Misting buds with distilled water a day or two pre-harvest

[thedudefresco]

I’ve read about “bud washing” on here and that’s not what I’m talking about.

Outdoor bud, being sticky, collects dust etc.

Rain doesn’t destroy crops if it’s not prolonged and if the weather permits timely drying.

Would misting buds a few days before harvest with the intent of blasting away a bit of dust be of potential benefit?

Anyone tried it?

 

[St. Phatty]

I’ve read about “bud washing” on here and that’s not what I’m talking about.

Outdoor bud, being sticky, collects dust etc.

Rain doesn’t destroy crops if it’s not prolonged and if the weather permits timely drying.

Would misting buds a few days before harvest with the intent of blasting away a bit of dust be of potential benefit?

Anyone tried it?

I have so much dust that I literally collect it.

Keep telling myself I'll test it with nitric acid to see if it has copper.

If you saw my printer or computer, you'd know what I'm talking about. WAAAY more dust than in suburbia.

Yeah some has to get on the buds, but I can't see it.

I wouldn't worry about it unless you have reason to think the dust on your buds is toxic, e.g. if you were near a source of asbestos dust.

I use a water pipe so I would think that would capture any dust.

If you got big plants, you're going to have a very tired trigger finger after all that spraying.

 

['Boogieman']

It would probably just help the dust stick to the plant unless you really soaked them.

 

[troutman]

It's best to not water plants 3 or more days before harvest so the buds dry faster.

 

[thedudefresco]

Thanks for the comments, everyone.

Indoor flower has bag appeal due to its being sheltered from the elements.

Outdoor just doesn't always look as pretty.

Any ideas on how to pump up that bag appeal?

Any benefits to keeping cut stems plump in some water before hauling them back to the shed for drying?

 

[BubbaBear]

I think it's funny how most gardeners are so against spraying there plants during the final weeks, even indoors plants can get dusty with all the air exchange they receive unless your filtering your intake. Spraying your plants the final weeks can damage your buds and cause them to mold only if your not smart about it. You need to do it at the right time which is a sunny dry day usually first thing in the morning so that it gives your plants plenty of time to dry and also not to water your plants till after there dry. And use the proper equipment which is a airless paint gun not a spray bottle(Harbor Freight has them for less than $20) Lightly mist your plants till run off using a lower setting, using a higher setting or a spray bottle uses to much force and will damage trichomes. And my extra pro tip is to ozonate your water so it kills bugs molds and mildew without chems or residues and do it weekly as part of your IPM.

 

[therevverend]

If the weather is dry and warm a rinse down 3 or 4 days before harvest wouldn't do a lot of harm. After heavy rains it takes at least 3 days for the essential oil terpene content and resin to get back to what it does before the rain hit. A much better idea then washing buds after harvest but there's still some risk. A plant that's entered senescence right before harvest is susceptible to bacteria and fungal infections. I'd make sure the weather is out of the 'danger zone'. 60-74 degrees F and humidity above 60%. I'm very cautious with water in those conditions.

I always field strip as many fan leaves as possible, ideally all of them. The flowers are relatively new and usually not dirty and all. Insects tend to avoid them because they're sticky traps. Fan leaves are a different story, after 6 months hanging there they are dirty. They're not something I want in my house, shed, or garage. I always find bug damage, insect colonies, dust, all sorts of crud on the fan leaves while I strip them. It gives you a chance to inspect your flowers too. Giving them a shake before bringing them in the house is a good idea too. You probably won't have to rinse the plants down if you're careful and watchful but some people do grow in windy dusty areas.

One other note on distilled water. I wouldn't use it for watering my plants unless I had to. It's great because it's clean and doesn't contain any microbes but it also doesn't contain any minerals. I've played around with my water tester and looked at water quality from various sources. I think the mineral content of the water you give your plants is very important. Distilling water removes everything, good and bad. If I was using it I'd be careful to add back the minerals to my soil mix.