This study uses artificial light to replicate the daylength during summer and fall in Afghanistan when marijuana goes from vegetative to flowering plant and on to seed set, if pollinated, or parthenocarpia if not. Although the study uses 6500K mercury vapor or 4000K metal halide HID light or 6500K fluorescent and 2845K incandescent light during the vegetative and flowering photoperiods, UVB photons will have to be added to the light stream of the photoperiod after the floral bract ovum has been fertilized or has become parthenocarpic in order for there to be fully realized THC in the exuded resin sphere of the capitate-stalked glandular trichome.

MARIJUANA VEGETATIVE PHOTOPERIOD
4000K or 6500K light
ON: 5am OFF: 9pm
08:00 hours darkness

30 Seeds are planted so they germinate early in December. When the seedlings reach five nodes in growth, 21 are transplanted to one-gallon pots and the vegetative photoperiod continued until May 1st. On that date, the photoperiods begin to be adjusted weekly. From July 5 (14:30 hours) to September 12 (12:30 hours) the daylength at N35Lat is shorter by an average of two minutes each day or about 15 minutes a week. When the plants show their sex, isolate the males from the females to prevent premature pollination.

NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: The original flowering lighting schedule presumed that it would take place in a greenhouse where supplemental sunlight--and orange/red wavelengths--would be available to the plants during the photoperiod. The current flowering lighting schedule does not presume that there will be supplemental sunlight and therefore the incandescent light is ON for the entire photoperiod--instead of just for an hour at the beginning and end of the photoperiod.

May 1st
1ST WEEK (same as July 5 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @ 5:15am and turns off @ 7:45pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @ 6:15am and turns off @ 6:45pm
09:30 hours darkness

May 8th
2ND WEEK (same as July 19 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @ 05:30am and turns off @ 07:45pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @ 06:30am and turns off @ 06:45pm
09:45 hours darkness

May 15th
3RD WEEK (same as July 30 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @ 5:30am and turns off @ 7:30pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @ 6:30am and turns off @ 6:30pm
10:00 hours darkness

May 22nd
4TH WEEK (same as August 8 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @ 5:45am and turns off @ 7:30pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @ 6:45am and turns off @ 6:30pm
10:15 hours darkness

May 29th
5TH WEEK (same as August 15 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @5:45am and turns off @ 7:15pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @ 6:45am and turns off @ 6:15pm
10:30 hours darkness

June 5th
6TH WEEK (same as August 23 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @6:00am and turns off @7:15pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @7:00am and turns off @6:15pm
10:45 hours darkness

June 12th
7TH WEEK (same as August 30 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @6:00am and turns off @7:00pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @7:00am and turns off @6:00pm
11:00 hours darkness

June 19th
8TH WEEK (same as September 6 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @6:15am and turns off @7:00pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @7:15am and turns off @6:00pm
11:15 hours darkness

June 26
9TH WEEK (same as September 12 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @6:15am and turns off @6:45pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @7:15am and turns off @5:45pm
11:30 hours darkness

September 12th is the latest to bring pollen shedding male plants to outdoor hetrozygous female plants to begin pollination if fertilized ovum is the route chosen to trigger the capitate-stalked glandular trichome into growth before the autumnal equinox. But because the effect of the simulated photoperiods is not seen for a week, June 30 will more closely approximate the floral bract development of September 12. Remove the plastic sheeting that separates the males from the females and integrate the sexes. Shake the male plants occasionally to release pollen and then blow or fan it toward the nearby females. Marijuana is a wind-pollenated plant so it will be necessary to simulate some kind of breeze to get the plants thoroughly pollenated. Pollination of hetrozygous marijuana always brings in an earlier crop than will hetrozygous marijuana parthenocarpy. But if parthenocarpy is the route chosen, then the male plants are turned into hemp as soon as they show their sex. If the UVB photon is present in the light stream, approximately five to six weeks are required for the majority of the exuded resin spheres to contain fully realized THC once the capitate-stalked glandular has been triggered into growth. This is why the author recommends, after pollination or onset of parthenocarpia, the plants be moved outdoors each day from 9am to 3pm into a structure whose covering will hide the marijuana but let the UVB photons in sunlight through to energize the phytochemical process to make fully realized THC. The manipulation of the photoperiod to have the capitate-stalked glandular trichome make its appearance when the level of UVB is intense enough to cause a naked caucasoid to become sunburned in the northern latitudes above the Tropic of Cancer is the way to go for the medical marijuana patient who wants more than a placebo effect from the harvest. Sunburn is a key indicator that there are enough UVB photons in the sunlight to make fully realized THC. If the outdoor scene is out of the question, then specialized incandescent bulbs that can project 25 to 50 µW/cm2 of UVB for a distance of up to 12 inches can be used instead with good results. The infrared wavelengths from this bulb make it difficult to get any closer than eight inches or so to the foral bract cluster without burning; if the bulb is moved further away than 12 inches, the inverse square law comes into play and the UVB µW/cm2 is so small as to be useless for the purpose of fueling the phytochemical reaction that makes fully realized THC.
July 3rd
10TH WEEK (same as September 19 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @6:30am and turns off @6:45pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @7:30am and turns off @5:45pm
11:45 hours darkness

July 10th
11TH WEEK (same as September 26 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @6:30am and turns off @6:30pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @7:30am and turns off @5:30pm
12:00 hours darkness

July 17th
12TH WEEK (same as October 3 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @6:45am and turns off @6:30pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @7:45am and turns off @5:30pm
12:15 hours darkness

July 24th
13TH WEEK (same as October 10 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @6:45am and turns off @6:15pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @7:45am and turns off @5:15pm
12:30 hours darkness

July 31th
14TH WEEK (same as October 17 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @7:00am and turns off @6:15pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @8:00am and turns off @5:15pm
12:45 hours darkness

August 7th
15TH WEEK (same as October 23 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @7:00am and turns off @6:00pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @8:00am and turns off @5:00pm
13:00 hours darkness

Marijuana pollinated June 26th may have a majority of seeds ripe in some of the floral bract clusters. Clip the most likely candidate and check it out, leaving plenty of wood with the floral bract clusters to slow the drying. After removing the basal leaves and cutting the tips off of the remaining leaves, place the trimmed marijuana in a paper bag (grocery type). Leave the top of the bag open. Place the bag on the front seat of a car with its windows rolled up. Face the car South so the sun comes through the front windshield. When the marijuana is dry, check the number of ripe seeds; then smoke the dried floral bract cluster, without the seeds, in a water pipe with a clean bowl and screen to see if harvesting should begin. The reason a clean bowl and screen is recommended is because igniting the gunk left behind from previous smokes will trigger a tremendous cough reflex, and this will definitely interfere with the uptake of THC. Metal bowls and screens can be cleaned rather easily of this gunk by holding them with a pair of pliers and putting them in the gas flame of one of the burners on the kitchen stove. The residue gunk burns with a bright yellow flame. Once the flame and smoke are gone, the bowl and stainless steel screen can be cooled off with cold water at the sink and the inside of the bowl wiped dry with a paper towel which will also get the soot out. Some running water and an old toothbrush will put the finishing touch to the screen.

August 14th
16TH WEEK (same as October 31 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @7:15am and turns off @6:00pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @8:15am and turns off @5:00pm
13:15 hours darkness

The majority of seeds in the pollinated marijuana should be ripe by now and the harvest complete. Parthenocarpic plants not ready to harvest yet but are showing "grease" on the enlarged floral bract and concomitant leaves.

August 21th
17TH WEEK (same as November 8 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @7:15am and turns off @5:45pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @8:15am and turns off @4:45pm
13:30 hours darkness

August 28th
18TH WEEK (same as November 17 @ N35Lat)
2845K light turns on @7:30am and turns off @5:45pm
4000K/6500K light turns on @8:30am and turns off @4:45pm
13:45 hours darkness
The parthenocarpic hetrozygous marijuana is ready to harvest beginning September 1st. The views expressed here by the writer are his alone except where indicated.

Click here to see a PDF file of MARIJUANA FLOWERING that can be saved to your computer.

Copyright (c) 2003 (rev. 2004 2005) by George Grass.