Last watering before harvest ??

[devious d]

Hi all, i have been growing hydro for many years, but for my last 2 crops ive gone the organic route.:clapping as im in the middle of the flush it got me thinking how long after the last watering do people crop there plants? or does the lack of water in the substrate not matter to the amount of water the plant is holding ? i would like to hear what peoples ideas on this are, even if it doesnt matter at all. :passingjoint::passingjoint:

 

[TheCoolestMan]

I like to let it dry befor the chop but it will depend on strain and phenos. Also i look at how the pant is flushed if she still have many green leaves then i flush some more etc...
Even ur drying room condition can help u decide if u have to water befor chop or not.

Growing organic its better to keep your soil always a bit wet and not dry for the bacterias life. Ina completly dry soil the bacteria will died as in the desert soil. In organic no bacteria no food for the plants. But some strain like to dry up a bit between two watering, u can see the result directly the next moning! Bigger buds! Next run i will try with nutes and let the soil dry between each watering.

Knowing this, maybe u can let the soil dry out by the end, kill the bacteria so the plant will be completly flushed...

 

[farmerjohn]

I am still experimenting with what works best. I do agree there may well be multiple ways to approach this question, depending on strain. For my current run, which is all Chemo, I have suspended waterings as of this past weekend. I watered everything thoroughly the previous week. Days 42-48 of 12/12. Now I am monitoring the plants for signs of stress, which is the only water I will apply until harvest. I have already applied a bit to three I found, that may not have gotten the flushing the others did. So I expect to do a bit of random watering, as the plants need it. One plant from the back was harvested early & a check of the soil revealed it was just barely moist. A bit of a surprise to me, as I expected it to be wetter.

To answer the question, the waterings have ceased two weeks prior to harvest. This is a pretty standard time frame. Included in that time will be a 36 hour dark period just prior to harvest. I believe the mediums water content to be directly related to the amount of water in the plant, but cannot support that with scientific fact. I have always just assumed drier medium would result in less water weight in the buds.

 

[devious d]

i thought myself that a drier medium maybe less water in the plant, but no proof of this. this crop is mainly exodus cheese, with a couple of royal dutch cheese and my pollen chucking cross of nl x cheese*(looks very sativa?) i just flush with ph adjusted water so the last one then three days in the dark and to dry the medium

 

[hubcap]

after my last watering of the flush i wait for the soil to dry out, and then the plant to actually start to dry out....then ill take her from the soil.

speeds up drying time while still giving the plant a chance to push out every last lil bit.

really no point in watering and then harvesting the next day or two........
youll just hafta wait longer for buds while looking at em hang.

make sense?

-cap

 

[TheCoolestMan]

Someone with a drying room at 25% RH might want his buds to dry slowly so therefore need them at harvest with a good moisture. I think this is point, really depends on what u after.

I remember some old timers used to leave the buds dry on tree a bit befor harvest. I have seen some pheno or strain that takes a hell of a time to remove the moisture from the buds. No matter what u do, u can remove leaves etc she just take time to dry. Exactly what juts happened with 2 of my ROG phenos, one dry quick one took and is still taking time to dry well. They both had they last watering the same day. Was more a question of bud structure, density and size.

 

[hubcap]

Someone with a drying room at 25% RH might want his buds to dry slowly so therefore need them at harvest with a good moisture. I think this is point, really depends on what u after.

good point.

-cap

 

[devious d]

at the end of the day its the best end product for myself, going 8-10 weeks and then rushing the drying and curing can ruin an excellent crop, i can see the sense in more moisture in the plant the longer and the better the taste as im on the last few days of the flush i think i will try both ways and see if theres a differance

 

[hubcap]

rushing the dry and refraining from watering for a week or so at the end of the grow are two different things tho.

i never rush the dry. who wants to smoke hay afte r3-5months of growing?

 

[farmerjohn]

:help:Try this then D. Suspend watering an appropriate amount b4 harvest. (2 wks. is common) Turn lights back to 11/13, to hermie the whole lot! lol just kidding. To tell the plants Winter is approaching. :harvest:After harvesting, hang them up in a dry, dark place & leave them until the fan leaves are brittle. (time varies depending on RH, etc.) Trim off fans & brown bag for 5-7 days, turning contents twice daily. Finish any trimming & store in airtight jars. Burp daily. :animbong:You'll be checking the cure daily, too, I assume, so you will know when they are perfectly dried & cured.:sun That is my plan for the run due to be chopped on July 9th, day 60! I hope the trics are cooperative!
:swear