Maximizing THC^^

[Dug]

Hey there, mates.

...I've been recently PM'ed by a friend (cheers dude), asking about any ideas I have for maximising the THC potency of a plant, days before it's harvest.
As this is a great opportunity to start a thread that will -hopefully- attract some other ideas concerning this matter, I decided to do so. So here we are.
keep in mind that what I'm posting here is a personal experiment planned for the end of this grow. I am not suggesting that anyone should try this if he doesn't feel sure about this. Use your own judgement, be creative, and be cautious. All right, here we go


This experiment consists of tricking the plant into thinking that the need arose for more THC production. As far as I know (and I assure you, I don't know that much), THC production (well, trichome production) in cannabinoids happens in order to facilitate an ingenius mechanism, aiming at three things:

~Protection against exogenous intruders (insects and small pests). We may like the fact that such a compound is created on these magnificent plants, but a fly getting covered on sticky resin full of THC does not.
I cannot start to fathom the effects of such an encounter, but I can imagine it would be the analogy of us stepping in a bucket filled with a strong psychedelic compound (remember our dear doctor who tripped just by touching pure LSD with bare fingers).
Of course, I doubt that TCH will have any psychedelic effects on an insect (lol), but it will have an effect nevertheless. Toxic effect, possibly. Irritating the mouth of plant tissue-feasting pests, and trapping small insects (as a trichome leaks sticky resin if it breaks) sounds like a good defence mechanism, right?

~Heat control. As the rays of the sun hit the trichomes, they break up (diathlasis, right?), steering the heat away from the calyx. However, excess heat may degrade the THC on the trichomes. Tricky.

~Disease defence. Many of the compounds in the trichomes act as natural antibiotics.



I do hope that this thread will attract responses from seasoned growers and cannabis connoisseurs, who will certainly have more things to add on this matter. This is the reason I'm writing this, after all.

So, what can be done? The experiment I am proposing consists of the following steps:

IMPORTANT: Let me state here, for whoever it may concern:
Plants are not machines. No matter what we do, we cannot make something supernatural out of something natural. All we can hope for is influencing the ALREADY established plant mechanisms to bring them to their maximum potential. This experiment is based upon this belief.
Furthermore, this experiment remains to be tested. Probably by me, on the first chance I get (soon^^).

-Please DO NOT attempt this if you cannot afford to have negative effects on the plant you are experimenting with. It won't be wasted, it will still produce what it was meant to produce, but if indeed the shit hits the fan, you may loose a percentage of the bud you could make. A small one, though. Be brave, take the risk, in favor of the greater good-if indeed such a thing exists. If not, wait for others to post their results.
-Please DO NOT attempt running the final sub step of step 1 if you have any sort of pets at home.
-Please DO NOT engage in activities involving dry ice (or any other CO2 producing mechanism) if you have any sort of health concerns and sensitivities. If you do, make sure to enter the CO2 enriched growroom with caution. (cmon, this is really an exaggeration, but my degenerate shamoan lawyer insists on it)
-If you don't feel like risking some of your plant's bud production, let others perform this experiment first, and decide after the first results are posted.

-That said, this is a fairly low-risk experiment, both for your plants and your health (not your dog's health though-read above^^-. If you do decide to perform this, do it creatively. Enrich the process with your own ideas and aha-thoughts, and, most importantly, PLEASE share your results.


We cannot benefit as a community from what we don't know. We are only as good and as progressive as the best amongst us. And if those attempting to further expand the envelope of creative cannabis growing do so in the confines of their own world, not sharing their ideas and results, then we are bound to remain static, trapped in a society that things human interaction and the sharing of creative, novel ideas is a disease, to be hunted, captured and cast away like a true abomination.
Think about it, mates. If an agricultural company indulged in such activities as the ones others and myself have posted in the threads we've made here, they would be sanctioned and awarded with profit (as they already have). If we try to take the lead and experiment with things new to the rest of the agricultural society though, then its different.
Then not only is it illegal (due to our beloved plant species that we're growing), it's harmful to them too! It is one thing to grow pot in your basement, and another to be shown the teeth of a corporation just because you stepped in their OWN territory, their OWN profitable R&D.
...Sounds too far-fetched, friends? Let it sound like this. It is a reality we're living in, and we're bound to learn it's ups and downs one way or another. The only difference we can make, is how we respond to this when the need arises.


Every time, every damn time, I steer away from the main concept of what I'm saying. Bare with me, mates, as you know, this is one of the reasons we like to indulge in the consumption of THC-rich products (aka dank weed, prime bud, etc). The fact that it gives us an amazing appetite for long, interesting conversations over novel ideas. So, enough of that, let's get on with the actual experiment!



1)One week before harvest:
~ Close your fan leaving the lights on. Let the temp rise at 35C at least. Don't worry, this is just for 6 hours. Do this 6 hours before the lights turn off, following the regular flowering light cycle. Lower the light if you need to.
~ In the meanwhile, prepare an acidic mixture (PH:4-4.5) of water and simple lemon juice (alternatives: grapefruit, grape, apple, orange or red berry juice-these I know have an acidic PH-), taking care as to not squeeze any of the fruit's outer surface's liquids while extracting the juice. Use a PH meter, easily acquired at a hardware store for 15$ or so. PH papers are also OK, but less accurate.
~Spray the plants with the acidic mixture, taking care as to not form any drops on the leaves or soak them. Just 2-3 sprays over each plant should do the trick^^. Use a fine sprayer-mister.
~If you can, get yourself a block of dry ice. It's pretty easy to find. Place it in a pot, bucket, or something open, in front of the fan.
~6 hours later, turn off the lights. Follow the light cycle normally, with normal temperatures.
~(see signature for links) Do you have any sort of electrical root stimulation (PV or not) running? This would be a good time to take it off. Although it is upon you to decide if this step has any validity or not, I would HIGHLY recommend some sort of high frequency sound stimulation now. If you can't make one, put some music on. High pitched music. Genre doesn't matter, just make sure it's high pitched.



2)6 days before harvest (the next time the lights turn on):
~Trim all the large leaves and small bud-less branches on the lower part of the plants. Don't be shy. Cut everything off: leaves, branches, everything. Leave only the branches you think are going to produce bud.
~Optional:
+Let all the plant mass you cut off to thoroughly dry.
+Place in a blender or coffee grinder, and grind until it's finely powdered.
+Place 1-2 blocks of butter (~250 grams) in a pan, and cook it until hot.
+Put the bud powder in the pan, and cook until it's starting to get brown. Don't burn it.
+Strain through a fine strainer, and place the enriched butter liquid (from now on MEGA BUTTER -thanks to Hans&Hans) in the fridge.
+After a couple of hours, your MEGA BUTTER is ready, looking like normal butter.
+suggested recipes:
-Stoner's Delight (Spaghetti a-la (prime) bud)
-Toasted Pork Veal (for toasted evenings)
-Mystic Pizza (a slice of heaven -thanks M.P.)
-Ice Breaker (butter-fried onion rings, for breaking the ice on those awkward family dinners)
-Uncle Dug's Golden Member (Spring rolls with minced meat and butter-fried vegetables on the wok)
-Grandma's Perma-Smile (Our all time favorite cookies)
-The Un-carer (fried chicken bites for those quick 15-min lunch brakes at work - the client is always right-but who the fuck cares)

~Spray your plants with clear water, at room temperature. Thoroughly spray each plant, each branch that may have come in contact with the acidic mixture).



3)3 days before harvest:
~Give your plants their last watering. No ferts. IMPORTANT: don't water them inside the growing room. Take them out if possible, and water them in the bath tub or something. The idea here is not to let any water at all pool inside the growing room. If moving them out is not possible, do something to gather the water under the pots afterwards.
Water them with 2 times the usual volume. Give'em a pat on the back, thank them, and wish them good luck. It's the last time you're gonna see them smiling.
~ Get yourself a small piece of wire or something similar, and tie the main branch, about 5-10 cm over the soil. Girdle it tightly, circling the wire several times around the branch. The idea here is to cut off almost all the flow from the roots to the upper plant mass. Don't break the plant on half, though.
~Leave both the fan and the light on for the next 4-6 hours. Then turn the lights off, leaving the fan on for another 6 hours. Do you have a dehumidifier or any other way to dry the atmosphere? Get it out, get it working.
~After 6 hours, turn everything off and keep them off till harvest (except from the sound stimuli, if you have any running). Try to maintain the atmosphere as dry as you can. Leave some air flowing through the room, or something like this. Don't let the humidity rise.

Step 4) Harvest, dry and cure normally (well, if no other experimental venues are applied here too ^^).


Now, mates, remember; This thread is made primarily to attract constructive additions to the ideas presented here. I'm not a bud expert, neither a scientist. Just an inquiring dude amongst us. I'm sure there are many folks out there who have something to add here.
If you're one of them, please do so. Every little bit, every little proposition, every little idea counts.
And please keep in mind that it is such ideas that facilitate the progress a community makes. So if you do have experience with any of this, of are willing to try is, make your first priority to share your results. Producing the best bud around may be an intriguing possibility, but brings no forward movement for the community. Resist it.

Ah, just as I was about to say "See you around", or "Take care", or "Luck", or "Keep it strange", or something similar out of the fucked up one-liners I pull out every time I'm trying to close a thread hah. I found another way to close this time. And what better than this:

“Animals are something invented by plants to move seeds around. An extremely yang solution to a peculiar problem which they faced.”


~Rip Terrence McKenna.

[dabomb]

Dug, do you plan on using the normal light cycle for the last 2 days? It is unclear if you leave the lights off after you finish step 3.

[Dug]

Originally Posted by dabomb

Dug, do you plan on using the normal light cycle for the last 2 days? It is unclear if you leave the lights off after you finish step 3.

Woops , you're right, it's unclear in my post. Edited. Lights off till harvest mate.


~Dug

[cloner_357]

Nice, Im glad to see there might be some ways thanks for the reply (i think..?)

[Dug]

Originally Posted by cloner_357

Nice, Im glad to see there might be some ways thanks for the reply (i think..?)

Yeah, cheers mate. I'm gonna try this on this grow, let's see what we'll get.

~Dug

[cloner_357]

Question - Im doing a hydro setup..

now what if we do the same as the root stimulation but with like a low low low current cell phone charger. That is only on when the water pump is on in the water.. Any ideas? A low current flowing through 30 gallons of water That will not Be grounded because it's in a rubber/plastic tote on top of wood.


Any Idea or suggestions?

[PinkySlayer]

subscribed for later

[amoril]

whats the reasoning behind the misting of the acidic mixture?

Originally Posted by Dug

As far as I know (and I assure you, I don't know that much), THC production (well, trichome production) in cannabinoids happens in order to facilitate an ingenius mechanism, aiming at three things:

isnt seeding #1?

[sikander]

Your ideas intrigue me, sir, and I would like to subscribe to your newsletter.

[_linux_]

this shit is funny just use a fucking UVB light that what will do the same shit with killing your plant shit

[Dug]

Hey there guys, thanks for the thumbs up

Now lets see...

Originally Posted by cloner_357

Question - Im doing a hydro setup..

now what if we do the same as the root stimulation but with like a low low low current cell phone charger. That is only on when the water pump is on in the water.. Any ideas? A low current flowing through 30 gallons of water That will not Be grounded because it's in a rubber/plastic tote on top of wood.

Any Idea or suggestions?

Interesting idea mate. You would probably need a device to measure the current circulating in the water. This could be interesting, seeing that aplying direct current to the soil near the main stem often stuns the plants. Maybe someone with more technical knowledge can give us some insight on this.

Originally Posted by bballsk8er333

isnt seeding #1?

Seeding is the #1 general goal of the plant. It would seem logical that everything it does is in order to survive and prolong its evolutional lineage, aye?
We're looking at it in a more specific level, considering the fact that our eyes are fixed on a byproduct of the plant's total life mechanism.

Originally Posted by amoril

whats the reasoning behind the misting of the acidic mixture?

Nice one, mate. It's for imitating the acidic remnants, emultions, and feces of insectoids such as the common house fly

Originally Posted by _linux_

this shit is funny just use a fucking UVB light that what will do the same shit with killing your plant shit

I can't get you dude. I'm gonna asume that you said "use a UVB light, that will do the same shit without killing your plant".

A UVB light is a good suggestion, but it would have to be applied for a considerably longer time over the lifespan of the plant to make a difference. What we're suggesting here are last minute steps (last week actually) that will boost an almost ready-for-harvest plant.
And why do you assume any plants are gonna die?




Allright, take care dudes, see you around. Suggest any ideas you might have, information spreading is allways a good thing.

~Dug

[amoril]

ok, so youre replicating the stress from pests? What benefit is this going to provide within the last 6 days of the life cycle?

vs, say, at the onset of flowering? or 2 weeks into flowering?

-------

im guessing youre attempting to spike the resin content, no? If so, I would speculate its more advantageous earlier in the life cycle, as sheer resin contains many things (essential oils, phenols, terpenes, etc), most of which are not psychoactive.

sure, it also contains the cannabinoids, but theyre only one component of the trichomes. the terpenes are the primary metabolite within the trichome.

[LBH]

Originally Posted by amoril

ok, so youre replicating the stress from pests? What benefit is this going to provide within the last 6 days of the life cycle?

vs, say, at the onset of flowering? or 2 weeks into flowering?

I think it's so that if it has negative effects, yield won't be too greatly affected as the buds are already about as big as they will get. If he did it early and the result was stunted growth, he's have wasted 16 weeks. That's my guess

Good read, I'm in.

[TheCareGiver]

good idea's but like amoril stated, wouldn't it be a little more appropriate to do it at least a little earlier than that, specially before harvest. I mean If it works, great, but within the last couple days I don't see it having much of an impact, i could maybe see flavor and such, but as far as THC production, and max, It just depends on when its harvested. BUT, yes, those ideas may work, but I don't know if doing it too late would have much effect, might have to start the processes a little earlier.