Flushing before harvest

[Pure.Dope]

Is it necessary to flush the plant before harvest when using it for bubble? Or can I use nutrients right up to harvest?

[YukonBikerGuy]

IMHO you should flush before harvest to improve flavor and burnability anyway, even if you are just going to use it all for bubble.

[Bubbleman]

I've never seen a flush help the resin> the plant food gets stuck in the plant itself. ie the stalks and veg matter. The heads dont absorb nutrients in the same way.
I have had some terrible badly flushed herb that i made bubble into and found in no way harsh> I have also vaporized herb that burns with a near black ash, but vapes beautifuly.
has anyone else noticed this?

be good to hear from others..


Bubble man

[Green Supreme]

My first answer was no need to flush. After more thought I wonder if the flush would effect terpene profile in some way we have not yet analyzed. Definitely a topic worthy of more debate as well as more research. Peace GS

[positivevibes]

this is all theory
i think flushing tells the plant that it is time to
die ..................and 2 send all the nuts it has stored into
the resin

i persnly like it when the green color has left the plant......... 4 some reason it taste : ) better to me
but thats just me good luck
everybody






keep on shining

[Bubbleman]

guaranteed it would taste better if you were hitting the greenery, ie the herb. but the question i am posing is this.
will the resin taste better?
I have not noticed this to be so, have found herb that hasnt been flushed at all, still vaped or makes sick bubble.
Not sure the plant needs to know its dying so much to collect the profile, as long as we study the profile itself and figure out how it comes to maturity and things that affect or hinder that, is what i am dying to learn.
anyway im clearly rambling as im vaped out of my tree on sunsim's sourslut right now.


Bubble man

[johnnyballbag]

I don't really think flushing is necessary, but i said think....That's just my opinion. And i agree with you Bman, being a resin gland, it wouldn't be affected by flushing. If the argument was that flushing creates a last ditch effort to produce resin, then wouldn't you just have MORE of it? A color change in the leaves has nothing to do with the resin gland itself. Another reason i have a hard time believing flushing is good is because i've seen the most noticeable production of actual resin during the times you're supposed to be flushing. Just my 2 cents...

[petemoss]

I never used to flush. But after seeing so many experienced growers finishing with a two week flush, I've decided that I should too! Couldn't hurt.

[johnnyballbag]

I never used to flush. But after seeing so many experienced growers finishing with a two week flush, I've decided that I should too! Couldn't hurt.

You're right, couldn't hurt. But the most noticeable gains in resin and bud density usuall come in the last week or two. That's my only issue with flushing. I think a side by side should be done.

[Green Supreme]

Now I am not so sure that trichome production would be affected by food in the last weeks. Seems to me the trade off is bulk for taste. Look Amsterdam ward if you want too see what cannabis is like that is fed to the end. There they all mix their weed with tobacco so it burns. I have smoke plenty enough unflushed weed to know that ,for me , I would rather lose in yield to get something I like to smoke. Good luck however you choose. Peace GS

[vodkamartiny12]

I was under the influence that flushing is as necessary as trimming. In short your comprising product quality for mass. I can also account for buds not staying lit when not flushed properly in joints and blunts. Do nutrients if not flushed transfer into the smoker some how? I mean if your not smoking bubble off the plant your smoking the veggies aka "buds". Can someone think of a way to see if this is true... Kinda like bull hormones in beed transferring to humans.

Vodka

[johnnyballbag]

I don't see how feeding my plants would compromise quality. I still have a hard time believing that water magically pulls stuff out of plant cell walls. You have mobile nutrients, and immobile nutrients. Until someone drops some proof on the world as to what flushing actually does, i still think it's a cute practice....haha. I equate that thought the same as people who think they can tell a how a bud was grown just by smoking it (organic or not organic). I"ve had organically grown bud that didn't burn well, and hydroponically grown bud that didn't burn well. I've had flushed and unflushed....but it usually boils down to drying/curing process. I have 2 friends that both ran the same strain as me the last time, one did organic in soil, one used AN in a hydro setup. Only difference i noticed was one was dried and cured properly, one didn't seem to be. But that's just in my experience. I'm definitely going to do a side by side, flushed vs. unflushed.

[vodkamartiny12]

Well its not that the water pulls them out if the extra nutrients are there before the cut theylle be there after the cut. But if you dont nute the last week or so and flush then all the nutrients will be vigorously used up since those are the last bits of food the plant has. Who said the plant isnt still feeding on the nutes it has left in all the stalks and veg matter when you stop feeding it. once again in other words the residual nutes in the plant, those might come into play when it comes to taste and burning since curing is taking out the moisture whats left can be the residual nutes in the bud after the moisture dissappears.

Also flushing clears the soil of nute lock when the soil becomes over saturated with nutes and also is great for maintaining ph balances. :pipe:

Vodka

P.s correct me if you see mis information my memory is pretty dull... :confused:

[johnnyballbag]

But why starve the plant? In a natural state, outside, the plant recieves no flush. Yet anyone who knows won't dispute the fact that outdoor grown bud is by far the best. Another thing that strikes me as odd is when people suggest cutting co2 at the end of flowering. If anything, if you were wanting to "flush" the plant of built-up resouces, then using co2 would just speed up the process, making a 2 week flush a lil excessive.

[vodkamartiny12]

Good point i did not think about it that way. When it rains though the layers of soil naturally get flushed leaving a blank slate. when it rains worms also come out which creates a good source of nutes for plants the casting they leave behind. So in a way its like natures replenishing of the soil after it rains LOL.. :beaver:

Vodka

Ps in a natural enviorment growing naturally the only nutrients the plant gets is from its sorroundings organically ie decaying materials and castings as well as pure rain water. Im not saying nutes are bad but im just saying the bottles arnt directly getting plucked off a tree and packaged you know...

[Green Supreme]

Flushing with pure water and no nutes forces the plant to catabolize nutrients within the plant tissue to live. This causes the leaves to turn yellow. Leaving no nutients left in the plant material to inhibit a proper burn. These nutirents in the plant material of very green plants also affects the taste. Whether chemie or organic no flush = bad taste and poor burn with black ash. If that's the way you like your herbs who am I to say your wrong. Good luck regardless. Peace GS

[johnnyballbag]

Ok so whats an agreed standard of how long to flush?

[Green Supreme]

I feel standards have been set in very few areas of this field. I would say 2 weeks is in the mid range. Personally I use 2-3 weeks for indicas and 3-5 weeks with the sativas. The one thing I love about this plant is there are so many ways to grow her and really there is no right or wrong, just preferences. I used to use CO2 in the past as well. I never used it right to the end as it seemed to keep my Blueberry from finishing. It never allowed the final swell, so I gave it up. Peace GS

[johnnyballbag]

I agree GS! I love learning new things, or a new twist on something, or even just seeing something in a new light. I flush too, but have found that most people seem to go with the 2 week standard. I think more needs to be clarified though, as to how you're growin your plants(not you specifically GS). But i just don't like the 2 week flush thing for myself, 'cuz i'd run in rockwool with gas (never had a problem using it all the way to the end) and 2 weeks of just water would ruin my crop. With growth rates that high, you can get the desired effect in much less time. But i've also been using pro-mix lately, trying to switch it up a bit...and have noticed a longer flush is indeed better. And i bet with an organic soil rich in nutrients, a much longer flush would be perfectly fine, as i know a lot of growers who only use organic soil and rarely, if ever, use anything but water.

[Green Supreme]

I use pure chemies in a soiless mix. As to organics that's one of the tough parts. Because everything is in the soil, its harder to flush out at the end. Especially if the plants are in the ground. Hence the reason so much outdoor doesn't burn. Good to experiment man. No ones gonna do it for us. I used to grow more for production in the past, hence the CO2. Since then I have learned that if I want the best I can possibly make the numbers fail. In the end I am growing so I get to puff good herbs{and my bros too}. At some point we all have to decide between top quality and grams/watt, it's all in what you want. Peace GS

ps. no ones getting rich growing like me. Most growers would belittle my methods

[YukonBikerGuy]

Ditto. People often scoff at some of my methods. I grow so I can have quality herbs. With that as my end, my techniques will of course vary from someone who has a different goal, say pumping out as much weight as possible as fast as possible. I also have the luxury of being my only customer, so pleasing me with the best herb is always my goal. I grow in a soiless mix, with both chemie and organic nutes, and I flush for 2-3 weeks at the end. My single customer insists that his weed burns well and tastes good, picky bastard.

[TrueScience]

if your growing for purely bubble or vaporizing ---like bubbleman was asking --
there is no need for a flush - i have had this debate when i bought my volcano and bubblebags about 4 yrs ago,,
the taste is lmost identical when flushed from not flushed, i will go as far as to say the unflushed produced more glands than unflushed....not a huge difference but a noticable one

now if your growing with smoking your bud i say you must flush for a minimum of 2 weeks, it helps in the curing process which allows for the smoothest tastiest smoke.

this is just from my experience and tests with the strain Blue Dynamite grown hydropnicly
peace :)