Jasmonic acid + Gibberellin = 91% More Trichomes

[Oreganic]

Ok, well my question is... why?

More trichomes does not equal higher potency, so what is the point of increasing the resin content, aside from bag appeal? It has been my experience that any bud that has been enhanced through nutrients, so that it has a higher trichome production, has tended to be harsher, with a poor burn. Of course many factors could contribute, but the bottom line is that I have never noticed a correlation with trichomes and potency, so... why would you want more trichomes?

 

[OldMan&theWeed]

Ok, well my question is... why?

More trichomes does not equal higher potency, so what is the point of increasing the resin content, aside from bag appeal? It has been my experience that any bud that has been enhanced through nutrients, so that it has a higher trichome production, has tended to be harsher, with a poor burn. Of course many factors could contribute, but the bottom line is that I have never noticed a correlation with trichomes and potency, so... why would you want more trichomes?

Many have theorized that cannabis evolved THC loaded trichomes mainly for insect protection. Many insects find the thick coating of trichomes unpleasant, this offers a level of protection for the developing seeds. The trichomes also produce volatile compounds that make cannabis less palatable to many herbivores & omnivores. Key to this repellent action is the volatile biosynthesizes tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Or put plainly: Pot makes THC to keep animals from eating it.

The plants studied (including tomato, wild tobacco, and others) all reacted to the jasmonic acid in three ways:

1. They made more trichomes.

2. They increased their production of terpins and other volatile compounds (which in cannabis' case is THC).

3. They slowed down growth as a consequence of the first two reactions.

They did these things because they were tricked into believing that they were about to attacked by herbivores. It's possible that cannabis might do the same.

 

[OldMan&theWeed]

I see no issue with a plant surrounded by sage or cut up leaf, but spraying it foliar could be a different matter, and I do not know. So far you are talking about herbs, fruit, and tobacco, not weed. No data on if the tobacco was fit or safe to smoke.

The study measured an increase in nicotine production after the tobacco plant was exposed to the sagebrush. And yes, I'm afraid your fears are justified: Nicotine is a highly toxic compound, and more nicotine will make the tobacco plants even more dangerous. No tobacco is fit to smoke.

If you had tested this, or had data from someone who had done it with weed, and found it to be safe to consume, then it might be worth a try. As presented, it is just more untested theory, that could even cause damage.

Trics don't come in a bottle, they appear when you help your genetics fulfill their nature.
H

People consume sagebrush as all the time. Animals, both wild and domestic, depend on it as a source of food. Maybe what they're all doing is unsafe. Perhaps this wild plant is far more dangerous than all the synthetic chemicals some growers put on their crops. Perhaps if you spray a cannabis plant with sagebrush tea and later smoke it, your dick will fall off, I honestly don't know.

 

[OldMan&theWeed]

I wanted to pause for a moment and thank you all for making this such a great thread. What makes it work is not only the enthusiasm of people like Capn, and the deeper questions put fourth by folks Bluntedskyline, but the earnest skepticism of people like Haps and Oreganic as well.

This treatment of jasmonic acid and gibberellin to the best of my knowledge has never been tried on cannabis, but I believe it is promising. If my suspicions are correct, we all stand to benefit. And if I am wrong I honestly do not see how exposing one plant to another will cause any harm to either one. I read and thought about it for quite some time before I started posting here and I just wanted to let you know that any constructive contribution is appreciated.

 

[konstantgrdnr]

Ha I've been looking at this for about two years now, every now and then i keep tabs by searching, this time i happen to see someone on icmag post.

So what made me search this topic again was some other information i came across that helped explain the role of Jasmonic and light. This article fits with this thread and also helps explain BOG's final flush method .

Light Or Fight? How Plants Make Tough Survival Choices

ScienceDaily (Mar. 2, 2009) — Ever since insects developed a taste for vegetation, plants have faced the same dilemma: use limited resources to out-compete their neighbors for light to grow, or, invest directly in defense against hungry insects.

Now, an international team of scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies and the Institute of Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agronomía (IFEVA) has discovered how plants weigh the tradeoffs and redirect their energies accordingly.

The same light sensor that detects other plants crowding in and gives the signal to switch on the synthesis of the plant growth hormone auxin reduces the plant's responsiveness to the hormone jasmonic acid, which orchestrates the synthesis of a whole array of defensive chemicals, the researchers report in an article published in the current early online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

"Understanding how plants resolve the dilemma of resource allocation on a mechanistic level opens the possibility to increase the natural defenses of crops, especially in the high density plantings typical of modern agriculture, which depend on regular applications of insecticides," explains senior author Carlos L. Ballaré, Ph.D., a senior scientist with CONICET (the National Research Council of Argentina) and associate professor at the University of Buenos Aires.

In an earlier study, Ballaré discovered that plants dial down their investment in defense when they perceive an increased risk of competition for light. But just how changes in light quality caused plants to drop their guards were still poorly understood. To connect the two, he turned to Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator Joanne Chory, Ph.D., in the Plant Biology Laboratory at the Salk Institute and former lab member, Yi Tao, Ph.D., who had dissected the molecular pathway that plants use to adjust their growth and flowering time to shade.

Plants sense the presence of other plants in their neighborhood by the relative increase in incoming far-red light resulting from absorption of red light by canopy leaves and reflection of far-red light from neighboring plants. "When the major photoreceptor for shade avoidance detects neighbors, plants start producing the growth hormone auxin and transport it to their stems, where it helps plants grow taller," explains Chory.

But plants also react to chemical cues in the oral secretions of herbivores and mechanical damage caused by caterpillars and their ilk nibbling on foliage. They increase the production of defense-related hormones, particularly jasmonic acid, which ramps up the concentration of chemicals that make plants unpalatable or at least less nutritious for herbivores.

"Such responses incur what is known as opportunity costs," says Chory. "Resource allocation to competition can limit investment in defense, increasing vulnerability to herbivores, while allocation to defense can reduce competitive ability against neighboring plants."

And that's exactly what first author Javier E. Moreno, a graduate student in Ballaré´s lab, found. Fall armyworms—caterpillars that prefer to chomp on corn, sorghum and other members of the grass family but won't say no to beans, potatoes, peanuts, cotton and other crops—grew twice as fast on Arabidopsis thaliana seedling grown under crowded conditions or exposed to far-red radiation, the light signal plants use to detect the proximity of neighbors. Like many commercially grown crops, Arabidopsis — the lab rat of plant biologists — doesn't tolerate shade well.

But it was more than a matter of limited resources. Mutated Arabidopsis seedlings that no longer responded to far-red radiation but had normal levels of the far-red photoreceptor, still let their defenses down. At closer inspection, the researchers found that far-red radiation decreased the plants' sensitivity to jasmonates. By ignoring jasmonate signals, the plants save resources because they no long invest in defense and, at the same time, avoid the growth-inhibitory effects of jasmonates.

"Without sufficient light to keep photosynthesis going, plants won't have enough energy to invest in sophisticated defense strategies," says Ballaré. "Coupling shade avoidance syndrome with the regulation of resource allocation to defense could provide a major selective advantage for plants growing in the wild, but might increase the vulnerability of densely planted crops to insects."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090227161823.htm


From what i gathered far red light has an effect of slowing down jasomic production which would be used to trigger a plants defenses. In the case of Cannabis it would diminish Trichome production. BOG has stated he uses diminished light level towards the end of his grows for potency. This can be seen as lowering the levels in the far red light allows the plants mechanisms for defense to function again.


This coupled with the stress from not watering would ramp up the Jasmonic levels and in turn increase Trichome production. All this information can be used in the growers favor, timing would be really key because Jasmonic also slows and or stops growth and would not be as effective i guess if started at the wrong time. also a shift in light spectrum towards the end flowering in favor of less far red would probably help, but only experimentation will tell.


Hope this helped furthered the discussion on this topic

 

[eurasian_farmer]

early metal halide

early metal halide

would this account for my noticed trichome production and maturation along with stunted branch growth after adding a 400MH after only 2wks into 12/12?



ef

 

[FunkyFarmer]

Found the following quote, which might have your interest. Apparently foliar is not the only means of using Jasmonic acid.
"The researchers found that dipping seeds in jasmonic acid would kickstart a plant's natural defenses against pests. Jasmonic acid, which is produced by plant leaves when attacked by insects, is known to help defend plants when it's sprayed on crops. However, spraying the acid tends to reduce plant growth, while dipping seeds in the acid doesn't create that side effect, the researchers said."

 

[mister c]

This is very interesting...i love how sage smells

 

[dubwise]

 

[2fast4u2]

this is really interesting.

For the first time, i vegged a large amount of plants in my 400w tent (check my sig, latter posts) and my canopy became dense as i topped and trained to get more shoots.

Now, once the canopy completely blocked out light, i notice a sort of "take off" if you will in vertical growth, from all shoots, not just the latter.

Now im not saying that after this thread im on the hunt for more trichs via experiment, but what i am saying, is that ive noticed conditions where the plants stayed shorter, and its because i usually veg in a 4x4 tray, the plants never touch each other as they have plenty of room.

So, if thats true, and im personally able to account to this fact, then energy diverted towards vertical growth due to light restrictions not only could but WOULD be diverted elsewhere, provided the plant is unable to detect other plants that would trigger diverted energy into vertical growth.

This is exciting, and i feel ive just understood another facet in growing, fucking light bulbs, dont come often enough.

good read op

 

[Telegraphist.]

Any updates?

Any updates?

Any updates on this?

Big thank you OldMan&theWeed and others for doing the research into this. I like your style of thinking OldMan&theWeed, I salute you for it sir.

I plan to do some active research myself once i educate myself first about it

How is the best way to get into a plant late into flowering?

where is the cheapest place to pick up some?

Anyone else have any info they can contribute on this please

 

[grapeman]

Hmm. Gibb alone increased tric production by over 70%
see here "Interestingly, there was also evidence of interaction between gibberellin and salicylic acid. In the absence of salicylic acid, gibberellin caused an increase of 72.0% in trichome number."

I have gibb on hand. In response to some of the comments above regarding chemical and nutes, all I can say is that Gibb is organic and is registered for use by organic growers nationwide. The problem I have is that when I use it on other crops, it is always measured in ppm or parts per million. I don't recognize the concentrations these authors are using, nor do they say when the optimal time of application would be.

Would be nice if someone else would figure the concentrations into ppm and remark on the timing of application, I would then try it out on a plant or 2 and see what effect it has if any, and share it here.

 

[big twinn]

wow great thread...any updates on actual cannabis applications?

 

[mpd]

Hmm. Well, gibberellin has been used to reverse plants hasn't it? Is that the same hormone used in STS? I could be wrong. If that is the case, then it makes sense that it would occur late in the plant cycle - like the last three weeks and that seems to be the consensus but there is very little that can be done without a complete assay of every yield. Who's going to spend the time and money documenting the increase in THC production for the benefit of the chemical companies? Which chemical companies will do tests on marijuana to document it? None and none.

I like the idea immensely but fear real results could get lost in a sea of hype and sloppy science.

Old Man & The Sea has much respect from me for bringing this to the attention of the community. This is something that has huge potential but we will need a battery of tests to prove it out and even then the data may be inconclusive and require significant additional widespread test grows to find out if there is a sweetspot for applying these compounds to marijuana. In the meantime, I guess you can clip some sage and put it in the planter or spray them with gibberellin and see what happens.

 

[Telegraphist.]

Stoners want results, stoners gonna experiment

Stoners want results, stoners gonna experiment

mpd, sadly what you say about testing is true. No company is going to do it so the stoner community is going to have to do themselves.

The Cannalytics test look acurate enough for small tests in investigating this, even side by side with only the eyes to tell

If enough stoners experiment and post up the data then at least a starting point exists

 

[sweetestsin420]

1

 

[Iffy]

Is there any relationship between Sagebrush populations and landrace potency?

Great question FreedomFGHTR, maybe one that will never be answered definatively.
Stay safe

 

[Sunfire]

would this account for my noticed trichome production and maturation along with stunted branch growth after adding a 400MH after only 2wks into 12/12?



ef

That effect is most likely from the small out of UV that the mh bulb emmits. Hps emmits none and UVB has been shown to directly effect trichrome growth as a stressor. Proper outdoor is always better in my opinion, full spectrum and UV.

light spectrum is also recently been played with. Indoor people are using blue spectrum, far red, and UV lights to achieve amazing results. Blue in the "mornin" UV "midday" and red in the "evening" with a blast of far red right at "dusk." All controlled by Nano reef timers.

 

[Sunfire]

The stretching of plants when being shaded is cause by phytochrome turning into phytochrome red (PFR) which is the same hormone that causes flowering. It can be isolated branch by branch to make the shaded ones grow lanky and the ones getting sun grow more bushy. This is evident if you have ever seen a branch or two on a plant start flowering and the rest of of it isnt, I have experienced that before and seen it in books.

Far red spectrum can increase production of pfr and make plants flower harder and with less dark. Rosenthal talks about this in the book he wrote for the oaksterdam university. This would make sense why far red and in shade would make a plant abandon defense and try to stretch more.

 

[BillFarthing]

Isn't Purple Maxx Ultra triacontanol and jasmonic acid? Would that be better than something that wouldn't stretch my plants like GA3?