Quote Originally Posted by Akimbo
1) I should be waiting until the "hairs" are mostly brown/red right? ( say 80% )

2) My buds don't seem very...."bud like", kind of small. Maybe it'll be different in a week or so?

3) The leaves around them are getting shiny/sticky with THC, when I do harvest should I keep those and try and make some hash, or just dry them and smoke them?

4) How should I go about drying them after harvest, I've seen some descriptions which seems kind of excessive, i.e. moving them from paper bags, to sealed jars, then back and blah blah, compared to another source which just said "hang them up somewhere where they won't get mouldy." Any ideas?

5) Once I trim them back with harvesting, is there any reason they shouldn't be able to grow back? I've got one that's turned into a nice round bush after being a stump but are there any things to watch out for?
1. Hairs (pistils) are not an indicator of plant maturity. Pistils age and die-off fairly regularly, and are easily damaged by wind, rain, insects, handling...
The globular head of the trichomes (minature 'lollypops' coming out of the leaf pores) will start-out clear, will age to a milky shade of white, then to an amber or rusty color. Milky to rusty is what you want to see. You'll need at least a 5x magnifying glass to see 'em proper.

2. You've got a few weeks to go yet, minimum. On the right track though.

3. Best to leave 'em till plant is ready to harvest.

4. There seems to be as many drying/curing techniques as there are growers. From slow-dry to quick dry. From no cure, to long-slow cure. All depends on your patience and needs.
I usually disassemble the buds from the branches and lay them out on a cookie sheet for a couple of days, turning the buds over daily. Once dry enough to aviod mold, I cram them loolely into a glass jar. I remove them daily for a few minutes, then replace. In about a week they are good to go.
If in a hurry I'll disassemble the buds, place on a cookie sheet, bake at 150 degrees f. for a few 15 minute intervals. (about an hour total, but keep an eye on 'em) Ovens vary, so make sure not to overheat or overdry the buds. If it smells like pot when cooking, your oven is too hot and burning-off the medicinal qualities.

5. Check my signature for re-vegging techniques.

Leave anything green alone. If the plant is done with it, it'll let you know. Excessive trimming at this stage adds unwanted stress.