Overripe buds have a lower potency and can have a harsh, unpleasant taste. It's generally recommended to smoke buds that are at the peak of ripeness for the best taste and potency.
While the process to harvest your plants isn't all that complicated, knowing the perfect time to do so is less clear. And the timing is critical. If you wait too long, your buds will be overripe and possibly ruined. If you harvest too early, the buds may not have finished growing (and developing their potency).
Clear trichomes indicate underdeveloped buds, whereas amber trichomes indicate overdeveloped flowers rich in CBN. Milky-white trichomes are the sweet spot, signalling buds full of THC. So if more than 15% of trichomes are amber, then your buds are becoming overripe.
At the absolute minimum, you should wait until 50% of the trichomes are cloudy and 50% of the hairs have changed color. Again — do not harvest if fewer than 50% of the trichomes have turned milky. And do not harvest if fewer than 50% of the pistils have turned brown/orange.
Bud structure
High quality, developed flower from a healthy plant has a sturdy, fully three-dimensional structure. The buds should be solid, with no gaps that you can look through. It's properly cured: not too soft, but not so dry that it grinds down to dust. Flower with poor structure will appear flimsy and flat.
High quality buds will be dense and thick, having grown to a heavy weight during the flowering period of the plant's life cycle. These dense buds signal that the plant received adequate nutrients and light throughout its lifecycle, resulting in a flower rich in cannabinoids and terpenes.
Beware of overripe cannabis buds
Plants given a little too much bloom time may have a general appearance of overripeness. Trichomes may be all amber, the terpene profile may be past it's best (possibly with a light aroma of fermentation) and the buds/leaves may take on a browner, less inviting, appearance.
Check out the different colours of pistil hairs below, and what each of them signifies: White: White stigmas indicate that the pistillate flowers are in a state of immaturity and feature a low cannabinoid and terpene content. The grower shouldn't harvest their buds at this time.
Never harvest your buds when most of the pistils are still white. This indicates your plants should be left to mature for a little longer. To ensure optimal THC levels, you should wait until at least 60-70 percent of your pistils have turned an amber color before you begin harvesting.
If trichomes are clear they still need time to mature, as they'll contain very low levels of THC. A general guideline is to harvest cannabis only if more than half of your trichomes have turned a cloudy, milky color.
The cloudy trichomes produce more uplifting and stimulating clear-headed cerebral effects while amber trichomes tend to result in heavier, more intense effects. If you are growing Indica-dominant strains, it is ideal to wait until at least 60% of the trichomes have turned amber.
It's also important to note that you can see an increase in both bud size and terpenoid production after the flush, because your plants have more energy to devote to swelling buds and terpene production. They're not having to spend energy to intake the nutrients you're normally feeding them.
Bud rot develops in cannabis when botrytis cinerea, a type of fungus, infiltrates the plant. The fungus then develops inside the plant, before symptoms become visible. Early signs of bud rot eventually start showing on and around infected buds in the form of darkening and softening of the plant surface.
All of the leaves of the cannabis plant are necessary for the process of photosynthesis to occur. Photosynthesis results in the production of sugars and other plant nutrients. Since the fan leaves are the largest leaves, they are essential to this process.
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You can remove fan leaves during flowering in much the same way you do during veg. Prune away large leaves that are overshadowing bud sites, as well as dead or dying fan leaves. One thing to keep in mind is that you should prune in intervals, giving at least a couple weeks between each session.
However, there are some key differences to look out for, and seasoned growers can spot the difference at a glance. Healthy trichomes are glittering, sparkly, tall and thin resinous glands separated by small spaces. They contain minute hairs that look transparent or milky white with mushroom-like tips.
Generally, flushing cannabis normally takes place two weeks before it is harvested. If the plant has an 8-week flowering period, flushing should start 6-weeks after the beginning of the flowering stage when trichomes begin to form a cloudy white color.
Most of the ripe trichomes turn completely yellow while some of them could still be milky with a slight golden hue. You need to wait until 70% of trichomes have turned amber to get higher concentration of CBD and THC. This is the moment when most of the growers harvest their plant.
We recommend washing 100% of your cannabis harvest. The cannabinoids in your buds are fat-soluble; a gentle wash does not disturb the potency of your product and will prevent you from combusting and inhaling dirt, hair, and dust, leading to a far cleaner smoke than you're used to.
Milky Trichomes
If harvested during this stage, many cultivars will produce a more uplifting experience. Trichomes remain milky for about two weeks during the lifecycle of a cannabis plant. Growers may choose to harvest the buds at this time if they plan to pair the strain with CBD oil.
The female Cannabis plant starts blooming by producing pre-flowers, their pistils look like “white hairs”. Towards the end of the third week, the plant starts forming its bud sites in the plant nodes (where the main stem and the branches meet).
A bud hardener is an additive you can use at the end of the flower cycle to tighten up your flowers and pack on weight. They are typically used in the final 3 weeks or so of the grow cycle and contain a mix of macronutrients, micronutrients, minerals, essential oils, etc.
If the pH of the growing medium becomes too low or too high, plants lose the ability to absorb nutrients. Low levels of molecules such as iron and magnesium—important for chlorophyll formation and enzyme synthesis—can lead to crispy, dry leaves. A nutrient surplus can also cause dry and damaged fan leaves.
What is Nutrient Burn? Nutrient burn, also known as "nute burn," is a common problem when growing cannabis. When cannabis plants receive too much fertilizer, they can't absorb all of the nutrients they need, and the excess can build up in the leaves and cause the leaves to turn yellow or brown and become crispy.