hi all, I'm a beginner, so excuse my idiocy. I'm sure by the time you're done reading this thread, I will have lived up to my namesake in every way, shape and form. But at least I admit it. Hopefully these questions will help others as well. I will post some detail macro pictures tomorrow, but I've got some burning issues in my mind. I started my first fully organic outdoor grow with 2 clones a little over a month ago, and right now they stand about chest high. Organic potting soil with a hint of guano is all I've been using, and they've been very successful little devils up to this point. Now I'm a bit wary. They have started early signs of sex, which I noticed today. Both have confirmed white pistils, toward the upper halves of the plants. There are also some unconfirmed growths on the lower parts. I hope these are pistils as well, but I am suspicious that my plants are both destined hermies. Crossing my fingers to the max. I have questions, first, about hermies: 1) How common are hermies really? Does this happen often or rarely? What is the main reason a plant turns hermie? 2) How much "stress" does it take before a plant goes hermie? Is this usually caused by over fertilizing? Underwatering? Lighting schedule? Moving them around? What's the main stressors involved? My plants have undergone a some stress. Due to circumstances I won't get into, they had to be moved inside during the day for 3-4 hours. Then due to other circumstances, they had to be moved into the garage for 3-4 hours again during the day, about a week later. The garage is totally dark. I know this is a big no no but my friggin roommate did it. I have questions secondly, about light, darkness, and movement: 1.) How much direct sunlight does a plant need daily? 2.) Does moonlight have an adverse effect on the dark period? 3.) Moving plants around: how detrimental is this to their health? The first couple of weeks I had the plants, I moved them once a day to keep them out in direct sunlight for as long as possible, maybe 10 hours. I moved them say maybe 25 paces or so. Now, I keep them where they are, except to water them, which I move the plants maybe 6 feet so they will reach the water. Sorry to say, these plants have been a movin. They probably get a good 6-8 hours in direct sunlight now. At night, it's not pitch black, but there is no direct light upon the plants, and they sit in a dark corner. It takes your eyes about 2 minutes of adjustment to see the plants. I'm not in the forest or anything, but it's pretty dark. If a big wild animal was back there, it would eat you before you saw it. The moon obviously casts light. It's been casting light on the earth, as long as the earth has been the earth. I would hope marijuana, which was made for this earth, would be equipped to handle moonlight, or at least be able to handle some sort of faint light without getting all stressed out. Or perhaps the marijuana plant is like every other plant, and is supposed to be hermie in the wild, and the moon is supposed to interrupt darkness. Which begs the ultimate question: IS SENSIMILLA A DEVELOPMENT OF MAN? Thanks for any and all input. Even if you simply put the word "Fart" and nothing else as your response, at least I can take heart someone sorta read this. God bless.
FART!!! the quickest way to get a plant to hermie is to mess with the light hours. sit em in place and quit moving em ..unless it is scheduled and daily( like your watering schedule, is just fine. But garage ..not) you want 6+ hours of direct sunlight( but the more the merrier). no the the Suns reflection off the Lunar surface will not adversely effect your grows.. and sensimilla is just keeping the males away from your grass, so pollination doesn't happen .. so yes it is a man done thing..but takes nothing special( an opposing thumb I suppose .but we are not the only Primates) Wharf