Botrytis found on outdoor grow - How to handle harvesting now

[ElkhornRich]

Unfortunately, I've found fairly extensive botrytis on a number my buds & colas. Due to an overabundance this year, I figure I will harvest the affected plants now which is about 5-10 days early. Can I try and cut around the botrytis and save the some of the colas? Are there any special considerations when I put the totally clean buds in the drying room with the possibly affected buds (i.e., I'm over trimming to give myself a good chance of eliminating the botrysis on the "affected" buds). Or is it a total loss?

 

[fatty]

Just cut it all out and dry what's left a bit faster than normal also do it elsewhere and use gloves it spreads easy personally I would use it toake oil or quiso hash as the alcohol used to make these will kill any left over mold

 

[Richard Richardson]

You could try a water-cure

Water Cure, The Members' Thread

 

[ElkhornRich]

Ricorico & Fatty,
Thanks for your input. I posted a while back and kept checking, but no responses until you two, thanks again. I elected to early harvest the ones that were hit. I cut way around it and I've got them drying right now. The ones that were brown and overly moist I decided to throw away. Even if they were only in the area of the mold, out they went. In checking today, it appears that there is more, so I am going to try the Water Cure. It is so none intuitive, i.e., against all inclinations, but WTF, I ain't gonna smoke it and I'd be throwing 'em out anyway. The one fly in the ointment is that I live in a pretty humid location. I have to use the dehumidifier as it is, and it's a struggle to keep it down to 45%. Take a look back here in a couple of weeks and I will try to post the results. I am intrigued. A thousand thanks guys.

 

[trichomes]

you'll find some answers in my journal or in one of my August posts, I had the same mold, and it was caused by big buds & humidity, I'm still chasing it today. It spreads the second it is disturbed, spores are dry dust, I remove the buds with mold, then swab perimeter w/ alcohol on a qtip. I'm about ready to suck off the mold with a straw, then all spores can be spit out far from my girl. Let us know what you conclude and keep us posted with pictures! I wish you the best of luck! here's a link to my mold page below.

Late Outdoor Coastal Progress Journal 4 Strains

 

[teddybob]

This just happened to my outdoor grow. I am very bummed as my grow is not ready for harvest. I am going to try and cut as much out as possible as per your directions above. I guess there is no way of controlling the humidity outside; such a bummer my plant was 5 ft tall and looking good

Were you able to save yours?
thanks ! teddy bob

 

[ElkhornRich]

Teddybob, I harvested early to avoid a serious loss. The trics were between clear and cloudy, with cloudy predominant. I've dried some of the first cut and the strength is good, but is clearly a sativa type high. Lasts as long as normal but not something to aid in sleeping right after smoking. Cutting out is not really a solution for more than a day to three days. Once it's there, it's increase is situational, i.e. are you having damp evenings and nights, and overcast. That is my issue. The colas were huge, with plants being 7 to 8 feet in overall height, but once they got damp and less heat and sunlight, the botrytis went to work. Probably threw out 30% of what I harvested. I will harvest more tomorrow since I'm seeing some amber trichomes, which I understand is maximum THC, on some of my remaining plants.
Be sure that once trimmed you have a drying room so you can keep that humidity down (I'm using a dehumidifier, and striving for maximum of 50%) when drying, and the heat around 70 to 80 initially.
Take a look at trichomes reference above: Late Outdoor Coastal Progress Journal 4 Strains Good luck and I will post more later.

 

[teddybob]

Thanks for your reply. Did you do the watercure method or just cut the uneffected parts and harvest?
My trynomes are pretty clear. would this make decent hash?

thanks, I am newbie. Shocked I even identified the problem but I have. My weather pattern seems the same as yours - plant went from great to horrible fast.

thank you again!

 

[ElkhornRich]

I guess that I'm not a newbie, but I'm far from a "gardner", in fact my wife does all of the gardening at our place. This is my third year, and I am constantly learning stuff.
I'm only on the second day of the "water cure", but my thoughts are that it will likely work better for the white mold than botrytis. Here's my reasoning, but maybe Trichomes will add something here. If the botrytis is established it has really "rotted" some of the "core" of the cola or bud. So, to me it is not superficial, it is a part of the bud material. What I decided to do was trim the worst of it away and I'm using the water cure on the parts that looked like they were only touched by the botrytis. I also threw in some buds that had white mold on the surface of the bud.
Trichome, if you're out there, did you use it for the buds that were permeated with the botrytis? Interestingly, when I poured off the first day's water, it came out pretty clear, and I did add about 10% H2O2. Not totally, but pretty clear. What I curious about is whether I can dry it fast enough so no new mold grows on it. It will, afterall, be saturated with water. Time will tell.
My weather is complicated by living in a fairly humid area, we're four miles from the ocean, AND, I'm at the bottom of a hill which is between me and the sun. So the plants don't get the real heat that they need to totally dry out from the morning dew.

 

[ElkhornRich]

Sorry, on the hash question, I don't know. Haven't ever done hash.