I remember reading an article by Robert where he suggests harvesting a little bit at a time during the flower period in order to try the product and see if you like it better at one stage or another. That got me curious. Does THC change other than percentage at different times during the flower cycle? It seems to me that the THC concentration increases the longer you wait to reach the optimum level. Therefore if you sample a product harvested a little early the effects remain the same but you have to smoke a little more. Is that correct or am I missing something?
Not as I understand it. The strength of the plant is the same but the effect changes. I harvested a little early on one of my ww (Cloudy and clear trichs no amber hardly ) then let the rest of the plant mature . The one I let mature has a much stronger couch lock the early buds are a perky day high but will still get you good and ripped
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Thanks. That’s interesting and I might give it a try. It’s going to be close anyway for my present stash to last long enough for these plants to go all the way and cure before it’s gone.
harvesting time is decided by trichomes, the resin beads.
Clear, the THC is undeveloped, generally an anxious, less desired effect
Cloudy, THC is mature, ready for a more active high
Amber, THC is degrading, good for a couch lock effect
So waiting for the right stage and harvesting for the desired effect is important, and you can harvest in stages, leaving less mature buds a little longer.
Harvesting with Amber shows you have a mature plant, you decide when after that.
The buds pack on a lot of weight in the last few weeks, too.
I plan on growing two Gold Leaf plans in my tent and mainline them. I use my grows for medicine and am going to harvest at different times to get my day and night meds. I cannot sleep well so I am going to let the last part of the harvest go all amber. The amber changes the THC to CBD mostly and causes the couch lock effect that I want so bad.
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I let one of my Acapulco Golds go all amber and it was some one hitter night meds.
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harvesting over time is mainly beneficial because the buds do not usually mature at the same rate. The main kola may be at 40% amber while a couple branches down the buds are only at 10% amber. so you harvest what’s ready up top and let the rest mature on the plant for a couple more weeks.
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Thank you. As I understand it you need a jewelers loop to see this and I have ordered one. My white widow fems are approaching the end of week five of the flower stage. At about what time should I start looking for the trichomes
or will this be obvious?
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the trichomes will be obvious, and more so as the plant matures, popping up on leaves near the buds and the buds themselves…they should be showing up soon.
do you feel comfortable posting photos?
I see lots of trichs developing and they will generally start to show age when the hairs start dying back…you should be watching the trichs especially well then…I like checking from this point on, get used to seeing different stages of the plant’s life.
I didn’t see them until I looked at the picture and realized they had reflected the flash. I used a 6X magnifier and can see them clearer. I ordered a 40X and will use that to monitor the color. Now I need to decide whether to harvest most when cloudy or amber. I’m going to harvest some for sure when cloudy and then maybe in stages until there are some that are amber. Thanks for the help.
that’s just another of many benefits growing your own offers…options…what type plant, indica or sativa, photo or auto, cloudy or amber.
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Perfect! I know just what to look for. Thanks
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Depending on how much I smoke before checking them,they already do that. Good one!
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@garrigan62…thanks so much! I know now what to look for!
Thanks Will! I started using this chart a couple of grows ago. I had received a lot of misinformation from some “know it all” amateur grower in my old neighborhood before learning this. This info is presented in Robert’s harvest guide too.
I’ve actually been doing a little testing from the beginning of the flower period. I would remove a lower set of leaves that was starting to yellow in spots,let it dry for a few days and then try it. I just did some from four days ago and got a really nice high from it. I’m thinking if I can get this nice a buzz from a half dozen bong hits of leaves then the finish product is going to be awesome. Funny thing is I’ve read posts where they throw away the leaves. I don’t think so.
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