Harvest Time! Or is it?

I have used this post at rollitup.org's forums every time I think my cannabis plants are ready for harvest. This is SpruceZeus's take on harvesting. It explains that marijuana plants should be given maximum time to ripen before harvest for the fullest effect. Take a look:

Is it ready yet?: SpruceZeus's take on marijuana ripeness.

This is by no means meant to be the definitive guide to knowing when to chop your plant, only my views on the subject.

I'm personally of the opinion that 90% of the growers on this site (And probably in general) harvest too early. By letting the plants go a little longer you're ensuring that they've plumped as much as they're going to.

Despite popular opinion to the contrary(and don't fool yourself, the jury is still out on this one) Recent studies have shown;contrary to what was previously believed, that THC itself (And its predecessor THC-A) are quite guilty of causing the confusion and drowsiness associated with burnout and other cannabinoids (our friend CBN, and a handful of others) to be the catalyst (along with THC) to being 'high' rather than 'baked'

Regardless, whether or not there is any substance to the aforementioned study, it's easy to get the high you want.

If you want a soaring 'cerebral' high: Get yourself a tropical Sativa that contains a high level of THC-V and grow it until it is ripe. If you want the narcotic couch-lock stone, grow a rugged Indica until it's ripe. Notice a pattern of growing it until it's ripe? It's a really good rule to live by. OF course we have to remember that there is more to a good high than just THC. At last count there are at least 66 cannabinoids, and we don't know what most of them do.

Now a lot of people will tell you that you should harvest based on the color of your trichomes. But (again, in my opinion) that is far too simplistic and there are too many variables to make that an effective strategy. I've made that point a million times before and I'm not going to re-hash it here, (maybe just a bit) but rest assured there is more to the picture than just trichome color.

A ripe marijuana plant will be filled in, will have an amber tinge to the buds. The pistils should have browned (or orange-d) off and receded into the buds. The seed bracts should be swollen and the trichomes should be sticking straight out with bulbous ends. Also, because you're coming close to the end of plant's life cycle, the leaves should have yellowed off and started to die.

(One of my plants, 3 days before chop-chop.)

Another very important reason to let your plants mature is Terpenoid production. Terpenes are responsible for a lot of the complex (and enjoyable) flavors that cannabis produces. Some of the most intense flavors are produced on the "down-slope" of cannabis's life cycle. My personal experience with this first came when i was growing GH Cheese (Greenhouse Seeds Cheese). One of the plants I harvested at 8 weeks and it tasted pretty nice and had pretty dense buds. The other I grew until about 9 1/2 weeks and it had most amazing, sour, skunky, delicious taste with rock hard buds.

Here is my interpretation (and maybe exaggeration) of a scenario i see all too often...

Quote:noob mcboob:

(I'm a new grower and I've been reading all this great information about when it's time to harvest. There's pictures and everything!!!

Look at my trichomes, they look nice and milky with a touch of amber just like the ones in the picture that says its harvest time now!!!)

So i just have one question....

Does this look ready to you?

That plant is 4 weeks into 12/12 (flowering). Granted not all of the trichomes are that far along. And most people aren't going to harvest weed that looks like this. But my point with this is that you have to look at the big picture. Stop being so scientific and start being practical. I'm not anti knowledge, I just cant stand these "rules" that more often than not lead people down the wrong path.

Lets cut through the bull**** and spread good information in a way that is not so absolute. Or at very least explain the growth stages of cannabis making sure to mention that the pistils should have receded back into the bud before you chop. Regardless of trichome color.

If I could offer one piece of advice on picking the right time to harvest, it's all about watching the pistils. Not so much the color, but the movement. They should have receded into the bud and the seed bracts should be swollen.

It should look less like this...

 And more like this.

Trust me when I say, it is worth the excruciating wait. 

(Submitted from SpruceZeus on rollitup.org. I take no credit in the contrivance of this post rather show it to others.)