Checking Trichome Color Under HPS

I recently switched from MH to HPS in the flowering room but I noticed that it's harder to see the amber trichs under the orange light. I was just wondering how everyone else checks the color under an HPS; do you take the plant into another room; is there a light on your magnifying glass; do you use a flashlight; etc? Or is there a trick to viewing them under the light itself?

Thanx!

it's normally easier to cut a sample off the plant, use a pocket microscope 60-100x put it on a flat surface and scope, you will soon get the hang of it and can do it while there in the flower room!

they have a little microscope thats 30-60-90x at radio shack for like $15 and it has leds that light up the bud perfect.

Cool. Thanks guys

Also want to bump to see what more people do just so I have a variety and also to see what is the most popular.

i looked today there $12.99 at radio shack i have a 30x magnifying glass but that little microscope is a lot better.

Thanks. I'll probably go that route. Maybe the 60x though. I currently have a 30x loupe from work and those trichs are still too small for me to see well enough But better magnification and the light with it shoud help a lot! Thanks. +rep

You really need to use at least a 60x to get enough details of the trichomes. At 20x-30x a lot of light is reflect/refracted from itself that makes it look white.

FireCoral said:

Thanks. I'll probably go that route. Maybe the 60x though. I currently have a 30x loupe from work and those trichs are still too small for me to see well enough But better magnification and the light with it shoud help a lot! Thanks. +rep

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if you mean the radio shack one then its adjustable, it goes from 60x-100x. I have one though, works good.

blade9z said:

You really need to use at least a 60x to get enough details of the trichomes. At 20x-30x a lot of light is reflect/refracted from itself that makes it look white.

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That's really good to know. I had no idea the amount of magnification could affect that, but that's exactly what's happening. All the trichs look white, but if I hold my flashlight (which is blue) up to them at the same time, I can see more amber. The only problem that I noticed is that the blue light will show the light-amber trichs as cloudy. Under the HPS, almost all the trichs look clear or cloudy The only way I've been able to make a good judgment so far is by hauling the plants downstairs and checking them in the kitchen. This worries me because of the distance (higher chance of plant-threatening accidents) and I don't like taking them out of their light. And even though my kitchen's light is more true to real light, it's not really bright enough to get a good idea of the plant's status.

mafia said:

if you mean the radio shack one then its adjustable, it goes from 60x-100x. I have one though, works good.

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Cool. That's even better! And now I know at least 2 people like them. Looks like I'll be going to Radio Shack tomorrow

I just got a new scope from Radioshack thats 60-100x with LEDs for 12.99. Its the exact same as the 420scope except it dosn't say 420scope. Anyway I usually still check in my room, just ram my scope over the top of the bud and look at it straight down. It gets me in close but most importantly holds the bud steady with the microscope so the image isn't shaky/blurry. As said before though I to take a small sample and examine it at a desk. I do that about once or twice a week for a more detailed inspection in last couple weeks.

i can see the trics good threw my 30x microscope but i'm not seeing any amber will it be just the head or the whole thing? does it stand out when you look at them or is it hard to see the amber inside of the head? thanks

how far along are your plants? In my short experience (6 crops) some become a bright orangey-amber, some turn a dark brownish-amber, and some just get yellowish before turning amber. But I could be wrong since I've just been using a 30x loupe myself. Oh, and just the heads turn color... for me anyway.

For anyone still reading this, I went and got that microscope and it's a world of difference. Thank you! Also, Julez, I couldn't figure out before why you said to cut a sample and lay it down to look at it, but now I get it. I thought it was going to be more cylindrical, like a pen that I could hold up to the plant. It's way too hard to keep everything completely still at that magnification. So I cut a tiny, tiny piece and viewed it that way. It's amazing; truly easier to tell this way. Now i just have to get used to the inverted movement (move scope right to view left side of bud, move scope up to see further down; very confusing). Anyway, I got a good look at my most mature plant and determined she's mostly cloudy with a chance of amber, hehe) Whereas before, I was pretty certain she was getting to be mostly amber. As I suspected, it was the light tricking me. The microscope was the perfect answer. +rep to all that helped!

Glad i could help, enjoy ur smoke!