I've had my plants blooming for 8 weeks on 12/12. I still have buds with white pistils, looking great, but still not quite mature.
I've been using General Hydroponics nutrients the entire grow, using the ripening mix for the past several weeks, and an hps bulb for light.
Should I change my light cycle to 8 on and 16 off to help finish the bloom? Or something near that? Any tips greatly appreciated.

I have never done that.. but I have thought about it.. until I read that it reduces yield size.. yikes... but I can't imagine it being that signifigant in weight loss.. unless you are growing BIG....

let us know what you decide to do and what you think the effect was.. please : )

dru a bud out and smoke it urself if your happy then u no its ready for chopping

some people turn the lights off for 48 hours before harvest, in two grows that i did head to head test I saw no difference in the smoke, but the dark plants yielded slightly better.

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i hear that lowering the light cycle during the last days, increases thc output, but i dont believe it.

i totally agree, lower humidity produces more thc glands to protect the plant and buds from the intense light, there for less light, as in 8 on and 16 off, i dont think would produce more thc

I have heard that longer dark cycles do tend to cause the plent to grow a little more. By grow a little more I mean that the plant will have more vertical and slightly more bud growth.

Going on this tip I lowered my light cycle to 11/13 instead of 12/12 and this seems to be ok for now. I thought about going with more dark but I figured it would be best to ease into that state. In my opinion going from 12/12 right to 16/8 might be too drastic of a change right off the bat for the plants. Remember, making small adjustments to your grow is the best way to tell a difference rather than big adjustments.

With my setup it seems like the buds were producing more pistils for a few days on the 11/13 light cycle but nothing super noticable. Anything 12/12 or less in dark cycle will induce flowering so it's up to you after that point. But remember, buds need plenty of light to grow bigger, nutrient uptake can only do so much.

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well chronic is grown with the last three weeks of flower on 11 on 13 off, as advised by seroius seeds!,
it isnt advantageous for all plants but some respond well by excelerating the flowering hormone slightly towards the end of the crop! light is evertything when accompanied by the right amount of dark!

good luck!

welcome to the world of endless possibilities,,,,,hydroponics