🥒 14B – Pickled Lemon Haze F1 | Week 3
The Second Sister Takes the Crown
Welcome back to the Project Blue Tent, my little experiment where every plant receives individual attention from seed to harvest.
For anyone joining the journey for the first time, this project follows multiple Zamnesia Genetics grown side-by-side inside the same environment. Every phenotype gets its own diary so we can truly appreciate how genetics express themselves under identical conditions.
This week certainly wasn’t boring.
A malfunction in the irrigation system flooded the entire tent, leaving every growbag sitting in far more water than intended. Thankfully, the problem was caught quickly, the system was repaired, and every bag was allowed to drain naturally. Thanks to the incredible aeration of Plagron Cocos Premium, the roots never complained, oxygen remained available, and the plants simply carried on growing as if nothing had happened.
If anything, this little accident became another reminder that good substrates forgive our mistakes.
And this beautiful Pickled Lemon Haze F1 was no exception.
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Week 3 Development
She has been an absolute pleasure to watch.
Although sharing the same genetics as her sister, she’s already showing her own personality. Her structure became incredibly symmetrical during the week, producing thick internodes, broad leaves and, most importantly, exceptionally vigorous lower branching.
Sometimes a plant tells you exactly what she wants.
This one practically asked to be topped.
Instead of growing vertically with a single dominant apex, she was already investing heavily into her side branches, making this the perfect candidate to redirect her energy and begin building a much wider canopy.
Looking underneath the plant was enough to make the decision.
Healthy secondary shoots were already racing upward, ready to become future main colas.
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Why I Chose to Top This Plant
Many growers see topping as simply cutting the tip off.
It is actually much more than that.
The main growing tip naturally produces auxins that suppress the lower branches through what’s known as apical dominance. By removing that single growing tip, the plant redistributes hormones and allows the side branches to take over.
Instead of one dominant leader…
…we create several.
Since this Pickled Lemon Haze already had such impressive lower development, topping should allow those branches to explode with growth over the coming weeks, producing a much flatter, more even canopy.
For indoor cultivation, that means:
• Better light distribution
• More productive flowering sites
• Stronger structural balance
• Easier canopy management
Of course, topping is a high-stress technique, so timing matters.
I only perform it when the plant is completely healthy, actively growing, and has enough established nodes to recover immediately.
Judging by her response only days later, she barely noticed the haircut.
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A Tiny Surgery
Using the Zamnesia trimming scissors, I carefully removed the apical shoot just above the selected node.
One of my favorite macro photographs this week captures the fresh cut perfectly.
Looking through the lens, it almost resembles a tiny green well filled with crystal-clear sap. It is fascinating how much beauty exists in details we rarely notice with the naked eye.
Nature never disappoints.
The removed growing tip itself was almost too pretty to throw away.
Sometimes I think photographers become sentimental about the strangest things.
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Recovery
Recovery has been outstanding.
Within a very short time the remaining growth tips had already begun pointing upward, clearly responding to the hormonal redistribution.
There is no sign of stress, drooping or stalled development.
The stem continues thickening nicely, while the side branches seem eager to compete for dominance.
Exactly what I hoped to achieve.
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Environment
The entire tent continues sharing the exact same environmental conditions.
🌡️ Day temperature: 27°C
🌙 Night temperature: 25°C
💧 Relative humidity: 67%
🌱 Root zone: 24°C
💡 Light schedule: 18/6
⚡ EC: 1.61
💧 pH: 5.8
? Pot size: 8 L Plagron Premium Growbag
💨 CO₂: Ambient (~450 ppm)
Everything remains stable, giving the plants every opportunity to recover from both the flooding incident and the topping session without unnecessary stress.
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Feeding
As the plants continue accelerating their vegetative growth, I increased nutrition slightly.
Current feeding per litre:
• Plagron Hydro A — 1.6 ml/L
• Plagron Hydro B — 1.6 ml/L
• Plagron Hydro Roots — 1 ml/L
• pH adjusted to 5.8
The slight increase in EC is already being rewarded with faster growth and richer colour throughout the canopy.
The new growth remains bright lime green—a perfectly normal characteristic of rapidly dividing young tissue—while the older leaves continue holding a healthy medium green without burnt tips or nutrient deficiencies.
Everything points toward a happy, hungry plant.
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Looking Ahead
Now comes the fun part.
Over the next several days I’ll simply let nature do its work.
The goal is to allow the two new dominant tops to establish themselves while the lower branches continue stretching upward.
Once the canopy begins filling evenly, gentle LST will likely follow to keep every future flowering site exposed to as much light as possible.
She has all the ingredients to become a beautifully balanced bush.
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Thank you so much for stopping by and following another chapter of Project Blue Tent.
Every week these plants continue reminding me that growing isn’t just about producing flowers—it’s about observing, learning, adapting and appreciating how incredibly resilient these genetics can be.
I truly appreciate everyone who takes a few minutes to read, comment, share advice or simply enjoy the journey with me.
Happy growing, and I’ll see you all next week! 🌱💙
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PS
A huge thank you to all the amazing companies making this project possible.
💙 Zamnesia for the outstanding genetics, the fantastic trimming scissors that made this topping effortless, and for believing in this adventure from day one.
? Plagron for providing the Premium Growbags, Cocos Premium substrate and the Hydro nutrient line that continues delivering healthy, vigorous growth week after week.
Your support allows this project to become the detailed educational diary I always dreamed of creating.
Growers Love and see you all in Week 4! 🌿💙