What?! Can you explain this in a little more detail? I've read your philosophies on fermentation in the root zone via boiling water. But what do you achieve by girdling the stem, and why?
Thanks for the updates and discussion...
Tis an old school trick, here is what someone posted in my forum ,,,,,,,
Clark talked about it in MJ Botany. It restricts the flow of nutrients to the plant through the phloem, but leaves the xylem intact to transport water. This forces the plant to use up its sugar reserves, reducing chlorophyl. Some say yield is improved (I've seen the opposite in threads, test plant smaller than control plant).. Some say smell and taste is improved (starving the plant does, so I wouldn't doubt it).. Some say to use the technique on the "Gold" varieties to get them to gold/use up all chlorophyll.
I saw a few tests with non-gold varieties.. Girdled 2 and 3 wks before harvest.. neither turned gold. I'm really interested to see how this experiment turns out. If the technique works to turn buds gold, Riddle should pull it off. I've never seen anyone pull it off, haven't really looked much either though.
I think the "gold" herb is a result of curing.. curing closer to how riddle does than how most do it. In piles, with heat.