Cannabis harvest
Harvest of marijuana is one of the most responsible, but at the same time pleasant and long-awaited moment for the grower. And if a person, by his inexperience, can assume that this procedure is quite quick and easy, it is important to say that this is not right. However, but if you know some theory, you can get good results in practice even you are beginner. So what is a cannabis harvest? 
By harvest, it is customary to mean a whole range of procedures related to harvesting cones. It includes:
• Determination of the different stages of marijuana ripening and selection of the most favorable moment for collection (preliminary forecast);
• Entering the final ripening stage and smoothly bringing the plant to the end of its life cycle (correct final feeding, watering with clean water, drying the substrate, a period of complete darkness, lowering the temperature);
• Cut of a plant or branches from its main trunk (gradual removal is possible as it ripens);
• Further pruning of inflorescences and leaves;
• High-quality slow drying under optimal conditions (no light, temperature 18-25 degrees, air circulation and humidity at the level of 50-60%);
• Drying which consisting of several stages, after which the product reaches its best qualities and becomes completely ready for use and long-term storage;
A correctly done harvest is a guarantee of a quality product with a large number of psychoactive substances, the best taste and excellent medical qualities. Before starting harvesting, it is necessary to prepare and take care in advance of all the small details, the availability of working tools and the creation of an optimal environment for drying and curing. The main condition for obtaining light fragrant cones - everything should go smoothly.
Harvest Preparation
Very often grower’s beginners make mistakes before they start harvesting, for example, overfeeding cannabis with fertilizers until last days and forgetting about flushing. In the last few weeks of life, when large fan leaves begin to turn yellow, and the pistils (stigma) start to be yellow and dry out, the plants need intense phosphorus-potassium nutrition without nitrogen. Its overabundance at the final stage of ripening negatively affects the taste of cones – you will feel bitter taste of greens.
The last week (2-3 days for hydroponics) of plants life, are recommended to give only a water when is watering. This is done in order to assimilate all the nutrients that are in the soil, as well as the nutrients stored in the tissues of the stems and leaves. In this case, the taste of the cones will be soft and pleasant, off course, when all the conditions are done.
Advice: Many growers leave plants without light and watering at low temperatures (15-18 degrees) and humidity (30-40%) for a day or two. Shock conditions stimulate a resin production, which also improves aroma and taste.
Harvest time determination
To find the right moment for the harvest is extremely important, because it will depend on the strength and nature of the effects of marijuana. If you want to know, that cannabis is ready, you can use the following tips:
You have to look to the recommendations of the seed bank, reports of growers or on the back part of the package. On average, the cannabis flowering period in the passport is indicated to a week exactly, but this is in ideal conditions.
It is important to the desired period to look at the plants closely. In some cases, the bushes can bloom even earlier than the declared time, but more often ripen a few weeks later.
Darkening of the pistils (stigma) indicates to ripening. When about half of the pistils have darkened, you can start harvesting. Ideal maturity is most often achieved about 70-80% of mature stigma, but you can hold the plants until most of them dry out. So you can get a more relaxing effect of cones. However, in many cases, it is not a rule, then it is worth taking a look at the inflorescences carefully.
• One of the most important signs of crop readiness for harvest is the color change of cannabis trichomes. Color determination is one of the most accurate and right methods, but it will require a magnifier with at least 40x magnifications. If the trichomes are transparent, that is mean too early to harvest. A slight turbidity indicates that the level of THC is already high for collection, but CBD and CBN are still contained in small quantities. If you harvest at this time, the effect will be mostly of sativa. Even if the plant has the dominate indica genes. Full ripening is indicated by the appearance of a rich amber color in trichomes. When there are not many of them yet, the psychoactive effect is most intense, while relaxation and analgesic properties are not fully manifested. This collection point is most optimal for most recreational users. If most of the trichomes have darkened, the bumps will have a strong medical effect: relaxing, analgesic and soothing. That is why the connoisseurs of these qualities of cannabis prefer a later harvest time with more amber trichomes.
Expert advice: many growers agree that the best time to harvest is early morning. The fact is that exactly on this time the content of THC in the cones was maximal. Therefore, it is worth sacrificing a couple of hours of sleep to get a really high-quality crop.
Pruning
So, when the time of harvesting is defined clearly, the grower comes to one of the most important stages of work - pruning. This work is quite lengthy and thorough. This work can lasts a few full days. Especially if the yield is so good. For pruning, you will have to get a perfect job place. Need a table, chair, sharp little scissors for trimming.
In addition, for manicure you will need:
• Razor blade to clean tools from tar;
• Paper towels or newspaper to protect the workplace from dirt;
• Alcohol or oil to clean hands from accumulated tar;
• Rubber gloves (can be used for one time).
When manicuring, the most important thing is to remove all unnecessary, leaving only the cones and leaves with trichomes, which are used in the future for the preparation of hash. Each leaf should be cut as close as possible to the bump. After that you need carefully to separate the cones from the stem. For this, it is best to use a pruner, if you do not want to have difficulties with pruning.
A little bit about the right way to dry marijuana
Even if the crop was harvested clearly at the right time, but the drying was not done correctly, you can easily spoil the entire crop. So cannabis drying is not just a separate stage in the cannabis working, but also an important part of the harvest.
The effect of marijuana depends of quantity of drying. The right approach depends all the most important properties of the crop, is able to prevent the breakdown of THC, which can be a very big loss for the grower.
In drying, it is recommended to adhere to some conditions:
• Humidity in the room should be as stable as possible - about 55-60%;
• Temperature – a little less than room temperature. Better from 18 to 20 degrees;
Light should not be. From the time of harvesting to the time, when the cones are sent for storage, it is recommended to minimize the exposure of the cones to light. Light at the time of the harvest is the main destroyer of THC.
Long time before the harvest, it is important to find the place to use for drying. One of the best places for this is the same cabinet or grow box for growing marijuana in indoor. It will be easier to create optimal conditions in it: temperature, humidity, adequate ventilation and complete darkness. Also, for drying, you will need some items and tools:
• Ropes or wire for hanging, you can also use a special grid;
• Hygrometer and thermometer for monitoring temperature;
• Sealed containers for further curing and storage (containers, bottles or vacuum packaging).
Perhaps one of the main requirements in collecting and drying the cannabis crop is not to rush. You need to work slowly and in stages. To dry the harvest, initially the plants are dried whole, after which (after up to a month of time) "manicure" is carried out, as a result of which only cones and leaves remain on the stems. A few more days in this form, and the crop is ready. But another drying method is also used, it is a little faster. In this case, the inflorescences are cut off from all unnecessary leaves directly on the branches in a raw form and only then they are hang out to dry.
The duration of drying depends on the method used (drying the whole plant, large branches or individual cones), and you must choose it based on existing environmental conditions, such as temperature and humidity. At low temperatures and high humidity, it is recommended to divide the plant into small parts and send it to dry after preliminary pruning of the leaves. At a higher temperature and low humidity, it is better to dry the plant whole or in large branches, and to manicure after drying. It is worth noting that it is harder and longer to cut dry cones from leaves than they are fresher.
The first stage usually takes from 3-5 days to several weeks, after which (or before) pruning is done and the bumps from 2 weeks to several months are properly aged. In any case, only with slow drying, you can achieve the maximum disclosure of the healing and aromatic qualities of marijuana cones. Due to prolonged cure, the largest amount of resins and terpenes in cones is released. All these processes require attention and patience, but the result is the best.
Advice: If you still need a little to speed up the drying process to get the finished result faster, you can peel the plants every day. This will not affect the quality of the final product, but it will speed up the drying process by several days.
Drying out the cannabis cones
In the drying process, not all moisture goes out of the cones, if it occurs correctly. The buds themselves should retain some elasticity, but not be too wet, the branches can crack slightly, but should not break. After primary drying, the cones separated from the stems are packing in jars or containers and placed for several weeks in a cool dark place. Once every 1-2 days they need to be slightly agitated and aired. So the residual moisture is evenly distributed over the inflorescences, which allows storing cones for a long time. The cure also helps to slowly and fully form the necessary active compounds and break down unnecessary substances such as chlorophyll. The very last stage of curing is aging in a refrigerator or freezer, however, cones can be stored there for many months or even years.
Harvesting cannabis is, despite certain difficulties, a very joyful moment for the grower, because that is what he went all this time, caring for plants, starting from a small seed, ending with strong bushes. Harvesting will be especially appreciated by the growers when it is really big. Our site offers you to buy cannabis seeds, we also recommend in our selection many truly productive hybrids:
Gorilla Zkittlez
Barney's Farm Gorilla Zkittlez cannabis seeds needs a special attention, because thise seeds are of the photoperiod type, which improves their quality, aroma, taste and increases the level of stress resistance. The unique best genetics Gorilla Glue and Zkittlez made it possible to obtain such a perfect sort, the level of THC reaches 24%.
Amnesia Lemon
Amnesia Lemon fem from Barney's farm is one of the best creations, it is the winner of the 2004 Cannabis Cup. The variety was obtained by crossing breeders Amnesia Haze x Lemon Skunk, as a result, a beautiful hybrid with a predominant sativa of 60% and an indica content of 40%. The plant has photoperiodic properties (high THC, is resistant to temperature changes and is capable of yielding up to 3 times per year using artificial lighting) and is feminized.
Remember that cannabis harvesting is a very responsible work that needs to be taken seriously and carefully. And then the results will definitely cause real delight.
*All information provided is for informational purposes only and is not a guide or call to action.
** We remind you that the use of marijuana seeds as a sowing material (cultivation of cannabis in order to obtain a plant) is crime in many countries.
