This has been my full first year of growing outdoors. Feel it’s been successful and then I read posts on the forum? So, I average only about an ounce per plant. Have a lot of small buds at the base of the plant, but good size cola on top. The smoke is good, a bit leafy, (even with sweet leaf removed).
Seems my buds are a bit light in weight and not as dense as what you’d buy in a dispensary? Although I am satisfied with my first year of growing I suspect I could be doing better. Have read the ILGM Grow Book a few times and have also read other books, watched other videos and think I have the basic…but missing something?
Any pics?
You may have just harvested a little early. They pack on a lot of weight in the final few weeks of flower.
Usually those symptoms are due to insufficient lighting but you shouldn’t have that issue outdoors.
3 Likes
Thanks for the quick reply.
Attached a photo of one of my previous colas after pruning and pre-drying.
I have not used the cloudy trochomes much, but have been using the 50 / 50 white to brown stigma method. Recently found on Leafy that some folks sqeeze the cola to see if it’s firm, (ready) or spongy, (not ready). It does seem that after drying the buds do get lighter (weight wise). I dry until the stems break away and snap off cleanly.
Again appreciate your help! Regards VanO
2 Likes
Sativa dominant strains tend to be loose flower compared to Indica. So this doesn’t make much sense to me.
You will lose 80% of the wet weight when dry.
To answer your yield question it becomes a matter of genetics, conditions, light, any issues during the grow, harvest too early is common as well. But to put it into perspective I grow indoors and average 12 oz of dried flower per plant. That is by no means a record either. Many growers will harvest pounds from one plant. But everything has to be dialed in. So without any real information on what your grow environment is like it’s kind of hard to tell.
2 Likes
What you have there is a plant that Fox-tailed. It is caused by stress and I’ve only had it happen to autoflowers that I’ve grown outdoors.
Not your typical bud so you shouldn’t expect a nice dense bud. What has happened is a calyx (female sex part) is growing on top of the previous calyx. Each new growth produces 2 new white pistils so that it never appears to finish, but the pistils further in are past done.
2 Likes
Looks pretty to me. What kind is it?
1 Like
The calyx thing ? Heres the deal … what @Myfriendis410 said is for real. As for the calyx thing, you should be waiting until most, if not all, of them are shriveled and red or brown. Here are 2 buds, one is close to finished the other is not
Can you see the lower bud has opague calyx’s mixed in with the red ones? They should at least look likenthe ones on the top bud before you scope the trichomes. Reason being, is the bract that these hairs protrude from are where the majority of trichones hang out, and thise bracts swell up when they are oldest and trying super hard to be pollenated. The shriveled calyx’s are now past receptive and whats left over is an ovary that is baren. We want as many swollen ovaries as we can get that are not pollenated! Once the ovary is successfully pollenated, resin production stops and seed growth replaces further bud expansion.
Actually you can see the difference in the swollen bracts between the 2 images come to think about it.
6 Likes
Makes a lot of sense. Thank you and I will start to pay more attention to this.
I have been experimentiong with about 10 different seeds and honestly cannot remember…LOL
This being my first full year of personal planting and harvesting. I have tried many seed types, some indoor and outdoor growing. All my plants have been grown in pots and I live in the suburbs and am limited by visual and odor exposure. I know I can get more production out of my plants, although very happy with the little bit I have been able to get to date. Just trying to ramp up and grow more productively now.
Everyone has been so helpful…THANKS!
2 Likes
I understand that. I plant different seeds all the time. (Depends on what’s on sale) But I loose track sometimes too.
From my experience which I just learned recently low stress training and lollipopping and seems like it’s crazy to do and I thought it was but I got beautiful plants from doing it and bigger yeild
1 Like