Mac’,
I'm always here, but I prefer to only chime in when I think I have something significant to contribute. Now...Ahem...I have, for the time being, sworn off the Autos. I really don't know what I was thinking, I guess it was just something new to me. But, if one is in a hurry, one could just 12/12 from seedling/clone. They seem to me to be overly temperamental (no re-potting, no training to speak of, no time to recover from an accident for other SNAFU, no cloning, and so forth, on and on). So I am back with a vengence on good old photo-period Cannabis. I am sooooo anxious to get some OG Kush at the end of this month!
The 'they need a nap time' stuff just kills me. Everyone who claims that offers no scienticfic basis for it, merely anecdotal war stories. I'm here to tell everyone I'm calling bulls#$t on that old wives tale. They are not animals, or reptiles, or other higher life form. They are a plant, and the science says 'leave the damn lights on' if you are interested in maximizing your efforts. 'nuf said. You want to argue, bring me some scientific factoids.
So, I can't think of any other variable that has brought about this tightly spaced internodal thing. I have never in my growing carrer so tightly controled the temps. 86 F. is my target temp, because I have no heat issues to deal with. Yet another reason to be using L.E.D.s. I was always, always in dank basement environs before. I mean, Mac - it's like a frickin' dream!!! I have never even seen bud porn wth such bushy charactertistics. We may have to disagree to not agree on this point. I will say that I don't remeber having small girls under this many lumens before. Always under the old, regular floresents until they were approx. 6-8 inches high (pre T5 days, you know, the Stone Ages), and then under the M.H.'s. Prehaps having so much light so early on is what brough this about. I only know I will be carefully trying to recreate this next time, and every time after. I really, really feel like I am 'back in the saddle again'. ;-)
Thirdly, I ended up raising my Pro-Grow 260 up to about 40 " after the burn incident, blue spectrum only, until they had about three sets of true leaves. Then both spectums, and lowered it about 6 inches a day, until now I am at approx. 20". I think any lower than that and the overlap from the diodes wouldn't be good enough. )Obviously, the first couple of sets of leaves have a more tender constitution). Not only no burn problems, but they are, and I mean this, they are the absolute healthiest babies I have ever personally grown. I finally have my Coco methodology dialed in. Sweet loving jesus, I love that stuff!! Best of all, it ani't dirty to work with, or clean up.
Thanks for the heads-up on the book. I was doing a phone interview with the A.C.L.U. in San Fran yesterday, and I told the girl I was super anxious to get to Oakland, to openly commune with other growers. N.L.T. October. I will definitely get a copy of that book, and subsume it.
You are dead on about the dark period stretch in veg. So, if you desire leggy, high, spindly, airy plants, by all means, let them go 'nighty-night' each night.
L.E.D's - Dude, why would any body be using anything else?? (No need to let the equipment cool down occationally). Having brusrt many a hot bulb with an errant drop of water in the past, I LOVE working around them, I can tell you. Love them.
Peace