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When toharvest yourmarijuanaplantsBy Robert Bergman
When to harvest your marijuana plants?There are different ways to determine whetheryour marijuana is ready to be harvested. One ismore accurate than the other. The moment ofharvesting partly determines the taste, scent andthe effect of the cannabis. You can compare it towine; the later a grape is harvested, the more sugarit contains and the more alcohol it will produce.If you harvest marijuana a bit early, the taste andthe effects will be a bit lighter than when you letyour plants ripen a little longer. If you harvest yourmarijuana too late, it will have a very heavy tasteand a narcotic effect. So it’s a matter of preference,and you’re going to have to experiment a bit withthis to see what you like best.In this short document I will tell you about thedifferent methods to determine if your marijuanais ready for harvest. You can look at the loweringtime of the plant, the color of the pistils or the colorof the resin.2
When to harvest your marijuana plants?Flowering timePistilsThrichomes3
When to harvest your marijuana plants?HARVESTING BASED ON FLOWERING TIMEFrom the time you let a marijuana plant lower, it takes a certain period before it’s ready to be harvested.This varies a bit for each type, but it generally comes down to this:Week 6Week 7Indica: From the moment you’re letting an indicadominant strain lower, it takes 8 weeks beforeyou can harvest it. If you’re growing outdoors, itwill be ready by the end of September.Week 8Sativa: A sativa has a longer lowering period,originally 12 weeks. But there are many fasttypes of haze nowadays that are ready after 9 or10 weeks. If you order seeds online, you always4
When to harvest your marijuana plants?have to check the duration of the lowering period.Sativa that’s grown outdoors will be ready aroundthe end of October.Indica week 6Auto flower: Autolowers don’t depend on a lightcycle and will lower automatically. From the timethe seedling sticks its head above the soil, it takes10 weeks for it to be ready.Indica week 7Indica week 8This method isn’t very accurate, but it’s a good starting point if you want to develop a schedulefor your harvesting periods. There is a more accurate way to determine whether your marijuanais ready for harvest, that also allows you to influence the taste and the effects.5
When to harvest your marijuana plants?HARVESTING BASED ON PISTILSThe easiest way to determine if a bud is ripe forharvesting is by checking its pistils. If the budsare starting to develop, they’re all white, andthey’ll start to discolor around the fourth week oflowering.mellow high. Maximum weight not yet achieved.If most pistils are white, the marijuana isn’t ripeenough for harvest and the bud is still lacking alot of weight and THC. If all pistils are brown/red,you’re actually too late, and the quality of yourmarijuana will rapidly drop.90-100% of the pistils brown –Almost too latefor harvest.Taste is heavyand the effectis narcotic.Harvest rightaway and don’twait any longer.So you have to make sure you’re right betweenthese two ends. These usually are the standardrules:0-49% of the pistils are brown – Not ready yet.50-70% of the pistils are brown – Ready forharvest, but it’s still a bit young. Light taste and70-90% of the pistils are brown – Ready forharvest. Taste and effect are at their peak andyou’ve achieved maximum weight.6
When to harvest your marijuana plants?HARVESTING BASED ON PISTILS40% of pistils brown60% of pistils brown80% of pistils brown95% of pistils brown7
When to harvest your marijuana plants?I usually harvest marijuana for personal usewhen 2/3 of the pistils are brown. I harvestthe marijuana I grow for a coffee shop when80 percent of the pistils are brown, becausethe buds will be a bit heavier this way.You have to find out what you like best. Youjust have to harvest a bit in every stage andcompare during the first batches. In themorning, I prefer a young, uplifting weed themost. But a bud with 100% brown pistils canalso be delicious after a long, stressful day. Itjust depends a bit on the moment.8
When to harvest your marijuana plants?HARVESTING BASED ON RESINWhen you look at the resin of a bud through amagnifying glass, you’ll see that the glands areenlarged, depending on the stage of the loweringperiod. They are a bit deformed and translucent atirst, but they become rounder and amber coloredduring ripening.Clear trichomesAs soon as the largest part of the resin is round,shiny, sticky and translucent, the plant is ripe.After this, the trichomes connect to oxygen andbecome amber colored (color of honey). Fromthat moment on, the resin starts to deteriorate. Soharvest right away if you see many amber coloredresin beads.Milky trichomesAmber trichomes9
When to harvest your marijuana plants?Clear trichomes – the plant has insuficientpotential to be harvestedThese are the most important changes thatindicate overripe weed:Milky white trichomes – the plant has suficientpotential to be harvestedCompletely red pistilsSwelling and deformation of the calyxesWidening of the stemResin turning brownAmber trichomes – the plant has passed itsprime, so don’t wait too much longerOnce again, there are a number of stages thatall give their own taste and effect to the weed. Iwould also check the color of the pistils, but this isnice to track if you have a magnifying glass.When does the quality decrease?If you let your plants grow for too long, it will harmthe quality. The buds won’t become heavier, thescent decreases, the taste becomes heavy andsharp and it will have a narcotic effect. Waiting toolong therefore doesn’t have a single advantage.If you notice any of these changes, immediatelygrab a pair of pruning shears and start harvestingyour plants.Want to learn more? Become a member ofBergmans Lab and sign up now!10
When to harvest your marijuana plants? 4 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8 HARVESTING BASED ON FLOWERING TIME From the time you let a marijuana plant lower, it takes a certain period before it's ready to be harvested.
