Harvesting hemp - instructions & tips

Is the flowering phase of your hemp plant coming to an end and are you looking forward to the harvest? To avoid mistakes when harvesting hemp and to achieve a successful harvest, there are a few things you should know and keep in mind.

In this blog post, we explain how you can recognize the right time to harvest, how you should prepare the harvest and which tools you need for the harvest. We also explain step by step how to proceed when harvesting cannabis.

When to harvest hemp?

When you should harvest your cannabis depends on several factors. Basically, you should remember when you sent your plant into the flowering phase. You can then use this to determine when your cannabis plant can be harvested. How long the flowering period lasts depends on your cannabis strain. You will often find information about the length of the flowering period on the seed packaging. Once the flowering period is over, you can start harvesting.

Trichomes

You can also tell when it is the right time to harvest by looking at the resin glands on your plant, known as trichomes. It is best to use a magnifying glass to check the trichomes. If the trichomes are milky and have an amber tone, your plant is ready for harvesting. It is recommended that you only start harvesting when at least 80 % of the trichomes look milky. Clear trichomes indicate that you still have to wait to harvest.

Stamp

The flowers of your plant can also show you whether you can start harvesting. There are small white hairs on the flowers of the hemp plant, which are called pistils. Look to see if the white pistils on the buds have turned a brownish color and are slowly retreating. If the majority of the pistils have changed color, this is a sign that it is time to harvest. Only harvest when at least 40% of the pistils have turned brown. Many growers prefer to wait until about 75% of the pistils are brownish before harvesting.

Effect

When you harvest can also depend on your personal preference. If you prefer the energetic effect of hemp, you should opt for an earlier harvest. If you prefer a relaxing effect, you can delay the harvest a little longer. The THC value is highest when around 40 – 70% of the pistils have changed their original color.

What happens if the harvest is too early?

If you harvest your plant when the trichomes are clear and the pistils on the flowers are still white, you have started harvesting too early. You can then expect a less flavorful smoking experience, as cannabis does not yet contain many aromas if it is harvested too early. In addition, the THC and CBD content will be low, which is why you will experience an active high.

What happens if the harvest is too late?

Harvesting too late also leads to a loss of flavor and aroma. Cannabis loses its psychoactive effect, as CBD and THC are broken down again after a certain point in time. Harvesting too late occurs when almost all the pistils have turned brown and the trichomes are amber and dark orange.

When to harvest autoflowers?

Autoflowers start flowering on their own and have a fixed lifespan. When exactly your autoflowering plant is ready for harvest is determined by the trichomes and pistils, as with other plant varieties. Basically, however, you can use the 8-12 week lifespan of autoflowers as a guide. After around 8-12 weeks, they are ready to harvest.

Preparation & rinsing before the hemp harvest

There are several things you should be aware of as your plant approaches harvest time.

Check your plant for pests and diseases shortly before harvest. This will allow you to remove any parts of the plant that may be infested with pests or diseased in good time.

It is important that you refrain from using fertilizer shortly before harvesting. You can find more information on proper fertilization in the blog post “Fertilizing cannabis”.

Many growers like to rinse their plants before harvesting. This allows the fertilizer that is still in the soil to be flushed out. Rinsing can improve the taste of your harvest. Use pH-neutral water and pour it into the plant pot. The amount of water required depends on the size of the pot. It makes sense to use three times the volume of the pot for rinsing.

Harvesting cannabis instructions

Once you have checked the maturity of your hemp plant and the time is right, you can start harvesting.

Cut your cannabis plant at the bottom of the main stem. Make the cut carefully so that you don’t damage the buds and preserve the quality of the buds.

Then remove the leaves around the flowers. You can use the leaves later for other purposes, such as making cannabutter. As your buds still contain too much moisture to be smoked at this stage, you will need to dry them in the next step. Some growers prefer to dry the entire plant and only then remove the leaves.

Hang your buds or the whole plant (whichever you prefer) to dry in a well-ventilated and dry room. You can use the drying case from Bonsanto, for example. The flowers should have enough space between them and good air circulation is important to prevent the formation of mold. How long the drying time is depends on the moisture content of your flowers. On average, your buds should dry for 9-14 days. To determine whether the buds have dried properly, you can bend the stem. If it breaks, this is a sign of dry buds. If the stem does not break, you should leave your buds to dry for a few more days. If you have decided to dry the entire plant, you should now remove the plant leaves.

Once your buds are dry, you can smoke them. However, many growers prefer to ferment the buds for a more flavorful and aromatic smoking experience. If you are interested in this, take a look at our blog post on fermenting cannabis.

It is important that you store your dried or fermented flowers in a dry, dark and cool place so that the quality and cannabinoids in the flowers are preserved. An airtight container is suitable for storage, for example.

If you are growing in the Bonsanto grow box, read our “Bonsanto growing instructions” for more information.

Dry or wet trimming?

To get clean and tasty flowers, you can remove the leaves from your buds. This is called trimming.

Many growers prefer to trim dry. Dry trimming should be done when your buds are dried but not yet fermented. The advantages of dry trimming are that your buds dry more slowly and therefore have a better quality. The buds are also less sticky after drying. So if a flavorful smoking experience is important to you, you should opt for this trimming time.

If you decide to trim your buds wet, do this before you hang your plant up to dry. With wet trimming, you have the advantage that your harvest dries faster, you need less space for drying and you minimize the risk of mould.

Which tool for cannabis harvesting?

To make sure you are properly equipped for harvesting, here is a small list of tools you will need for harvesting. Make sure that the tools are clean to preserve the quality of the buds.