Node stretching during flower? Only top colas, too much light, N or ???

I know Im being a bit crazy but I feel like my plants just arent happy with something. I am on the second day of my 5th week of flower, today is day 30. Up until day 20 they were picture perfect but they continued to grow even after having fed them 5ml/gallon of bushmaster over the course of 3 feedings during the first 2 weeks. We have done everything to make more room, cut the feet off tables and raise the lights to the ceiling. They are still yet only 1 ft from the light. At some point they were even closer for maybe 3-4 days. Some of the tops were bleaching but they all came back.

So my question is why the top colas have this weird leafy growth, some 3 blades and not the ones coming right from the bud but some that are extended so you can clearly see there are 3 blades. They are also scrunching and twisting slightly... it just doesnt look right. If it was happening to all of them I would say that maybe its the strain but for some reason maybe 2-3 plants arent doing this and on almost all of them the side branches dont do it either.

Here is a normal top cola and side branch





here are the deformed looking top colas








I have been feeding 5ml/gallon of calmag per feeding because of an early problem but I have stopped that for the last feeding. Calmag has extra N and I wonder if this maybe a problem.

I was also PHing much too high for coco at 6.4 which I am lowering to 6.2 this feeding and 6.0 the next. There is 3/4 coco and 1/4 soil so I dont know if it should be lower.

I also thought it could possibly be a light leak but the plants closest to where I assumed there was a leak were not as affected as others that were random in the garden. I have since also covered these semi light leaks that were not even big enough for me to see my hand 2 inches from my face.

Everyone is telling me they look fine but if so why would this only happen to the top colas.

i get this alot from my uk cheese clones , its like the top of the buds shoot new growth , its normal and will have no ill effect , i wouldnt worry , im sure others have seen this , when i first saw it i almost believed my plant was turning herm!! but nahh

You could bend the head over to 90 or 65 degree angle and tie it back to the stem try not to break it be gentle and only if it's still soft enough. You'll get a huge clump of bud there. And in my experience it will stop shooting up and bulk at that point. It will kinda do this S thing and try to pull the head back up but I've only ever gotten a few more inches of upward growth after the S. Anyway just my two cents. Good looking grow by the way

I have started to super crop them, at least the biggest buds had to be bent down. But do you think this is the reason they look so weird??

Icannabis said:

You could bend the head over to 90 or 65 degree angle and tie it back to the stem try not to break it be gentle and only if it's still soft enough. You'll get a huge clump of bud there. And in my experience it will stop shooting up and bulk at that point. It will kinda do this S thing and try to pull the head back up but I've only ever gotten a few more inches of upward growth after the S. Anyway just my two cents. Good looking grow by the way

Click to expand...

Man there prolly jus gonna grow together into a good size cola.... don't freak theres still time...

I really hope so, do you guys think these look half way done? Im worried about cutting them down at 8 weeks.

Pistils are all still white not really receding at all so from what i can see u still got a good while to go. Are you keeping an eye on the trichs?

So not looking half way yet, you think this might be a 10-11 week strain? I need to plan out the feeding now before I get into the last 2 weeks of feeding before flush. I am not really sure what I should look in the trichs at 30 days... I keep an eye on them toward the end but this seems so soon. Do you have any pictures of what the trichs would look like at different stages... I dont even know how to search that.

yea man 1 sec

Here ya go man sorry for the double post =)

Ok but this isnt useful for another 4 weeks. I am no where near harvesting so my trichs are all going to be clear.

It would be awesome to have a chart of trichs forming throughout the flowering cycle from start to finish, this would be a great way to establish how far along you are... which is my problem right now.

Well man....That is from start to finish.... Clear-feed/Clear-Cloudy-feed/Cloudy-Cloudy-feed-feed o i see 30% amber trichs i better start flushing!

Diffrent strains finish at diff times you will never know your due date until the trichs tell you there ready

Wish i could help more! but i guess we are the only ones up at 7am.....

Its about to be 4:20 for me

Just checked, they are all clear but I know they change size during this time so it would be cool to document this if I had a nifty computer microscope.

I've took pics just right with the light glaring just right and u can see trichs just take alot of practice pics =D

do you happen to know if you start your last 2 weeks of feeding before the flush at clear/cloudy or cloudy/cloudy

Well you want to Harvest when there 50/50 cloudy-amber so when u see 25-30% amber start flushing by then you should have 50/50 your ready to harvest. some people go by charts like your trying to make? i would just watch the plant let it tell you what it wants

Those charts are meant for harvesting. I am trying to find the point where I start the last 2 weeks of feeding before the last 2 weeks of flushing. My nutrients change a lot the 2 weeks before the flush so this is very significant in my schedule.

idk man thats what im trying to say is your trichs are gonna tell you how much time you got left... And i was talking about nute charts.....

Well looks like you just answered your own question 4 more weeks rofl j/k =D

Don't pay attention to the 30% to 50% amber stuff. If you do you will be growing your plants well past peak THC potency.


TETRAHYDROCANNABINOL (THC)





Tetrahydrocannabinol, also known as delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC), is the primary psychoactive component found in the cannabis plant. It was first isolated by Raphael Mechoulam, Yechiel Gaoni, and Habib Edery from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, in 1964.




This is the main compound that gives rise to the high that is tightly linked with the cannabis plant. It affects several areas of the brain simultaneously and can therefore give rise to an assortment of experiences, ranging from altered perception of time and the self, to feelings of euphoria and relaxation all through the body.

CANNABINOL (CBN)




Cannabinol is the primary degradation product of THC and increases in concentration with plant age. The concentration of this product in the bud is heavily dependent on the time of harvest. Harvesting the bud at a late stage also means that the concentration of CBN in relation to THC will be higher when compared to the peak of THC production.

CBN content increases as THC degrades. It is only mildly psychoactive and can cause "fuzzy head", drowsiness, disorientation and sleepiness in the smoker, properties that can be considered unpleasant in nature compared to the clear high of the THC.

THC BIOSYNTHESIS



The capitate-stalked glandular trichome changes color as it matures. Newly formed and immature glands are clear, glands reaching optimum THC production are cloudy or milky and amber trichomes have already passed their peak. By looking at the trichomes you can also determine the best time to harvest your plants. When most trichomes have gone cloudy and a few amber ones have appeared, the plant is at its peak.

Thank you I did not know that in order to higher CBDs you would be sacrificing the THC.

I might keep some girls around longer to keep as a personal medical stash. CBDs may not give the same buzz but they have been said to work better for medical pruposes.

Good reading