Approaching first harvest, need some advice.

My four girls have been in flowering for about 6-8 weeks now. They are grown from whatever shitty bag seed I had lying around, but are doing quite well. One of them is clearly a different (and much better) strain than the other three. It is shorter and bushier and covered in more crystals, so I figure it for more of an indica strain. I was just looking for advice on what sort of prep work I should do as I approach the harvest. Should I cut back most of the fan leaves? I have trimmed a few to try and allow more light to reach the lower parts of the plant.

Well the pics are a little blurry, but from what I can see they need a while longer before harvesting. They look healthy, and are flowering fine, although kinda slow if they have been flowering for 6-8 weeks.

I would not cut any fan leaves until I chop the whole plant. A few weeks before you harvest you should start to water with nothing but plain water. Other than that all you need to do to prepair is get a spot to dry and cure them.

Peace

before cutting them down have your drying box ready for the new buds. forgot to do that one time lol. then have some sharp trimmers and a bit of alcohol to clean them. let the plant grow and only remove yellowing leaves. shade leaves help the branch grow bigger faster. after the plant is cut then trim all shade leaves and anything else you dont wanna smoke. hang um and let um dry for a week or 2 then cure um in jars.

thats what i do for my grows
pics of my homegrown

I would definately start flushing them if you haven't already. Just use regular water or go to a nurdury and get some flushing mix, its not expensive...

Hang a string somewhere the humidity stays constantly low or you can throw a dehumidifier in a closet and do it there. Just have somewhere to dry it prepared before you cut down the plants.

Also get quart mason jars. They are about six bucks at walmart. Make sure they are the ones that look like candles come in them. They have a wax seal and wax is the only completely airtight seal known to man.

There are some tips. Happy growing and good luck with harvest!!!

You may think about adding some lower light next time, instead of removing any fan leaves. Some varieties can get away with it, while others seem to need that energy in the tail-end of flowering.

If growing in soil, I'd also recommend to start flushing with distilled water or just clean tap water. when you think you're about a week or so away from harvest. I still sometimes do a second flush, adding molasses or even honey to the water.

After chopping mine down, I let them hang in a dark and dry location with a good draft for a couple of days. An open window works great for this if security isn't a major issue, but even an oscillating fan will due. I also try to keep temperatures fairly, roughly in the mid/high-60's...it stays a little less humid.

Get yourself some very sharp handheld pruning shears. (The smaller, the better.) Start manicuring when the main stems are starting to become brittle, and easily snapped in half. I like to air the buds out a little longer in loosely sealed brown paper bags (and in the same room) before putting them in sealed mason jars until I feel they're ready to be smoked.

There are other and much quicker methods, but some of them may leave you with harsh 'homegrown' tasting buds and not properly cured medicine. But the choice is up to you...some people can't resist, and are tired of being patient by this point! :jointsmile:

Thanks for the help. I've rigged up a rack system to dry them in a separate closet; it's about the best I can do as I have very limited space. I'll start the flushing, as that seems to be a common thread of advice.