# Are they supposed to look like this? **URL:** \ **Category:** Show Your Grow\ **Created:** [September 21, 2026, 9:02pm UTC](https://ilgmforum.com/t/are-they-supposed-to-look-like-this/122723 "2026-09-21T21:02:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DocSwink](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/user_avatar/ilgmforum.com/docswink/32/1225212_2.png) [@DocSwink](https://ilgmforum.com/u/DocSwink)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2026, 9:02pm UTC](https://ilgmforum.com/t/are-they-supposed-to-look-like-this/122723/1 "2026-09-21T21:02:23Z")
Greetings all! This is my first grow (Northern Lights Auto) Plant was harvested and drying began 1 week ago today. Drying is in a dedicated drying tent with RH between 60-65 (dedicated dehumidifier, temp at ~ 65 - 70 with slight variations (dedicated A/C) and blackout except to drain dehumidifier and flashlight through window in tent to check meter for temp and RH so I **am** trying to maintain light discipline. Also have a Vivosun filter for odor control and to promote airflow. And, just my luck, the temp when I took the pic was outside of spec because I had to step away and forgot the door was open. I am one week into drying and stems are close to the snap test but not quite there. Should the buds look this airy? Granted, these are smaller buds and I have larger ones closer to the inside of the drying rack. Will they compact further during drying and/or curing? And please ignore my “Shit everywhere” motif in the Man Cave. So, am I drying too fast? Too slow? Thoughts? Suggestions? Thanks in advance. ![IMG_1952](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/original/4X/5/5/f/55f72c4408a05b70822b34b714444ca605026aa6.jpeg) ![IMG_1953](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/original/4X/1/1/c/11c03aa039399c5350a90015993c205049e7f9ab.jpeg) ![IMG_1954](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/original/4X/0/e/a/0ea0e340a1fda8998f126c331f7414fb78d9b35d.jpeg) ![IMG_1949](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/original/4X/9/d/2/9d2cf685ea582d3be48f1d6ddde6fde760ee9b22.jpeg) ![IMG_1951](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/original/4X/6/e/0/6e038f57bd8b3a5d6fd3082dd8c4db074c7054ee.jpeg) ![IMG_1950](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/original/4X/2/c/c/2ccbd5041a8becc179960daae73c671537231db8.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Bentstick](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/user_avatar/ilgmforum.com/bentstick/32/1132231_2.png) [@Bentstick](https://ilgmforum.com/u/Bentstick)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2026, 9:43pm UTC](https://ilgmforum.com/t/are-they-supposed-to-look-like-this/122723/2 "2026-09-21T21:43:49Z")
Ah yep Some do and some do not, and once dry trim them closer to the bud over a trim tray and sift for the kief for hash/temple balls or bowl toppers or mix in before ha twist one up ---
**Author:** ![Pothead64](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/user_avatar/ilgmforum.com/pothead64/32/1204307_2.png) [@Pothead64](https://ilgmforum.com/u/Pothead64)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2026, 10:03pm UTC](https://ilgmforum.com/t/are-they-supposed-to-look-like-this/122723/3 "2026-09-21T22:03:22Z")
Yes it looks like you did not get long runs of flowers at the top. These long runs and thick flowers are many smaller buds growing into each other. When they do the final plump up last few weeks are where the density happens. Autos that do not have a good start are prone to this look after drying. ---
**Author:** ![DocSwink](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/user_avatar/ilgmforum.com/docswink/32/1225212_2.png) [@DocSwink](https://ilgmforum.com/u/DocSwink)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2026, 10:13pm UTC](https://ilgmforum.com/t/are-they-supposed-to-look-like-this/122723/4 "2026-09-21T22:13:46Z")
So, it is not my drying technique but more of a plant-specific issue? The main reason I harvested was that the plant was starting to show end-of-life signs (yellowing leaves…blah blah blah) ---
**Author:** ![DocSwink](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/user_avatar/ilgmforum.com/docswink/32/1225212_2.png) [@DocSwink](https://ilgmforum.com/u/DocSwink)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2026, 10:16pm UTC](https://ilgmforum.com/t/are-they-supposed-to-look-like-this/122723/5 "2026-09-21T22:16:10Z")
Oh, I don’t normally smoke but decided to give this one a try. As ugly as she is, she DOES pack quite the wallop. Did a little trim work on an earlier “sacrifice bud” and had to clean the scissors off as they were that sticky. And that was a very small bud…LOL ---
**Author:** ![Pothead64](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/user_avatar/ilgmforum.com/pothead64/32/1204307_2.png) [@Pothead64](https://ilgmforum.com/u/Pothead64)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2026, 10:33pm UTC](https://ilgmforum.com/t/are-they-supposed-to-look-like-this/122723/6 "2026-09-21T22:33:23Z")
Let me pull out some previous autos. You can see a trend the better and faster they start to how they end. I ran 24 ILGM and others autos over 3 extended runs. I soon realized that a hard cut off at 4 weeks was needed as I am not lighting and feeding a plant for 25 grams. Specific growth must be reached because you can not extend the veg. ![1000000582](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/original/4X/1/3/5/13557e13da9cd28a7a9f037da7389d9f54ebe6b4.jpeg) Here are 2 auto Apple Fritter autos at 25 days. Here are the flowers pics and the buds. ![1000000758](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/original/4X/1/1/1/11182d09e60dd4817f92ae0327262b6853a63d25.jpeg) ![1000000762](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/original/4X/f/b/a/fba690e0812b2902c1320fe174ab1a27222e2eb5.jpeg) Plant that should have been culled. ![1000001818](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/original/4X/1/5/3/153c3de35d62205763efef77c934304bf8f72aea.jpeg) You can see it did not grow much until stretch and then it outgrew it’s node space and gave long sparse stems with low weight Autos are a genetic variety that is hard to duplicate in a cookie cutter method. They do not appreciate gang watering and hand feeding. Each one for sure is a different plant. Treat them as such. ---
**Author:** ![Growmoredank](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/user_avatar/ilgmforum.com/growmoredank/32/837910_2.png) [@Growmoredank](https://ilgmforum.com/u/Growmoredank)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2026, 1:02am UTC](https://ilgmforum.com/t/are-they-supposed-to-look-like-this/122723/7 "2026-09-22T01:02:12Z")
You can use a wood or hay moisture meter to check the buds to ensure they are dry enough and not too much before curing. 10-12% moisture equals approximately 58-63% humidity in the cure environment. Also, air shouldn’t blow directly on the plants, usually best to point fans at the floor of walls. ---
**Author:** ![BobbyDigital](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/user_avatar/ilgmforum.com/bobbydigital/32/1220557_2.png) [@BobbyDigital](https://ilgmforum.com/u/BobbyDigital)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2026, 1:55am UTC](https://ilgmforum.com/t/are-they-supposed-to-look-like-this/122723/8 "2026-09-22T01:55:30Z")
That is just the bud structure that was imbedded in that plants dna. Pretty common in auto flowers due to the ruderalis gene. That’s the reason I stopped growing autos. They can look nice and full wet but airy when dry. This is a blueberry auto that dried to fluff ![Attachment-1](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/original/4X/8/1/9/8199f185a007950e4ceb183e35ab92f6721ed5b9.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![DocSwink](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/growingmarijuana/user_avatar/ilgmforum.com/docswink/32/1225212_2.png) [@DocSwink](https://ilgmforum.com/u/DocSwink)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2026, 1:02pm UTC](https://ilgmforum.com/t/are-they-supposed-to-look-like-this/122723/9 "2026-09-22T13:02:43Z")
Yes, the A/C hose is pointed downward, so no direct air.