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Most first-time grows fail on four points: water volume, root zone pH, light distance, and harvest date. Each one has a check you can run before the plant shows damage.
Mistake 1: Watering on a schedule
New growers water on a fixed day. Roots need oxygen. Media that stays wet for days kills root hairs and opens the door to rot. Lift the pot. Water when the top 2 to 3 inches of media feel dry and the pot feels light. In a 5-gallon pot of soil, expect 2 to 4 days between waterings in veg and 1 to 2 days in flower. Runoff should be 10 to 20 percent of what you pour in.
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Mistake 2: Ignoring pH
Nutrients dissolve in a narrow range. Soil runs at pH 6.0 to 7.0. Coco and hydro run at 5.5 to 6.5. A pH pen and calibration solution cost less than a replacement clone. Check input water and runoff. If pH drifts, fix the water, not the plant.
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Mistake 3: Too much nutrient
Feed charts are written for commercial rooms with high light and CO2. Start at half strength. Sign of excess: dark green leaves with burnt tips. Sign of shortage: pale lower leaves. Flush with pH-adjusted water, then resume at a lower dose.
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Mistake 4: Light too close, or no timer
Photoperiod plants need 18 hours of light in veg and 12 in flower. A timer costs about $15 and prevents a missed dark period. For LED boards, 24 to 36 inches in veg and 12 to 18 inches in flower is a safe start. Bleached top leaves mean the light is too close.
Mistake 5: No airflow
Still air holds moisture. Keep humidity at 40 to 60 percent in veg and 40 to 50 percent in flower. Run an oscillating fan that moves air across the canopy without blasting one cola. Exhaust air out of the room, not into the same closet.
Mistake 6: Harvest too early
Pistils turn brown weeks before the plant is ripe. Check trichomes on calyxes with a 30x loupe. Cloudy means peak THC. Amber past 20 percent means more sedation. Harvest in stages if the canopy is uneven.
Mistake 7: Fast dry, no cure
Dry at 60 to 70 F and 45 to 55 percent humidity for 7 to 14 days. Then jar the buds and open each jar for 10 minutes a day during the first week. Buds that dry in 3 days smell like hay.
Mistake 8: Skipping the legal check
Plant counts, canopy limits, and seed rules differ by state. Some states cap home grows at 6 plants per adult. Write down your counts and keep receipts. A legal grow is easier to defend than a good one.