Time to Harvest
Its best to harvest when the trichome is 90% milky and 10% amber
When a plant is properly flushed, the fan leaves will start to fade.
Although it’s normal to see some amount of yellowing before harvest, it’s important to harvest before the sugar leaves on the buds themselves turn yellow.
Harvest (Wet Trimming)
You should trim before drying your plant. Trimming removes buds from the plant, and cuts off branches, stems, sugar, and fan leaves. All of these contain few trichomes and are harsh to smoke. We recommend wearing gloves when trimming to avoid your hands getting covered in sticky resin.
Follow these steps for a successful harvest:
Prepare your tools: Gather sharp, clean scissors or pruning shears, gloves, a drying rack, and paper bags or glass jars for storage.
Choose the right time: Look for signs that the buds are ready for harvest, such as the color of the trichomes and the fading of the fan leaves. It's important to harvest at the right time for the best results.
Wear gloves: Wear gloves while trimming to avoid your hands getting covered in sticky resin.
Cut the branches: Use your scissors or pruning shears to cut the branches just above the main stem of the plant. Be gentle and try not to damage the buds or the plant itself.
Remove the fan leaves: Once you have the branches cut, remove the large fan leaves. This will make it easier to see the buds and improve airflow during the drying process.
Trim the buds: Use your scissors or pruning shears to carefully trim the buds from the branches.
If you are a Hey abby subscriber, you can consult our growing expert for harvest advice.
Dry Your Cannabis Buds (with Hey abby's Drying Rack)
Steps
When you're prepared to dry the harvested buds, place them and the sugar leaves onto the drying rack;
Hang them inside the Hey abby;
Activate the drying mode. The duration of the drying process typically takes 3-7 days, which varies based on strain and plant size.
Monitor the drying process closely. Check your buds regularly for signs of mold or over-drying.
When the buds have lost about 60% of their initial water weight, they should be ready. You can also check for readiness by gently bending the stems; if they snap cleanly, the buds are dry and ready for curing.
Tips for Using the Drying Rack
1. Enough Space Between Buds
Make sure there is space between the buds, and that they are evenly spread on the drying rack.
Try not to let the buds sit on top of each other, stack up, or gather in one area. The buds need to have space on the rack for them to dry properly.
You may need to use all, or multiple levels of the drying rack to achieve the proper spacing.
2. Proper Humidity
Try to keep the box at 60°F, with 60% humidity for the first 4+ day of drying. You may need to turn the fans off of auto, and adjust the exhaust fan to keep the box in the right environmental range for drying (you can find the fan settings in the [environment tab] on the app's main screen).
Typically, our in-house grower will have the intake fan off, so there's no air blowing directly onto the buds/drying rack to wick away moisture, and dry the buds too quickly.
The exhaust fan is key in drying, to keep the box around 60% humidity. You may need to have the exhaust fan on minimally to attain the proper humidity level!
3. No Direct Light
It's important to avoid exposing the buds to direct light as it can degrade the cannabinoids and terpenes.
To achieve this, the grow light of your Hey abby grow box will be turned off during the entire drying process.
This allows for a slow and gentle drying process that helps to prevent the buds from becoming too dry or crumbly, resulting in a smoother smoking experience.