can somebody please explain to me like im stupid (Because i am), exactly how i determine when vegetative is beginning and ending, and exactly how far i let the plants go in flowering? like do i actually let flowers bloom, or are the buds i want the buds that will eventually develop into flowers....im so new at this lol also can i just leave it on 12/12 lighting the whole time?
veg begins as soon as the seed sprouts, & ends when you switch the lights to 12/12, & once on 12/12 your in flowering (also buds), & flowering (budding) time goes by the strain, usually between 45-80 days, or until 75-85% of the hairs turn red, or your supposed to go by the trichromes, which youll need a magnifing glass to see them
Plants go through different stages throughout their lives (as do humans). Initially, there is the seedling stage where the plant puts most of its energy into making roots that will support it though its life. Next the plant puts on vegetative growth. This stage is where all the leaves, branches and future bud sites develop. The longer the vegetative stage, the larger the plant will grow and consequently the more bud sites the plant will develop. Finally, toward the end of its growing season, the plant begins the process to reproduce by committing its energy to developing flowers that will produce pollen (male plants) and seeds (female plants). MJ's growth cycles are (mostly) controlled by the amount of light the plants receive (length of the days). I have read where people force a seedling to enter the flowering period almost immediately by reducing the amount of light the plant receives. This will cause the young plant to bud, but the yield is greatly reduced from what it would be if the plant were allowed to develop more vegetative growth before being put into the flowering stage. Under artificial light, these photo periods are easy to manipulate so theoretically, you can force flower almost any time you want. So really it is up to you and the space you have available. In nature the length of the days and nights are relative. So long as the days are getting longer the plant will develop vegetative growth. As the days shorten and the dark period gets longer, the plant enters its flowering stage in preparation to reproduce before it dies. Under natural light, the Change in the photo period is the trigger, not the actual hours of daylight. Artificial light growers use 24 - 18 hours of light for vegetating and then switch to 12 hours of light to force the plant to flower. In nature, unless you're right up there in the arctic/antarctic circles, you'll never see 24 hrs. of daylight, so plants growing outside will vegetate so long as the daylight hours are increasing, and then begin flowering when the daylight hrs. begin to wane. In my case, my plant is flowering and we still have almost 13 hrs. daylight. did this answer your question?
There's a lot you need to know to grow quality bud.... i'd suggest preparing yourself a little bit by reading some grow guides. Read all the stickies in the growing forum, then google or search a torrent site for "Marijuana Grow Bible". Read it.
once seed cracks and enters soil, its vegitating. it needs to be on 24 hours of light, then you can flower it whenever you want, keep in mind it could double in size so if you have 10 ft dont veg past 4-5 ft. most people veg about a month or so. maybe 2