The True Cycle of a Cannabis Plant and Yellowing Leaves

Guitar Man

Guitar Man

Well-Known Member
In attempting to understand the nature and cycle of a Cannabis plant, many conclude that knowing when a plant is finished is easily seen by watching all of the plants changes, which include; buds are no longer are swelling. Pistils have receded and have turned orange. Trichomes are cloudy/amber via a certain percentage. The strain's approximate flowering cycle in weeks. Leaves have/are turning yellow.

I believe a grower can see when a plant is ready by watching all of these "Signals", without even using a special scope to see when the Trics are a certain color, as Tric color can be seen with the naked eye. But the key is, making sure the plant is "Done".

Now, my real purpose of starting this Thread is to discuss the yellowing of leaves. I have talked to growers who feel that keeping fan leaves green all the way up to harvest is good and that yellowing of leaves at this stage is not the best for a maturing Cannabis plant.

I have done research on this subject, and the Cannabis plant in the wild can tell us something about how she will finish out her life during the final stages of maturity. In the wild, Cannabis will die at the end of Flowering, so the seeded buds can drop into the ground for the next natural grow. This seems logical as we all know that Cannabis didn't come from our Grow Room/Closet.

We also should consider that Cannabis in the wild does die, and the leaves will turn yellow during maturity. I've watched many growers, including myself, become nervous when leaves begin yellowing during the last 2-3 weeks of Flowering, wondering if we over/under-nuted. I'm not so sure that this "Stress" is warranted, as we are simply watching what Cannabis does in the wild, and, this is a firm signal that our plant is entering the final phase of Flowering.

Trying to maintain green leaves all the way and into the final stage of Flowering seems to not only be unnatural, but also confuses a grower to when the plant is actually finished, as this is an important signal to know when to cut our plant(s) down. We also see some comparison to this when we watch Fall colors change our plants/trees during a certain time of year, letting us know the firm signal of a season via a plants color change.

It appears that a Cannabis plant will begin to digest the sugars/proteins/nutrients left over in the green leaves and this is what helps the buds develop fully in potency, size, and readiness. This also gives the grower confidence in the plants development and the time when she is really ready for Harvest.

Just some thoughts of mine...peace GM
 
Cooter@666

Cooter@666

Well-Known Member
Guitar Man said:
In attempting to understand the nature and cycle of a Cannabis plant, many conclude that knowing when a plant is finished is easily seen by watching all of the plants changes, which include; buds are no longer are swelling. Pistils have receded and have turned orange. Trichomes are cloudy/amber via a certain percentage. The strain's approximate flowering cycle in weeks. Leaves have/are turning yellow.

I believe a grower can see when a plant is ready by watching all of these "Signals", without even using a special scope to see when the Trics are a certain color, as Tric color can be seen with the naked eye. But the key is, making sure the plant is "Done".

Now, my real purpose of starting this Thread is to discuss the yellowing of leaves. I have talked to growers who feel that keeping fan leaves green all the way up to harvest is good and that yellowing of leaves at this stage is not the best for a maturing Cannabis plant.

I have done research on this subject, and the Cannabis plant in the wild can tell us something about how she will finish out her life during the final stages of maturity. In the wild, Cannabis will die at the end of Flowering, so the seeded buds can drop into the ground for the next natural grow. This seems logical as we all know that Cannabis didn't come from our Grow Room/Closet.

We also should consider that Cannabis in the wild does die, and the leaves will turn yellow during maturity. I've watched many growers, including myself, become nervous when leaves begin yellowing during the last 2-3 weeks of Flowering, wondering if we over/under-nuted. I'm not so sure that this "Stress" is warranted, as we are simply watching what Cannabis does in the wild, and, this is a firm signal that our plant is entering the final phase of Flowering.

Trying to maintain green leaves all the way and into the final stage of Flowering seems to not only be unnatural, but also confuses a grower to when the plant is actually finished, as this is an important signal to know when to cut our plant(s) down. We also see some comparison to this when we watch Fall colors change our plants/trees during a certain time of year, letting us know the firm signal of a season via a plants color change.

It appears that a Cannabis plant will begin to digest the sugars/proteins/nutrients left over in the green leaves and this is what helps the buds develop fully in potency, size, and readiness. This also gives the grower confidence in the plants development and the time when she is really ready for Harvest.

Just some thoughts of mine...peace GM
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Try both styles and figure it out for yourself. You'll hear good advice from both sides of the conversation, but in the end your own real world experiences will set you free.
 
junker1

junker1

Well-Known Member
Guitar Man said:
In attempting to understand the nature and cycle of a Cannabis plant, many conclude that knowing when a plant is finished is easily seen by watching all of the plants changes, which include; buds are no longer are swelling. Pistils have receded and have turned orange. Trichomes are cloudy/amber via a certain percentage. The strain's approximate flowering cycle in weeks. Leaves have/are turning yellow.

I believe a grower can see when a plant is ready by watching all of these "Signals", without even using a special scope to see when the Trics are a certain color, as Tric color can be seen with the naked eye. But the key is, making sure the plant is "Done".

Now, my real purpose of starting this Thread is to discuss the yellowing of leaves. I have talked to growers who feel that keeping fan leaves green all the way up to harvest is good and that yellowing of leaves at this stage is not the best for a maturing Cannabis plant.

I have done research on this subject, and the Cannabis plant in the wild can tell us something about how she will finish out her life during the final stages of maturity. In the wild, Cannabis will die at the end of Flowering, so the seeded buds can drop into the ground for the next natural grow. This seems logical as we all know that Cannabis didn't come from our Grow Room/Closet.

We also should consider that Cannabis in the wild does die, and the leaves will turn yellow during maturity. I've watched many growers, including myself, become nervous when leaves begin yellowing during the last 2-3 weeks of Flowering, wondering if we over/under-nuted. I'm not so sure that this "Stress" is warranted, as we are simply watching what Cannabis does in the wild, and, this is a firm signal that our plant is entering the final phase of Flowering.

Trying to maintain green leaves all the way and into the final stage of Flowering seems to not only be unnatural, but also confuses a grower to when the plant is actually finished, as this is an important signal to know when to cut our plant(s) down. We also see some comparison to this when we watch Fall colors change our plants/trees during a certain time of year, letting us know the firm signal of a season via a plants color change.

It appears that a Cannabis plant will begin to digest the sugars/proteins/nutrients left over in the green leaves and this is what helps the buds develop fully in potency, size, and readiness. This also gives the grower confidence in the plants development and the time when she is really ready for Harvest.

Just some thoughts of mine...peace GM
Click to expand...
Nice post. I would love to read some others thoughts about this.
 
Guitar Man

Guitar Man

Well-Known Member
Cooter@666 said:
Try both styles and figure it out for yourself. You'll hear good advice from both sides of the conversation, but in the end your own real world experiences will set you free.
Click to expand...
Cooter, but do you agree with this realistic approach towards proper maturation? The only reason I'm calling this, "Realistic", is because of basing the finishing stage of a Cannabis plant from actual events in nature. I know we tweak and manipulate our plants in the environments we create, but causing a plant to maintain green leaves, when they should be yellow, the plant itself is wondering where the cycle actually is.
 
AimAim

AimAim

Well-Known Member
I'll chime in with my opinion and take it at that. Most every agricultural product I have experience with turns yellow as it matures: soybeans, corn, wheat, etc. It's just part of the plant's life cycle as it "shuts down". It's has made it's seed (which is the goal of every species of plant), and has no further need to photosynthesize. Game over.

We prevent MJ from pollinating so it tries to keep growing female flowers and makes those big buds we shoot for. If allowed to pollinate and form seeds it shuts down on it's own, no amount of N fert will keep it green.

So I like to keep my plants green and growing to the extent possible, as long as possible, but don't lose any sleep as they yellow late in life.

Also I don't believe fertilizing late in the cycle makes bud harsh, and I certainly don't believe flushing does anything positive to improve a grow in soil.

Just my opinions.
 
bird mcbride

bird mcbride

Well-Known Member
I know if I underfeed(water) my moms they'll get yellow leaves. I believe yellow leaves are a sign of root damage or insufficient uptake. Larger plants have larger root mass than smaller plants and are more prone to root damage from eccessive fertilizer or under, overfeeding(watering), PH etc than smaller plants. Even a young plant can suffer a yellow leaf. I would concern myself more with the new growth and how they are doing compared to the norm.
 
qwizoking

qwizoking

Well-Known Member
I grow landrace sat's..
And its impossible to keep the leaves green past about 16 weeks..they lose their first set about that time and leaves at the base of the buds will extend and become the next set..like a shark losing teeth....even if n toxed this will happen..has nothing to do with nutes
Not all my Sativas go through this extra set of leaves..but all will yellow again even if n toxed
Yes go read about senscence and the formation of abscission layers in leaves
 
PetFlora

PetFlora

Well-Known Member
For 3+ years I have grown constantly, using various hydro methods under both leds and hot5s. Not a single yellow leaf all the way through flush

Sat dom WHxWW when pic taken ~ 7-10 days left.

Melanie .jpgMelanie Top Right.jpgMelanie Top Left.jpg
 
Cooter@666

Cooter@666

Well-Known Member
Guitar Man said:
Cooter, but do you agree with this realistic approach towards proper maturation? The only reason I'm calling this, "Realistic", is because of basing the finishing stage of a Cannabis plant from actual events in nature. I know we tweak and manipulate our plants in the environments we create, but causing a plant to maintain green leaves, when they should be yellow, the plant itself is wondering where the cycle actually is.
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Brah @AimAim nailed it, and i agree with what he stated
 
BlackGoose

BlackGoose

Member
I think it makes very good sense. That also leads to another question of why does the female flower suck all the nutes from its own leaves right before death? Keep in mind this is after the seed has matured... To me it seems logical that this would be so that the flower could serve as a small base of composted nutrients for the seedling to get a decent start in next season.

This is also a little off topic, but thinking from natures side of things it also helped form a new theory on "hermed" plants. I'm actually referring to a female plant stressed to showing male flowers, which isn't actually a true hermaphrodite. But it seems that if the female plant is stressed before it could finish its cycle its gonna throw out a few male flowers that don't carry any Y chromosomes, cause it wants to ensure a copy of itself since it didn't get to finish its cycle. I thinks that's why we get the fem seeds from our stressed females. Lets face it! Females are stubborn.... but they have the right to be. :peace::peace:
 
Guitar Man

Guitar Man

Well-Known Member
PetFlora said:
For 3+ years I have grown constantly, using various hydro methods under both leds and hot5s. Not a single yellow leaf all the way through flush

Sat dom WHxWW when pic taken ~ 7-10 days left.

View attachment 2928301View attachment 2928302View attachment 2928303
Click to expand...
Here is a picture of my current grow, with 1-2 weeks left before harvest. This is my third grow with this strain and my best, so far. I keep tweaking and trying different things to obtain optimal results. She does have yellow leaves, but is healthy and is ready to cross the finish line with some super, quality, strong medicine. I will get about a 1/2 pound from this lady.

IMHO, your plants don't look ready for chop, chop. The white pistils, standing strait up on your buds and the lack of swelling are a strong indication that your plants are not ready.

100_5145.jpg
 
Guitar Man

Guitar Man

Well-Known Member
bird mcbride said:
I know if I underfeed(water) my moms they'll get yellow leaves. I believe yellow leaves are a sign of root damage or insufficient uptake. Larger plants have larger root mass than smaller plants and are more prone to root damage from eccessive fertilizer or under, overfeeding(watering), PH etc than smaller plants. Even a young plant can suffer a yellow leaf. I would concern myself more with the new growth and how they are doing compared to the norm.
Click to expand...
Not exactly sure where you are going with this post, but I'll try to respond. First, I'm not discussing the yellowing of leaves during veg and the early and middle stages of flowering. I'm talking about the yellowing of leaves at the end of flowering, when the Cannabis plant will die because the cycle of growth is complete.

You are correct about watching for any extremes during a grow (over/under watering. over/under nutes.), which could affect the final stages of flowering. But usually an experienced grower will detect any signs of extremes long before harvest, keeping everything on track for a good crop.
 
AimAim

AimAim

Well-Known Member
BlackGoose said:
I think it makes very good sense. That also leads to another question of why does the female flower suck all the nutes from its own leaves right before death?
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The nutrients that it sucks out of leaves have already been uptaken, converted, and assimilated within the plant, all of which takes energy. The plant is being energy efficient (lazy) and is tapping into nutes it already has on board, i.e. translocating them. Makes sense, plants evolved to be energy efficient.

Kinda like why drive to the grocery store for 5 pounds sugar when you have 5 pounds in the cabinet.
 
Brokeoldbloke

Brokeoldbloke

Active Member
GM interesting thread, Do plants in the wild die because of old age or that they completed their mission for survival? Parts for sure but the whole plant? I think it's because of a reaction to changes in their environment. Light, temp, moisture, etc. Some people harvests tops then continue to flower or harvest reveg and flower again. If we changed the environmental conditions of the wild plants like we do with indoor would they produce more or live through multiple cycles?
 
AimAim

AimAim

Well-Known Member
Brokeoldbloke said:
GMDo plants in the wild die because of old age or that they completed their mission for survival? Parts for sure but the whole plant?
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Generally, once a plant has been pollinated and ripened viable seed it's job is done and it will check out. Of course there are annual, biannual, and perennial plants.
 
mrCRC420

mrCRC420

Well-Known Member
I harvest my plant when it looks like an over-ripe banana that I'd use for banana bread or a smoothie... Still clearly full of goodness, but right on the edge of being "too dank" - Weed:Banana, weird I know, but y'all are smart cookies, you know what I mean. Some of my strains have leaves that turn yellow at the end of flowering, some strains stay green throughout. I wouldn't say one is better than the other. But I would say that letting the plant progress naturally is important. If the leaves want to turn yellow, I will certainly let them.
 
nevyn

nevyn

Member
Nice thread OP, a lot of what you say makes sense and some excellent info from the commentators, thanks guys. Most weed in my country is outdoor, we have the climate for it, and when I sneak into those plantations to grab a quick bud or two, I have seen dying and yellowing leaves, all the time. These are Rasta plantations btw, I hope they never catch me though, they have knives and machetes.
 
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