I’m trying to see what our fourm thinks about the notion of putting a plant ready for harvest in the dark for a couple days before the chop to increase trichomes. In theory it makes sense that the plant would have some kind of response for self preservation but does it make that much of a difference? Only asking because I’ve got one about to that point with cloudy trichs and just now seeing amber at almost 9 weeks and thinking about trying it.
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most of us put the plant in the dark for 48hrs before chop
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I practice the dark method as well
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Same. And I also start the dark period on a day when I should be watering/feeding. I’ll skip the watering and stick the thirsty girl in a closet for a day or two.
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So It looks like most folks do stick them in the dark but what is the result? More trichomes, weight gain, color changes? Just weighing out the pros and cons and trying to learn some new techniques. The only con I can think of for myself is I’m going to have to clean a closet out 
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I’m also a firm believer in at least 48 hrs of dark before harvesting. The thought process behind this @coaltrain is to let some of the positive charge and nutrients leave the plant. When the lights are on our plants uptake nutrients, when the lights are off they push those positive ions back to the rootzone. It’s supposed to possibly give you a better smoother smoke.
Now you can stress your trichomes to bulge by starving your plants the last few days. I grow dwc and I let my roots go bone dry for the last 18-24 hrs. My trichomes definitely swell up from the stress. I’ve done side by sides and it’s a proven method for me.
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I also do some defoliation right before they go into the dark so they think an animal is eating it and get a little burst of growth some people even drive a wooden stake into the stem for extreme last minute stress
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If you are needing to ripen further it sure helps speed things up, if you are already at Target I would not. buds ripen faster in the dark as do most fruits
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Hey @Tygrow78 ! By saying “bone dry” does that mean you empty your reservoirs and just let it ride for 18-24 hours?
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Yes, absolutely no h20 @truthhound. My plants scream the whole time, and my Rh shoots up to the 60-70% no matter how high my fan is turned up. It really stresses the plants out and your trichomes swell!!
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