Sub'd in because i have a few of those on the way. Was actually thinking of starting out with the Northern Storm Auto's since I'm "motivated" to get something going quickly once the room is finished. Looking sadly at the last of my stash as I vape a bit after a long day...
FYI: I started a thread on my Northern Storm auto grow on the autoflower site, and updated it last night with photos. I'll post an update here with photos too as the buds mature further. I don't want to sound like I'm directing everyone to another site. Just that it's hard to keep two threads updated with the same info. And, if you're interested in my grow, there's additional info in that thread. I'm getting excited at the prospect of smoking it soon. I think it will be 7-10 days more of nutrients, and 2 weeks of pure water, then harvest. I base that on a "lifecycle" and "when to harvest" post by someone experienced with autos. You said you're motivated to have something to smoke. If you haven't done an auto before, you should read that lifecycle post. It sounds like the typical timeframe from sprout to harvest is a bit longer than what we read on seedbank sites. But, it still moves along at a fast enough pace to keep it interesting (compared to the somewhat boring photosensitives I have in another tent, ha).
Thanks. I'll have a look. I didn't figure to listen to the seedbank more than the plant itself. This will actually be my first grow ever. (Organic) But I figure with these going first, I can start some others (THC Bomb and White Rhino) a bit behind and be vegging them under CFLs or a T5 rig while the Northern Storms are flowering and be ready to move them into the flower chamber right after harvest and just flip the timer. Gonna be an interesting hobby.
FYI: I harvested my Northern Storm on 2/25 (a week ago) and it's *nice*. I got 180 grams (6.5 ounces). It smokes really smooth and has a cool (polar ice chewing gum) taste. Not a heavy taste, but you get this subtly spicey mint/wintergreen effect. I posted photos of the buds before harvest, and review of the taste here. I planted a new seed about 6 weeks ago. She's turning out just like the first one under discussion here. I planted a third seed about 5 days ago. So far all looks well with her. It's a heavy, spacey/stoney high. Peaceful. I like it. The effect lasts an hour or so.
Is that a dry weight? And from one plant?? Sounds nice indeed. Just noticed the first pistils on mine two days ago. All three are taking right along together but I am noticing very slight variations in the leaf shapes. Very cool. I need to get some new images up. They are about 9-10 inches tall and really starting bush up. Sent from somewhere over there. No, not there...over THERE.
Almost dry. It's been a week since I chopped. The RH in the curing jar is holding 66%. I'm burping it a lot trying to get it to 62%. I imagine it might drop 1-2 grams when it loses that moisture. I'm very pleased with the result. I've never smoked weed that tastes so smooth, rich. I guess it's true that the stuff for sale is rushed through cleanse and cure. It's my first autoflower grow, first MJ harvest. Definitely a nice ending for a first grow. I saw bud sites (pistils) forming at 4.5 weeks of age. Switched to bloom nutes at 5 weeks. In retrospect I did that a week too early. The most unintuitive thing for me was waiting another 2 months to harvest. I expected it would be another 5 weeks. It was tough going another 8-9 weeks, not knowing if I was doing the right thing. But, that additional time allowed the buds to bulk up. I used GH Flora Series nutrients. I posted the details of my feeding schedule, soil type, etc., here. I've since switched to Grow More Sea Grow. Much less expensive and so far I like what I see. I recommend being patient about harvest. I tried to follow the "when to harvest" instructions here along with the "lifecycle" description here. I kept thinking I'd be done at around 10-11 weeks. I didn't start the cleanse (feed water only) until 11 weeks + 5 days and did the cleanse for 2 weeks + 6 days. I chopped at 14 weeks + 3 days. I kept worrying I was waiting too long. But, the buds kept putting out new white pistils all the way to the end. My grow journal (linked in prior paragraph) shows a photo 4 days before chop. Gives you an idea what my plant looked like. One thing I might have done differently is to harvest the larger higher buds first. They were a bit drier than the rest of the buds. I think I could have taken them a week earlier, letting the smaller buds develop longer, receive more light, etc.
That's good news. But I had pre flowers in two and a half weeks. I've got lots of bud sites here at 30 days from sprout. The biggest plant is about 24 inches tall and the others are starting to stretch. I am growing all organic and the only "nutes" I have added is the occasional ACT and recently top dressed with EWC & neem seed meal. Thanks for the tip on taking the top buds first. Saw someone else mention that today. I'm also going to stagger the harvests by at least a couple weeks to see how much difference that makes in the high of the the plants. Science! These pics are from this evening. (Cell phone pics, sadly.) Sent from somewhere over there. No, not there...over THERE.
This strain (maybe all autos, I've only done this one) seems to show sex and bloom quickly. Your experience is the same as mine. Your plants look similar to mine at 30 days. This might help to compare the timeframe: I switched to bloom nutes at 4 weeks + 4 days (first grow, which I later felt I switched 7-10 days too early) and 6 weeks + 1 day on my current grow. On this grow it sat for a week with some fairly developed bud sites. So, I think it's been pretty close to yours. What kind of lighting are you using? Yours look more stretched or xmas-tree proportioned. Mine were bushier. I used t5ho lighting just 2-3" above the canopy. In both grows I've had one cola which extended pretty high above the bush. I LST'ed (bent) it down so I could keep the lights lower. My LST seemed to stunt the development of that bud. I'm curious to see how your dominant colas develop (how fat mine would have been if I hadn't sacrificed them.). Re t5ho: I didn't feel this was adequate during bloom. Didn't feel I was getting enough penetration. Right now I'm using a Blackstar v2 180w (118w actual draw) UV LED. After just a week (2 weeks into bloom nutes) I don't see much difference between this and my first grow. Right now I'm vegging another (third NSA grow) under a Blackstar v2 180w (118w actual draw) HO LED. I'll be curious to see how it develops compared to t5ho. I hope it doesn't stretch because my tent is only 4' tall.