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Low Yields-1St Harvest


Blkwlf

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My 1st harvest went well except the yields I got. I averaged only 1/2 ounce per plant. The plants were mature but not trimmed or topped prior to going into flower ( I learned about doing that later ). I had a 1000w light for 10 plants then added several 400w later. Also using Fox nutrients and flushing them prior to harvest. Considering using cured horse manure tea for my plants in veg. as the horse manure seems to help produce large plants in my husband's outdoor grow and does well in my regular garden. I was told I should switch to Advance nutrients. Besides getting more and better lights, which I plan to do once my electrical's upgraded to handle it in a few weeks. BTW, yes I'm planting in clean dirt and, currently, in 5 gal plastic grow bags though a couple of my next plants to go into flower will be in 5 gal fiber bags. I've been sticking to the nutrient/water schedule for the Fox nutrients thus far. My next to harvest are topped and trimmed properly and look good as far as that goes but they're still smaller than I'd prefer. So far I've been vegging my plants for 4 weeks but starting to keep them in now for 6 to see if that will make a difference. Any suggestions/comments welcome.

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when considering yields there wont be a "mature" date of a vegging plant.. 4 weeks is an extremely short veg time, but I feel ya, and often do the same.  If you don't have a month or two more to veg training at a young age might help, but its really dependent on root structure and multiple bud sites, both take time to develop with or without training. I tend to not train anything I grow. If scheduling forces me to extend a veg time I simply hack the tops off right below the bulbs to keep it tame until ready.   when I was growing trays of young small plants I would flower the day I saw roots poke out of the clone, which were typically less than 8 inches tall. Those plants would yield around a half ounce single cola. they were fun, used light very efficiently, and allowed me to make cultures of multiple strains at once.  I still chuck various seeds directly into the flower room with zero veg. Once in awhile one will grow as tall as the others and yield fine, but mostly they are 1/4 ounce sucker pop style, potent and fun nonetheless.

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Somethings wrong with your environment unless your growing a notorious low yielding strain like grinspoon at worse you should get 2 zips per plant I don't top I use twine to pull branches and buds closer to the lumens and my average is around 85 grams a plant that's close to 2 1/2 per plant .

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My main strains at the moment are Pineapple Express, Apricot Cush, Kosher Kush, Cateract Kush, Orange Kush, Liberty Haze, Critical Sensi Star and Critical Plus. I also have a ? High Sativa we're calling Chubacka ( my best producer thus far ). I think my term for topping and your term may be different. I guess you'd call it training ( snipping smaller bud sites to create multiple tops while still young. I still may not be referring to it correctly ). As far as that's going, I'm doing pretty good now with either 2 tall tops or 4 + shorter ones. As for trimming, I mean trimming the tiny branches off the stems about 6 +" up from the base. What I meant by "mature" is that the 1st to go into flower were 2-3 feet tall and bushy and had been in veg. for 6 weeks. The 3rd harvest will have been in veg. for 6 weeks. Should I keep that schedule or do you think they need longer? As for the environment, yes it's a bit humid and I need better and more lights but can't install dehumidifyers or more/better lights until after this next week when electrician expands my breaker box. I did recently add fans to assist with air circulation and leaf sweating. Was wondering if the Fox nutrients could be improved upon as it was suggested that I switch to Advanced nutrients but they're very pricey. Also thinking I might try using manure tea inside for plants in veg. to give them a better start. I know I should be getting no less 1.5 oz per and trying for at least 2+ oz. I also stake and tie mine as well as snipping off excess fan leaves covering flowering sights. None of the above was done to those in the 1st harvest. They turned out very good product, just not much of it. Any advice on anything else I could be doing to increase my yield?

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What's yur goal, bwlf?

If lotsa bud for under a $1000,  do this:  google and copy the build at 'billy liar tree machine'. I found the set-up results in about 25 oz per tree (billy says 30, but i can't get there).  Cost of about $850 for the tree machine set-up for one plant.  See his layout of nesting pots, pump, hose, 2" pvc, pvc 't'.   Beware. NO cheap pump!!!!!!  

The 4000 liter pump (as billy recommends) pushes water from res to pot as fast as a your kitchen faucet, 24 hours a day, making froth like an outboard motor.

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pic book: I'd be happy, with my current set up, to get 1+oz per. I'm no where near attempting hydroponics either financialy or experience but I copy/pasted your post to my email for when I may want to try it. I just got my card & just started growing in May. A couple guys I know were nice enough to loan me some lights, give me some dirt, 1 & 5 gal bags & my 1st plants. I have zero experience with cannabis either growing, smoking, etc. this was literally my 1st harvest. t-pain: The plants they gave me had been in veg.for 6 wks prior to my getting them & putting them in flower & I average 60 days in flower. This 1st harvest date was set by the guys who gave me the plants. 1, an Apricot Cush, was about 7 days past due but I believe it was you who told me in "New & Tons to Learn" that a little too long was better than too early. 2 of the plants, unknowns which are high Sativa, probably should have stayed in for 7+ more days. The buds just didn't feel as firm or look as mature as I thought they should while trimming but they were my better producing plants of this harvest. While researching growing on the internet, I noticed the plants I saw online looked better than those I had in flower so I looked into trimming, topping & training from clone thru veg. My 2nd harvest looks better as they don't have a bunch of "sticker" branches off the bottom of the main stem & have 2-tall to 4 shorter tops but are small (went into flower after only 4 wks in veg). My 3rd batch were in veg. for 6 wks & are trimmed the same as the 2nd but taller. Too early to see how they'll produce. I'm currently running 1-1000w & 3-400w lights over 22 plants in flower & recently added a fan to help with humidity & leaf sweating. I have 1 more 1000w & 2 more 400w + dehumidifyer & 2 fans but can't install them until the electrician puts in expanded breaker box & runs more outlets. He's starting tomarrow but won't be finished for at least a month since they also have to install a panel & run all new electric in our new work barn. Our old work barn was "relocated" by a tornado last year along with the roof of my horse barn & shed. I'm using Fox nutrients now but it was suggested that I switch to Advanced. Is there really that much difference between the two or other brands to justify the cost? BTW, if you're counting & noticing too many plants for just me, some inside are my husband's. We use colored popscicle sticks to identify & separate our plants when using the same room. I'm considering using horse manure tea for the plants in veg. My husband has an outdoor grow planted in an old horse paddock where the manure's been naturally spread by the horses, cured & revitalized by time, weather & beginning vegetation growth. He hasn't added any nutrients & has been getting 7+'T x 4-5'W plants for 2 yrs & I use manure tea in my herb garden with great success. Obviously I don't expect similar size as an outside grow but I hope to be able to produce 1+oz with my current set up & 2+oz after I upgrade my lights + add a dehumidifyer & fans. Due to my inexperience, I have to rely on outside input. I planned to attend & possibly join a Flint Compassion Club which met Friday but hubby was working late & electrician scheduled to come over for last inspection prior to starting work on Sat. I have a rare bone disease which became active again creating more bone tumors starting 22 yrs ago. My Dr. & Oncologist agreed to allow me to try cannabis in order to possibly replace/reduce my need for the very high doses of pain meds & other meds which counteract side effects from the pain meds. I'm very sensitive to medication & can't take many forms of it. My goal is to produce high quality cannabis for myself & patients like myself I may pick up in the future. I want to make sure I can provide a quality & consistant supply as well as learning how to make butters, oils + maybe, eventually, shatter. I've been researching different strains & may drop some of those I have & pick up others. There are SOOOOO many!!!! I'm wondering if vegging my plants longer, using manure tea, changing my nutrients, using fabric instead of plastic grow bags or switching from 5-10 gal bags for flowering will help increase my yields. You, t-pain, grassmatch & others have been very generous with your experience, knowledge & advice. I appreciate it more than you know. I welcome all advice and/or comments regarding my grow ( good or bad ).

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I run 2x 1000 watt hps lamps in air cooled hoods I use fox farms happy Frog and sometimes ocean forest soil along with their Tiger bloom and bud builder I put my ladies in flower anytime after they reach my benchmark of 21 inches tall they go into flower . During the flowering process I remove the fan leaves once they start turning colors around week 3 or 4 I trim off the very bottom branches to concentrate the bud growth in the main cola and upper branches once the weight of the buds start to make their branch sag I tie it up in its natural angle and during the entire flower period I rotate my plants a 1/4 turn every watering / feeding to insure the entire plant gets light distributed throughout the canopy .

 

My thoughts are that maybe the horse manure you are using is stressing out the plants because it is too hot any stress slows down the bud growth try doing a plant run using only store bought nutrients and maybe you can pinpoint what is throwing your end weight off by so much.

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Kingdiamond: I'm unable to run my 2nd 1000w extra fans or dehumidifyer until after electrician upgrades panel and runs new outlets so still stuck with 1-1000w & 3-400w + 1 fan. Beginning with my 2nd harvest group I trimmed the stems about 6-8" from base prior to flower. Everything else you've listed; trimming fan leaves, staking/tieing and regular rotation I've been doing since 1st harvest group. I'm not currently using the manure tea indoors, strictly the Fox nutriants. I've been considering using it on my plants in veg., not flower. As far as plant size, I've been going by wks instead of plant height trying to keep to a regular schedule though my 2nd harvest group was definately put in too early (only 4 wks. veg.) Also, the high % sativas are taller than the high % indicas. I haven't gotten real comfortable yet with how exactly to top my sativas down to the level of my indicas, instead raising the lights and rotating away from the 400w's & closer to the 1000w last 4 wks of flower. I didn't do this for the 1st harvest, recently changed to this rotation with 2nd & 3rd harvest groups hoping for better results. Currently using Pro Mix HP soil. Putting mine + another's used soil in my compost with 4 yr old cured manure and redworms to possibly reuse next spring. Haven't tried ocean forest soil but considering differnt growing mediums.

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I think trimming is at harvest time, removing fan/sun leaves and sugar leaves; manicuring buds.

 

Pruning = removing lower and inside branches.

 

Defoliation = removing larger fan leaves for light penetration during growth cycle.

 

Topping = cutting the top off main stem/stalk to encourage branching x 2.

 

Fimming = clipping top off main stem in a way to promote branching x 4.

 

I may be wrong though.

Someone correct me if so.

 

I typed "topping marijuana plants" into search engine and this is the 1st link.

Gives simple explanations + pictures and might help.

I have never used this particular web site nor am I affiliated with it.

http://www.growweedeasy.com/kodiak-marijuana-training-guide

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imiubu: Thank you for helping to define those terms for me as I was using them incorrectly which can lead to misunderstandings. imiubu & blackhorse: Thank you for the web site/newsletter suggestions. I'll definately check them out. t-pain: I plant into 1 gal plastic grow bags from cloner & transfer to 5 gal plastic grow bags prior to putting them into flower. My 2nd harvest group only vegged for 4 wks & were transferred to flower directly after being put in 5 gal while my 3rd harvest group was in 5 gal grow bags 2 wks prior to going into harvest and were in veg. 2 wks longer than the 2nd group. With my 4th group I plan to put 2 in the fiber 5 gal bags & will allow them time in veg. prior to flower simply to test which bag type produces better. Since I have 4 clones from the same plant which are all very healthy, consistant in size, shape & stem health + all on the same nutrient cycle, being transplanted, under same lights & going into flower at same time I believe they're good test subjects for this "experiment". Have heard of air pruning with these fiber bags as well as helping to wick away excess moisture. With my current humidity issue, I'm hoping it may help plant development until I can install humidifyers, more fans & lights. t-pain: fertilizer/nutrients was one of my main ??'s as well as whether switching from 5 gal to 10 going into flower really helps enough to offset the extra $$ for more dirt. I haven't used bud builder yet so that could account for lower yields too.

Obviously my use of the term "topping" wasn't as aggressive as the actual term suggests. I don't know the name for what I've been doing to produce multiple tops but I'll try to describe it as briefly as possible. When my clones begin forming tops (even on secondary branches), nodes form within the V with a new shoot coming off one side, I'll "nip" back that new shoot just to where the node is (usually smaller than the other) giving the 2 nodes romm to grow & produce independant shoots from each instead of just 1 shoot from 1 node eventually leading to a dbl top where I do this. I continue this throughout their veg. state on any/all "tops" of all branches. I also prune any unwanted/unhealthy bottom branches or tiny "sticker" branches (tiny beginning branches crowding the main stem or off the main stem from beneath the soil). I do one more prune (as imiubu) describes above prior to plants going into flower 6-8" from base. All of these initial harvest groups are learning experiences for me but your input as to what I may be doing right or wrong helps me to concentrate on specifics instead of guessing & probably taking me 4+X's longer to realize my mistakes. My 2nd batch is due to be harvested around 08-16 give or take. They were cared for better during veg. though only in veg. 4 wks. My 3rd group estimated for harvest 08-30 had same care, transferred to 5 gal same day as 2nd yet remained in veg. 2 more wks. The diff. between 2nd & 3rd should show me how much those 2 wks effect harvest yields. (2nd & 3rd also all same strains). I hope you all don't mind. I tend to copy/paste all or parts of posts including links to an email I send myself so I can quickly refer to the info. later especially when info. is further advanced than myself/grow (no user names, "signatures" or this web site's info. in posts is copied). YEAH!! after 2 days with electric being mostly off & without any escape from last 2 day's insufferable heat/humidity, our electrician is half way to being finished!!! Will be able to set up things much better within 4-6 wks!!!!! :-)

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TY grassmatch: Yes, a 4 wk veg was far too short. My next harvest will have vegged for 6 wks & think that will be my goal for now. Transferring from 1-5 gal prior to flowering whether I intend to stay with platic or decide on fiber is also something I plan to stick with for a while. Whether to switch to 5 gal right before putting into flower or allowing to veg. an extra wk or two is still something I have to work out. As for nutrents, I think I'll continue with the Fox brand I'm using and add the bud builder at least until I can control my grow environment better ( humidity, heat, leaf sweat, lights/plant ratios, etc. ). Will look for other forums to ask about local Compassion Clubs.

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  • 4 weeks later...

TY grassmatch: Yes, a 4 wk veg was far too short. My next harvest will have vegged for 6 wks & think that will be my goal for now. Transferring from 1-5 gal prior to flowering whether I intend to stay with platic or decide on fiber is also something I plan to stick with for a while. Whether to switch to 5 gal right before putting into flower or allowing to veg. an extra wk or two is still something I have to work out. As for nutrents, I think I'll continue with the Fox brand I'm using and add the bud builder at least until I can control my grow environment better ( humidity, heat, leaf sweat, lights/plant ratios, etc. ). Will look for other forums to ask about local Compassion Clubs.

I put mine into 5 gal buckets or grow bags right from clone also,

 

when  you do trans plant into bigger bags or buckets I would recomend leaving them in veg for 2 wks after to let them adjust, than put them into bud, after I take my cuttings off of the veg plants I wait 2 wks to move them to bud!

 

just my opinion and what works for me!

 

Peace

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boy not me, clone to a #5 hydro pot, let veg one month get to about 20 ish inches, move to flower and two months later i check the trics.. and almost always get between 4-6 per plant.. but i use 5 , 1k lights.. in flower, and only 1k over the veg plants,, but im pure RDWC , I never looked back after going to water,,, and i still get nice flavors, subtle but there, fruity flavors, pine, and even soil flavors like  a forest floor,, and always right around the 16% thc content, some are higher, but normally ... never had any complaints on yield or quality of the buds.. some are rock hard, some fluffy, depending on strains...

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boy not me, clone to a #5 hydro pot, let veg one month get to about 20 ish inches, move to flower and two months later i check the trics.. and almost always get between 4-6 per plant.. but i use 5 , 1k lights.. in flower, and only 1k over the veg plants,, but im pure RDWC , I never looked back after going to water,,, and i still get nice flavors, subtle but there, fruity flavors, pine, and even soil flavors like  a forest floor,, and always right around the 16% thc content, some are higher, but normally ... never had any complaints on yield or quality of the buds.. some are rock hard, some fluffy, depending on strains...

 

 

I don't know about your other strains Willy, but your Grape Ape is tasty stuff. lol

Edited by rockinlespaul
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I was a total failure at dwc lol!  I went back to what I know dirt!  some of the best meds I have had were dwc so im all for it, just to much thinking for this old burnout lol!

 

Peace

Its just gettin used to the medium your using.. I didnt blow out the first couple runs, but the third and on.. great returns, and i found most of the GH products didnt do so good for me, or even the sensi grow ,, but when i went to the house and garden woozer.. bestest I have ever used.. LOL

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