Harvest is near. Time to start examining resin glands. Resin glands, also known as trichomes, occur when your plant begins to flower. I usually start checking my plants trichomes regularly after 45 days of flower. I do this because I like to see the progression as the resin glands mature and ripen from that point forward. This allows me to get a good sense of where my plant stands for determining when to harvest. This trichomes when to harvest blog will explain the types of glands and when to harvest for peak ripeness.
Trichome Definition
During flower, cannabis produces tiny little crystals that are called trichomes. These cannabinoid rich resin glands account for more than 50 percent of all the THC or CBD contained in your plant. The actual definition of trichome is “fine outgrowths or appendages on plants, algae, lichens, and certain protists.” The term originates from the Greek word “Tríchōma,” meaning “growth of hair.” Trichomes are like little factories that produce cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids that gives each cannabis strain its own unique character.
Trichomes When to Harvest
As trichomes ripen, they change color. By examining the color of your trichomes, you can easily pinpoint when to harvest. My preferred method is to examine my trichomes with a pocket microscope. Pocket microscopes are cheap and work great! When using a pocket microscope, the best way to examine your trichomes is to cut a small sugar leaf and place on top of a white surface like a piece of paper. If you are new to examining trichomes, the best recommendation I can offer is to look at your trichomes every few days. This allows you to pinpoint exactly where your plant stands in development and provides a good timeline for witnessing the different stages of trichome development. The 3 stages of trichome development are: clear, milky and amber.
When trichomes first appear on your cannabis plant, they are clear as water. Harvesting when trichomes are clear is too early in my opinion because potency is low.
Clear trichomes will eventually turn milky. Try to avoid harvesting when there is a mixture of clear and milky trichomes. In my opinion, the best time to harvest your cannabis plant is when all your trichomes are a milky color. This indicates that your cannabis plant is fully developed and ripe for the taking! When examining your trichomes, be patient and thorough.
When your trichomes have turned amber, this indicates the very end of the harvest window. Generally speaking, amber trichomes have a couch lock feeling. Some users prefer to harvest amber trichomes because they claim that it helps with their anxiety. If your trichomes are amber, it is probably best to harvest as soon as possible. Once trichomes begin to decay, there is no going back and you risk losing you harvest.
20 Comments on “Trichomes When to Harvest”
Hey guys this was such a great read. All I can think about after reading this knowledge is that sharing really is caring. I admire that you are clearly passionate about what you do.
On a side note and I apologize if this is off topic but I was just wondering how to get a hold of you folks. I’ve tried calling (left a message) and signing up on the website with no luck. Please let me know how I can get ahold of you thanks 🙂
Hi Nick,
Thank you for the kind words! Unfortunately we are no longer accepting orders! We have not been able to acquire licensing and under the advice of our legal team are permanently closing. Thank you for your patronage!
Have you ever heard about these foods infused cannabis? I tried frozen yogurt infused cannabis before and it really tastes good! and now, there’s new and something interesting! On the other hand,
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If you harvest marijuana a bit early, the taste and the effects will be a bit lighter than when you let your plants ripen a big longer. If you harvest your marijuana too late, it will have a very heavy taste and a narcotic effect. So it’s a matter of preference, and you’re going to have to experiment a bit with this to see what you like best. In this course I will tell you about the different methods to determine if your marijuana is ready for harvest. You can look at the flowering time of the plant, the color of the pistils or the color of the resin.
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Thank you for this. It definitely helps me figure out when to harvest since my boyfriend works alot out of town, especially this time of year, he has left this up to me and I have no idea what I am doing in this aspect, so thank you. I mean he has told me when to harvest and showed me a few things but this really helped me! Thank you
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Hi there guys,
my question is when looking straight down with a pocket microscope, whether those little round circles on the sugar leaves are the tops of trichomes or something else. It’s easier to see the stalk and bulb classic when I’m viewing at more of an angle. I have a feeling the over the top viewing presents colored bulbs because you can see through it.
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The trichomes on sugar leaves develop sooner than the trichomes on the bud itself. If you look at the sugar leaves to determine appropriate time to harvest, that can be misleading.
Do trichomes mature all the same time on plant or harvest gradually branch by branch?
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