How do I tell when my plants are ready for harvest
- Thread starter BamaNick
- Start date
1. Spend $8 to $20 (or more, if you really want to) on a decent jeweler's loupe, pocket microscope, et cetera. I bought a Carson brand pocket 'scope on Amazon a while back for $12. I'd want at least 30X magnification. The one I got has way more than that, and has a built-in light. It can be a minor PITA to use (takes a steady hand, and all that).
2. Read one of the (many) threads about trichomes in one of these sections of the forum, so that you'll know what you're looking for/at:
3. Use your magnification device, and your new knowledge, to examine the trichomes. The ones on the plants' flowers, not the ones on their leaves.
4. Look at the heads of those trichomes. If they're still clear, they're immature and the plant hasn't reached peak potency. If they're cloudy/milky, they have. If they are amber, they have degraded, are past peak potency, and are on the downhill slide.
4a. You'll find that you won't get 100% cloudy trichomes. They obviously weren't all created at the same time, so it's like taking a random sample of people and expecting them all to be the same age. So what do you do? Well, you know that it's a natural progression kind of thing. And that you're aiming for as many cloudy as possible. So you start checking. And checking. And checking. Now you begin to realize that you've got a lot of cloudy ones. Maybe a few ambers. And some that are still clear. So what I advise is that you watch to see when the number of clear that are turning cloudy become less than the number of cloudy that are going amber. If that makes sense. In other words... as you near the perfect harvest time, the number of cloudy trichomes is increasing. Again, it's a progression, an aging, if you will. So some of those that were cloudy yesterday might be amber today - but as long as the number of cloudy ones are still increasing (due to the clear ones maturing), that's cool, your bud is still growing in potency. But there will come a time when there will be less cloudy trichome heads today than there were yesterday, because more degraded (turned amber) than reached maturity (turned cloudy). Technically speaking, that would be "the day AFTER the perfect harvest date," lol. But that's not a big deal, it's your first harvest, you're learning this stuff, and your bud will still be pretty potent. But for each day past that, your bud becomes ever so slightly less potent, as the overall percentage/number of cloudy trichomes decreases. Again, you'll have some amber-headed ones, and some clear-headed ones. That's a given, but it's really incidental. Back to the "people" analogy, you've got a small population on an island, aging. A few "clear-headed" (lol - babies) are still being produced, some of them are going cloudy-headed (attaining adulthood), and some of the adults are becoming elderly. Not a perfect analogy, for obvious reasons (people multiply like rats
). But you're looking to hire as many people as possible for your workforce, conscript them into your army, etc., and you can only make one hiring/drafting event - so you're not really concerned with the babies and old farts, you want to hit the place when you can gather up as many in the middle of that range as possible, right? Same thing, really.
4b. Some folks actually aim for a relatively significant percentage of amber-headed trichomes. They say this changes the effect profile. And it does do that, sure. But, again, past peak potency. I want my bud to be strong - and if I want a different effect, I'll grow a different strain. It's not like there are only a couple to choose from, LMFAO. Or even a couple hundred. To me... Hmm. I'm trying to think of an analogy for this. How about: Some folks like their meat to be sweet. I know, right? Yuck! But, anyway, imagine someone like that. Imagine the person saying, "I want this beef to taste sweet - so I'm going to let it sit there until it begins to spoil, so that it has that sickly sweet kind of taste." Me, I'd suggest... Well, first off, that they get a new set of taste buds
. But, for purposes of the analogy, my suggestion would be to eat the meat when it's still fresh, and if they want it to be sweet, marinate it in some kind of sugary substance. Not wait until it's past its prime. <SHRUGS> That's my opinion.
5. I almost forgot one important step: When you go to check the state of your plants' trichome heads, turn off the @#%* blurple LED. It'll probably screw with your color perception. Either use the light on your magnification device (if equipped), bring in some other form of illumination, or both.
32,768. Hi, lol, I'm TorturedSoul. I ramble
.
2. Read one of the (many) threads about trichomes in one of these sections of the forum, so that you'll know what you're looking for/at:
Frequently Asked Questions
Digest and learn from a wide range of common gardening inquiries and answers - if you have a grow related query, feel free to ask here
www.420magazine.com
How to Grow Marijuana
The basics of growing marijuana in soil, coco or hydro - a knowledge base for getting the very best out of your cannabis grow
www.420magazine.com
3. Use your magnification device, and your new knowledge, to examine the trichomes. The ones on the plants' flowers, not the ones on their leaves.
4. Look at the heads of those trichomes. If they're still clear, they're immature and the plant hasn't reached peak potency. If they're cloudy/milky, they have. If they are amber, they have degraded, are past peak potency, and are on the downhill slide.
4a. You'll find that you won't get 100% cloudy trichomes. They obviously weren't all created at the same time, so it's like taking a random sample of people and expecting them all to be the same age. So what do you do? Well, you know that it's a natural progression kind of thing. And that you're aiming for as many cloudy as possible. So you start checking. And checking. And checking. Now you begin to realize that you've got a lot of cloudy ones. Maybe a few ambers. And some that are still clear. So what I advise is that you watch to see when the number of clear that are turning cloudy become less than the number of cloudy that are going amber. If that makes sense. In other words... as you near the perfect harvest time, the number of cloudy trichomes is increasing. Again, it's a progression, an aging, if you will. So some of those that were cloudy yesterday might be amber today - but as long as the number of cloudy ones are still increasing (due to the clear ones maturing), that's cool, your bud is still growing in potency. But there will come a time when there will be less cloudy trichome heads today than there were yesterday, because more degraded (turned amber) than reached maturity (turned cloudy). Technically speaking, that would be "the day AFTER the perfect harvest date," lol. But that's not a big deal, it's your first harvest, you're learning this stuff, and your bud will still be pretty potent. But for each day past that, your bud becomes ever so slightly less potent, as the overall percentage/number of cloudy trichomes decreases. Again, you'll have some amber-headed ones, and some clear-headed ones. That's a given, but it's really incidental. Back to the "people" analogy, you've got a small population on an island, aging. A few "clear-headed" (lol - babies) are still being produced, some of them are going cloudy-headed (attaining adulthood), and some of the adults are becoming elderly. Not a perfect analogy, for obvious reasons (people multiply like rats
). But you're looking to hire as many people as possible for your workforce, conscript them into your army, etc., and you can only make one hiring/drafting event - so you're not really concerned with the babies and old farts, you want to hit the place when you can gather up as many in the middle of that range as possible, right? Same thing, really.4b. Some folks actually aim for a relatively significant percentage of amber-headed trichomes. They say this changes the effect profile. And it does do that, sure. But, again, past peak potency. I want my bud to be strong - and if I want a different effect, I'll grow a different strain. It's not like there are only a couple to choose from, LMFAO. Or even a couple hundred. To me... Hmm. I'm trying to think of an analogy for this. How about: Some folks like their meat to be sweet. I know, right? Yuck! But, anyway, imagine someone like that. Imagine the person saying, "I want this beef to taste sweet - so I'm going to let it sit there until it begins to spoil, so that it has that sickly sweet kind of taste." Me, I'd suggest... Well, first off, that they get a new set of taste buds
. But, for purposes of the analogy, my suggestion would be to eat the meat when it's still fresh, and if they want it to be sweet, marinate it in some kind of sugary substance. Not wait until it's past its prime. <SHRUGS> That's my opinion.5. I almost forgot one important step: When you go to check the state of your plants' trichome heads, turn off the @#%* blurple LED. It'll probably screw with your color perception. Either use the light on your magnification device (if equipped), bring in some other form of illumination, or both.
32,768. Hi, lol, I'm TorturedSoul. I ramble
.- Thread starter
- #3
Awesome man thanks for the info I just got my loupe in the mail the other day my problem is I’m growing 3 different strains and the blue dream attic is further along then the Big Bang or the purple grizzly kush I’m getting concerned on the drying and curing process I’ve worked for months to grow them don’t wanna mess it up now thanks again and any advice on drying and curing would be great
I feel the force..
I did forget to mention something, but it's probably so obvious that I have no need to. Nonetheless, just in case: You can selectively harvest, in other words, pick the buds that are ready today, today. Pick the buds that are ready tomorrow, tomorrow. Et cetera. Some people do that.
Re: Drying and curing: In a perfect world, it would not be two separate things, it would be ONE thing. It would be a process that happens so slowly that it's only about .000001% ahead of molding from being too wet for too long, lol. You'd end up with wonderfully smooth bud that never once caused you to cough. That bud wouldn't have a bit of green left in it - because 100% of its chlorophyll would have been converted to sugar. Even if your bud wasn't the strongest around, it - and you - would still become legendary because the experience of smoking it would be sublime.
And people would think that you are a reincarnation of the world's first hippie, LMAO, because NO ONE seems to do that kind of thing any more. Even most "cured" bud I encounter these days is still green, green, green because it got too dry, too quickly, for the curing action to actually take place.
Still and all, a quick dry is exponentially preferable to moldy bud.
There are many, many threads here (see the two sections of the forum I linked to previously) about such things. But, for a start, visit this thread:
...and scroll down to the part called Harvesting & Curing.
Re: Drying and curing: In a perfect world, it would not be two separate things, it would be ONE thing. It would be a process that happens so slowly that it's only about .000001% ahead of molding from being too wet for too long, lol. You'd end up with wonderfully smooth bud that never once caused you to cough. That bud wouldn't have a bit of green left in it - because 100% of its chlorophyll would have been converted to sugar. Even if your bud wasn't the strongest around, it - and you - would still become legendary because the experience of smoking it would be sublime.
And people would think that you are a reincarnation of the world's first hippie, LMAO, because NO ONE seems to do that kind of thing any more. Even most "cured" bud I encounter these days is still green, green, green because it got too dry, too quickly, for the curing action to actually take place.
Still and all, a quick dry is exponentially preferable to moldy bud.
There are many, many threads here (see the two sections of the forum I linked to previously) about such things. But, for a start, visit this thread:
How to Grow Marijuana Everything You Need to Know
How to Grow Marijuana Growing cannabis made easy with our guides and tutorials to help you grow like a pro from room design, medium and lighting to feeding, harvesting, drying and curing your buds. Getting Started & Selecting Your Genetics Should I Start My Grow From Clones or Seeds? Do Roots...
www.420magazine.com
...and scroll down to the part called Harvesting & Curing.
grow
harvest
dry
cure
The harvest part is as important as the growing. The same with the rest of the process.
I feel the force..
Sweet. Can you help a brother out, Bob? My headache is growing in intensity and I'm having trouble with words (yes, me!). I'm (barely) noticing that I'm having to correct misspellings where I'm swapping "n" for "kn" and goofy stuff like that. Plus, I'm having to do all this with my left eye shut (headahe is BAD - got a color shift thing going on, everything is bluer from one eye, greener from the other.)
Thank you!
Hmmm, Is this my problem ? I've been told the more Amber the Trich's the more Potent / Couch Lock effect you'll get.
So I've been waiting till 50% + Amber. Can't say it's been all that good really. Get's me high but not that dick in the dirt couch lock effect I'm after. I had chalked it up to shitty breeders / strains / seeds because I did everything I was told to the Tee. I'll harvest a cloudy one this time to see what happens. I've been going the opposite direction & letting them get more & more Amber every grow searching for the couch lock.
Damned ... seems everything I learned a few years ago no longer applies & the whole grow game has changed.
Flush / Don't Flush, pH / don't pH, etc... It's just crazy out there.
So after 3.5 years of growing & testing many things I'm finally finding what works well for me yield wise. Now if I can get the potency as strong as I like which has to do with Trichs & Terpines I'll be one happy camper.
Vegan4life
Well-Known Member
I also look for more amber when harvesting, as I use my weed at night for sleeping. My understanding is as trichomes age and turn amber the THC is degrading and turning into CBN. CBN gives you a more tired couch lock effect. I also look for more indica dominant strains.
I have learned to never ask anyone, anywhere... what my problem is
."Potent" and "couch-lock" are not the same things, though.
There is some truth to the "CBN" argument. But that's just one cannabinoid. There are lots. And it's not just the gross percentages that determine the effect profile, strength of same, duration of same, etc. And then there's terpene content, which does matter. How much (and what kind of) bud a person has consumed recently can affect our perception of what we are about to consume. Even our mood.
You've done this a while, you're not a "cannabis virgin." You're more likely to notice subtle things (even if not entirely consciously) that someone who is partaking for the first time won't. It's not a perfect comparison - most things aren't, really - but compare this to two people consuming wine or a nice brandy. Someone who has never consumed alcohol, or not much, might think "sweet," or "sour" - and that it gets them drunk. But a sommelier will notice a whole lot more than that, and will tell you that the experience - and the pleasure - of wine consumption involves many more things.
That possibility still exists, lol.
Well... There are improvements, of course. And new techniques and such, new discoveries. But a lot of things are people's opinions. And a lot of "new" stuff isn't really new. The other night, I read a translated work on Roman farming from ~2,000 years ago. It wasn't an in-depth reference, more a conversational thing. I did find it interesting that the authors touched upon various (four, IIRC) methods of propagation, including grafting (condition/robustness of the root stock, grafting one type of plant onto another type of root stock) and cloning. I remember the first thread I read here about grafting; by the replies, I felt like some people looked at it as if they'd just discovered magic, lol. And there are many, many threads about cloning here by people who seem to almost think that getting a cutting to root is some kind of "dark art" - when our great-grandmothers did just fine with a glass of water and a windowsill (as did their great-grandmothers, and their great-grandmothers, and... ).
On the other hand, some old "knowledge" does get disproven from time to time. For example, I'm not feeling all that well today - but I am not going to head out looking for an establishment that has one of those "red and white striped poles" out front, and go inside to get myself bled...
That will enable you to try a strain at its peak potency. Which may or may not have the potency you're looking for, the cannabinoid ratio you're looking for, the terpene ratio/content you're looking for, the... No worries! {some} strains down, only 2,000+ strains to go
.Speaking of strains, have you tried Sensi Seeds' Black Domina? It's been around for about 24 years, if I remember correctly. Sensi offers it in a feminized version, too, now. But I suggest (assuming you haven't tried it, and the one by the original breeder instead of a knockoff) growing the regular version. It's a four-way indica cross - their "special" Afghani, a Canadian(?) Ortega, Northern Lights, and a Hash Plant, if I'm not mistaken. There's going to be some phenotypical variation in this one. If you can grow an entire pack (or even two?) out at once, that might be best, so you can directly compare the results. Or, if not, keep a clone alive of the best of the first batch, then grow the next batch and keep a clone from the best of that, etc. until you've narrowed your selection down, then grow out the "winners" of each grow and choose one or two from those. It could be advantageous to collect and save the pollen from any males you end up with, both to cross with any other strains you happen to like, and to try your hand at further working the strain. Or, if not... There is at least one thread on this forum with some tips on how you can favorably affect the female to male ratio when growing "regular" seeds (there's no need for a 50:50 ratio in nature, and controlling things like light spectrum, temperature, and nutrient (nitrogen/phosphorous ratio) during the first few weeks of the plant's life... which can help one mimic the conditions outdoors that change slightly as the growing season unfolds, meaning that you can artificially create the time when it is more advantageous to produce more females (or males)). If you are interested and cannot find that information, let me know and I'll send you a link to the original article on Dutch Passion's website.
Anyway, yeah, the strain has been around for a while. With the sellers of cannabis seeds advertising/pushing(?) strains that have tested at 25% (or more) THC these days, Black Domina might have gotten missed. It averages something like 16% to 20% THC, if I remember correctly. But, as people have mentioned, there's a lot more to a strain than just its THC content. This one should have a good bit of CBD in it, for one. Heavy indicas aren't really my cup of tea (although I do need to find a good strain for insomnia, come to think of it). But a lady did once describe it to me as "a dreamy, smiley prelude to an uninterrupted night's sleep." And it wasn't her first rodeo, so... IDK. As in all things in life, "YMMV" applies.
Here - Sensi Seeds has been a (silent) sponsor at least as long as I have been a member (2009), so I can post live links to their website:
Black Domina Regular Seeds - Sensi Seeds UK
Black Domina Regular is a potent indica strain (95%) whose effect is comparable with a narcotic. It has distinctive foliage pigmentation.
sensiseeds.com
...and here's an old grow report, republished on their website:
Black Domina: With the power of the four indica hearts
The Doc flipped through the Sensi Seeds catalogue and heard a voice in his head command him “grow! me! now!” Read more about his domina experience.
sensiseeds.com
You might have to order from a reseller. Last time I checked, Sensi Seeds did not sell directly to residents of the US, and I'm not sure whether they've launched their Sensi Seeds USA thing, yet. If not... It's coming, lol.
I see the Sensi seeds Black Dominia on several seed sites. I almost ordered a Black Dominia Cross Strain but opted for something else. I'll buy it next time around. Still waiting on a seed order now from Seedsman.
I know you say potent & Couch Lock aren't the same thing. I look at it as the more it puts me to sleep, the more potent it is in the direction I want it to go. If I smoke a joint & fall asleep with the joint in my hand .... Now that's potent shit in my book. When it does that, I can get high 2 - 3 times on a joint. So this is what I'm on a quest to grow. Haven't found anything that good in a year or two now. There are some that come close though so I'm wondering what crossing them would be like. I'll find out soon ... lol. Something like crossing Incredible Bulk with Fire OG & then with Super Glue for instance (Incredible Fire Glue). That's kind of why I bought a few different Glue Strains. See which is the best & use it for a cross. So I pretty much look for strains with the Terpines: Myrcene & Linalool. I just wish I could find a more in depth Terpine Profile page that gave the percentages of each Terpine in that strain. I imagine that probably varies from plant to plant some. From what I've read lately Terpines are more important then THC content when it comes to the effect you want to get. 15% THC with the right terpines will do more for you then 25% THC with the wrong terpines. So now I'm paying more attention to Terpine Profiles when buying seeds.
I know you say potent & Couch Lock aren't the same thing. I look at it as the more it puts me to sleep, the more potent it is in the direction I want it to go. If I smoke a joint & fall asleep with the joint in my hand .... Now that's potent shit in my book. When it does that, I can get high 2 - 3 times on a joint. So this is what I'm on a quest to grow. Haven't found anything that good in a year or two now. There are some that come close though so I'm wondering what crossing them would be like. I'll find out soon ... lol. Something like crossing Incredible Bulk with Fire OG & then with Super Glue for instance (Incredible Fire Glue). That's kind of why I bought a few different Glue Strains. See which is the best & use it for a cross. So I pretty much look for strains with the Terpines: Myrcene & Linalool. I just wish I could find a more in depth Terpine Profile page that gave the percentages of each Terpine in that strain. I imagine that probably varies from plant to plant some. From what I've read lately Terpines are more important then THC content when it comes to the effect you want to get. 15% THC with the right terpines will do more for you then 25% THC with the wrong terpines. So now I'm paying more attention to Terpine Profiles when buying seeds.
That's one of the things I really like about Ace Seeds (and something they should be commended for, IMHO). Most of their strain descriptions include lab test results that cover both cannabinoid content and terpene content. I won't post a link to an example, because they're a former sponsor, and I try not to get "spanked" for the same thing twice. But you can visit their website on your own and see what I mean. I wish every commercial cannabis breeder would do this, but most don't seem to bother (some still list things such as THC content as "high"
). I guess just because you're in a business where you're pretty much printing money, it doesn't necessarily mean that you want to spend any of it on helping your customers. IDK.BamaNick, apologies for... wandering in your thread.
I'll check Ace out. I get emails from them but never looked as they weren't mentioned as reputable by others when I asked for info on seed banks.
