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Issue #508 - Sunday, January 9, 2022
Dear Fellow Grower,
In today's issue...
- You might already know how to germinate seeds. You might even already have great success rates with germination. But what if you could make those chances even better for less than $30 (average cost of 3 seeds) while also making the whole process faster? That's exactly what we're going to show you today: a way to perfect your germination rates while also speeding up the process.
- Check out the strains I'm germinating now! I'm growing a mix of Seed Supreme, Square One Genetics, Big Head Seeds, and Ethos
strains!
- Grow journal: check out the last update before my giant auto-flowering harvest next week!
- It happened again! This week's trophy pics are a mixture of bitter and sweet. You'll see a cannabis plant under attack and possibly help solve a mystery. Then you'll be treated to some plants that are just plain excellent. It's like a 4-course meal where the first course is bugs, but the rest is 5-star cuisine. Think of it as a challenging appetizer!
Nebula Haze & Sirius Fourside (founders of GrowWeedEasy.com)
"Life is thickly sown with thorns, and I know no other remedy than to pass quickly through them. The longer we dwell on our misfortunes, the greater is their power to harm us."
~Voltaire
How to Improve Germination Rates with a Reptile Heat Mat
🦎🌞➕🌱➡🌳
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Some cannabis seeds can’t be replaced. You may have a strain or cross that’s no longer available. In the past, I’ve tried to order cannabis seeds again, only to find the breeder
disappeared. Sometimes germination problems cause irreplaceable losses. On top of that, cannabis seeds can get expensive, especially small-batch seeds or experimental seed crosses, which means if seeds don’t sprout you are down significant cash.
So far I’ve had 100% germination using this method (including several seeds that were 2 years old). Learn how to do this yourself in today’s germination tutorial.
Germination problems are some of the most frustrating problems when growing cannabis. It seems like you should be able to stick a marijuana seed in some soil and let nature take care of germination. Why is it so hard to germinate seeds? What can a beginner or
experienced grower do to improve germination rates? Bonus: Why are some seeds harder to germinate than others?
What cannabis seeds want during germination:
- Moisture – never let seeds dry out after they get wet, but also don't let seeds sit in liquid water or seedlings may "drown" after they crack open the seed
- Warm – 80°F / 26°C is perfect, though any temperature between 75-85°F (24-30°C) is good
- Dark – too much light can hurt germination so it’s recommended to germinate seeds in the dark
- No touching – try not to touch or move seeds after they start germinating until they sprout
- Clean – bacteria and microscopic fungi can slow or stop germination so make sure to wash your hands before handling seeds and germinate seeds in a clean place
So what's the best way to give this perfect germination environment? Today I want to share the cannabis germination method I use. I've found most germination methods work, but one of the key things that seem to help germination go faster (and reduce the number of seeds that don't germinate) is warmth. Seeds want it to be warm but not hot, like they're just under the surface of the soil on a sunny spring day after a light rain.
Seeds want to “feel” like they’re just under the surface in moist dirt on a warm day. Your job is to give them a better version of nature.
Over the years I've struggled to achieve the perfect germination temperature. In my experience, “seedling heat mats” don’t keep a consistent temperature, and they often get too hot after a few days. I’ve germinated seeds on a seedling heat mat and I’m pretty sure they
got cooked, which caused them to take much longer to germinate. So how can you achieve the perfect 80°F / 26°C temperature that seeds love? Reptile heat mat!
Why a reptile heat mat?
When you keep a cold-blooded animal like a reptile as a pet, you need to provide heat to keep them warm. However, you want to make sure their home is always the perfect temperature. If it gets too cold or hot, they can die. It’s up to you as the owner to make sure they get just-the-right temperature so they’re happy and healthy.
Pet snakes and other reptiles can't control their own temperature so they need you to provide just the right amount of warmth
That’s why reptile heat mats were first created. It’s essentially a seedling heat mat, except it has a probe with a sensor to allow you to choose the exact temperature that you want. For example, you can set the heat mat to keep the temperature a steady 80°F / 26°C
and the controller will turn the heat mat on and off so it stays exactly that temperature day and night. I’ve found that using one of these mats causes seeds to germinate much faster than if they weren’t heated, but (unlike with regular seedling heat mats) the sensor prevents the mat from ever getting too hot and cooking the seeds.
This reptile heat mat took my marijuana seed germination rates from 90-95% to almost 100% germination every time.
Ready for faster germination?
New strains to start off the year
🎉🌳🎊
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These are the strains I germinated for this article that I'll be using for my upcoming grow journal (clockwise from top left):
I thought it would be fun to grow strains from 4 different breeders to see how they stack up. Just curious, who's your favorite breeder?
~Nebula
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Auto-Flowering Grow Journal: Week 12
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I expect to harvest these beautiful plants soon!
Here's the untrained tent under the ES300 LED grow light - these plants have been given nothing but water since germination
Now the trained tent (same autoflowering strains in the same order, but these ones were topped and trained to stay short). What a different tent!
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"Thanks for all the valuable info you provide!"
~Ryan
You're very welcome, Ryan! ~Sirius
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"Thanks for all your hard work and willingness to share your knowledge."
~Tom A.
We're obligated to share the knowledge. The more of us there are, the less they can touch our rights as growers. 💪 ~Sirius
"I’d just like to offer a couple general thanks.
First, as a new grower, it’s overwhelming how much information there is out there. I’ve learned more accurate information from your site than all the other material I’ve read to date, and it’s written in a language I can understand.
Second, you’ve taught me more about my ES300 with the Auto Flowering Grow Journal than I learned directly from Green Sunshine. The adjustment dial instructions on the light are confusing and I think keep the light too far from the plants.
Third, thank you for using US Measurements!!!
Merry Christmas to everyone at GWE!"
~Mark
I know I posted this one late, but I just wanted to say that we had a wonderful Christmas and New Years. I sincerely hope with all my heart that this years goes well for everyone reading this. 💚 ~Sirius
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"Under a 20x magnifying scope they look like eels. This is the second time I had them, I disinfect the system between every grow.
I noticed them in the middle tube first, after I noticed that the fan leaves were turning yellow and then moving onto the sugar leaves.
Any help would be much appreciated. Thank you."
~Nelson
[Note: this plant is growing in an NFT setup.] Okay, so this one might be a little gross, so you've been warned. This grower is looking for help and we're not familiar with this bug. We think it might be what's called a "Drain Fly" (Genus Clogmia) due to the fact that's it's living in such a wet environment (hydroponic grow style). What do you all think? ~Sirius
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"Hi everyone….loving all the info on this excellent site. This is my first indoor grow in coco with 3 super skunk & 2 white widows using isn nutrients & medi bud. I’ve been dealing with some high temps here during a heatwave but so far things are ok (I think). Would value any feedback here & as I’m on wk 6 from flipping some harvest advice would be really welcome. Thank you"
~Kezz18
Overall, your plants look good. I can see you have a clear sticky-card, so that's good. The plant in the bottom-left is a little light and I would check it for thrips just in case.
But altogether, you're in solid shape to produce a good harvest and buds look great. Let me know how it goes 👍~Sirius
"[No description included.]"
~Stargazer Studio
I love to mess with people's pictures, but I had to leave these ones alone. This is art as far as I'm concerned. ~Sirius
"This is a Blueberry plant on day 26 of flower. The other 3 are pics of trichomes from this plant but from day 52 of flower. I've never seen trichomes look like this before."
~JustBuddingAround
WOW~! 😲🤯💜🏆 ~Sirius
Quick Guide to Plant Problems
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Scammers Hide In the Shadows...
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It's like this, but less entertaining.
They take your money and run off into the night...or broad daylight.
You'll never know when or where a scammer is lying in wait to steal your money, info, or very identity. If something seems like a scam or just sets off alarms in your head, err on the side of caution and act as if it were a scam. Americans lost more than $43 billion to just one kind of scam, and that was just in 2020. Be careful out there and watch out for each other, my friends!
Remember when it comes to buying seeds: Real seed businesses don't contact you. They let you contact them. If anyone messages you to sell you seeds on social media, look out! It's possible they will take your payment and send nothing. Always take a second to think before sending money to anyone, especially if they contact you (whether by DM, text message, phone call, email, etc.).
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Recommended Cannabis Seed Sources
These sources have gotten great reviews from our readers:
- Seed Supreme – California, United States
- ILGM (I Love Growing Marijuana) – California, United States
- Herbies Seeds – Europe (seemingly out of the UK and Spain)
We encourage you to forward this email to a friend in need!
GrowWeedEasy.com has hundreds and hundreds of pages!
Check out some articles you may not have seen...
- Fail-Proof Cannabis Germination Method in Soil or Coco - The main article of this newsletter shows you how to improve your germination rates. But for that to work, you have to know how to germinate seeds. Germination can cost lots of time and money if done incorrectly, so make sure you know what to
do!
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How to Germinate & Transplant Cannabis Seedlings - Not only will this article give you more information on germination, but you'll also learn how to transplant your new seedlings so that 100% of them make it to your medium. Remember, transplanting is just as crucial as germination.
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How to Clone Weed in a Cup of Water (Easy!) - If you don't want to deal with seeds, you can skip them entirely! Just one god clone can turn into a vast army of plants, clones, and seeds; you just have to know how to multiply them. The method described on this page is the easiest and cheapest way to clone, although it takes a bit
longer to get going. Still, it's almost free!
- Is 12-12 From Seed Worth It? - Hopefully, you didn't miss this article since it was from last week, but if you did, make sure you check it out. Many new growers think 12-12 from seed is a good idea (and it sounds like a good idea), but it just doesn't work out the way you think it would. In short, it's not worth it. For
the full answer, click the link above.
Check Out Our Grow Community!
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Check out our friendly growing community to ask questions, discuss your grow, share pictures, or otherwise talk about growing cannabis with other real growers!
Ask Questions & Talk with Other Growers!
Please note: We let each person in manually, so please be patient after you request to join. We'll let you in as soon as possible!!
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Who Runs This
Newsletter? |
Nebula Haze:
When I first started growing, I struggled. Now, it is my mission to make it easy for new growers to get started while helping advanced growers get bigger, better yields with less time and money. We update/add articles every week. Anyone and everyone can grow if they want to!
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Learn which seed sources are recommended by Nebula Haze |
Sirius Fourside:
Sirius Fourside is a hobbyist grower who has gained the bulk of his experience growing in water as a medium (deep water culture, bubbleponics).
"Growing cannabis can be a relaxing hobby in and of itself, but it also saves you money and keeps you from having to deal with shady characters. Cannabis is much easier to grow than people give it credit for, and growing in water doesn't increase the difficulty much, if any. But whether you want to grow in water, coco, or a different medium, we'll show you how easy it can be!"
Copyright (c) 2022 GrowWeedEasy.com
NOTE: If links aren't working or if pictures are not showing up properly, please view the full newsletter here: http://archive.aweber.com/gwe-updates
Disclaimer: Grow Weed Easy only recommends products that we've either personally checked out ourselves, or that come from people we know and trust. For doing so, we may receive a commission. Nothing in this e-mail should be considered personalized Financial, Legal, or Medical Advice. The contributors to this magazine grow legally under their local laws but
are not lawyers or medical professionals. Any decision to grow marijuana should only be made after consulting with an experienced lawyer or other legal adviser. Any medical decisions should only be made after speaking with a doctor. Be safe!
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