Should flowering day 1 on log start with sex signs?

[vyserage]

Recent reading shows me people saying I should start my official flowering day 1 when the first pistols show up, usually 2 weeks into flowering. Is this true?

For example, a guy said the listed 8 weeks flowering time on a specific strain should be counted day 1 after the plant shows female signs.

 

[vyserage]

I bring this up because my plants are on day 41 flowering and still have much smaller buds than my last 2 soil grows of the same day pics. Like VERY noticeable. The only difference is soil vs hydro and the soil spent 60 days in veg and showed sex signs faster than my hydro of 48 days in veg.
My hydro didn't show sex signs for a good while longer vs my soil girls.

Thinking this way, my day 41 hydro flowering would be minus 14 days since that's roughly when sex signs showed. If that's the case, it makes since that they look how they do today as if its day 27 in flowering. Here are some day 38 and 36 photos, didn't have any from more recent like today day 41.

G3 F-Day 38 iron def?

• vyserage
• Aug 8, 2018

G3 F-Day 38 iron def?

• vyserage
• Aug 8, 2018

Light upgrade

• vyserage
• Aug 8, 2018

G3 F-Day 36 After Defoliation

• vyserage
• Aug 6, 2018

 

[No Pain]

IMHO it depends on the breeder . The best thing for you to do is take notes of how long you vegged the plant/plants(the longer the veg the more mature the plant the faster the transition to flower.) When you flipped to 12/12 and how long it took to finish. Then store that somewhere for future reference and if you follow the same rules for that strain you should have the same results . After all Flowering weeks given by breeders are just general guide lines, its up to the grower to decide when its done. I say that because some go for cloudy tric's , some go for 10% amber some 20 ,some 30 etc ...all requiring different harvest times . let the plant be your guide and you be the judge .