Ash and budrot?

Mrs. Weedstein

Mrs. Weedstein

Well-Known Member
I brought this up in another thread but decided it might be worth having as a standalone topic.

During the Oregon wildfires last month, my plants got covered in ash despite being in a hoophouse.

Folks advised me to wash it off but I was reluctant to do so, due to fear of bud rot from getting the plants wet. They were already flowering pretty heavily.

Now we had a few days of rain and I’ve got bud rot out the wazoo, even though my plants are covered.

Is it likely that the ash got stuck in the buds as they grew and then absorbed moisture, adding to the problem?

I am at a loss why else the bus rot problem would be so severe. It was less severe last year even though my crop was directly rained upon before I built the hoophouse.

The varieties were similar in that they were the parents of this year’s cultivars. I wouldn’t expect the progeny to be more susceptible than the parents.
 
go go kid

go go kid

Well-Known Member
ash is basic , potassium and sodium carbonate/hydroxide can be extracted out of the ash of soft and hardwood ash from a fire with water. so your plants have been covered in a nasty basic mixture of ash from the fires and then water in the atmosphere must have activated it burning the flowers and caused rot to form.
ash gets everyware, just like the dust with people who live in the dust bowl get.
sounds devastating
 
The Gram Reaper

The Gram Reaper

Well-Known Member
Mrs. Weedstein said:
I brought this up in another thread but decided it might be worth having as a standalone topic.

During the Oregon wildfires last month, my plants got covered in ash despite being in a hoophouse.

Folks advised me to wash it off but I was reluctant to do so, due to fear of bud rot from getting the plants wet. They were already flowering pretty heavily.

Now we had a few days of rain and I’ve got bud rot out the wazoo, even though my plants are covered.

Is it likely that the ash got stuck in the buds as they grew and then absorbed moisture, adding to the problem?

I am at a loss why else the bus rot problem would be so severe. It was less severe last year even though my crop was directly rained upon before I built the hoophouse.

The varieties were similar in that they were the parents of this year’s cultivars. I wouldn’t expect the progeny to be more susceptible than the parents.
Click to expand...
Is it possible to treat/wash off both at the same time? Cut off the rotted stuff, then try to get as much airflow through the hoop house as possible until you can harvest. I am not sure how bud rot spreads, if cutting off the infected stops it from spreading.

If you think the issue can't be controlled it might be best to harvest what you can. Not trying to be a downer. Peroxide diluted in a bucket of water takes off a lot of stuff, like dirt and PM, it might take off the ash.
 
Mrs. Weedstein

Mrs. Weedstein

Well-Known Member
go go kid said:
ash is basic , potassium and sodium carbonate/hydroxide can be extracted out of the ash of soft and hardwood ash from a fire with water. so your plants have been covered in a nasty basic mixture of ash from the fires and then water in the atmosphere must have activated it burning the flowers and caused rot to form.
ash gets everyware, just like the dust with people who live in the dust bowl get.
sounds devastating
Click to expand...
That’s very helpful but could you elaborate a little bit? Is there something particular to the potassium or sodium carbonate/hydroxide that would make the flower susceptible to bud rot?
 
Southerner

Southerner

Well-Known Member
go go kid said:
ash is basic , potassium and sodium carbonate/hydroxide can be extracted out of the ash of soft and hardwood ash from a fire with water. so your plants have been covered in a nasty basic mixture of ash from the fires and then water in the atmosphere must have activated it burning the flowers and caused rot to form.
ash gets everyware, just like the dust with people who live in the dust bowl get.
sounds devastating
Click to expand...
wood ash maybe, but there’s way more nasty things in a wildfire in area with humans living.
 
go go kid

go go kid

Well-Known Member
ill try, the action of moisture on the ash activates it, drawing out the potassium hydroxide LYE, Lye is very caustic and corrosive. It burns skin, causes blindness, and can damage organic tissue and inorganic materials. PLUS any other water soluble nasties in the ash. lye loves water, water activates lye
so theyve basicly been hit by a dose of lye, burning the delicate flowers. when adding woodash to a grow ,they allways state never to get it on the leaves or flowers, just the soil.
if its been a month, you have a months worth of lye burn to your flowers, and in that time its caused bud rot to form.
 
Kassiopeija

Kassiopeija

Well-Known Member
Mrs. Weedstein said:
That’s very helpful but could you elaborate a little bit? Is there something particular to the potassium or sodium carbonate/hydroxide that would make the flower susceptible to bud rot?
Click to expand...
Ash is quite high in these ingredients and will basically burn the plant tissue if exposition is too long. There's also the pH change which may prevent the plant from properly reacting to this situation.

Water, or high rH, doesn't cause mold in itself, but dead plant tissue, which dries, then soaks up water, after which spores can break out. Once the spores form mold, the fungi will be able to invade even healthy plant tissue by injecting toxins into it - killing the tissue first before growing right into it. You see, fungi spores are everywhere anyway, but usually they cannot form a hold. Especially not during veg, when the plant constantly builds fresh plant tissue. But late in flower, a plant "forgets" some items, such as preflowers or staminata primordia, which are inside the colas, and it's there where usually botrytis etc starts.

The Gram Reaper said:
I am not sure how bud rot spreads, if cutting off the infected stops it from spreading.
Click to expand...
Yes, one need to remove the befallen parts very generous, as the real fungi speads further than is visible. Once the visible mycel shows, the fungi has already expanded further on the inside, as the mycel is the last step in its cycle, yet the first we can see (without IR detection)
 
Mrs. Weedstein

Mrs. Weedstein

Well-Known Member
Kassiopeija said:
Ash is quite high in these ingredients and will basically burn the plant tissue if exposition is too long. There's also the pH change which may prevent the plant from properly reacting to this situation.

Water, or high rH, doesn't cause mold initself, but dead plant tissue, which dries, then soaks up water, after which spores can break out. Once the spores form mold, the fungi will be able to invade even healthy plant tissue by injecting toxins into it - killing the tissue first before growing right into it. You see, fungi spores are everywhere anyway, but usually they cannot form a hold. Especially not during veg, when the plant constantly builds fresh plant tissue. But late in flower, a plant "forgets" some items, such as preflowers or staminata primordia, which are inside the colas, and it's there where usually botrytis etc starts.


Yes, one need to remove the befallen parts very generous, as the real fungi speads further than is visible. Once the visible mycel shows, the fungi has already expanded further on the inside, as the mycel is the last step in its cycle, yet the first we can see (without IR detection)
Click to expand...
Wow that is badass thank you so much!

That is such a wonderfully articulate and well explained answer that I am basically in awe.

I have argued with the admins of RIU about some shit but there is definitely a reservoir of expertise here.

With such thoughtful help on cannabis production, I can’t help but think that RIU would be better off getting rid of the idiotic politics section like 420mag has done.

But that’s not my prerogative.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top