Time to Harvest?!?

[MrPNW]

After much thought I’m not able to perform sequential harvesting “a branch this day, another in a few days, etc.” After much discussion here, and not having another location to dry the branches, it will need to be a single harvest with drying in the tent.

Harvest Goal
I’m wanting the “late harvest” relaxed body, anti-anxiety effect. Discussions here and information on the strain leads me to believe that the breeder’s (Subcool) 60-67 days flower is the late harvest for this strain. I’ve already dried and vaped (3x) a single small bud I picked two Fridays ago (today is Saturday) and the high was very potent all 3 times from the same bud in a Firefly 2+.

What do the photos from today tell me/us? Is it time to harvest? Day 60 is Monday.

I took 48 photos from all 3 plants, full shots, closeups of buds and macro shots of trichomes.



BreederStrain Complete Info
Pennywise
Height: Short to Medium
Yield: Medium
Recommended for Indoor and Outdoor. This strain is super powdery mildew resistant.
Best way to grow: Topped once, limited stretch on most phenotypes.
Harvest: 60-67
Sat/Ind: 20/80
Hybrid: Harlequin x Jack The Ripper
In over 70% of tested samples the CBD was in the range of 12-15% CBD and equal parts of THC.
Phenotypes: There are 4 main phenotypes. All have virtually the same smell and taste and all buds tend to show some purple. The main difference between phenotypes is in the bud structure and the dominant color; buds are either fingery or round, with pale green or purple as their chief color. The purple buds are particularly impressive.

Grow History
Another New Member and 1st Grow
Ready to flip?
Macro Photography - Who’s doing it?
Equipment to Maintain Tent Temperatures in Cold Conditions

Environment
Current tent settings dialed in to maintain temperature 70-74F and rh 40-50%

[MrPNW]

[MrPNW]

[MrPNW]

[MrPNW]

What are the odds? I was just snapping buds one after another and gave up trying to find one without a cat hair. Just stopped paying attention and what do you know...

[YYCannabis]

She looks ripe. Do you have a jewelers loop or magnifying lens to have a close-up look at the trichs on the buds? If you’re looking for a relaxed, body effect, you need t have a close look for ambers.

Other than that, she looks like she is ready almost any time now.

[MrPNW]

In the macro shots I was using my 15x xenvo lens to try and get the ambers in the shot. They mostly appear on the tiny leaves surrounding the buds. My trichs seem to be going from clear to amber, missing the milky step. Does that happen with some strains or is it happening quickly? Maybe I’m not recognizing what milky is.

On the same plant, do the trichs change to amber at the same level on all buds or do the higher buds get more amber one first, than the lower buds?

My wife has a loop and I have my 1000x (yes thousand) wifi microscope that really gets close.

[YYCannabis]

You could be mis-identifying the cloudy trichs as clear, and yes, some strains seem to skip the step of going cloudy, but it seems rare.

I always find that the bud sites at the ends of branches start turning amber sooner, than the secondary and tertiary buds lower down the branch (aka “popcorn buds”). Almost as if the tips are body stone, and it gets more heady as you move back up the branch to the main stalk. Looking at the trichs on the light popcorn buds rarely get many ambers because they are way too late in maturing.

Use something at least 60x magnification (1000x will certainly work) and have a look at the bud (calyx) not the leaves. (Pro Tip: Leaves lie.)

Some people really have the wrong ideas about popcorn buds...think they are garbage. But i love the little buggers. They can be like a little happy brain-buzz during the day, then the amber main buds for night.

[MrPNW]

YYCannabis
Hopefully this is what you were asking for. The microscope is 50x - 1000x focus, a dial focus (no auto) and must be used with the tripod/iPhone holder. Even the slightest move or change undoes everything you’ve set. So a real pain, but when you get it right it’s amazing. You can’t have the tent light on, even the lowest setting on my SF4000 washed the image out. I had to use scope’s dial LED light and took photos with various settings to reveal the trichs best. I also adjusted the focus to different setting to key in on different areas of the but.
These shots are all top buds or branches that can first be seen below them.

[MrPNW]

Look at the grow history in the first post, Macro. I’ve listed all the equipment in that link. It’s a sturdy little piece of equipment. The iPhone holder grabs the silver stand with ease holding it just where it needs to be. The micro stand has a couple ball joints, which aren’t the sturdiest but it gets the job done.

[YYCannabis]

Ah...the Max-See...i know your pain with using it. I had one for a while and hated the poor design, so i took it apart to try to make it better. The build was so poor i decided to just throw it in the garbage.

[MrPNW]

I corrected the scope manufacturer, it’s actually branded Takmly but uses the Max-see app on the phone. The app is pretty simple and works fine, I just have to remember to connect to wifi first.
I wish the focus dial wasn’t so bulky and turned smoother using one hand. I find it easier to set, holding the body still with one hand, while turning the dial with the other hand. Having a heavier tripod would definitely help.
The worse part of scope it the base/arm/clamp. The design sucks, even the slightest moving of any part moves everything. I would like to find an all metal arm with more fluid ball joints. Those tripod phone holders that have a frame for shooting videos can mount all kinds of hardware. Having the phone in the vicinity of the scope would definitely improve things.

[MrPNW]

[YYCannabis]

You’re definitely at the “Mostly cloudy” point. Some pale ambers showing up. Should only be a few more days if you want a body effect smoke. 👍

[grouchyoldman]

"Like waiting for a baby" Made me laugh.

Those are beautiful pics! Thanks for taking the time and effort to create them.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who is "feeling your pain" as your patience is sorely tried.... but you know that you're just not quite there yet! If you're really seeking the "Mellow Yellow" high, next Saturday is the better bet.

Whenever you do harvest, another option is to leave one smaller but solid branch growing for awhile while the rest of the harvest begins drying. When I did that, the final lonesome branch kept right on chugging for another 10 days before I finally snipped it. The latecomer dried and cured a couple weeks behind the rest and produced noticeably different high. To be fair, the additional time didn't create the effect I anticipated, more "Numbskull" than Couchlock. I ended up being glad I hadn't let the whole plant go that long, but the experiment was worth it.

[Eliot Pryor]

grouchyoldman is right on in my opinion. Sometimes the time is better spent drying and curing than being growing.

[MrPNW]

Thanks guys. I’m going to be checking things with the scope daily and if need be, take the following day off to harvest.
Day 60 Monday
Day 64 Friday (it was Subcool that wrote +/-64 days and 60-67 days flower
So yeah, I imagine its Saturday, but if sooner so be it.

[quirk]

Great job and pictures.

[MrPNW]

Maybe I’m anxious but they seem more amber today.

[SoOrbudgal]

I would wait until at least the stated time of harvest. Sure clip some top buds leave the rest to ripen.

[TheKieftan]

If you want the body high you’ll want to wait for 25-50% of the trichomes to change to a amber color atm they’re all milky from what I can see which means she is ripe but not over-ripe yet which is what you want for body high

[MrPNW]

I’m guessing Friday at 64 days will be closer maybe even Sunday.

[MrPNW]

Saturday Day 65 of the 60-67 day flower (breeder info)
06 March 2021

Today I’ve taken photos of the highest/longest 2 or 3 branches from each of the 3 plants and only the top bud from each.
i started with the microscope, then the iPhone 12 Pro using the Camera+ 2 app in auto mode, and finally the iPhone with the xenvo 15x macro lens and Camera + 2 app in macro mode. I wasn’t worried about the overall photo, I’m just trying to get as many trichs in the photo to show where they are at with amber.

What do you folks think? There is much more amber going down the branch, especially out onto the tiny leaves.. Last Monday, which was day 60, there was very little amber at the top most buds, but today I see quite a lot more on them.

[MrPNW]