24/0 or 16/8

[Zeke335]

I was woundering what time I should set my light for I want things done as soon as possible so I'm going for 24/0. However I'm using fem seeds and people on Dr Chronics forums suggested that 24/0 on fem seeds will cause hermies. Is this true?? If so I'll switch back to 16/8

Peace GC

[jjng5]

I am new to this as well, but I do believe I read somewhere that 24/0 is slightly more stress on the plant than 18/6. However I have also read that 24/0 is a better way to start your veg cycle because the plants growth activity takes place during lights on and your plants grow faster. So who knows what the best answer is. 18/6 is more natural for the plant and 24/0 makes it work all the time. I am currently using a 22/2 light cycle. I want to give my plants a break and my lights a chance to cool down. Whatever you pick, try and stick with it, otherwise you will stress your plants. If you make any changes to the light cycle, be sure to do it gradually over a peroid of time.

I started out at 18/6 and slowly worked my way up over 3 weeks. This is how I think of it; people that leave their lights on 24/0, get 2 1/3 more days of light in a one week peroid of time. If you do the math you are losing out on 56 hours of light per week which translates into 56 hours of additional work for your plants. You have to find what works for you. I think 22/2 is a good balance for me right now. Maybe I'll even move to 23/1 at some point because then I think about the fact that I am losing out on 14 hours of light by giving up 2 hours for darkness! Haha.

[eL Tauro]

16/8 no but 18/6 yes ive used 24/0 and 18/6 i didnt see a difference

[luckyleaf2]

Not sure if thats fact or fiction about the fem strain going hermy from the 24/0 cycle but i will say that a good many grows back i did grow out some DP fem Kush beans under the 24/0 cycle and i did get 4 outa 9 plants hermy but it was in late flower so i lucked out with no seeds.But generally i stick with 18/6 light cycle.Giveing the plants a dark cycle in vegg seems to make for healthier plants.JMO

[Zeke335]

Hmm looks like I'm going with 16/8 lighting. Thats a bit Lame because I don't have a timer. But hey whatever thanks for the advice people

[luckyleaf2]

Originally Posted by Zeke335

Hmm looks like I'm going with 16/8 lighting. Thats a bit Lame because I don't have a timer. But hey whatever thanks for the advice people

A timer is most essentual for your setup.Im sure you will get one for flowering?


Timers are cheap at most retail stores.You can get a decent digital timer under 20 bucks at a Lowes or Home Depot

[Zeke335]

Originally Posted by luckyleaf2

A timer is most essentual for your setup.Im sure you will get one for flowering?


Timers are cheap at most retail stores.You can get a decent digital timer under 20 bucks at a Lowes or Home Depot

Yeah I'll get one soon, was meaning to buy one last week but I spent the money on more seeds

[joxter]

Originally Posted by Zeke335

Hmm looks like I'm going with 16/8 lighting. Thats a bit Lame because I don't have a timer. But hey whatever thanks for the advice people

you mean 18/6 right? not 16/8.

[Zeke335]

Originally Posted by joxter

you mean 18/6 right? not 16/8.

I've got a book the Marijuana growers guide and it's says you can do 16, 18 or 24 hours. I was choosing 16 because I don't have a timer. But it's ok now I'm going for 24/0 lighting

[joxter]

Originally Posted by Zeke335

I've got a book the Marijuana growers guide and it's says you can do 16, 18 or 24 hours. I was choosing 16 because I don't have a timer. But it's ok now I'm going for 24/0 lighting

pretty sure that 16 is more for outdoor growing. but maybe not.

[rocketslippers]

yeah you can get those timers for switching on radios etc for when your on holiday to stop people breaking in really cheap, the police actually gave me mine lol

[MoreBudzForMe]

2 out of the 3 top growers I know in my area started out with fem seeds, they all got hemies almost at a 50/50 fem/herm ratio, I am sure both didnt use 24/0. I think Fem seeds are retarted marketing tactic. But just cuz they all got hermies dont mean others will right? Whatever... I refuse to use Fem seeds after that happened to my friends.

[DrTrichome]

I have read that many growers are still vegging in 18/6 or even 16/8 periods. To those of you that do not already know this, photosynthesis occurs in two periods, photolysis (light period) and carbon dioxide fixation (dark period). During photolysis, H2O is spit into H+ and O-- ions and the Oxygen atoms bond together and release through the stomata of the leaves (Transpiration). During carbon dioxide fixation, CO2 plus the H+ ion left from photolysis rearrange and bond to yield C6H12O6 (Glucose) which converts to starches and moves to the meristematic tissue (growth points) of the plant. Both photolysis and carbon dioxide fixation occur during the photo period but only the latter occurs in the dark. Having said that, I would highly recommend giving plants a 24 hour photo period while vegging. This Will give you a potential of 33% higher growth rates.

Hermies can be caused by interupted dark cycles, genetics (common in fem seeds), and especially stress. As long as your environment is under control and your seeds or clones have good genetics, you should be hermie free.

Also, plants have two types of chlorophyll (a and b) that each react to a different color temperature. chlorophyll A reacts to the Blue/violet part of the spectrum and is typically 3x more apparent in plants other than cannabis. Chlorophyll B reacts to the red/orange part of the spectrum and in cannabis, is more apparent than chlorophyll A. Knowing this, a high pressure sodium bulb will be more efficient for both vegging and flowering than a metal halide bulb.

Please respond with any questions, comments, or feedback
Thank you

[pomgirl64]

Wow! Very helpful explaination Dr.Trichome. Thanks for that.