Hello there. Wondering when to start the flush? Let's talk about it.
Personally, I use breeder notes as a benchmark to work with, but you never know just how long or how short the girls may finish up. They may take longer or shorter then the projected schedule listed by the breeder. That's why growers usually go by pistil color and trichomes to assess then to START the flush. That being said, usually trichomes are a better way to assess the flush since some strains pistils will brown out faster then others even when It's not ready to be chopped yet.
If you're aiming for an optimal harvest time here are some 'rules of thumb' to follow (based on trichomes/resin glands)):
-With a x60 to x100 magnifying glass you will be able to get right up close and see the color/transparency of the trichomes. These trichomes have three stages in flower:
1. TRANSPARENT
Transparent trichomes only contain precursor cannabinoids that are not psychoactive. Harvesting at this stage will not give you a very powerful product.
2. MILKY/Cloudy
Milky resin glands contain fully ripe THC. To get buds as powerful as possible, you need to get as close as possible to 100% milky trichomes. Note that it is impossible to obtain 100% milky trichomes, as new resin glands are continuously produced. Likewise, even after harvest, the trichomes will continue to develop.
3. AMBER
Amber colored resin glands are a sign that THC has been converted to CBN, a degraded form of THC. This means that your product has lost much of its potency. CBN is not desirable in any crop, as its effects are more narcotic (sedative) than a true elevation or euphoria.
Based on these 3 stages, for optimal growth, bud quality and potency I would START to flush when those trichs are 90-100% milky. Flushing for 10-14 days (or less if you're using a flushing agent like 'flawless finish") at this point will end your crop with about 10-20%ish of amber trichomes and should be your sweet spot.
-The longer you let the plant grow past optimal harvest-THC breaks down into CBN/CBD and you will lose that potent euphoria and can become more of body stone.
-If you chop to early, the bud will be very racy and that may not be your style. Even if it's an indica, cutting down too early will have it act as a sativa and visa versa. I can take a sativa and let it go a week to long to cut the THC into CBD and now it will act more as an indica body high. 3-5 days either way from an optimal harvest time can seriously change the effect of your product b/t a cerebral high and a body high, so it is important to pay close attention to those trichomes (and you are) right about now.
I hope this helped you and wasn't too much information. If you need anything else at all or would like to talk further about this, throw me a message through PM and we can talk more about when and what we're are looking for come harvest time. Cheers man. Plants looking great and you're at the end game. Great job and continued success to you!👌😉