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Planning The Grow Space
Now that you have the preliminary planning and end goals completed it ’ s time to plan the grow area . If you are starting a build from the ground up , that ’ s great too — a blank canvas is always nice . Be sure to contact a professional for the setup of your floorplan if growing recreationally as there are more strict guidelines for rooms incorporated and general floor planning . Start by incorporating your grow systems , then lay out the lighting to be able to cover all the grow systems adequately . After your grow systems and lighting are planned then you can plan out the right amount of dehumidification , CO 2 , and fertigation . We must also consider the end goals when planning the room ( s ). If growing for extraction , then a smaller plant count with large plants is ideal to create lots of sugar leaf . If you are focusing on high-quality flower production , then a high plant count with smaller plants is ideal to create lots of top-focused flowers . A vertical grow space will of course require high ceilings and it will be subjected to a certain group of hydroponics or soil grow systems that would be ideal for that type of growth and maintenance . If growing on a larger scale indoors then it is recommended to stay away from soils as they can be very labour intensive , messy , and harbour bugs or moulds .
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Nursery
Every good functioning grow space has a nursery as well . In this nursery you should have your mother plants that you can clone from ( so you don ’ t need to take clones from an outside source ), and a cloning station where you can clone or spout seeds to start in your new grow . Seeds are the preferred way to start in any clean new grow space so you can pheno hunt the best strain and keep it for mother ( s ). If you have the space , it is ideal to have a small vegging area in your nursery as well so that you can pre-veg them prior to putting them in the flower rooms . The veg area can be joined with the nursery as it will be on a veg cycle as well ( 18 hours daylight , six hours nighttime ) and will require the same humidity and temperature levels .
Environment
Aside from HVAC , we still need to keep the air moving in the room , add CO 2 and keep the proper humidity levels depending on the plants ’ stage . Hang lots of wall and floor fans to keep the canopy and under-canopy air circulated . You may only need a few fans in the room when the plants are young but as they mature , and the canopy gets thick , you need much more wind power to move through them . Ensure that you not only outfit your flower rooms with dehumidifiers but also humidifiers so you can adjust the environment both ways as required depending on stages of growth ( although your nursery should only require a humidifier ).
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Grow systems : Plan these first considering budget and end goals
• Lighting : Plan lighting according to grow systems .
• Dehumidification / Humidification : Ensure you have proper dehumidification according to the size and number of plants in the room ( not room size ) and do not forget humidifiers .
• CO 2 : Add cold CO 2 or mushroom bags depending on the size of the room ( propane CO 2 burners are not ideal but do work as well ).
• Nursery : Depending on the size of your grow or facility your nursery may not need to be very large , but this is necessary for a well-functioning grow space .
• Fertigation or Irrigation : Irrigate your plants so they can be automatically fed or go the extra mile and add automated fertilizer applications to your feed .
• HVAC : Incorporate your HVAC last so you can include all the heat from the dehumidifiers , lighting , and other heatgenerating equipment and size the equipment properly .
Construction
When building your growroom ( s ) you do not want any wood or cloth in the room that can absorb bacteria . Walls and ceilings should be covered in either PVC wall panels or liners to keep a sterile environment that is easy to clean . Your sprays or humidity will not affect these walls or ceilings by allowing moisture to be absorbed or bacteria to hide . If you must have exposed wood in your growroom it ’ s recommended to paint with an anti-mould paint . When constructing the growing area , it ’ s best to start from the top and work your way down , taking care of the poly or PVC wall panel installation , then lighting and anything hanging from the ceiling , followed by the walls , wall fans , and then finally the grow systems and irrigation .
The proper setup of a grow space is essential to your success . This is not only due to the quality of your product but also the performance of your grow facility . It ’ s important to look down the road at your ongoing expenses like hydro , equipment costs , or fertilizers used . Setting your grow space up with sustainable practices such as solar , hydroponics , or recapturing water expelled from your plants can save the planet and your wallet so be sure to think hard about how you build your next grow .
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