Light leaks and photoperiods

[YYCannabis]

Currently I’ve only grown autos and want to do a photo garden next. I realized today that the zipper on my tent has some weak spots (see pics). It made start to wonder just *how* sensitive are photos to light leaks during flower? Would those small zipper leaks cause issues from ambient room light getting through?

Cheers
YYC

[Farmbuck]

Can you cover those spots YY ? I grow photos and I always check the grow room for light leak before the big switch. Less chance for hermaphrodites.

[YYCannabis]

It’s actually light coming through the base of the little individual zip teeth. I can easily cover it from behind with a strip of felt if i need to. Would that little gap cause hermies?

[gbauto]

Just a thought...
On every outdoor grow, the girls are subjected to a monthly floodlight arcing across the night sky.
How come they don't hermie????

[YYCannabis]

Or how does one grow in the back yard with city street lights around?

[echdk3]

I’m very interested in the answer to this question as well, but even if the zippers are completely light-tight, what about the air inlet areas that are typically at the bottoms of most tents? Seems like that’s the weakest link as far as keeping light out. Right?

[YYCannabis]

Ive heard of guys covering them with cardboard and duct tape as extra precaution.

[echdk3]

Right but I need those vents open, how else is everyone getting fresh air in?

[MrPNW]

Secret Jardin makes a light baffle I’m thinking of getting so I can close up my little windows that are letting air in now. I just got my SJ Propagator 90 tent for cloning/mother. I like how they make their vents/holes wherever you want. Far less openings to close up.
Watch the videos, pretty slick.

https://www.secretjardin.com/?s=Light+baffle&lang=en

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qahpZo5ETCM&feature=emb_logo

If they have a ring large enough to fit around my Gorilla tent’s bottom draw cord opening I may put the baffle there.

[Eliot Pryor]

This is a controversial topic. I can tell you my own experience It is my experience from 7 years of growing. I have a hydro set up in my garage where I've grown and harvested many plants. At first I concerned myself greatly about light getting in during dark periods but over the years I got less and less concerned about light getting in. To the point that I am convinced that the intensity of the light in 12 hour cycles is the key factor for flowering. Currently I have 3 grow areas. Small areas. I have an auto on 24 hours light. I have 2 seedlings on 18/6. I have 2 that are in full flowers at 12/12. I've done it over and over. I think the hermie problem is from the seeds. OK guys put some love in it !!

[PeterMatanzas]

This .

[treetop]

That's really helpful. My experience suggests heat problems may play a bigger part in hermies

[stump]

I used some of this stuff and hung it with velcro tape. am not taking any chances lol .https://www.amazon.com/VIVOSUN-Black...%2C165&sr=8-52

[ChadWestport]

There is a study going right now that actually uses cannabis about how light leaks effect hermaphroditic traits. The question is what spectrums and what intensity will trigger this response in unstable strains. The moon lets off a certain amount of light, enough to see your shadow, so why don't all outdoor plants hermie? Thats essentially the question and it could be a number of things including the angle of light as well as the other two things I mention. But no one really wanted to ruin a crop to study it until now.

That being said, the tent I have used for many runs has similar, very small holes in a few places of the zipper stitching. I've never had an issue with it. You can toss a thick blanket over it as well, but if it is sitting in a generally dark room and your genetics are reasonably stable, you should be fine. If anything, maybe put a patch over it using velcro or made from electrical tape.

[dphipps1020]

I agree with Eliot Pryor this is a controversial subject. Some will say that any light leaks will turn a plant hermie. I have a pretty decent leak in my flower tent (see picture) that's been there for months now. I haven't bothered covering it because it hasn't affected anything yet. I've had a few ladies turn on me but I contribute it to the strain, not the leak. Main reason I say strain is because I usually have multiple strains going and only some of my ladies turned, mostly same strains. Needless to say I probably won't be growing those strains any more. I really don't think a small leak like that is going to do anything malicious to your girls. Just my thoughts.

[kingfish]

Now that is a light leak.

[dphipps1020]

Yeah, last litter of puppies I had decided they wanted to rip the flap completely off. So I turned it upside-down to use the Velcro on the top instead of the bottom. It's really not even stuck good any more 😂 needless to say I will have no more puppies.

[ChadWestport]

When there is a small light leak like that dphipps1020 and there is a hermie or two, I always like to take note of the position of the plant that hermied. Sometimes if it is always the one next to the known leak or in the same position every time, then I may suspect the light leak playing a role in the hermie trait. But again, there isn't a threshold that has been defined as of now.

[dphipps1020]

I did. They were actually in the middle of the tent, not even really close to the leak. Went through a few grows with the same strains and they hermied every time. Yet no issues with the other strains, ever. Weird part is that they didn't continue producing pollen sacs. They produced a few, I removed what I saw, and they never came back. It's pretty disappointing because they were bag seed from some pretty good dispensary weed and I got a lot of them but don't want the rest of my buds to be seedy. I may do individual grows in a 4x4 of them in the future, but for now it's mothers and clones.

[9fingerleafs]

Im an outdoor grower. If the moon doesnt turn them hermie a hole in the zipper wont either

[Farmbuck]

Ok then if most of us think light leak during 12/12 indoor it's not much a problem then why so may articles about it ??

I've been growing indoor all my life and never had a hermie issue.

https://www.maximumyield.com/the-eff...ative%20growth.

[SoOrbudgal]

I have pin hole like that pic not worried at all about it.

[PeterMatanzas]

Last year a timer broke and lights were on 16 hours. I kept the plants in total darkness for +24 hours and they turned out most excellent anyway. No hermies.

[PeterMatanzas]

Im an outdoor grower. If the moon doesnt turn them hermie a hole in the zipper wont either

This is a damn good point and my view also. (Grows in Smokey Mtns)

[9fingerleafs]

Also have some indirect light contamination from a window close to my veg room but it’s minimal compared to the full moon brightness

[Bowhunterwoody]

I grow outdoors also, and even use my deck where I grow to use the grill after dark. Have big motion detector flood lights out there. Three years and no problems. I've only used bag seeds which tend to hermie and no issues at all.

[JohnEmad]

I have grown photos in 2 tents with vents open at the bottom to allow for passive air flow and have low intensity light hitting one of them all the time but no hermies for 2 grows like that. makes me question the light theory as well.

[ChadWestport]

Oh its real, leave your lights on the wrong schedule for a week in flower. But at the level we are discussing here, I'm not too worried about it myself.