Graytail's 3rd: 4x4, HiBrix, Latest LED Tech, Lots Of Light!

[Conradino23]

Yes, LST works wonders if done early

 

[Duggan]

Yes, LST works wonders if done early

Agreed Conradino.....My practice is to supercrop when they are very small as to not break them or stress them out too much. Now,when i do that,supercrop that is, i always start off by gently squeezing and snapping the inner walls....that's it at first.Never damage them so much that the leader dies. Just enough stress to encourage those tiny little side branches to get going.I'l do this quite a bit for the first month or so. When they are tall and ,or strong enough,that's when i start tying the leader down.The combination of the two gets them how i want.Like a bush....so you can't tell who is boss,so to speak. With this present grow of two Mazars, i let the main leader run ahead a bit at the end of training on one, just to take advantage of the larger main colas this strain is known for.
As growth goes on and things get busy with lots of branching, i've found that pipe cleaners,you know ,those soft ones...they work fantastic for keeping any runners under control. These are really,just small ,little plants we grow indoors Conradino....while fortunate guys like yourself get to grow those big ,beautifull Sativas outdoors! Gray ,so sorry pal....just rambling a little eh.... Goin for a Stella...

 

[SweetSue]

I like your technique of gentle guidance Greytail. It reminds me of the definition of discipline in our home: loving guidance. They certainly respond to your gentle persuasion. That's what I hope to emulate.

 

[420Brother]

there's a dude over the backbuilding thread that kept sniping off the bud part that grew off the backbuild snip and he ended up with buds like this

also thank you for sharing your technique Gray, it's intresting how you train your plants so much and adjust them almost daily to get the results you want but you don't top at all

would you say that topped plants yield the same and/or even less than plants that have not been topped but have however been trained into a way that hormones are distributed equally to each cola?

 

[Graytail]

also thank you for sharing your technique Gray, it's intresting how you train your plants so much and adjust them almost daily to get the results you want but you don't top at all

would you say that topped plants yield the same and/or even less than plants that have not been topped but have however been trained into a way that hormones are distributed equally to each cola?

I think of it in terms of shape. The strain and the pot size and the nutrients will grow a plant of a certain size in a certain amount of time. You can shape that mass to suit your needs. I was underpowered so I wanted a shallow canopy and LST is good for that. I could have grown a skinny tall plant, too. Any training technique will consume time, though. In my case LST has slowed them less.

Otherwise, yield is going to mostly be a soil factor. Pot size and soil nutrients will support a given rootmass, which will support the plant itself. It's just a matter of how much time it takes to fill the pots with roots. While they're doing that, you can shape 'em. I rarely see any lack of vigor when I LST, and I haven't done a lot of topping so it's hard to compare. I once topped an explosive Tangerine Dream several times as soon as new growth appeared and ended up with a completely civilized plant with a dozen stalks running straight up from the base, like a skinny flux, but that set it back at least a couple weeks. I see the same thing in the flux grows. My question is always ... "Um ... doncha want to see 'em grow?" Sure, you end up with a fabulous plant, but it took forever to get there!

I tend to look at the plant shape, and sometimes it begs to be topped a few nodes down and have the side branches trained into a flat-top. But since sativas tend to be mostly leggy and tall, LST is usually best for them. In my humble opinion.

 

[420Brother]

i get what you're saying brother, so it's all about personal preference and how much time you wanna put into it.

thanks for clearing it out for me

 

[SweetSue]

Greytail, I've noticed a proclivity for sativa-dominant strains within the HB ranks. Is there a reason for that?

 

[36Gr0w]

Finally here, and just in time to learn your training techniques. Another great journal GT.

 

[Graytail]

Greytail, I've noticed a proclivity for sativa-dominant strains within the HB ranks. Is there a reason for that?

'Cause sativa smokers are still awake enough to post?

No, seriously, that's a good question. I hadn't really noticed but you're right - there seems to be a bias toward sativas. Doc has pointed out that this soil tends to bring out sativa traits in most phenos and nobody thinks that's a bad thing. Personally, I view indicas as a sort of necessary or convenient pollutant, to tame behavior or add an aroma. I want the soaring rushes, not the narcotic stupor. I smoked far too much brickweed to revisit that state of mind. Heck, I'm old - I already know how to chill, I can fall asleep all on my own - I want a good buzz!

 

[420Brother]

i totally agree.

What recreational user would choose indicas over sativas?

it's all about that energetic creativity and getting up to clean the house

side effects may include staying up late and keep posting on 420mag vigorously while your legs keep tapping restlessly

 

[SweetSue]

'Cause sativa smokers are still awake enough to post?

No, seriously, that's a good question. I hadn't really noticed but you're right - there seems to be a bias toward sativas. Doc has pointed out that this soil tends to bring out sativa traits in most phenos and nobody thinks that's a bad thing. Personally, I view indicas as a sort of necessary or convenient pollutant, to tame behavior or add an aroma. I want the soaring rushes, not the narcotic stupor. I smoked far too much brickweed to revisit that state of mind. Heck, I'm old - I already know how to chill, I can fall asleep all on my own - I want a good buzz!

I'm still laughing over that. I get it. When I look for a strain I find I'm more drawn to something that fires the neurons and gets me into creative with the energy to do something about it. I'm so new to all this Greytail. I'm just beginning to notice strains as something more than pretty pictures and fancy names. I feel like such an innocent.

 

[Graytail]

I've harvested 20+ strains and I'm just now narrowing down what I like best.

I believe there's something in the Brazilians that's special. I absolutely loved my first Utopia Haze pheno, and the others have been almost as good. This Carnival I have is amazing! But the genetics are undisclosed and I'm not even sure it's a typical pheno, so I don't know where to follow that path. I've found that I really don't enjoy the psychedelic sativas - I don't like the disorientation I get from them. Although, my only experience is with Super Lemon Haze, which gives me a headache, and Cotton Candy, which has Power Plant in it. Someday I'll give a good African a try, but until then I still have some American sativas to check out, and I really want to find a superior Thai. Gotta take a crack at another Indian or Nepalese sativa, too.

I've liked several of the hybrids I've grown - Jamaican Dream, White Panther, Grapefruit - but as fun as they were to smoke, they all had too much intrusion from the indica side. Carnival and Utopia Haze have no crash at all. They just fade away.

 

[Neiko]

I love your reasoning for growing sativa strains, I'm right there with ya. The LST info is perfect. I have been debating on what to do to the Tikal, Tangerine and Chocolope. I know the Tangerine wants to be a leggy beast, she got to almost 5' with only 6 weeks of veg from seed last time. I imagine chocolope is going to do the same. I really like how you train them, I will be coping you.

 

[DrZiggy]

Sativas and landraces dial into the HB soil differently than the salt loving Hydro strains do..

 

[Duggan]

Wait a minute here!! Yes it's true that Sativas were always said to be a true "smoking" variety and Indica's were always for hash. The ideal situation would be to grow both kinds. I've preferred Indica dom. strains cuz I was shooting for relaxation and stress relief.When i'm thinking of bed the last thing I want is a 100% Sativa buzz.....I don't want extra energy at 11 at night ....I want to get some deep rest....after I eat all the sweets in the house though!I must say though ,that after growing a bunch of diff. Indica dom. strains these past few yrs., i'm starting to crave that nice Sativa "blast",so that's why i'm gonna do Desfran next up! keep in mind also that true Sativa's are much more difficult to cultivate indoors for obvious reasons. I also chose Mazar this round cuz it's very close to 100% Landrace but still has a little Sativa (Skunk#1) in there ,so I was hoping for great performance in Doc's H.B. gear as it favours more Landrace strains. I found this to be 100% accurate as these Mazar's havn't needed any axtra salt at all. I'm only giving them a bit now to improve on resin production and perhaps a little stronger flavour. Just my 2 ....guys and gals (Sweetsue). Have a great day gang and sorry for highjacking Gray! Cheers....Duggs.

 

[Conradino23]

I've harvested 20+ strains and I'm just now narrowing down what I like best.

I believe there's something in the Brazilians that's special. I absolutely loved my first Utopia Haze pheno, and the others have been almost as good. This Carnival I have is amazing! But the genetics are undisclosed and I'm not even sure it's a typical pheno, so I don't know where to follow that path. I've found that I really don't enjoy the psychedelic sativas - I don't like the disorientation I get from them. Although, my only experience is with Super Lemon Haze, which gives me a headache, and Cotton Candy, which has Power Plant in it. Someday I'll give a good African a try, but until then I still have some American sativas to check out, and I really want to find a superior Thai. Gotta take a crack at another Indian or Nepalese sativa, too.

I've liked several of the hybrids I've grown - Jamaican Dream, White Panther, Grapefruit - but as fun as they were to smoke, they all had too much intrusion from the indica side. Carnival and Utopia Haze have no crash at all. They just fade away.

I find Super Lemon Haze too indica personally and I prefer similar but more euphoric and longer-lasting Green Crack, and it's true that sometimes it can give you a headache if you do not fell very well. Cotton Candy is a nice smoke, but its better side comes up only in social situations in my opinion. When I smoke it by myself I find it too speedy at first and too relaxing later Pure Africans are a real blast on the other hand, borderline psychedelic, disorientating, heavily mental and speedy which makes it a high good only for long walks, physical work outdoor or open air gigs I'd really like to try this Carnival in the future, cause you make it sound so good

 

[PotChimp]

I hear you all talking man that's got to be so cool to experience different buzzes they're all the same to me just some are stronger than others. Ahh, maybe someday.....

 

[Graytail]

I love your reasoning for growing sativa strains, I'm right there with ya. The LST info is perfect. I have been debating on what to do to the Tikal, Tangerine and Chocolope. I know the Tangerine wants to be a leggy beast, she got to almost 5' with only 6 weeks of veg from seed last time. I imagine chocolope is going to do the same. I really like how you train them, I will be coping you.

If you have another leggy Tangerine Dream, I'd advise you to top it several times. I've grown a few fast fluffy sativas and LST doesn't slow 'em up enough. I always end up with a twisted, saggy mass of fluff. The one that really looked great at the end was the TD, and I had a particularly hazey one. My Chocolope hasn't popped up yet and she's a little overdue ...

 

[Graytail]

I hear you all talking man that's got to be so cool to experience different buzzes they're all the same to me just some are stronger than others. Ahh, maybe someday.....

You, Chimp o' Pot, smoke entirely too much herb. Unfortunately, you'd have to cut back to regain your perspective ...

 

[Graytail]

I'll be harvesting DestroyerCut2 on Monday, but I took some pics today. I cooked her a bit last week and that was enough to finish her off, and I think the Advanced LED DS XML 350 bleached her out a bit, too. She looks kinda gray. Anyway, she's had enough.

But what a good girl!