Homegrown buds vs dispensary buds.

[longbottom]

Hi all, I've posted this question a few times before but am wondering why there is such a huge difference between my home grown buds and the buds I buy at the dispensary.

The dispensary buds are rock hard, heavy and very small. My homegrown buds are big (5 times the size) lightweight and slightly fluffy...

I've done a little experiment with freshly harvested bud and compressed (squished) the sticky bud by hand. This works, but its not something I like to do.. Maybe commercial bud is harvested in such large quantities and put in a giant bag to compress naturally from the weight of all the buds? I've seen this on a weed television show (Belushi) and he was walking around with huge garbage bags full of bud.

Anyway, its always on my mind. I prefer my big fluffy buds over the dispensary buds, they grind and smoke better. But It's still got me wondering?

Here is a nice big fluffy bud grown by me...Should I squish these or leave them as they are? If I compress a bud like this, it will be less than half the size shown and will also be rock hard... Which would you enter in a cannabis cup?

Example of my buds: Northern Lights

Example Dispensary bud--

 

[Eledin]

Squishy buds are something youre not gonna have in the future. Either the plant didnt have enough food, enough light or enough potential to begin with in its genetics. Still Im with you, if I get fluffy buds I would smoke them over dispensary stuff. You can get good stuff in a dispensary, or you can get weed sprayed with synthetic hormones. Or weed that looks mad good but they didnt cure it so it doesnt taste like anything and its rough. Better to play safe
What is your light and method of growing? Im pretty sure you can tighten up those buds, are you using suggars during the fattening phase?

 

[Eledin]

Also even if your bud is fluffy it looks very appealing and there is no reason to compact them. For me it makes it easier to remove the inner leaves, Im picky like that.

 

[Galgrows]

Some of those dispenseries have over 1yrold weed could be more.

 

[longbottom]

Squishy buds are something youre not gonna have in the future. Either the plant didnt have enough food, enough light or enough potential to begin with in its genetics. Still Im with you, if I get fluffy buds I would smoke them over dispensary stuff. You can get good stuff in a dispensary, or you can get weed sprayed with synthetic hormones. Or weed that looks mad good but they didnt cure it so it doesnt taste like anything and its rough. Better to play safe

What is your light and method of growing? Im pretty sure you can tighten up those buds, are you using suggars during the fattening phase?

I've grown the same strain 4 times now (Northern Lights) and one run of Durban Posion. Everything is similar.

Light is an SF-1000 used for one plant, I grow low and flat and keep the light around 14 inches off the tops. I either trellis or manifold my grows to keep all colas equal in height.

It very well could be me making mistakes as a grower. It could also be the strain, Ive seen pictures of NL buds that look a lot like mine many times. I'd bet money that the NL at my dispensery is rock hard though..

I may be underfeeding in flower, that's something I'm working on... Its a fine line in flower between overfeeding and underfeeding...

Here is an example of some grows.

NL Mainline late flower

Another Mainline grow late flower

Durban Poison (trellis) mid flower

 

[LoveGrowingIt]

I guess the commercial growers worry about things like "bag appeal" or whatever they call it, whereas I don't care much about how my buds look. I don't think much about their squishiness, either. I worry about quality.

Anyway, I think how buds are dried, cured and stored has a lot to do with how squishy they end up being.

 

[longbottom]

Also even if your bud is fluffy it looks very appealing and there is no reason to compact them. For me it makes it easier to remove the inner leaves, Im picky like that.

Yep, I agree. I just thought I'd squish them as a test.

 

[longbottom]

I guess the commercial growers worry about things like "bag appeal" or whatever they call it, whereas I don't care much about how my buds look. I don't think much about their squishiness, either. I worry about quality.

Anyway, I think how buds are dried, cured and stored has a lot to do with how squishy they end up being.

I OBSESS over cure..... No short cuts ! Dry at 55-60 RH slowly over a week or two (colas are large) then jar cure for at least 3 months burping daily until the RH in my jar settles to around 58-60 RH...

I do use Boveda packs after the buds RH stabilizes...

 

[LoveGrowingIt]

I OBSESS over cure.....

I'd guess most of us do. The question is whether the commercial growers do the same, or are they mostly concerned with getting products to market.

 

[LoveGrowingIt]

I just saw this on Bluesky...

 

[Blastfact]

Commercial weed is grown as fast as possible. It is pushed hard in grow and many use massive amounts of silica enhancer/bloom boost. Makes the buds hard and dense feeling. They also break the buds down farther than we do in finale trim and cure. So there hard little nuggets. Customers don't like paying for stem weight. And around here they drown the plants in CalMag throughout the grow. All weed in the dispensaries looks, smells, taste and smokes the same. Walk in and it smells like they washed the walls down with Calmag. I much prefer my product to anything in the dispensaries or on the street.

 

[Doublej]

Yep, i can concur with all the above statements. I had to stop growing for along time, and was forced to the stores....

It's all grown for money...therefore it's all speed weed, it it to the store as soon as possible.
There not going to spend the time like us, bloom boosters and shit lots of light
Nothing good!
So i gonna hang my lights again

 

[longbottom]

Commercial weed is grown as fast as possible. It is pushed hard in grow and many use massive amounts of silica enhancer/bloom boost. Makes the buds hard and dense feeling. They also break the buds down farther than we do in finale trim and cure. So there hard little nuggets. Customers don't like paying for stem weight. And around here they drown the plants in CalMag throughout the grow. All weed in the dispensaries looks, smells, taste and smokes the same. Walk in and it smells like they washed the walls down with Calmag. I much prefer my product to anything in the dispensaries or on the street.

This is what I was hoping to hear! I get what you’re saying about the stems too, I’ve thought about this as well. I guess I don’t mind the stems, I just love looking at a full cola top, stems and all— they are like a work of art.

Now you’ve got me thinking I need to dissect one of my big tops to see if can figure out what they are doing…

And yep, my buds are so much smoother, fresh tasting and easier to light then the dispensary rocks…Maybe I’m not making mistakes with my grows.. thanks for the reply and great info…

 

[Blastfact]

This is what I was hoping to hear! I get what you’re saying about the stems too, I’ve thought about this as well. I guess I don’t mind the stems, I just love looking at a full cola top, stems and all— they are like a work of art.

Now you’ve got me thinking I need to dissect one of my big tops to see if can figure out what they are doing…

And yep, my buds are so much smoother, fresh tasting and easier to light then the dispensary rocks…Maybe I’m not making mistakes with my grows.. thanks for the reply and great info…

I'm telling yeah it's the Wild Wild Wild,,,, Wild West here in Okiehoma. Grows everywhere. People from China all over the place growing and they follow no rules,,, none what-so-ever. They had a huge bust last year and shut down hundreds of China grows all over the state. Hope they have another real soon. That's why the weed is so cheap here. Cheapest in the nation and destroying pricing in the rest of the country. Little town I live in does not allow commercial grows in the city limits. But cross into the county and they are everywhere. We have members here that have worked and some still working in the industry,,, even here in Okiehoma. But they stay pretty quite about it. And many that are transient works that travel around the country.

 

[longbottom]

I'm telling yeah it's the Wild Wild Wild,,,, Wild West here in Okiehoma. Grows everywhere. People from China all over the place growing and they follow no rules,,, none what-so-ever. They had a huge bust last year and shut down hundreds of China grows all over the state. Hope they have another real soon. That's why the weed is so cheap here. Cheapest in the nation and destroying pricing in the rest of the country. Little town I live in does not allow commercial grows in the city limits. But cross into the county and they are everywhere. We have members here that have worked and some still working in the industry,,, even here in Okiehoma. But they stay pretty quite about it. And many that are transient works that travel around the country.

Same thing may be happening here on the east coast. The weed prices have dropped from around 300 an ounce down to 100 or so. I picked up an ounce of Master Kush for 80 bucks, it’s crazy.. (the master kush wasn’t that bad either).

Maybe I should rethink smoking this stuff. I’ve tried what they call “designer” which sells for around 200 and it’s pretty much the same thing.. My home buds are very different. Somehow they shove an entire ounce into the smallest containers. Mine take a lot more space, double or more in large mason jars.

When smoking in a nice Syn glass bong, the dispensary buds create a much hotter smoke, it’s like trying to smoke charcoal brickets, they take some time to fire up. Meanwhile my homegrown buds light up nice and easy, my lighter stays on the buds much less…

 

[Farmville]

I've grown the same strain 4 times now (Northern Lights) and one run of Durban Posion. Everything is similar.

Light is an SF-1000 used for one plant, I grow low and flat and keep the light around 14 inches off the tops. I either trellis or manifold my grows to keep all colas equal in height.

It very well could be me making mistakes as a grower. It could also be the strain, Ive seen pictures of NL buds that look a lot like mine many times. I'd bet money that the NL at my dispensery is rock hard though..

I may be underfeeding in flower, that's something I'm working on... Its a fine line in flower between overfeeding and underfeeding...

Here is an example of some grows.

NL Mainline late flower

View attachment 2351863


Another Mainline grow late flower

View attachment 2351870


Durban Poison (trellis) mid flower

View attachment 2351871

Lower your light to 12”. Also veg for over a month. Like get your plant to two nodes and start counting. Do a full month maybe a month and a half. If you can top twice that will achieve low height growth. Then turn your light up to 100%. This will raise your ppfd if you aren’t at 100% right from when you switch to flower. Adjust your light every day. Buy some recharge it’s what I use for bloom and veg boost. It’s a great additive. Real growers company is who supply’s it. Use coupon dude15 for 15% off. Check out dude grows show on YouTube. While you’re at it get another light. I recommend the sf-2000 that then you have twice as much coverage you got right now from one extra light. Combined you’ll triple your growing square footage.

 

[HerbalEdu]

first buds apearance can vary so much from one strain to another and also just from one phenotype to another within a strain.

weed grown in clones resulting from a phenohunt will certainly look more appealing than your average random pheno.

also there's such a thing as the use of PGR ...

https://sensiseeds.com/en/blog/what-is-pgr-weed-and-how-to-spot-it/

occasionnaly some pheno could be pretty much alike PGR weed but that's not the usual average pheno.

 

[Blastfact]

first buds apearance can vary so much from one strain to another and also just from one phenotype to another within a strain.

weed grown in clones resulting from a phenohunt will certainly look more appealing than your average random pheno.

also there's such a thing as the use of PGR ...

https://sensiseeds.com/en/blog/what-is-pgr-weed-and-how-to-spot-it/

occasionnaly some pheno could be pretty much alike PGR weed but that's not the usual average pheno.

PGR buds look like polished cat turds around here. When you see it you know.

 

[longbottom]

Lower your light to 12”. Also veg for over a month. Like get your plant to two nodes and start counting. Do a full month maybe a month and a half. If you can top twice that will achieve low height growth.

I veg for 8-10 weeks, Light is at 100% and I have used it as low as 12 inches for entire grows (Ive found 14 inches is better)... I top and manifold my plants...

I use a long veg time in order to build a thick frame..

Then turn your light up to 100%. This will raise your ppfd if you aren’t at 100% right from when you switch to flower. Adjust your light every day. Buy some recharge it’s what I use for bloom and veg boost. It’s a great additive. Real growers company is who supply’s it. Use coupon dude15 for 15% off. Check out dude grows show on YouTube. While you’re at it get another light. I recommend the sf-2000 that then you have twice as much coverage you got right now from one extra light. Combined you’ll triple your growing square footage.

I use recharge, and have used both fox farm and Dyna grow nutrients. There is a new SE-1500 out from Spider-farmer I might get, its 150 watts, although I doubt 150 watts will help. An SF-2000 will not fit in my space and is overkill for one plant. My grow space is 1.5 x 1.5 x 3 feet

Spider Farmer SE1500 150W Led Grow Light For 2x2FT Grow Tent

Spider Farmer SE1500 150W LED Grow Light for 2×2FT Grow Tent, Smart WiFi & Bluetooth App Control, Dimmable Full Spectrum, High Efficiency Indoor Plant Light.

www.spider-farmer.com

View attachment 2352287

 

[longbottom]

PGR buds look like polished cat turds around here. When you see it you know.

This is what I'm talking about ! I love learning and this is completely new to me, PGR... I'm reading up now.,

Thanks !