The Evolution of the Trichome

[tahoe58]

I think this is the key to this particular component of the discussion/debate (i.e., trich production female vs. male)....

"yes, i understand that males produce 'some' trics. and theTHC in them is just as potent as their female siblings of the same mother/father. they just hardly have any trics so they're not much good for a high."

what I mean is - has there been a factual and empirical measure that given the same care and attention, do males actually produce less trich density than females?

I'm not saying that what is being said is wrong or right - I just have not seen the data to support such a claim...and likely this is a function of everyone not having any interest in males and therefore not giving them "equal care and attention". And maybe that is appropriate, but this is leading back to the discussion relating to the purpose of trichs....dessication, antifungal/mircrobial and UVB protection - these are of eqaul importance to males and females...so trich production should not be markedly different ....UNLESS....the purpose of trich IS more important for seed production.

 

[closet.cult]

well, tahoe, i grew 1 male and two female White Widows outdoors towards the end of the season this year for seeds. i used identical veg nutes and then flowering nutes on both. the male was thin and spinly and i noticed NO trics on him. the girls were covered in trics and seeds.

i'm sure if i had a magnifying glass i could have found some trics on him. and i'm sure if i could have analyzed them i would find comparable THC% in him as the girls. there's just not alot of it. hardly any at all.

 

[tahoe58]

cool..thanks for sharing that info.. 'preciate that.

 

[skunkushybrid]

well, tahoe, i grew 1 male and two female White Widows outdoors towards the end of the season this year for seeds. i used identical veg nutes and then flowering nutes on both. the male was thin and spinly and i noticed NO trics on him. the girls were covered in trics and seeds.

i'm sure if i had a magnifying glass i could have found some trics on him. and i'm sure if i could have analyzed them i would find comparable THC% in him as the girls. there's just not alot of it. hardly any at all.

Yes, this is not evident in all strains... maybe we need to go back to superior genetics.

 

[tahoe58]

yes Skunk. I am getting a stronger feeling that this is really what we are talking about here as much as anything. the genetic potential to be realized under ideal conditions (whatever they are?) and entering in environmental stress to trigger the plant to produce tons of trichomes.

Yes, this is not evident in all strains... maybe we need to go back to superior genetics.

 

[W33D]

Maybe there just there, like how stipules are just there. Now that would be a debate, what the hell do stipules do exactly?

 

[donnieosmond]

So.... conclusions?

 

[skunkushybrid]

Maybe there just there, like how stipules are just there. Now that would be a debate, what the hell do stipules do exactly?

This is interesting... never thought about it before. So I googled it...

stipules are thorns... or at least in their evolved state now they are protective measures for newly forming leaves...

At one time I imagine these may well have been more prominent along the stem of cannabis. Much thicker... maybe at one time, cannabis would have tried to bite your finger off.

 

[psyclone]

could this explain why the trichomes on my first indoor plants seem to orientate themselves towards the light? It's an interesting idea. I wonder if there other photosynthesis operations going on? at what point on the plant are the light signals received/processed that govern the duration of the flowering period? I sort of assumed it was an holistic, whole plant thing, but can this be the trichomes at work?

 

[skunkushybrid]

I don't think cannabinoids are a deterrant (just like the rest of us on these boards, lol).

Again, I think we need to look to Darwains theories to find what I believe was the prime motivation of the cannabinoids.

At one time in cannabis history, it was a carnivore... who knows how big it was... or what it looked like... but the plants of this period would have needed to devise all sorts of neat little tricks to catch their prey.

What better than sticky trichomes? The aromas of the THCV enticing it's victim into the promised heaven, bright colours, a calming feel in the air... Then what better than a powerful drug to incapacitate its victim as lengthy, sticky tendrils (early pistils) wrapped around it and devoured it?

I also imagine that back then cannabis may have been much more potent.

 

[tahoe58]

hey Skunkk....you have mentioned in thr past that cannabis was not a dioecious plant but a monoecious and now you mention a carnivore. where can I find that old historical stuff to read up on?

 

[skunkushybrid]

Hey tahoe... i couldn't find you anything specific... but this makes for a good read.

Top 10 Carnivorous Plants - Plants turned to animals - Softpedia

I think the carnivorous plants that are left today are merely a shadow of what they were back in the time of the dinosaurs... I also think that all plants started out this way.

There is no direct evidence, but darwins theories suggest as much... at least they do to me.

 

[tahoe58]

oic...ok..thanks!

 

[tahoe58]

so skunk....whaddaya think of my 20 day old sprout? any thoughts, guidance?

 

[Your Grandfather]

=At one time I imagine these may well have been more prominent along the stem of cannabis. Much thicker... maybe at one time, cannabis would have tried to bite your finger off.

Lucky it was only my finger it was trying to bite off.

 

[tahoe58]

another good reason to not walk around nude in your house.....even in your neck of the wooods! hahahahaha....g'morn YGF!

 

[kindprincess]

hey skunk, i thought it might be a good idea to try and list known strains that may be bottlenecked to the point of domestication (as you mentioned earlier). a lot of change can happen in just a few generations, meaning that LOTS of indoor med strains might be weak against uvb.

def worth looking into; has anyone found a thread/experiment that has been done? things i'm thinking about are altered intenisties, short but frequent intervals, distances etc....

 

[skunkushybrid]

hey skunk, i thought it might be a good idea to try and list known strains that may be bottlenecked to the point of domestication (as you mentioned earlier). a lot of change can happen in just a few generations, meaning that LOTS of indoor med strains might be weak against uvb.

def worth looking into; has anyone found a thread/experiment that has been done? things i'm thinking about are altered intenisties, short but frequent intervals, distances etc....

Yeah, on the strains... I'd say most of them. But I also think that cannabis is very adaptable.

I think you'll be very lucky to find a paper on experiments of this nature. All of this is still relatively new to scientists. They blame poor funding, which is most likely true.

 

[kindprincess]

Yeah, on the strains... I'd say most of them. But I also think that cannabis is very adaptable.

I think you'll be very lucky to find a paper on experiments of this nature. All of this is still relatively new to scientists. They blame poor funding, which is most likely true.

heh, so we can call ourselves, "the founding fathers(/mothers) of uvb growing/testing" eh?

lol, looks like this upcoming year will be interesting. it'll be fun to do indoor/ourdoor grows while uv is the main focus of comparison, watching results change with seasons, and then all the speculation and discussion!

yeah, this is gonna be cool

 

[skunkushybrid]

so skunk....whaddaya think of my 20 day old sprout? any thoughts, guidance?

Sorry buddy, forgot about this post. Any chance of a link?