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Malawi Gold at 9 weeks

Elevator Man

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Here's my first-ever pure sativa grown indoors - or anywhere for that matter - Seedsman Malawi Gold. I had to try MG after everything I've read, and I was also determined to try and create a manageable indoor sativa hybrid for future use - so far, I've been very pleasantly surprised. These two caused some sarcastic comments in a LST thread a few weeks ago, but I stuck with it, and hopefully they should make up for the jokes now...:)

I've got two phenos, only one shown here - the other is very similar, with slightly more of a 'vine' tendency, where this one is more 'bushy', but we are talking subtle differences, really. They're both 30" (76cm) tall and have been tied down repeatedly - however, after three weeks stretching they stopped dead - possibly down to severe auxin re-distribution?
Not much smell at present - slightly fruity/peppery, but very mild so far - the resin is only just starting to build up. They're on week 9 of a 12-week schedule, and I'm hoping they'll finish by then - I can't really afford any 'stragglers'...:)

The buds are actually quite solid to the touch, despite appearances - each budstalk is a tough little thing, and they're making quite fat colas. Both plants are under a 600W lamp - with another 600W over my skunks only two feet away, so there's more than enough light to finish them off!

Two branches were pollenated with my male Flo phenos, (one indica-dom and one sativa-dom, though nowhere near as sativa as this!) and the seeds are fattening up nicely, as can be seen in the photos. I'm most excited about this, as I'm hoping to impart some of the Flo physical structure and flowering time without detracting at all from the head high - in that regard I should imagine both strains will be complimentary. Additionally the smell is similar, so I'm hoping I'll get some really interesting crosses here!











 
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G

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Nice Malawi it looks very different from all the hybrids around. Good luck finishing them.
 
G

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Very nice! And good thinking crossing it to flo, that sounds like one hell of a hybrid! :yummy:
 

Elevator Man

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I'm aiming to get three or four different Flo hybrids ultimately, all with the same fathers, so that I can run comparisons on whether the head high is different depending on which one used - I'm not really interested in couchlock weed and prefer seriously stimulating stuff - not jittery though, which is why I like Flo so much.
I'm hoping the Malawi Gold will contribute even more of a top note without jitters, with the THCV it's reputed to contain. We shall see...:)
 
WOOT

WOOT

very nice job elevatorman i have had the pleasure of smokin some nice outdoor malawi gold from seedsman its nice and fruity at first after a cure it changes up a lil its def a nice sativa one of my favs of smoking i hope all goes well for you and thanx for that beautiful bean footage :woohoo:
 

Elevator Man

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How does it grow outdoor? Can you say where? Europe, US, Aus, etc.? Just interested as to how the flowering period is compared to under lights - and height, etc.
If you know that of course - if it was just a smoke, don't worry...:)
 

Dignan

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What a great floral structure. :yoinks:

Isn't she lovely?

9533DSCN6456.jpg
 

kanebosem

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very nice plant, actualy the nicest malawi ive seen on the net,keep us updated i would love to see how she turns out for you
 
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Elevator Man

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Dignan - She is indeed.
I just wish she smelled as good as she looks, but Malawis aren't that stinky I guess. Still the high's the most important thing, and I expect that to be top-notch.

Kanebosem - what - ever? Wow - thanks.

That does make me feel better actually - I just this minute found out some bad news - one of my friends has just died - the guy who showed me how to grow sativas indoors, and rocked me with some evil Thai and Durban Poison he grew at home for two years solid a while back. He was around 60, and was more ill than he let on apparently - he stopped smoking, sold up and moved to a Greek island last year, built his own house and everything, and he's just been found there by his neighbours who wondered where he was. I just hope nothing dodgy has happened, as it was a small island with few foreigners living there - should find out next week.

But...this is as an appropriate memorial to him as I can think of - growing some killer sativas indoors just like he showed me. So - to Simon - wherever you are mate - this spliff's for you...
 
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Dr Leary

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EM, nice pics. I love the Malawi. Malawi is probably the most underratted strain possibly because it doesnt receive too much hype and it is not a plant that you want for commercial production. The cure is a deal killer for commercial growers because you need about 3 to 6 months of processing to maximize the benefits. Mine's personal stash/medicine so I welcome the wait.

It's about the high and Malawi is unique. Even my crosses carry it over nicely. My latest cross is Afropips malawi x (Colombian gold x blue berry). The 3 I do a season this year grew 10ft to 12ft. The fan leave in veg are as large as your face but later the finishing leaves are thin like those in your photos.

Low to no oder, longer flowering times. If one is not in a tropical region then I think they are best grown in a green house (or at least finished there) as I believe that the UVA/B intensity is best to bake the THCV to maximum. Congrats on doing them indoors.
 

guineapig

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Beautiful Malawi plant!!!!

Dr Leary- could you explain why a 3 to 6 month cure is necessary for maximizing the malawi benefits? Is it just this strain which demands such a long cure?

I have always wanted to try Malawi!!!!

:ying: kind regards from a guineapig :ying:
 

Dr Leary

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Yes, I do believe it is the strain. I dont have a scientific answer for you but growers in Africa wrap it in cobs and bury them in the ground for a while. I suspect there is a chemical reaction that occurs after harvest for all strains, each varies depending upon the cannibinoid combinations. However, you guess is as good as mine. I just know it works from practice. I have sought to understand this by researching information on the web but there isn't much out there.
 

guineapig

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Yes Dr I believe you are right. I have always suspected that some kind of reaction occurs in the trichomes during the curing process. Somehow the quality of the high becomes more "complex" and "well-rounded" after a good cure.

It could be a very very simple detail in the curing process that is responsible for the quality of the high improving and becoming more "complex." One theory i have is that curing allows the tiny region of tissue which connects the trichome gland head to the trichome stalk to degrade. So when flame hits these cured trichomes, the gland head instantly vaporizes. If the tissue connecting the gland head and the stalk were intact, as in a fresher bud, then perhaps that small mass of tissue burns up when flame is applied and causes the sphere of resin to collapse upon itself rather than become immediately vaporized.

Does this make any sense to anyone?

The recent Electron Microscope pics here at ICmag might help to explain my theory more in detail....
 

Elevator Man

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B-b-but I can't wait 3-6 months! 3 weeks will be a long time just before Christmas...:)

But wow guys - great stuff. I should have enough for me to put some away - they're not huge plants, but I think the buds might get quite dense toward the end. But I'm amazed how easy it was to keep the height down - every time it threw up some more length, I just bent it sideways - after three weeks flowering , it just seemed to give up trying to grow upwards.

Here they are a few weeks ago:





 

Elevator Man

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When I first posted those pics someone said I was wasting my time, and either get a proper light over them or kill them! Heh...:)

And yeah - got to keep busy - always thinking, always planning...:)
 

Dr Leary

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EM if you find your smoke is weak and/or doesnt last long, it's probably gonna be the cure. My experience is that a longer cure produces outstanding results. good luck to you and merry christmas lol.....
 

Elevator Man

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Thanks for the tip - hopefully I can split my harvest in half and put some away for a length of time - I'm not burying it in the garden in England at this time of year though...:)
I'll still have some Skunks and Flo to smoke, but I get through it real quick...
 

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