Harvest Question - Trich Colors

Thanks for checking the post out!

TL;DR: Girls have been flowering for about two weeks. At least one trich has already turned amber in color. As far as I know there should be a four week minimum flower time for potency? Also, plants haven't grown an inch (higher at least) while I've flowered contrary to what I have read. Perhaps this will lead to denser buds because of a shorter yet stockier plant?


Background:
I have been flowering my two plants for about two weeks. I have two different soils for two different females. One is a simple mix without any nutrients in it, and another is Miracle grow. The one without nutrients is looking really light green, where as the other is much darker in comparison. I had some calcium problems but got those sorted out before flowering using ground up sea-shells.
As for the moment, everything looks great. I tried using a magnifying glass to see the trichs, but it wasn't powerful enough; I ended up making a jeweler's monocle out of a telescope I had laying around the house. Surprisingly I can see pretty good detail, enough to discern if the trichs are clear, cloudy or amber in color.

Question:

The lighter green plant is already displaying at least one amber trich, how much longer should I flower under 40W CFL(x2), and a 20W CFL(x1)? (I enjoy a more uppity high) I've read that there is a 4 week minimum flower time for the plants to reach max potency?

The darker green plant has started to establish trichs, and is building rapidly. I suppose trich growth has been retarded by the levels of nitrogen in the soil.

Also I had expected my plants to "triple in size" from what my research across threads / growing guides / books; this never occurred during flowering. My plants have grown maybe 1/2 an inch from when I measured before I started flowering (8" tall from the soil in a 1 gallon container.) Thoughts?

Update:

Went through the entire plant, found about a dozen amber colored trichomes. I'm hesitant to do anything without a second opinion. I went through the forums, but found nothing. A majority of the grows I have read about flower for at least 45 days. I can't figure out what the hell is going on with my plants. When can I expect them to begin rapidly growing? Should I keep flowering, or attempt to harvest?

Flowering takes 45 to 75 days, your not even close...

Flowering under CFL's is only going to produce "Air Buds" at best...

Sounds like there starved for food & light at this point...

Regular feeding and a 400w HPS would do wonders...

PS...

I'd Drop the Miracle Grow, nothing but Nitrogen for the most part...

I'd go with Fox Farm Ocean Blend and Pure Blend Pro Grow for Veg and Pro Bloom for Flowering...

If you do not feed them, they will not grow...

Thanks for the reply. I'll grab some flowering nutrients on the double as soon as I can get out to the store, and transplant to a new soil that is not MG. I know my plant loved it under Vegging. I guess the trich colors, and the general cloudiness threw me off a bit. I'll see what I can do to remedy the situation, hopefully I will see some growth and bud development here in the next week or so.

you need more light.

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Originally Posted by Probst

I've read that there is a 4 week minimum flower time for the plants to reach max potency?

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I wish it was only 4 weeks. The very last weeks in the flowering cycle are when it ripens and gains its potency.

You should think about adding more CFLs if you can.

Trichs can turn amber when damaged and can confuse you. Be patient... You will be rewarded in the end.

How much more light should I add? Should I add another 40W, or more?
I'll change out the soil sometime soon for my other plant that is in MG; and pick up some bloom ferts, what I'm using now is directed more towards vegging, I think.

before buying nutes please read this

Maximum Yield - Indoor Gardening

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Originally Posted by darealbrain

before buying nutes please read this

Maximum Yield - Indoor Gardening

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Thanks!

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Originally Posted by darealbrain

before buying nutes please read this

Maximum Yield - Indoor Gardening

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a bu**sh*t article written by someone who wanted to sell an article not grow cannabis......heres a quote from the link which sums it up......" After all is said and done, there is only really one way to find out what is going to give you the biggest and best quality harvests, and thatâ??s to experiment a little". ........you can grow excellent smoke using any food be it MG,GH,AN or JACKS..

1. Yes, flowering should be more than 40 days. Trichomes age differently just like leaves do and may in some areas turn colors. It is apparent you have few trichomes as you can count them>???? That is the impression I receive anyhow. Heck you should have so many that counting is out of the question. I see this as some other sort of issue in the plant.

2. Nitrogen bearing nutes will leave a very nasty taste in product unless fully flushed. Just get some Fox Farm Ocean Forest. Shy away from production potting mixes as they have high N additives, which really isn't needed in flower.

3. Light allows the plant to nourish itself and grow. You can grow awesome weed if you use enough of and the right kind of light. You still need a good medium such as Fox Farms OF. Not too much water. Proper timing of lights, enough air, and you shouldn't need any nutrients, just repot every 3 weeks with a size up pot and more OF.

LIGHT HPS for flower At least 400 W 1 foot away from the closest top. Maybe 16 inches to be safe if heat issues occur. Air circulation is important too

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Originally Posted by WashougalWonder

1. Yes, flowering should be more than 40 days. Trichomes age differently just like leaves do and may in some areas turn colors. It is apparent you have few trichomes as you can count them>???? That is the impression I receive anyhow. Heck you should have so many that counting is out of the question. I see this as some other sort of issue in the plant.

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That's what I thought. Yes, as I explained I can see the trichomes very well, a lot of them are actually already cloudy, but some are still clear, and a about a dozen across the plant are amber. But yes, there are A LOT of tricomes.

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Originally Posted by WashougalWonder

2. Nitrogen bearing nutes will leave a very nasty taste in product unless fully flushed. Just get some Fox Farm Ocean Forest. Shy away from production potting mixes as they have high N additives, which really isn't needed in flower.

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Yes, I've got a bag of Schultz timed released ferts soil on one plant, the other is using organic soil with no additives other than limestone, etc for ph balance, and perlite for drainage. (I've never had a problem so far with the Schultz soil, contrary to what a lot of people say about it. I'll change out the soil during flowering to get rid of the nitrogen to get bad taste out.)

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Originally Posted by WashougalWonder

3. Light allows the plant to nourish itself and grow. You can grow awesome weed if you use enough of and the right kind of light. You still need a good medium such as Fox Farms OF. Not too much water. Proper timing of lights, enough air, and you shouldn't need any nutrients, just repot every 3 weeks with a size up pot and more OF.

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I've been doing 12/12 for a little over 2 weeks now. The plants seem to be developing some nice trichs, even the plant in the scultz timed release, which I will soon switch out for the other organic soil that I bought locally from a place that specializes in gardening. I should probably repot to two gallon containers.

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Originally Posted by WashougalWonder

LIGHT HPS for flower At least 400 W 1 foot away from the closest top. Maybe 16 inches to be safe if heat issues occur. Air circulation is important too

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I'm only growing two plants for personal use, I'm not trying to get anything over an ounce or two. As this is my first grow, I don't expect amazing numbers, or huge buds. I'm growing in a closet space, and there is now way I can afford a HPS system, I have been growing CFL's because it is cheaper. I just need to know how much more wattage I should expect to get for the plants. I have 100Watts right now, 20watts in 65k, and 40watts in 20K spectrum respectively. My temperatures have remained at 75-85 degrees Fahrenheit, and nothing more, nothing less. Humidity is around 30-40%. I have two fans running, one intake that pushes air through, and one out-take that pulls it out.

I'm simply trying to figure out since I have cloudy trichomes at 2 weeks, what this means, and should I try to harvest a little. Or should I get more lighting and keep trying to grow it bigger. My plants are small and have remained at 8" since I have induced flowering as I was told they would triple in size, which would roughly put them a little less than 3 feet, which is the height I have in my grow space.

I know this is a lot of information and a lot to read, and I appreciate everything everyone has suggested and talked about in this thread. Any further help would be greatly appreciated!

Any harvest now, if this plant is healthy would stress it, I don't think they are healthy, but base my statement on words on a forum and a gut feeling they are stressed.

It doesn't matter if you plan on doing lots of grows, you want good meds, you have to pay the li8ghting price, and HID is THE way to go, period. Certainly folks will argue that, I don't care. Proof is in the pudding, and the end result as a product is what is important.

Sounds like this is more of just an experiment, actually. At 2 weeks I would not expect very many trichomes, and I never bother to look at them so early, touching them destroys them. I be getting shakey in my old age.:stoned:

How about some pictures?

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Originally Posted by WashougalWonder

Any harvest now, if this plant is healthy would stress it, I don't think they are healthy, but base my statement on words on a forum and a gut feeling they are stressed.

It doesn't matter if you plan on doing lots of grows, you want good meds, you have to pay the li8ghting price, and HID is THE way to go, period. Certainly folks will argue that, I don't care. Proof is in the pudding, and the end result as a product is what is important.

Sounds like this is more of just an experiment, actually. At 2 weeks I would not expect very many trichomes, and I never bother to look at them so early, touching them destroys them. I be getting shakey in my old age.:stoned:

How about some pictures?

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I honestly didn't invest much to begin with because the seeds were over a year old from some bagseed. I had very little expectation that they would actually grow, let alone get to this stage. The plant is telling me it's near harvest, but people on the forums are telling me otherwise, which I am torn.
I can't supply pictures at this time, but I have found a picture on the Internet which closely resembles what my plant's trichomes look like, and one that looks similar to my plant, but mine has more orange pistils on it, and roughly the same shade of green. The leaves look about the same too. The trichomes are about the same. I'm trying to learn as much as I can, so when I invest in the future to actually grow my own so I always have some medication, that I can use when I need it. I know that HID is the way to go to get great looking plants, and intense yeilds, however I am only able to go CFL at the time being. What wattage and how many bulbs should I invest if I need more lighting if this plant is not near finished.

you have a bud like this after 2 weeks?
[attachment=o257922]

How old are the plants? how long did you veggie?

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Originally Posted by H6251687

you have a bud like this after 2 weeks?
[attachment=o257922]

How old are the plants? how long did you veggie?

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The plants total are about 2 months old. I vegged them for about a month and a half, and now they've been flowering for two weeks. I stopped vegging them when they hit about 8" tall from the top of the soil because I expected them to 'triple in height' as I've read on countless forums/grow books, that never happened. Could just be freak genetics.. the seeds were about a year old when I planted them, I kept them stored in a little box, the kind that jewelry comes in.

When the plant began to show signs of trichomes, and budding, I began to trim the larger fan leaves allowing more light to actually hit the buds and the small leaves that were around them. Maybe this could have pushed maturity, and stimulated trich/bud growth?

Since you're using CFLs I'd say the more the merrier.

Get some Y adapters and throw at least two more, if not four more bulbs in there.

HD has some 40w 2700k 550 lummen CFLs in a four pack for about 6 bucks, personally I'd look into that...

EDIT: And, hang the bulbs low so that plenty of light penetrates into the sides of the plants.

Sweet, I'll have to check them out!

The only explanation that I can muster up for what you are saying is that the plants are an auto flowering strain.

Can you please confirm:

Were there any signs of flowering/budding before you switched to 12/12?
If so, it is definitely an auto-flower strain and you should therefore keep it at 18/6 or with even more lights on time.

You compared the buds you have to that pic you found on the net of a big fat juicy bud.
This I would safely say is impossible for a non auto-flower strain that has only been on 12/12 for 2 weeks.

This might also explain why your plants haven't had a stretch of any description since you switched from veg.

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Originally Posted by brainfood33

The only explanation that I can muster up for what you are saying is that the plants are an auto flowering strain.

Can you please confirm:

Were there any signs of flowering/budding before you switched to 12/12?
If so, it is definitely an auto-flower strain and you should therefore keep it at 18/6 or with even more lights on time.

You compared the buds you have to that pic you found on the net of a big fat juicy bud.
This I would safely say is impossible for a non auto-flower strain that has only been on 12/12 for 2 weeks.

This might also explain why your plants haven't had a stretch of any description since you switched from veg.

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This would make a lot of sense. I have no idea what strain it is, or even what species of cannabis. I have yet to determine sativa, indica, or ruderalis. The seeds came from a bag that I got up north, near Minneapolis. Maybe they came from Canada? The only sign of pre-flower that I could think of is when I started 12/12 was that I began to see pistils. That was two weeks ago. I am not sure if this is a sign of auto-flowering as I have no experience with them. Is there a way to determine if exactly they are? Will changing the cycle now stress them worse than they already are?

Okay, I did some research on auto-flowering. My plants are consistent with the "within three weeks females will usually show themselves" and also the height where they usually do not go above 12 inches. Would it be safe to harvest now, then? I've also read that 12/12 severely hurts final yield.. I'm kind of bummed but my plants look fucking great for my first grow.

Is a shame you can't provide a photo because I'd still say it is inconclusive from what you are saying.

Again, coming back to that picture of the juicy bud you found on the net -

1) Are you saying that your plant went from just leaf and stalk before you switched to 12/12 (flowering) and then after only 2 weeks, your plant developed buds similar to that picture?

2) Or, before you switched to 12/12, there were some signs of buds or clusters of pistils?

If 1 is the answer, then you must be smoking too much and are either tripping or you have no concept of time! ;)

If 2 is the answer, then I believe you have an auto-flower strain and being on 12/12 will not be helping your plant.
Unfortunately I have no idea if reverting back to 18+/6 will help you now or not but maybe someone with auto experience will hopefully advise.

And on the trichomes you speak of.
You say that you found 1 amber trich on 1 plant. One??
Are we definitely clear on what the trichs are?
There should be literally thousands of trichs coating the small "sugar leafs" that surround the buds and some also on the larger leafs in close proximity to the buds too.
If you only found 1, it doesn't indicate ripeness as you want to see at least 20% turned but usually more.

Trics are a good start to telling when to cut but also make sure the bud is actually ripe with full swollen calyxs otherwise when you trim you'll notice nothing much or larfy crap in the middle.

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Originally Posted by brainfood33

Is a shame you can't provide a photo because I'd still say it is inconclusive from what you are saying.

Again, coming back to that picture of the juicy bud you found on the net -

1) Are you saying that your plant went from just leaf and stalk before you switched to 12/12 (flowering) and then after only 2 weeks, your plant developed buds similar to that picture? Is a shame you can't provide a photo because I'd still say it is inconclusive from what you are saying.

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1.) As I said in previous posts, the plants are 2 (two) months old. 2 (two) months have passed since I had planted them in soil to the point that they are now. During this time they vegged for 1 (one) month, and when they began to reveal their sex by showing their pistils. When the plant reached 8" (eight inches) from that point of showing pistils, THEN I began to 12/12 cycle. Both of the plants have been in 12/12 for 2 (two) weeks. When I said my plant resembles the ones in the pictures, I wasn't being vague, they literally look like that. The only difference is the shade of green, which is identical to the full picture of the top cola. All of this information is in my previous posts, but hopefully this clarifies things for you? Maybe this could determine if they are auto-flower?

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Originally Posted by brainfood33

2) Or, before you switched to 12/12, there were some signs of buds or clusters of pistils?

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2.) As I said, there were pistils on the flower aside from the leaves. I'm not sure if there was bud development, but there definitely is now.. lol

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Originally Posted by brainfood33

If 1 is the answer, then you must be smoking too much and are either tripping or you have no concept of time! ;)

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Haha, I wish I had some to smoke. My concept of time is spot on. ;)

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Originally Posted by brainfood33

If 2 is the answer, then I believe you have an auto-flower strain and being on 12/12 will not be helping your plant.
Unfortunately I have no idea if reverting back to 18+/6 will help you now or not but maybe someone with auto experience will hopefully advise.

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I'm leaning more towards this one.

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Originally Posted by brainfood33

And on the trichomes you speak of.
You say that you found 1 amber trich on 1 plant. One??

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No, I said I found several across the ENTIRE plant, not just on one or two small leaves, but across of it as a whole, and I'm beginning to find a lot more amber colored trichs across the entire plant as well.

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Originally Posted by brainfood33

Are we definitely clear on what the trichs are?

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Yes.

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Originally Posted by brainfood33

There should be literally thousands of trichs coating the small "sugar leafs" that surround the buds and some also on the larger leafs in close proximity to the buds too.

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Yes, there are.

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Originally Posted by brainfood33

If you only found 1, it doesn't indicate ripeness as you want to see at least 20% turned but usually more.

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I concur, however I haven't just found one trich on one plant in one little location, I have found many across the entire plant, not just one or two locations. I've also mentioned that I have no idea what strain, or even what species it is. It's bag seed that I am trying to determine if it is auto-flower, and ready for harvest. Hopefully this helps.

Does anyone have experience with auto-flower strains that could provide some insight?

Wish the auto flower part had come out earlier, everything I said above has no experience with autoflower strains. Wish you best

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Originally Posted by WashougalWonder

Wish the auto flower part had come out earlier, everything I said above has no experience with autoflower strains. Wish you best

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Thank you for your reply. Hopefully someone with auto flower experience can reply and put this to rest. :)

I cant say im much help...i mean im doing my first grow right now. and i attempted to grow 4 differnt kinds.. im growing original blueberry, purple agfhan kush, and lowryder 2 (which is an autoflower) I had also tried growing a white widow but it was a male. but im close to harvest on my blueberry and i have some trics posted on my own forum i did. i say shit..if u think its ripe..just cut a branch off..dry it and smoke it..if u like it..do it then. lol i mean just cuz u dont know what stain it is. my lowryder that i had gotten didnt actually auto flower..i have no idea why. im running a 400 watt HID system right now with a Metal halide bulb right now..im over 3 months and my lowryder was suppose to be done in 60 days so i mean i guess i got a messed up seed. but i dont care cuz the blants buds are looking nice... idk! im on my first grow too so i know how it is to be un sure of...this site does help alot. i hope ur grow turns out good!:hippy::thumbsup: