Need help and advice please

[richardskinner]

I'm a new caregiver helping my mom out with her crop. She has a few issues that would love advice on:

1. Airey buds that seem to dry out quick. they were hung up to dry for a few days until the stems snap when bent. Fan leaves were clipped before they were hung. 1st harvest was Super Haze and the 2nd was some bag seed that is mostly indica. Both dried out too quick. followed several curing instructions from online sources but both ended up just flaking apart in the jars.

2. the mature pistols stick out like "rat tail" breaking off when stored. Do they contain any meds? thc or cannabinoids? How do you get nice looking buds that the hairs don't just stick out like the hair of someone getting electrocuted.

A step by step guide to harvesting and trimming to curing would be great. maybe some pictures or a video that y'all could recommend. Thanks for the help

richardskinner Reviewed by richardskinner on 07-07-2011. Need help and advice please I'm a new caregiver helping my mom out with her crop. She has a few issues that would love advice on: 1. Airey buds that seem to dry out quick. they were hung up to dry for a few days until the stems snap when bent. Fan leaves were clipped before they were hung. 1st harvest was Super Haze and the 2nd was some bag seed that is mostly indica. Both dried out too quick. followed several curing instructions from online sources but both ended up just flaking apart in the jars. 2. the Rating: 5

[Purple Daddy]

Loose/Airey buds tend to be immature or were grown under inadequate lighting. I had one plant like this but it was the result of some kind of nutrient lockout or something, it finished but the buds were as you described and the lower flowers almost didn't develop at all as I think all the energy was put into the top flowers.

Although you can smoke fresh bud it is best if it is allowed to cure for about 30 day's. I trimmed all the fan leaves before I pulled them, hung them in the closet for 5-7 days running a fan once or twice a day to keep the air fresh then trimmed off the finger leaves and let the buds dry more in small cardboard boxes shaking them once a day to keep the air fresh then after a few days the went into airtight jars which I opened up about once a day, fluffed the buds and replaced the lid. There was a significant difference between the buds after 3 weeks of curing in fact there was no comparison to some of the smoke I dried out quickly to smoke.

[319]

+ what purple daddy said about the lighting.

How long did you let them flower?

Do your buds smell like hay? If so you picked to early.

This may not apply to you but what I've noticed are that seed banks short growers on length of flower, just to sell product. Some will say 8 weeks when really it is 11. I have a ppp right now that's going it close to 12 weeks and it hasn't turned amber yet, the recommended time is 8-10. If I knew this ppp was going to take 12-15 weeks I would have bought super lemon haze.

I would invest in a scope and monitor the trichome color. To me this is a better rule then pistils or weeks. Seed banks give you their flowering time in their setup.

my step by step is:
1. wait until trichomes are 50/50 cloudy/amber.
2. dry for 2-7 days depending on the humidity. my buds dry out very fast in the winter and I prefer a 2-3 day dry. summer 5-7 days.
3. (Cure) if its the winter I jar early and monitor curing closer. More dump outs and jarring. Summer I normally need to crack the jars a few times a day. More of a traditional curing method.

-319

[rattlingdags]

Firstly I have to say I think its very sweet your doing this with your Mum :thumbsup:
Your airy bud problem is perhaps more a growing issue (or genetic) than only a curing problem. I'd actually start going over that - as to what the plants were missing out on to produce less than the desired result.
This forum right here is virtually all I used when reading up on growing and I couldn't recommend highly enough just sitting down for however many hours and just reading over the 'stickies' that are at the top of each section. Then keep on reading, all the questions, answers and growlogs. Its all here, what you need to know to have a good harvest. I watched alot of youtube video's also for a visual guide, but stuck to learning from the senior growers here for real information. I found reading all over the web just got confusing and counter productive.

Just a couple of thoughts on your quick drying buds. I have very low humidity here (20% mostly) and my first crop dried too fast also - in 3 days. I also had them hanging too close to the extractor fan. Wasn't a good idea. They were fine but I put a couple of leaves in the jars with them. Twice a day I gently rotate the jars to free up the buds from each other, and open the lid for a few minutes.
Since that first time now when I've chopped and the tops are hanging up I just have a small fan in with them, not blowing on them but below and against a wall so its more a bounce back breath of air. Keep them dark and warm - not hot. Now it takes a week for drying and then into the jars. Curing takes as long as I can manage to keep my guy from 'sampling' but a month is a good start.
Really hope it goes better for you both next time

[Purple Daddy]

By all means check the trich's, this is the first year I did this and you can absolutely tell when they're changing. I had some plants that took 11 weeks to finish so there is no set in stone time. As has been stated many factors go into drying/curing including climate, ambient temp's, humidity etc., a basement will be cooler and more humid then an attic, a garage will be hotter and drier then a house closet. Clipping fan leaves before or after you hang them will factor into drying times. You don't even have to hang your plants you can clip all the buds right off of it while it's standing, put them in paper grocery bags about 6-8 inches deep, fold up the bag then open it and shake it once or twice a day for about a week, the paper lets the buds breath but helps retain moisture. I've quick dried buds by putting a few in a glass jar then putting that jar in the window of the car with the windows down a few inches, takes about 24 hours.

[richardskinner]

i have a variable hand held 30-100x microscope. I checked the trichs on both harvests. The 1st harvest, the plants looked in bad shape. started yellowing really bad so i felt i needed to pull. the trichs were not amber yet but the pistols were almost all dark brownish red. I was worried that the plant was dying or something. on the 2nd harvest i also checked the trichs and they were mostly clear but again like 80-90 % of the hairs were dark brownish red so i felt to pull em again not sure if they were ready.

and ive never smelled hay before but if it smells like i think than yes, they smelled like hay.

i had 9 plants under a 400w HPS in 12"x12" pots. in a 3'x3'sq from what i've read i think i had enough light? they were bout 3 ft tall and not real bushy. light was 12-16in from the tops and the temps measured at tops were between 76-84deg.

Again, any insight would be greatly appreciated

[Dayzt1]

I may have missed it, but did you say how long you flowered for? As mentioned, they may not have been finished, even though the hairs were dark - but I can understand your frustration and confusion when the buds remain 'airy' and light at that point. It sounds like you're growing some sativa dominant strains considering the results you're having - do you know the strain(s)? Sativas can often give you much 'airyer' buds, regardless of the grow environment, and if the genetics are from outdoor only grows, the chances are even greater when attempting them indoors. Maybe try to get something next that has more Indica in it...

One suggestion I can offer (aside from agreeing whole-heartedly with the posts already made here), is to LST (train) your plants low and encourage more branching to keep it bulky early on through veg - then flowering will push out energy to more tops and you should see less stretching - less stretching means less distance for the plant to supply it's growth/flowering evergy to... and hopefully some thicker tops. Topping the plant(s) will also help.

Another trick that I like to use it twisting and pinching the tops about 2 weeks into flower, right when the start the 2-week stretch. About 4-6 inches down each top, find an open space between nodes and pinch the stem to break the cellulose in it - do that to all the tops, and it will instinctively 'repair' itself over the next week, and help bulk up your tops a bit. I've experimented with that technique in my last 3-4 grows with good results...

Hope that helps!!

[Purple Daddy]

Different strains will mature at different rates. I had the orange/brown hairs you're talking about but my tric's were not clear so I let it go, a few years ago I probably would have pulled them based on the hairs. It's possible they needed a few more weeks to finish.

One 400W for 9 plants could be part of the problem as your lower branches aren't getting much light. You may want to try growing a few plants larger as their light needs won't be the same as 9.

[richardskinner]

I will try some of the things suggested, thanks guys! How and when do i LST "train the plant"... .. And topping, how and when?

[tinytoon]

400w for 9 plants in a 3x3 space IMO won't work. In my 4x4 tent using a 400w cooltube the best number I came up with was 5 plants and that ended up being crowded by the end. 4 plants in my case would be best as it gives plenty of room for growth and work space.