Do I Harvest Before Or After 1st Frost ?

[Buddaluva]

My couple of girls are coming along nicely , trichomes are cloudy with an amber here and their

Can they go past the first frost or do i need to harvest before then ?

1 is indica ( Mazar ) and my other 2 are sativa ( Super Lemon Haze )

Thanks in advance fellas

 

[420somewhere]

It depends ....

It depends ....

It really depends on where you are located.

Here in So Cal the first frost is a long way off so I won't worry about it.

What does the almanac say?

 

[RosettaStoned]

You may want to harvest before a heavy frost, but if it's a light frost, they won't be affected that much as the ground retains heat.

 

[Buddaluva]

Im at 35 degrees on east coast in foothills of mountains

I think our first frost might be a few more weeks away but some of our nights have been dipping in the low 40`s then back up to 55 then back down to 40 , so its only a matter of time before it dips down to 32 then back up

so first frost is ok thanks man

Hopefully they will fully finish out before then but will harvest early if need be

Thanks fellas

 

[lightforms]

Your on track

 

[SeaMaiden]

When's the date of first frost for you? I only remember the first frost date for us, not last. In any event, I don't find frost to be that much of a problem. Bad storms are a much worse issue and will cause me to pull long before a frost does.

 

[.clunk]

Frost isn't a major concern, I have harvested plants after the 1st light snowfall with no problems.

I always find that after the 1st frost plant growth slows, but resin production continues and may increase as the plant tries to protect itself from the cool tempuratures.

 

[slartibartfast4]

I have seen plants come through a moderate freeze before (-2 to -3c) and continue to grow fine so a frost should not be a big deal. That being said if you notice some tissue damage to the small bud leaves after a frost or freeze either harvest or keep a very close eye on the plant as cellular damage can be an invitation to mold. Best wishes on a good harvest

 

[Guest 315072]

is it wierd.. that some of my outdoors trichs are all cloudy and some amber.. but the nugs arent filling in as much as i thought on some of them.. looks like its going to be a hash harvest.. i guess

 

[Andyo]

light frost

light frost

I found a light frost stopped any mold in its tracks ,.A

 

[supermanlives]

after.light frost aint bad. when back east i would harvest after a few light frosts but before freezing weather came in.

 

[pipeline]

Great thread, thanks for the help! I have actually harvested in January before, Jan. 16 because the plot may have been compromised. Plant was mold free and ready to smoke! It was light green/brown but was still good! Thanks for the information guys! Will harvest this weekend since the plants will be slowing growth and I want to prevent mold from coming in. Want to leave time to dry outside while its still warm!

 

[pipeline]

Plants should be watered to make sure they are hydrated and ready to withstand the freeze. Plants make AFP's ( anti-freeze proteins) to stabilize the cells' proteins and other physiology during cold weather.

 

[Spankee]

I’ve covered my plants at night before with plastic and surrounded them with water buckets around base to keep temps a little warmer

 

[St. Phatty]

It depends on the temps.

31 F is one thing.

Plants frozen solid is another thing.

 

[pipeline]

Low temps this time of year are brief, so the buds shouldn't freeze solid. Haven't dealt with it much before, rain and mold is usually the issue, but I'm not too worried about it. It just signals its time to harvest. Hoping for good drying conditions, theres rain chances later next week, so its a race to try to get them chopped and dried down before humidity kicks up with a potential rain.

 

[St. Phatty]

Best to harvest -1- day before Mold becomes a real problem.

But it's hard to tell which day that is.

It depends also on what your drying facilities are.

If the drying facility has good ventilation and a dehumidifier, you can let the plant go a little longer.

Also it depends on whether you are growing for personal medicine or commercially.

There's also a time-management issue. If you have time you can harvest top buds that are done and let bottom buds finish off.

But then you spend more time managing the plant carcasses, individual buds, etc.

 

[pipeline]

30F predicted, might be 29 only predicted for 1 hour at 8 am tomorrow. What does this mean for the plants? Some cover in the area, sheletered in the woods by field in an elevated area.

 

[pipeline]

Going to cut them down and cover with a tarp just for the dark period overnight.

 

[St. Phatty]

If there's a lot of plants, I would leave a few to see how they function with the cold.

Personally I select plants for heat resistance. But I would imagine for some growing locations, a plant with extra cold resistance is useful.