Availing ourselves of the nuclear option

[Olbrannon]

I could swear. Reportedly it helps to raise the pain threshold… Maybe I go Avid /Forex. Whatever they are done. I am bent on miticide over the next month.

So over the course of the next month will be culling hard and cleaning the shared grow space. Many of the plants will go outside as it warms up and those that are not ready will go to the basement while treatment is in progress. Plant stock will be brought back as it is completely free and since nothing I have is in flower …I am free to employ chemical warfare if necessary.

I have culled the old unknown male and am considering removing 1 of the 2 Afghani. One of these has shown alternating nodes at only the 4th leaf set. It is a short and perhaps branchy thing that has a nice sweet smelling stem rub that reminds me of the Wicked Widow. I am actually hoping this thing is male. The other has shown no inclination at all to mature and is showing a tall leggy structure I find undesirable…otoh I find it unusual in this strain and would consider keeping it for breeding if it had something else remarkable. Just a massive main stem. I’ll add pics of these two up in a bit and try my hand at a poll to see if others agree to cull.

The Wicked Widow will of course hopefully continue. The pairing of it and the unknown male yielded perhaps a dozen seeds that would germinate. They are labeled and stored with no probable use in sight.

[Olbrannon]

Afghani- unknown sex that matured very early. Sweet and slightly fruity smell at the stem rub. Nice stalk and looks a solid vigorous branch structure if it was a bit small initially. It threw some stacked petioles and even one finger that had a double tip on a leaf. Nothing that would make me throw it out and as it matured the leaf structure stabilized.

[Olbrannon]

Of the Wicked Widow remains a closely trimmed mother and a single clone. The strongest one was the apex cutting. I may bonsai it from the beginning.

I had some ideas about mites and plants as barriers. I must say rosemary is still a candidate but that lavender suits the mites well enough they will take up residence.

[Olbrannon]

Meanwhile back at the itty bitty ranch…

This Afghan is some strange little thing. To date it has on the 4th set of leaves it no longer was doubles. It started doing this once then twice in a triangular formation…

It is a perky thing though the mites got to it a bit. It has a sweet smell that reminds me of the Wicked Widow. Just a bit sticky.

Any comments? Is this common among this strain? It also threw some stacked petioles on the first couple sets of leaves and then a double tip on a finger at one fan leaf.

Fairly nice branching structure. I suppose I should clone it in case it has some resiny sweet nugs!??

[DiggySoze]

Three branches coming out at each node? Have a skunk here that started doing the same thing after node 3 or so.

I don’t believe it’s a fixed trait in any strain, but it does seem to be getting more common as the years go by.

[ChronicMcBudz]

It’s been a long time, but I remember some plants on OG1.0 that grew up in a spiral pattern and I want to say they had 3 branches at each node as well. Some fancy name for it too, poly something or other I think. Wish my memory was better lol.

[DiggySoze]

Yeah you’re thinking polyploidy, I’m not sure what the correct term is tho. Colchicine tests on cannabis that successfully create polyploids also regularly produced plants with three branches at each node

[ChronicMcBudz]

That’s exactly what I was thinking of. Thanks @DiggySoze!

[Olbrannon]

The Afghan split trunks.

[Olbrannon]

So everything got moved out and sprayed with 2 tbsp of neem oil in a gallon of water today. I added a little aloe and a drop of dawn. All of the plants were put in an area with lower light and a fan circulated on them for an hour.

Vacuumed and cleaned the cabinet and the room. Placed the rosemary plant in the cabinet. Went back to the basement and hit the plants again with Captain Jack’s Deadbug RTS (spinosad) both sides of the leaves. Another hour in the low light, higher air circ area.

So everyone back in place now. Guess I do it all again in 3 days.

[99PerCent]

The cold water drench and sulfur dust took out the mite larvae, but I had a small infestation, caught them early and hit them hard.

[Olbrannon]

I will have to try it if they survive this round. Larva is the issue for most everything out there and if sulfur dust kills them should be easy enough.

Cleanest I ever saw them for any length of time I had a little jumpy spider in there. He was getting big and fat too.

[99PerCent]

@Olbrannon

jumpy spider

Maybe a Wolf Spider

Wolf spider

[Olbrannon]

those get pretty big but they are good guys. I once killed one because if I didn’t and Mama woke up she would have died of a heart attack. That thing was big as a small bird.

No it was one of these gray wall jumping spiders it was a male. The female is also pictured on that page.

http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/misc/jumping_spiders01.JPG

http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/misc/jumping_spiders.htm

[Olbrannon]

Over the month I’ve sprayed with neem(1) again and Captain Jack’s Deadbug (2x) rid myself of several infested plants and cleaned the room multiple times. Not having any buds to worry about made things better.

There are still a few signs and I have sprayed with horticultural oil 3 days ago and checking plants individually. Vacuumed and cleaned areas and surroundings.

Plants were relocated to the shower and treated and then returned after they dried and the area had been cleaned.

I have found and released 3 of the jumping spiders from above in the flowering cabinet. So far at about 30+ days not showing any mites in that cabinet.

Also have a very nice little rosemary plant growing in there. Spraying again while checking for mites.

[Olbrannon]

Sprayed all clones and all non flowering plants with horticultural oil mixture for the second time. Observed thrips and sprinkled mosquito bits around some plants. Will apply neem oil next application in 3 days.

Vacuumed room and surroundings and mopped where cabinet is.

[Olbrannon]

The pests are back. Too much complacency or ignorance not sure. Was not doing the IPM since I had seen no pests in months and so I suffer I guess. I thought the jumping spiders were doing the job now. Guess not even though I have seen them,

But I want to blame some of it on bringing plants back inside. Not sure since I looked them over well when I did (as did she); but who knows. The wife’s jasmine and several other plants have been enjoying the sunny days but would not survive the winter.

So with anything in flower treatment options are limited. Because of this I am cutting several plants down and only anything 2-3 weeks into flower will go on. The humidity is awful at the moment and not prjected to get better for the rest of the month. So best to treat the plants and remove the heavy buds.

@lefthandseeds more info coming.