How do you tell when its time to chop!

[Potologist]

I have essentially heard 2 main theories:

#1 when 1/2 the white hairs wither out and dry up.

#2 when 1/4 to 1/2 of the gland heads are amber and many are cloudy (as seen with a 30x magnifying glass)

What do you go by??

My bogbubble is on day 46. Most of the white hairs are still white. I can see a lot of light amber glands and lots of cloudy ones. I'm wondering what to go by to determine when is the right time to harvest.

 

[clearcutter]

I normally go by #2. I usually chop when 1/8 to 1/4 are amber. But like every thing, it comes down to personal choice, and what works best for different strains.

 

[sunnyside]

 

[sunnyside]

Resin gland color, potency, and type of high


Gland color will vary with ripeness of the individual THC glands, starting at clear, turning to milky, then turning to an amber color. There may be some exceptions, such as some of the Blue strains and Blackberry. These will have darker, sometimes purple gland heads. But by far and large, these three steps of ripeness will exist with the vast majority of strains on the market. The first stage, clear, will tend to make for a more cerebral, up high, with very little body effect. Harvesting at this stage when little if any trichomes are milky yet, can be tricky. Harvesting too early can make for a beautiful plant that will not have much psychoactive capability! THC needs to "mature" to be able to pass its psychoactive capabilities down to the smoker. This is why I always recommend waiting until 50% of the trichomes hit the second stage: milky or creamy. At this point, you will definitely have a plant which has reached its genetic potential.

The milky trichomes have some "cerebral" qualities, as well as some of the more "physical" characteristics of the high. The last stage, amber, brings on a more sedative, physical stone. If this is what you're looking for, than I would recommend a sativa/indica cross, or an indica dominant plant. Amber trichomes seem to ruin a sativa high if the plant goes too long. The above photo is a good example of a ripe plant: at least 50% of the gland heads have turned "milky," some heads are still clear, and a few are amber. This plant was harvested two days later.

pirated from overgrow and free the hemp

 

[Harry Gypsna]

I use the trichome method, with a small batteryoperated 30X scope, they are cheap so every grower should av one IMO
I take em pretty much when they are like sunnys puic, mostly cloudy, a few lft clear and a fedw amber, maybe i have a few more a,mber, but I like em couchy.
The best advice I can give, is what BOG told me at "The other place" b4 I came here,
play with it, take grow a couple of clones out and take em at different times, noting how the trichs appear, then whichever one u liked best, is the one to use in future and take at the same stage.

 

[Potologist]

BOGbubble at day 49

BOGbubble at day 49

OK... i may have mistaken the first time around. Closer observation indicates that she's actually still a little green. There are a mix of clear and cloudy glands. I'm thinking she may need the full 55 or so days. I will play it by ear (eye) at this point.

Here she is .. my first lady, my beauty queen at day 49! am I psyched or what!






I am now a believer!

 

[sunnyside]

oh yeah...she is still real green..looks like she is still putting out pretty hard!!

 

[Potologist]

yes she IS putting out hard! I notice the buds are bigger every time the lights come on! .. .. that is kind of why that yellowing was worrying me... because im thinking that she may be on the slower side to ripen and she's N-starved already. ... I thought that last feeding i gave her would be her final flush, ... now i am wondering if i am a little further away from harvest than i thought. I dont want to harvest prematurely... no way! i will wait till the time is right.. i was too stuck on the average finishing time but that is just an average... i got her under close watch... id like to not feed her again.. but if she;s still real green i may have to so that she can make it to the end.

 

[The Griff]

I use the trichome method, with a small batteryoperated 30X scope, they are cheap so every grower should av one IMO
I take em pretty much when they are like sunnys puic, mostly cloudy, a few lft clear and a fedw amber, maybe i have a few more a,mber, but I like em couchy.
The best advice I can give, is what BOG told me at "The other place" b4 I came here,
play with it, take grow a couple of clones out and take em at different times, noting how the trichs appear, then whichever one u liked best, is the one to use in future and take at the same stage.

I have seen some 60x - 100x scopes available quite cheaply. Are these scopes too powerful, or will they be OK?

 

[Guest]

Yeah Griff, the Radio Shack Pocket Microscope is around $10 and you can purchase them at the RS website. That is probably the most used tool for checking trichomes I've come across.

As far as when to harvest, you should take strains your unfamiliar with or havent worked very long and harvest them incrementally. Take some buds or a branch early, like now. Lable it with how many days it flowered. In a few days or less, take another branch and lable it. And so on, until you have some branches that are well past the recommended flower time. After they dry and cure, sample these and determine what stage of growth has what effect and figure out what you like best about each sample.

You will get a very wide variety of effects by doing this.

 

[Guest]

Maybe this will help a little.


Click on Pic for larger view.


Mo,

 

[sunnyside]

great pic mo....

 

[badmf]

Is it Tuesday? If not wait and chop then!

 

[Guest]

Thats a pretty flower there friend... i wait till the calyxes swell and the resin is bursting in the trichome heads.. i should pick up a mini scope..

take care
greenfriend

 

[Potologist]

Thanks everyone!

She's getting frostier every day!!!!!!

I keep checking her out with the 30x magnifier and still see mostly clear and some cloudy, very few amber yet.. certainly none as amber as those on Bigmo's cool picture (thanks man)

She's my first girl. rookie grower here. I never even so much as seen a plant up close like this before, ever. Im baffled by the frostyness and the heavenly smell!!! If i can do this on my first try anything is possible!

So i think i am pretty sure that even though its day 52, she really looks like she can use another week at least. And sinse the fan leaves are going fast, im thinking I need to feed her again one more time. (?) what do you guys think? her yellowing is getting awfly close to the buds.. her entire demeanor is very light green with many yellow leaves but all buds look nice and green (and OMG sooo frosty!!!!) But then again im thinking that she may be done in a week or 1.5 weeks at the most. so im torn between do i feed her again or do i starve her with just plain water for the next 1 to 1.5 weeks? she was fed with plain water almost a week ago. *yeah it takes that long for my soil to dry one fringer's lengh down into the soil.* So.. if i feed.. i need for that to dry and before i can flush that and then wait again for that to dry before harvest. That can concievably be 2 weeks. and that is giving her only one watering for flush.

To feed or not to feed......

 

[Guest]

If they are lookin really bad then give them a mild feeding and hope it'll be dry for one pure water flush. I've read some people don't even flush with organic food.. Personally, I like to flush...
I always chop when most thrichs are cloudy with very little amber. Lookin good btw; looks like you'll get some nice smoke.

 

[Guest]

No problem, it is not my pic I just borrowed it off the web.

Mo,

 

[Potologist]

after some private advice, i have decided to hit the home stretch without feeding, just plain water. Her glands are now mostly clowdy with a few clear left. no heavy amber yet, only a very mild yellow here and there. Day 55 and going... id say a week or less now. Lets keep an eye on those glands.