tips on chop and trim?

[BROMAN]

Any pointers or tips on the actual chop and on how buds should be trimmed? Tools, methods whatever I might not be aware of or thought about.

 

[DankColas]

The only thing I have chopped was a Hermi Female gone half male to turn into hash. I'm about 2 months away from my first real harvest. I found this great video on youtube. I'm going to do what this guy does. At the end his product is great looking.

Question is your crop ready? Trichs milk white with some amber or just milk white? You use a microscope or a jewelers loop and view them from the side. If your answer is yes go ahead and harvest. If not you need more time. If you need mure time its not bad. It good you know before you cut her down. Heres the video. It is about 38 minutes. Very indepth. Very helpful I think.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbLw767_fOA

Enjoy

 

[Dr. Green Fang]

I use Fiskars and nothing else to trim with. You can buy them most places for around $10 a pair. Buy multiple pair.

Also, have a razor blade with a handle (widget) so you can scrape your scissors when they build up with too much gunk. Then, put that stuff into a bowl and SMOKE IT! The "scissors hash spoils" always go to the trimmer, so enjoy that...your first taste of the oil that is on your plant :aok:

Trim close up to the bud, but take care to not trim into the bud. Once you get in a rhythm, you'll find the scissors find themselves right up close to the for a good swipe easier than you think. I cut 10" - 12" (no bigger) sections of the branches. I hang my stuff from strings in another tent to dry, so I make sure there's an "armpit" type of area to hang them from. Otherwise, I have to use clothes hangers.

I trim with an aluminum tray on my lap, the kind you buy to cook something in the oven and dispose of. Any type of tray really, so long as you can scrape the trim out of it after and it's big enough to catch your trim going everywhere.

Put on clothes consciously thinking you'll be covered in trim! I collect all my trim, then put it into a plastic to then go in the freezer, before I make bubble hash out of it.

Best thing I can tell you; Don't be scared of it. As long as you don't mash it like potato's, you'll be good! Where are you storing the stuff to dry after?

I had about 5 more thoughts while typing this, but I couldn't get them out fast enough and I forgot them. Bah!! Will report back here when I think about it.

 

[DankColas]

With that I also thought of save used glass jars from pickles and jam and anything that comes in a jar. I have big and small. Bigger kind is storage. Smaller king is for curing. I'm going to take my smallest jar and do a long cure. Don't know how long. Just want to see the extended effects.

If you didn't save jars ball jars are cheap and easy to come by.

 

[HighBrixMMJ]

Dont put a fan directly on them, rather create a good air movement within whatever you plan on using to dry them in. Keeps the moisture moving and air exchanging so mold doesnt set in. Those are the two biggest concerns. The slower it dries the tastier and smoother the smoke will be. Usually like 10-14 days. You have to give the chlorophyll time to dissipate before drying is finished or it will forever have that grassy hay like flavor.let it cure for at least 2-3 weeks ina small glass jar before smoking. Good luck bro!

 

[Grower13]

I use Fiskars scissors also........ Like the small bladed spring loaded ones for trimming........... keep me from getting sore and blistered fingers and hands.

 

[zem]

if you can get this Felco 310 for trimming you won't regret it http://www.felco.com/felco/pages/product.page?name=FELCO 310

 

[Dr. Green Fang]

Zem, have you ever used Fiskars? I've used a few spring scissors that aren't Fiskars, and nothing honestly seems to compare.

 

[HighBrixMMJ]

I have the fiskars and the Felco's, I use the Felco's to cut thick stems and branches, and the fiskars for trimming small stems and leaves. So get both

 

[zem]

there is a wide range of felco. i have both felco 2 for cloning, and felco2 for trimming. seeriously Doc, I doubt that it can get any better than felco 310 so comfy for trimming i never complained

 

[HighBrixMMJ]

Fiskars are pretty sweet, they're both good choices! It's reall personal preference!

 

[zem]

yeah they sure look sweet, i just never asked for anything better because i was 100% satisfied. actually i like them better than the cloning scissors which are much more pricey in the 40$ +

 

[BROMAN]

Cut and trimmed my scrogged strawberry blue. I don't know how many episodes of Stargate I watched while doing so. I just used a pair of scissors I'd been using throughout the grow and a box cutter. I've the 2 cotton candies to chop at 11 weeks on Friday. I will pick up a pair of fiskars at Lowes in a couple of days and jars are on the way. I've got plenty of air too. Does anyone leave their plants in the dark to stress them into becoming frostier? Oh and thanks for the input.

 

[HighBrixMMJ]

IMO, that stressing thing, in the last two days is bull! It cannot possibly produce more trichs in just two days! At no point in the growing process do I ever see trich differences that hearty in a two day period! Let alone in the final stages. The only thing I've ever seen or noticed happen in a two day span is the fattening of the buds in the final stages! Some days it seems th grew a cm in girth overnight! I've tried the darkness thing, it doesn't hold any water with me!

 

[Joe420Camel]

.

this is just how I do it.
I'm not saying its the best way or even the right way, just a way that has worked for me.


-----------

I pluck all the leafs off! I'm talking EVERY one you can (without cutting/damaging a bud!)
Poke those sharp scissors in and snip the leaf stem nice and close.

2 piles: WITH and without "sugar" (trichomes)

Cut and hang in what space you have, providing good but not direct airflow, till what small leafs you left on turn crispy. (yup, crispy)
then jar it up and watch the meter...
this step takes a week +/- depending on so many factors I cant list them all but relative humidity (RH) and air flow are the top 2 (I bet)

The stems still have LOTS of moisture in them, by the next day, the crisp leafs will be soft again.
You need to draw out all that moisture in the stems but you want to do it slowly.

>64% I open and let a fan blow over the top of the jars for 10 min to 2 hours, depending on how far above 64%

I put popcorn in a tray or some container (can't hang the stuff) and the sugar leafs from the first trimming down in the totes.
the popcorn goes in a jar with a meter and I treat it like prime bud till I KNOW I can afford to use it otherwise.

The sugar leafs I dry till crisp and then jar (no meter) for cooking.

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[Dr. Green Fang]

Nice one joe :aok:

Grats Broman on taking down your girl!!

 

[BROMAN]

Thanks Joe great pics. And thanks Dr. but, I had to go away overnight and the buds have dried to much. Jarred them up last night and we will see what happens. Either way its a lot of smoke. Chopping the cc now and I'm pretty happy. I figure I will get better with time and MP's help.
And Joe do you make bubble hash with your cured pop corn? I just froze mine with the trim.

 

[Joe420Camel]

I haven't produced enough per grow (1 plant per cycle) to not need to smoke my popcorn.
My current grow is 2 months behind so all my popcorn will be used up before next harvest.

 

[BROMAN]

Well folks, I jarred the sb and its holding at 61% rh. I shouldn't have burped them at all. At this rh will they cure properly? The buds do seem spongier and less dry.

 

[Joe420Camel]

I believe 56% is the point where the cure stops
but don't quote me
let me see if I can remember where I saw that #....

Phase four, 60% to 55%+ RH: Even though a true cure is far from over, your buds are truly ready to smoke if you wish. They are also ready to face long term storage. As stated before, the cure dies at -55%. It is ok for the cure to be dead if you have reached your desired cure level as later remoistening can easily bring that bud back into your preferred smoking range. But, you can also continue the cure for long time periods and the trick to this is to stay above the 55% level.

from: http://www.marijuanapassion.com/forum/showthread.php?t=54451


Looks like your golden! :aok:


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