# Best way to sex a plant?



## seasmoke (Nov 17, 2009)

What is the best way to sex plants and why?

What I have been doing is plant the seed, wait untill I see three sets of nodes or so, then put them under 12/12. They usually take about 2 weeks to show(some sooner, some later), then I put them back under 24 hrs lite. This way has been successfull.

I'm hearing that this method has its drawbacks like stressing the plant to become males/hermies, and that i'm actually setting the plants back a few weeks when compared to letting the plant just veg untill it preflowers.
Is there any truth to this? What are the pros and cons to either method? +rep to all that helps.
Thanx.


----------



## True Stoner (Nov 17, 2009)

i wouldnt stress the plant like that.Unforunitly i want untill 12/12 cycle but now im using feminized seeds. They are garunteed to be female appaently!!


----------



## 2822bubba (Nov 17, 2009)

I had a guy tell me the other day to take some clones off each plant mark them and put them on 12/12 to get the sex. Do this 2 weeks before you want to flower your plants and it should help


----------



## jeff f (Nov 17, 2009)

i definitely sets the plant back. plus it also encourages stretch because all plants stretch during 12/12. let the plant grow till it shows preflowers, usually about a month. if not, when you put them in 12, leave them there and just cut the males.


----------



## too xntrik (Nov 18, 2009)

What you have done in the past works obviously, but it sets them back more then you realize. when the plants are vegging they are producing hormones that help it grow or veg. When the daylight hours decrease the plant quickly starts to produce different and very powerful hormones to flower so after your initial 2 weeks under 12/12 you can sex them. when you put the plant back under 18/12 or better 24 light schedule the plant has to start the process of vegging all over so some of the hormones destroyed during flowering need to be recreated and some need to be destroyed...this takes time. Even though you will see some initial growth within a short period of time the hormones are still not going to be right for max growth for close to six weeks after switching back to long daylight hours, this now puts you approx 9 weeks into your grow. Flipping them back to flower anytime sooner is a great way to produce hermies if the plant has a strong tendencey. (remember people re-veg plants all the time with no hermies and essentially you are re-vegging a seedling).
I prefer to let the plant grow like normal and then after 5-7 nodes pull the bottom 2 axial branches for clones put 1 clone under 12/12 to sex and the other can left under 24 in case it turns out to be a female. None of the hormonal or light stress as oppossed to the other way. Also it is very easy to sex this way instead of peering at preflowers till your eyes cross... some plants are much harder to tell then others.
Sidenote: bagseed or ?


----------



## seasmoke (Nov 18, 2009)

Thanks for replying guys, Good luck with your fem seeds Truestoner hopen their all females for ya. 
Sounds like you three have the same method....one that I didn't think about. Great tip. How tall do they typically get by 1 month?2months? I usually veg 2 months or 24 in tall, sexed and fimmed before budding, they end up being decent 3-4 ft plants. Would doing it your way make bigger plants faster?

+ rep guys.


----------



## True Stoner (Nov 18, 2009)

too xntrik said:


> What you have done in the past works obviously, but it sets them back more then you realize. when the plants are vegging they are producing hormones that help it grow or veg. When the daylight hours decrease the plant quickly starts to produce different and very powerful hormones to flower so after your initial 2 weeks under 12/12 you can sex them. when you put the plant back under 18/12 or better 24 light schedule the plant has to start the process of vegging all over so some of the hormones destroyed during flowering need to be recreated and some need to be destroyed...this takes time. Even though you will see some initial growth within a short period of time the hormones are still not going to be right for max growth for close to six weeks after switching back to long daylight hours, this now puts you approx 9 weeks into your grow. Flipping them back to flower anytime sooner is a great way to produce hermies if the plant has a strong tendencey. (remember people re-veg plants all the time with no hermies and essentially you are re-vegging a seedling).
> I prefer to let the plant grow like normal and then after 5-7 nodes pull the bottom 2 axial branches for clones put 1 clone under 12/12 to sex and the other can left under 24 in case it turns out to be a female. None of the hormonal or light stress as oppossed to the other way. Also it is very easy to sex this way instead of peering at preflowers till your eyes cross... some plants are much harder to tell then others.
> Sidenote: bagseed or ?


I wish i had the room to put another light to be able to put my clones under 12/12 to sex them!! Soon enough!! LOL


----------



## wilsoncr17 (Nov 18, 2009)

get it high, buy it dinner, hit it over the head and turn out the lights?


----------



## jakethetank (Nov 18, 2009)

you could always stick ur dong in its flower and fertilize it


----------



## jeb5304 (Nov 18, 2009)

taking the clones and sexing the clones is way faster than your way of flower then reveg . this way your veggin plants are still veggin with no setbacks or stress + you get to sex them at the same time. doesnt that sound better? take the clones 3 wks b4 you want to flower. your way works but imo it sets you back atleat 2 weeks. just make sure you label the clones so you know which plan they came from


----------



## senz1 (Nov 19, 2009)

i know a way to sex plants w/o touching them...!!!! loli love this board ..ty


jeb5304 said:


> taking the clones and sexing the clones is way faster than your way of flower then reveg . this way your veggin plants are still veggin with no setbacks or stress + you get to sex them at the same time. doesnt that sound better? take the clones 3 wks b4 you want to flower. your way works but imo it sets you back atleat 2 weeks. just make sure you label the clones so you know which plan they came from


----------



## super2200 (Nov 19, 2009)

The problem I have with this is the fact that it normally takes me 1-2 weeks to get my clones to root. So now its two weeks later already and then I put them 12/12 or are you guys saying that if I put the clone under 12/12 while its catching roots it will show sex within the same 1-2 weeks. It sounds to me like this is going to take about 3-4 weeks for the clone to show sex (at my clone rate anyway)By then the original plant should be showing pre flowers anyway I would think. I say after you have identified the last batch of females why havnt you just been growing clones anyway? unless your trying a new strain from seed you should already be in the clone game and get away from seeds and a need to "sex" your plants, Good luck in your endeavors my friend


----------



## That 5hit (Nov 19, 2009)

all you do is this

take a brown paperbag and cover 1 lower branch 12 hr a day untell it shows sex 
make sure no light gets in
works 100% and is the fastest way to find out
its a lot of work but worth it
then you know what sex that whole plant is
this way you continue to grow the whole plant whith out stressing the whole plant or waiting for clones to root


----------



## seasmoke (Nov 19, 2009)

Yes Super22, I am very much in the clone game. But I got 9 known brands from Nirvana(WW,WR,AK48,etc, and need to sex throught them, I had 8 out of 10 female WWs so far and 4 AIs...sexing WR and Burmese right now....I've only tried phucking the plant one way, but you guys have some different ideas.....some of which I may try....


----------



## seasmoke (Nov 20, 2009)

One thing that came to me about this sexing advantage....I doing two strains, 10 seeds each...if I do it your way, won't I have a huge amounts of pots to deal with compared to the beer cups that i'm currently usein g?....I mean i got so much room....


----------



## seasmoke (Nov 23, 2009)

Don't phuchin die on me now! Common all you commercial growers, give some love!


----------



## dwcpioneer (Nov 24, 2009)

just do it. all these snobs are babying there babies.just break em shock em and send em back wherever. there weeds.they can take it.as long as you ease them in and out you should have noooo problem.only real way when you want to not waste time vegging out crap.most clone cuz they jumped on the buy others genetics train. real men search for the one.its out there.clone it when you know what it is. thats what i say. and stay away from female seeds.buy bulk and find the good stock. keep it simple stinky.any other questions?


----------



## Hobbes (Nov 24, 2009)

.

I use the same method as Jeb, sex the clones. 

1. Top plants from seed at the third node, when there is 3" above the top. Mark clones and mothers.
2. Root the clones in a bubbler and put them into flower at 4 nodes (~2")
3. Veg the topped plants to 22" above the top, toss the mothers of male clones.

I usually take 2-3 months to veg my plants before flower so I have lots of time to root and flower clones.

.


----------



## seasmoke (Nov 25, 2009)

Thanx guys. I will try both techniques. I don't have a bubbler though. I've been going straight soil. I can't take chances on power outages which happens frequently around here. But I have great success with cloning(nearly 100% each time) and know its the way to go.


----------



## Hobbes (Nov 25, 2009)

.

Seasmoke if you want to run a bubbler don't worry about power outages - some people just stick the cutting in a glass of tap water and check it for roots in a week. I did this with a Bubblegum a while back and grew the plant in a pop bottle with no air added for the entire grow, I only changed the water twice in 10 weeks. The bubbling will speed up cloning and improve your success rate, but if the air pump goes off for and hour or a day most (probably all) of the cuttings will be fine.







Other people just fill a 20 oz plastic cup with pro mix and stick a cutting in the mix to root. Takes a little more time but if you keep the PM moist and take good cuttings you'll get close to 100% rootings. Experiment with different methods, see what works for you.

.


----------



## seasmoke (Nov 29, 2009)

Thats right Hobbes, I use 16oz beer cups and promix for cloning and seedlings too. I do have good success this way. Cloning is the way to go with known phenoms.
I just want to be doing the best possible way to sex them out....So far, with seeds I got from Nirvana(10 per pack), the results:

White Widow- 8 females- 6 are doing great, filled out nicely and are getting tall. The other two are slow
Aurora Indica- 4 females- All of which are slow to start, but they are gaining ground with extra vegg time.
White Rhino - 6 females- These seem to be growing alot like the WWs, quite strong.
Burmese(reefermans?)- 3 females- These little shits haven't grown much at all. they are the same age as the WR, but the WR have tripled in size compared to each other(this is where I think cloning it instead of sexing it would have benefited it), they are about 6-8 inches tall and getting shorter each day it seems.

I still have AK-48, Snow White, Hash plant and Northern Lights to go, and I feel as though i'm not getting the best results possible....So I will try the Vegging of the seed and take a cutting and see how that goes.


----------



## Uncle Ben (Dec 2, 2009)

seasmoke said:


> What is the best way to sex plants and why?


Secure an opaque (but breathable bag) over a branch, NO light leaks, leave for a week or so and inspect.


----------



## seasmoke (Dec 2, 2009)

Thanx, UB, Just to be clear, Do not take it off till then?


----------



## Uncle Ben (Dec 2, 2009)

seasmoke said:


> Thanx, UB, Just to be clear, Do not take it off till then?


No, that would constitute a light leak. AGAIN, no light for at least a week.


----------



## seasmoke (Jan 6, 2010)

OK, I'm doing it. But just to be sure...

I can take the cutting, put it directly under 12-12 light, even though they have NOT rooted? I thought that when plants go under 12-12 they stop root production and go into flower.

I do not want to cover a branch to sex them, I want to top for 4 colas, cloning the top for sex.


----------



## Uncle Ben (Jan 6, 2010)

seasmoke said:


> OK, I'm doing it. But just to be sure...
> 
> I can take the cutting, put it directly under 12-12 light, even though they have NOT rooted? I thought that when plants go under 12-12 they stop root production and go into flower.
> 
> I do not want to cover a branch to sex them, I want to top for 4 colas, cloning the top for sex.


Clones should go under long days. I gave you a tweak of how to sex a plant so that you don't have to subject the entire plant to 12/12.


----------



## seasmoke (Jan 6, 2010)

Uncle Ben said:


> Clones should go under long days. I gave you a tweak of how to sex a plant so that you don't have to subject the entire plant to 12/12.


Yes Uncle Ben, I understand what you mean. But I want to top for 4 colas, per your method,and vegg them for 8 weeks. I'm not going to subject the whole plant. At this time I would like to clone the top piece and then sex it. 

These guys are saying, and it's in Cervantes bible,pg.54-55, that they can be sexed straight from cutting. The bible says in diagram 3 -Give 12 hours light "while" rooting.

This does seem odd to me, I would think they would need some time to root first.


----------



## Uncle Ben (Jan 7, 2010)

seasmoke said:


> Yes Uncle Ben, I understand what you mean. But I want to top for 4 colas, per your method,and vegg them for 8 weeks. I'm not going to subject the whole plant. At this time I would like to clone the top piece and then sex it.
> 
> These guys are saying, and it's in Cervantes bible,pg.54-55, that they can be sexed straight from cutting. The bible says in diagram 3 -Give 12 hours light "while" rooting.
> 
> This does seem odd to me, I would think they would need some time to root first.


Jorge and I are friends, but friends also correct each other when the time is right. Understand that alot of what Jorge put together in his Bible was gleaned from others, mainly those long standing members who used to post at a huge but now defunct forum called Overgrow or OG, myself included. That being said, there are alot of inaccuracies posted in his book as opposed to someone like Mel Frank. As an example, turn to pages 69-70 and see what he said about my Spin-Out drill and his explanation of how the paint works. He got it all wrong, and I wrote him about it after the fact. (Copper hydroxide paints do not turn the roots up.) Having said that, Jorge has one of the best chapters on lighting of ANY cannabis book I've seen. For a noob, it's worth buying it just for that chapter. 

If you are a noob and you want a shortcut to success, and you're the type who's not inclined to pick up a book on indoor gardening or plant culture (which you should be doing) then the 2 "must have" books I'd recommend are Jorge's Bible and Mel Frank's 'MJ Growers Insiders Guide'.

So, do you go 12/12 with your cutting and hope you get rooting AND a sexual response, or do you go 20/4, root the cutting, and when it has about 6 nodes, sex. I'd recommend the latter. 

Tio


----------



## seasmoke (Jan 7, 2010)

Uncle Ben said:


> Jorge and I are friends, but friends also correct each other when the time is right. Understand that alot of what Jorge put together in his Bible was gleaned from others, mainly those long standing members who used to post at a huge but now defunct forum called Overgrow or OG, myself included. That being said, there are alot of inaccuracies posted in his book as opposed to someone like Mel Frank. As an example, turn to pages 69-70 and see what he said about my Spin-Out drill and his explanation of how the paint works. He got it all wrong, and I wrote him about it after the fact. (Copper hydroxide paints do not turn the roots up.) Having said that, Jorge has one of the best chapters on lighting of ANY cannabis book I've seen. For a noob, it's worth buying it just for that chapter.
> 
> If you are a noob and you want a shortcut to success, and you're the type who's not inclined to pick up a book on indoor gardening or plant culture (which you should be doing) then the 2 "must have" books I'd recommend are Jorge's Bible and Mel Frank's 'MJ Growers Insiders Guide'.
> 
> ...


 
Again thank you UB. I'll do just what you said....you haven't steered me wrong yet, my crop is flourishing because of you,the bible, and RIU in general. I'm following your seedling method to a "T", and want to do the same with topping.


I'll get those books. You can't put a pricetag on knowledge, and I did see some inaccuracies through-out his book...one reason I turned here for advice


----------



## Uncle Ben (Jan 8, 2010)

seasmoke said:


> Again thank you UB. I'll do just what you said....you haven't steered me wrong yet, my crop is flourishing because of you,the bible, and RIU in general. I'm following your seedling method to a "T", and want to do the same with topping.
> 
> 
> I'll get those books. You can't put a pricetag on knowledge, and I did see some inaccuracies through-out his book...one reason I turned here for advice


Sounds good, and good luck!


----------

