[Bulletproof]

I've only actually gone through 1 plant that I was able to harvest, I'm still new but it grew quite well and was very frosty. What I did was cut the plant off the main stem and then immediately trimmed off the big fan leaves that had no frost on them (I've heard it's better to dry out first before cutting anything, is that true?) and after that I started to cut away parts of the leaves that didn't have any frost on them, so basically the buds had alot of half cut leaves that were coated in frost. After all that trimming was done I hung it upside down in a dark room with the fan on 24/7, in about a week I smoked it, it was very brittle and had alot of wooly brown/orange pistals, and it was covered in frost all over. This differs alot from the stuff I buy on the street, the stuff I buy on the street seems like it has no leaf matter at all, and the entire bud feels very soft (no brittle feeling) and the pistals are very tiny, and I see very little frost on them, but the stuff is definitely better than the stuff I grew, but it could be because of the strain. Anyway my question is, is it better to cut away all of the leaf matter even if it has frost on it? cause maybe that takes away from the potency?

[420ponics]

Originally Posted by Bulletproof

I've only actually gone through 1 plant that I was able to harvest, I'm still new but it grew quite well and was very frosty. What I did was cut the plant off the main stem and then immediately trimmed off the big fan leaves that had no frost on them (I've heard it's better to dry out first before cutting anything, is that true?) and after that I started to cut away parts of the leaves that didn't have any frost on them, so basically the buds had alot of half cut leaves that were coated in frost. After all that trimming was done I hung it upside down in a dark room with the fan on 24/7, in about a week I smoked it, it was very brittle and had alot of wooly brown/orange pistals, and it was covered in frost all over. This differs alot from the stuff I buy on the street, the stuff I buy on the street seems like it has no leaf matter at all, and the entire bud feels very soft (no brittle feeling) and the pistals are very tiny, and I see very little frost on them, but the stuff is definitely better than the stuff I grew, but it could be because of the strain. Anyway my question is, is it better to cut away all of the leaf matter even if it has frost on it? cause maybe that takes away from the potency?

A true connoisseur removes all leaves. Don't smoke the leaves man, stick to the buds, you are wasting your time ; ) Are you looking at the trichs with a magnifying glass before you harvest to see if they are clear, cloudy or half and half or what? You say the other stuff is better. What do the pistols look like upon harvest?

Ponics.

[Bulletproof]

I didn't have a magnifying glass at the time, so basically I waited till all the pistals (hairs) turned brown and a week later I cut her down, and it seemed like the plant wasn't really producing much more at the time too so I felt it was time to cut her down, but I would probably guess the tricomes were amber since I cut her down pretty late. Next time I am going to try to cut away all the leaf matter. I should probably mention that the stuff I get off the street is Haze and it's probably not good to compare California Orange to Haze.

[Odin_in_Detroit]

I have seven girls in there 7th week flowering.Because im growing 5 different strains
Im seeing huge differances in trich development.Ive decided that the correct time for harvest is a personal choice.I choose to pay close attention to the trichs.Check out this little honey!I took 2 seedlings and put them straight into 12/12,the little bitch is BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!FRUITY!MMMMMMMm mmmmmsooon!Those little babys start gettin a amber shade about 1/2 way up and BAM!Its time.Also as it looks like you know,STRAIN/BREED make up most of the deciding factors when it comes to type of buzz and potency.(as long as harvest and cured correctly)Mary Jane has a 5-7 day window when shes the most potent,thats when i like to get her!

[ogrefugee]

Originally Posted by Bulletproof

I didn't have a magnifying glass at the time, so basically I waited till all the pistals (hairs) turned brown and a week later I cut her down, and it seemed like the plant wasn't really producing much more at the time too so I felt it was time to cut her down, but I would probably guess the tricomes were amber since I cut her down pretty late. Next time I am going to try to cut away all the leaf matter. I should probably mention that the stuff I get off the street is Haze and it's probably not good to compare California Orange to Haze.

yea... not a good comparison me thinks... but there are a lot more factors to your buds potency than harvest...

the more leaves you take off the better the smoke... just make some hash with the trim. thats ALWAYS good