DS- The dark period is done just prior to harvesting; it's during night hours that the plant is regenerating the terpenes and cannabinoids that were lost during the day; you'll find that max. aroma (unless it's cold) in the morning,... light, UV, heat, wind, all take their toll on these compounds; indoors, of course, not as much!... folks will be all over the map on this, but the general consensus I gather is 36-48 hrs is more the norm,.... after this amount of time, production really tapers off,..there
is a limit to how much the plant will regenerate, right? Otherwise, the trich's would burst, and buds don't weep copious amounts of resin like a opium poppy seed pod does .... there will be differences among strains too... During the dark period, some folks trim off the worst of the fan leaves, to open airflow up some and prevent potential mold probs.... also, the plant should go into the dark cycle on the dry side, not with well moisten soil...