Looks like you checked the trichomes from the leaves instead of the calyx. So you probably did chop too early because leaves gives you a false reading since they mature faster.
Yes, you are correct, and I am sad, lol. I mentioned this is the first year I’ve used a “real scope” after listening to SO MANY PEOPLE say over and over, “the trichones must be cloudy, some amber” but they never FINISH the sentence and say “on the calyx “ So I harvested a bit early, the readings I got were in fact false on 4 of my 8 plants chopped, 4 remain.
This is one of the reasons I joined this site, which is already proving productive, to learn these important factors. My crop could have reached more potential. The buds were big and very sticky, and another thing that prodded me into chopping was the infamous bud rot. It showed up in 3 places overnight. Only a handful had to be cut out and discarded, but I’ve no doubt that once it appears like that, it can only get worse, sometimes amazingly fast. I lost some beautiful plants one year, never knew since it was the inside rot.
Thank you for clearing this up for me, I am very grateful. Here’s a pic of one I’ve got left still thriving. This one will have “cloudy trikes on the calyx” and I’ll try to post some pics.
Thanks again!