| First off, I have to point out that this grow was prematurely ended 44 days into flowering. My A11s were much more vigorous than I'd expected and had severely overgrown my vegging chamber... it was pull the BB early or lose all 4 A11s. While I am in no way disappointed in the results, it should be noted that my plants clearly would have benefited from an extra 10-14 days.
That said, the trichomes at harvest were plentiful with about 40% cloudy, maybe 5% amber, and the rest clear... the timing wasn't terribly off. But the extra time would have added much appreciated weight and maturity.
Rewind...
I chose DP BB feminized seeds as an attempt at economizing the space in my box by avoiding any male plants taking up much needed space. Purchased from SeedsDirect, they germinated out at 4/5 and proceeded to blow me away with their steady & strong growth under 24/0. Using Fox Farms Ocean Forest soil made me cautious about adding any nutes during vegging... didn't want to burn them.
Once I switched to 12/12, however, these ladies started sucking up and utilizing all the Tiger Bloom I threw at them. Reading other reports about this strain make me confident in saying that I could have safely worked Grow Big nutes into the veg cycle.
Unfortunately, three of the four eventually flipped to hermies and I wasn't able to locate and rip all of the balls off... premature seeds were an unfortunate byproduct of this grow. Expected from this strain based on past reports, but I was still upset.
It was clear early on that there were two distinct phenos at work. One plant was leaning towards a Sativa bend and had the trademark leaves and inter-nodal spacing you'd expect. The other three were variations of the standard Indica-dominant pheno I was expecting. These buds ended up starting to show dark edges right before harvest - cool weather had the temps around 65 F during the last 14 days. I wish I had more time to let them develop fully.
Harvested, I dried the buds for 7 days and then paper-bagged them another 5 days. Once the stems snapped, I began a cure in glass jars that continues to this day.
Due to the abbreviated flowering cycle and all that wasted hermie growth (gr......), I accepted that my yield would be low. Dried and curing, the batch weighed out at just over an ounce and a half. Disappointing to be certain, but not at all unexpected. Timing is something I'm still working out and definitely learned a lot about during this grow.
SMOKE REPORT:
PHENO #1 (INDICA DOMINANT - 3 PLANTS)
These three plants produce a couch-lock high that is surprising considering the shorter flowering time. Frankly, I wasn't expecting this much power after 44 days - I was wrong. Fat buds with sticky-icky resin that longs to be rubbed off on anything. The smoke is smoooooooooth - expanding lungs and coming out as smoothly as it went in. One of the first times I've ever backed away from a smoke... do not underestimate this plant. At 55-60 days, this stuff would have been narcotic as all get-out.
To counter-act the power, I find myself smoking a hit or two and GETTING OUT OF THE HOUSE! Otherwise, I may as well be Superman surrounded by Kryptonite - the house would burn down around me.
I've smoked stronger plants... but none so elegantly lethal.
PHENO #2 (INDICA WITH NOTICEABLE SATIVA INFLUENCE)
This bad-girl was trouble from the start and I loved her for it... crazy leaves and stunted growth had me eagerly anticipating a unique high. This strain is know to produce such plants and growers inevitably speak to their value.
And I'm here to get on board... this smoke is fantastic. Hits almost identically to her three sisters, but the high arrives faster and doesn't stun me so hard across the forehead. I love the subtle energy I receive from this pheno... wish I had more.
The first pheno was shared with tight friends... the second is off the radar except for Mrs. Black!
OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:
I have mixed feelings about this grow. One the one hand, I've never had genetics be so hearty in the past... the plant growth was so rewarding to watch. And the smoke is beyond reproach.
On the flipside, that DP BB Fem Hermie curse still has me muttering under my breath. I treated these ladies really well and there was no stress at all involved short of an early harvest.
Would I recommend this strain? Hell Yeah! But I'd definitely caution future growers to find a hearty female and clone that baby for all she's worth. I skipped that step and I know it cost me at least 1/2 an ounce in the end. Overall, I love the herb and there's really no other way to judge a plant at the end of the day.
Garden Information for this report Tomatopharm Helena Unit - 250w HPS, 2 Cool Flouros on either side. 24/0 veg cycle - 12/12 flower. 180cfm blower attached to Hydrofarm Charcoal Filter. Fox Farms products exclusively: Ocean Forest Soil throughout and Tiger Bloom once flowering began. 14 Gallon Rubbermade tub watered every other day with 1/2 gallon of distilled water balanced at 6.3 plus any applicable nutes. |
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Report added by: FrankBlack
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