ENGLAND123
Well-Known Member
GARDENING TECHNIQUES
8.2 Thinning
Depending on the viability of the seeds, there should be several plants growing in each pot. Most growers thin to one plant per pot, but the plants don't have to be thinned until they crowd each other and have filled the garden with foliage. The longer you let them grow, the more potent they'll be.
It is virtually impossible to tell the gender of the plants when they are young. The normal ratio of males to females in Cannabis is one to one. Some farmers end up wit more male plants because of their thinning practices. When the plants are less than a month old, the male plants often appear taller and better developed than the females. The male seedling uses more of its energy to develop its aboveground parts than the female. The female devotes more energy to establishing a strong root system. During the first few weeks, don't thin the plants by leaving only the tallest, or you'll wind up with a higher ratio of males. Try to leave seedling that are healthy and vigorous and that are roughly at the same point of development.
To thin your garden, remove any plants with yellow, white, or distorted leaves. Remove the less vigorous and those that lag far behind in development. Cut the unwanted plants near the base; the root system can remain in the pot.
These harvested seedlings will be your first taste of homegrown grass. Usually they produce a mild buzz, but if you separate the growing tips from the large leaves, they may be more potent.
8.3 Transplanting
However you transplant, try to disturb and expose the roots as little as possible. If you transplant carefully, the plants will not exhibit delayed or slowed growth due to transplant shock.
Transplanting Seedlings
When the plants are a week to two weeks old, transplant to any pot that has no plants. First, moisten the soil in the pot from which you will remove the transplant and let is sit for a few minutes. Take a spade or a large spoon, and insert it between the transplant and the plant that will be left to grow. Try to leave at least one inch of space from spoon to stem. Lever the spoon toward the side of the pot, in order to take up a good-size wedge of soil. Place the transplant in a prepared hole at the same depth that it was growing before. Replace the soil in both pots and moisten lightly again to bond the new soil with the original. If you are careful, a wedge of soil can be removed intact. The root system will not be disturbed and the plant will survive with little or no transplant shock. Do not fertilise a transplant for two weeks.
To prevent possible drop-off and wilting from shock, you may want to use Rootone or Transplantone. These safe powders, available at nurseries, contain root-growth hormones and fungicides. They won't be necessary if you transplant carefully.
Transplanting to Large Pots
Transplanting from smaller to larger pots is a simple procedure. The marijuana root system quickly fills small pots. To transplant, moisten the soil and let it sit to become evenly moist. Pick the potted plant up, and, while holding the base of the stem, rap the pot sharply against something solid. You might cover the soil surface with a piece of newspaper or aluminium foil, which makes the job cleaner. When it is done at the right time, the root system, with all the soil adhering, will pop out of the pot intact.
An approximate time guide for transplanting is shown in Table 17(currently excluded from this guide). At these times, give or take a week, the plants should be root-bound and all the soil will adhere to the roots, making the transplanting clean and easy.
If the root system has not filled the pots by this time, wait a few weeks and the process will be easier. If the root system comes out in a small ball and much of the soil is empty of roots, then soil conditions are poor (usually poor drainage and over-watering) or you are transplanting much too seen.
If the root system doesn't easily pop out, run a knife around the sides of the pot. Sometimes the roots stick to the sides, particularly is paper and clay containers. Check to see if the drainage holes are plugged. Plugged holes stop air from displacing the soil, and the vacuum pressure prevents the soil from sliding out of the pot.
Table 17
Guide for Transplanting
Transplant During
------------------------------------------------------------
Six-ounce cups Second to third week
Four-inch pots Third to fourth week
Six-inch pots (half gallon) Fourth to fifth week
Eight-inch pots (one gallon) Seventh to eighth week
Two-gallon containers About the tenth week
Transplant into a soil mixture that is the same as (or is very like) the one in the original pots. Otherwise, the soils may have different osmotic properties, and the water may not disperse evenly. (This doesn't apply to small pots that are used for germination and are filled with vermiculture, Jiffy Mix, or other mediums.) Don't bury the stem. Keep the stem base at the same depth that it was growing. {Figure 47. Transplant when the plant is root-bound.}
Transplanting in Plastic Bags
To transplant plants that are in plastic bags, place the old bag into the larger-size bag. Put some soil mixture underneath, to bring the base of the stem to where the new soil surface will be. Cut the old plastic bag away and fill the side spaces with soil mixture. Two people make the job easier.
8.4 Supports for Plants
Under natural conditions, stems undergo stress from wind, rain, and animals. These stresses, which indoor plants do not ordinarily face, strengthen the stem. Indoor stems grow sturdy enough to support their own weight and not much more. Plant energy is used to produce more light-gathering leaf tissue, rather than wind-resistant stem tissue. Stems remain slender, usually about one-half to three-quarter inches at maturity. Since you are growing the plants for their leaves and flowers, this does not present a problem.
Healthy plants do not ordinarily need support. If many of your plants have weak or spindly stems, there is a deficiency in either light or nutrients (notably potassium). Simply not having enough light will cause the plants to elongate, with sparse foliage and weak growth. Too much red light will cause elongation, too, so make sure you include a strong blue light, if you are using incandescents or floodlights.
Hanging the lights higher than the recommended distances will cause the plants to elongate by rapidly growing up to the lights. Unlike sunlight, the intensity of artificial light diminishes dramatically with the distance from the lights. The plants respond by growing toward the light, seeking the higher intensity.
Under artificial light, some plants may need support during the seedling stage or because of accident. Depending on plant size, use straws, pencils, dowels, or standard plant stakes such as cane sticks. Set them in the soil and affix the stem with string, masking tape, or wire twists such as those that come with plastic trash bags. Do not tie string or wire tightly around the stem; make a loose loop. The stem will grow in girth and can be injured by a tight loop.
Probably the simplest method of support is to take a rigid piece of wire, form a "C" at one end and bend it to a right angle to the stem. Set the straight end in the soil and place the stem inside the "C." Pipe cleaners are ideal for seedlings. With larger plants, straighten a coat hanger and use the same method.
A common practice in greenhouses where tree seedlings are raised is to shake each plant once or twice daily. This practice simulates natural vibrations from the wind, and the plant reacts by increasing the growth around the stem. The stem grows thicker and stronger, and the tree can better fend once it is transplanted. It works the same way with marijuana. A fan blowing on the plants will also work. These practices are useful if you plan to move your plants outdoors. Otherwise, healthy indoor plants that will remain indoors need no special stem strengthening.
8.5 Uniform Growth
The light intensity from artificial lights drops dramatically as the distance from the light source increases. When the plants are not of equal height, the shorter ones receive less light and consequently grow slower than the taller ones. This compounds the situation and, left to themselves, the shorter plants will stop growing and eventually die from lack of light.
It is important to keep all of the plants close to the lights. {Figure 48. Hang the fixture at an angle corresponding to that of the tops of the plants.} This encourages stocky, full growth and can make the difference between harvesting stems and harvesting smoking material.
One way to deal with uneven height is to line the plants up to the line of the plant tops. As the plants grow, move them to different spots in the garden to accommodate their different sizes. Or raise the shorter plants up to the lights by placing them on milk crates, tin cans, bricks, etc.
The quality and quantity of light emitted by a fluorescent is strongest in the middle and weaker toward the ends of the tube. Female plants require more light than males. Once the genders of the plants become clear, move the males to the ends of the system, thus leaving the stronger middle light for the females.
8.6 Pruning
Probably the easiest way to deal with uneven growth is to cut back the taller plants to the average height. You may find this emotionally difficult, but pruning will not harm the plant. Cutting off the growing shoot forces the plant to develop its branches. Some growers cut back all of their plants when they are three to four weeks old. Any horizontal space is quickly filled with growing branches and the plants grow full and robust.
The growing shoots are the most potent plant parts until the flowers appear. Generally, the potency increases with growth. By three months' age, most shoots will be high-quality smoke. You can cut shoots at any time; just don't overdo it. Give the plant a chance to grow and fill out to a good size. Severe pruning will slow growth. New growth may be distorted and abnormal, with a drop in potency.
Each time you cat a growing shoot, whether it is the stem tip or a branch tip, two shoots being to grow from the nearest leaf axils. However, don't think that cutting all the growing shoots of a plant twenty times over the course of a season will yield a plant bearing over a million new shoots, or even that the plants will double their size if pruned. Pruning simply allows the plant to develop its branches earlier. The branches present more area to gather light and, hance, can grow to fill a larger space. However, the plant's size is basically determined by the seed's potential within the limitations of the environment.
Cutting the growing shoots or removing some leaves does not harm the plants. Plants are well adapted to the loss of parts to predators, wind, etc., in the natural world. When leaves are damaged or lost, the plant plugs the wound. The leaf isn't replaced or repaired, but new leaves are continually being formed from the growing shoots. The stem, since it connects all parts of the plant, is more important to the plant as a whole. When the stem breaks or creases, it is capable of repair. You can help the plant repair its stem by splinting the wound or somehow propping the stem up straight. Stems take about four or five days to heal.
When you cut the stem or leaves, you may see the plant's sap momentarily spurt before the wound is plugged. The sap contains primarily the products of photosynthesis, in the form of sucrose (table sugar). Smaller amounts of materials associated with the living organism such as minerals, amino acids, and enzymes are also present. In marijuana, the sap is usually colourless, although a bright red colour - it looks like blood - is not uncommon in later life. The red colour is due to haematin compounds and anthocyanin pigments that naturally build up in some varieties. The red colour may also indicate a nutrient deficiency, notably of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, or magnesium.
8.7 Training
Plants grow from the tips of their stems and branches. The growing tip (apical meristem) of the plant contains a hormone that acts as a growth inhibitor. This prevents the branches (lateral buds) from growing. The further a branch is from the growing tip, the less effect of the inhibitor. This is why some species of plants form a cone or Christmas-tree shape with the longest branches toward the bottom of the stem. This is also why the branches grow from the top of the plant when the tip is removed. Once the growing tip is removed, the next highest growing shoot(s) becomes the source of the inhibitor. Under artificial light, the bottom branches may not receive enough light to grow even though they are far away from the inhibitor. Usually the longest branches are toward the middle of the plant.
Some growers hate to cut the growing shoots on the main stem, since it forms the largest and most potent buds by harvest. But you can neutralise the effects of the inhibitor, without cutting the growing shoot, by bending the tip. This allows you to control the height of the plants, and forces them to branch. The top two to six inches of the stem are flexible. Bend it in an arc and secure it to the stem with a wire twist or string. Remove the wire twist in a few days so that the growing tip does not break itself as it twists up to the light. Don't bend the stem too far down. Keep it in the strong light or else it will stop growing. If you accidentally break the tip, you can splint it with matchsticks or ice-cream sticks secured with wire twists or tape until it heals. {Figure 49. The flexible tip is held in place with a wire twist.}
To develop large, full plants with well-developed branches, secure the growing tip once or twice for a few days while the plants are young (one to three months).
It is possible to train the tip so that the stem will form a series of "S" shapes or even circles. During flowering, train the tips so that they grow horizontally. This method encourages thick, dense growth. The branch tips can also be trained. Keep bending any tips that grow above the others. This creates a garden filled with a cubic layer of vigorous flower clusters rather than a lot of stems.
8.2 Thinning
Depending on the viability of the seeds, there should be several plants growing in each pot. Most growers thin to one plant per pot, but the plants don't have to be thinned until they crowd each other and have filled the garden with foliage. The longer you let them grow, the more potent they'll be.
It is virtually impossible to tell the gender of the plants when they are young. The normal ratio of males to females in Cannabis is one to one. Some farmers end up wit more male plants because of their thinning practices. When the plants are less than a month old, the male plants often appear taller and better developed than the females. The male seedling uses more of its energy to develop its aboveground parts than the female. The female devotes more energy to establishing a strong root system. During the first few weeks, don't thin the plants by leaving only the tallest, or you'll wind up with a higher ratio of males. Try to leave seedling that are healthy and vigorous and that are roughly at the same point of development.
To thin your garden, remove any plants with yellow, white, or distorted leaves. Remove the less vigorous and those that lag far behind in development. Cut the unwanted plants near the base; the root system can remain in the pot.
These harvested seedlings will be your first taste of homegrown grass. Usually they produce a mild buzz, but if you separate the growing tips from the large leaves, they may be more potent.
8.3 Transplanting
However you transplant, try to disturb and expose the roots as little as possible. If you transplant carefully, the plants will not exhibit delayed or slowed growth due to transplant shock.
Transplanting Seedlings
When the plants are a week to two weeks old, transplant to any pot that has no plants. First, moisten the soil in the pot from which you will remove the transplant and let is sit for a few minutes. Take a spade or a large spoon, and insert it between the transplant and the plant that will be left to grow. Try to leave at least one inch of space from spoon to stem. Lever the spoon toward the side of the pot, in order to take up a good-size wedge of soil. Place the transplant in a prepared hole at the same depth that it was growing before. Replace the soil in both pots and moisten lightly again to bond the new soil with the original. If you are careful, a wedge of soil can be removed intact. The root system will not be disturbed and the plant will survive with little or no transplant shock. Do not fertilise a transplant for two weeks.
To prevent possible drop-off and wilting from shock, you may want to use Rootone or Transplantone. These safe powders, available at nurseries, contain root-growth hormones and fungicides. They won't be necessary if you transplant carefully.
Transplanting to Large Pots
Transplanting from smaller to larger pots is a simple procedure. The marijuana root system quickly fills small pots. To transplant, moisten the soil and let it sit to become evenly moist. Pick the potted plant up, and, while holding the base of the stem, rap the pot sharply against something solid. You might cover the soil surface with a piece of newspaper or aluminium foil, which makes the job cleaner. When it is done at the right time, the root system, with all the soil adhering, will pop out of the pot intact.
An approximate time guide for transplanting is shown in Table 17(currently excluded from this guide). At these times, give or take a week, the plants should be root-bound and all the soil will adhere to the roots, making the transplanting clean and easy.
If the root system has not filled the pots by this time, wait a few weeks and the process will be easier. If the root system comes out in a small ball and much of the soil is empty of roots, then soil conditions are poor (usually poor drainage and over-watering) or you are transplanting much too seen.
If the root system doesn't easily pop out, run a knife around the sides of the pot. Sometimes the roots stick to the sides, particularly is paper and clay containers. Check to see if the drainage holes are plugged. Plugged holes stop air from displacing the soil, and the vacuum pressure prevents the soil from sliding out of the pot.
Table 17
Guide for Transplanting
Transplant During
------------------------------------------------------------
Six-ounce cups Second to third week
Four-inch pots Third to fourth week
Six-inch pots (half gallon) Fourth to fifth week
Eight-inch pots (one gallon) Seventh to eighth week
Two-gallon containers About the tenth week
Transplant into a soil mixture that is the same as (or is very like) the one in the original pots. Otherwise, the soils may have different osmotic properties, and the water may not disperse evenly. (This doesn't apply to small pots that are used for germination and are filled with vermiculture, Jiffy Mix, or other mediums.) Don't bury the stem. Keep the stem base at the same depth that it was growing. {Figure 47. Transplant when the plant is root-bound.}
Transplanting in Plastic Bags
To transplant plants that are in plastic bags, place the old bag into the larger-size bag. Put some soil mixture underneath, to bring the base of the stem to where the new soil surface will be. Cut the old plastic bag away and fill the side spaces with soil mixture. Two people make the job easier.
8.4 Supports for Plants
Under natural conditions, stems undergo stress from wind, rain, and animals. These stresses, which indoor plants do not ordinarily face, strengthen the stem. Indoor stems grow sturdy enough to support their own weight and not much more. Plant energy is used to produce more light-gathering leaf tissue, rather than wind-resistant stem tissue. Stems remain slender, usually about one-half to three-quarter inches at maturity. Since you are growing the plants for their leaves and flowers, this does not present a problem.
Healthy plants do not ordinarily need support. If many of your plants have weak or spindly stems, there is a deficiency in either light or nutrients (notably potassium). Simply not having enough light will cause the plants to elongate, with sparse foliage and weak growth. Too much red light will cause elongation, too, so make sure you include a strong blue light, if you are using incandescents or floodlights.
Hanging the lights higher than the recommended distances will cause the plants to elongate by rapidly growing up to the lights. Unlike sunlight, the intensity of artificial light diminishes dramatically with the distance from the lights. The plants respond by growing toward the light, seeking the higher intensity.
Under artificial light, some plants may need support during the seedling stage or because of accident. Depending on plant size, use straws, pencils, dowels, or standard plant stakes such as cane sticks. Set them in the soil and affix the stem with string, masking tape, or wire twists such as those that come with plastic trash bags. Do not tie string or wire tightly around the stem; make a loose loop. The stem will grow in girth and can be injured by a tight loop.
Probably the simplest method of support is to take a rigid piece of wire, form a "C" at one end and bend it to a right angle to the stem. Set the straight end in the soil and place the stem inside the "C." Pipe cleaners are ideal for seedlings. With larger plants, straighten a coat hanger and use the same method.
A common practice in greenhouses where tree seedlings are raised is to shake each plant once or twice daily. This practice simulates natural vibrations from the wind, and the plant reacts by increasing the growth around the stem. The stem grows thicker and stronger, and the tree can better fend once it is transplanted. It works the same way with marijuana. A fan blowing on the plants will also work. These practices are useful if you plan to move your plants outdoors. Otherwise, healthy indoor plants that will remain indoors need no special stem strengthening.
8.5 Uniform Growth
The light intensity from artificial lights drops dramatically as the distance from the light source increases. When the plants are not of equal height, the shorter ones receive less light and consequently grow slower than the taller ones. This compounds the situation and, left to themselves, the shorter plants will stop growing and eventually die from lack of light.
It is important to keep all of the plants close to the lights. {Figure 48. Hang the fixture at an angle corresponding to that of the tops of the plants.} This encourages stocky, full growth and can make the difference between harvesting stems and harvesting smoking material.
One way to deal with uneven height is to line the plants up to the line of the plant tops. As the plants grow, move them to different spots in the garden to accommodate their different sizes. Or raise the shorter plants up to the lights by placing them on milk crates, tin cans, bricks, etc.
The quality and quantity of light emitted by a fluorescent is strongest in the middle and weaker toward the ends of the tube. Female plants require more light than males. Once the genders of the plants become clear, move the males to the ends of the system, thus leaving the stronger middle light for the females.
8.6 Pruning
Probably the easiest way to deal with uneven growth is to cut back the taller plants to the average height. You may find this emotionally difficult, but pruning will not harm the plant. Cutting off the growing shoot forces the plant to develop its branches. Some growers cut back all of their plants when they are three to four weeks old. Any horizontal space is quickly filled with growing branches and the plants grow full and robust.
The growing shoots are the most potent plant parts until the flowers appear. Generally, the potency increases with growth. By three months' age, most shoots will be high-quality smoke. You can cut shoots at any time; just don't overdo it. Give the plant a chance to grow and fill out to a good size. Severe pruning will slow growth. New growth may be distorted and abnormal, with a drop in potency.
Each time you cat a growing shoot, whether it is the stem tip or a branch tip, two shoots being to grow from the nearest leaf axils. However, don't think that cutting all the growing shoots of a plant twenty times over the course of a season will yield a plant bearing over a million new shoots, or even that the plants will double their size if pruned. Pruning simply allows the plant to develop its branches earlier. The branches present more area to gather light and, hance, can grow to fill a larger space. However, the plant's size is basically determined by the seed's potential within the limitations of the environment.
Cutting the growing shoots or removing some leaves does not harm the plants. Plants are well adapted to the loss of parts to predators, wind, etc., in the natural world. When leaves are damaged or lost, the plant plugs the wound. The leaf isn't replaced or repaired, but new leaves are continually being formed from the growing shoots. The stem, since it connects all parts of the plant, is more important to the plant as a whole. When the stem breaks or creases, it is capable of repair. You can help the plant repair its stem by splinting the wound or somehow propping the stem up straight. Stems take about four or five days to heal.
When you cut the stem or leaves, you may see the plant's sap momentarily spurt before the wound is plugged. The sap contains primarily the products of photosynthesis, in the form of sucrose (table sugar). Smaller amounts of materials associated with the living organism such as minerals, amino acids, and enzymes are also present. In marijuana, the sap is usually colourless, although a bright red colour - it looks like blood - is not uncommon in later life. The red colour is due to haematin compounds and anthocyanin pigments that naturally build up in some varieties. The red colour may also indicate a nutrient deficiency, notably of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, or magnesium.
8.7 Training
Plants grow from the tips of their stems and branches. The growing tip (apical meristem) of the plant contains a hormone that acts as a growth inhibitor. This prevents the branches (lateral buds) from growing. The further a branch is from the growing tip, the less effect of the inhibitor. This is why some species of plants form a cone or Christmas-tree shape with the longest branches toward the bottom of the stem. This is also why the branches grow from the top of the plant when the tip is removed. Once the growing tip is removed, the next highest growing shoot(s) becomes the source of the inhibitor. Under artificial light, the bottom branches may not receive enough light to grow even though they are far away from the inhibitor. Usually the longest branches are toward the middle of the plant.
Some growers hate to cut the growing shoots on the main stem, since it forms the largest and most potent buds by harvest. But you can neutralise the effects of the inhibitor, without cutting the growing shoot, by bending the tip. This allows you to control the height of the plants, and forces them to branch. The top two to six inches of the stem are flexible. Bend it in an arc and secure it to the stem with a wire twist or string. Remove the wire twist in a few days so that the growing tip does not break itself as it twists up to the light. Don't bend the stem too far down. Keep it in the strong light or else it will stop growing. If you accidentally break the tip, you can splint it with matchsticks or ice-cream sticks secured with wire twists or tape until it heals. {Figure 49. The flexible tip is held in place with a wire twist.}
To develop large, full plants with well-developed branches, secure the growing tip once or twice for a few days while the plants are young (one to three months).
It is possible to train the tip so that the stem will form a series of "S" shapes or even circles. During flowering, train the tips so that they grow horizontally. This method encourages thick, dense growth. The branch tips can also be trained. Keep bending any tips that grow above the others. This creates a garden filled with a cubic layer of vigorous flower clusters rather than a lot of stems.
i hope it will help you depending on what your growing