Got Hydro ?

It is amazing to look at various seeds and see something so beautiful literally come from nothing. Mother Nature never ceases to amaze us with the great strains she produces and we get to enjoy the harvest!

The seed, which is an embryo with two points of growth (one of which forms the stems the other the roots) is enclosed in a seed coat with some food reserves.

You can start your seedling by either using a humi-dome, tray, rock wool or peat moss cubes to get them started. You may need to use a heating pad but be careful and make sure you do not overheat your seedlings.

Also purchase a thermostat for your heating device to eliminate this problem. A warm moist environment is needed for successful plant germination. You will need to do your homework to find out the optimum germination temperatures needed for the seeds/strains you are trying to grow.

It is key to “ALWAYS” use reverse osmosis or filtered water to generate good seedlings or clones. Your tap water may be a little rough on the youngsters! Here is good process to follow when making clones:

What you need to do:
1. Use a dome/tray reservoir/plug tray for rock wool plugs/peat moss cubes
2. Filtered, distilled or reverse osmosis water
3. Fill bottom tray with water ½ way
4. Add either Clonnex cloning solution or Olivia’ cloning solution to water for a base nutrient
5. Insert seeds ½ way into plug tray then put plug tray in reservoir tray and place humi-dome on top. Make sure to have a slow speed fan blowing on the dome. The dome should have 2 air holes providing good circulation.
6. Use a heating pad but do not place the pad flush with the bottom of reservoir unless you are using a thermostat. Make sure to put a space in between the reservoir and the heating mat to ensure the clones do not get over heated. About an inch will suffice; you can use a couple off magazines to place under the reservoir to create a little space between.
7. It is also important to spray filtered water twice a day to create a humid atmosphere which is critical during the first stages of seedlings or clones.
8. You will also need to use a low powered fluorescent light to sustain the plant growth on top. Keep this light 1 foot above the dome. Remember light intensity needs to be kept at a minimum during this phase. Root growth is the key factor here. It is vital to keep an eye on your tray to make sure that burning does not occur.
9. Use a airstone/pump set up to assist in root development
10. Usually in 3-7 days you will see the sprouts arrive!
11. Keep an eye on your water levels! Make sure it is always ½ full
12. Once you have determined what you like you can usually transfer the youngsters to a larger grow medium within a couple of weeks after the plants are strong with a good root system.

***Special Note***
Make sure that your environment is clean with no pests especially if you have pets in the in or around the grow area. We recommend that you bug bomb your area with pyrethrums to avoid any issues from the start. Neem oil also branded as “Einstein oil” with filtered water should also be sprayed in dome the area as well in order to prevent mold and mites. Spider mites are incredibly aggressive and resilient. These little guys will ruin everything very fast! Adding an insecticide pest strip will also help… Prevention is the key all the way through to harvest. You should use neem oil all the way through!

Example:

Another way to start is by placing a seed in a moist paper towel folded over. Then put the folded towel into a bowl covered with plastic. Put this set up in a dark area at room temperature environment. 90% of seeds will germinate within 20 days but usually you will see this process take place in a couple of days. After this has been accomplished place the sprouted seed in a tray with a small hydroponics grow medium such as rock wool or pea moss cubes. You can also transfer this into a soil environment as well.

A B1 or Super Thrive product can assist with transplant shock which you could encounter when you transfer to soil/or a hydroponics mediums.

We also recommend that you use a root stimulator in order to kick off the “rhizosphere” this is the zone that surrounds the roots of plant. A couple of the best products to accomplish this with are “Rhizotonic” by Canna, “Sub-Culture” by General Hydroponics or “Guardian MY” from Botanicare.

These products contain friendly bacteria and friendly fungi to get your plant off to a good start…

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