When & How To Harvest

[silknsatin]

Hey everyone,

I'm a complete newbie, and I've been keeping a journal of my wild ride...lol. Feel free to check it out if you ever get really bored...lol.

Anywho, this is one of my babies, Betsy...she's ending her eighth week of .. It looks like a lot of her trichs are pretty dark. Is it time for me to harvest, and if so, should I just do one chop at a time? For example, the main middle one first, then the smaller ones later? Do I just cut the stalk off?

Thanks in advance for your help! Happy growing!! ..

 

[TurkiShroom]

re: When & How To Harvest

Hi there Silkandsatin
Great job dude they look beautiful, but they look like they are there yet, did you look close in on the trichomes buddy and there amber?

 

[silknsatin]

When and How to Harvest

Hi there Silkandsatin
Great job dude they look beautiful, but they look like they are there yet, did you look close in on the trichomes buddy and there amber?

Thank you! . I think you're probably right. I read up some more, and even though some of the hairs are dark, a fair amount are still white.

. As for the trichs, I'm really not sure. According to the article I read, this is how they're supposed to look for fully matured THC.

.

How much longer do you think?

 

[TurkiShroom]

re: When & How To Harvest

I really aint sure dude, but if I had to guess 2 weeks max. You know bits and pieces slow it down or make it ripen faster. I wait until I see the first start of the amber on trichs buddy. But of course the pic you showed is when people do cut down. Nethertheless dude it looks amazing keep that up. Love and peace

 

[Geraldine42]

Be careful, it would be shame to do such a good job growing them to screw it up at the very end.

 

[silknsatin]

Be careful, it would be shame to do such a good job growing them to screw it up at the very end.

Thanks! That's why I wanted to try and get some feedback from the forum. I've no real idea of the right time, only what I can get online, or in here.

 

[Geraldine42]

Got a microscope? 100× works good. About $9 at your local grow shop or on line. Remember the trichromes will continue to degrade as it dries. Happy harvesting!

 

[silknsatin]

re: When & How To Harvest

Thanks you guys! Just trying to catch her when the THC is at its most mature .. I've got two more after her, so hopefully I'll get it right the first time around ..

 

[Weezze]

They start clear, then turn white-cloudy than amber. Its always been like that!

And you harvest her when there's a mix of cloudy and amber. More amber = more couchlock.

 

[Zzzzeta]

re: When & How To Harvest

Thanks you guys! Just trying to catch her when the THC is at its most mature .. I've got two more after her, so hopefully I'll get it right the first time around ..

As a couple of other posters have said, you should invest in a hand-held magnifier. You'll be able to judge the ripeness of your buds very accurately.

 

[Geraldine42]

re: When & How To Harvest

It is your preference to get couch lock that's why you like amber. I like to get high not stoned. The trichromes actually start clear and turn milky/cloudy as they are forming the THC. When they have reached their highest potential HTC level they start to degrade and they turn clear and if you wait long enough the last stage is amber. I do not know how you have grown and you do not know this..... all of the plants I have grown in the last 25 harvests all did the exact same thing as I wrote above. Pick em when you want but I know how to get the most THC from my plants. So I can stay as high as possible for as long as possible without couch lock. Let them all turn amber them you won't have to be high for very long at all....STONED is what you'll get.

 

[Suntana]

re: When & How To Harvest

It is your preference to get couch lock that's why you like amber. I like to get high not stoned. The trichromes actually start clear and turn milky/cloudy as they are forming the THC. When they have reached their highest potential HTC level they start to degrade and they turn clear and if you wait long enough the last stage is amber. I do not know how you have grown and you do not know this..... all of the plants I have grown in the last 25 harvests all did the exact same thing as I wrote above. Pick em when you want but I know how to get the most THC from my plants. So I can stay as high as possible for as long as possible without couch lock. Let them all turn amber them you won't have to be high for very long at all....STONED is what you'll get.

Ok, peace it was just a question of whether there was some documentation out there spelling that out. Like you said there is a lot of misinformation out there.
Happy growing.

 

[Geraldine42]

re: When & How To Harvest

Ok, peace it was just a question of whether there was some documentation out there spelling that out. Like you said there is a lot of misinformation out there.
Happy growing.

Unfortunately there is no good info on when the right time to harvest is. Misinformation is all I could find online when trying to find a picture or a link to the right info to post here. The pictures I saw were saying it was prime to pick and the thc was still forming like the picture posted above. I was lucky enough to have someone to show me what they are supposed to look like. It took some practice but after a few on my own, I finally zeroed in on the high I was searching for. You should see the trichromes looking like sugar or frosting on your leaves. When you notice the white getting less intense and the leaves getting more shinny then you are getting close and it is time to dig out the microscope. Just remember that the trichromes continue to degrade as it dries and into the cutting process. Once cured keep it out of the sun, as sun light will degrade the THC and increase the CBN's and CBD's even after being cured.
One last thing.... the hairs or pistols have nothing to do with whether or not it is harvest time. A lot of the strains that I have harvested had the pistols change color after 5 weeks. 3-4 weeks prior to when they were at peak potency to harvest. So don't put to much stock in what you find for info online. Test things out and think logically and you will do well. I have found that allot of growers have no idea why they do what they do. They only do it because they were told it works and that was good enough for them. Experiment with it (small test groups not your whole crop at once because trust me it sucked when it didn't work out and I lost a whole crop due to a foolish experiment) and have fun. Science the crap out of it and pay attention to every little detail and you will find it pays off huge in the final product. Sorry for rambling I am so high right now!!

 

[GrimReefer83]

I've found an easy way to watch for harvest date is with the pistils receding back into the flowers. After the first major recession, new pistils will start to sprout. Any day from there is prime picking time

 

[GrimReefer83]

Looks like yours have started to recede back into the buds, but still plenty of fresh and pointy pubes on her ️

 

[Geraldine42]

I've found an easy way to watch for harvest date is with the pistils receding back into the flowers. After the first major recession, new pistils will start to sprout. Any day from there is prime picking time

What you found is that you are lucky you had the right strain because the hairs have nothing to do with trichromes which are what hold the THC. If you go by the hairs you have missed out on the Max potential that you could have gotten unless you just plain got lucky. But if you think that your way is best I also have the knowledge that at least I don'thave to worry about having to smoke your stuff cause I prefer to get the most out of the plants I grow. You might as well pick them as soon as they hit 8 weeks cause that's how long some one told you they need to flower before they are done.

 

[GrimReefer83]

When & How To Harvest

What you found is that you are lucky you had the right strain because the hairs have nothing to do with trichromes which are what hold the THC. If you go by the hairs you have missed out on the Max potential that you could have gotten unless you just plain got lucky. But if you think that your way is best I also have the knowledge that at least I don'thave to worry about having to smoke your stuff cause I prefer to get the most out of the plants I grow. You might as well pick them as soon as they hit 8 weeks cause that's how long some one told you they need to flower before they are done.

It's a method that goes hand in hand with a few others.
I use a small magnifying glass, a jewellers loupe and a high power microscope to inspect my plants. Some, however, are restricted to what they can see with the naked eye.
Im not sure if you grow with proper genetics or bag seeds, but I've experienced the correlation between pistil withdrawal and ripe buds on multiple strains, granted, mostly indica.

 

[Billy2thumbs]

Damn looks good

 

[KushGod]

Depends what high you are looking for. I personally favour a lot of amber so I'm stuck to my couch dribbling on myself but if you wanna get more done go more cloudy. Trichomes start off clear, they cloud when they begin to mature and eventually turn amber (some strains don't ever turn amber I've found) I think most people go for the majority being cloudy and a few beginning to amber, maybe a 70/30 percentage. Great job on your plant btw .

 

[Geraldine42]

Re: When & How To Harvest

It's a method that goes hand in hand with a few others.
I use a small magnifying glass, a jewellers loupe and a high power microscope to inspect my plants. Some, however, are restricted to what they can see with the naked eye.
Im not sure if you grow with proper genetics or bag seeds, but I've experienced the correlation between pistil withdrawal and ripe buds on multiple strains, granted, mostly indica.

What do you consider proper genetics? Couldn't think of anything else to write? As for how I pick mine it is written in this thread. I don't have time to explain it again but when you haven't been following along you shouldn't make comments that you are unsure of. Plus what is the science for the hairs and trichromes being connected? I would like to know. That is an old hippie way of harvesting. Before they had access to small handheld microscopes. That is why the weed was so inconsistent back in the old days before the medical marijuana started up. Good luck with your hairs!