# Screwdriver's harvest thread



## screwdriver (Jan 2, 2008)

Just started this thread to show how I manicure my buds. Not the greateast looking bud, but we make do with what we have.

I use a nice pair of fine pointed scissors for pruning. I find the exact same pair in the craft section at wally worlds. Most of the time I take the whole plant at the same time and start at the lower sites or the smaller buds and work my way up or around the plant to the larger cola. I cut the buddage with the aim of getting mostly, similar sized pieces that will dry at the same rate.


When I cut the stem, I try to me me enough of a stem that I can roll between my fingers. The first leaves I cut are the fan leaves with no visable trichomes. They will go into my second bucket of soil, they beakdown quickly.






The rest of the bud is good for something, but I still go further. There is alot of leaf material compared to trichomes on the next set of leaves. I just don't want to let that go to waste. It will add up in future harvests so I made a place for them and the little popcorn. I try to dig in from the bottom with my scissors with minimal damage to surrounding trichomes.






There is still too much leaf compared to trichomes on the rest, but I can't dig under to get the leaf so I cut cross the leaf. The trichomes seem to decrease the further out on the leaf. I don't waste it, they go with the popcorn. All trimmed and ready to process.


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## LoveTheGreen (Jan 2, 2008)

'Not the greateast looking bud, but we make do with what we have."

*Looks like you did a pretty good job to me man.*


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## screwdriver (Jan 12, 2008)

Here's the next harvest. She is actually two Skunk#1 in one container. One of the girls got knocked and wouldn't stand straight without a prop. So starting at the bottom and from side to side. 
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Here's some of the manicure.  The first picture I am going to trim the larger leaves with no visable trichomes. Picture two is with fan leaves off. The rest is trim for the air dryer. On this particular plant the trics were only about 150um in height and sparce on the leaf. Picture three is a trimmed up bud cut and then placed on screen for round 3 sweat cure. Working my way up the stem. Cutting the larger portion of leaves that I couldn't reach the stem because the bud was too dense and putting them into the tray.
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## screwdriver (Jan 12, 2008)

Here's where I put the leaves and I'll cut up the stems into small pieces. Just trim over the bucket. I will say this is high risk. One slip of the scissors and a bud drops in to the bucket. This was an easy harvest and all was safe. 
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Picture 1 is with the trichomeless leaves cut off and everything else is the good stuff. Picture 2 I could no longer reach leaf stems so I trim the tips of the leaves off into the wooden tray for my air dryer. Picture 3 is all the really good stuff ready for however I choose to process.  
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This is after cutting each bud from the main stem. Each bud is a similar size but the internodal space shortens so it really fattens near the top of the cola. I'm not concerned about the actual size of the cola. I want the buddage to dry evenly.
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I take bunches of picture to get the point across and I throw a bunch away. I  kept these to describe something, but I forget so here they are anyway.
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## Kupunakane (Jan 12, 2008)

Hey there screwdriver,
  Great job. I was curious about the smaller leaves that you trimmed off the bus itself. Wouldn't you want to let them wrap up against your bud as they dried ? I'm not talking about big leaves, just the smaller ones that you took off.
That cpu is the greatest, but what do you do for the smell ?
smoke in peace
KingKahuuna


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## screwdriver (Jan 12, 2008)

Hello King, I could probably leave those small leaves on, but there is alot of leaf material compared to trics so I cure them longer. After they air dry (more convenient) I will store them until the jar fills up and I can make canna butter. In rough times it can be smoked. I also use those leaves for the extra moisture in the computer dry box. I put them under the buds where the air is drawn into box. The moisture from the larger leaves slows the air exchange in my dry box. The CPU power supply is where the carbon filter is located which helps with odor. Have had no problems with odor. Description in DIY section.


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## tom-tom (Jan 12, 2008)

execlent harvest bro ,,the buds look prety darn good to me 2
'











HAPPY GROWIN TOM TOM
AND HAPPY SMOKIN


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## screwdriver (Feb 17, 2008)

At day 64 for my master kush.  The lower node bud sites are more mature than the five main buds.  All the trichomes up top is still clear and the pistils are still a healthy white with few turned.  Most of the bulbous trichomes have changed and the capitate-stalked are just beginning to turn amber.
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I'm going to reveg her so I'm only doing a partial harvest until the rest of her looks a little more mature. 
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I'm not giving her a close trim job this round because I am processing this with my cooler.  I'm trying to leave as much on the plant as I can and don't have much trim to put into my soil buckets.  I took the complete top off some of the lower bud sites, but left some bud sites intact on the lowest portion of the branch.
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Trimmed as much as I need for now.  She is so top heavy I keep adding the sticks to prop her up.  Its a balancing act to put her back in her cabinet.
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## 4u2sm0ke (Feb 17, 2008)

Looks Great Screwdriver..How much would you say she weighs?.They look Great Friend


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## SmokinMom (Feb 17, 2008)

I wish I would have had your guide last Fall when I harvested my crop.  Very cool.


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## screwdriver (Feb 17, 2008)

Thanks 4u2.  I can only guess around 200g wet for the whole plant, but I took less than 50g wet.  The cooler doesn't hold much.
Thanks SM, keep up the good work. Just my interpretation of indoor growing, helping some and entertaining the rest.


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## THE BROTHER'S GRUNT (Feb 18, 2008)

*CONGRATS on the harvest mang. Gotta love them up close Trichrome shots. :aok: *


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## medicore (Feb 18, 2008)

Very nice harvest you have there.  I have to say man, for the amount of space those two had in that little pot that is a really good harvest.


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## peruvian skunk (Feb 19, 2008)

thanks buddy used these pics last night to help me harvest mine.. thanks really good pluses the pics are great


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## screwdriver (Feb 19, 2008)

Thanks TBG, medicore, ps. Glad to help.

Here she is ready to be harvested.  This time I'm going to take the whole top off on each branch.
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A better view of the fan leaf stems from below.  Snip, snip.  Each bud is then taken off at the branch junction.  All of the clipped buds, on each cola, are about the same size which is important to me so they all dry and cure at the same pace.  This also helps to avoid mold because the bud can be so dense that it holds moisture too long.
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The last cola coming off.
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## screwdriver (Feb 19, 2008)

Hey, what happen to the first part of the harvest?


Oh yeah, I'm smoking it. 
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## screwdriver (Feb 20, 2008)

Here's my other girl that I harvested.  She is a second cutting from a Nirvana Skunk #1.  I wasn't impressed with this pheno so she's the end of her line. 
I'm harvesting her this time by leaving her stand as I trim.  
The first step for me is to remove the dead or green fan leaves. This gives me a nice figure to look at.
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After trimming the fan leaves you will be able to see where the bud stems are so it makes it a little easier to see where to snip and hold the bud.  All those beautiful fan leaves go straight into my soil buckets.  
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All the lower "popcorn" goes to the trim shelf as will the leaf material cut off from the upper buds.
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Working my way up.
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I put some in my cooler and the rest of the bounty went into my computer.


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## screwdriver (Apr 14, 2008)

Just another episode of my harvest.  She is a DP white widow that I LST'ed for a long time because she was a little slow to take off.

After she came out of the cabinet there was nothing to hold her up.  I wanted to see if I could trim all of her fan leaves off while she sat there. The more trimming the more I untangled her and the more she spread her wings.

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As she sits on a pedestal and I look up to her, I see:

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Part of the bounty goes to my cooler and part goes to my computer.  Here's my new shelves for my cooler all loaded and ready to be cooled.  
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## Dubbaman (Apr 14, 2008)

Good looking stuff man! Great harvesting thread too :cool2:


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## screwdriver (Jun 22, 2008)

I couldn't wait any longer 71 days is enough.  The trichomes were just starting to turn amber, probably less than one percent  amber.  Heres a little description of the harvest.

This is my nirvana Blue Mystic. I put her into flower when she was about 20 cm and I think around 9 nodes. She wound up stretching to about 50 cm.

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I am starting at the bottom and will trim off the main stem.  This is one of the lower branches.  The trichomes on this girl really extend out on some of the larger leaves.  I'm want to keep those leaves on and just trim off the excess tip.  I'll be putting this girl into my cooler so I'm can cure that leaf material in a heart beat.  Trim off the stem, but keep the rest of the bud intact.  I try to trim so the bud size is no larger than a shot glass.

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The lower buds are easier to pick out what I want to clip away to throw in my  soil bucket.  Everything else has enough trichomes to save.

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Half way done but from now on each site is packed right up against the main stem.  Not much to grab onto so I can trim.  From that bud stem I cut off the mini buds that are about thumb size.

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Here's the last picture of my girl just before I topped to finish the harvest.  The rest of the story continues in my soil thread.  :hubba: 

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## Prodigious Puff (Jun 23, 2008)

Excellent thread. I love how you keep adding to it even though you could very well let it sit stagnant. Question:  What do you do with you trichome laden trim? Hash or do you use it for butter also? Thanks again for this thread!


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## Aurora_Indicas_Dad (Jun 23, 2008)

that blue mystic looks beautiful,what does that strain taste like? what kinda high? thanks for the thread..very helpful


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## tn_toker420 (Jun 23, 2008)

Great Looking grow screwdriver...I harvest/manicure my plants almost the same way...All except for the recycling of the clippings to compost...Keep us updated with the curing/smoke report


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## screwdriver (Jun 24, 2008)

Thanks Puff, I guess I'm a creature of habit.  Since there are only a couple plants at a time and I put most in my cooler. I don't trim nearly as close as I do when I air dry so there really isn't enough for me to accumulate anymore.

A_I_D, thanks.  She actually turned out rather nice.  I've only quick dried some early pickings and the comment received was that it could be felt in the eyes.  

tn, curing will be done in a few hours. I'm sure I'll get an "A+" on the smoke report.


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## Prodigious Puff (Jun 24, 2008)

Screwdriver,
I was just reading the DIY thread that you wrote about the computer drying case. After reading it I am very tempted to build one very similar to that myself. I was going to build some rectangular frames, cover them with some window screen, and then stack them in a cardboard box that is approximately 24 inches x 6 inches x 36 inches. At the bottom I was going to put a 4" inline fan that moves 65 cfm. My only concern is do you think that will dry the buds too fast....65cfm just seems like a lot to me. That said, would it matter as long as I had a humidistat?? You set yours at 62-72 % correct?? Thanks for any help.


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## screwdriver (Jun 24, 2008)

I use the fan at a lower voltage mainly because noise. In the original design I just left it turned on, but it would dry too quick in such a small space.

The fan should be turning on a off so the CFM is not that critical.  The humidistat had to be modified to be used in my box.  I needed the N.O. contact so I had to grind some plastic away to get to the terminal.  I also had to readjust the tension on the mechanism to get to the range I needed.

I have it set to close the switch contact at about 75%. The hysteresis of the humidistat causes the 65%.  With different air flow in box the lower number isn't as important as the upper rh which shouldn't get much higher.  

I like the humidistat, but you could also use a timer to turn on and off the fan at different intervals. 15 minutes on / 60 minutes off while manual monitor the rh.


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## screwdriver (Jun 24, 2008)

Echo? Hello, Hello, hello.  Echo, echo.  Pinch hitting for Manny Mossa....


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## screwdriver (Jun 24, 2008)

Your using indirect air flow over buds so make sure you have something to damper air flow of fan.


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## Prodigious Puff (Jun 24, 2008)

Okay, I understand where you're coming from. Since this box is only going to be temporary until I have time to actually design and build a more permanent drying box, I think I'll use the timer method. Like you said, I will leave a hygrometer in the card board box and manually monitor the humidity, if it goes above say 70 % I'll adjust the fan to come on more often. 

Two last questions: Mold is not a problem at 75%?? Seems kinda high to me....just wanted some clarification. And finally, how long does it take to air dry your bud from cut, trim, to jars using the computer dryer?

Man, I cannot explain how grateful I am of your help screwdriver...thanks a ton!


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## Prodigious Puff (Jun 24, 2008)

screwdriver said:
			
		

> Echo? Hello, Hello, hello.  Echo, echo.  Pinch hitting for Manny Mossa....




I've got to concentrate.....concentrate............concentrate


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## screwdriver (Jun 24, 2008)

When it comes to mold......It can happen anytime.

With tobacco curing, I usually see no high than 80%.  That is being recorded by accurately calibrated equipment.

My ghetto design, and where the hygrometer is placed, where the humidistat is placed, all the air leaks, just making room for errors.  I've had no problem with mold, knock on cedar.


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## Prodigious Puff (Jun 24, 2008)

I had mold probs on my very first ever harvest, I hung the plants upside down in a closet and closed the door....three weeks later I came back and all of the top colas were covered in mold. I felt like I had just gotten my lunch money stolen. That said, I may drop to around 60%.



			
				screwdriver said:
			
		

> Your using indirect air flow over buds so make sure you have something to damper air flow of fan.



Can you elaborate on this? Here's what I think you mean: Since the fan will be pulling harder on the buds directly in front of it as compared to the ones further from it, I need a way to distribute the suction more evenly so that the bud on each layer feels equal amounts of fan suction....Now that I think about it I think I'm far off...sorry.


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## screwdriver (Jun 24, 2008)

I have had mold because I jarred to early so I started using a hygrometer and monitor.  Haven't seen any problems in my jars.

Bad news for the harvest thread.  I was too distraught to finish, but heres what I got.  Everything was going great. She is at about day 72+.  Next to her is the companion tomato plant that I'll keep in 12/12. 

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I took this shot to show how far the lower buds had gotten from the main stem.  Easy to see where I'll be cutting and trimming.

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And the typical trim.

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Working my way up.  Buds getting bigger.

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Here's the last shot.

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So after a couple more nodes into the main cola I discovered mold deep in the bud.  Any bud with mold went sadly into my soil bucket.  Salvaged the tip top of the cola.  I used a 10X loupe to look over buds and didn't see any other signs.  I put some of the bud into my cooler and some into my computer so I will monitor it in those threads.


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## screwdriver (Jun 27, 2008)

This is the next girl. I thnk she is nirvana Big Haze.

Well, my story is that I wished upon a star for something about 3 or 4 nodes which I could put in veg cabinet.  What I got was this thing which was twice the size that my cabinet can hold.  Then my cat promptly jumped in the box that it came in and she squashed which probably didn't help her.  Anyway, as I was putting her into the cabinet she bent about halfway up the stem.  Really crushed the stem so I had to support with some ties pinned to the side of cabinet.  There she grew and stretched and stretched right into the light. 

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Some, but not all, of the nodes stretched and they did some stretching.  I think when the stem bent it really sent shockwaves throughout the whole thing.  The buds that looked least affected really looked good, but all that stress made the buds with thicker stems and less calyx formation.  There was  a fair amount of trichomes.  I did sample some and I got high. 

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This is from a lower node. I have been cutting off each little bud site from the stem and trimming the longer leaves.  I'll be air drying, and I'm being a little lazy with trimming.  I'm trying to get all the dried leaves out of the harvest, but they will burn the same just a little more flavor.

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As I work my way up the main stem, cutting off the really long stretchy portion of the bud.

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The end, for now!

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## Roken (Jun 27, 2008)

Looking good bro, wish i could help ya smoke it!
Peace and Love!!!!!!!
Roken.


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## HATCH (Jun 30, 2008)

Hey My Brother, What's Up???.........WOW!!!~~~~~~Amazing Work!!!!~~~~~~I'll Be W?atching For Your Next Project!!!:hubba:


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