help with first time sexing

[greentoe]

Am I right in saying my plant here is a female?



If yes all my plants (10+) from bag seed are female, is this possible? or am i sexing the others wrong? 

[louise]

Sorry, those aren't the preflowers, I've marked the area you need to watch on your pic...

 

[greentoe]

ah ok, thanks for the diagram.
I'm a bit confused as to when pre flowering occurs for an outdoor grow, is it when the plant is around 2 months old or is it dependent on total sunlight hours decreasing?

My plants are over 2 months old now and really need to be transferred into something bigger asap, instead of spending money on more pots I'd like to put them straight into the ground but if I need to take out the males then that's a lot of money wasted on soil and ferts etc not to mention the time.
So... considering their age should I leave them in their current small pots (which seems to be stressing them out) until they are pre flowering or put them in bigger pots until pre flower?

Edited December 17, 2013 by greentoe

[louise]

Re Pre flowering-

 

Preflower is a sign of sexual maturity and relates to the age of the plant (rather than decreasing sunlight). The other change that occurs around this time effects the placement of the leaves around the stem (or the phyllotaxy). When seedlings begin to grow they usually grow two leaves at a node, one on each side of the plant. This arrangement is called "oppositional" or opposite phyllotaxy.

 

When the plant reaches sexual maturity the arrangement of the leaves changes from two leaves per node, on opposite sides of the stem, to one leaf per node with the next node sprouting a leaf from the otherside of  the stem, or arranged in an "alternating" phyllotaxy.

 

The plant will continue to grow vegetatively until the days shorten enough to trigger flowering to commence. Be warned that they can grow a lot in size between preflower and the beginning of flowering if they are in the ground, not to mention the height gain during flowering.

 

Re- potting up

 

From the look of the foliage in the image... I don't see any sign of suffering, but throw up some images of the whole plants standing up in their pots so we can get an idea of the plant to pot ratio. Also, from the look of the foliage in the image, I don't think it will be more than a couple of weeks before you have sexed your plants... that is if they are the same strain as the one pictured.

 

info on the medium they are growing in, what (if anything) you are adding would be helpful. Also watering frequency and do you water to saturation (enough water to wet all the medium and run out through the drain holes)?

Edited December 18, 2013 by louise

[greentoe]

Thanks again for your clear and detailed info, especially about the placement of the leaves, your clearly know your stuff!

 

The plants are still in their original 125mm pots (125mm tall and 125mm diameter at the top) with seed raising mix, I water to saturation when the growing medium is dry which is almost every night as it's been hot and sunny most days recently and I use a weak solution of soluble all purpose plant food once a week.
Here is a pic of one of my average plants: 

 

 

All plants are on average 35cm tall from the top of the growing medium (so not including the 125mm pots)

 

am I right in saying the bottom half of the plant is experiencing the different leaf placement you mentioned? 

Is this what is causing some of my lower leaves to brown and eventually die? (I have been told it's just an age thing)

 

Re:potting-up
Do you think it looks stressed?
If no and I only have to wait a couple of weeks for pre flowers I might just leave them in these pots and wait, the grow site is already prepared so can transfer them quickly when the time comes.

[louise]

All the leaves are still growing in pairs (opposite each other)... the dead leaves around the bottom are the result of insufficient food for the stage of growth. If the plant can't find enough nitrogen in the medium it will begin to rob nutrients from the oldest leaves to fuel the new growth at the top of the plant. This will happen again in late flowering but then it isn't anything to worry about...

 

I don't know which bit of vic you are in... so if you are in the south where the weather is still cool - you could raise the nutrient strength a touch... but if you are in the north - don't raise the nutrient strength in the current heat... you'll lose a few leaves before you get to planting them out but it's better than the extreme nutrient burn you can get by giving a strong feed on a hot day (hot as in like today which should peak here in the n.e. at 39C).

 

I don't think the plant pictured looks particularly stressed, granted with the weather we will have in the nth of the state next couple of days could be a problem for the small black pots (drying out and seriously overheating). What I am doing is giving the plants morning sun and then moving them into the shade for the afternoon.

 

If the plants are suffering from the size of the pot (root binding) you will notice that the leaves begin to droop similar to if they have a watering problem (although watering doesn't rectify the problem).

 

All in all, if they were my plants I wouldn't have really have any concerns apart from protecting them from the heat before planting out into open ground.

 

best of luck with it all, lou

Edited December 18, 2013 by louise

[greentoe]

Thanks lou,

will keep in current pots until pre flower and until then up the nutrient strength when the weather gets a bit cooler and move them out of the sun if its a really hot day.

 

Happy toking!

[louise]

Just keep an eye on moisture levels in the small pots, plants that size can transpire off a lot of water during a hot day.