Are we there yet? (just kidding)

Every time I see a question like this it makes me smile. This thread is really posed for the new growers as an example. To the rest of you, this is preaching to the choir.

This girl is in the early stages of flower and a long way from harvest (looong way). The hit parade is : indoor, soil, top dressing recharge, no liquid nutes, nothing added other than water for the first 4 weeks, 3'x4' tent, 5 gal. pot, 450w LED @ 50% to keep heat down, total air exchange every 60 seconds, tap water. She's a sativa dominant auto, purported to be Blue Dream at 12 weeks since sprouting. As a general rule of thumb I like to take the breeder's total grow time and consider that to be flower period alone. Seems close enough for me, because I go by the appearance of the 'fruit' and not the clock. I don't check trichomes to harvest tomatoes, you can tell when they are ripe by appearance (yes, they have trichs too as do approximately 30% of all plants).

I'm not looking for advice, praise or anything really. I just wanted to share something for the noobs that might be helpful.
Have fun and don't take this all too seriously. Enjoy & have patience!

Cynister said:

Every time I see a question like this it makes me smile. This thread is really posed for the new growers as an example. To the rest of you, this is preaching to the choir.

This girl is in the early stages of flower and a long way from harvest (looong way). The hit parade is : indoor, soil, top dressing recharge, no liquid nutes, nothing added other than water for the first 4 weeks, 3'x4' tent, 5 gal. pot, 450w LED @ 50% to keep heat down, total air exchange every 60 seconds, tap water. She's a sativa dominant auto, purported to be Blue Dream at 12 weeks since sprouting. As a general rule of thumb I like to take the breeder's total grow time and consider that to be flower period alone. Seems close enough for me, because I go by the appearance of the 'fruit' and not the clock. I don't check trichomes to harvest tomatoes, you can tell when they are ripe by appearance (yes, they have trichs too as do approximately 30% of all plants).

I'm not looking for advice, praise or anything really. I just wanted to share something for the noobs that might be helpful.
Have fun and don't take this all too seriously. Enjoy & have patience!

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Thank you for sharing.

Cynister said:

Every time I see a question like this it makes me smile. This thread is really posed for the new growers as an example. To the rest of you, this is preaching to the choir.

This girl is in the early stages of flower and a long way from harvest (looong way). The hit parade is : indoor, soil, top dressing recharge, no liquid nutes, nothing added other than water for the first 4 weeks, 3'x4' tent, 5 gal. pot, 450w LED @ 50% to keep heat down, total air exchange every 60 seconds, tap water. She's a sativa dominant auto, purported to be Blue Dream at 12 weeks since sprouting. As a general rule of thumb I like to take the breeder's total grow time and consider that to be flower period alone. Seems close enough for me, because I go by the appearance of the 'fruit' and not the clock. I don't check trichomes to harvest tomatoes, you can tell when they are ripe by appearance (yes, they have trichs too as do approximately 30% of all plants).

I'm not looking for advice, praise or anything really. I just wanted to share something for the noobs that might be helpful.
Have fun and don't take this all too seriously. Enjoy & have patience!

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Just curious, but how long have you been growing?

PadawanWarrior said:

Just curious, but how long have you been growing?

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I've been growing for decades outdoors, but inside has only been a couple years. Even with a lot of experience, moving inside makes you feel like a new grower all over again, except you have a 'lot in your toolbox', so to speak, which really helps. Comparatively, I like the control you have over pests, etc. when indoors but, obviously you have to have it really dialed-in. Outside we have serious problems with aphids & beetles in this area, but inside I've not had any issues, so far.

That being said, I can't help feeling like I have a neon flashing sign pointing to my garden saying "EAT".

Sorry for hijacking your thread, but how long do you guys reckon I still have to go?

Horselover fat said:

Sorry for hijacking your thread, but how long do you guys reckon I still have to go?

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2 more weeks

TCH said:

2 more weeks

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I'm hoping for a pound.

I had never messed around with autos until I started an indoor grow and that's been a new/different/weird experience; not bad, just new/different/weird. I fiddle in gardens so I'm constantly tending, picking, pruning, whatever the garden needs. With an indoor it feels like micromanaging and I'm amazed at how much and how often you can gently trim or prune autos without overly stressing them. I don't mean defoliation but rather picking away at it every few days watching the new growth and monitoring older, then selectively removing anything that is not helping the overall plant 100%. If it's not producing, lagging behind, buried in shade, covering buds, it's fair game to get me running at it with scissors. It's like the plant loves it or something and just gets stronger. Sort of like LST meets topiary meets the bitch with scissors. You guys and girls have been a big help with the transition and learning curve. I'm no expert and will share whatever I have if it helps. Thanks.

Here's an update at 104 days from sprout. The temps have dropped so I can crank the light up higher now without overheating the tent. She got so wide I had to move her into the 5x5. She's still plodding along at her own pace; and to think I almost gave up on her long time ago. You just never know.

Her sister plant was chopped 4 days ago and is drying at the moment. She was about the same size physically, but a lot farther along in her grow cycle. Sparking-up the resin from my trimmers and fingers put a big smile on my face. Patience is a virtue.

OK, here's an update on this girl. She was lagging behind in the beginning and I considered chopping it down and starting over, but hung-in there for the long haul and she's finally done and going to be chopped today; buds so heavy they are drooping from their own weight. 120 days from sprout (17 weeks). I mention this because the whole point of this thread was to show new growers that you can't go by breeders' estimates; they're ready, when they are ready.

Like I mentioned previously, her sister plant was chopped 19 days ago, wet trimmed, dried and curing. Early samples are awesome buds (220 grams), good smoke and the hash from her is amazing; smooth, flavorful, long lasting effects and lots of aroma.

So, the moral of this story is: your plants didn't get the memo or e-mail that told them they are supposed to be done in 8 weeks.

Patience, good luck and have fun!

Cynister said:

the whole point of this thread was to show new growers that you can't go by breeders' estimates; they're ready, when they are ready.

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You should show new growers what ripe weed is then and leave it 2-3 more weeks to finish up, that bud clearly is nowhere near done yet


Since you started this for newbs right?

I'm so confused

A personal situation requires I chop her down now. The buds are dense, heavy and trichomes under a microscope are mostly cloudy with approximately 30% amber, so I don't feel bad at all chopping her under the circumstances. I never expected this plant to go this long, but that's how it goes. This plant will be turned into hash.

Edit: spelling

I guess the real point of this thread for newbs is just don't sweat it and have some fun. Everything doesn't have to be a crisis.

I had to travel and my grow was supposed to be done long before now. I allowed some extra time on the back end in-case this happened, but it seems I didn't allow enough time before departure. I don't have anybody to stop-in and take care of her while away, so chopping it now was the best option, rather than just letting it go unattended for the duration. She'll be fine drying for the time I'm gone as the dry tent is dialed-in.

On the plus side, this will be a good example of what happens when you harvest early. I didn't have a choice in this situation, but some of you do. From the beginning of the grow, this particular plant was always lagging behind; supposed to be the same batch of seeds, but you never know. I always suspected it had a genetic issue by the way it was performing, but decided to let her go for the long run to see what happens. After unpotting and inspecting the roots, I see the main tap root never went as deep as I usually see. Most of mine go about 2 inches deep, the full diameter of the main stem then branch-out from there. This one however was just below the surface about 3/4 inch.

Regardless, due to the circumstances, this is a good opportunity so show what the end result will be when coming down too early. Likely it'll end-up as hash, we'll see. The scissor hash from trimming the larger fan leaves, was pretty tasty, but then it always is.

I don't claim to know wtf I'm doing; far from it. I'm still learning after all these years and will continue to do so despite my best efforts to the contrary.

Cynister said:

I don't claim to know wtf I'm doing; far from it. I'm still learning after all these years and will continue to do so despite my best efforts to the contrary.

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You ain't the only one I suck ass but I'm persistent and one day ill get that kill ass bud everytime

Returned from travel and everything went as planned and dried nicely. 23 grams of smooth, full-melt bubble hash is the end result. I would have liked to let this plant grow longer, but life happens. It's not as strong for pain relief as it could have been, but it's still on-par with any of the better products I've seen at the local dispensaries. All things considered, I'm not complaining. This is why I grow. Have fun & enjoy!