I'm a little over four weeks into flower. I know it's not time yet, but I need some good curing / drying tips. By no means do I want to over-dry my crop, but I would much rather err on that side than run the risk of them ending up even slightly moldy or funky smelling [I under-dried my first crop - I'm not going to make that mistake twice]. I live in a humid region [Pacific Northwest], and I have a closet set up. I'll go to whatever lengths I need to to dehumidify the closet or the room it's in, although I don't know the first thing about dehumidification. What do the experts recommend? Dehydrators? Dehumidifiers? Desiccants? I also have a few other questions. First things first: My tops are looking great, but they hardly smell at all. This is my first indoor grow [the plants I grew outdoor reeked, but they were a different strain] - is this common with indoor crops? It's a soil grow. They've been on 12/12 for a little over four weeks. I'm using a 1000W HPS, and I've been feeding them General Organics' BioThrive [Bloom 2-4-4] and CaMg+. Has anyone else had this problem [a crop that doesn't reek up the neighborhood]? It has me a little worried, to be honest. Are there strains that are late bloomers as far as stank is concerned? Does lack of odor indicate lack of THC? Next, I just started reading about nutrient flushes. I'm considering discontinuing nutrients / adding molasses when I first begin to notice rusty hairs. Is that a good idea? Something I'm taking into consideration: I'm putting my girls back into veg after harvesting, so I want to make sure they're getting what they need. I know people like to mess with their plants right before harvest, but I'm thinking I should probably go easy on them so as to keep them healthy for their next run. Which leads me to my last train of thought. I need some solid advice on how to re-veg without causing my girls too much trauma [I'd like to avoid hermaphroditism]. Should I change the light cycle back gradually? If so, how gradually? I used MH [18/6] for veg, and I'm using HPS [12/12] for flower. When I switched to flower, I went straight to the new bulb and light cycle. If you have experience revegetating, I'd love to hear your feedback and get some tips. Thanks for reading!
A dehumidifier is the best option imo. Smell isn't really indicative of THC content. Some strains just don't have a really strong odor. You should give your plant at least one more feeding because you've still got 3+ weeks to go still. Start molasses on your next watering/feeding too. It's not as much for the plant as it is for the microorgansims in the soil which have a symbiotic relationship with the plant. I don't have any revegging experience and I don't believe most people do it anyway. I'm guessing it's not worth it compared to just restarting a new grow. A better option would have been to take some clones.
Revegging is actually not a bad idea. It takes longer than cloning(too late for that now), and the plant requires more nutrients than the first round, but it's size will double in comparison to the first round. I experienced no hermy issues even after transplanting/trimming old roots and switching immediately from 12/12 over to 24/0...the entire plant actually turned purple before she came around again...she's 5 weeks into flower again and doing great. Only issues you may encounter are nutrient defs because she might need more nutes than your used to. You'll have to leave a lot of the very small buds near the bottom of the plant, and/or when you harvest, cut only the top 3/4 of a bud off - that way you leave some material for the plant to grow off of, and you'll actually end up "topping" that bud...I ended up with four sprouts coming from one old bud by doing this. You will end up with growth in places other than bud sites, too. You should pick up a microscope to examine the trichomes(crystals) on the buds...when you see a majority of cloudy trichs, even maybe a few amber ones, you should begin the flush/molasses treatment. Usually around week 6 or 7 (depending on how the plant looks and it's genetics) should you begin the flush. After the harvest and a complete flush, give her a dose of Veg Nutes when you flip on the MH light. It'll take up to 2 weeks for you to notice any major growth, and the first leaves to pop out will be single-bladed and very funky, but she'll blow up. After 4 or 5 weeks (barring any mess-ups) you'll notice the traditional 5-finger leaves and she'll be ready to flower again. Oh, don't worry about the smell. It'll come around after the cure. If you sort of pinch the buds between your fingers, do your fingers smell at all? Usually that's the only way to smell mine - just putting my nose to them doesn't give me anything. Some strains hide their smell and other ones just reek when you open the door. For the drying, use a de-humidifier in the room before you begin to hang and monitor the humidity daily. Use it sparingly to avoid over-drying.
DragonsFire, +rep to ya bro, thanks for the informative reply about Reveg. You covered a few questions I had been unclear on such as revegging and when to flush. I recently harvested successfully 1st timer and was trying to reveg. it but it looks terrible, may have to too much off, idk. http://forum.grasscity.com/general-indoor-growing/471049-l-e-d-1st-grow-post6288710.html#post6288710
Thanks for the Rep. The pics on Pg. 5 of that journal look nice...big and bushy. You mean to say you've harvested that plant already, and are working on the reveg? As long as you left some greenery/small buds around the base of the plant, it should grow back okay...she just needs something to absorb the light. Any more questions, feel free to PM me. Best of luck to you
I can think of no good reason to reveg unless you have a special plant that you want save for breeding purposes,it is easier to start from seed than to reveg a plant,i can have a seed ready for 12/12 in about 35 days,and sure you can get your plant reverted in a bout 21 and growing again,but it will grow slow,and will produce mediocre,you want good f1 hybrid vigor it is explosive growth when compared to f2 or f3 or reveg growth,
Well, it's a good experience, and if you like the bud it's the best way to get it again besides cloning. Reveg also gives you a second chance to take clones if you missed it in the first round. Properly done, a reveg plant can be ready for flower in 35 days as well. It will have, potentially, more bud sites than a seed-plant too. And the plant does grow very quickly after it starts going...you ever reveg before? The bud on my current plant looks better than it did at the same time period last round...so far so good, buddy. Seed experiences vary...I mean, if you've got a bagseed, it's a gamble every time, ya know...some sprouts just aren't viable to begin with and that's just wasted time. From experience, it's easier to care for a reveg plant than it is to bring up a seed...There's less worry about over/underwatering and nutrient issues. There's nothing wrong with revegging...it's a fun experience and there is no harm to it. It's all personal opinion, of course, and every plant behaves differently, but there's no reason to look down upon it.