seems like a miscommunication throughout the decades or maybe im just understanding it wrong. everyone in my circle (mostly idiots and no growers) all seem to think it flushes the plant clean and is absolutely required.... good to finally talk with some actual knowledgeable, experienced, intelligent growers/people for once!!
in commercial farming i have to do this to my produce. With advancement we have products that have 0 day harvest intervals or 24 hour return interval(cant think of all the acronyms). but some chemicals I cant harvest within 30 days application for human safety. even then i do several sprays/washes cause residue is residue. I dont care what they say. Thats why i still have to tell everyone to wash the produce for safety, even if i wash it.
Like if i spray a pyrethrum again its like 21 days to harvest for my product. I also wash it every 5-7 days depending on rain. although some are rated for like 4 days post harvest from application. You legally have to follow the application standards of the label. Or its a crime to use it not as intended or knowingly against the label(in theory). With some fertilizers same thing. Their rating and approval stuff says basically i should apply it before i even start seed for 30 days. lots of that has to do with quality. Its hot when freshly applied. same as manure. So not necessarily what the plants will do. Again 100s of reasons for it. In those instances its not to wash it out of the soil. But to remove the residue thats on the produce itself. Any of the chemical that is absorb in lab testing when certified shows it should be removed by that day from the fruit/vegetables in the metabolic sense. Which is same theory as using the energy stored in terms of flushing the plant. No nutes to uptake, uses its own. plain water. rids itself naturally of excess.
you do want to flush in some regards. Some shitty buds are 100% IMO because of excess nutes or bad nute profiles. Id say i can tell it more on hydro grown buds than soil grown. because i believe the soil is a buffer. Even if its a non living soil. Its still a filter of sorts for the plants. Where hydro you get more flavor from all aspects. Some of the best terp, cannibinoid profile stuff side by side comes out better and more flavorful in hydro. But its a double edge sword. Can also turn out like shit when done improperly. I think people who have flowered a plant that was always hot and in excess know the flavor im talking about. Like a deep in your chest vapor.
I havent met a smoker yet who hasnt at one time gotten a bud that looks amazing, smells, amazing and smokes like crap and makes you feel largely underwhelmed to its appearance. The smoking triggers something like the entourage effect and you get half as high as you feel you should. Cant say its from flushing. But to the point those nute profiles go a long way to that proper bud. Thats why so many long time growers tell you less is more. The only excessive nutrient i can personally taste is excess K. the potash and such. I can tell from my experience because it leaves that ashy film in the smoke. where as i smoke i taste the flavor but feel ash on tip of my tongue. I have met people who claim they can tell the taste of N, etc. But I cant ever tell personally. That could honestly be all in ones mind as well. I have no hard data to say I can taste it outside the mental belief.
same thing to why that local farmers tomato and other vegetables have more flavor than the commercial grower who condition his soil, uses conditioners and largely is providing the basic nutrient profile. But no nutes that make it thrive!!! just exist. This is again just a broad generalization. As is so much details to this topic to get into. That its nearly impossible to generalize. But at the end of the day. Is a reason for everything... That each individual largely learns the benefit given enough time to gain experience. With the caveat you have to actually apply the experience you learn. You will never stop learning when it comes to gardening. What worked one time may not work the next. When i was a kid there was a farmer down the road from my grandparents. who used to be the chemical/fert guy always trying to sell people on the science and did it through proof on his fields. He used to say "farming is one step away from witchcraft, all thats missing is the eye of newt in our brews".
this is why in my opinion. even though most cannabis nute cycles are largely a joke when compared to commercial standards in terms of quantity/value. They simplify the mix and make it more diluted. Which results in a consistency that every MJ grower can experience grow after grow. Most of those people when following the directions and guidelines set out by others experience. Shouldnt deal with those conditions the topic is necessary. Outside those previously mentioned mistakes or preference we might have/make. This is why those products are so prolific and important to this industry. Consistency is key. We see people on here that havent changed or tried a new nutrient in 10 years by their admission. When you hit that mark. You dont want to change perfection.
I like to think we can attribute the need for lots of these things being 'yester-year science' because those MJ marketed products have standardized the industry to the point that we can call lots of it "standard practice". quite possibly every thing could have a standardized category where we failed, where we can improve.
Is understanding some things fall more into the category they are preference. While you can quantify a small variation at the scientific. Level its not enough to say "OMG GUYS WHY IS IT YOU ARE NOT DOING IT THE 1337 WAY"! Which there are no shortage of elites in the cannabis community. But thats human nature... Proof to that is how much we base purely on observational science at the consumer level. historically has been passed off as the second coming of cannabis and fell flat after several years with no one coming close to recreating it(in some cases)... I think genetically speaking its hard to say what one plant will do from the next. Like salt and pepper. You may like it, i may not. Either way its preference that will break down to each cut of meat and the individual consuming it.
