thank you blackmagic
i've read a number of excerpts from OG articles over the last couple of months, the OG folks really paved the way for so much of the inside growing methods we use now
Day 61 of 12/12. I had seen many an experienced grower here say 'add 1 week' to the maturity from what the breeder guide is. How true.
Pic from inside the tube. Big old cola maturing day by day. Really should have bought a camera to do it justice. Well, the goal was to grow bud. Pics are a bonus. It was a very cheap camera.
Day 62 of 12/12. Patience, patience. That's what I'm trying to keep while waiting for this beast to finish.
The tale of the trics, milky ones are starting to show up, maybe 1 out of 10. So still mostly clear. I was able to find some 'amber' ones though. Looked more of a dark red to me. And were a bit folded back into the bud, not with the ones that are more visible that are on the pistil bases. Well, cutting with that many clears just doesn't seem like a good idea. I'll have to tough it out for a few more days anyways.
Day 64 of 12/12. It's getting there, just was one hell of a longer journey than I thought. The cola swells, the bud gets frostier, just getting the last ripening is the tough part.
A better pic for the plant, tric picture pretty good too. Log is lagging my grow by a couple of days. Just did what looks like my last tric check on main cola. Ambers have begun to show. Not dark amber but clear amber. Looks like the main cola comes off to night. I don't want any more couch lock than necessary.
i was ready to cut her tonight - but another good grower managed to talk me to hold on for a little longer - tiny bit of amber probably won't couch me too bad - +rep for the encouragement
thnx gr8shoe, sleepy - always good to get positive feedback
so this brings me up to date on the log - 66 days of 12/12
another grower who flowered with cfl's mentioned a similar experience - it just takes longer to mature the bud with cfl than HPS - at least that is what he saw
so a few more pics for the record - the fans continue to die back
the tric picture is good - still showing a 'winter wonderland' of frost
i think i need the first hint of amber before cutting though
3 26w bulbs - 78w total - and i'm a bit amazed myself
but i did a trick that i think made a big difference
the tube wall is a circular reflector - i think i'm using the lumens very efficiently
also the bulbs are GE 26w - they have an initial lumen rating of 1750 - 67.3 lumens per watt which is quite nice by most other cfl outputs - and they are tucked right up to that main cola - the other buds are OK, but not that impressive
another grower(can't recall where) did an evaluation of the GE spectrum - seemed to think it was a bit more favorable for cannabis than usual
Day 68 of 12/12. I really wasn't expecting this long to ripen a northern lights. But the trics are just too clear to cut. Thinking that would be a bit to head racy for my tastes.
I'm not seeing much cloudy, a few but not enough. There are some amber though. Very clear amber, well less than 1% of total. I gotta think it's going to ripen soon. Just have to make sure she doesn't ripen overnight on me.
exactly - the main cola is in a 'triangle of light' - that was my plan and why i left it untopped
there are few good lower buds, nothing like the main cola though - when i cut, the main cola and those good lower will be first - i think i can ripen the smaller lower ones after for a while
Day 70 of 12/12. 10 weeks of flower, not what I was expecting for my indica grow. I usually try to rationalize something positive. Can this be the thai genes buried down in nl#5's heart that are pushing out the maturity? If so, will sativa like high follow? I would like that.
On the really positive note, a lot of cloudy trics jumped out over the last few days. Maybe 1/4 cloudy trics, still a lot of clears. There are some ambers tucked under the bud folds to the back. No amber out where all the clear/cloudy are though.
Pics for all interested. Caught a 'tric island' in focus this time, mostly clear. See areas with more cloudy, other areas with mostly clear.