Growing schwag

I am a rookie grower and am making a practice run with seeds from local schwag. I currently have eight plants, approximately four weeks old, with heights ranging from four to eight feet. All the plants have at least four sets of leaves. When should I force flowering?
Bing
Clarkesville, MD

Don’t force flowering. It is a waste of your efforts, electricity and fertilizer. The most important factor in the quality of the bud you grow is the genetics, represented in the seed and described as a variety.

If the variety you are growing is mediocre, the bud that will result from your gardening efforts will also be low quality. Why bother? As long as you are putting in the effort, you might as well aspire for the heights. Grow a variety suitable for your garden and experience the joy of growing great bud.

Readers with grow questions (or answers) should send them to Ed at: Ask Ed, PMB 147, 530 Divisadero St., San Francisco, California 94117, USA. You can also email Ed at [email protected], and send queries via his websites at www.ask-ed.net. All featured questions will be rewarded with a copy of Ed’s new book, Best of Ask Ed: Your Marijuana Questions Answered. Sorry, Ed cannot send personal replies to your questions.