i still want to try running a long flowerer in my bio-buckets. i don't want to do it just to say 'I' did it. i want to try it because i like a challenge where the rewards are extremely worth it. if i manage to pull it off, great. maybe that will help others grow long flowerers indoors.
what are some of the reasons people say sativas grow best in soil?? is it because they are light feeders? do they like intense lighting or less intense? i can accomodate both in my tent. low ec levels are not a problem in bio-buckets. i've got a dimmable 1k ballast for adjustments to light intensity. i can even make my tent run anywehere from 3*f over ambient temps up to no heat being exhausted. i could even up the humidity, if need be
let me know some of the likes and dislikes of these long running sativas please
You're spot on, the closer you get to a pencil-thin-leaflet original landrace - the more nute finicky it is. If I were running a hydro setup, I would entirely forget about the pure hazes, they're going to claw on you from literally nothing, I can't even use non-ammended happy frog soil without em hating me. The thai haze crosses are going to be better suited to the nutrient slamming regiment of hydro. Soil is generally preferred for this reason, but like I said, even very mild soils can still burn some of these plants. Give you an idea, when I run pure purple haze again I'll be doing it with half inert soil (light warrior) and half happy frog to further mellow things out. Golden tiger and double thai will be more forgiving, but still, extremely low ec/ppm or they will hate you.
Light intensity isn't too much of an issue, but brighter is always better. Also, low temps help a great deal - I've found that while sats can take temps in the mid 80s, they're *much* happier at about 68-71 degrees. Humidity isn't so much of an issue, they don't get very dense and they have TONS of room between bud sites, so anything between 40%-70% works fine.
Height is a major issue with these girls. If you want any kind of yield, you'll need to veg them to where they have stems about the size of your index finger minimum. Plants with stems that size will be huge, so scrogging / very creative LST work are in your future. It's very do-able, but you will probably mutter to yourself "ok so where am I going to put this branch now?" at least a couple times.
Likes: the high is so different from anything you've smoked it'll blow your mind - and every sativa is TOTALLY different. Haze, thai, panama, malawi, etc all have totally different experiences. You will love the rabbit hole. Pure sativas have beautiful leaves and an elegant structure to them.
Dislikes: waiting 15-20+ weeks for smoke means the ultimate in patience. Plants don't respond well to bloom boosters or additional ferts and it will make the smoke taste bad, which hurts doubly after waiting so long.