to operate than any other type of lamp, but comes in the 70 watt size at the home improvement
stores. This size is not very efficient, but blows away FL in efficiency, so they might be an alternative to FL for very small
operations, like 9 sq. feet or less. Over 9 sqr. feet, you need more light than one of these lamps can provide, but you could use
two of them. 70 watt HPS lamps cost about $40 each, complete. Two lamps would be 140 watts putting out about 12k
lumens, so it's better than FL, but a 150 watt HPS puts out about 18k lumens, the bulb life is longer, bulbs are cheaper and the
lamp more efficient to operate. The biggest problem is that the mid size lamps like the 150 and 250 watt HPS are almost as
expensive to buy as the larger 400's. For this reason, if you have room for the larger lamp, buy the 400. If your going pro, a
1080 watt model is available too, but you might find there is better light distribution from two 400's rather than one large lamp.
Of course, the two smaller lamps are more expensive to purchase than one large lamp, so most people choose the larger lamp
for bigger operations.
Heat buildup in the room is a factor with HID lamps, and just how much light the plants can use is determined by temperature,
CO2 levels, nutrient availability, PH, and other factors. Too big of a lamp for a space will make constant venting necessary, and
then there is no way to enrich CO2, since it's getting blown out of the room right away.
Bulb Costs: the bulb cost on the 70 watt HPS is $24, the 150 is only $30, and the 400 is only $40. So you will spend more to
replace two 70 watt bulbs than you will to replace one 400 watt HPS. (Go figure.) Add that up with the lower resale value on
the 70's (practically nothing) and the fact that they are being modified and are not suited to this application, and it becomes
evident that $189 for a 250 HPS lamp, or $219 for a 400, might just be worth the price. Keep in mind that for $30 more, you
can have the larger lamp (400watt) and it puts out 20k lumens more light than the smaller lamp. Not a bad deal!
Here is the breakdown on prices (from memory):
Type Complete Cost Bulb Cost Bulb Life Lumens
HPS 400 $219 $40 18k hours 50k
MH 400 $175 $37 10k hours 36k
Son Agro400 $235 $55 15k hours 53k
Super MH400 $190 $45 ?? 40k
MH 250 $149 $32 ?? 21k
HPS 250 $165 $36 ?? 27k
HPS agro250 $180 $53 ?? 30k
MH 150 $139 $25 ?? 14k
HPS 175 $150 $30 ?? 17k
If your looking for these types of lamps, look in the Yellow Pages under gardening, nursuries, and lighting for indoor gardening
stores in your area.
SEA OF GREEN
Sea of Green (SOG) is the theory of harvesting lots of small plants, matured early to get the fastest production of buds
available. Instead of growing a few plants for a longer period of time, in the same space many smaller plants are grown that
mature faster and in less time. Thus, less time is required between crops. This is important to you when the electricity bill comes
each month. One crop can be started while another is maturing, and a continuous harvest, year round can be maintained. 4
plants per square foot will be a good start for seedlings. 1 plant per square foot will allow plenty of room for each plant to grow
a large top cola, but will not allow for much bottom branching. This is OK since indoors, these bottom branches are always
shaded anyway, and will not grow very well unless given additional light and space. The indoor grower quickly realizes that
plants that are too tall do not produce enough at the bottom to make the extra growing time used worth while. An exception to
this rule would be if it is intended the plants are to go outside at some point, and it is expected that the light/shading issue will
not be a factor at that point.
The plants, if started at the same time, should create what is called a "green canopy" that traps most of the light at the top level
of the plants. Little light will penetrate below this level, since the plants are so close together. The gardener is attempting to
concentrate on the top of the plant, and use the light and space to the best advantage, in as little time as possible. Use of nylon
poultry fence or similar trellising laid out over the green canopy will support the plants as they start to droop under the weight of
heavy fruiting tops. Stakes can be used too, but are not as easy to install for plants in the middle and back of the room, where
reach is more difficult.
It's easy to want big plants, since they will produce more yield per plant, but it's usually better with limited space to grow
smaller plants that mature faster and pack into smaller spaces. Sea of Green was developed in Holland. Instead of fitting 4 large
plants in that small room, fit 12 small ones on a shelf above 12 other small plants. These plants take only 3-4 months to mature
from germination to ripe buds, and harvesting takes place constantly, since there is both a vegetative and flowering area
devoted to each, with harvests every 45-60 days.
It's not the size of the plant, but the maturity and quality of the product that counts. Twice as many plants grown half as big will
fill the grow space twice as fast, so harvests take place almost twice as often. Get good at picking early flowering plants, and
propagate only those that are of the best quality.
6" square containers will allow for 4 plants per square foot. You may also gauge by the size of your growing tray (for passive
hydroponics); I like kitty litter boxes. ($3 each at Target) Planted 4 per square foot, (for vegatative seedlings) a 12 sq. ft. closet
will hold 48 seedlings on one shelf. In my case, I use 4" rockwool cubes that fit into kitty litter pans @ 12 cubes per pan. I can
get 5 pans onto a 12 sq. ft. closet upper shelf, so that is 60 seedlings on one small shelf!
For flowering indoors, 1 plant per sq. ft. is a good rule of thumb for SOG. If less plants are grown in this size space, it will take
them longer to fill the space, thus more electricity and time will be used to create the same amount of product. If more than one
plant p.s.f. is attempted, the grower will soon find that plants thus crowded tend to be more stem than bud, and the total harvest
may be reduced, so be cautious.
It's good to avoid "topping" your plants if you want them to grow as fast as possible. It's better just to grow 2 or 4 times more
plants, since they will produce more, faster, in the same space. Also, "training" plants with twist-ties is a great way to get them
to bush out a bit. Just take any type of plastic or paper twist tie and wrap it around the top of the plant, then pull it over until the
top is bent over 90-180 degrees and then attach this to the main stem lower on the plant. Do this for one week and then release
the plant from it's bond. The plant can be trained in this fashion to take less vertical space and to grow bushier, to fill the grow
space and force lower limbs to grow upward and join the green canopy. This technique takes advantage of the fact that if the
top is pulled over, it creates a hormonal condition in the plant that makes it bush out at all lower internodes.
Sea of Green entails growing to harvest the main cola (top) of the plant. Bottom branches are trimmed to increase air flow
under the "blanket" of growing tops. Use these cuttings for clones, as they are the easiest part of the plant to root. It's also the
fastest part of the plant to regenerate after flowering has occurred.
GERMINATION
Germinate seeds in sterile soil (for planting outdoors) or a hydroponic medium of rockwool or vermiculite. DO NOT (!) use a
Jiffy cube #7 to germinate seeds. Informal tests and experience show these peat cubes do not work well and stunt the plants
growth. Planting in vermiculite gives the seedling so much oxygen, and are so easy for roots to grow in, that the plants look
large 1 week after germination!
Keep them moist at all times, by placing seeds in vermiculite filled 16oz cups with holes in the bottom, placed in a tray of weak
nutrient solution, high in P. Rockwool cubes also work extremely well. When the seed sprouts, place the rockwool cubes into
larger rockwool cubes. No repotting or transplanting, and no soil mixing!
You can germinate seeds in a paper towel. This method is tricky; it's easy to ruin roots if they dry out, or are planted too late
after germinating. Paper towels dry out REAL FAST! Place paper towel in a bowl, saturated with weak nutrient solution (not
too much!), and cover with plastic wrap to keep it from drying out. Put bowl in a warm area; top of the gas stove, water heater
closet, or above warm lamps. Cover with black paper to keep out light. Check every 12 hours and plant germinated seeds with
the grow tip up (if possible) in a growing medium as soon as the root coming out of the seed is 1/16" or longer. Use tweezers,
and don't touch the root tip.
Transplant as little as possible by germinating in the same container you intend to grow the plant in for a significant period of
time. Just plant in vermiculite or rockwool. You will be amazed at the results! 90% germination is common with this method, as
compared to 50% or less with Jiffy Cubes. (Your milage may vary.)
5-55-17 plant food such as Peter's Professional will stimulate root growth of the germinating seed and the new seedlings. Use a
very dilute solution, in distilled water, about 1/3 normal strength, and keep temperatures between 72-80 degrees. Warm
temperatures are very important. Many growers experience low germination rate if the temperatures are out of this range. A
heating pad set to low or medium may be necessary, or a shelf constantly warmed by a light may do, but test it with a few
seeds first, before devoting next years crop to it. No light is necessary and may slow germination. Cover germinating seeds with
black paper to keep out light. Place seedlings in the light once they sprout.
Plan on transplanting only once or twice before harvest. Use the biggest containers possible for the space and number of
seedlings you plan to start. Plants will suffer if continuously transplanted and delay harvesting. You will suffer too, from too
much work! 13 2-liter plastic soda bottles filled with vermiculite/pearlite will fit in a cat box tray, and will not require
transplanting for the first harvest, if you intend to grow hydroponically. Transplant them for a second regenerated harvest.
Cut holes in the bottom of containers and fill the last few inches at the top with vermiculite only, to start seeds or accept
seedling transplants. Since vermiculite holds water well, wicks water well, but does not hold too much water, roots always have
lots of oxygen, even if they are sitting in a tray full of water. A hydrogen peroxide based plant food is used to get extra oxygen
to the plants when the pans are kept continuously full. The water can be allowed to recede each time after watering, before new
solution is added. This allows the plants roots to dry somewhat, and make sure they are getting enough oxygen.
Use SuperSoil brand potting soil, as it is excellent and sterilized. If you insist on using dirt from the yard, sterilize it in the
microwave or oven until it gets steamy.(NOT RECOMMENDED) Sterilize the containers with a bleach solution, especially if
they have been used a previous season for another plant.
VEGETATIVE GROWTH
Once sprouted, the plant starts vegetative growth. This means the plant will be photosynthesizing as much as possible to grow
tall and start many grow tips at each pair of leaves. A grow tip is the part that can be cloned or propagated asexually. They are
located at the top of the plant, and every major internode. If you "top" the plant, it then has two grow tips at the top. If you top
each of these, you will have 4 grow tips at the top of the plant. (Since it takes time for the plant to heal and recover from the
trauma of being pruned, it faster to grow 4 smaller plants and not top them at all. Or grow 2 plants, and "train" them to fill the
same space. Most growers find)
All plants have a vegetative stage where they are growing as fast as possible after the plant first germinates from seed. It is
possible to grow plants with no dark period, and increase the speed at which they grow by 15-30&. Plants can be grown
vegetatively indefinitely. It is up to the gardener to decide when to force the plant to flower. A plant can grow from 12" to 12'
before being forced to flower, so there is a lot of latitude here for each gardener to manage the garden based on goals and
space available.
A solution of 20-20-20 with trace minerals is used for both hydroponic and soil gardening when growing continuously under
lights. Miracle Grow Patio or RapidGrow plant food is good for this. A high P plant food such as Peter's 5-50-17 food is used
for blooming and fruiting plants when beginning 12 hour days. Epsom salts (1tsp) should be used in the solution for magnesium
and sulfur minerals. Trace minerals are needed too, if your food does not include them. Miracle Grow Patio includes these trace
elements, and is highly recommended.
Keep lights on continuously for sprouts, since they require no darkness period like older plants. You will not need a timer
unless you want to keep the lamps off during a certain time each day. Try to light the plants for 18 or more hours, or
continuously at this point.
Bend a young plant's stem back and forth to force it to be very thick and strong. Spindly stems can not support heavy flowering
growth. An internal oscillating fan will reduce humidity on the leave's stomata and improve the stem strength as well. The
importance of nternal air circulation can not be stressed enough. It will excersize the plants and make them grow stronger, while
reducing many hazards that could ruin your crop.
HYDROPONIC VEGATATIVE SOLUTION, per gallon:
Miracle Grow Patio (contains trace elements) 1 teaspoon
Epsom salts 1/2 teaspoon
Human Urine (OPTIONAL - may create odors indoors.) 1/4 cup
Oxygen Plus Plant Food (OPTIONAL) 1 teaspoon
This mixture will insure your plants are getting all major and minor nutrients in solution, and will also be treating your plants with
oxygen for good root growth, and potassium nitrate for good burning qualities. Another good GROWTH PHASE mix is 1/4
tsp Peter's 20/20/20 fertilizer per gallon of water, with trace elements and oxygen added, or fish emulsion. Fish emulsion is
great in the grean-house or outdoors, where smells are not an issue, but is not recommended for indoors, due to its strong
odor.
FLOWERING
The the plant will be induced to fruit or flower with dark cycles of 11-13 hours that simulate the oncoming winter in the fall as
the days grow shorter. As a consequence, it works out well indoors to have two separate areas; one that is used for the initial
vegetative state and one that is used for flowering and fruiting. There is no other requirement other than to keep the dark cycle
for flowering very dark with no light interruptions, as this can stall flowering by days or weeks.
Once a plant is big enough to mature (12" or over), dark periods are required for most plants to flower and bear fruit. This will
require putting the lamp on a timer, to create regular and strict dark periods of uninterrupted light. In the greenhouse, the same
effect can be created in the Summer (long days) by covering it with a blanket to make longer night periods. A strict schedule of
covering the plants at 8pm and uncovering them at 8am for 2 weeks will start your plants to flowering. After the first 2 weeks,
the schedule can be relaxed a little, but it will still be necessary to continue this routine for the plants to completely flower
without reverting back to vegatative growth.
Outdoors, Spring and Fall, the nights are sufficiently long to induce flowering at all times. Merely bring the plants from indoors
to the outside at these times, and the plants will flower naturally. In late Summer, with Fall approaching, it may be necessary
only to force flowering the first two weeks, then the rapidly lengthening nights will do the rest.
Give flowering plants high P plant food and keep them on a strict light regimen of 12 hours, with no light, or no more than a full
moon during the dark cycle. 13 hours light, 11 dark may increase flower size while still allowing the plant to go into the
flowering mode. Use longer dark periods to speed maturity toward the end of the flowering cycle if speed is of the essence.
(8-10 days) This will however, reduce total yield.
Two shelves can be used, one identical to the other, if strictly indoor gardening is desired. One shelf's lights are set for 12-13
hours, and one is lit continuously. Plants are started in continuous light, and are moved to the other shelf to flower to maturity
after several weeks. This flowering shelf sho
Email: tripper1425@angelfire.com
