Here’s one for you guys...

[Yamkoos]

Ok so wanted to take a look at my bud after harvest and found little spider mites. No bud has any damage and only found a few. Little guy waved at me while looking at him like fighting words... read a lot that they will move out and it’s not a big deal if nothing is visible on them... not sure what to think if I should just keep drying it out and they will go away or what. So lost and thinking it’s the worst honestly... any help?

[SoOrbudgal]

I probley combusted quite a few in my growing years, i ain't dead yet I just hang the plant upside down when i chop and shake it like crazy. Then i limb the plant in sections, wet trim and hang. If i was so inclined to wash them i would it's easy enough but i'm just not going to do it. It's personnel use for our house and friends, besides if it's just a few not all webbed out entire plant then...........we ignore a few itty bitty spiders. Not selling to anyone so we don't mind.

[Farmbuck]

Arrrggghhh !! You mean i've been smoking a few of those uglies man eating spiders and not knowing it ?? No wonder I fell dizzy ? Don't get me wrong i"m not arachnophobia cuz I kept one big mother &*&(&(# one in our kitchen for that reason.

[AccidentalGardener]

If I like the sausage, I don't ask how they make it, LOL. Maybe they add a certain regional note when they combust. this made me gag a little and I be grateful I haven't been growing it long enough to count up the pests that ended up in a bong-load, LOL.

[Yamkoos]

My guy!!!!! Lol I was thinking when you get those pops in the bowl with no seed or stems like wtf is that I’m thinking I know now. Eff it it’s for me and it’s not bad and honestly without my 1000x microscope I wouldn’t have known. Weed looks great still and nothing else is showing. I’m going to smoke this like Cheech and Chong smoked their dog shit lololol

[Yamkoos]

They are nothing bad, I was staring at a bud a bit and one just crawled up and looked at me I swear... grabbed a few more seen some more like omg throw it away lol but after reading this happens and they like to move out after you cut. No webs nothing visible on the plant, no spots no white powdery crap. I think I’m ok but more ides are welcome.

[Farmbuck]

When I saw (the damn ones on my sugar leaves) on this grow I just panicked and sprayed my colas from top to bottom with organic Neem on my colas when they had 6 more wks left... Now I wondering if I made a mistake..! Oh well I'm still learning after all these years lolll Next time i'll "neem" them before switching to 12/12. By the way the Nepal Jam from Aces look very promising sor far, the effect is a clear head but numb feeling and it's just 2 days after drying for more than 5 days. So I imagine she will be in her best in a ..... wks of curing. Oh I'm saying 6 to 10 weeks from today. La pièce de résistance in the Nepalese hybrid strain. Not an easy strain to grow at the beginning but she will reward you with her other pheno the legendary Jamaican'85.

[Farmbuck]

Also pleasant to the eyes..!

[SoOrbudgal]

Oh my word will you just quit with the candy shots. ........keep em coming !

[Farmbuck]

Hihihihihi..!

[MagicMike66]

You sure do know how to take great pics of your ladies!

[Yamkoos]

Ok the small stems are starting to snap and the outside of the bud is dry, is she ready for jars?

[SoOrbudgal]

Yes in my opinion Yamkoos. Then open jars once per day at least for first week to check that they don't get mold from humidity. My new jars of bud i have to keep opening deep inside of bud stays moist it should be squishy and sticky nugs. If they still feel like to much moisture, toss them in paper grocery bag roll it down and let it sit overnight give a shake to the bag now and then.

[JSH1973]

Is there any preventative thing worth doing to avoid getting various pests in the first place or to minimise the chances of getting it.

[lalaland]

There are many options that kill bugs. Peroxide, Isopropyl alcohol, vinegar, and bleach all work at 10% dilution yo 90% water. I’ve heard people mention much higher concentrations, but I haven’t used them myself.
Neem works well in the vegetative stage, but should never be sprayed on buds as I’m sure you’ve read from others.
Pyrethrum can be used in the budding stage, but is very hard on plants as well as pests.
Personally after my first spider mite disaster, I inspect any weird looking markings on the leaves daily, and spray plants weekly with 1 tsp Neem, 1/2 tsp liquid dish soap, to 1 litre of water through the entire veg stage and into the bud stage as well until you can see pistils.
Once your plant starts showing flowers your choices are much more limited if you want to produce something healthy for yourself. When I was trying to just get my plants through flowering with an active infestation, I used peroxide only, every 3 days to keep the numbers down. It’s almost impossible to get rid of them while your room or tent is still full, just too many places for them to hide.
If you’re in between grows then it’s perfect timing to disinfect everything, a minimum of three times.
When I was finished the disinfection process, I put a test plant into the space by itself for a week as bait 😂 just to be 100% sure the issue was gone. Inspected it from stem to stern... then reluctantly moved other plants in.
I’m only on my second indoor grow, so I’m sure you’ll get answers from more experienced growers that have a lot of great insite. This was my experience tho. Take it for what you will👍

[Tersky]

The way i have avoided pests in my grow is to grow inside with clean environment, grow in coco or hydro and use synthetic nutes. That cuts the probability of pests though doesnt eliminate it totally. Since i have never had a serious pest problem in my cannabis grows i cant give any help in that regard but i would research IPM or integrated pest management, a term which commercial growers use, to get an idea on pest prevention. Im gonna ChadWestport as he has experience with large grows and seems to be very knowledgeable. He may have some tips.

[ChadWestport]

Tersky thanks for compliment, you have nailed a big part of IPM, cleanliness. I certainly do have different IPM protocols for personal home grow and the massive commercial buildings. IPM management can be broken down into a few categories but one of the most important for home growers is Cultural control. This includes things like sanitizing your tools, removing dead leaves from the grow area, cleaning up soil on the floor, not letting water pool on the ground ect. Another aspect of that is cross contamination, as an example, if you have been working outside in the veggie garden, walking through the woods or rolling in the grass, before you enter your cannabis garden, change your clothes, shoes and even socks. The last thing you want to do is bring pests in as travelers. Often, this is why people don't recommend you bring outdoor plants inside. Those are a few of the basics there.

At the commercial level, chemical control is usually preferred over biological control because of the targeted effectiveness. Chemical control in the home grow, I don't do as a preventative measure, I'd rather not spray the plants if I don't have to. But on the commercial scale, everything is treated as a preventative because a single outbreak can destroy $250,000 of product very quickly, which is scary. So the majority of commercial grows treat the plants as if they had insects or PM or other nasties.

When it comes to chemicals here, since we are in a legal and regulated market, there are many banned products that are highly effective and used in regular agriculture. The problem is, none of those chemicals have been tested for combustion. As an example, the super popular Eagle 20 product was very effective but when you heat it, the main ingredient turns to cyanide gas, which isn't healthy at all. So with those restrictions, I recommend what is approved by our state. One line of products to look at for control is https://marronebio.com It's important to have variety of treatments for the pest you are trying to control, often times bugs can build immunities and come back to kick your ass. Using a few different active ingredients in different sprays helps reduce that possibility.

I didn't create the text below, but it gives you an insight into the areas of a full IPM program, which is good to at least have one in your mind or playbook.
The most effective, long-term way to manage pests is by using a combination of methods that work better together than separately. Approaches for managing pests are often grouped in the following categories.

Biological control
Biological control is the use of natural enemies—predators, parasites, pathogens, and competitors—to control pests and their damage. Invertebrates, plant pathogens, nematodes, weeds, and vertebrates have many natural enemies.

Cultural controls
Cultural controls are practices that reduce pest establishment, reproduction, dispersal, and survival. For example, changing irrigation practices can reduce pest problems, since too much water can increase root disease and weeds.

Mechanical and physical controls
Mechanical and physical controls kill a pest directly, block pests out, or make the environment unsuitable for it. Traps for rodents are examples of mechanical control. Physical controls include mulches for weed management, steam sterilization of the soil for disease management, or barriers such as screens to keep birds or insects out.

Chemical control
Chemical control is the use of pesticides. In IPM, pesticides are used only when needed and in combination with other approaches for more effective, long-term control. Pesticides are selected and applied in a way that minimizes their possible harm to people, nontarget organisms, and the environment. With IPM you'll use the most selective pesticide that will do the job and be the safest for other organisms and for air, soil, and water quality; use pesticides in bait stations rather than sprays; or spot-spray a few weeds instead of an entire area.

These IPM principles and practices are combined to create IPM programs. While each situation is different, six major components are common to all IPM programs:
1-Pest identification
2-Monitoring and assessing pest numbers and damage
3-Guidelines for when management action is needed
4-Preventing pest problems
5-Using a combination of biological, cultural, physical/mechanical and chemical management tools
6-After action is taken, assessing the effect of pest management

[SoOrbudgal]

I got a mystery plant from that old neighbor of mine hanging. I don't think more than 2 days hanging cause she hardly watered it not much water inside of plant. I let my plants soil dry out when it's harvest time for them, to me less stem wetness the better cause that carries into the jar.

[Yamkoos]

Ok so got the little buds out that dried up fast but what humidity would I prefer in the jar?

[Yamkoos]

Just doing a test batch and leaving the rest to hang on the little buds

[Yamkoos]

Buds are looking nice while drying

[AccidentalGardener]

Hi Yam! Because I was learning, I took one of my hygrometers and put it in one of the jars with the buds. It's hard to know 'what's dry enough' if you don't know the humidity when it feels right- if that makes sense. I was able to open and close the jars before there was a problem, and like SoOrbudgal said, I also used a brown paper grocery sack to air them out, but not let them dry out too much. When I tossed them into the bag, I buried the hygrometer under the buds. The word on the street is 62% RH in the jar is perfect.
I got my hygrometers on Amazon, Govee, they talk to my tablet via bluetooth. I can check my stuff without checking it