Where's the Amber?? Stuck in the Milky stage

I have an i phone so i can't post any thumbnails, but a picture shouldn't be needed in order to answer my question.

So i'm at 9 and a half weeks flowering, and my trichomes are all milky, but i haven't seen a single one turn amber yet. I'm using a 40x illuminated loupe that works GREAT, i can see EVERY SINGLE TRICHOME, so identification is not the problem. I know that depending on the strain and whether it's an indica or sativa can make for a longer wait til the trichomes have reached their peak maturity, but i feel like i've paid great attention to detail and that the trichomes should've started to turn from THC to CBD (milky to amber). I will admit that since my harvest period didn't come as soon as i planned it would, i started my flush a little early... Like a week early! Would that possibly be why my trichome maturity is being drawn out? Based on my info i'd like to hear what you think could be causing the trichs to take a while to turn into CBD (amber). Even if you think that i'm being too anxious, say it haha. Thanks, rollitup is the best communty on the web!

I'm also having a similar problem, I also flushed a tad too early and it's taking the trichomes a while to fully mature. But they are starting to change more rapidly now after a week or so, just keep waiting it out and they'll come around. Good luck buddy.

I would say it is probably genetics. Some strains contain less CBD than others so ratios can be different in different strains. I think waiting is in order. And some strain info, no doubt its a Hybrid, but more Sativa leaning or Indica leaning. Have your stigmas started to reced into the calyxes? (and I don;t just mean crinkling up, I mean receding) This for me is a maturing plant. Good luck and patience, it's always hard at this stage.

Peace, DST

Dude harvest that shit. You just said yourself it's peak maturity is being drawn out, don't waste the opportunity. What percentage of the pistils are brown?

Dankenfest said:

Dude harvest that shit. You just said yourself it's peak maturity is being drawn out, don't waste the opportunity. What percentage of the pistils are brown?

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He said the trichs aren't fully matured yet.
The turn from milky to amber and the receding stigmas are the major factors showing the maturity of the plant.

Pistils turning brown doesn't have anything to do with maturity.
I've seen strains with amber trichs and white pistils.

DST said:

I would say it is probably genetics. Some strains contain less CBD than others so ratios can be different in different strains. I think waiting is in order. And some strain info, no doubt its a Hybrid, but more Sativa leaning or Indica leaning. Have your stigmas started to reced into the calyxes? (and I don;t just mean crinkling up, I mean receding) This for me is a maturing plant. Good luck and patience, it's always hard at this stage.
Peace, DST

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I was definitely lookin to wait it out a little bit regardless, so i'm with you on that buddy. And some of the pistils (i'm guessing stigma is the same thing) HAVE started to receed back into the fully swollen calyx, so my plants are definitely getting close to maturity, but only some just started. I actually have a few lagging stigmas that haven't changed color yet, but it seriously like 10 pairs max on a single bud that haven't changed. As for the strain, you are correct that it is hybrid, and they are leaning a lot toward the sativa side. Taller with more 45 degree angle type branches with more space between nodes than what you see on indica dominant strains. And right there i know that sativas usually take a little more time... But i will wait a little and give an update on the trichs. Thanks for the reply bud

k0ijn said:

He said the trichs aren't fully matured yet.
The turn from milky to amber and the receding stigmas are the major factors showing the maturity of the plant.

Pistils turning brown doesn't have anything to do with maturity.
I've seen strains with amber trichs and white pistils.

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I agree with what you said regarding the pistil color. I've heard horror stories of people letting their flowering go for like 12 weeks just because they were relying on the pistil color to change, and when they chopped... Let's just say you couldn't open your eyes afterward because you were feeling SO beat and not really all that high after smokin it... Haha. The trichomes are the only true way to look at the progression to peak maturity. I'm just gonna chill with my girls til the trichs tell me to bust out the clippers

i had a few plants of a particular kush/haze cross, and the trichs NEVER got amber. i eventually had to harvest because the buds were foxtailing horribly and the bud to stem ratio was getting fucked up. a lot of strains, particularly sativa dom strains are best harvested milky anyway. in my case my plant phisically begged me to chop it. if you wait too long and too many of the leaves yellow or die or whatever, the plant isn't going to do any more maturing anyway.

I had a sativa last year and they never turned amber, just cloudy. I finally said fuck it and harvested late in October (12 + weeks of flowering) after it was apparent the buds weren't swelling any more. Some strains just don't go amber

Total Head said:

i had a few plants of a particular kush/haze cross, and the trichs NEVER got amber. i eventually had to harvest because the buds were foxtailing horribly and the bud to stem ratio was getting fucked up. a lot of strains, particularly sativa dom strains are best harvested milky anyway. in my case my plant phisically begged me to chop it. if you wait too long and too many of the leaves yellow or die or whatever, the plant isn't going to do any more maturing anyway.

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I took a lot of consideration with what you said, and i HAVE heard about strongly sativa dominant strains sometimes have trichs that stay in the milky stage. I also agree that a more milky trichome density is more along the lines of the sativa type of high, therefore making a superb head high! So i chopped a small nug today and did a quick dry process just to get an idea of where my high was at, and to my surprise it was far more developed of a high that i thought it would be! A little lacking on the body high, but supposedly the body high in a sativa dominant plant can come at the end of all of the trichs turning milky AND getting top heavy from the "mushroom top" swelling up, signifying peak ripeness of the thc molecules present in the trichomes. I'll feel it out a couple more days and see if any amber develops, if not, then i will proceed with my clippers and chop chop! Haha, thanks for the info brotha, it definitely shed a new light on another possibility of why i'm stuck in this milky way galaxy haha

I also have some short blueberryXchronic that is at 55 days and still has only milky and still some clear trichs and hindu kush X Black domina that just stays milky as hell. They look sooo good but no sign of amber. Ive been paying close attention to these and Im getting scared Im gonna chop too late waiting. The seed bank said the blueberry was a 56 day chop but most people say F them and look at the trichs. I dont know wich way to go here.

Has anyone read the most recent High Times article on THC to CBD conversion and the role trichomes (color/age) play in Identifying the time to harvest? check it out

Crazy Tweeds1971 said:

I also have some short blueberryXchronic that is at 55 days and still has only milky and still some clear trichs and hindu kush X Black domina that just stays milky as hell. They look sooo good but no sign of amber. Ive been paying close attention to these and Im getting scared Im gonna chop too late waiting. The seed bank said the blueberry was a 56 day chop but most people say F them and look at the trichs. I dont know wich way to go here.

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snip the top third of the plant and let the lower portion mature longer, compare the two after curing for future reference