dark period before harvest DOES improve frostiness of nug

I finally finished drying my Master Kush crop and before chopping decided to find out once and for all if dark before harvest helped frostiness or if it was just the extra time I gave the plant before death. I allowed half of.my crop two days dark before chop, and the other half five days. During the extra three days the first half still received light to eliminate possibility of extra frostiness coming from extra growing time. Despite receiving three days less light, replaced with darkness the whole part of the crop that received 5 days darkness was WAY frostier than the half that only received two.

Sick. So you don't let them grow five extra days but turn off the lights five days prior to harvest. Am I getting that right?

exactly, it makes a highly noticeable difference in the end quality! you could probably just add a few extra days to your grow too just for the darkness... that will probably be what i try on my next harvest.

10-4. Thanks for the advice. Gonna definitely try it this grow.

I've tried a bit of this before. I wonder if 3 or 4 days would do the same as five or if you need all 5

My last two runs I've been giving them 48 hours of darkness, I could see upping it to 72.

How far in advance of your harvest do you stop watering?

I'd be interested to see if there is a taste difference as well

pseudo science, If it somehow created more triches with less photosynthesis then how do you expect these new triches to develop into a mature enough state to have THC in these 5 days? no pictures, no testing of actual strength.

Should try 2/22, 2 hours with JUST a uvb light, 22 hours darkness. Repeat for desired amount of days. And hit it with a simple sulfur feeding beforehand. Then chop.

This darkness before harvest is a pretty common thing. I'd say it's anecdotal evidence, but not pseudo science.

A plant has reserves so growth in the dark seems plausible.

Would super-fresh trichs be filled with active Cannabinoids? That's a head scratcher. I would have thought that process would require light of some sort as a catalyst

Dubstin said:

pseudo science, If it somehow created more triches with less photosynthesis then how do you expect these new triches to develop into a mature enough state to have THC in these 5 days? no pictures, no testing of actual strength.

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You do realize that plants store energy, right?

Apparently THC is supposed to be at its highest when lights are off. So I could see the existing trichomes being at their peak when leaving the lights off for a period of time... but I don't buy the idea that a bunch of new trichome heads magically appear on the plant.

It's possibly they aren't really new trichome heads at all and that they just become more swollen.

Interesting as hell, regardless.

So the real Q : is there greater trich density per sq mm?

I used to do this, but then I stopped and noticed no difference.

I heard its because the oils/resin on the plant is the plants defense mechanism. And that the dark peroid causes a unique type of stress that makes the plant put all its energy into producing its defense mechanism bigger and better to prepare for the "storm ahead" so to speak.

Same " reasoning " behind people putting a small stake through the base of the stem. A certain type of stress that makes the plant "defend itself"

Of course these people could be totally wrong... I wouldnt know, hence why you wont see "IMO" anywhere in there. But truthfully this does peak my interest. Im down to try it out this coming harvest

gardnguyahoy said:

I heard ...... Same " reasoning " behind people putting a small stake through the base of the stem. A certain type of stress that makes the plant "defend itself"

Of course these people could be totally wrong...

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You will hear a lot on big forums like this so choose your information wisely, no, putting a small stake through the base of the stem will do nothing, for a plant to 'Defend' itself it needs an attack such as insect to employ a S.A.R effect, Systemic Acquired Resistance.

budman111 said:

You will hear a lot on forums like this so choose your information wisely, no, putting a small stake through the base of the stem will do nothing, for a plant to 'Defend' itself it needs an attack such as insect to employ a S.A.R effect, Systemic Acquired Resistance.

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Yeah i agree with that, watch what you listen to on the internet. But i have heard some old growing buddys tell me some pretty funny stories of their "experimental" days and what they tried to do to make their plants produce more triches based on the "defending itself" theory. Like i said, def could be wrong all day. Besides im sure those days were filled with many herming plants as well lol.

When i said ill "try it" i meant the dark period

gardnguyahoy said:

Yeah i agree with that. But i have heard some old growing buddys tell me some pretty funny stories of their "experimental" days and what they tried to do to make their plants produce more triches based on the "defending itself" theory. Like i said, def could be wrong all day. Besides im sure those days were filled with many herming plants as well lol.

When i said ill "try it" i meant the dark period

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The same people that said smoke the roots!

budman111 said:

The same people that said smoke the roots!

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Hahaha!