Why buds rot
Pockets: By week 3 to 4, flowers form crevices that hold water. A mist that was fine in veg becomes a mold start.
Covers: Blackout cloth traps transpiration. Condensation drips back onto flowers.
Heat: Canopy above about 85 F (29 C) stretches buds and loosens them. Above about 90 F (32 C) growth slows and flowers stay airy.
Cool nights: Harsh, unfinished outdoor flower is linked in the book to cold nights as much as to weak light.
Air through the canopy
Understory
Lower leaves that see no light raise humidity and block flow. Clear them in veg or early flower
Path
Move air through the bud zone, not only across the ceiling and not as a blast that windscreens trichomes
Spacing
Stakes, rings, and nets that spread colas also dry them
Inspect
Check the dense interiors, not just the pretty outer faces
Blackout and greenhouse moisture
Evening cover problem
After dusk the plants still transpire and dew forms. A tarp then holds that wet on the flowers
Fix
If you cover at night, pull the cloth after dusk so moisture can leave
Morning cover
Shade before dawn and uncover after the 12-hour dark is done. There is less dew to trap
Distance
The farther the cloth sits from the plants, the less condensation rains on them
Late flower
Covered gardens need extra mold watch. Keep flowers dry rather than adding more leaf spray
Heat tools that help buds stay tight
Root cool
In hydro, a chiller holding roots in the high 60s F (about 19 C) eases canopy heat stress
Misting fans
Fine fog that evaporates before it lands can drop air about 15 F and should trigger near 80 F (26 C) at the canopy
Do not wet flowers
Cooling mist is not the same as soaking colas
Winter note
Temperatures under about 85 F (29 C) favor dense development. That is one reason off-season greenhouse runs can finish tighter