Trichome Color is a Waste of Time

Ricky Pastille said:

How much does proper curing effect THC/CBN levels? Will THC continue to degrade into CBN after the weed is dry and curing?

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Conclusive research has shown that wet (uncured) marijuana is not fully psychoactive. Before drying, decarboxylation of inactive THCA acid into THC has not yet occurred. During the curing (final drying) process, the COOH bonded to the THC is released. The result is the psychoactive compound delta9 THC. Amounts of THC do not actually increase during the curing process. Non-psychoactive THCA, in part, becomes psychoactive THC. Even then not all THCA has become THC. Heat while being smoked finishes the process of decarboxylation. Harvested cannabis can also be heated to achieve decarboxylation. In either case levels of CBN do not increase much, as long as both are properly performed.


Will THC continue to degrade and become CNB? Yes, over time THC will continue to degrade and become CBN. Not quickly, not more than minimally during normal proper curing. Heat and light increase the rate of decomposition but over a long enough period of time THC will totally degrade regardless of conditions.

Ok now im really confused How do I know if my plant is ready

Books can make one dumb. I got a friend that grows and is always reading books about growing and his weed is never as good as mine.

fssalaska said:

Books can make one dumb. I got a friend that grows and is always reading books about growing and his weed is never as good as mine.

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It depends on who wrote a book. If it was written by someone who knows their stuff a book can be of tremendous help. But if written by someone who does not know their stuff, but who is known and knows that if they sound at least half factual their book will sell and they will earn a lot of money, then if that book is accepted by readers as being the God's honest truth that book will hold someone back from becoming the best grower they can be.

if anyone has watched Jorge Cervantes's grow dvd set, he says wait till ALL trichromes HAVE turned amber. and after only harvesting 10 plants, i can tell you that the first chickens i harvested were NOT finished!! and i looked for "the first amber trichs" to harvest. that fucked my shit up bad!!! i have been waiting, each day. i have seen that the CALYXES are actually what tell you when a plant is finished. a lot of strains do not turn amber. i have a plant that i waited til the plants had all amber trichs, and it seemed to be the most finished of all of them. im starting to think that is quit impossible to tell by just looking at the trichs alone. after all the research i did, it did NOT prove helpful. although it was highly appreciated. but the next round, im not harvesting on trichromes alone. but looking for that amber glow the plants seem to exhibit when they are completely finished. if you look at the thread that fddblk has started, if you look at the plants in his first post, the 2 differences you will see is that amber glow im speaking of. check it out, its here in this area. fuck the "harvest at first sign of amber trichs" bullshit!! its for the birds.

Ricky Pastille said:

How much does proper curing effect THC/CBN levels? Will THC continue to degrade into CBN after the weed is dry and curing?

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Yes, and I know this because of experience.
First grow I harvested a little bit early, all thrics were milky, none amber.

After curing, about 2 months, I used the scope again and found PLENTY amber thricomes!
I figured this must the THC turned CBN (because of oxygen etc).

Anyway, the resulting CBN-heavy buds did NOT give me couchlock stone. It was... sleepy but not in the right way.. it was a boring smoke, and did not last for long.

I guess my jar was not 100% air-tight.

Edit: The high from the plant was great after the drying, before the 2 month cure. So in this case, curing failed.

you dont want all amber, you want a blend. 10% amber, mostly milky. if all are amber it went too long and your high will be lame. if its all clear, its premy and it will be underweight, and you high will be a short fizzling out head high. you want right in between.

oHsiN666 said:

if anyone has watched Jorge Cervantes's grow dvd set, he says wait till ALL trichromes HAVE turned amber.

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George Van Patten, AKA Jorge Cervantes, has been known to be incorrect about a few things over the years so I would not hold him up as the ultimate authority on when is best to harvest.

Brick Top said:

Heat while being smoked finishes the process of decarboxylation. Harvested cannabis can also be heated to achieve decarboxylation. In either case levels of CBN do not increase much, as long as both are properly performed.

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if it is dry enough to burn then wouldnt all the THCA be converted to THC when burned. if this is the case then what would be the point in letting the decarboxylation process occur naturally or inducing it with heat if it is going to be smoked.

That's interesting, but how do you know the peak level of each different strain?

yeah and i also know Ed Rosenthal contradicts himself quite often, so i know to NOT always listen. but the 10% amber is bullshit! i had about 6-7 of the plants i have cut down NOT be finished and i chopped at 10% amber. so that statement is not true. maybe it is true with certain strains. i have a Skunk plant that is in her 9th week, and i still hardly see any trichromes, but if you look super close there is some. i would not go by trichrome color at all on a full blooded Sativa. swollen calyxes, and when about 90% of the stigmatas have turned darkened and shriveled up is thee best point to harvest your plants. studies have proven that maximum potency is when that happens. or so i have read. but its very open to debate, as each persona has their own personal preferences. im doing some more at home tests on my plants to see what is best for my strains and my situations.

420forme said:

That's interesting, but how do you know the peak level of each different strain?

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you check everyday once your close and you'll see it level off right before it drops.

420forme said:

That's interesting, but how do you know the peak level of each different strain?

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You watch every plant and judge it on what it shows you.
You need to read a plant to get the real feel of how to tell how mature it is, you can't just follow some fixed guidelines (although they may help you), you need to take under consideration that every strain behaves differently, and every plant can behave differently, due to many variables, most profoundly genetics.

oHsiN666 said:

i would not go by trichrome color at all on a full blooded Sativa. swollen calyxes, and when about 90% of the stigmatas have turned darkened and shriveled up is thee best point to harvest your plants. studies have proven that maximum potency is when that happens. or so i have read.

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I am very curious as to where you have read what you said above about when to harvest pure sativas? Was it from someone like George Van Patten (AKA Jorge Cervantes)? Was the information found in an actual scientific research study? Or was it the opinion of some in grow forums like this?

irieie said:

if it is dry enough to burn then wouldnt all the THCA be converted to THC when burned. if this is the case then what would be the point in letting the decarboxylation process occur naturally or inducing it with heat if it is going to be smoked.

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bricktop, what do you think?

Brick Top said:

I am very curious as to where you have read what you said above about when to harvest pure sativas? Was it from someone like George Van Patten (AKA Jorge Cervantes)? Was the information found in an actual scientific research study? Or was it the opinion of some in grow forums like this?

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can't remember where i exactly read it, but i can tell you i only frequent this forum for growing info. like i said, "or so i have read", don't hold it against me if it is not true. im just going by what people say around here.

so, is it not true then?

and if so, would be able to tell a finished Sativa and a finished Indica be the same principal? i figure it would be, but this Skunk i have is not looking anywhere near finished, she was started 1 week before the rest of my plants, and they are all done and finished. she looks as she has about 4-6 weeks left. but im sure its only 2-4. its the oddest thing, i see hardly ANY crystals. no frost, NO TRICHROMES> i don't like!! so, its just an observation. but please fill me in if i am wrong, there is lots of mis-leading, uninformative information on here.

thought id share these since i found this thread very helpful to me
here is my white widow at 60 days

beautiful work!

thnk u very much im a newbie to growing but i got the pic side nailed lol

malignant said:

beautiful work!

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