Congratulations!
What a feeling!..keep up the good work
What a great grow.
Outdoor Organic Balcony Stealth Quadlining: White Widow/Gorgonzola
- Thread starter Stunger
- Start date
What a feeling!What a great grow.
Maritimer
Well-Known Member
Thanks Stunger,
pictures that talked to me
pictures that talked to me
Emeraldo
Well-Known Member
I wholeheartedly second that, DD, especially the part "most bafflingly stealthy". If anyone did suspect anything, it wasn't reported. You must have good neighbors, Stunger. Did you wash your buds yet, or have you decided not to?
- Thread starter
- #424
No I didn't. I would have really liked to have done that. But given I dried the 3 plants whole, they are just too big to manage to bud wash whole unless I had a few gallons of H2O2 and a spa bath to wash them in. And besides, with the lockdown with family members always around who I probably wouldn't be able to hide it from made it too tricky to do. However, I did give them several liberal sprays of Dr Bronner's Castille liquid soap and water prior to harvest, and nature also provided 1 good blasting of rain as well, so I reasoned that with those soap sprays a certain amount of crud, dirt and dust would have been at least semi washed off from that.
Right now, avoiding the same family members knowing what I am up to, I have to get into the trimming, weighing and jarring of my crop. I hope I can manage that this week. Once done I will post an update.
Emeraldo
Well-Known Member
...Right now, avoiding the same family members knowing what I am up to, I have to get into the trimming, weighing and jarring of my crop. I hope I can manage that this week. Once done I will post an update.
Yes, bafflingly stealthy! Do you not look them in the eye?
MrX
Well-Known Member
you know the stealth is going to far when its a full camo outfit face paint & all...the adventures we have with that plant hey? lolThat is what I was trying to do. I had shut myself out on the balcony with the tools I thought I'd need, it was an old fishing knife against the strong roots of plants that had been growing for 7 months (the 2 quad girls). I would have really like to have got a good look at the root mass. What you say with using a serrated bread knife makes a lot of sense, that would have worked well. I never imagined harvest time would come in the middle of a lockdown. However, I got it done without blowing my stealth cover to the neighbors, and managed to discretely do so without smelling the house out or making a mess inside, all done and completed while the wife and daughter went for a lockdown walk. Phew!
- Thread starter
- #427
Post Trimming, Yields, Jarring, early smoke report, Update.
Finally after 3 weeks the whole plant drying was completed and I started on the dry trimming, which wasn't too bad, I did it over several sessions and it was kind of peaceful, I mostly did it in the evenings after an 'enhancer' from my trusty old workhorse, an original Silver Surfer Vaporizer and then I just flowed with the task at hand.
Yields
Gorilla Glue Auto 105g
White Widow XTRM 241g
White Widow XTRM x Gorgonzola 308g
-------------------------
Total 654g (23oz)
==============
I am pretty happy with that, it's almost a pound and a half, which saying it like that sounds quite good.
My hope at the beginning of the grow was for less than half of that, but as the grow progressed it became clear that the 2 quad girls were going to easily out weigh the yields of last year's 2 girls who incidentally, were the mother plants of this year's girls which impresses me for the difference in yields obtained.
Improvement in yields from previous year
This year's plants were also grown in the same containers of super soil which I used last year. The improvement in yields I put down to several things that I did differently: more generous 'off season' amendments made to the container soil, diluted worm wee to almost all waterings, liquid kelp concentrate and fish hydrolysate to many waterings, bi-weekly foliar feeding with mainly diluted Kelp extract (Seasol) up until early flowering, additional top dressing of mostly Blood n Bone and fish meal for early leaf yellowing, as well an application of Guano Phosphate given during flowering.
For the next grow I intend to be a little bit more generous again with soil amendments made early in the 'off season' so the amended supersoil has time to 'cook' and settle, I intend to be ready to top dress much quicker next time, as soon as any deficiency is spotted. I also intend to carry out regular 10 day - 2 weekly insect spraying, as so far I have only done ah-hoc spraying which I found was not enough. Because I am only doing small grows I feel I can't afford to wait around for nature to supply appropriate predator insects when mites, caterpillars, mealy bugs or whatever, are feasting on my developing buds. It'd be different if I had a field of plants to play with, but if I had a field of plants I wouldn't be writing this, I'd still be trimming.
Jarring up
I got just 6 of those small jars last year and not as full as these, I gave 2 to a friend whose own crop had failed and the 4 jars remaining only lasted me on the most frugal of usage. So this year's haul is fecking tremendous in comparison.
I had a considerable pile of trim material which I have saved in a box as it seems a shame to throw it. Maybe I will look at making a dry sifter to put it thru, or maybe it'll just sit there until I put it in the compost bin. I did throw all the 'big stuff', branches/stalks, into the greenwaste bin and today when I put it kerbside for collection I was a bit concerned with the heady terpene smell evident when I opened the lid, but thankfully the truck collected it in automatic fashion without any drama. I imagine there's probably a few bins going out smelling the same with the outdoor season now being over and people's trimming done.
Drought Stress treatment
I was inspired with @Maritimer 's postings on drought stress for which there is some evidence of THC increase through that method. I was unable to carry this out in any sort of systematic way and merely attempted to judge on giving the plants what I deemed to be borderline enough water to get by on but not too little to kill them. And without any control grow I have no idea whether it made any difference. However, given that an early grow of mine drooped daily in flowering from hot days and too little water, and given that it was bagseed whose bud far outshone the bag of bud it came with, I always thought the drought stress it had repeatably been under had perhaps something to do with the exceptional result.
Here's 2 pics of WG and WW from an unintentional period of drought stress that occurred towards the end of vege on this grow when the plants got no water for a week when I was away. It was a near thing, if I was away another day or two I'd say this bountiful yield would never have happened. I'm posting it to show what a beating the plants took and yet, thankfully, I returned in time to rehydrate them and they came back to life and were fine. I might add, that where some folk have found that drought stress can bring a couch lock effect, I haven't noted any couch lock from this grow's bud.
Seed production from selective pollination
For this I used some White Widow Xtrm pollen that I had saved from a male plant last year, it had not been well stored as it had been left high on a shelf in the lounge and consequently had been in temperatures of 30C over Summer. Anyway, I can report that I found no seeds,
so as I had been warned and as I knew was a possibility, the pollen was clearly not viable, unfortunately. I still have some WW pollen (stored in the fridge) from 3 years ago that may have been viable so I regret not trying that as well. Plus, I had a White Widow XTRM x Gorgonzola cross male that I chopped once the gender became apparent, which I now regret because as you'll see in the smoke report I found the cross a bit special.
Early smoke report
In testing early dried samples I can say that all 3 plants 'work', they all 'do the job'.
Although, before I try to relate the smoke report of each, I feel I need to put my experience in context. In New Zealand cannabis is illegal. When it comes to choice there has never been a choice, there are no dispensaries where you can view menus for bud and clones in a great choice of strains. In NZ if you don't grow it yourself then tough luck, it has always simply been whatever is available, and that was generally classed as either 'good shit' or 'bad shit'. I never had any idea in those times what was Indica or Sativa or what was a hybrid. But a few times at least I have experienced some very good weed. In the 1980's I had some exceptional bud, Columbian Gold in Australia and wild cannabis in Thailand and Nepal that was fantastic, and in the 1990's I enjoyed several trips to Amsterdam and the famous Brown Cafes where you could order weed and hash off the menu. So I feel I can say I have experienced top quality weed but not with the memory of knowing what strains they were. I feel very ignorant of the alleged differences of Sativa and Indica, of head or body highs. These past years I have only had 4 strains whose names I knew and one cross (the WG) So I am giving my thoughts on the smoke report in this pretty limited context, as well as the admission that I've been indulging with scarcely any letup between testing!
Gorilla Glue Auto (during the grow I referred to this plant as 1-GGa but now I mostly shorten it to GG)
This plant stunk of a sort of diesel/chemical smell. I must say the smell doesn't grab me, but then again that doesn't matter when it is the effect I'm after! Maybe it will mellow out to a nicer smell on further curing but I somehow can't imagine it changing too much. It is like getting some engine fluid on a T shirt and even though it is washed several times it seems there is still a lingering trace of the smell, this is something like that. I don't recall ever having experienced such a diesel type smell in bud before. This plant remained a darker green color than the the 2 other girls and had shorter wider Indica type leaves even though it was described as 50/50 Sativa/Indica, it's buds grew promisingly bigger in width than both the 2 photo girls, but on drying I realised that they are far more 'airy' so what looked like it might give maybe 5-6oz was just under 4oz. I had never grown an auto before, or this strain before, so I have no idea how close the bud is to it's potential. I would describe it's high as capable of getting you comfortably ripped in a warm relaxing cossetted layer. I could still do things but in 'my own little world' type of way.
White Widow XTRM (during the grow I referred to this plant as 2-WW but now I mostly refer to it as WW)
This plant had long thin leaves so I figured that leaf wise it has more actual Sativa characteristic even though the breeder notes said it was 60% Indica. Going on the leaf structure the GGa seemed the most Indica but in it's breeder notes it was listed at only 50%, go figure, I guess not too much can be taken from the breeder notes. The best I can say about it's smell is that it has something piercingly 'piney' and a sweet fruity undercurrent, I wish I knew what I should be smelling so I could describe it better. It's buds like the GGa are also well capable of getting you ripped. While it's plant characteristics are quite different from the Gorilla Glue Auto but so far in testing it is seems similar in it's high, both in potency and giving the effect of being 'encompassed' by the high, or as said before, high in your own little world. The WW buds are not as big width wise as the GGa but they are dense, long, and when cut, full of a soft gluey stickiness.
White Widow XTRM x Gorgonzola (during the grow I referred to this plant as 3-WWG, but now I just refer to it as 'WG')
This plant like the WW also had long thin leaves so I figured that leaf wise it had more of a Sativa characteristic. It's mother was last year's grown Gorgonzola said to be 75% Sativa in the breeder notes. It buds are also dense and have a soft glueyness when cut. It's smell is close to it's step sister the WW, not as strong in the piney smell but similar with something fruity and an additional flowery note. It's nice, I like the smell of both the WW and the WG.
The first time I gave the WG a test post harvest I was really surprised. Both the GGa and the WW had a high that I described as 'encompassing', where the high sort of cossets you in a safe warm layer. But the effect of that cossetting is that it can be quite a challenge to deal with interactions with others. No problem of course if you are beavering away on some solo project or on the computer, fishing, or watching a movie type of thing. But if suddenly you are disturbed by someone or have to take a phonecall, then such a high can make it challenging to deal with without giving away that you're plastered under the influence. That 'cossetted high' sort of closes in around you and perhaps makes outside influence something of an intrusion.
The first time I tried the WG I found that yes it lifted me and gave me a nice sense of euphoria, and the high gave a soft cossetting around me, but what surprised me was that my hearing and visual field felt like they had zoomed out as opposed to the high of the GGa and WW where it was more like being zoomed in. It was such a different feeling that first time, I felt I was enhanced but the whole visual field felt 'zoomed out' where the high encompassed much more of the space and depth around me. Where this became apparent was when intrusions like a phone call or interacting with someone occurred, I found the WG's high made it very easy to interact with others, I didn't feel I was fighting through the 'close layer of the high around me' while trying to concentrate on what was being said so I didn't lose the plot when interacting with others. Only 3 people have tried the WW where it was kindly rated excellent or 10/10, but so far they have said the WG is their favorite. The WG's high seems as good a high as the WW. So far I like it because I like the feeling of being lifted, of enhancement and some euphoria, but in comparison with other highs, I like the open ease to interacting that it allows.
Had I known that I would have liked the WG as much I would have then saved the male WG and used it's fresh pollen to make a few hundred regular seeds on a few select colas - bugger!
Genetics, Potency, strain choice
So the WG has thrown me somewhat. I went into this thinking that basically I wanted to only find and grow seeds of the most potent strains. I've smoked or vaped for 40 years, I simply can't enjoy pissweak pot that is like flat fizz. I have read posts by some 'old timers' who don't so much care about the strain just for whether it has the potency to get them high (Willy Nelson was in this camp), but I frequently have read of those who have had stronger strains but mostly choose to smoke a strain for the all round balance of qualities it gives, one of many that springs to mind that seems to get mentioned highly in that regard is Jack Herer. Anyway my point here is the WG has caused me to reconsider about what I previously had thought to be the most important factor, being high potency. I am thinking the chances of me doing a couple of pollen chucks and coming out with something great is pretty ludicrous, so it makes me wonder that to put aside THC potency but for sheer enjoyment of the high maybe I need to investigate strains like Jack Herer or Cinderella99 or whatever those highly rated strains are, as I feel I have been missing out. If I am ever again in a place where I have a menu of strains before me I am going to pay close attention to the effects of each to better understand what makes for the best enjoyment. I have really limited grow space so it seems important to find the best several strains and concentrate on those rather than waste a bunch of seasons growing out random pot luck strains. I am keen to hear any strain recommendations if anyone can relate to what I am talking about.
Anyway, that's my main update now done, I'll jump in with any further posts that come to mind. Cheers, and be safe everyone.
Finally after 3 weeks the whole plant drying was completed and I started on the dry trimming, which wasn't too bad, I did it over several sessions and it was kind of peaceful, I mostly did it in the evenings after an 'enhancer' from my trusty old workhorse, an original Silver Surfer Vaporizer and then I just flowed with the task at hand.
Yields
Gorilla Glue Auto 105g
White Widow XTRM 241g
White Widow XTRM x Gorgonzola 308g
-------------------------
Total 654g (23oz)
==============
I am pretty happy with that, it's almost a pound and a half, which saying it like that sounds quite good.
My hope at the beginning of the grow was for less than half of that, but as the grow progressed it became clear that the 2 quad girls were going to easily out weigh the yields of last year's 2 girls who incidentally, were the mother plants of this year's girls which impresses me for the difference in yields obtained.Improvement in yields from previous year
This year's plants were also grown in the same containers of super soil which I used last year. The improvement in yields I put down to several things that I did differently: more generous 'off season' amendments made to the container soil, diluted worm wee to almost all waterings, liquid kelp concentrate and fish hydrolysate to many waterings, bi-weekly foliar feeding with mainly diluted Kelp extract (Seasol) up until early flowering, additional top dressing of mostly Blood n Bone and fish meal for early leaf yellowing, as well an application of Guano Phosphate given during flowering.
For the next grow I intend to be a little bit more generous again with soil amendments made early in the 'off season' so the amended supersoil has time to 'cook' and settle, I intend to be ready to top dress much quicker next time, as soon as any deficiency is spotted. I also intend to carry out regular 10 day - 2 weekly insect spraying, as so far I have only done ah-hoc spraying which I found was not enough. Because I am only doing small grows I feel I can't afford to wait around for nature to supply appropriate predator insects when mites, caterpillars, mealy bugs or whatever, are feasting on my developing buds. It'd be different if I had a field of plants to play with, but if I had a field of plants I wouldn't be writing this, I'd still be trimming.
Jarring up
I got just 6 of those small jars last year and not as full as these, I gave 2 to a friend whose own crop had failed and the 4 jars remaining only lasted me on the most frugal of usage. So this year's haul is fecking tremendous in comparison.
I had a considerable pile of trim material which I have saved in a box as it seems a shame to throw it. Maybe I will look at making a dry sifter to put it thru, or maybe it'll just sit there until I put it in the compost bin. I did throw all the 'big stuff', branches/stalks, into the greenwaste bin and today when I put it kerbside for collection I was a bit concerned with the heady terpene smell evident when I opened the lid, but thankfully the truck collected it in automatic fashion without any drama. I imagine there's probably a few bins going out smelling the same with the outdoor season now being over and people's trimming done
.Drought Stress treatment
I was inspired with @Maritimer 's postings on drought stress for which there is some evidence of THC increase through that method. I was unable to carry this out in any sort of systematic way and merely attempted to judge on giving the plants what I deemed to be borderline enough water to get by on but not too little to kill them. And without any control grow I have no idea whether it made any difference. However, given that an early grow of mine drooped daily in flowering from hot days and too little water, and given that it was bagseed whose bud far outshone the bag of bud it came with, I always thought the drought stress it had repeatably been under had perhaps something to do with the exceptional result.
Here's 2 pics of WG and WW from an unintentional period of drought stress that occurred towards the end of vege on this grow when the plants got no water for a week when I was away. It was a near thing, if I was away another day or two I'd say this bountiful yield would never have happened. I'm posting it to show what a beating the plants took and yet, thankfully, I returned in time to rehydrate them and they came back to life and were fine. I might add, that where some folk have found that drought stress can bring a couch lock effect, I haven't noted any couch lock from this grow's bud.
Seed production from selective pollination
For this I used some White Widow Xtrm pollen that I had saved from a male plant last year, it had not been well stored as it had been left high on a shelf in the lounge and consequently had been in temperatures of 30C over Summer. Anyway, I can report that I found no seeds,
so as I had been warned and as I knew was a possibility, the pollen was clearly not viable, unfortunately. I still have some WW pollen (stored in the fridge) from 3 years ago that may have been viable so I regret not trying that as well. Plus, I had a White Widow XTRM x Gorgonzola cross male that I chopped once the gender became apparent, which I now regret because as you'll see in the smoke report I found the cross a bit special.Early smoke report
In testing early dried samples I can say that all 3 plants 'work', they all 'do the job'.
Although, before I try to relate the smoke report of each, I feel I need to put my experience in context. In New Zealand cannabis is illegal. When it comes to choice there has never been a choice, there are no dispensaries where you can view menus for bud and clones in a great choice of strains. In NZ if you don't grow it yourself then tough luck, it has always simply been whatever is available, and that was generally classed as either 'good shit' or 'bad shit'. I never had any idea in those times what was Indica or Sativa or what was a hybrid. But a few times at least I have experienced some very good weed. In the 1980's I had some exceptional bud, Columbian Gold in Australia and wild cannabis in Thailand and Nepal that was fantastic, and in the 1990's I enjoyed several trips to Amsterdam and the famous Brown Cafes where you could order weed and hash off the menu. So I feel I can say I have experienced top quality weed but not with the memory of knowing what strains they were. I feel very ignorant of the alleged differences of Sativa and Indica, of head or body highs. These past years I have only had 4 strains whose names I knew and one cross (the WG) So I am giving my thoughts on the smoke report in this pretty limited context, as well as the admission that I've been indulging with scarcely any letup between testing!
Gorilla Glue Auto (during the grow I referred to this plant as 1-GGa but now I mostly shorten it to GG)
This plant stunk of a sort of diesel/chemical smell. I must say the smell doesn't grab me, but then again that doesn't matter when it is the effect I'm after! Maybe it will mellow out to a nicer smell on further curing but I somehow can't imagine it changing too much. It is like getting some engine fluid on a T shirt and even though it is washed several times it seems there is still a lingering trace of the smell, this is something like that. I don't recall ever having experienced such a diesel type smell in bud before. This plant remained a darker green color than the the 2 other girls and had shorter wider Indica type leaves even though it was described as 50/50 Sativa/Indica, it's buds grew promisingly bigger in width than both the 2 photo girls, but on drying I realised that they are far more 'airy' so what looked like it might give maybe 5-6oz was just under 4oz. I had never grown an auto before, or this strain before, so I have no idea how close the bud is to it's potential. I would describe it's high as capable of getting you comfortably ripped in a warm relaxing cossetted layer. I could still do things but in 'my own little world' type of way.
White Widow XTRM (during the grow I referred to this plant as 2-WW but now I mostly refer to it as WW)
This plant had long thin leaves so I figured that leaf wise it has more actual Sativa characteristic even though the breeder notes said it was 60% Indica. Going on the leaf structure the GGa seemed the most Indica but in it's breeder notes it was listed at only 50%, go figure, I guess not too much can be taken from the breeder notes. The best I can say about it's smell is that it has something piercingly 'piney' and a sweet fruity undercurrent, I wish I knew what I should be smelling so I could describe it better. It's buds like the GGa are also well capable of getting you ripped. While it's plant characteristics are quite different from the Gorilla Glue Auto but so far in testing it is seems similar in it's high, both in potency and giving the effect of being 'encompassed' by the high, or as said before, high in your own little world. The WW buds are not as big width wise as the GGa but they are dense, long, and when cut, full of a soft gluey stickiness.
White Widow XTRM x Gorgonzola (during the grow I referred to this plant as 3-WWG, but now I just refer to it as 'WG')
This plant like the WW also had long thin leaves so I figured that leaf wise it had more of a Sativa characteristic. It's mother was last year's grown Gorgonzola said to be 75% Sativa in the breeder notes. It buds are also dense and have a soft glueyness when cut. It's smell is close to it's step sister the WW, not as strong in the piney smell but similar with something fruity and an additional flowery note. It's nice, I like the smell of both the WW and the WG.
The first time I gave the WG a test post harvest I was really surprised. Both the GGa and the WW had a high that I described as 'encompassing', where the high sort of cossets you in a safe warm layer. But the effect of that cossetting is that it can be quite a challenge to deal with interactions with others. No problem of course if you are beavering away on some solo project or on the computer, fishing, or watching a movie type of thing. But if suddenly you are disturbed by someone or have to take a phonecall, then such a high can make it challenging to deal with without giving away that you're plastered under the influence. That 'cossetted high' sort of closes in around you and perhaps makes outside influence something of an intrusion.
The first time I tried the WG I found that yes it lifted me and gave me a nice sense of euphoria, and the high gave a soft cossetting around me, but what surprised me was that my hearing and visual field felt like they had zoomed out as opposed to the high of the GGa and WW where it was more like being zoomed in. It was such a different feeling that first time, I felt I was enhanced but the whole visual field felt 'zoomed out' where the high encompassed much more of the space and depth around me. Where this became apparent was when intrusions like a phone call or interacting with someone occurred, I found the WG's high made it very easy to interact with others, I didn't feel I was fighting through the 'close layer of the high around me' while trying to concentrate on what was being said so I didn't lose the plot when interacting with others. Only 3 people have tried the WW where it was kindly rated excellent or 10/10, but so far they have said the WG is their favorite. The WG's high seems as good a high as the WW. So far I like it because I like the feeling of being lifted, of enhancement and some euphoria, but in comparison with other highs, I like the open ease to interacting that it allows.
Had I known that I would have liked the WG as much I would have then saved the male WG and used it's fresh pollen to make a few hundred regular seeds on a few select colas - bugger!
I thought I'd drop this from a post by Emeraldo made about the WG way back in early December.
Genetics, Potency, strain choice
So the WG has thrown me somewhat. I went into this thinking that basically I wanted to only find and grow seeds of the most potent strains. I've smoked or vaped for 40 years, I simply can't enjoy pissweak pot that is like flat fizz. I have read posts by some 'old timers' who don't so much care about the strain just for whether it has the potency to get them high (Willy Nelson was in this camp), but I frequently have read of those who have had stronger strains but mostly choose to smoke a strain for the all round balance of qualities it gives, one of many that springs to mind that seems to get mentioned highly in that regard is Jack Herer. Anyway my point here is the WG has caused me to reconsider about what I previously had thought to be the most important factor, being high potency. I am thinking the chances of me doing a couple of pollen chucks and coming out with something great is pretty ludicrous, so it makes me wonder that to put aside THC potency but for sheer enjoyment of the high maybe I need to investigate strains like Jack Herer or Cinderella99 or whatever those highly rated strains are, as I feel I have been missing out. If I am ever again in a place where I have a menu of strains before me I am going to pay close attention to the effects of each to better understand what makes for the best enjoyment. I have really limited grow space so it seems important to find the best several strains and concentrate on those rather than waste a bunch of seasons growing out random pot luck strains. I am keen to hear any strain recommendations if anyone can relate to what I am talking about.
Anyway, that's my main update now done, I'll jump in with any further posts that come to mind. Cheers, and be safe everyone.
Maritimer
Well-Known Member
Ahoy @Stunger
That is a most enjoyable read. Thank you for publishing what I consider a "template quality" smoke report. Clean, neat and organized in a fashion I think sets an example of how the report should look. Mine are several shades of gray next too yours.
Well done sir.
That is a most enjoyable read. Thank you for publishing what I consider a "template quality" smoke report. Clean, neat and organized in a fashion I think sets an example of how the report should look. Mine are several shades of gray next too yours.
Well done sir.
I am pretty happy with that, it's almost a pound and a half, which saying it like that sounds quite good.
I couldn’t put that better so let me just say I second that.
Your considered reflections on what makes an enjoyable experience hit the nail on the head for me. Especially as a fellow NZer.
We have wasted thousands of dollars to buy cannabis which, frankly should be ashamed of itself.
There is so much more to experience than potency! (Missing, mostly, anyway from anything I’ve purchased in an age).
I’m really excited for you that you have a little more control of your ECS with some interesting variety. Those diesel smelling ones (great description, btw. Engineering has seen many shirts ruined in this way) are supposed to be great for pain. You have one for fishing. And now one for dancing and generally getting on with stuff too! Go you, Koro!
I wish you could see the stupid smile you’ve put on my donkey face, Stunger.
(BTW FYI your remarks on the Jack Herer strain compel me to mention here for any other members reading. @SeedsMan is still seeking participants for the two upcoming comparative grows. The one with JH in it is the “classic” in my signature below. The other is the “new genetics”. The more, the merrier.)
I hope that was ok? I for one am curious about this head/body sativa/indica thing. Looking forward to getting Jacked and finding out.
Looking forward to more of your updates, too.
Cheers
Maritimer
Well-Known Member
My curiosity insists I ask about this Jack Herer comparitive grow from seedman. I am a registered customer with the seed bank. What details are involved that you or anyone else is aware of to be involved with the project?
The Critical Jack I once ran has me a lover of all JH.
My kind of American Hero!
The Critical Jack I once ran has me a lover of all JH.
My kind of American Hero!
That’s terrific Maritimer!My curiosity insists I ask about this Jack Herer comparitive grow from seedman. I am a registered customer with the seed bank. What details are involved that you or anyone else is aware of to be involved with the project?
The Critical Jack I once ran has me a lover of all JH.
My kind of American Hero!
All you need do is tap on a link and make a post. Say Hi and let them know you can drop a bean soon.
@SeedsMan is asking for more growers to participate.hello Growers!
I hope you are all well during this difficult time!
we are well and ready to ENJOY this new adventure...
and so here we go again with a new comparision grow
SPONSORED by SEEDSMAN!
these are the strains that we will follow in this thread:
BLUEBERRY
JACK HERER
And these beautiful people will receive soon these 2 strains to play with:
@Heavenly Hybrid @Master Of None @Virgin Ground @DonkeyDick @013
If there are others interested in this new adventure you just need to:
- make a post below with the link of your active journal
- have a status of "well known member" and be on 420magazine for at least 2 months
- be able to sprout the strains as soon as possible (we'll give priority to people that will sprout them right away)
- keep this thread updated at least once per week on your progress
- have FUN!
The least we can do to help
to thrive is to support our sponsors 
Please, just make a post on the thread so that @SeedsMan knows s/he has you on board. Look at the New Genetics link in my signature too. It’s going to be a lot of fun.
@Stunger !
Emeraldo
Well-Known Member
Enjoyed reading your post. A good read, Stunger. Lucky you, I am happy your grow went so well, what with all the great discussions we all had it was fascinating to follow. A very memorable but bafflingly stealthy balcony grow. With a huge yield for three plants. Did any neighbors ask again about the tomatoes? Or chiles?
Good descriptions of effect. Sounds like WG is a great uplifting sativa dominant for daytime, working and social, and from your description WW is indica dominant for nighttime and mellowing out but a bit impairing when it comes to interactions. And if WG is your go-to weed, then you really got lucky with the larger yield. And if I remember, you might have more WG regular seeds, meaning you'll have another male.
The GGA diesel smell. I thinks Robert of 420 does recommend it for pain, as Maritimer suggests. Oh well, the ease of growing an auto, there are trade-offs. Harvest of usable weed after 90 days from seed is the main advantage. I'll be growing one of those soon, so it's interesting to read your impressions.
Good descriptions of effect. Sounds like WG is a great uplifting sativa dominant for daytime, working and social, and from your description WW is indica dominant for nighttime and mellowing out but a bit impairing when it comes to interactions. And if WG is your go-to weed, then you really got lucky with the larger yield. And if I remember, you might have more WG regular seeds, meaning you'll have another male.
The GGA diesel smell. I thinks Robert of 420 does recommend it for pain, as Maritimer suggests. Oh well, the ease of growing an auto, there are trade-offs. Harvest of usable weed after 90 days from seed is the main advantage. I'll be growing one of those soon, so it's interesting to read your impressions.
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- #433
Cheers Maritimer, I'm glad you could tune in and enjoy it.
Thanks DD. I look forward to trying more strains and understanding more about what they offer and what rings my bell the best. I just want to cut to the chase and locate those special strains that click with me.
No, I never had any word from the neighbors about my balcony botanicals, thank god. I'd love to think they were unaware. Altho the lockdown period helped reduce their visitor numbers to near nil. I hadn't expected such a bumper yield so I am now a bit unsure as to what sort of yield would be sensible to aim for in future. Or maybe I should just take the approach to continue to aim high regardless and view the neighbor's noses as being either not offended or they just don't realize what a dank smell is and take that as a green light to continue to aim big.
Yes the WG gave the best yield, close to 11oz, and it has turned out to be the one I choose the most often. It makes me wonder though, if the high is say, a similar profile to a Jack Herer then I imagine the WG is 'watered down' in comparison, which then it really wets my appetite and curiosity as to whether a strain like Jack Herer could be one that I'd really gell with. I'd be very happy to grow 20 plants and really get into a bunch of the many highly regarded strains out there, but I don't currently have available space for to grow a lot plants so I am hoping to basically research and cut to the chase in order to uncover those top strains sooner than later.
You're right, the WG is from regular seeds and I still have more of them which is great. In fact I now wouldn't mind growing out a WG male to pollinate a female WG. I still have WW regular seeds from last years grow so in theory I could get some WW pollen too, but at this point I'd probably prefer to use WG pollen on a WG female with the intention of doing a @MrX and not stopping at a couple of hundred seeds but getting a few thousand or so, and then can share them around if they're any good.
nickeluring
Well-Known Member
Post Trimming, Yields, Jarring, early smoke report, Update.
Finally after 3 weeks the whole plant drying was completed and I started on the dry trimming, which wasn't too bad, I did it over several sessions and it was kind of peaceful, I mostly did it in the evenings after an 'enhancer' from my trusty old workhorse, an original Silver Surfer Vaporizer and then I just flowed with the task at hand.
Yields
Gorilla Glue Auto 105g
White Widow XTRM 241g
White Widow XTRM x Gorgonzola 308g
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Total 654g (23oz)
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I am pretty happy with that, it's almost a pound and a half, which saying it like that sounds quite good.
Improvement in yields from previous year
This year's plants were also grown in the same containers of super soil which I used last year. The improvement in yields I put down to several things that I did differently: more generous 'off season' amendments made to the container soil, diluted worm wee to almost all waterings, liquid kelp concentrate and fish hydrolysate to many waterings, bi-weekly foliar feeding with mainly diluted Kelp extract (Seasol) up until early flowering, additional top dressing of mostly Blood n Bone and fish meal for early leaf yellowing, as well an application of Guano Phosphate given during flowering.
For the next grow I intend to be a little bit more generous again with soil amendments made early in the 'off season' so the amended supersoil has time to 'cook' and settle, I intend to be ready to top dress much quicker next time, as soon as any deficiency is spotted. I also intend to carry out regular 10 day - 2 weekly insect spraying, as so far I have only done ah-hoc spraying which I found was not enough. Because I am only doing small grows I feel I can't afford to wait around for nature to supply appropriate predator insects when mites, caterpillars, mealy bugs or whatever, are feasting on my developing buds. It'd be different if I had a field of plants to play with, but if I had a field of plants I wouldn't be writing this, I'd still be trimming.
Jarring up
I got just 6 of those small jars last year and not as full as these, I gave 2 to a friend whose own crop had failed and the 4 jars remaining only lasted me on the most frugal of usage. So this year's haul is fecking tremendous in comparison.
I had a considerable pile of trim material which I have saved in a box as it seems a shame to throw it. Maybe I will look at making a dry sifter to put it thru, or maybe it'll just sit there until I put it in the compost bin. I did throw all the 'big stuff', branches/stalks, into the greenwaste bin and today when I put it kerbside for collection I was a bit concerned with the heady terpene smell evident when I opened the lid, but thankfully the truck collected it in automatic fashion without any drama. I imagine there's probably a few bins going out smelling the same with the outdoor season now being over and people's trimming done
Drought Stress treatment
I was inspired with @Maritimer 's postings on drought stress for which there is some evidence of THC increase through that method. I was unable to carry this out in any sort of systematic way and merely attempted to judge on giving the plants what I deemed to be borderline enough water to get by on but not too little to kill them. And without any control grow I have no idea whether it made any difference. However, given that an early grow of mine drooped daily in flowering from hot days and too little water, and given that it was bagseed whose bud far outshone the bag of bud it came with, I always thought the drought stress it had repeatably been under had perhaps something to do with the exceptional result.
Here's 2 pics of WG and WW from an unintentional period of drought stress that occurred towards the end of vege on this grow when the plants got no water for a week when I was away. It was a near thing, if I was away another day or two I'd say this bountiful yield would never have happened. I'm posting it to show what a beating the plants took and yet, thankfully, I returned in time to rehydrate them and they came back to life and were fine. I might add, that where some folk have found that drought stress can bring a couch lock effect, I haven't noted any couch lock from this grow's bud.
Seed production from selective pollination
For this I used some White Widow Xtrm pollen that I had saved from a male plant last year, it had not been well stored as it had been left high on a shelf in the lounge and consequently had been in temperatures of 30C over Summer. Anyway, I can report that I found no seeds,
Early smoke report
In testing early dried samples I can say that all 3 plants 'work', they all 'do the job'.
Although, before I try to relate the smoke report of each, I feel I need to put my experience in context. In New Zealand cannabis is illegal. When it comes to choice there has never been a choice, there are no dispensaries where you can view menus for bud and clones in a great choice of strains. In NZ if you don't grow it yourself then tough luck, it has always simply been whatever is available, and that was generally classed as either 'good shit' or 'bad shit'. I never had any idea in those times what was Indica or Sativa or what was a hybrid. But a few times at least I have experienced some very good weed. In the 1980's I had some exceptional bud, Columbian Gold in Australia and wild cannabis in Thailand and Nepal that was fantastic, and in the 1990's I enjoyed several trips to Amsterdam and the famous Brown Cafes where you could order weed and hash off the menu. So I feel I can say I have experienced top quality weed but not with the memory of knowing what strains they were. I feel very ignorant of the alleged differences of Sativa and Indica, of head or body highs. These past years I have only had 4 strains whose names I knew and one cross (the WG) So I am giving my thoughts on the smoke report in this pretty limited context, as well as the admission that I've been indulging with scarcely any letup between testing!
Gorilla Glue Auto (during the grow I referred to this plant as 1-GGa but now I mostly shorten it to GG)
This plant stunk of a sort of diesel/chemical smell. I must say the smell doesn't grab me, but then again that doesn't matter when it is the effect I'm after! Maybe it will mellow out to a nicer smell on further curing but I somehow can't imagine it changing too much. It is like getting some engine fluid on a T shirt and even though it is washed several times it seems there is still a lingering trace of the smell, this is something like that. I don't recall ever having experienced such a diesel type smell in bud before. This plant remained a darker green color than the the 2 other girls and had shorter wider Indica type leaves even though it was described as 50/50 Sativa/Indica, it's buds grew promisingly bigger in width than both the 2 photo girls, but on drying I realised that they are far more 'airy' so what looked like it might give maybe 5-6oz was just under 4oz. I had never grown an auto before, or this strain before, so I have no idea how close the bud is to it's potential. I would describe it's high as capable of getting you comfortably ripped in a warm relaxing cossetted layer. I could still do things but in 'my own little world' type of way.
White Widow XTRM (during the grow I referred to this plant as 2-WW but now I mostly refer to it as WW)
This plant had long thin leaves so I figured that leaf wise it has more actual Sativa characteristic even though the breeder notes said it was 60% Indica. Going on the leaf structure the GGa seemed the most Indica but in it's breeder notes it was listed at only 50%, go figure, I guess not too much can be taken from the breeder notes. The best I can say about it's smell is that it has something piercingly 'piney' and a sweet fruity undercurrent, I wish I knew what I should be smelling so I could describe it better. It's buds like the GGa are also well capable of getting you ripped. While it's plant characteristics are quite different from the Gorilla Glue Auto but so far in testing it is seems similar in it's high, both in potency and giving the effect of being 'encompassed' by the high, or as said before, high in your own little world. The WW buds are not as big width wise as the GGa but they are dense, long, and when cut, full of a soft gluey stickiness.
White Widow XTRM x Gorgonzola (during the grow I referred to this plant as 3-WWG, but now I just refer to it as 'WG')
This plant like the WW also had long thin leaves so I figured that leaf wise it had more of a Sativa characteristic. It's mother was last year's grown Gorgonzola said to be 75% Sativa in the breeder notes. It buds are also dense and have a soft glueyness when cut. It's smell is close to it's step sister the WW, not as strong in the piney smell but similar with something fruity and an additional flowery note. It's nice, I like the smell of both the WW and the WG.
The first time I gave the WG a test post harvest I was really surprised. Both the GGa and the WW had a high that I described as 'encompassing', where the high sort of cossets you in a safe warm layer. But the effect of that cossetting is that it can be quite a challenge to deal with interactions with others. No problem of course if you are beavering away on some solo project or on the computer, fishing, or watching a movie type of thing. But if suddenly you are disturbed by someone or have to take a phonecall, then such a high can make it challenging to deal with without giving away that you're plastered under the influence. That 'cossetted high' sort of closes in around you and perhaps makes outside influence something of an intrusion.
The first time I tried the WG I found that yes it lifted me and gave me a nice sense of euphoria, and the high gave a soft cossetting around me, but what surprised me was that my hearing and visual field felt like they had zoomed out as opposed to the high of the GGa and WW where it was more like being zoomed in. It was such a different feeling that first time, I felt I was enhanced but the whole visual field felt 'zoomed out' where the high encompassed much more of the space and depth around me. Where this became apparent was when intrusions like a phone call or interacting with someone occurred, I found the WG's high made it very easy to interact with others, I didn't feel I was fighting through the 'close layer of the high around me' while trying to concentrate on what was being said so I didn't lose the plot when interacting with others. Only 3 people have tried the WW where it was kindly rated excellent or 10/10, but so far they have said the WG is their favorite. The WG's high seems as good a high as the WW. So far I like it because I like the feeling of being lifted, of enhancement and some euphoria, but in comparison with other highs, I like the open ease to interacting that it allows.
Had I known that I would have liked the WG as much I would have then saved the male WG and used it's fresh pollen to make a few hundred regular seeds on a few select colas - bugger!
I thought I'd drop this from a post by Emeraldo made about the WG way back in early December.
Genetics, Potency, strain choice
So the WG has thrown me somewhat. I went into this thinking that basically I wanted to only find and grow seeds of the most potent strains. I've smoked or vaped for 40 years, I simply can't enjoy pissweak pot that is like flat fizz. I have read posts by some 'old timers' who don't so much care about the strain just for whether it has the potency to get them high (Willy Nelson was in this camp), but I frequently have read of those who have had stronger strains but mostly choose to smoke a strain for the all round balance of qualities it gives, one of many that springs to mind that seems to get mentioned highly in that regard is Jack Herer. Anyway my point here is the WG has caused me to reconsider about what I previously had thought to be the most important factor, being high potency. I am thinking the chances of me doing a couple of pollen chucks and coming out with something great is pretty ludicrous, so it makes me wonder that to put aside THC potency but for sheer enjoyment of the high maybe I need to investigate strains like Jack Herer or Cinderella99 or whatever those highly rated strains are, as I feel I have been missing out. If I am ever again in a place where I have a menu of strains before me I am going to pay close attention to the effects of each to better understand what makes for the best enjoyment. I have really limited grow space so it seems important to find the best several strains and concentrate on those rather than waste a bunch of seasons growing out random pot luck strains. I am keen to hear any strain recommendations if anyone can relate to what I am talking about.
Anyway, that's my main update now done, I'll jump in with any further posts that come to mind. Cheers, and be safe everyone.
An outstanding harvest report, mate - well done!
Congrats on your fine harvest! You've done very well and you've got an awesome yield to enjoy for some time ahead.
How did you find drying the plant whole? Do you agree with me that the buds are ready to consume and more or less cured when the plant has finished drying? I remember you had some issues cutting the root though...
I'm surprised at the smell of your GGA. I've always found them smelling very very good. Very sweet and candy like and no fuel flavours at all. What breed is yours? Mine are Fastbuds. My Glue Gelato from barney's Farm smells very tasty, too, without any fuel flavours. It's only half gorilla though. Did you spray yours with anything? I had one GGA that gave me the smelliest buds I've ever seen, but that was due to some issues. It had white powdery mildew and I sprayed it with loads of milk for weeks and left the milk to dry in the sun. I hadn't heard of bud washing back then and only rinsed the plant off with the hand shower before harvest. The buds are good effect wise but smell heavily of ammonia or something - horrible! I gave it all away.
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- #435
Congrats on your fine harvest! You've done very well and you've got an awesome yield to enjoy for some time ahead.
How did you find drying the plant whole? Do you agree with me that the buds are ready to consume and more or less cured when the plant has finished drying? I remember you had some issues cutting the root though...
I'm surprised at the smell of your GGA. I've always found them smelling very very good. Very sweet and candy like and no fuel flavours at all. What breed is yours? Mine are Fastbuds. My Glue Gelato from barney's Farm smells very tasty, too, without any fuel flavours. It's only half gorilla though. Did you spray yours with anything?
Cheers Nicke, I was pleased about the harvest, at one stage I was imagining that half the amount I got might be achievable!
I really liked the whole plant drying and will continue to do it. I've dried individual colas before but I felt it was easy to overdo the drying and then carrying out the burping was a bit of a pain and a worry when I forgot. It probably makes a difference too what the local weather/humidity is like where one is drying, but for me it worked well, a real piece of cake. Altho as you remembered I chopped them at the base, because I had limited time to do it and the knife I had on hand wasn't up to the job, a serrated bread knife would have been the ticket to have got them out with some roots on. I did the trimming in several sessions, adding to a brown paper bag until done then jarring it. The buds I sampled on jarring did seem to already be in a nice cured or semi cured state, and I presume it would be considered that they'll continue to cure further for the coming weeks but they're nice now too.
The Gorilla Glue auto, I felt this one grew out pretty good and healthy, it's diesel type smell was apparent early in the grow, and by harvest time even more so. Even as an undercurrent it is a harsh smell. The aroma may have rounded out somewhat now as it's 6 weeks since harvested and 2 weeks since jarring. I am not a regular whisky drinker but if this was a whiskey it would be Laphroaig, a real love it or hate it smell/taste! This one is from 420, I guess that's just the particular terpene profile of their strain, my growing mate's plant smelt the same. I am pretty sure I have never encountered that sort of diesel type smell before, interesting and yet at the end of day it doesn't really matter as it's the effects that count!
I was going to start using milk sprays as a preventative in flower. I’m very glad you posted that Nick you have saved me a great deal of nuisance.
nickeluring
Well-Known Member
I was going to start using milk sprays as a preventative in flower. I’m very glad you posted that Nick you have saved me a great deal of nuisance.
I think it's okay to use milk if you do a proper bud wash when harvesting. But I'd rather try with H2O2 if I'd get powdery mildew again.
Emeraldo
Well-Known Member
Along with my sativas, I grow medicinal indicas for my wife, I use that maybe in the late evening. They knock me out and then I sleep very well. But for daytime use I prefer something uplifting, sativas and mostly sativa hybrids.
Wondering if you would now grow them differently to allow more space.
I totally understand your inclination to grow new and different strains. I grew Jack Herer last summer for the first time (freebie seeds) and enjoy its balanced cerebral high/body buzz effect (55% sativa, 45% indica). It isn't a super strong effect, I harvested with maybe 30% amber, just nice uplifting with a good body buzz. You probably have something quite close to that kind of thing in your WG. But JH is good weed and I'd recommend it if you are inclined to grow that one. Not cheap, if you buy the seeds, Sensi wants a premium for their champagne of strains.
If nothing else, you could germinate a good number of WGs but only grow out a few, the ones that are most vigorous and then those that have traits you want. Identify what phenotypes you like in the WG strain. Just a thought...
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I am keen to try a variety, some sativa or mostly sativa hybrids sound really good to have for a choice, you have spoken highly of the Mexican Sativa, and some of the highly recommended Indica hybrids sound great too. I wish I had the capacity to grow a lot, then I could experiment and compare many strains to find the special ones that I'd be keen on as 'keepers', but as it is I'd ideally like to not go down too many dead ends, and prefer to find some the gems early so I have got more time to enjoy them!
Space wise perhaps training them to be more oblong, as wide and round can be a pain to access. I would try to keep the canopies even lower, so I can look down on them and maintain them more stealthily to avoid drawing unwanted attention to myself from any potentially nosy neighbors.
This last grow I only made a single cut/pruning of the plants (the initial topping) and left everything to grow out so I could start using the weaker bud for early sampling when my jarred buds ran out. This next grow I will look to prune off all puny growth and lower growth to work the theory that more energy will go then to the main buds. Last time because the branches were not pruned/topped they grew quite long and necessitated considerable supercropping and LST to manage them, I am wondering whether it might be better to carry out some sort of multi topping/manifold type approach to try to restrict the canopy cola length to shorter fully budded colas only. Some of my last plants had 18 inch colas but those were growing at the end of pretty much another almost 18 inches of bare branch. So as I should now have a good future supply of stored bud I am wondering about trying to focus on growing out the bigger stronger bud growth while taking a multi topping approach. A 4.5 month period of veging should allow them to build a good root base to perhaps support more vigorous cola focused growth. Just a thought at the moment.
nickeluring
Well-Known Member
I suggest you try quadlining next time. I top at node 4 as early as possible and remove nodes 1 and 2.