How To Know When To Harvest

First grow....unknown type of plants...how will I know when I am two weeks from harvest? At two weeks out I should stop all fertilizing? I have seen some growers flush with sugar, some dry out the plant to almost wilt and some just water when dry. Just trying to get the best out of the plants. Any suggestions appreciated!
 
Generally speaking (not you---of course!), when you think it's time to harvest, you're two weeks out. We all get very anxious about this time. I stop fert. when I see the first cloudy tricome, and harvest when about 10% of tricomes are amber. Nobody knows exactly 2 weeks till harvest, but I find this schedule will give me clean fert. free smoke. Bone-app-a-toke.
 
Reminds me when.....during a heart stress test, they ask you to let them know when you can only keep running for 2 more minutes. Knowing 2 minutes before you can't run another step is a lot like knowing 2 weeks before the time you'll harvest. Just sayin'.
 
Magic Granny...

It doesn't seem as though the video from PerfectGardens would help much. Keep things stable and see when the same strain last year was ready to harvest! Seems they should re-read your post. No insult meant Nirvanna420, you just missed the point. "First crop, unknown strain". But thanks for sponsoring the mag.!:love:

Addendum: Stop watering/flushing and turn out lights 2-3 days before harvest.
Lots of Bud Juice on the market for last weeks of budding (sugars- yes, recommended).
Reality: I could very harvest time by weeks and not be able to tell the difference in a double blind test.
What I am sure of is that there are more sensitive tokers out there that can tell the difference, but not me. And maybe not you!:high-five:
 
Sorry bro for not answering the question properly. I must not have read it AT ALL:) I use a kelp extract for flushing b/c, I use biological growing and the Kelp helps the micro biology speed up the retrieval of mineral and processing everything. So I find the salts and bitter taste rarly happens. I do wish for a better smell at time tho. Is that why you suggest turning the lights out 2-3 days?
 
Ok, so first, Nirvanna420, I did word my post insensitively in my braggart rush to impress, and I apologize for minimizing your answer.
The forums seem to me to be trending toward a dark period just before harvest. It is a new enough technique that although I've used it recently, I'm unsure of it's merits. It's supporters claim a slight increase in tricome size and THC quantities. They look at me in that patient way, Knowing that I will learn a little slower than most due to my advanced age and stupid stoner addled mind. But just touch the buds with your hands during trimming and you could easily lose more than you gain. Know what I mean?
Bottom line: we try to maximize tricome/thc/cbd production. Remember that avoiding damage means don't touch the bud, only the stem!!!
Are we ok Nirvanna420. Pardon an old PTSD war vet....I'm trying not to use drugs other than pot....I get excited. :Namaste: I love ya man! :thumb: In a totally appropriate, dude type way!!!
 
Hey everybody! I just logged in to share something with you I just discovered. A friend was over hipping me and plans on returning next week. Meanwhile he left with my magnifying lens. I hadn't noticed but he called. I also have the 100X pen Micro coming from Amazon (our buddy) But while it didn't matter, I mused to have a look through the lenses I have removed from things over time. I have a 265 spotlight extension thing I tore open. The 3" lens inside is pressed laminated layers or something and it works just fine, no batteries needed! I can easily see the trichomes... just wanted to share that.
 
"I mused"....."I can easily see the trichomes".....
Who talks like this? I love it conwayakers! You go ... person!!!
 
so ive got some important questions.
ive been reading all these posts and pictures about the differences in harvesting when cloudy/clear, or amber, and etc etc. and that harvesting with 50/50% clear/cloudy gives clear headed upper effect. and harvesting with majority of amber give couchlock effect.

my question is:
doesnt the strain genetics have more to do with the actual effect of the high?
and if so, whats the correct trichrome color to look for in different strains?

for example, i chose my 3 strains, because i was looking for a good, old school, not too intense smoke.
so wouldnt that mean, that even if i do harvest my durban poison at 50% amber, it should still have a clear upper effect?
and the opposite, if i harvest it at 50 clear/50 cloudy, wont that take away from the potential potency and effect of the bud? since in any case, the genetics should cause it to be a good upper high?

i even read somehwere that a buds full potential is reached when its about 75% amber, and harvesting before that, doesnt let the bud get to its full potential that are stored in its genetics....
is that the reason why we pick out different strains?

otherwise, people could just get the fastest growing indica, harvest it at 80% clear triches, and get a sativa effect....???

what happens when u harvest a sativa starin, with 70% amber? does that cause couchlock? or just give a nice relaxing not too edgy hyper feel to the high?

im really open to hearing eveyrones experience in this and the difference in sativas harvested all the way till 75% amber...
thnks!
hj
 
Hi HappyJoy,

Good questions, most of which I can't answer directly.

However, I have grown enough to have felt those very concerns.

Genetics determine 90% of the 'high', with timing of harvest determining some single digit number. Environment in there too.

Anything we do is only the spin on the ball, not the main hit. Significant, but small.

I've read that when a tric turnes cloudy, it's starting to degrade. At amber, thc is turning to cbd. Others say full amber = full couch lock. But full couch lock to me means big thc. Doesn't always make sense to me. I go by strain and harvest after flush at first sig. amber.
 
well heres a link to a thread which seems very much to debunk this whole theory.
https://www.--------.org/t/average-amount-of-red-hairs-at-harvest.185387/
what they write here, is actually in agreement to all the profesional breeders i spoke with about when to harvest.
theyre bascailly saying that if u harvest before 70% amber, the bud is not yet at its full potential. and many people do that do indica strains to try to squeeze a sativa high out of them. but thats not the way to go.
in any case, read through that thread well.
heres also another one which adresses the issue even more:
https://www.--------.org/t/anyne-ever-smoked-overripe-buds.111444/

it seems we have all been misinformed, and are picking our buds way too early.
appearently the info is 'true' in a way, that if the triches go to amber, that THC is degrading. however what ive been reading now, state clearly that it takes several several weeks of all the triches being amber, in order for the thc to degrade to a level that it causes tiredness.
in one of the threads, someone there mentions that they grew out a sativa to amber triches, and then let it go a few more weeks, and taht it didnt have any couchlock effects.
this is all based on research, and not personal experience, so i cant say ive tested myself, but it really makes sense.
take a read through those articles....
 
Re: How to know when to harvest.

Thanks for all the great information on this and other 420 posts! But as a second time grower, I may need a little pep talk from you pros.....

I'm in my 10th week of flowering (indoors, in soil, 12hr/1000w HPS light) the following strains: White Widow, The White, Romulan Grapefruit, and Purple Kush. Since I'm interested in harvesting to maximize a body high, I've been closely monitoring the trichomes on the buds/sugar leaves for several weeks now. At this point it looks like about 50-60% of the trichomes have turned milky and I've seen only a few turn amber (on The White). This is all fine except I'm concerned about the overall condition of the plants. They are clearly very much on their way out- they're dying- and it appears there's no real increase in the pace of any "ambering" of the trichomes. Some of the sugar leaves are starting to turn dark which I've seen in photos and does not concern me. But some are turning yellow (along with virtually all the plants' fan leaves) which I haven't seen and does concern me. BTW- these have all been very healthy plants and the buds are all nice and plump and mostly large so there's no reason to suspect the yellowing is the result of anything other than them simply reaching the end of their lives. I stopped fertilizing several weeks ago thinking I was getting close to harvest.

So here're my questions: Is my inexperience showing and I just need to be patient and keep watching the trichomes and harvest when they turn amber no matter what the rest of the plant looks like? Or should I be harvesting the plants whose sugar leaves are yellowing significantly regardless of the state of their trichomes? I suspect it's the former but would appreciate some back-up on this!

Thanks in advance for your advice! See a couple photos attached below- I'll add some better ones later.

FYI- I had to harvest last year's outdoor plants early due to bud rot issues. So with this year's indoor plants maturing much longer I'm definitely heading into new territory for me.....


IMG_20150901_181618.jpg



IMG_20150901_181717.jpg
 
My Safari can't find the server to your links, HappyJoy.
 
Hi Maurice,

Happyjoy seems to say hold off, while I'd wait about a week and harvest, but that's just a best guess on my part. Good Luck! Looks great!
 
I start to flush when the triches show mostly cloudy, I also do my flush for 5 to 7 days.
Now, this is what I find works best for me, according to the nutrients I use and the strains.
It should definatly be a good starter gauge for you.
 
Hi- Thanks for the comments. As promised, I've added a few more photos which actually make the plants look okay. Though my biggest concern is with The White plants (top two photos). If you look closely you can see the sugar leaves yellowing which I guess may be just fine? Or not? As a relatively inexperienced grower, I'm fully prepared to hear that I'm being impatient and over-reacting to the yellowing of any leaves associated with the buds! Please let me know what you think.... Thanks!

PS- I'm not sure what that white shape on the bud is in the middle photo. I went back to the plant and inspected it very closely and could not find anything looking like that or even anything suspect.

IMG_343910.JPG


IMG_34408.JPG


IMG_34373.JPG
 
Hi all, i am new grower and it is time for my first harvest i just wanted to know is my baby ready ???
DSCN41273.JPG

DSCN41263.JPG


I know that the pics are not made with microscope and magnifier glass , but i think the quality is good enough for the veterans to understand :D
 

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