No Bud Should Be Picked Before Its Time
Plants and varieties differ in maturation pattern.
Some mature all at once, so that the whole plant can be picked.
Other varieties mature from the top down, or alternately, from the outside in. For these varieties, the buds on the outside mature faster than inner buds hidden from the light. Once the outer buds are harvested, the inner branches are exposed to light and quickly ripen. It can take two weeks of choosing mature buds before the plant is totally picked. Picking the plant a little at a time ensures that every bud is at maximum potency and quality.
A plant’s flowering cycle, and its ripening and harvesting-time, are variety specific. Each variety is programmed to respond to a critical period of darkness that turns growth from vegetative to flowering.
Indoors, this is accomplished when the lights are cut back to twelve hours. Outdoors, the critical time period varies between about nine and eleven hours of darkness.
In addition to genetics, flowering time is also affected by light intensity and total light received on a daily basis, ambient temperature and nutrients.
Cannabis bud ripening facts
Plants of the same variety flower and ripen at about the same time. Clones from a single plant grown under the same conditions flower and ripen at the same time.
Flowering time is determined by the light regimen, not a plant’s age or size.
When all the buds on small plants get direct sun, they tend to ripen at the same time.
Buds on large plants that are directly lit, whether on the top of the plant or the sides, mostly ripen at the same time.
Outdoors, big plants grown with large spaces between them will often get light from three different sides as the sun moves around them, specifically from the east, west and south. This light pattern is especially prevalent in the fall when the sun is at an acute angle and lower on the horizon.
On large colas, outer buds often ripen while the inner buds are deprived of direct sunlight.
What is the best way to determine your cannabis picking time?
Watch the development of the trichomes.
Trichomes are the stalk-like resin glands that contain the active compounds, which grow on the leaves surrounding the flowers.
The flower area becomes covered with resin glands over time.
The length of this stage of growth usually lasts two to three weeks; in modern varieties these glands ripen in seven to nine weeks from flower initiation.
Late-season and long-maturing varieties usually spend about three to five weeks in this period of heavy trichome growth.
As flowers near ripeness, their caps swell with resin and the trichomes become more prominent and stand erect.
The viscous, sticky liquid that accumulates contains terpenes and cannabinoids, which are produced on the inside membrane of the trichome cap. As the resin accumulates in the cap, the flower odor becomes more intense.
The odor reaches its peak at the same time the trichomes begin to fluoresce in the light, twinkling like little crystals. In some varieties, the trichomes are so prominent that the whole bud sparkles. Using a magnifying glass, a photographer’s loupe or a microscope, monitor the buds’ progression to the peak of ripeness by watching the resin in the gland tops.
Under magnification, you can see individual glands turning from clear to amber or a cloudy white. These colors indicate that THC is beginning to degrade into two other cannabinoids, cannabicyclol (CBL) and cannabinol (CBN), which are not nearly as psychotropic as THC.
When the trichomes begin to change from clear to amber or cloudy white, the buds should be harvested—this is the peak moment.
The different types of trichomes
Stalked Capitate Glandular Trichomes:
These trichomes are the most abundant and contain the desired cannabinoids, terpenoids and flavonoids that growers seek.
Bulbous Trichomes:
These trichomes have no stalk and are much smaller than the other trichomes. They appear mostly on leaves rather than in the bud area, especially during vegetative growth, and contain cannabinoids.
Crysolith Trichome:
These trichomes do not contain cannabinoids. They grow on the bottom of the leaves to deter pests.
Sessile Stalked Capitate Trichome:
These trichomes appear during the vegetative growth stage and produce only small amounts of cannabinoids.
Ripe cannabis reeks of pungent terpenes and each day brings increased intensity of odor.
Rub the leaves surrounding the bud between clean fingers and inhale. This releases aroma molecules while leaving fingers sticky with resin.
Inhale and smell an exotic medley of familiar and unusual odors that may range from sweet to acrid with outlying musks and skunks.
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The U.S. Postal Service employs over 500,000 Americans and is the #1 employer of veterans. Plus USPS is the best way for me to ship you my grow books. Sign the petition now. (Link in Bio)https://act.rootsaction.org/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=13933 📬✊🏻🔥 #GROWYOUROWN#cannabis#cannabiscommunity#cannabisculture#edrosenthal
In my new Book “Ask Ed Marijuana Success" I have a chapter called Cultivar Bazaar: High quality strains for hobbyists..I asked some of my favorite seed breeders to suggest their best cultivar for home growers. The stipulations were that each was easy to grow, adapted easily to different environments, & most importantly, that it had a distinctive personality. The breeders responded with some great suggestions. Each cultivar is handsome, above average and potently effective. A garden featuring these selections will provide you with a library of wonderful sensations to fit time, space and mood. A couple of the strains produce high ratios of CBD. Here is one of my favorite CBD strains - Chocolate Tonic. .“This CBD strain grows like a weed and can handle abuse.” @caperpurple .Chocolate Tonic Parents: Cannatonic x Chocolate Kush Indica/Sativa:35% - 65% Seed Company: Purple Caper Seeds.This strain originated from a CBD project designed to help patients with a range of conditions: pain management, seizures, and inflammation, & cancer treatment. The breeder crossed a high THC father with a high CBD mother. Both were chosen for their cannabinoid content, vigor, and yield. Chocolate Tonic offers a 2:1 CBD to THC ratio. The typical gardener can expect 14% CBD and 7% THC, as well as small amounts of CBC and CBG. Chocolate Tonic is very versatile & can grow in any environment. Plants can reach heights of 8 feet outdoors. It’s a strong grower that can withstand heat, drought, and even being root-bound. Outdoors, when planted in May & grown in the ground or planted with 6-foot centers, look for a yield of 3 pounds per plant. Ripens in October. Indoors flowering time is 8-10 weeks. Expect 1.5 pounds per light. Pain relief is a key feature of the high. The numbing and relaxing qualities are also sleep inducing after a long day. Chocolate Tonic lives up to its name with a chocolate, piney, citrus flavor..Check out Chocolate Tonic if you are in the market for a high CBD ratio strain that is easy to handle - @caperpurple did an amazing job breeding this fantastic strain..#edrosenthals #GROWYOUROWN 💪🏼 #420 #cannabis #cannabiscommunity #cannabisculture
Now you can get an inside look at the new book. It covers tips from my backyard experiments, travels, and access to commercial operations. I was very pleased when a professional grower commented, “Before I read this I didn’t know what I didn’t know. Very helpful.” Amazon has the book in stock. Or order from my site by April 20th and I’ll send you an autographed first edition copy plus a couple of Boveda humidity control packs to keep your stash fresh until the next harvest. Stay well.🍁📚📸#GROWYOUROWN#cannabis#cannabiscommunity#cannabisculture#edrosenthal
Here in the Northern hemisphere we’re enjoying Spring. Each day brings additional hours of light. I want to encourage flowering so the plants need to get 12 hrs. of darkness. A simple frame was built that they can easily draped with plastic. By checking the time of dawn for the upcoming day, I calculate back 12 hours. Based on tomorrow’s dawn time, I’m covering the plants at 6:30pm. Any time after it’s fully dark, around 8pm, cover is removed. I’m looking forward to harvesting them in about 5 weeks, early May. ☀️🍁🙌🏻 #GROWYOUROWN#cannabis#cannabiscommunity#cannabisculture#edrosenthal
Here’s my no-effort garden tucked in with the Swiss Chard crop. Started mid-February from rooted clones, after six weeks these three will be ready to harvest. I expect almost half an ounce. The white plastic reflected light back to the plants and the low maintenance hydro system did all the work. If your weather is now mild, try some auto-flower seeds or clones for a spring harvest.🌿🌱🍃 #GROWYOUROWN#cannabis#cannabiscommunity#cannabisculture#edrosenthal
Last year around this time I visited my friend@caperpurple He’s is an award winning cannabis breeder in the Bay Area. He has developed a really cool method to germinate 10 year old seeds. Growing from seeds makes for strong, healthy plants. But it has it’s own challenges and it can be pretty disappointing when some of the favorites don’t take. There are a lot of good method’s out there [incl. the wet paper towel], but I was really impressed when he brought some of my old secret stash seeds back to life. Sterile germination is key! He sterilizes the coco and tube with an autoclave. The germination solution needs to be perfectly balanced and PH’d for good development. The air in the room and test tube is consistently filtered and sterilized. Purple Caper also uses a custom spectrum LED T5 Light Blend. Mind-blowingly cool, right? I have play by play instructions on my website [link in bio] Take a look and give it a shot. If you have questions go ahead and post them here or talk directly to @caperpurple He is a great guy and will help you if he can. Photo by Lizzie Cozzi@lizardfritz ...#purplecaper #GROWYOUROWN#cannabis#cannabiscommunity#cannabisculture#edrosenthal
Cannabis Cultivation
Ed Rosenthal
cannabis buds, trichromes, When are buds ready to harvest, Harvest
