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June 6: in water in dark on heat mat at 23 C.
June 9: seed sprouted and planted in soil in a peat pot. Kept under foil for darkness on heat mat turned up a bit to 25 C. Going to try an entire apple briefly beside peat pot for ethylene gas.
If you check my Lemon Cherry Cookies and Auto Opium diaries, all attempts failed and I’ve traced it back to using an apple slice in an attempt to provide ethylene gas at this pre-light stage.
Brenya, et al., https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/article/2/7/pgad216/7221976?login=false
Early spring I used an entire apple when starting the photoperiods, tomatoes and peppers and there was no problem. Later starts for autos I used apple slices and the cannabis seeds that I had sprouted in water failed to develop. I first thought the seedlings had overheated, but I think it was the apple slice fucking things up. Wrong kind of signaling going on with a decaying apple slice versus the ethylene gas mediated metabolic priming that I’m going for. Easy lazy things that work great is my goal.
Trying again with Chemdawg which is always a fave. It’s not the latest and greatest, but I know it will be a personal fave and I’m really looking forward to it. It’s been quite cold so far so maybe a delay starting outdoor autos isn’t so bad this year.
Used method
Glass Of Water
Germination Method
1
Week 1. Vegetation
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2.54 cm
18 hrs
19 °C
25 °C
25 °C
18 °C
Comments 1
June 15: personal fave Chemdawg has had a late start. I was trying to start Lemon Cherry Cookies but my experiments with germination weren’t working. All my fault in the name of science, or f-cked around and found out.
Probably just as well for the mid June start because May was quite cool. Excited to see what I can get out of this Fast Budsversion.
June 19: nice enough to be outside in mini-greenhouse for first time. Seems happy enough.
June 20: inside on 23 C heat mat last night, and outside in mini-greenhouse all day. Will be back inside again tonight. Happy solstice.
June 21: finally some summer weather has arrived and she’s been outside but in the shade. Start getting full sun soon.
2
Week 2. Vegetation
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6.45 cm
18 hrs
73 °C
6.3
77 °C
54 °C
16 L
0 L
420 PPM
Comments 1
June 22: planted peat pot in final Fast Buds 4 gallon bag after ripping bottom off and tearing sides. Forecast to be quite warm overnight so she’ll be outside tonight for first time.
June 23: in direct sun but under shade cloth for today.
3
Week 3. Vegetation
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More photos +2
49.16 cm
17 hrs
79 °C
6.3
73 °C
54 °C
16 L
0 L
420 PPM
Comments 3
June 29: should start growing quickly here soon.
July 1: last 30 days has been 1.5 C cooler than historic average, and is more than 3 C cooler than last year. Big heat wave in eastern Canada, but not here this year (so far).
July 4: some growth going on above ground but she should pick up speed here now with nice weather and Week 4.
4
Week 4. Vegetation
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More photos +5
12.7 cm
17 hrs
32 °C
6.4
26 °C
14 °C
16 L
1 L
420 PPM
Comments 1
July 5 Day 22: starting fourth week looking okay. I need to remember to not over-fertilize this auto.
So far so good.
July 9: above 32 C last two days. Spraying grow bag with hose water and foliar spray with seaweed extract and potassium silicate to help beat the heat. Watered with a bit of compost tea.
July 10: still hot but we’re past the peak of the heat wave now. Chemdawg seems to be doing alright.
5
Week 5. Vegetation
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More photos +10
12.7 cm
17 hrs
32 °C
6.4
50 %
26 °C
17 °C
16 L
1 L
420 PPM
Nutrients 3
Extreme Blend Kelp4Less 1.3 mll
Molasses - Blackstrap 1.3 mll
Pro-silicate 1 mll
Comments 1
July 13: this early generation autoflower seems to be either just small, or possibly stunted for some reason. Hopefully she continues another week of veg. I usually top my plants, even the autoflowers but this Chemdawg is very compact and possibly starting to flower already.
So, no topping, and I’m starting to think she’s stunted. Hopefully I’ll be proven wrong in the next week or two.
July 14: tied down using a pipe cleaner and some paper clips.
July 15: untied her in the morning. Will just let it grow. Some minor leaf damage from the foliar spray yesterday. Unfortunate but not a dealbreaker as she will recover.
July 19: getting a bit bigger. Really hot the last few days.
6
Week 6. Flowering
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More photos +6
27.94 cm
16 hrs
32 °C
6.4
Weak
50 %
26 °C
17 °C
16 L
1 L
420 PPM
Nutrients 5
Extreme Blend - Kelp4Less 1.3 mll
Molasses - Blackstrap 1.3 mll
Malted Barley 2.6 mll
Comments 1
July 20: in the middle of our second heat wave and it’s now smoky here this morning with wildfires somewhere in NE Alberta. Did a foliar spray this morning of Extreme Blend and potassium silicate which should help with the heat.
Plant is a small auto but she is progressing with flowering starting this week.
July 23: added Power Bloom and malted barley (mixed with some soil) as a top dressing.
July 25: cool with some rain today after the week long heat wave. Quite a dramatic change from a daytime high of 33 C down to a daytime high of only about 12 C. Sheepshead. Forecast to be mid to high 20s this week so perfect. As long as it’s not so smoky that it blocks the sunlight and keeps temperatures down which what happened this week.
7
Week 7. Flowering
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More photos +7
40.64 cm
16 hrs
26 °C
6.4
Weak
50 %
26 °C
16 °C
16 L
1 L
420 PPM
Nutrients 5
Extreme Blend - Kelp4Less 1.3 mll
Molasses - Blackstrap 1.3 mll
Malted Barley 2.6 mll
Comments 1
July 27: Chemdawg is flowering nicely. Despite the late start for this auto, she’ll definitely be the first one finished this year. I’m looking forward to enjoying some nice Chemdawg weed in September.
July 31: trying not to overwater but also not sure how much she needs. Looks good enough.
8
Week 8. Flowering
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More photos +15
43.18 cm
16 hrs
26 °C
6.4
Weak
50 %
26 °C
16 °C
16 L
1 L
420 PPM
Nutrients 1
Molasses - Blackstrap 1.3 mll
Comments 1
Aug 3: still growing and flowering is progressing.
Weather has been good for the last week.
Aug 6: added AC Infinity UV light bars. This far north (53 N) we run out of strong sunlight before it gets too cold in the fall. UV light is key for trichome and THC production but it drops dramatically after mid-August at this latitude.These are indoor lights so fair weather use only.
Growdiaries doesn’t let you specify supplemental lights used for outdoor grows. These are AC Infinity Ionbeam UV-A lights and this my first time trying these. At the other end of the light spectrum, Forever Green Indoors (FGI) 730 nm light is used at dusk to put the plant into dark mode. This is the third season using the far red light as a bloom booster. Both lights are low power usage LEDs that have specific uses for a few hours at peak sun (UV) or a few seconds at dusk (far red). Gotta love science and technology when it helps do this sort of thing. 👍👍
So, by using UV lights for a couple hours centred at peak sun (currently 1:39 pm) it will make Edmonton in September feel more like California in July.
Like all AC Infinity gear, these light bars are very well made and designed. Really glad I could find suitable UV-A LEDs from a good manufacturer. I looked for these a couple of years ago and there was nothing on the market. The UV light should make a big difference because along with genetics, UV during flowering is the main environmental limit on THC production. Effect should be even stronger this far north. 👍👍
Aug 7: looking good but I just found my first caterpillar of the season. Always a bit disturbing. Did not do UV after first try yesterday.
Aug 8: did UV lights again today for about 2 h at level 10. Based on manufacturer’s recommendation for level 10 in a 4x4 or 5x5 tent, I’m keeping the lights with that sort of spacing and level 10. There are just enough cables to do this and another foot or two of cabling would have been better. Two lights are on fixed poles and the other two are on poles in sand filled buckets. Two fixed and two mobile which works well.
9
Week 9. Flowering
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More photos +16
43.18 cm
16 hrs
26 °C
6.4
Weak
50 %
26 °C
16 °C
16 L
1 L
420 PPM
Nutrients 3
Molasses - Blackstrap 1.3 mll
Malted Barley 0.65 mll
Power Bloom 0.65 mll
Comments 2
Aug 10: small but fast this Chemdawg is going to be ready pretty soon. I’ll resist the urge to harvest for a couple more weeks.
Using the UV lights for a few hours at mid-day. Early in using it, but I think it helps.
Aug 11: another perfect cannabis weather day with all day sun and five hours of UV lights. Ideally I’d have another set of four lights so to get full coverage I’m rotating the plant 90 degrees every 1.5 h or so for five hours total coverage. With the uniform manifold this isn’t a problem as the overall light coverage is quite even.
Anyway, she’s getting some good strong light so some trichome production should kick in here soon. Looks good.
10
Week 10. Flowering
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More photos +14
43.18 cm
16 hrs
26 °C
6.4
Weak
50 %
26 °C
16 °C
16 L
2 L
420 PPM
Nutrients 3
Molasses - Blackstrap 1.3 mll
Malted Barley 0.65 mll
Power Bloom 0.65 mll
Comments 3
Aug 17: Chemdawg auto is ripening nicely. Need direct sun to make trichomes but it is cool smoky and overcast again today. Oh well, not everyday is 24 C and sunny all day.
Aug 20: sunny day again and have her under a UV light.
Aug 21: chance of rain today so no UV light while I’m at work today.
11
Week 11. Flowering
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More photos +6
43.18 cm
14 hrs
24 °C
6.4
Weak
50 %
26 °C
12 °C
16 L
2 L
420 PPM
Nutrients 2
Malted Barley 0.65 mll
Power Bloom 0.65 mll
Comments 1
Aug 24: starting the sixth week of flowering and she’s looking pretty good. Trichomes are developing and the buds are thickening. So far so good.
Aug 27: looking close to ready but I’m not in a hurry. Will see in a week or two how it’s progressing.
12
Week 12. Flowering
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More photos +6
43.18 cm
14 hrs
24 °C
6.4
Normal
50 %
26 °C
12 °C
16 L
2 L
420 PPM
Nutrients 2
Malted Barley 0.65 mll
Power Bloom 0.65 mll
Comments 4
Aug 31: she looks pretty close to done but I’ll see how much longer I can hold out on harvest. Chemdawg is a personal fave strain for effect and taste so I’m really looking forward to this one.
Sep 1: still fighting the urge to harvest. Maybe next weekend.
Nice weather and lots of sun lately so might be good to keep it going for a bit longer.
Sep 2: harvest a small branch with three buds. Itching for some fresh stuff. Found my small scale and the branch and three buds weighs 8 g wet.
13
Week 13. Flowering
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More photos +15
43.18 cm
13 hrs
22 °C
6.4
Normal
50 %
26 °C
8 °C
16 L
1 L
420 PPM
Nutrients 2
Malted Barley 0.65 mll
Power Bloom 0.65 mll
Comments 1
Sep 7: looking great with nice hard buds. Will likely harvest some time this week.
Sep 8: nice (hot) sunny day this Sunday and can’t be bothered to harvest today.
Sep 11: looking ready and I’ll likely harvest it this weekend (four more days).
14
Week 14. Harvest
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Happy Harvest Day!
Chemdawg Auto - Fast Buds
Spent 86 days
Ger Veg Flo Har
9/10
Rated
190 g
Bud wet weight per plant
45 g
Bud dry weight per plant
1
Plants
Easy
Difficulty
Sleepy
Energy
Indica
Hybrid
Sativa
Height
Day air temperature
Air humidity
PH
CO2
Light schedule
Solution temperature
Night air temperature
Substrate temperature
Pot size
More photos +1
Comments 4
Great auto produced nice hard buds with nice trichomes. This plant was stunted by 35 C weather in the fifth week so it easily could have been twice as big. Took off a star just because it’s relatively small but excellent plant that was no problem to grow aside from it got too hot during late veg.
We grow for the buds and these ones are very nice and hard. I’m a big fan of Chemdawg so I’m looking forward to when it’s ready. Will update with a smoke report.