Jimobry's Bag Seed First Grow Journal

[Jimbory]

Update: Flowering Week 6 Day 3
Not much to say, which is good news, because it means that things are working good.
Fed them the same amount of nutes, and watered with slightly lower ph, just for kicks, and things are looking good.
I guess that the girls only have 2-3 weeks left, but cant really be sure.
Maybe you guys could help me with that, I don't really know the difference between clear and milky/cloudy trichomes, s I would appreciate some pointers on that. I am now using 30x jeweler's loupe for magnification, which is much better then the mini microscope I have that is just no good for anything which does not lay straight on a table.
I hope that you guys don't mind many photos, I assumed not.
I have taken individual bud shots, so you could see the difference in ripeness.
It is quite difficult taking shots of the magnified buds, one hand is holding my nikon d90 and the other trying to focus with the loupe.
Well I wont bore you with any more details, here they are:

Messing around with the white balance settings, trying to get the best light. The thing is my camera cant really tell what is going on with both the CFL and LED working simultaneously, each bud requiers different settings.

Please let me know what you think. It is a great pleasure to be able to share this experience with some one, considering that it is all extremely hush hush..
Much love to you all and

 

[Whitty08]

Everything looks fantastic! I can't wait to be at that stage!! As far as determining the color of the trichomes I know you have to be practically right on top of them to be able to see the change in color. Just what I've read, no experience with that just yet.

 

[Jimbory]

Thank you Whitty for the reply, I will do my best to keep a close eye on them.
Soon enough you will get to see your beautiful plant fill up nicely, probably much more then mine considering the size of pot that you are using. How tall is she, I wonder?

 

[Jimbory]

Flowering Week 6 Day Day 5

It seems like they are drinking more than before, as I am watering every 3 days at the moment, and it seems like I should make it 2 and a half days instead.
Just increased my nutes, to the recommended values given to me by my local hydro shop. It is what they recommend for the soil they sell, which is what I am using.

Bio Grow 4ml/l, Bio Heaven 4ml/l, Bio Bloom 4ml/l and Top Max 4ml/l.

Thing are looking good, and I am feeling optimistic.

Question: If you are growing from a bag seed, how would you determine the right time to start a flush?
Should I wait until I see amber trichomes?
Should I wait until I see 80% brown pistils?

I understand that bag seed threads by noobs do not generate as much crowd as threads made by experienced growers using known strains, but if by chance someone passes by that can help me determine that, I would love the help.

Thank you

 

[Whitty08]

Thank you Whitty for the reply, I will do my best to keep a close eye on them.
Soon enough you will get to see your beautiful plant fill up nicely, probably much more then mine considering the size of pot that you are using. How tall is she, I wonder?

Just measured her today in fact. She's currently 30"/76.5cm tall. I've also tried to keep her as short as possible. So she's able to handle the weight of the flowers.

 

[Whitty08]

Flowering Week 6 Day Day 5

It seems like they are drinking more than before, as I am watering every 3 days at the moment, and it seems like I should make it 2 and a half days instead.
Just increased my nutes, to the recommended values given to me by my local hydro shop. It is what they recommend for the soil they sell, which is what I am using.

Bio Grow 4ml/l, Bio Heaven 4ml/l, Bio Bloom 4ml/l and Top Max 4ml/l.

Thing are looking good, and I am feeling optimistic.

Question: If you are growing from a bag seed, how would you determine the right time to start a flush?
Should I wait until I see amber trichomes?
Should I wait until I see 80% brown pistils?

I understand that bag seed threads by noobs do not generate as much crowd as threads made by experienced growers using known strains, but if by chance someone passes by that can help me determine that, I would love the help.

Thank you

I would say as they start to amber. Everything I've read say to do a two week flush before you harvest so you get a nice clean burn and not a nute burn. The way to tell is by picking lower flowers as you sample and burn it, if the flower turns more a black color you still have nutes in the flower. The burnt product should be more of a grey color.

 

[GhettoGro]

Whitty been doing his homework. If you chop while the plant is still "nitrogen rich" it can make for a harsh taste and hard to burn in a doobie (yeah that term dates me, huh?)

I do not really "flush". I stop all feeding in the last two weeks of flower. Thing is, with new strain/phenos you don't know when the last two weeks have arrived. It is a guessing game. Once you find that killer pheno and start cloning it, you dial it in.

Your plant are looking great, Jimbo. I admire your respect of the plant not to take anything early. I was that way for several grows. The more grows you get under your belt, the more you can read what they are doing. It is an acquired feel. You will get it. You got a healthy grow going on.

 

[Jimbory]

I really appreciate the replies, guys, thanks for the help. You guys are awesome!

From what I read, it says to wait until you see amber starting to form on the trichs and then start the flush. On my next grow from the same strain I will have a better Idea of it's flowering time. I guess that there's a lot of trial and error when growing bagseeds.

Whitty, your girl is still stretching though, right? So you still have some height to gain. I really hope that you get that weight, in my book you definitely deserve a fat ass lady
it does sound like you are doing a better job then I do with homework
I am still not sure about taking flowers for a taste before it is properly dried. If I understand the process properly, then I should start seeing leaves turning yellow after the flush to tell me that the plant is using it's nutes reserves, and at that point a grower can basically be sure that that the burning of the buds will improve, right?

GhettoGro, the thing is, I don't really plan on cloning, I don't have any room for it. It is just going to be seeds for the near future.
Thanks a lot for the compliments, it really means a lot.
By doobie you mean spliff?
Yeah, I know that as I will gain experience I will be able to understand more about the plant, and it's processes.

I am feeling like an over protective father who wants his girls to be perfect, but I should probably accept the fact that most first grows do not go perfect. I am gonna do my very best to try and get them as close to perfect as possible.

The biggest problem that I am facing is that I can only dry in my tent, and it sure seems as there is quite a difference in ripeness of the girls, as two of my plants are about 50/50 brown and white pistils, and the other two only just starting to turn brown, so I guess we will see how it goes. Probably gonna get two girls in better shape. Oh well, Its probably going to be great anyway

 

[Whitty08]

I really appreciate the replies, guys, thanks for the help. You guys are awesome!

From what I read, it says to wait until you see amber starting to form on the trichs and then start the flush. On my next grow from the same strain I will have a better Idea of it's flowering time. I guess that there's a lot of trial and error when growing bagseeds.

Whitty, your girl is still stretching though, right? So you still have some height to gain. I really hope that you get that weight, in my book you definitely deserve a fat ass lady
it does sound like you are doing a better job then I do with homework
I am still not sure about taking flowers for a taste before it is properly dried. If I understand the process properly, then I should start seeing leaves turning yellow after the flush to tell me that the plant is using it's nutes reserves, and at that point a grower can basically be sure that that the burning of the buds will improve, right?

GhettoGro, the thing is, I don't really plan on cloning, I don't have any room for it. It is just going to be seeds for the near future.
Thanks a lot for the compliments, it really means a lot.
By doobie you mean spliff?
Yeah, I know that as I will gain experience I will be able to understand more about the plant, and it's processes.

I am feeling like an over protective father who wants his girls to be perfect, but I should probably accept the fact that most first grows do not go perfect. I am gonna do my very best to try and get them as close to perfect as possible.

The biggest problem that I am facing is that I can only dry in my tent, and it sure seems as there is quite a difference in ripeness of the girls, as two of my plants are about 50/50 brown and white pistils, and the other two only just starting to turn brown, so I guess we will see how it goes. Probably gonna get two girls in better shape. Oh well, Its probably going to be great anyway

Yea my girl is still stretching, against my best efforts to keep her as compact as possible. I have read that by allowing the leaves to turn yellow that the plant is using the reserve nutes stored in the leaves. I've also read that you should take very small samples at various times to find what flavor and effect you like the most.
"Novice growers usually pick a little product early due to their own impatience, and that’s alright. Just make sure if you do that you take your buds from the middle or top of the marijuana plant. The rest can then continue to mature. The tops of your marijuana plants are usually ripe first. If you can harvest those and allow the rest of the plant to mature, you will increase the yield. The buds lower on the plants will get fuzzier and larger when they approach full maturity. This will help give you a bigger yield because these buds will then be getting more direct light."
I guess it all depends on how much self control you have.

 

[Jimbory]

And if you have the space to dry it in.
I dont, so everything will go down together, mature, and less mature buds.
By my next grow I hope to think of a new idea of where and how to dry my plants.
Thank you for the input, I will be sure to read you references.

 

[Whitty08]

And if you have the space to dry it in.
I dont, so everything will go down together, mature, and less mature buds.
By my next grow I hope to think of a new idea of where and how to dry my plants.
Thank you for the input, I will be sure to read you references.

I'm going to have the same problem, not enough space to let the flowers to dry. That'll be another learning process as well so my second grow will be even better.

 

[Whitty08]

And if you have the space to dry it in.
I dont, so everything will go down together, mature, and less mature buds.
By my next grow I hope to think of a new idea of where and how to dry my plants.
Thank you for the input, I will be sure to read you references.

I'm I the same boat, I'm really hoping my girl is ready by the time I have to leave on a week vacation, so I can bring a taste with me while the rest cures. Whether it's ready or not it's all coming down on the 9th July.

 

[surfinchef]

Looking fantastic Jim. I've been away for a while because of being busy at work. But I'm doing my best to stay updated. Sadly I had to chop two of my three so far as they were both males. Hopefully this last one will be a female.

 

[Jimbory]

Whitty, dont forget the the the first 1-2 weeks of curing requires you to open the jars to air it properly, and constantly check for mold. personally, I am really eager to cure but dreading it too, mold scares the Bejesus out of me.

Hey Chef, nice to have you back here. I feel for you, work being so intense. Usually it is good news, means that your work is going good, I hope thats the case now too.
Sorry to hear about the boys. Good luck with the third one!

 

[Whitty08]

Whitty, dont forget the the the first 1-2 weeks of curing requires you to open the jars to air it properly, and constantly check for mold. personally, I am really eager to cure but dreading it too, mold scares the Bejesus out of me.

I'm worried about mold as well. Mold isn't reallyto big of an issue here in Colorado as the air is so dry, but I will be gone for 5 days at the end of flowering and I'd hate to leave the flowers going unless it's quite clear that they are no where near done. Then I'll leave them on the plant harvest once I get back.

 

[MysterySeeds]

Just getting caught up. Everything is looking great! Keep up the good work.

 

[GhettoGro]

I can understand you drying dilemma. Fortunately I have a large house and I have a music room which Is climate controlled. It stays at about 72d and about 30-40% humidity. I have some old cymbal stands that I run string between and hang the branches on. I keep a small fan blowing on the branches and it usually takes about 3-4 days to dry. No mold. Once dry, they go into jars. Then the jars are opened for about an hour a day to breath for the first two weeks. Then it only gets better with age.

The slower the dry, the better it will taste and burn. IMHO

 

[Jimbory]

Hey GG, could you by chance describe thoroughly your curing process? I mean what kind of a jars are you using, size, opening size? are you adding any humidity to the jars? where are you keeping them, and in what climate? would you suggest for a 1st time grower to cure? and how would you keep your dry weed safe for a period of up to 6 months?
I read a lot about it, and I have gotten several ideas, I would just appreciate to hear what an experienced grower like you has to say.
Of course this question is to anyone who has gained experience on the topic.
The climate here hot and getting hotter, it is average 28 degrees Celsius now and some days much more. I try to keep my home as cool as possible.

 

[Jimbory]

Flowering Week 7 Day 5

Just gave the girls what I think is the last round of nutes. 4ml/l of all my BioBizz products.
One of my girl's buds are getting heavy enough to make it hard for her stems to keep straight, so I used some strings and cords to keep her together.
I think that I will start a flush next week. I find it really hard to find the difference between cloudy and clear trichomes. I dont see any amber as of yet. The way I understand is that with indica dominant you should harvest when you get mostly cloudy trichomes and not wait for amber, anyone cares to shad some light on that?
The girls are looking really healthy apart from the stems struggling to stay up. They are all about 50cm tall and packed nicely. two of the girls are showing 50/50 ginger/white pistils. the other two are more like 85/15, But I cant really be very accurate.

Yesterday I changed the locations of the girls, bringing the riper two to the front of tent, so I could keep a closer eye on their ripeness levels.
Being a noob sucks, as I am constantly doubting every decision.

Photos later today.

 

[Dan Ultra]

Being a noob sucks, as I am constantly doubting every decision.

Dude, don't stress. You are doing great and you are in the final stretch!!