Issue #607 - Sunday, December 10, 2023 Dear Fellow Grower, In today's issue... - At one point, defoliation was a controversial technique that was frowned upon by many advanced growers. These days, we know defoliation comes with a ton of benefits, including increasing yields and
potency. Check out today's article and learn how to perform this crazy act of cannabis-growing magic!
- If I go to a restaurant and I find a delicious meal, I'll probably be having the same thing the next time I go there. What can I say? I like it when something is really good! Similarly, there's a strain that I'm hooked on because, darn it, it's really good! Even better, we have lab tests to back up our opinion on this sweet
strain!
- This week's "Trophy Pics of the Week" section has taken a turn in a technological direction. We've upscaled tiny photos to make them look better, removed LED coloring to make plants pop, and one grower took some trichome pics that will literally knock your socks off. Yes, literally. Watch where your socks fly, or you might lose them.
Nebula Haze & Sirius Fourside (founders of
GrowWeedEasy.com)
"There are plenty of difficult obstacles in your path. Don't allow yourself to become one of them." ~Ralph Marston
Cannabis defoliation… have you heard of it?
Defoliation is the process of strategically removing leaves to make cannabis grow in a more desirable way. This week, I defoliated 3 plants in preparation for the flowering
stage
Why do I defoliate? A few reasons. - Higher-quality buds – Strategic defoliation in the early flowering stage produces fewer but higher-quality buds. Cannabis buds only fatten up when they get access to both light and air, and the biggest buds are usually located at the top of the plant. Lower and hidden buds are often airy wisps at harvest. Removing unnecessary leaves and
hidden bud sites helps the plant focus on the best-quality buds at the top. When done properly, buds at harvest tend to be bigger, tighter, and more dense.
- Reduce chances of mold or bud rot – Some plants get so bushy that their leaves lay all over each other and cause wet spots. That was happening here. These plants were super leafy! Left unchecked, too-leafy plants are more likely to get powdery mildew or bud rot.
- Lower humidity – Leaves
constantly release water vapor into the air, which raises the humidity. If it’s humid where you live (my outdoor humidity can get over 70% RH at times), removing leaves helps keep the humidity from climbing to unreasonable levels. High humidity in the second half of the flowering stage should be avoided because it can cause loose buds and increase the chance of mold or bud rot.
- Ease of trimming – Plants are way easier to trim after harvest. It doesn’t seem like a huge
deal…until it’s time to trim!
Where are buds going to form?
The growing stems that will become the main bud sites look like stars from above. In the growing world, these main stems are often referred to as tops, mains, or colas (“cola” is the Spanish word for tail, and big cannabis buds look a bit like tails). Check out our glossary for other common growing terms. In this picture, I marked a few main stems with white stars so you know where the biggest buds will grow. Can you spot the rest?
Defoliate at the beginning of the flowering stage… The 3 featured plants were changed to a 12/12 light schedule a few days before these pictures to initiate the flowering stage. I can already see white hairs/pistils
appearing on the future bud sites. A great time to defoliate! Note: If you see bunches of balls instead of hairs, you’ve got a male plant that will not produce buds. White hairs (pistils) are the first sign of female buds forming
Before & After – I removed big leaves on long stems to help expose bud sites and increase air circulation through the plant
Don't Waste Your Precious Time Defoliating Bad Genetics
|
We ended up defoliating quite a few strains up to the release of this article and Nebula's side-by-side defoliation experiment, including some boutique strains we can't even get our hands on anymore. But of all the strains we defoliated in these two articles, Platinum Cookies was by far my favorite. We have a strange relationship with Platinum Cookies. We grew it expecting to get just another "cookies" strain. It
got taller than I initially expected and took an extra two weeks to flower, so I was ready to hate on this strain as soon as it was done curing. It finished curing, and we tried a little. All I can say is that this stuff was good enough to keep my mouth shut, and that's not an easy task! It took one bowl for each of us to immediately agree that any and all effort was worth the end result. We got some lab tested, and all of it tested at
25%+! This slow-dancing bud is Platinum Cookies and it's fantastic! Get some of these beans at SeedSupreme.com
|
"I look forward to hearing from you guys every Sunday. Keep it up." ~John Will do, John. 👍 ~Sirius
"You asked and I want to say it again, very interested in a mini hydro tub tutorial!" ~Steve You're right, Steve. We asked right after we finished the 2x2x4 grow, but I forgot, so we better get to work on that tutorial. 😅 ~Sirius
"Been reading GWE for many years and I love your stuff. Have you ever heard of making beer in your grow room for the CO2? Seems like a win-win." ~Naomi That's a fun question. I don't know how much CO2 beer makes, but it would have to release a ton to get it in the quantities needed by cannabis plants. That being said, hops and cannabis are closely
related, so at least they'd probably get along as roommates. ~Sirius
📸 Trophy Pics of the Week
|
|
"I'm Devin aka Outlaw Organics 5991 on YouTube. I enjoy the newsletter so I figured I’d share some pictures. Have a lifted day and be very well😎 All genetics are from Bomb seeds thus their logo is in a few pictures I’ve been lucky enough to be a test grower for 6 years now; they are great genetics ☢️🪴👌👍🏻. Again have an awesome day"
~Devin (Outlaw Organics 5991) I don't want to meddle in your business, but I'm pretty sure you need to register that thing...well done! ~Sirius
We were given permission to post these absolutely insane trichome pictures by Nicholas Farrell, aka theGreenPhotographer. These pictures don't do
his actual content justice, but his short movies are so high-res that I literally can't post them here. 🤯 Check him out on Instagram or Threads ~Sirius
[No description included] ~Wreakhavok187 I love the colors in the second picture, especially that one plant that just completely turned purple. My Purple Ghost Candy did that in a single night and it was awesome to wake up to. ~Sirius
📨🙅♀️ Spam and scams, scams and spam!
|
|
What's on the menu here?
|
"Spam is bad, but scams are roughly a billion times worse" Ah, spam. Back before the internet and scams were so prevalent, spam communications were seen as the scourge of the day. From mailboxes filled with useless advertisements for local businesses, to "telemarketer" calls, to actual in-your-face spammers in the form of door-to-door salespeople, there was no shortage of spammy,
time-wasting annoyances. But the spammers of yesteryear have nothing on the current-day scammer. Today's scammer will call you from a number that appears to be your bank before completely stealing all of your life savings in a matter of minutes. Today's scammers can call you with the faked voice of a loved one in an attempt to trick you into buying gift cards for some dude that's literally halfway across the planet. But it's not all bad! We live in scammy
times, but luckily, we have each others' back. Don't just look out for yourself, make sure you help your friends, family, and acquaintances avoid these evil-doing dummies. Stay safe out there growers. Make sure to watch out for seed scams! Remember: Real seed businesses don't contact you. They let you contact them. If anyone messages you to sell you seeds on social media, look out! It's possible they will take your payment and send nothing. Always take a
second to think before sending money to anyone, especially if they contact you (whether by DM, text message, phone call, email, etc.). Recommended Cannabis Seed Sources These sources have gotten great reviews from our readers:
- Seed Supreme – California, United States
- ILGM (I Love Growing Marijuana) – California, United States
- MSNL – Netherlands bank with
shipping centers in the US, Canada, and UK.
GrowWeedEasy.com has hundreds and hundreds of pages! Check out some articles you may not have seen... Cannabis Defoliation Tutorial: How to Increase Yields by
Removing Leaves - Defoliation can be as simple as looking at the pictures in today's article and copying them closely. However, if you want all the details when it comes to this formerly controversial technique, click the above link and, we'll walk you through the entire process. By the end, you'll feel confident enough to clip leaves and stems without blinking an eye. Nebula’s Cannabis Defoliation Experiment – Side-by-side grow journal - For years after we initially published an article on the subject, we would get growers telling us that defoliation can't possibly be good. One grower (who's famous enough that you might know them) said, "Leaves are solar panels for plants. Removing them can't possibly help!".
Well, Nebula finally tested the benefits of defoliation and the results were surprising even for us. Super Cropping Marijuana: Simple Secret to Bigger Yields - You've trained your cannabis plants and defoliated them to their reasonable limit. What's next? Well, just watch your plants continue to love their lives! But what
if your plants are still unruly and easily outgrow your grow tent before they even get to the flowering stage? That's where Supercropping comes in. It's equally well suited to preemptive or emergency training and a fantastic tool to have in your belt. If you love our newsletter, check out 5 Free Ways to Support GrowWeedEasy.com!
🌳 Check Out Our Grow Community!
|
|
Check out our friendly growing community to ask questions, discuss your grow, share pictures, or otherwise talk about growing cannabis with other real growers! Ask Questions & Talk with Other Growers! Please note: We let each person in manually, so please be patient after you request to join. We'll let you in as soon as possible!
🧙♀️🧙♂️ Who Runs This Newsletter?
|
|
Nebula Haze: When I first started growing, I struggled. Now, it is my mission to make it easy for new growers to get started while helping advanced growers get bigger, better yields with less time and money. We update/add articles every week. Anyone and everyone can grow if they want to! Learn which seed sources are recommended by Nebula Haze
Sirius Fourside: Sirius Fourside is a hobbyist grower who has gained the bulk of his experience growing in water as a medium (deep water culture, bubbleponics). "Growing
cannabis can be a relaxing hobby in and of itself, but it also saves you money and keeps you from having to deal with shady characters. Cannabis is much easier to grow than people give it credit for, and growing in water doesn't increase the difficulty much, if any. But whether you want to grow in water, coco, or a different medium, we'll show you how easy it can be!"
Copyright (c) 2023 GrowWeedEasy.com NOTE: If links aren't working or if pictures are not showing up properly, please view the full newsletter here: http://archive.aweber.com/gwe-updates Disclaimer: Grow Weed Easy only recommends products that we've either personally checked out ourselves, or that come from people we know and trust. For doing so, we may receive a commission. Nothing in this e-mail should be considered personalized Financial, Legal, or Medical Advice. The contributors to this magazine grow legally under their local laws but are not lawyers or medical professionals. Any decision to grow
marijuana should only be made after consulting with an experienced lawyer or other legal adviser. Any medical decisions should only be made after speaking with a doctor. Be safe! How Did I Sign Up For This Newsletter? Our records indicate that requested to be added to the GrowWeedEasy.com weekly newsletter at . Date: December 17, 2023 To unsubscribe, click here: https://www.aweber.com/z/r/?ThisIsATestEmail
|
|
|