White widow - are they ready to flower? [pics]

i know i gonna wait a week or so before any signs of sex but heard that longer blackout before makes them grow quicker. maybe its horseshit, but ill give it a go. i think you have to fool a plant before she gets you high

I would say lower the light at least 4 inches, and you could start flowering now if you like. It's good you topped some and left some so you can see how you prefer your plants to grow. I did the same exact thing, I topped half and left half. Very big differences, still a lil early to tell which way will be better as far as yiels. But do what you feel, it's all a learning experience to get your own style and technique down that works for you. Ya dig. Good luck and your on the right track buddy.

thanks bro. just as you said, its an experiment. sure i count on nice buds but its fun to just grow em. anxious to lower the light coz its hot down there already. aah and im getting convinced to start flowering soon

Well the hand trick really does work, or at least it has for me. I damn near got my light on my plants, and they have shown no ill affects. Just direct a fan between the tops of your ladies, and the light. That helps a shit load. At least for me. Keep in mind I am running a 400 in a closet without any real ventilation, and they doin damn good. Im 3 wks into flower. Also, they will get tons bigger and fill out the first 3 wks of flower or so. Mine have grown about 16 inches in those three weeks. Well the untopped ones actually. The topped ones just have gotten thick nice lil nugs on them. Sorry for the novel in your thread bro, just trying to share what I have learned. That's what we're here for buddy. I'll be in touch. Lataz!

no need to apologize. any advice that makes sense is more than welcome. you made me thinking again about the size of the cardboard box im gonna make as a cover for them for the light out. i mean id have to make it ways bigger than i thought. probably 4 feet high and pretty much the same length and width. its getting more complicated, hehe. by the way, just smoked those 3 tops id pinched out and they kicked some skinny butt, but still. kind of surprise

Right on, right on! Yeah, you would have to make it much bigger than the plants are now. I forgot to mention I started flowering around 22" or so. and my untopped ladies are now in the 40" range. And I don't think they gonna get much bigga. But you can expect them to pretty much double at least during flowering. But like I said sativas are known to triple and quadruple during flowering. Mainly because they have a much longer flower time, get me. And good preparation makes this hobby a lot smoother.

just went thru your journal Z. captivating read. 5 outta 5. some people are lucky. i hope 2 of my untopped ones turn out broads. i liked the unpinched ones from your pics more. one single fat bud rules. im gonna make a box tmrow and start the bloom.

box finished, 4 feet high, other dmns 3 feet. ill put it over the plants in half an hour for 36 hrs blackout. i crawled underneath it to check if it was lightproof. turned out almost perfect. noticed 2 lighter spots in the roof. so im gonna cover it extra with a blanket. my only concern would be a temperature coz it got quite warm for as little as i was there, so im lil anxious about that.

Uh yea I have to say I'm a bit worried about the lack of airflow and high temps you may end up with with this 'box' idea. You don't have a place in the house where you could move them where it'd be dark? I think there has got to be a better solution. Your solution won't kill them or even obviously hurt them, but I don't think it's gonna facilitate growth well either.

yeah im worried too. im thinking of cutting out a few holes in the box and fixing some pipes in them. like vacuum pipes so the curvature would prevent the light from penetrating the box. ill end up having an alien in my room lol

The last one you didn't top try tyeing the tip, with a twisty tie like you get on bread, facing down. Anchor the other end below a node so it doesn't slide up. don't tie it too tight. You will get a similar result to topping but you won't cut off the active growing tip. You are experimenting so might as well try another technique.

Tyeing the tip facing down will tell the plant to grow "up". The side shoots will shoot upwards and the top will bend back up . You can repeat it to get more upward growth to the side shoots if ya'd like after the main top straightens.

Edit - you can put some sort of anchor like a cut clothes hanger in the soil on the edge of the pot or anchor something in the pot itself to tie the top too as well.

meathook666 said:

yeah im worried too. im thinking of cutting out a few holes in the box and fixing some pipes in them. like vacuum pipes so the curvature would prevent the light from penetrating the box. ill end up having an alien in my room lol

Click to expand...

You can use a luver/louver vent cover as well. They make some that are hinged so they open when there is air forced/pulled through them as well. Have the ends stick out a bit of the edge of the box to help keep light out.

http://www.go2marine.com/category.do?no=12285&view=item

A cheaper version of this would be ideal.
Vetus - Round Louvered Air Suction Vent


edit - well , imagine this with the covers that open and close (thought it had em) for a tenth of the price!

I need sleep

thanx for yout tips erbie. ill tie one of the untopped ones fo sure. how about tying the topped ones, eh? but ill wait with that after first signs of gender. louver vents look cool, i live on the other side of the pond so getting em from your link would be too expensive. i will have my friend prowl on his construction site though. lets see what he gets. the plants are 24h through the dark period now. another 12 and they see the light again

all 5 plants again basking in the light. seems like 36 hrs of darkness worked very well for them. looking as healthy as before. on top of that one is showing signs of sex. to me it looks like a male, but would like to hear your confirmation...

id still say wait abit. they will show soon - just to make sure

this one is showing signs of maleness...but I would wait and see...

Id be 90 % sure that thats a little boy you have there. As the rest said its probably better to wait a little longer. Not sure if you have a bit to spend on this row or not but id seriously look at the idea of a grow tent. I tried to fashion a grow box but in the end i invested in a grow tent. Best money i ever spent. Plenty of place for ventilation and keeping light in/out is not an issue. Makes it easier to control temperatures too. Im running a cool tube for my 400w hps too. Another good investment. Anyway check out my grow and have a look for yourself.

Good looking grow so far though and good luck

I am 110% sure that no one can tell the sex of these plants yet! they are too young wait at least 1 1/2 to 2 weeks under 12/12 of light to tell the sex.