Moving indoor plants under 18/6 to the outdoors without triggering flowering

[Blaze]

Did I write that? Sure sounds like the light cycle system I was using for years. The reduced schedule does work but I have found to to make the plants more hormonally inclined to flower. Last two years I've been doing an interrupted light cycle which has been more reliable. The cycle I use now is a 14.5/4/1.5/4 schedule.

 

[Seamaiden]

Did I write that? Sure sounds like the light cycle system I was using for years. The reduced schedule does work but I have found to to make the plants more hormonally inclined to flower. Last two years I've been doing an interrupted light cycle which has been more reliable. The cycle I use now is a 14.5/4/1.5/4 schedule.

You didn't, but when you discuss it you had better believe I'm listening! You're shooting for a June 1 put-out date as I recall, yes?

Would you like to discuss how you hit on your photoperiod schedule? I know I'm not the only one who's curious (but I'm one of the few who's seen what you can do). :)

 

[Texas Kid]

Elbert county I would be in the outside green house June 1 and in the ground July 1

Weld county I can carve 2 weeks off that, mid May in the greenhouse and mid June in the ground.

Had more to do with the temps and not so much the light cycle at that point..I think you are already over 14 hour days by then

How does the 14.5/4/1.5/4 compare with the 12/5.5/1/5.5 as far as growth rates?

 

[kolah]

Thanks for all the great advice. Lots of good info. I''ll get ya'll posted on how it works out. Cheers!

 

[Blaze]

You didn't, but when you discuss it you had better believe I'm listening! You're shooting for a June 1 put-out date as I recall, yes?

Would you like to discuss how you hit on your photoperiod schedule? I know I'm not the only one who's curious (but I'm one of the few who's seen what you can do). :)

I will be shooting to put my clones under a natural light by May 21 and allowing 1 week for acclimation before being planted in-ground, which would be a final planting date of around June 1. It always depends on the weather and how the plants are looking though. Texas Kid brings up an excellent point though - photoperiod acclimation depends very much on your location. Latitude, climate, and strain are all major factors to consider, so I tend to view this as more of a technique than as a hard and fast guideline. What works for me will not always works for everyone else, you need to utilize the idea and knowledge more-so than blindly follow set parameters.

I first hit on the interrupted photperiod light cycle a few years ago from a mutual friend who should probably remain unnamed. They had discovered it doing research on greenhouse production of ornamental flowers. It was skeptical at first but so far it has worked better than anything else I have tried, and many other growers I know locally have had very good success implementing similar techniques. I cannot say this will work for 100% of strains, 100% of the time, in all location but for me, this has been the most reliable in the largest range of conditions.

 

[below frigid]

If you have to put them out early I found some solar outdoor spots that are pretty bright. I used to have to use 3 to get enough light I only have to use one of these. I put some XJ-13 clones out in April a few grows ago with no issues. I just left the lights there until the end of July. Then I shut them off and they flowered the same as the rest of my grow from seeds. Here are the ones I have. I was amazed how bright they are! I am off the grid and only get to the garden once a week. A lot cheaper than getting the batteries, solar panels and charge controller with a timer to run a few lights! http://www.earthtechproducts.com/high-output-solar-spot-white-light.html

 

[Blaze]

That's a great idea, I was just talking with a friend last night about how to rig something up off-grid to keep their plants from flowering. That looks much cheaper and easier than trying to set up a solar panel and battery to run CFLs.

I don't see anything in the specs about setting a time though? Do they just run automatically, or can you say set them to go off between 12am and 2am?

 

[caregiverken]

Excellent !

 

[below frigid]

The lights come on at dusk and get dimmer through the night. Just turn them off when you get ready to flower.

 

[Blaze]

Hmmm so it would work for a light dep, but not for full term.

 

[Shamanfarmer]

I started moving plants outside from my 24 hour light veg room a month ago. No signs for flowering so far. One plant has been outside for 5 weeks, in the ground for 3, it went from 24 hours of hps light to approximately 11 hours of daylight with no signs of flowering. It went into shock immediately upon going outside, by the time it came out of shock i think it had figured out it was gaining 3 minutes of light every day. I've put 4 more plants outside since that first one, 1 every week or so. None of them have shown any sign of flowering. All these plants were 2 feet tall or taller when they were moved out. From clones, not seed.

 

[below frigid]

I think a lot of the problems from clones going into early flower are do genetics as much as photo period. Since some strains do go into early flower a lot of outdoor growers use the supplemental light do to their personal experience with certain strains or just as a precaution. you are pretty much screwed if they do go into early flower even if they do go back into veg you have lost critical veg time, a month or more! That's a good question, do they go back into veg come June or do they just keep flowering???

 

[Blaze]

Genetics definitely play a big role. General rule of thumb, the later the strain finishes, the more tolerant it will be of transition, the earlier it finishes the easier it will trigger early. When they do flower early, sometimes they go back into veg, sometimes they don't. Really depends on the plant, I've seen it go both ways. I have had some plants snap out of it fairly quickly and continue to veg and I have had others that never went back into veg and just sort of stalled out for the rest of the season. Even if they re-veg, you lose a lot of precious veg time which hurts yield. I have also noticed the plants that have flower issues, even if they re-veg, will tend to flower earlier in the season than they should, and will tend to put out less developed, more airy buds.

 

[caveman4.20]

Thanks for all the great advice. Lots of good info. I''ll get ya'll posted on how it works out. Cheers!

Cheers Kolah! Great thread, I've read mostly everything here has anyone incorporated hardening off plants in Waxing vs Waning Moon cycle ? Or should I keep this too myself?

 

[kolah]

I use the moon phases for my plants. I started a separate thread here somewhere on the topic but a quick google search will bring it up as well.

 

[caveman4.20]

it is beter to harden off plants during the moon getting full an up at night not during day? ill go research

 

[Seamaiden]

I've never paid it any mind.

 

[vaporedout]

so heres something the wife and i have been batting around.... our babies are under 24/0 t5.... when it does come time to go outside, should i plant in the evening or morning? we kinda figured evening so they can have their nighty night time then wake up to a more powerful sun..

 

[Seamaiden]

If they're under T5's they're going to have to be acclimated, period. I personally haven't noted any kind of difference in response when indoor plants are put outside for the first time as far as time of day, only with regard to intensity of sun. Therefore, everything goes out under the big black oak first. When they go to the beds, I have landscape cloth ready to shade them if necessary (and it usually is), along with some bamboo stakes and twine to make the covers for them.

So, I may take them out first thing in the morning to go under the tree. Or they may not go out until sometime in the afternoon, or sometimes even last thing before dark. No differences noted, as I understand your question.

 

[vaporedout]

we have a few patios that i drag the plants under during hard rains, so we usually put our plants under there (underwear?). it stays shady all day and gives them time to adjust, BUT the last 2 years weve had probs with early flower, this year im vegging them longer indoors to make sure theres no early flower