Journal Time!

[Graytail]

Welcome back!

 

[Enjoying]

Those are indeed calices - female ones. They'll usually survive the entire grow, and make delicious crunchy treats to smoke if you strip them off the stems.

Nice looking plant.

I think these were male parts. The plant hermed and I think I found a seed or two in these, most were hollow though.

 

[Enjoying]

Welcome back!

Thanks! I will probably do a lazy mans journal every year.

 

[Enjoying]

Question about watering...
Do I wait until the plant droops, the old first knuckle test or... ?
I ask because I have read so many conflicting ideas that I'm not sure. I tend to wait until the plant droops but maybe that is a little to long for the root hairs that go looking, like maybe they die and I am loosing root mass because I wait to long. I also use an inoculant called Soil Balance Pro(I think lol) so I want to make sure that I am not killing off the microbes. Plus I try to do some sort of living soil... the idea is the same but I haven't taken to the time to create a large bed, add bugs, nematodes, a living mulch layer etc. So maybe I am just doing it organically... I "cooked" my soil(FFOF) this season with Down to Earth Bio Fish and will start cooking the flower mixture soon, FFOF and DTE Bone Meal. I will have to figure out the 3 gallon as I will not be transplanting that pot so I will probs just water in the bone meal come flower time.
Anyways I digress.. the water question. Wait until plant droops or...?
I forgot to mention that the stems, petioles and leaves of the two SSD plants are sticky and have had a scent (without a stem rub) from two weeks veg. The scent varies from time of day but the ones I have noted are coffee, sour, lime/lemon (more lime to me), skunk, some sort of epoxy (I have used a few but don't remember the brand of the one it reminds me of) and I can't decide burnt rubber or just rubber though this may be the epoxy smell changing. These are in no particular order or what I smell more or less of.

 

[StoneOtter]

Hi Enjoying, I let them droop a little in veg to tell me they want water. Emilya mentioned the other day for extended periods say over 4 days to top water with a fraction of what you normally would use. I think it was 25%? That's a great way for the microbes and roots to stay happy until the full water. The water cycle changes quickly so keep your eye tuned!

Flower is another story. When they are ready to flower they can be or will be drinking more and faster to build our buds and they use water more. I remember how much I'm using and watch for them to ask for more through run off. Usually it's every other day in flower for me sometimes with a top water on the off day if they are really going crazy but noit always. I go back and read Emilyas watering tutorial every now and then too. It works! That's how I do it.

 

[Graytail]

Yup, what he said. ^

I like to catch my vegging plants just before they droop. The leaves will look kinda thin - not fat and happy. Drooping is usually fine, too, but best not to make a habit of it. Dry soil is far better than wet soil, in any case.

But if you let them droop in bloom, you'll lose fan leaves. You want to keep the soil a little moist at all times.

Weight is my best measure. I just heft the pot an inch or so to test the weight. However, late in bloom the whole plant is heavier, so I usually have to catch myself and water earlier. I'll mistake the plant weight for water, and I'll find a droopy plant the next day. Oops.

 

[Enjoying]

Yeah I will probs stick to waiting til the plant droops. This last time node one and maybe two were in the dirt, that may have been to long Its alive and happy now but I think it was a little to long of a wait.... I may implement the watering with a fraction of what is normally used come the hot, hot summer days. I've read that practicing drought techniques actually pushes the plant to produce more cannabinoids (though timing is crucial), true or not, it'll be an experiment for drought tolerance =] I will try to get some pictures in the next two weeks. It seems training may have already started to pay off.

 

[Enjoying]

Update.
If anyone wants better pictures let me know and I will try my best.

The two pots labeled Monrovia are 1 gallon. My Kali Mist live in these. I am mainly just showing height difference, I didn't think to count the nodes but last time I counted they were at the same node the shorter one was just tighter. I am thinking the one on the left is a male solely based on height and internode spacing difference - honestly I hope so as this is a seed run.

This is of the tallest Kali Mist (left one on top pic), I am not sure what happened. It almost seems that it topped itself, but I am unsure what the black spot on the leaf is. The black spot is where the petiole meets the leaf.

Another mutation on SSD 2. My index finger separates where the leaf should be another leaf.

Mutation on SSD 2. The small leaf that is slightly turned upwards is growing in an odd place. This is an 11 leaflet leaf though.

This is both SSD. Yes, they are in one pot - I should have separated them at transplant as it would have been easy enough but oh well or maybe put them in a five gallon vs three especially as this tomato cage contraption probably would have worked better. Everything inside that lower first ring is lateral branching. The tops are outside and of course there is lateral branching there its just not long enough to move inwards. I am trying to figure out if I trim all of the shorter branches on both plants, the ones where the fan leaves point down or are on the lower side of the main stalk.

This is probably the most extreme example of the weakest lateral branching. It is node three or four - I removed the others as they were yellowing or weak. It is also on a mutated fan leaf. I know it shows nute burn/def or it may just be the plant saying this is a weak point/branch remove it. I plan to read more into the quad lining post as this most closely resembles my training thought/technique to figure out what to remove. However, any thoughts or input into what I should remove would be fantastic! I am debating topping both of these (SSD) as the tops just get more and more bushy as I TRY to tame them. I would attempt cloning the top as an experiment IF I decided to top.

 

[Enjoying]

Long over due update

I have been training the plants, I got a little excited and topped one by accident (though it seems it may have helped tame it a bit, lol). I have some pest issues and maybe some pH/deficiencies so here goes it. I am tagging @Emilya and @InTheShed for some help hopefully! I would tag Bill but I forget the whole name so I can't =[

A spider likes to hang out here I am not sure if it is what created this brown speckled area or if was/is eating what was. There was some thick webbing that makes me think possibly but it didn't quite look like what does on a web so I'm not sure. I don't have pictures of that but will try to remember to get some if it happens again.

Same picture just zoomed in.

I am not sure what is going on here. It started as just a half yellow leaflet (bottom left leaf) so I thought maybe variegation(though I'm not quite sure what that is) but it seems to be spreading.

Same as above, I just moved fan leaves so you can see the lateral branching.

So those are my question pictures the rest are just showing what's going on since last I posted.

This plant topped itself. I am just showing the purple that has come in on the stems.

Same just slightly different angle.

My hands don't always cooperate so it's blurry but here it is again.

Showing where it self topped.

Debating feeding it as the lower fans are getting lighter green than they were but the tips are still lime green which as far as I know is a good sign. It still is putting out 9 leaflet leaves also which again I think comes from a well fed plant or so I've been told. I am hoping I can get my gf to go get compost tea while I am at work so I can give them all a good dose of that and maybe some food.

Interesting knot from training. It smelled of citronella last I rubbed it.

 

[Emilya Green]

I would definitely think about feeding her. How big is that container and how long has she been in it? The lower fans might be complaining about the container, but usually a yellowing starting at the bottom and moving up, is telling you that she is craving macronutrient, and right now that is nitrogen. Give her a good feeding and lets see if the yellow stops progressing and if any green returns to some of those lower leaves.

The funny damage on that one leaf and the hole in the other one is bug damage. The hole looks random, but the other one might have eggs getting ready to hatch... I would chop that one out of there.

How does a plant top itself? I need to train mine to do that!

 

[Enjoying]

I would definitely think about feeding her. How big is that container and how long has she been in it? The lower fans might be complaining about the container, but usually a yellowing starting at the bottom and moving up, is telling you that she is craving macronutrient, and right now that is nitrogen. Give her a good feeding and lets see if the yellow stops progressing and if any green returns to some of those lower leaves.

The funny damage on that one leaf and the hole in the other one is bug damage. The hole looks random, but the other one might have eggs getting ready to hatch... I would chop that one out of there.

How does a plant top itself? I need to train mine to do that!

That container is only a one gallon and it has been in it since I up potted from seedling stage. I always do that later than I intend to though, I'd say around a month to six weeks - this time was probs closer to a mont. I was hoping to keep them in that until they sex and up pot the female (assuming I get one) as I don't need 10 foot males. I will feed her tomorrow however the directions on the box tell me (1 - 3 tps per gallon, unless it's established which I don't think I can call it that but maybe? In which case, if I am remembering right it becomes 1 -3 TBSP) with a good dose of compost tea.

I also realised a month or so back neither of my veg or flower ferts I picked have potassium.... user error! Once I realised I went and got langbeinite in an attempt to correct it. I just put 1 tsp per pot as that is what the box said and that was the lower side. I am using down to earth bone meal(3 15 0) for flower once I get there and I forget the exact one for veg but it's one of their fish options (not Bio Fish) with I think 8 6 0 NPK.

I plan on feeding everything tomorrow with veg food, soil balance pro and compost tea. Hopefully that makes them happy. The yellowing seems to have stopped spreading as the picture is the lower third of the plant, the top seems fine and the middle more or less. I will feed on the heavier side w/o surpassing companies guidelines. These plants do seem hungrier than other grows but I don't really have experience and I would rather feed higher next feeding than create more problems by over feeding.

I will remove those leaves as soon as I get done responding to this! The random holes are probably from these damn grasshoppers. I relocate them when I see them but I may need to start killing them =[ I haven't seen to many, maybe like four but two were babies sooo maybe there's more to come?

Weellll aaaaccctually I read somewhere on the net that plants can sometimes top themselves BUT this is the internet so there is a large chance it's wrong. So I just kind of figured that maybe it topped itself as I didn't see any insects on it. However, I did have a strong suspicion(gut feeling that I ignored and then got distracted by work so didn't investigate as soon as I would have liked to) that there may have been one that left as there was leaf damage that was more likely an insects doing. Here is a picture, the top middle leaf looks a bit chewed on to me and there's a black dot on the one facing the camera. Idk what caused that - it's gone now though and the leaf is fine. The leaf that looks chewed on still looks chewed on but the plant has since grown past that and that is where it's topped.

Thanks for your quick response!

 

[Enjoying]

While retying yesterday I lost my attention span and ended up breaking some branches. I had finished tying it, went to get a drink and after tying a few branches on another plant I went back and ended up breaking them. The lesson here is tie on plant at a time until done and DO NOT go back!

They look better this morning from last night but damnit! You can see the split in the bottom branch where it connects to main stem, the one above it is the same.

A Cherry Mist seems to be male

Same plant as above

Same picture as above zoomed in

This is one of the Seattle Sour Diesel. The one I topped by accident (not the one I broke branches on). It looks like it may be female.

Same picture zoomed in.

A slightly different picture showing the same thing

The Cherry Mist that looks male to me

 

[Enjoying]

Quick update and a couple questions. Idk what happened with the leaves going crazy. The problem still exists but less - nutes are my thought.

I am still waiting on a Cherry Mist to sex but I have a female and a male SSD along with a male Cherry Mist. I am in the process of attempting to train branches so they catch some pollen and moving others trying to lower pollination chances. I will be collecting the pollen daily in hopes to keep pollen count lower and painting branches later once they are further along in flowering.

Question one, what would one classify this leaf shape as? Sativa, indica, hybrid, leaning one way or another....? Also genetics obviously we go by what the breeder says they are but I am trying to get an idea of how SEA, Columbian, Mexican (South and Central America) and various other regions present. If there is a thread on that just link me there and I will do the reading =]

Question two, are these what is referred to as needle leaves or just sativa? Sorry about the blurry picture, my hands don't always cooperate.

I forget if this is the same plant as above but both plants of this strain present with these leaves so I don't think it matters. Same question - "needle leaves" or no? Also what would one say the genetics are here?

Attempting to train the plant on the right towards the branches by the black pot

Different angle zoomed in a bit

 

[Enjoying]

Another question....

If I am watering every 3 - 5 days do I feed every second watering or every two weeks per manufactures rec?