HOW HIGH IS "HIGHLAND"?

[Psychosativa]

High everyone

I recently read that tropical-highland strains are the most psychoactive because of their higher exposure to UV B radiation.
I'm certainly at the tropic (6° N), but not sure if I'm high enough to produce outstanding pot (5045 ft).
What do you think?

Thanks in advance

 

[Psychosativa]

Well, here's the article, I hope someone finds it useful

By Ed Rosenthal (22 Nov, 2002)

There are three spectrums of UV light. UVA is the least harmful. This is the spectrum produced by black lights. UVC light is dangerous to all life. It is used in water purification systems to sterilize water.

The light spectrum of interest to us is UVB. It affects life in many ways. In humans it causes tanning, skin aging, eye damage and cancers. Other animals are affected by it in all sorts of ways.

The Earth's atmosphere filters UVB light. There is more UVB light at high altitudes than at sea level. Also, sunlight at the equator takes the shortest route through the atmosphere. As the latitude increases, sunlight reaches Earth after going through more atmosphere because of its slanted path. Therefore UVB at the equator is much more intense than in temperate zones. That's one reason people tan or burn so fast in the tropics, and why skin cancer rates are higher in southern than northern states.

A researcher conducted a controlled experiment in a greenhouse. He lit a group of high potency plants similarly except with the addition of UVB light to some groups. He found that the percentage of THC increased in a direct ratio with the increase in UVB light. This research confirms the adage that high altitude plants are more potent than those grown at low altitudes.

If you look at old-world land races of cannabis, plants that have become adapted to the climate and latitude, the ratio of THC to CBD starts at 100 : 1 at the equator. At the 30th parallel (The Hindu-Kush Valley) the plants have a ratio of 50 : 50. At the 45th parallel the ratio is near 1 : 100. This corresponds roughly with the amount of UVB light received at these latitudes. There is much more UVB at the equator than the 45th parallel.

How can you get more UVB light to your plants? Certainly it's true that MH lamps emit more UVB light than HPS lamps. Still the amount that MH lamps emit is small. In fact, many manufacturers use UVB shielding glass to filter out most of the UVB that's produced. The UVB light the plant receives from an MH lamp does increase the plant's potency slightly at the cost of yield, but there are better ways to introduce UVB light into the grow room. They include reptile lights, which emit about 10% UVB, and tanning lamps.

The problem with using these lamps is that they are associated with increased number of cancers and many other problems. They should not be on when you are in the grow room. Not much research has been conducted on using them to produce higher THC values. I will do a full report in a future issue.

 

[Guest]

Reptile lighting doesnt have any kind of intensity compared with MH and HPS, so how would they do much if anything unless maybe you had your plant or plants completely covered with a bunch of lights within a few inches. Are tanning lights more intense?

 

[Psychosativa]

Hi Lucky

It seems that tanning lamps should be used in conjunction with the HPS (or MH). The tanning lamps provide the UVB radiation, while the HPS provides the light for growing.
The UVB lamp is just an added item to the normal light equipment.

 

[Guest]

Hi Lucky

It seems that tanning lamps should be used in conjunction with the HPS (or MH). The tanning lamps provide the UVB radiation, while the HPS provides the light for growing.
The UVB lamp is just an added item to the normal light equipment.

So one tanning lamp would work? If so how close does it have to be? Any links you may have to more info on the subject would be highly appreciated!!!!

 

[Psychosativa]

Hi Lucky

I recently got this info from Cannabis Culture, so I don´t really know the subject very well. Here's something interesting I found right here in icmag, I hope it helps

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPcpt3Be28o

 

[ixnay007]

If you're in a mountainous area, you're more than likely high enough to gain some benefit from the thinner atmosphere. If you can find an east facing mountain slope, or even better, a flat area that gets uninterrupted sunlight, you'll be able to produce some scary sativas.

Just as an aside, I remember an australian saying that for him, the quality of winter grown mj was better, the yeilds were lower, but during the summer the sun was so strong that it actually cooked the trichomes on the plant

 

[Joe Hawkins]

Number 1 fundamental rule in MJ growing:

Potency is genetic.

 

[Psychosativa]

If you're in a mountainous area, you're more than likely high enough to gain some benefit from the thinner atmosphere. If you can find an east facing mountain slope, or even better, a flat area that gets uninterrupted sunlight, you'll be able to produce some scary sativas.

Just as an aside, I remember an australian saying that for him, the quality of winter grown mj was better, the yeilds were lower, but during the summer the sun was so strong that it actually cooked the trichomes on the plant

It's nice to hear that !

Number 1 fundamental rule in MJ growing:

Potency is genetic

That's right, but some environmental factors do affect the expression of genetic info.


Ah, also, thank you guys, I do appreciate all your comments.

 

[3dDream]

Psychosativa, I have read that UVB does very little to indicas. This would fall in line with what you are saying since sativas are equatorial. I use 2 10.0 uvb bulbs in my cab and have to be very careful not to burn the plants. If the lights are too close, the leaves will crinkle and then pistols will turn red and shrivel up. If they continue to be exposed, the plants will look like they are melted. I also read that trics look cloudy faster w/ uvb.

 

[Joe Hawkins]

That's right, but some environmental factors do affect the expression of genetic info.


Ah, also, thank you guys, I do appreciate all your comments.

Yes Indeed , yeh I re read your initial post and realised what you were getting at, I first read it under the influence, so wasnt quite tuned in,

Interesting science, Im an advocate for true expression, and most tropical regions produce these results with no need for fertiliser as the soil is so fertile that if you blew on it you'd grow babies.

 

[dkmonk]

Maybe put the uvb light on for the last 2-3 weeks of flowering. Anyone tried this yet, to see if it does anything?

 

[Psychosativa]

Psychosativa, I have read that UVB does very little to indicas. This would fall in line with what you are saying since sativas are equatorial. I use 2 10.0 uvb bulbs in my cab and have to be very careful not to burn the plants. If the lights are too close, the leaves will crinkle and then pistols will turn red and shrivel up. If they continue to be exposed, the plants will look like they are melted. I also read that trics look cloudy faster w/ uvb.

Ok, I'm gonna consider this. I'll try mainly sativa crosses. This could be useful for Lucky440 as well.

Interesting science, Im an advocate for true expression, and most tropical regions produce these results with no need for fertiliser as the soil is so fertile that if you blew on it you'd grow babies.

That's good news for my project !

 

[Guest]

3ddream, what does 10.0 mean for uvb bulbs? Also how close is too close? Should you reposition the bulb or bulbs from time to time with the hope that the entire plant recieves around the same amount of uvb light?

 

[3dDream]

Lucky440: 10.0% UVB light 30% UVA for the output of the bulb. Too close is 6", but some plants get used to it if they are young enough when they are exposed. You will know w/in 12 hours or so if it is too close. The leaves look burnt or melted when exposed for too long. Not all plants react negatively to UVB though. I do move my plants around, but I run 1 bulb most of the time in the 2 x 2 ft space. I run both bulbs when the space allows, it all depends how big the girls get.

day 53 sadhu - she does not react in any negative ways to the UVB, she drinks it up I guess. she is less than 1 ft from the bulb.

 

[Rosy Cheeks]

Very nice vid you posted there Psychosativa, quite a feat to explain complex biochemistry in an intelligible way when you’re as stoned as this guy.

He makes a couple of statements that needs to be clarified though. First, he says that the resin gland (or the plant) is using the UV-B radiation to produce Tetrahydrocannabinol. Now, this is possible but not proven scientifically, so it shouldn’t be stated as a fact. He simply assumes it, because of certain research (D. W. Pate's study "Possible role of ultraviolet radiation in evolution of Cannabis chemotypes", and J. Lydon's and A.H. Teramura's "Photochemical decomposition of cannabidiol in its resin base" and "UV-B radiation effects on photosynthesis, growth and cannabinoid production" being the most prominent) which indicate that Cannabis Sativa grown on high altitudes produce more potent resin (read higher ratios of THC), probably because of higher levels of UV radiation.
If you use that statement as a fact, then you should be able to turn it around and say that Cannabis grown in absence of UV-B (for instance certain artificial lighting that lacks or almost lacks UV-B output) would not produce any THC, since UV-B is what – according to him - the plant needs to make THC. This is where we realize that he is wrong, because not only can you grow THC producing Cannabis without UV-B radiation, you can grow extremely potent (20% + THC ) Cannabis with little or no UV-B.

Conclusion? UV-B is not a primary factor in THC production, even though it might have an amplifying or facilitating effect on THC production.

There exists today – to the best of my knowledge – research showing a relationship between high altitude grown Cannabis and increased THC ratios (although other research contradicts this theory, or minimizes the importance of it), but no research showing or proving that artificial UV-B radiation increases THC ratios in indoor grown plants. UV-B is simply radiation in the wavelengths of approximately 320 to 280 nanometers. It can be produced artificially. If it was so simple as to say that UV-B radiation ‘makes’ THC, or increased levels of UV-B produces higher ratios of THC, then this could be translated into higher THC ratios in plants bred in a high UV-B environment. Therefore, fluorescents, Metal Halides, Xenon or any UV-B rich lights should produce higher THC ratios than an identical testgroup grown under High Pressure Sodium lights, although this does not seem to be the case (even if the guy in the vid claims so). So perhaps we’re missing one or two crucial factors of why high altitude pot seems to have higher THC ratios than low altitude grown Cannabis, that may or may not have something to do with UV-B radiation.

Second, the speaker makes a mistake when speculating on why the plant produces resin glands. He shows a closeup of a resin covered plant and says “look, it’s totally covered in resin”, as a kind of proof of that the plant produces it in order to protect itself against UV-B.
The thing is, the plant in question is a selectively bred drug type Cannabis plant, which has been subjected to generations and generations and generations of selective breeding/controlled genetic evolution. It produces ample amounts of resin because it has been bred to do so, not because nature imposes it. Compare the resin-covered, selectively bred drug type plant to most wild growing plants (which generally has low resin production, with THC ratios around 1%), or why not industrial hemp (in which THC ratios are always lower than 0.3% THC). How do these plants survive the UV-B onslaught, if it’s so crucial in the protection of the plants?

Just a thing or two to think about before you rush off to the pet shop to buy that reptile light.

 

[Sativa Soul]

very interesting post rosy cheeks!

 

[ixnay007]

From what I can tell, there'd be more light in general at high altitudes, so UVB aside, I'd imagine that the plant produces more resin because it has more energy to use...

There might also be the fact that there are more extreme temperature swings at higher altitudes.. too many other variables to pick just one.

 

[Psychosativa]

Rosy & Ixnay

It really makes sense what you're saying.

In the other hand, it's true that sativas have certain distinctive chemotypes, and one would think that environmental factors have incided in the evolution of these chemotypes.
Probably the UVB-thing is just a sketchy idea which has not been developed into a serious experiment, but It would be fantastic to find an explanation on the adaptative reasons for sativas' chemotypes.

My intuition tells me tropics are more conductive to sativa dominant crosses, so I'm gonna try them beside some indicas, just to be sure.

Thanks, I've learned a lot from your inputs

 

[vinivici]

has anyone done side by side grows with and without uvb?