New Grower Varieties with ruderalis genes more attractive to aphids ?

[Ratatosk]

Hello !

In our greenhouse, we grew :

• Rapid Afghan auto
• Vertigo auto
• Fast Haze auto
• Auto Mega Bud
• Durban Poison regular feminized
• Ice Cream regular feminized
• Frisian Dew regular feminized

ALL autos had aphids, 2 not too much and 2 very much.
NO regulars had aphids ! None !
They grew close to each other...

The only conclusion possible is that ruderalis genetics produce some substance(s) attractive to aphids or that the skin of these plants is easier for these insects.

What do you think ?

 

[stonemaster]

I think you had identified another genetic defect in this line. So far the problems as I see them are a weekness their first trimester requiring an indoor start, a lack of ability to take high doses of nitrigen in the second trimester and now a problem fighting off parisites. A healthy photo defends herself from insects. When I see insect damage on one , I start looking for whatever the problem was that weakened the plant enough to let insects bother it. Having said that my outside autos had no problem with bugs. You said your photos in the room did fine. I just started growing again after 30 years and thought the autos had solved the problems we faced then. So I am a old photo grower taking a fresh look at these new strains. They have a great space they can fill, a early harvest, but have many problems to be fixed. I am going to work on the first trimester problem for now, hope that hardiness will carry over to the second, letting the plant gro to the limit of nutreints avalable to it, not the limit of small amounts.

 

[Muddy]

I've grown many dozens of autos outdoors and never had an aphid problem. Spider mites and caterpillars, yes, but never aphids. Comparing the pest issues I've had with photos vs. autos I see no evidence that autos have a genetic predisposition to harboring any pests.

 

[stonemaster]

As I said, I had no problems outside with insects. He is having an inside problem that the photos don't.

 

[Ratatosk]

Yes it would be instructive, and we like doing such comparatives, but we don't have too much place and in 2013 we prefer grow many different varieties, one plant each, rather than multiple plants of one variety.

Stonemaster, when you write "inside" about our culture, I precise that is only inside a greenhouse outdoor in our garden (4*6 meters tunnel), not inside a room in the house.

We have also some photoperiodic plants outside the greenhouse, in ground, and they have no aphids, but we didn't grew autos outside the greenhouse, so I can't tell you if they would have had aphids.

But our autos in the greenhouse where very healthy (more than 140 grams harvested on a Rapid Afghan that should produce maximum 50-100 g !), I think there was no lack of nutrients, and the plants were not stressed by any cause... and no other plants (other than cannabis) in the greenhouse had aphids. These insect came in the greenhouse only for the autos !