Jogro
Well-Known Member
I take a "moderate" position here. Trichomes are definitely not "worthless". To the contrary, they are probably the best SINGLE indicator of ripeness. If you want to go by one thing and nothing else, the majority of the trichomes going from transparent to cloudy is the best signal.
But there are other non-microscopic clues worth looking at too: Calyx swelling/fullness, pistil* coloration change, pistil withering/receding, and yellowing of the upper fan leaves are also all clues that the plant is ripe, or close.
Again, the exact changes will vary from strain to strain: Some plants pistils will either start off non-white, or simply won't change color from white until its way late. Many plants also won't yellow until its way past peak, plus of course poor nutrition can cause any plant to turn yellow early. You do have to know your strains.
In my experience, with most plants, its basically not worth it to even start with the microscope until you start seeing the physical maturity changes listed above. Once you know your particular strains well, you can usually determine peak ripeness (or pretty darn close) without a microscope.
For examining trichromes, personally, I prefer a 40 or 45x loupe.
They're cheap (you can get one on Ebay for literally under $5), much smaller in overall size than the pocket microscope, require no external focusing, give you a wider field of view than a 60-100x scope so you can look at more trichromes at once, and you don't have to push the objective right up against the plant to see what's going on.
But its largely a matter of personal preference. The 60-100x microscope has one big advantage of massive magnification, and you can really get a good look at individual trichomes with one. It also lets you focus externally, which might be helpful depending on your particular eyesight.
* "Pistil" is a part of a female flower. "Pistol" refers to a firearm designed to be operated by one hand.
But there are other non-microscopic clues worth looking at too: Calyx swelling/fullness, pistil* coloration change, pistil withering/receding, and yellowing of the upper fan leaves are also all clues that the plant is ripe, or close.
Again, the exact changes will vary from strain to strain: Some plants pistils will either start off non-white, or simply won't change color from white until its way late. Many plants also won't yellow until its way past peak, plus of course poor nutrition can cause any plant to turn yellow early. You do have to know your strains.
In my experience, with most plants, its basically not worth it to even start with the microscope until you start seeing the physical maturity changes listed above. Once you know your particular strains well, you can usually determine peak ripeness (or pretty darn close) without a microscope.
For examining trichromes, personally, I prefer a 40 or 45x loupe.
They're cheap (you can get one on Ebay for literally under $5), much smaller in overall size than the pocket microscope, require no external focusing, give you a wider field of view than a 60-100x scope so you can look at more trichromes at once, and you don't have to push the objective right up against the plant to see what's going on.
But its largely a matter of personal preference. The 60-100x microscope has one big advantage of massive magnification, and you can really get a good look at individual trichomes with one. It also lets you focus externally, which might be helpful depending on your particular eyesight.
* "Pistil" is a part of a female flower. "Pistol" refers to a firearm designed to be operated by one hand.
