Homegrown Trainwreck Day 73...How Much Longer? So stanky!

Yep, another one of those damn "how much longer" threads, but I'm getting mixed signals from this Trainwreck I've got at day 73. The breeder has the flowering time anywhere from 8-10 weeks, so no matter how you cut it I'm deep into flowering. I've checked the trichomes, and they're about 25% amber, 60% milky and 15% clear. So, based on the trichomes I'd probably harvest her now, but she still has white hairs sticking up on the top of the buds, and only about 70% of the hairs have receded back into the bud. I've been feeding her nothing but water and sweet for 2 weeks, and the leaves are just now starting to turn yellow. Still a lot of green on the plant though - not sure if this means anything re: when to harvest.

That said, these buds look fucking dank as fuck. Pardon my language. They are growing like mutants, are hard as rocks, and you can just see the resin oozing on them. She doesn't look to be a huge yielder, probably the lowest yield of my 4 strains I'm growing. But the buds are dense, so I may be underestimating it. It smells like a combination of body odor, skunk, and lemons.

How long do you think I've got, or do you think I should just go by the trichomes and harvest now? White hairs and all?

Now for photos. The first 3 photos are the train wreck, the 4th photo is of some gooey caramelo I harvested yesterday, and the last pic is about half of a Pineapple Express I've been gradually harvesting for the past 10 days. Sorry for the sideways photos, I can't figure out why the uploader is turning them like that. I tried saving them all to my desktop, and still sideways. Anyone else deal with this issue? Any fixes? I know it's not ideal.

Is it normal for this strain to foxtail like it is in your pics? Do you have heat issues?

If you are at 25% amber they should be more then done. But that green field is strange, I'm sure some strains stay that heavily leafed and green but I have never had one with that much thicket and green at harvest. Did you fed grow nutes too long? I guess I would go until 50% amber being it looks like the plant will have a lot of left over N.

Hopefully someone with more experience comes along. So just wait some.

thehole said:

Is it normal for this strain to foxtail like it is in your pics? Do you have heat issues?

If you are at 25% amber they should be more then done. But that green field is strange, I'm sure some strains stay that heavily leafed and green but I have never had one with that much thicket and green at harvest. Did you fed grow nutes too long? I guess I would go until 50% amber being it looks like the plant will have a lot of left over N.

Hopefully someone with more experience comes along. So just wait some.

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Thanks for the reply. I think that trainwreck is known for having screwy foxtaily mutant buds. I've checked out some grow journals, and this seems to be one of the characteristics. No heat issues, at the max max max it may have been 80 at the canopy level, but I've got a beefy fan pull air through my hood, and you can press your hand to the glass and hold it there. I'll admit, it is fucked up looking! No doubt.

Here are the photos, finally not sideways. Yeah, based on trichomes I'd harvest now, but everything else about the plant says let me go for another 7-10 days. Btw, not one of the plants I've grown has finished even close to the time that the breeders advertise...those times are a joke, imo.

Anyone else have some input? Thanks in advance.

Here are some additional shots of the buds on the trainwreck, day 73. Notice white hairs standing on end, just not sure whether I follow the trichomes or follow the other signs the plant is giving.

nice! loookin good brother

Growing101 said:

nice! loookin good brother

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Thanks! This is only my 2nd grow, but it's a world of difference from the 1st (which didn't come out half bad). One of the hardest but most critical parts of growing, or so I've learned, is having patience. I think I harvested my plants a bit early last go, and this time I'm just letting them go until they're done. Along those lines, any feedback on how much longer you think this Trainwreck has? I can't decide whether to go by the trichomes or the plant's appearance - trichomes say harvest, the physical appearance says wait another week or so.

lookin good...not much longer...

blaze1camp said:

lookin good...not much longer...

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Appreciate the input...what's the strain in your profile pic? Looks like it has similar bud structure to the trainwreck I'm growing...maybe not...just curious.

if you wait it out about 6-8 days and repost some pictures,you will be happy you did,

LatteBroker said:

Thanks! This is only my 2nd grow, but it's a world of difference from the 1st (which didn't come out half bad). One of the hardest but most critical parts of growing, or so I've learned, is having patience. I think I harvested my plants a bit early last go, and this time I'm just letting them go until they're done. Along those lines, any feedback on how much longer you think this Trainwreck has? I can't decide whether to go by the trichomes or the plant's appearance - trichomes say harvest, the physical appearance says wait another week or so.

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Trichomes viewed under microscope is the most accurate way to determine window of harvest.

I agree with you about newbies being impatient!! Im on my 11th grow now. Each grow has gotten progressively better. But once you learn patience, this hobby of growing really takes off!! The quality of your finished product will benefit from your not being in a rush to chop her down! 25% amber trichs is a good window for harvesting if you want a balanced high. The more amber the more narcotic the buzz will be. But you be the judge of that! You really want to see your plants improve, look into training. I was afraid to train at first but now i will never grow any other way! (LST, Topping, Scrog) My yields have more than doubled!! Ive pulled 4 oz's off 1 plant under a 250hps! In my book, thats pretty good!

jimdandy said:

I agree with you about newbies being impatient!! Im on my 11th grow now. Each grow has gotten progressively better. But once you learn patience, this hobby of growing really takes off!! The quality of your finished product will benefit from your not being in a rush to chop her down! 25% amber trichs is a good window for harvesting if you want a balanced high. The more amber the more narcotic the buzz will be. But you be the judge of that! You really want to see your plants improve, look into training. I was afraid to train at first but now i will never grow any other way! (LST, Topping, Scrog) My yields have more than doubled!! Ive pulled 4 oz's off 1 plant under a 250hps! In my book, thats pretty good!

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Good stuff! I look forward to the day I can say that I've got 11 grows under my belt. It's hard enough to be patient, and it's not made any easier by the seed breeders putting out totally unrealistic times for various strains. I'd say take what the breeder recommends and then add 2 weeks. I realize that I'm coming at this with only 8 different strains under my belt, but not one of them has ripened in the recommended time. 4oz off a 250 is quality work...I think I'm looking at about ~14 ounces off these 4 plants, which is respectable, but still pretty far off from the 1g per watt that I'd like to eventually pull from the 600. To your point, I totally agree re: the quality improving dramatically when the plants are given the time they need to fully mature. I can already tell, from the herb that's come down, that the buds are denser, the smell is better, and the smoke is smoother. I'm only growing for myself and a couple friends, so I'm not in a rush to chop...it's just so damn hard to wait, and then you've got to clear your schedule for the trim. I have been training from the get go, since I studied these forums like it was my job, and it seemed like at a minimum doing some LST was a no-brainer. Definitely gave me nerves the first time I topped one though.

This trainwreck is just confusing me, since there is definitely consensus on harvesting based on trichs, but it seems weird to take down a plant that's still shooting out white pistils. I'm at 10.5 weeks, so I guess what's another few days?

I've also come to the conclusion that drying/curing is as challenging (if not more so) than the actual grow itself. But that's a story for another time. Good luck!