Hey guys, thanks for the questions!
I'm looking at all approaches, and whatever involves the least work, ultimately.
I think what's being revealed is that my environmental factors – i.e. climate and ambient spore levels – are just way beyond what outdoor growers in non-tropical climates experience. It's a whole other level. Where I am is generally very wet and humid. It's always relatively warm here, also – usually 75°F to 80°F. It's also sunny here a lot. Vegetation grows like crazy here... weeds and weed trees. Everything gets moldy, including clothing. Screens on the house become biomes of algae, fungus, and mold.
I'm looking for strains that are: a) naturally bud rot resistant, b) do well in my climate, c) do well with my growing method, and d) that I like the effects of. Plus, one of each: THC (indica, sativa, 50/50); CBD (indica, sativa); CBG.
So far, I've found two: HI-BISCUS (indica w/ sativa effects), and Humboldt Dream (indica dominant). I consider the CBDs to be in somewhat of a different realm – I'm not so much looking for those that are particularly bud rot resistant. Rather, if I can find any that can produce 15-20+% CBD, that's the goal. I do think, also, that the CBDs are generally more bud rot resistant than THCs, so then it's just more a matter of maximizing plant health during veg and flower.
Yeah, usually high humidity. When the sun comes out, RH can drop to "reasonable levels", but it won't be long before it's back in the high zone again. These swings can easily happen in the same day.
I think the foliar teas I recently did were helpful, perhaps mainly for the septoria leaf spot and downy mildew leaf spot; however, with all the sunny weather now, it could also be due to that.
The result of the Grape Ape tells me that even peroxide isn't going to help once bud rot reaches a critical state. At 8 fl oz per 1/2 gal water, the concentration was enough for bubbles to appear on the wooden deck below the plant. One would think that'd be enough to kill whatever, but not so. I also treated that plant with trichoderma, which is supposed to activate the plant's natural immunity to botrytis.
I think there's two main things going on in my situation: 1) degree of natural resistance, and 2) maximizing plant health.
Since I've been focusing mostly on natural resistance, I've sort of intentionally grown the plants at the fringes of plant health, mainly in two important ways – amount of time spent in veg, and pot size. For example, the Grape Ape was in veg for too long, and was grown in a 7 gal plastic pot. The result was that she was very root bound, and in the end, suffering from premature senescence. When senescence arrives, that's going to be the end for a plant that's not naturally resistant to bud rot. Fungus takes a foothold on dead material.
A prime example of the opposite of this was HI-BISCUS, because she also had premature senescence, but essentially zero bud rot – even though there were lots of dead bracts (i.e. pistils – bract is the visible part).
This phase of my quest is actually winding down. I've worked through all the varieties I wanted to try out. The next step is to grow the best ones out in 15 gal. fabric pots over the summer. This will start within the next few days, using clones. These will all be topped as well. Here's the lineup: HI-BISCUS, Humboldt Dream, Blueberry, Sweet Critical CBD, Seedsman 30:1 CBD, and DBL CBG.
Another aspect: Some strains may do significantly better when grown over the summer.
Here's some strains I'm considering trying out:
- Trainwreck (sativa; myrcene and terpinolene; from Humboldt Seed Co. or Twenty20)
- Thai (sativa; terpinolene dominant pheno; from Ace Seeds)
- Durban Poison (sativa; terpinolene)
- Super Skunk (indica dominant; myrcene, pinene, limonene, linalool)
- Wonder Woman (50/50; pinene, myrcene, bisabolol, caryophyllene)
From my experience and research so far, I'm seeing terpinonlene dominance as associated with strong bud rot resistance. Also associated, a trio of dominant terpenes: myrcene, pinene, and caroyphyllene. Possibly involved: linalool, bisabolol, ocimene. High myrcene by itself doesn't seem to cut it.
Humboldt Dream is my #2 bud rot resistant plant right now, after HI-BISCUS. Terpenes:
myrcene/pinene; others - caryophyllene, limonene, humulene, ocimene, linalool, bisabolol.
Here's an awesome resource to locate terpinolene dominant strains
HERE – 276 strains covering indica, sativa, and hybrid. Combine those results with terpene analysis on
THIS SITE.
From Trulieve.com:
"Terpinolene, also known as alpha-terpinolene or TPO in the research literature, is a primary terpene naturally present in lilac, sage, rosemary, nutmeg, cumin, apple conifer trees, and tea trees. It’s considered lightly to moderately sedative. Alpha-terpinolene is most often found in Sativa strains, primarily those with higher THC content."
