me and a buddy are doing a grow and it is close to harvest time,my question? HE says before we harvest we should turn the lights out for 48 hrs to enhance flavor and potency.I have never heard of this,I think it is a waste of 2 days drying time.please help solve this debate.
I have actually heard that it can help depending on the power of your light. because when the light is active some of the thc evaporates of the trichromes so when you leave it off the tnc drops swell. but i could be wrong
THC is decomposed by light which is why you store your buds in a dark place. Thus is makes sense that keeping the lights off for 48 hours before harvest will allow the trichromes to swell. Furthermore, the plant will interpret the lack of light as "oh shit, summer is really over... I better bud bud bud!" This means that the plant will take all it's remaining and stored energy and throw it into bud production with hopes of reproducing and in preparation to die. If you want to reveg your plant after you harvest, I would not recommend cutting its light. NOTE: make sure you have not just watered/misted your plant and the humidity of the room is VERY LOW or you are likely to attract mold growth... which would suck 48 hours away from harvest. I would recommend a healthy watering 1-2 days before you shut the lights off... depending on how fast your soil dries.
If you go by some of the logic here, you might want to keep the lights off for three weeks before harvest.
I have heard that putting the plant in the dark for 36 hours before switching to 12/12 helps push it into flower mode faster never heard of doing it before harvest.
putting the plants(in the pots still) in the dark for 36-48 hrs. is done to stop photosynthesis. this is to help remove some of the green taste. if your going to grow herb, learn to be patient. harvest/curing will take 2-4 weeks. use that time to start a new grow.
This topic is of interest to me 'cos I have 4 white widows about 3 weeks from harvest. I always thought the following from www.white-widow-seeds.com sounded like a load of bollocks but there it is, on the 'net, perhaps someone could confirm this..... Flowering Time: On both mediums it is suggested to flower (12 hour light) the White Widow for 8 weeks, but 10 weeks will really give you the crystals you are after. We suggest the final 2 weeks of the flowering cycle to turn the lights off altogether - or at least down to 8 hours. This keeps the flowers from regrowth and stresses the plant into giving up its last drop of goodness as crystal to protect the flower...try it!