Harvesting Marijuana is not as easy as picking blooming flowers in your garden. It’s probably as tough as the other processes it has to go through from preparation and maintenance. The task requires a keen eye and careful hands to avoid mistakes that will jeopardize all the hard work you’ve put to wait for it to mature.
Timing is Everything
First, you need to get the timing right. Know the weather and keep a close watch before harvesting marijuana. Understand the rhythm of the blooming period and balance it well. If you make the mistake of harvesting too soon, you decrease the potency and reduce the potential yield of the plants. If you’re not too sure of when the timing is right, get on the safe side and work on your patience.
Let the sun and the season be your guide. As the season changes, your plant’s appearance also changes. The weather conditions will affect your weed’s development during its flowering period. The role of the environment is very crucial in harvesting marijuana.
Let’s cut to the chase and learn about some specific ways on how to know that it’s time to reap the weed that you have sown.
Pistil/Long Hair Examination
These pistils or long hair are the bud’s coverings. When flowering begins, they are white and stringy. They begin to go from white to orange and to dark red or brown when the flowering period ends. The changes in color are signals that the buds are maturing. However, it is important to note that the color changes and the time that it takes for certain strains of marijuana vary.
Trichome Examination
If you want to do a better way of determining harvest time for your marijuana, you should learn how to examine its trichomes. Though better, it is more complex. These trichomes are basically the actual resin glands. THC and the other cannabinoid elements can be found in them. Although very visible, they should be handled with utmost care because they are very delicate and they easily rupture. These trichomes look like little sugar crystals.
To ensure that you are examining them well, you need a magnifying glass. With it, you can see the clear or white resin head and stalk. In doing this type of examination, you should make sure that they don’t get too dark in color. Always check with a magnifier and when you observe that they are already kind of creamy or milky, they are good to go. Waiting too long before you harvest them will greatly affect the potency of your weed.
Being careful and precise in harvesting marijuana is very vital. Accurate harvest means maximized potency. When you cultivate marijuana, you should be ready to be armed with a keen eye and dedication. You should be careful enough not to harvest them too soon or too late. It should always come before they reach the peak of their maturity and not late enough that they significantly decrease in potency.
Growing is as enjoyable as harvesting marijuana and using it. The whole experience of growing weed is fulfilling. The bountiful and flavorful yield that you get after you pour your heart into growing it will absolutely be worth all your sweat and effort.
