24 hours of darkness to control vertical growth

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hepcatg

Active Member
Greetings... In discussing vertical growth control with a knowledgeable botanist friend of mine he mention using a 24hour darkness period on the weekend I transition the lights from 18/6 to 12/12 will stop vertical growth and initiate flowering. However he grows in dirt, I grow in water. So the thing we could not figure out is if or when, in hydroponics, you would water during a 24hour darkness cycle. So that is my question. Does anyone else use a 24hour darkness cycle to transition your plants? In hydro (ebb and flow) Do you water during a 24hour cycle?

cheers
bongsmilie
 
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hepcatg

Active Member
I guess I should have been more clear. Currently I use a ebb and flow (flood and drain) hydro system. during light hours I water/feed for 15 minutes every 2 hours. During dark hours I do not water/feed at all.

It is my understanding that feeding when the lights are out can cause mold and other problems with the root system. In the past I have watered when the lights were out but my plaint are healthier now that I don't.

So that is the basis for my questions. I am trying to avoid watering at night to avoid plaint problems. But a full 24 hours worries me.

Does anyone else do this? If so how often and when do you feed?

If at all I am thinking once in the middle. That is just based on the fact that I know my plaints will be fine without water for 12 hours, but mold still worries me.

cheers
 
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chronicdice88

Well-Known Member
personally i try to make my indoor grows as natural-like as possible. meaning in nature there is no 24hour darkness period so therefor it doesn't need to happen indoor. id love to see some evidence proving better yields or something otherwise.
 
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highpsi

Well-Known Member
I wouldn't follow this advice. 24hrs. of darkness isn't going to speed up the transition from Veg to flowering, and probably won't reduce the stretch (I'm inclined to think it would actually do the opposite). Just switch to 12/12 as per normal and be sure to go easy on nitrogen (too much N will cause excessive stretching), but do increase your phosphorus and potassium gradually as the plant goes fully into flowering mode (which takes about 3 weeks of 12/12). Also, be sure that you maximize your light intensity during this stage (ie. get those lights as close as possible without harming the plants), as this will also considerably reduce stretch. Another thing, make sure you have absolutely NO light leaks during the 12 hours of darkness. A light leak will not only reduce yield considerably, but also increases the likelyhood of stretching.
 
aknight3

aknight3

Moderator
one time i switched right from 18-6 to 12-12, took two weeks to shower flower, one time i switched after 36 hrs of darkness, they showed in 3 days, now im not saying thats scientific proof but for me, its experience, and thats anything better than ive ever read on this website. also i grow aeroponics, with sprayers and i feed at night, just not much, it wont cause mold as long as u have good vent, good air circulation and a fan on them, keep humidiity below 50 percent even at night
 
aknight3

aknight3

Moderator
yes 24 hrs of darkness, then the 12 more hrs dark they are intended then i started there 12 hr light schedule, worked fairly well ive only tried it once though
 
Al B. Fuct

Al B. Fuct

once had a dog named
No plant needs watering in lights-off.

No need for a long dark cycle when switching from veg to flower. Just switch to 12h.

A long dark cycle will not stop stretch. Stretch has a few causes, from low light levels to excessively high air temps.

If you want shorter plants, just don't veg them. In Sea Of Green, you simply put clones in to flower as soon as possible after they set root. This will produce a plant which is about 30-40" tall depending on the size of the HPS you have over them.
 
snow4aaron

snow4aaron

Active Member
Al B. Fuct said:
No plant needs watering in lights-off.

No need for a long dark cycle when switching from veg to flower. Just switch to 12h.

A long dark cycle will not stop stretch. Stretch has a few causes, from low light levels to excessively high air temps.

If you want shorter plants, just don't veg them. In Sea Of Green, you simply put clones in to flower as soon as possible after they set root. This will produce a plant which is about 30-40" tall depending on the size of the HPS you have over them.
Click to expand...
How much root mass does the clone need before switching over? A couple of roots poking out? three? five? ten?
 
stonedar

stonedar

Member
both askEd and the whore-hey ceventes recommend against a dark period before transition, thats always been enough to disuade me from trying it.
 
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Bigbux

Active Member
"Give plants 36 hours of total darkness just before inducing flowering with the 12/12 photoperiod. This heavy dose of darkness sends plants an unmistakable signal to flower sooner. Gwoers using this technique report that plants normally show signs of flowering, such as pistil formation, within two weeks and develop pistils after a week of flowering. "

Jorge Cervantes
Marijuana Horticulturte
The indoor/outdoor grow bible
2006 edition
page 164
 
Al B. Fuct

Al B. Fuct

once had a dog named
With all due respect to Jorge, the plants will do that just by switching them to 12/12, in the same time frame he specifies.
 
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ich1ban

Member
i know this is an old thread but wanted to post here since im currently in a similar situation.

My plants right now have been veggd for a month (18/6) and was planning to switch to 12/12this morning. i moved my grow box to a more secure location however i found out that my extension cord would only accept the regular 2 socket plugs and my ghetto rig uses 3 prong, one with a ground.

i have a new extension but i've passed the "sunrise time" for my plants, i didnt want to stress them by giving light on a time they aren't used to. so i decided i'll just leave them alone until next "sunrise time"
 
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bubbaj73

Member
I was wondering if it would be alright to only go 22 hours dark before flowering? instead of the usual 24-36.
thanks
 
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qtnguyen87

Member
hey bubba, you dont have to do 22....i gave my plant 24H and its been 9 days and no sign of veg yet. You can just go to 12/12 but 22 is fine also.
 
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