Explain SEA of GREEN

THE Roseman

We will use the terms VEG or VEGGING or GROW or GROWING to mean the growth period of the plant. This is the time you are trying to get a bigger plant, or more nodes and leaves. This is the FIRST Cycle. The Second Cycle is called BLOOM, BLOOMING, or BUD or BUDDING, or FLOWER or FLOWERING. This is the Cycle where lights are reduced to 12/12 to start the Flowering process of forcing the plant to produce flowers.

Sea of Green (SOG) is the process of growing lots of small plants, and VEGGED for a very short period of time, maturing early to get the fastest harvest of buds available. Instead of growing fewer plants for a long time, in the same space, many smaller plants are grown in the same size space, that mature faster in less time. Less time is required between plantings. Six plants can be grown in a crowded two or 3 square feet of grow space. One plant per square foot will allow more room for each plant to grow a large top cola, but will not allow for much bottom branching. That's alright since indoors, the bottom branches get less light unless side lights are used. But if you have room for SIDE LIGHTS, SOG may not be best for you. Emphasis on "may not". SOG is more frequently used for small grow spaces although commercial growers also use this method in large grow spaces.
Often in a SOG, plants are VEGGED for only two to 3 weeks, to only 6 to 8 inches in height, (in a HYDRO GROW, of course), and then BLOOMED or BUDDED for 8 weeks, giving a ten-week grow period. Normally, a plant is VEGGED 8 to 12 weeks, sometimes even 14 weeks in an outdoor natural grow.

In a SOG, the crowded plants create a "canopy", a sea of green, that allows very little light to penetrate deeply to the bottom growth. They are CROWDED !
The grower attempts to concentrate on the tops of the plants, and use the light and space to the best advantage, in as little time as possible. Using string to tie the tops or poultry fence laid out over the green canopy will support the plants as they start to droop under the weight of heavy tops. Indoor SOG is commonly grown in a small closet, the close walls helping to support the plants in the small space. It's common to want big plants, since they will produce more yield per plant, but it's debatably better with limited space to grow smaller plants that mature faster and packed into smaller spaces.
Sea of Green was first used in Amsterdam by commercial growers. Instead of fitting 4 large plants in a small room, they fit 12 small ones on a shelf above 12 other small plants. These plants take only 10 to 14 weeks to mature from germination to mature buds, and harvesting takes place constantly, since there is both a vegetative and flowering area devoted to each, with harvests every 49 to 70 days. It's not the size of the plant, but the maturity and quality of the buds that counts. Twice as many plants grown half as big will fill the grow space twice as fast, so harvests take place almost twice as often.
For HYDRO indoor SOG, no more than 1 plant per sq. ft. is a good rule of thumb. If less plants are grown in this size space, it will take them longer to fill the space, thus more electricity and time will be used to create the same amount of product. If more than one plant p.s.f. is attempted, the grower will soon find that plants thus crowded tend to be more stem than bud, and the total harvest may be reduced, so be cautious. You avoid "topping, pruning or trimming " your plants to avoid any stunting or putting them in SHOCK. What you want is FAST GROWTH! You can grow MORE plants in LESS space, harvesting MORE tops, more frequently.
SOG uses growing to only harvest the main cola (top) of the plant. Bottom branches are often trimmed to increase air flow under the "blanket" of growing tops. Use these cuttings for clones, as they are the easiest part of the plant to root.

I did my first two grows in the end of a small closet in a 6 grow-cup, 8 gallon reservoir. The six plants were started with seeds and were very crowded. I eventually got 3 females from both grows. When they were about 6 or 7 inches tall, maybe 8 inches tall, and two weeks old, I switched from 24/7 light to 12/12 light. I then let them grow for 8 weeks, a total of ten weeks. I got three very nice colas, I mean 3 beautiful colas that were awesome and big too. I got about one and a half to two ounces of FLUFF buds, small popcorn buds, that were sweet and tasty and sticky, but nothing like the 3 very large colas. All together I got just a little over 3 ounces of buds after drying and curing.
My 3rd GROW, I VEGGED almost 13 weeks, (instead of two)and BLOOMED for 9 more weeks. That is 22 weeks compared to ten weeks. My third grow I also used many extra side lights and I harvested 15 and half ounces of buds. BIG DIFFERENCE, but I had the time and the space.....and the patience!
Growers debate or argue what is best and i suggest you try both and learn from experience.

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Roseman
When you grow with Mother Nature, you Grow with God.
May Peace and Joy Be Your Companions.

Mogie

http://www.drugs-forum.com/growfaq/826.htm
The plantlet sea of green method was developed to maximize the speed of cannabis growing in limited height situations. In a typical sea of green setup of this type, clones are planted at densities as high as 9 per sq. ft. Within a short time after being established, the lights are switched to a 12 hour dark period.What happens to the planted clone?
The clone could just sit there, stretch a bit under the light regime, and flower, producing a tiny little bud with a couple of seeds. But that rarely, if ever, happens. Instead the clone takes off in a rush of growth, forming a woody main stem and branches. If the plant is suitable for sea of green growing, it will stop short of the lights and flower. Most indica dominated plants stop short enough to be grown using this method. That process is at the heart of the sea of green method, as it results in the smallest possible plant flowering in the quickest possible time.
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Note that SOG plants are really just "an apple on a stick," that is, the main cola, and perhaps a side bud or two, are cultivated.

This image is of a SOG grow by Overgrow poster Eugene. The plants are in 3 quart pots, which sit on a trough filled will planting medium.

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THE Roseman

Great Post, there, Mogie!

how you doing?

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Roseman
When you grow with Mother Nature, you Grow with God.
May Peace and Joy Be Your Companions.

green_nobody

^^right, nice addition to rose's starter post

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Keep the gun oiled and the thumb green!

http://www.pch.gc.ca/progs/cpsc-ccsp...Canada-eng.MP3