Harvest times in Afghanistan

hela

hela

TCC Staff
So I have had the great fortune of meeting a gentleman from Afghanistan, and I have gotten onto the topic of cannabis, as he is an avid appreciator of the stuff. We have covered lots of things like tastes and smells as well as regional varieties' uniqueness and so on. One thing we were both curious about with the others' culture was how long plants are grown for and when they are harvested. He told me that in most areas that seeds are sown in the spring, and that flowers aren't harvested until the first snow, suggesting to me that their proper flower times are much longer than what we are doing indoor.

Lately I have been noticing that I very much prefer most flowers grown out in the 10-12 week range, when fed to be able to healthy and good looking that long. I've also noticed that plants will seem to finish faster or slower based on feed and method, but there are some chemical processes that I don't think can be sped up through increased or more efficient nutrient uptake.

As well, I have noticed that there seems to be a range of phenotype expression related to flowering. Several times now, it seems that I can get more of an expression of one parent when cut sooner, and more of an expression of the other parent when cut later.

Anyway, I suppose this is my argument against the idea of 8 week flower period. I don't wanna seem like I am telling other people that their techniques are wrong, and I have been absolutely blown away by what many of you are capable of, and I continue to learn from all of you. Thanks for reading my thoughts on the subject, and please respond if you have input.
 
Nice to know! Colorado outdoor, the rule is also, till the first snow. Hell, they can withstand the first snow, usually! Here is one that got snowed on and recovered fine!
 

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personally, I think each strain has its sweet spot for harvest. That's the time when the buds are not overripe and the full expression and effects of the flower is perfect - that beautiful stone/high mixed with a beautiful weirdness
 
Here in the banana belt of Colorado it's said we have a climate much like Afghanistan. High and dry. Planting mid May and goin as long as weather permits into October.

Only worry here is killing frost, which I've seen here as late as the end of May, and early as 3rd week of sept. Down valley 5500ft they usually are safe, here at 7000ft, always have to pay attention to the weather for a heavy frost.
 
hela said:
Anyway, I suppose this is my argument against the idea of 8 week flower period. I don't wanna seem like I am telling other people that their techniques are wrong, and I have been absolutely blown away by what many of you are capable of, and I continue to learn from all of you. Thanks for reading my thoughts on the subject, and please respond if you have input.
Click to expand...

An 8 week flower period is not so much an idea as it is a fact with some strains.
I believe that is the case with outdoor strains as well as indoor.
I would think that there are a lot of variables when it comes to flowering times in the great outdoors,such as elevation and temperature and your exact location on the planet. ( looks like Colorado is roughly 5 degrees further north than Afghanistan )
I have grown outdoors several times with at least 7 different strains.
I only grew one stain more than one season and planting it outside in June it finished at the very end of October three years in a row.
Of the remaining 6 strains,I saw a variation of as much as 3 weeks.From the first week of October to the last.
One variation,advertised as a Moroccan strain would have easily finished 3 weeks earlier ( had they not gotten ripped ) than three other strains,all planted from seed at the same time.
Right after the rip I was gifted some clones ( 5 different ) and there was at least a two week difference between the fastest and slowest flowering of those strains.
When comparing outdoors to indoors,one of the biggest differences in regards to lighting is actual duration and.....lets call it acceleration of intensity.
Outdoors the sun rises and sets gradually.Indoors,obviously it's on,or its off.
I have read that someone has a system that replicates the suns movement,but I don't know anyone that runs it or how accurate it is.
To properly mimic natural sunlight,a system like that would have to entail both a dimmer and timer working together which would have to constantly adjust both brightness and duration.
I have been growing primarily the same strain indoors for over two years ( 5 grows ) and I can tell you that it's done by 60 days.
The last two times I took it at about 56-58 because she was starting to push out a couple of nanners.
I can say for certain that there is a point where it's weight starts to decline.
Those two factors alone tell me that the plant is in late flower and is ready to harvest.Ideally,before the weight starts to decline.
This particular strain also has a trait of one or two spike leaves in the buds dying around 8 weeks.I always see them while trimming and snip them out before drying.But I'm guessing if the plant is left to grow to 10 weeks or more,there is a good chance those leaves could cause mold issues in the dense buds.
Here is a good close up at about 55 days.
I can't think of anything about this flower that tells me it's not done.
Update : Speaking of nanners....I just found one on a lower nug at 52 days.
These are coming down at 56 ! . ;)
 

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Bearbudzz said:
An 8 week flower period is not so much an idea as it is a fact with some strains.
I believe that is the case with outdoor strains as well as indoor.
I would think that there are a lot of variables when it comes to flowering times in the great outdoors,such as elevation and temperature and your exact location on the planet. ( looks like Colorado is roughly 5 degrees further north than Afghanistan )
I have grown outdoors several times with at least 7 different strains.
I only grew one stain more than one season and planting it outside in June it finished at the very end of October three years in a row.
Of the remaining 6 strains,I saw a variation of as much as 3 weeks.From the first week of October to the last.
One variation,advertised as a Moroccan strain would have easily finished 3 weeks earlier ( had they not gotten ripped ) than three other strains,all planted from seed at the same time.
Right after the rip I was gifted some clones ( 5 different ) and there was at least a two week difference between the fastest and slowest flowering of those strains.
When comparing outdoors to indoors,one of the biggest differences in regards to lighting is actual duration and.....lets call it acceleration of intensity.
Outdoors the sun rises and sets gradually.Indoors,obviously it's on,or its off.
I have read that someone has a system that replicates the suns movement,but I don't know anyone that runs it or how accurate it is.
To properly mimic natural sunlight,a system like that would have to entail both a dimmer and timer working together which would have to constantly adjust both brightness and duration.
I have been growing primarily the same strain indoors for over two years ( 5 grows ) and I can tell you that it's done by 60 days.
The last two times I took it at about 56-58 because she was starting to push out a couple of nanners.
I can say for certain that there is a point where it's weight starts to decline.
Those two factors alone tell me that the plant is in late flower and is ready to harvest.Ideally,before the weight starts to decline.
This particular strain also has a trait of one or two spike leaves in the buds dying around 8 weeks.I always see them while trimming and snip them out before drying.But I'm guessing if the plant is left to grow to 10 weeks or more,there is a good chance those leaves could cause mold issues in the dense buds.
Here is a good close up at about 55 days.
I can't think of anything about this flower that tells me it's not done.
Click to expand...

Whatever it is you have there, lookin like a producer!!
 
Green Mopho said:
Nice to know! Colorado outdoor, the rule is also, till the first snow. Hell, they can withstand the first snow, usually! Here is one that got snowed on and recovered fine!
Click to expand...

I think there's something to be said about a cold finish, much like apples around here, farmers say they need the cold at the end.

Sativas prolly not, but the thick dense indices maybe. Don't have the horticultural knowledge to properly explain. :kez:
 
and you would be surprised how many of the landrace
hash plant's are not
short squat,rubber leafers
like most of them not
 
ClearBarbedFunk said:
Here in the banana belt of Colorado it's said we have a climate much like Afghanistan. High and dry. Planting mid May and goin as long as weather permits into October.

Only worry here is killing frost, which I've seen here as late as the end of May, and early as 3rd week of sept. Down valley 5500ft they usually are safe, here at 7000ft, always have to pay attention to the weather for a heavy frost.
Click to expand...

Yup. I know the valley weather. And up here on our mesa, its even a bit colder than most of the valley...


Also I think there is a difference with indoor and outdoor times. The transition into flower outside is slower and less immediate. An indoor 8 week strain can easily take 12 weeks to finish, if you are counting early August as the beginning of flower. I've seen some landrace Afghan indicas start to go into full flower by the second week of August though, also, while other indoor-bred indicas weren't showing flowers until early September.
 
Yeah, I take some things until 11/1 at 6200 feet. Really can't go any longer. I'm usually snowboarding powder by Thanksgiving.

outwest
 
30 + yrs ago i left some out up here till december..it was a yr of no rot..And they ended up looked like gold colombian..thats the last time..[it was popular]
 
ClearBarbedFunk said:
Whatever it is you have there, lookin like a producer!!
Click to expand...


@cbf , bearbudzz ..... Trainwreck?

Looks like her to me.

She's a 50-52 dayer ime.

We've ran through a couple of them over here, found a few in Time2Unites Bubba Kush hybrids... the khione is done in about 45-50 depending on taste, the cheddar bob cut generally done about same 50 days..... not that they couldnt go longer, just based on what we've found to be optimal flavor / effect zones for those cuttings.


THC
 
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For me harvesting is, has been and always will be about the color of the trichromes. I've found that to be the most accurate indicator of when a plant is ready.

But to each their own, as it should be. I've been growing since the late '70's, a time when some of you young fellas were just a twinkle in your Dad's eye. Doesn't make me better or smarter, just older!:puffpuffpass:
 
Ed Larkis said:
For me harvesting is, has been and always will be about the color of the trichromes. I've found that to be the most accurate indicator of when a plant is ready.

But to each their own, as it should be. I've been growing since the late '70's, a time when some of you young fellas were just a twinkle in your Dad's eye. Doesn't make me better or smarter, just older!:puffpuffpass:
Click to expand...

I'm with you Ed on trichome color . Counting flowering days is not a very efficient way to harvy .
 
I always harvest at bout 30 percent Amber and have for many years.
So color as Ed and Bart say, dictates my gardens maturity as well!
-ct-
 
generally speaking the counting of days just puts a frame around when to expect the trichomes to be mature, the date ranges that I had stated previously where when the trichomes and the effects were in desired range..... genetics, environments, and methods all play into these observations though of course.... i'm guessing some of the guys growing organically are probably appalled by someone saying 50 days to harvest, and assume they would be early.... but using some different mediums, nutrients, light cycles etc can make significant amounts of difference in an expected harvest window for even a phenotype within a line ime.

anyway, didnt mean to be preachy if that's how it came out, but wanted to clarify based on some of ya's not being fond of the idea of harvesting by a clock..... some methods just lend themselves a bit more to the science side of things and allow for that ime.... if you know what to expect from something and have a pretty consistent way of pulling it off, i think it's pretty safe to assume that the window of opportunity is always going to fall within a very small range give or take maybe a few days.....

However, if I'm growing from seed i generally don't even bother recording my start dates, they are done when they are done, and i'll work on my timing with the subsequent clone runs of anything worth keeping.

THC
 
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