Backyard Grow 2014

It's been a few weeks with little to report. I'm down to three plants as my mystery seed plant turned out to be a male of pure sativa characteristics- it was nearly 7 ft tall when I noticed the first balls this past weekend. Oh well...

I had saved my male Pineapple Train Wreck to pollinate certain buds on my three ladies (as noted in an earlier post)- for the past few weeks honeybees have been sucking at the balls on the plant. At any one time there are 4-5 bees hovering around the plentiful pollen sacs (sorry for no picture, will try to capture a pic & post this weekend). I hope they saved some pollen for me! but since we have been suffering from hive collapse disorders I figured to let the bees do their thing, they really love those boys and will get their fill from the sativa when it does it's manly thing. QUESTION #1: The boys are at the other end of my yard from the ladies (about 100 ft away) and separated by a shrub. Should I be concerned with natural pollination?

My three ladies (a pure indica strain, Jock Horror cross, and a pure sativa strain) are looking real healthy- an early transplant to large containers and regular feeding has them looking much better than at this point last year. The indica and Jock Horror are starting to flower and I will be switching nutes from Botanicare "Pro Grow " to "Pro Bloom". QUESTION #2: My friendly sales person at the store suggested I transition my plants by mixing equal parts Grow and Bloom for the next two feedings. Good suggestion or should I go straight to the Bloom nute formula?

The sativa (which I cropped earlier this spring) now has a main stem 7ft tall and a secondary stem over 5ft and is starting to develop lady hairs but is probably another 3-4 weeks from blooming (based on last year's grow cycle) and will keep on the Grow. My new neighbor gave me a thumbs up on moving the sativa to a sunnier spot in the yard as long as it remains partially hidden by my tomato plants and border shrub. At this time of year the plants are getting about 6 hrs direct sunlight- in a few weeks due to the sun shifting, girth growing, and stank increasing I'll have to move the plants to a more secluded area of the yard (as mentioned in the last post).

Well I spoke too freaking soon- I went out to take pics of he bees on my male plants and did a quick inspection of my three ladies when I got home yesterday. Or, Should I say my TWO ladies: my giant 7 ft sativa sprang a bunch of balls in the past 24 hours (the same seed strain that last year's plant yielded 12 oz). Glad I still have 2 oz saved for emergencies from last year's crop. Going to be mighty slim pickings at Christmas time for my friends!

At least with two plants it would will be real hard to mess up. I know many posters here are doing "industrial strength" grows so a 2-4 plant crop might not be worth the effort but for me, it keeps me going through the summer. At least I don't have to worry about the revenuers busting me for my two scraggly plants.

Unfortunately one is a pure indica and not one of my favorite strains so that is what will be used for Christmas presents. My heart does get warmed when everyone opens their little box just like little kids so that thought does temper my disappointment.

Enough of my pity party. I'll post pics of the bees harvesting my pot pollen this weekend. Gotta find that hive and try the honey!

Update on my two ladies

Allison (indica): target harvest Oct 13



Jock Horror (cross): target harvest Oct 20

Patience is greatly required this year as the finish line is in sight! (and pics at bottom of this post)

I saw some "makes sense" advice on another thread about flushing/feeding plants before harvest so this year I'm feeding all the way to the end with Botanicare Bloom full strength (1 tbsp/gal). Little rain the past month so I have been giving 6 to 8 gallons of enriched water everyweek.

My indica plant is going real strong while my Jock Horror is limping her way to harvest. I'm checking trichomes every 3-4 days by taking close-ups of several buds on each plant, then zooming in using Windows Photo Gallery. A few solitary amber trichomes but all the rest are looking sweet. Looks like I'm going to push back the target harvest date on the Indica plant by a couple of days

Indica: Target Harvest Oct 15






Jock Horror: Target Harvest Oct 20
Plant is getting real scraggly but the buds are looking fine

Big storms came through last night; one negative issue in growing plants in 12 gal containers is that they are too heavy to move very far so I tucked my two plants real tight next to a border hedge and tied up most of the branches to the plant cages. I only got a brief look this morning but the ladies looked okay; another round of storms with 40+mph winds coming through today, then sunny weather the rest of the week.

The Jock Horror is getting real scraggly- I cut off most of the yellowed/dead fan leaves since they end up adhering to the buds and then start to mold. My indica plant still looking healthy though I'm getting a few more yellowing leaves the past week even though I have stayed on a regular feeding schedule.

The neighbors had a party last Saturday (Oct 11)- I could smell my ladies from their patio but then I was "looking" for their tell-tale odor. Fortunately I had hidden the plants behind my border hedge but, at 30ft away, couldn't hide the smell. My neighbors and their friends are in their 20's and look like they wouldn't know the smell of growing plants. The strong odor is giving me hopes of a potent crop. I pinched a bud from each and sampled the last two nights- both had a good potency for a pre-harvest. I plan to check trichomes again tomorrow and assess any storm damage. Looks like I'll harvest both plants next week.

Finally got some sunlight & checked the plants- Jock Horror has lost most of its fan leaves; I noted the first amber trichomes today. Two branches broke under the bud weight and storm this week- I secured them for the next few days. Will probably harvest on the 19th because I don't think the plant will survive long after that point.

The indica is showing clear/cloudy trichomes and no noticeable amber; there are some huge (for me) colas on that plant & it is starting the bend over from the heavy buds. If time allows when I get home tonight I'll post a couple of pictures from today; if not, will be posting after harvest- probably on the 23rd (7 days out).

After doing research I am wondering of what I was thought was bud rot is actually some sort of worm infestation. It doesn't look serious and, being so close to harvest, not much I can do about it now but will look out for it next year.

I chopped Jock Horror Oct 19 and dried the plant in my laundry room in the basement - by the evening of Oct 21 the buds were crumbling so I snipped from the stalks. Ended up with 220g (just under 8 oz) that is now curing.

I chopped my Indica plant yesterday (Oct 22) and will have to let it hang in the laundry room until Oct 28 since I am out of town for a long weekend to Colorado. I shut off the dehumidifier in the basement in hopes that my crop does not dry out completely- I like my bud to be a little sticky.

I lost a fair amount of crop on the Jock Horror and a little on the Indica due to my "bud rot" issue- I have been searching a number of threads but still can't find out what happened. I wasn't able to take a picture while harvesting to get feedback from the experts in RollItUp land. I did not see any worms when harvesting and trimming. Any suggestions on where to look for a diagnosis would be helpful.

Final stats are in: 220g (7 3/4 oz) from Jock Horror; 197g (7 oz) from my Indica plant. I dried Jock Horror for only 4 days before starting the curing process- I wanted to get a "sticky bud" this year and I've got it. The Indica dried for nearly a week before starting to cure. I have sampled both and am happy w/ the results. I'll give out 10 oz as Christmas presents and keep the remainder for myself: at the rate I smoke plus what I have left over from the past two years, I'll have plenty to get me through to next year's harvest.

Here are some pictures of the "bud rot"- kind of hard making out the rotted (gray) areas near the main stem



Any ideas on what caused this rot?