emergence of trichomes + relationship to harvest date

[Tokey]

A rookie I know of has noticed frost on his flowers... and has noticed that some of the flowers' pistils are 50% discolored. The plants have not been flowering very long, and the colas haven't really grown and formed yet... but the presence of frost along with the apparent degradation of some of the pistils has sent him on a mission to acquire a hand-held microscope. The plants -should- have about a month or so until harvest... but these plants were grown in less than optimal light conditions, but hey, that's only because of THE MAN. We certainly wouldn't want the damned MAN to see the plants, now would we?

At any rate, he would like to know the best place to look to analyze trichomes. He thinks he'll cut off a frosty bud leaf and start his search there. He certainly hopes it's not harvest time yet... should he be worried about these pistils?

At any rate, he'll be back with a microscope shortly.

Mad thanks to all you veterans .

 

[sm0kateer4204]

you should check in various places

 

[Stoner133]

When we are growing outdoors, the pistils often wither early and are replaced by a new set. There are many things that can cause that including some sprays or pollination.

In general, it takes 2 weeks for the plant to show flowers once the light conditions are right. From there, it will take another 5-7 weeks for the flowering to progress to completion.

I don't use a 'scope myself, better suited to the controlled conditions indoors. Outdoor plants are usually a race with the weather....

 

[JJScorpio]

I check them when the bud is on the plant, but if you arent used to it cut off a small piece of bud and put it on a table and turn off all bright lights. Are the buds sticky? I have had 60 day flowering plants covered with trichs at 35 days before, but this doesnt mean they are done. Are there any yellowing of the leaves?

 

[Tokey]

The main concern was the withering of the pistils. I didn't know that they could wither and then be replaced. The only yellow leafs that have appeared so far have been large, old fan leaves near the bottom of the plant... they were starved for light, and have been pruned. There certainly hasn't been anything even remotely resembling systemic yellowing.

I'll have him get some samples to look at. Since it's a first-time thing, everything is educational... so removing a few bud chunks for analysis is hardly a waste.

 

[Tokey]

Alright, here's the breakdown. Four samples of bud/bud leaves were taken from different parts of the plant. Most of the capitate trichomes on the buds were still clear, although there were some milky ones here and there, and I even noticed a couple of amber ones. A high percentage of the little trichomes that don't have stalks were milky (these were mostly on bud leaves). The bud samples had a lot of stalks that apparently haven't formed heads yet. There were also a lot of pointy hairlike projections that I assume are future trichomes. Boy, I thought this was going to be different. I assumed that the trichs would pretty much emerge all over the plant simulataneously, they'd all make the change from clear to milky to amber at the same time. As it is, I have some in all stages! Obviously it's not ready to pull yet... holy shit, this is not easy! Blessings to the cannabis farmers!

I neglected to include the strain in my first post. This plant is an Apollo 11 F2. I think that this strain is supposed to be ready sometime in September, though since it's F2 I have to expect variation and be prepared for it.

So... Are the pointy hairs going to turn into trichomes? Or just the columnar stalks?

Another thing... how long will a milky trichome stay milky? Can it stay happy for a while, or does it pretty much begin the slippery slope toward amber right away? I'm definitely going to try for a high percentage of milky trichs, since I like my buzz to be up instead of down.

 

[gobbler3447]

What ever you do, be PATIENT, everyone gets into a rush to smoke... when you think its ready, wait another week and then it may be ready, but be patient, patient and when in doubt be patient..