Powdery mildew?

[bingobango]

A friend of mine is having a battle with PM, hes tried various things from neem oil to potassium bicarbonate. he now has a sulfer burner but, you can still find a couple of spots if you look.

Any body here have any advice on how to manage PM.
and do you think its safe to make bubble out of mildewy weed?

[YukonBikerGuy]

I hate PM. I find the best way to deal with it is avoid it. Keep grow spaces clean, first use a vacuum with a hepa filter to suck up all dust and dustbunnies, and then wipe everything down with a bleach solution between grows. At least once during the vegative stage I give a preventative spray of 1 Tbsp Neem oil and 5-6 drops of dish soap in a liter of warm water, and mist the plants well (shaking often) so the leaves are all wet on the top surfaces. If PM shows up, I have used the spray up to about 3 weeks before harvest, but too much Neem oil near the end of flowering can make your buds taste slightly of Neem oil. Low tempratures and high humidity in the grow room at night will promote the growth of PM, so keep it temperate (with a timed thermostatic heater) and under %50 humidity (I have to run a dehumidifier 24/7 for the last part of a cycle, and every night for the rest of it to maintain %50 or less humidity).

I have made hash from cannabis with PM, and it smoked just fine. As to the health risks... well, I'm not a doctor. I've done it, and lived, but in smokeables as in life, (IMO) you must decide for yourself personally what is an acceptable level of risk for anything you do. For myself, I'm sure I have injested many things more harmfull to my health than hash made from PM'd cannabis, so I'm not worried. Your health and lifestyle attitudes may be different than mine however, so I believe it comes down to your own choice. I know some people who would just smoke the PM buds, and some that would just throw them away, I'm in the middle.

[bingobango]

Thanks YBG. Your knowledge is very much apprecated.

I never noticed the bubble being any different. Ive smoked alot of bub from PM, it certanly makes u used to throwing buds in the bubblenow. We've ran like 5 or 6 full pants latley. big ones. 15gal pots. lots of hash though!!!

[johnnyballbag]

Hey YBG, what kinds of parameters have you found PM in? In other words, like what sort of temp ranges and humidity? I've never had it myself, which is surprising because i live in a valley where the humidity can get quite high at times. Have you ever had it hit during veg? Thanks mane.

[aqualungs]

I think a dehumidifier is key for this situation, use one in your grow room all the time.

[johnnyballbag]

I second that. I won't let my humidity get any higher than 50% in veg and 40% in flowering.

[ashesandglass]

i have struggled with PM a few times in the past myself......growing in oregon, the air can get super moist, and if you make the mistake of pulling your intake air from directly outside, this can cause PM in a constantly rainy place. Also, humidity is a huge part inside your room, and YGB had perfect advice. However, stray away from Neem strait up....i recently have been using Greenlight's Fruit Tree Spray, which has Neem and Pyrethrium (sp?) which is WAY more effective, and actually way more safe to use (they advertise "Use Up To Day Of Harvest!", but i dont know about that......) Really, keep using it until that shit disappears, and like YGB said, KEEP YOUR ROOM CLEAN! between runs get that room spotless and you can prevent it. the best way to get rid of powder is to not allow it in in the first place! if it gets in.....use GreenLight Fruit Tree Spray! hope this helps....

[YukonBikerGuy]

Hey YBG, what kinds of parameters have you found PM in? In other words, like what sort of temp ranges and humidity? I've never had it myself, which is surprising because i live in a valley where the humidity can get quite high at times. Have you ever had it hit during veg? Thanks mane.

The key seems to be low temps (below optimum) and humidity (above 50%) during the dark cycle, and yes it can happen in veg too. The plant in the back corner that gets little air circulation and little direct light on the backside will be the first attacked.

use GreenLight Fruit Tree Spray!

What is this? Got a link?

[ashesandglass]

Only been using this stuff for a year or so, but def has been working well...turned on to it by a buddy who manages a growshop here Oregon, http://www.greenlightco.com/products...ecticides.html
second one down..........good shit.

[YukonBikerGuy]

Darn link wont work.....