Mythbusting #1...share knowledge

[Philly Green]

I am gonna start this thread and hopefully it perpetuates as all great threads do. It could be an instant tool for people to deliberate techniques and styles that are debatable, but also used consistently by the guerilla horticultural gurus. So, to start, I personally would like to have three myths looked at.

1) Does using a dehumidifier in the last phase of flowering actually increase the resin output of the plant? Does this sacrifice potency and just make stickier buds?

2) Can adding regular table sugar (or other sugars) to the water actually alter the resin output and taste of a plant's buds?

3) Other than when dying or yellowing, when is it best to cut the leaves? Some "experts" say to remove leaves in the last phase of flowering to increase light exposure to all buds, while other "experts" say that this will take away energy from resin production and concentrate it on mending the cuts.


As there are probably no abolsute right or wrong answers, please at least leave your two cents from your own experience or even just something your read or heard. OR Leave another growing myth that can be looked at.

 

[Trichome Toker]

Keeping the humidity under 40% in the last few weeks of flowering is a very smart idea.

As far as it increasing trichome production, I have no idea.

In my experience, the healthier the plant is at harvest, the more potent it is.

If it is green all the way to the end, it is always killer smoke, if it is yellowing out late in flowering it is still good, but not as good.

Carbo boosts from sugar/molasses help feed the microherd, improving nutrient uptake.

They have a minor effect on taste and potency, those two things are determined by the over all health of the plant at the end of flowering IMHO.

Never remove any leafs until the plant has been harvested.

 

[emmy75]

nice goin philly green

i have read that less humidity equals more resin production in flower. of course i have not yet to flower my girls so i cant speak from experience. i live in socal and the air here is very dry. sometimes my rh is only 4. while not optimal in veg, with the belief that the drier the air the better the resin production will be in flower i think i couldnt find a better place to flower than socal.

 

[Trichome Toker]

Lower RH will lower your risk of mold.

That is the main positive thing about it.

As far as improving your potency, it may or it may not.

Either way you are asking for trouble if your RH is over 50% in flowering.

 

[Guest]

Removing leaves during the growth and flowering time does not alter the smoke all that much if at all. I've done with the larger fan leaves to increase light penetration into the plant as late as 4 weeks of flowering.

 

[the protege]

is it true... that if you don't use it, you lose it?

 

[Trichome Toker]

The bears smell the period, and then the bears come, they are very attracted to the menstruation!

 

[Breezy420]

Keeping the humidity under 40% in the last few weeks of flowering is a very smart idea.

As far as it increasing trichome production, I have no idea.

In my experience, the healthier the plant is at harvest, the more potent it is.

If it is green all the way to the end, it is always killer smoke, if it is yellowing out late in flowering it is still good, but not as good.

Carbo boosts from sugar/molasses help feed the microherd, improving nutrient uptake.

They have a minor effect on taste and potency, those two things are determined by the over all health of the plant at the end of flowering IMHO.

Never remove any leafs until the plant has been harvested.

I'll 2nd that keep the humidity low in flower to prevent mold on those dense nugs you're growing!

Although my girls usually aren't super green come harvest time. They lose their green color during the final 2 weeks mid flush. I like to leech out all the nutes and let her feed off the yummies that she has stored up in her fan leaves. I've never experienced lower potency doing it this way.

 

[Bones]

Ok, I got one............

In a lot of gardening books i've read, they say that lime needs time to work in the soil before adding any compost or manure - In short they say that you should always add lime a couple of months before adding anything else to the soil???

Is this true or what??

I've noticed from reading through a few threads about organic mixes that this subject never gets mentioned. Could it just apply to outdoor *straight* gardening?????

Thanks,

Bones

 

[Guest]

It may take a while for lime to be at its most useable but it deffinately causes immediate change in Ph. Alot of cactus like lime dusted across thee top of the soil and watered in and this has immediate effect with them as well.

All plants naturally store and use sugars (Carbohydrates), during flowering and fruiting; a plant uses its' storage of these sugars. Adding molasses or another crude sugar can help the plant replenish these drained levels. However, I do still conflicting reports about a plants ability to take up sugars. Regardless, it is well documented and known that it does improve the quality of the soil in a couple ways. With the very least being the encouragment of beneficial microbes. I suggest 3LB's Molasses Guide for more detailed information. I think it worth noting that I have never heard of anyone using table sugar of anykind; plants would need crude/unrefined/non-bleached sugars.

I too have heard that drier air encourages the plant to produce more resins, I don't know if that is indeed true but I agree the main benefit is that it decreases likelihood of mold getting a hold of dense buddies. gpw don't mean shit if the buds are in the grip of mold.
It's interesting this is brought up; I'm unsure of the validity of claims to increase resin production through dehumidified air but one of the functions of the stimulant (forgot name) that supposedly "tricks" the plant into survival mode mechanisms would possibly play on the idea of a deffense to overly dry air and an increase in resin levels to partially prtect itself from heat/dry damage. Then that asks the question of: What part would silica play in resin production since silica is know to boost deffense to arid conditions. Would silica actually be counteractive IF the dehumidifier idea is correct?

J.

 

[Neptune]

yeah, you organic growers should always keep a few large (50+ gallon) totes in your garage with pre-mixed super soil.

including your dry ferts, and stir it every week. Water it with slight molasses tea (5-10ml/gallon) to help the herd establish.. and continue to mix. Yes, including lime... very important.

 

[lemonade]

"If it is green all the way to the end, it is always killer smoke, if it is yellowing out late in flowering it is still good, but not as good."

I agree with everything else you said TT but I disagree with ya on this one. It's probably just personal preference, but I stop feeding my plants about 2 weeks from harvest and this usually causes a good deal of yellowing depending on how rich the soil was to begin with.

 

[Philly Green]

This may sound stupid, but where the hell can I buy black strap molasses? I have checked heath food stores and various supermarkets and cannot find it. I am not gonna buy it offline and get ripped off...I just want a little to toss my ice before harvest. Does anyone know where to get some or any other natural additives that are easily obtainable.

 

[Guest]

check by the maple syrup in the grocery store

 

[BudZad7]

Hi All !!

Blackstrap for soil, & Sucanat for hydro

Sugar Daddy has 2% cane sugar, Sweet has 0.1%
SD has Mg 1.6%, Sweet has Mg 1.50%
SD has 1.75% sulfur, Sweet has 2.00% sulfur

This is Technaflora's calmag+
Magical has Nitrogen 2.0%, Ca 3.25%, Mg 1.25%, Fe 0.11%

Cal-Mag Plus has Nitrogen 2.0%, Ca 3.2%, Mg 1.2%, Fe 0.1% + trace minerals

Peace!

 

[quadracer]

This may sound stupid, but where the hell can I buy black strap molasses? I have checked heath food stores and various supermarkets and cannot find it. I am not gonna buy it offline and get ripped off...I just want a little to toss my ice before harvest. Does anyone know where to get some or any other natural additives that are easily obtainable.

I was able to find several organic brands of molasses at the store. I like to use the molasses when I brew my own teas to feed the earthworm castings. Add a little cold pressed kelp in there, and the plants will turn the healthiest color.

 

[emmy75]

philly green i dont use blackstrap molasses. i couldnt find that. i just use regualr molasses, grandmas, i think,. just found it at the regular grocery store. does black strap molasses actually have the words black strap on it?

 

[RebelGrow]

when doing a hydro set up, how much sucanat are we suppose to use per gallon? thanks, and do we find this at a local natural foods store?

 

[FOF]

I like this thread. I really liked the OG Consensus forum. The idea, though, should be to tackle these questions scientifically with objective trials, documentation and discussion until we reach a conclusion that definitively answers the experiment.

 

[Philly Green]

I agree with that, but we have to keep this thing on track. We should choose one central issue and examine it until its resolved or proved too relative an issue to make a definitive judgment in any way. That being said, I think everyone who has been involved in these discussions have moved past the very base of horticultual understanding. I certainly consider myself an expert amongst my friends, but on here I am an experienced novice, at best, but even I know all the basics. We should also try to stay away from troubleshooting, as there are way too many threads like that around. I feel we sort of got into the issue of whether to allow your plants to leech its own nutes in the last 1-2 weeks and allow yellowing, or whether to keep it fertilized until harvest, but as FOF said, we havent come to any concensus, much less come across anything scientific in base.