Harvest Moon Oct. 5th 2017

[Illuminati85]

Okay tonight is the Harvest Moon. I have two plants that have been growing since April. I'm going out of town this weekend. It's supposed to Rain. 70% chance Saturday. 100% Sunday. What would you guys do? Chop at dusk tomorrow? or leave them be? They are at least 9 weeks into flower, maybe 10. Looks like most trichs are cloudy, still some clear I don't see any amber. But I think it's better to cut before you see amber IMO. Still have some pistils that haven't changed color or receded...but for the most part 95 % of the pistils on both plants are brown/red now. Just thought i'd share and see what some suggestions would be.

 

[Dan Drews]

I wouldn't offer you an opinion on whether you should harvest or not without seeing pictures of the plant and the buds. If you still have white hairs, you're not ready yet. If you can shelter the plants from the rain, your best bet is letting the plants fully mature.

The main reason for harvesting under the full moon is that on a clear night, a farmer and his crew can work 24 hours per day at harvest. There's a lot of theories and conjecture about planting and harvesting based on the moon's cycle, but will your end product be significantly or noticeably better in the end? If it needs 2 more weeks to be fully mature, you're better off waiting.

 

[Illuminati85]

I'm really just worried about mold. I'd like to see more cloudy trichs before I chop, but I'm also gonna be gone for a couple days and just so happens it's gonna rain so I won't be here to cover them or move them. I'm thinking about chopping one and leaving the other as one seems to be a little more mature. Or I could just let them ride this rain out but could be risky. They can't be more than a week from being finished.

 

[boilingoil]

Us Old farmers went by harvest on the new moon phase not a full moon phase. So with that old adage you have 2 weeks left.

 

[Illuminati85]

 

[Dan Drews]

It's ultimately your call. The plants would benefit from 2 more weeks of growth but you need to shelter them from the rain. Putting a clear tarp over them and staking the tarp to keep it off the plants should protect them from a light rain, but wind and heavy rain may be hard for you to protect against at this stage.

Are they in pots and can they be moved under an awning or into a garage? If you take the proper care moving or covering them, you can let them fatten up and mature another 14 days or so.

 

[boilingoil]

Looks about as far along as the one I took down last night. I would say take it. The weather in my area has me harvesting around the end of sept. or I lose most to mold here in the midwest.

 

[Illuminati85]

It's ultimately your call. The plants would benefit from 2 more weeks of growth but you need to shelter them from the rain. Putting a clear tarp over them and staking the tarp to keep it off the plants should protect them from a light rain, but wind and heavy rain may be hard for you to protect against at this stage.

Are they in pots and can they be moved under an awning or into a garage? If you take the proper care moving or covering them, you can let them fatten up and mature another 14 days or so.

If I put them in a garage for a couple days will it affect growth or do anything crazy, that is an option. But it will be pitch black in there. I have read crazy rumors that it will make the flowering even better if you put them in darkness for 24 or 48 hours. Some weird theory about it but just wondering, if it's not gonna mess with them then I can do that.

 

[Illuminati85]

They could definitely use some more time I checked trichs today and one has about 35% or 40% clear with the milky filling in the rest. And more white pistils than I would like to see. It's a day to day evaluation. We will see what tomorrow brings as far as progress. Thanks for your opinions. Much appreciated.

 

[Dan Drews]

I really noticed the white hairs in the 3rd pic more so than the other 2 pics. Is that a different plant? If you want to experiment AND reduce your risk, harvest the mature buds or plants and leave the less mature (in the garage while you're gone) to mature longer. If you want to maximize potency and taste and want to take more risk of being away a couple days where you can't monitor your plants, cover them and leave all of them to grow until they're fully mature. I'd probably do the former myself.

Good luck and happy harvesting, you've done great so far.

 

[Illuminati85]

Also like I said one could be going. They are both bag seeds and one of them must be some kind of reggie. It only has a few white pistils and I have been picking bud rot off of it for a week now, like little spots here and there that will pop up over night. And the Trich production on it is piss poor at best. It has a decent smell and a lot of kolas. The other is more vibrant smells a lot louder and has a lot of purple in it. Has way more trich production it glitters with them and the other does not. It also seems to be less mature but the structure and flowers are way better. So it could be over for the one plant. Cheers.

 

[Illuminati85]

I really noticed the white hairs in the 3rd pic more so than the other 2 pics. Is that a different plant? If you want to experiment AND reduce your risk, harvest the mature buds or plants and leave the less mature (in the garage while you're gone) to mature longer. If you want to maximize potency and taste and want to take more risk of being away a couple days where you can't monitor your plants, cover them and leave all of them to grow until they're fully mature. I'd probably do the former myself.

Good luck and happy harvesting, you've done great so far.

Yes the Full Image is a different plant than the thumbnail(left)
Full Image and (right)thumbnail are same plant. that is the crown at the top. I topped or fem'd the other one.

 

[Illuminati85]

I have been trying to wait on the soil to completely dry out also I am not sure but it seems like I read some where that this was good. I would think that it would help with the drying process, if the soil is dried out then chances are your plant has sucked all the moisture out and therefore the sun would be sucking it out of the flowers after that point. I have been feeding them tons of water preparing for harvest. so soil is pretty wet right now. timing is everything.

 

[Dan Drews]

No need to over do the water, just water like normal without nutes. If you're fighting a worsening bud rot problem on a particular plant, harvest now, remove the rot before you leave town, and hang to dry. If you want, keep the healthiest plant dry while you're gone and put it out for two more weeks and as long as you minimize rot, you're golden.