High yield harvest- help wanted

To give you a heads up, I’m a first time grower here in the mountains of VA. I researched all I could prior to and during my grow, including reading through these forums and asking a few questions. Now that I’m approaching harvest, it appears as though experience becomes more important than research, so I’m hoping a couple of you fellow growers can help me through this process of harvesting and curing, hence I started this thread.

I had no idea when I started out how large my plants would be in the end. I read that like my LSD strain grows to about 4’ tall, but mine are over 7’. I am going to harvest a LSD and a 8’ tall Blue Dream this coming Saturday. Wish I could give BD a another 2 weeks, but she’s had bud rot and it’s supposed to rain for three days starting next weekend. To add to it, remnants of a hurricane might be here at that time.

So my first question is this. I purchased a bunch of grove bags for curing. Once I have my dried buds and then place in the bags, I hope to not have to check through them all the time, by having the moisture content of my buds correct from the start. I’ll have too many bags to check each individually for the little spare time I have during the week. I purchased a moisture meter with pins to help with this. So I have read differing opinions using this technique, some say stick it in the stem, while others say you check the bud itself. Which is better?


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The pins need to get into the heart of the bud not the stem. 10-12% with 11% being the sweet spot. Once your Budz are at this internal moisture reading, do a final trim if you do that and put them in the bags with a meter. The internal bag moisture should read between the 58-62% they recommend and if you have that dialed in then you will not have to bother with your bags other than just checking the humidity to make sure it is staying at 58-62. No burping and I leave mine in the bags and pop em all in a box and store them in my closet until time to use.
Sorry bout the bud rot, rain and hurricane, oh the challenges we face!! Good luck!!

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I check stem moisture close to the buds, 11-13% and they go in the grove bags with a small hygrometer for a visual check occasionally. I have some that have been in the bags for a year and still holding 58-60% humidity :love_you_gesture:

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Ok, thanks. I do have like a dozen small humidity meters. If I end up with more bags than that, I guess I can monitor a few bags and assume the rest are reading close to the same. Was also wondering about storing them. So I can stack them in a cardboard box and they will be fine. Good to know.

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So you are checking the stem itself? Everyone seems to have a preferred method and I’m sure there is more than one correct way. I’ll probably combine the two and check both stem and the buds.

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Yes, stem only near the bud sites :love_you_gesture:

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I have a large closet setup with an exhaust fan with duct leading to a crawl space and into a carbon filter. Humidity usually averages about 50% and I think for a week I can keep the temp between 65-68? Does that sound adequate for conditions?

I saw “Help Wanted” “Mountains of VA”, and saw your pics. Where do I apply? I’m already in Virginia! Beautiful!

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Yeah i am in Virginia near blue ridge mountains having same problem with plants getting bud rot after all that previous rain and high humidity with all the upcoming rain wondering if should go ahead and chop really need couple more weeks to finish.

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Ha! I do need help…. In more ways than one!

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There are several of us members planning a meetup at Cannacon in Richmond on 10/15…

:smile_cat:

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Welcome legal VA! Nice buds, and dry sloooooow

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My Blue Dream will be about 9 1/2 weeks at harvest. Wish I could push to 11 but it’s not possible. Her trichomes are cloudy now, and I like a more heady high than a couch locked stone, so in another 5 days she should still be a decent smoke. I have four plants, and will leave another LSD and GG4 to continue to ripen. They have only showed a spot or two of bud rot, so hopefully they can get past a couple days rain.

I also use the stem near the bud to test moisture. If you wet trim to the finished product just leave an inch or 2 of the stem. Using the stem you are assured of good contact points and a good reading. If you try with the bud itself, you need to push the pins in far enough to make solid contact with the stem anyway. It is harder to do and you beat up the flower doing it.

Just it case, make sure you give it a a good bud wash. And make it strong enough to kill mild. Nothing worse than having moldy buds in the jars or bags. If you cure them clean at the right moisture you will be fine.
Getting a bath (indoor grow)


I use the wash from spliff seeds
spliffseeds DOT nl/harvesting-cannabis-with-bugs-or-mildew/

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I’m in SC.last 3day rain I covered the girls up.i extended the cover past both ends a couple feet then put a fan blowing thru. It work very well for them.i will do it again as the rain is coming here for the weekend.2 weeks to go got my fingers crossed.

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Do you use peroxide or lemon and baking soda for your wash? Is there a difference between the two methods? I do plan to do a wash.

I use umbrellas over my ladies, but don’t risk it during storms. We can get some crazy winds up here on the mountain.

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Ok. So harvested 2 of my plants over the weekend. Most might say to give another week or so, but with the remnants of Ian dumping rain for 3-4 days on us, I figured now was a good time. I have a wood meter to test moisture in the stems/buds. I guess smaller buds are finished drying and should go into the cure bags earlier than some of the larger colas? Or do you guys just bag them all at the same time? Any other tips that might do me good m? Drying closet is now 65-68 degrees and 55% humidity.

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If you go to the Grove Bags web site, and search for sweating, and follow that process, it will negate the need to take the smaller buds first. At least that is what I have found.

Edit: grovebags[.]com/sweating-cannabis/ (remove the [ ] )

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