How to dry and cure

[east coast]

... lose the lumber and keep only the buds...

same here. from racks to paper bags and then airtight storage.

 

[Sugar Sweet]

So i removed the buds from the stems for the past couple days. They feel slightly crisp on the outside but still sticky from the trichs, should i paper bag them or wait another day? I dont think i could jar them yet as theres still quite a bit of moisture in the buds. Or would i just burp them more frequently?

Speaking of burping. I know the point of burping your jars or containers, but is there a said amount of time you leave the lids off or do you open it and quickly seal it again? Hence burping. Lol never fully understood how to do this.

 

[Pa-Nature]

So i removed the buds from the stems for the past couple days. They feel slightly crisp on the outside but still sticky from the trichs, should i paper bag them or wait another day? I dont think i could jar them yet as theres still quite a bit of moisture in the buds. Or would i just burp them more frequently?

Speaking of burping. I know the point of burping your jars or containers, but is there a said amount of time you leave the lids off or do you open it and quickly seal it again? Hence burping. Lol never fully understood how to do this.

Burping is a moisture thing if there is lots of moisture you leave open longer 20 mins burp 3-4 times a day ,
You lessen the time as they dry and lessen the amount of times open per day .
Till at that FEEL that everyone talks about and then seal but keep eye on them .

 

[freeheeler]

Buds will feel dry to the touch on the outside but still have lots inside. When they sit out they dry out from the outside. Put them in a jar and it will appear that they somehow "sweat". Not really condensed
Moisture but they will seem more wet than when they went in. That's because the moisture inside the bud travels out to the outside when in a jar and they "even out" their
Moisture. When you burp, you're trying to let that moisture from the buds surface to dry again. Effectively the moisture in the inside, will again migrate out and even out. This time with less overall moisture. Burping repeatedly
Means you're drying from the outside slowly. Risk: mold, ammonia or hay smell and flavor. Remedy, pull the buds back out of jar and let sit out drying more.

As everyone said: it's an art. Those that are good do it on feel and smell. The rest of us, get lucky, sometimes missing it by a bit, other times missing it by a mile. My partner has no idea or touch. So that's why we started using boveda. And now? He appears to have it figured out. When in reality, the boveda pack is doing all the figuring, pulling that same
Moisture
From inside the buds, to the outside and then into the pack itself.

I keep going back to it because I think you're questions suggest you'd benefit from them. That's all. Everyone else here is more right than me. Lol. They know what they're talking about. And if you're up for the challenge everything I read here is spot on.

I've been you many many times since 1992. Starting over, not having my touch for drying and curing. And each time I got good quick imho largely because I'm kind of anal about my grow. But when I paired up with my friend, and he's not... We had great flowers at harvest, and not so much at cure. Bummed me out repeatedly. Until boveda came to my attention.

Good luck and let us know what you do and how it goes.
Fh

 

[Sugar Sweet]

Well at first i cut them and hung them by thier stem for about a day then i cut them off of the stem into individual buds. They sat in a single layer on a screen for 2 days. They are now sitting in a paper bag for almost a full day. Been opening the bag a few times today as they are at that point id assume. They are slightly crisp to the touch but still moist and sticky. arty: thats when you wanna bag them right?

 

[Sugar Sweet]

Bubblicious auto 69 days flowering. Im already seeing a better drying than previous attempts. Nice consistent and even dry on the outside of the buds. Except the bigger ones. Im gonna jar the other buds while i leave the bigger buds in the brown paper bag for another day to get them just a tab bit dryer. Will check on them in about 8 hours in case they dry a little faster than expected. THANKS FOR YOUR HELP GUYS! I have a great feeling im gonna get a better cure on my buds now!

 

[Sugar Sweet]

Nice looking bud there Sugs, well done:thumright:

Thanks Doc! I wouldnt have gotten it to dry and start curing so well without everyones help. These buds are squirters when you press them for rosin .getting a 15-20% return, NICE! These were from nirvana. Thanks everyone in this thread for your help!

 

[Putembk]

Not arguin with anyone's methods, we all live in different environments, but IMO, if ya have to burp the jars 3-4 times a day for 20 minutes, it prolly wasn't ready to go in jars.

To each their own.

agree

 

[east coast]

Not arguin with anyone's methods, we all live in different environments, but IMO, if ya have to burp the jars 3-4 times a day for 20 minutes, it prolly wasn't ready to go in jars.

To each their own.

that's why i like "burping" in paper bags. moist nugs in airtight containers is a no-no.

 

[Putembk]

I have stayed out of this thread because there are so many techniques and could be and argument looking for a place to happen.

But, IMO there is a time to dry and a time to cure. They serve a different purpose. Hanging and putting in a sack are part of drying. Jars are for curing. If you move to jars to soon you will slow the process considerably. Spending days trying to get the buds dry enough to leave the lids on for a longer time. You have simply moved to jars to soon.

I am just getting ready to move some Golden Pineapple to jars. I just checked and not quite ready yet. If you wait to long the buds over dry and the taste and smell are compromised If you move them to soon...well you are playing the spongy/crispy game. Takes practice. Again IMO and it is only and opinion.....curing doesn't start until you can leave the lids on for longer periods. Burping from time to time to release the gasses produced during the curing process.

 

[Reibsi]

I dry all my outdoor in hanging racks that look similar to the ones posted above...mine have side walls that are meshed in and you have to open up a oval shaped zipper to add the buds to each layer...this keeps dust and small bugs off of them as I sometime use them outdoors.
I strip all the buds down as I have to watch for mold and I dry them for about 3-4 days in the dark with moderate temps and moving air...I then put them into 1000 gram bags and let them sit for 24 hours...this will draw some of the moisture out of the inner stocks...I then take them out and dry them again for 24 hours...then back into a new bag and into those large plastic bins that I posted a pic of awhile back...they then go into cold storage which is outdoors...I retrieve them as I need them....take care n stay safe.

 

[Sugar Sweet]

Mine are in jars at this point. They were slightly crispy but still spongey when i jarred them. I open them once a day and the lost their crispness and regained their moist feel again. Does this mean im on the right track by drying the outsides of the bud then when they get jarred again they are pulling moisture from the center of the buds?

 

[Cartman]

that's why i like "burping" in paper bags. moist nugs in airtight containers is a no-no.

Most don't realize that this is how the old hippies used to do it and it still works today.. paper bags breath just enough to allow the crop to breath also.
A very slow dry method that I've used back in early 2000.. when I mentioned it on a thread somewhere else, people thought I was nuts, paper bags, who's this idiot.. :egypt: well, back then I was Bender.. and I read everything..

I had someone way something to me that was so right on the nose... he stated " the best weed is always the weed you grew " . We all feel we grow a decent crop, problem is, how many screw things up with a bad or harsh drying method..

My buddy used to whine to me, nobody wants my Hashplant.. brings over a bud the size of my left arm almost.. saying, look at how big it gets.. we broke a piece off, smoked it up and I said, well, that's why.. I broke up some more paying real close attention to the flower in my hand.. it lacked everything, aroma, that icky sticky, wouldn't even stick to a finger.. the guy spent 4mos on this crop of about 20lbs.. OF CRAP.

Cardinal Sin.... he dried it in 36 hours by laying all the trimmed buds onto window screen and firing dehumidifiers thru them non stop with fans going to.. the room was not dark, he was in a hurry to get it to market.. he even refused to listen to me and did it next crop.. until finally nobody would purchase his crapola..

10 days to 2 wks to slow dry, then into Jars... burp them once or twice if you see moisture build up at all... after this, curing is removing chlorophyl
the green grassy stuff that makes it harsh..

That bud looks purdy good Sug....

 

[2broke2smoke]

I have to agree with freeheeler on the boveda packs. I buy the 60 gram 62% by the hundred and after I have hung dry and trimmed it is time for the cure, they get 2 of these packs in a 5 gallon homer bucket along with an Caliber IV Digital Hygromter by Western Humidor for min 30 days, some strains longer i.e. schrom gets 90 day cure. I insert the hygrometer in the spout of the bucket lid and can easily track the humidity in the bucket. The nice thing about the boveda packs is it is a 2 way system. If your bud is too wet it will absorb the moisture and if too dry it will replace the moisture:D

2b2s

 

[Pa-Nature]

Not arguin with anyone's methods, we all live in different environments, but IMO, if ya have to burp the jars 3-4 times a day for 20 minutes, it prolly wasn't ready to go in jars.

To each their own.

I do it for xtra precaution on the mold ...just the anal me

 

[Pa-Nature]

Mine are in jars at this point. They were slightly crispy but still spongey when i jarred them. I open them once a day and the lost their crispness and regained their moist feel again. Does this mean im on the right track by drying the outsides of the bud then when they get jarred again they are pulling moisture from the center of the buds?

If feeling vey moist it still to early let them crisp agin and redo .

Just my :2c:

 

[Freakshow]

i tirm and put the buds in a hanging basket. In winter, it takes about a day and a half for first dry. then into a jar over night then back into the basket. then into the jar once more over night. Dpeending on wet they are is whether the3y go into the basket or into a C-Vault with a boveda pack.

 

[BreezeEazy]

Been sitting back and reading all the responses. Really has changed my perspective, specially annaba. Im usually trying to dry in an area that is too dry. The paper bag was a game changer for me since it slowed things down. Even now my basement is 20% rh at best. I 'fan' the bags when the got over 55% but now they have dropped under 45 so I decided to put them in Tupperware to control the rh better. I also got 2x67g boveda packs after what you all said.

Im not expecting perfection, but if I can get better at this, that would be awesome. My stuff is already pretty smooth, so any increase in potency, or even flavor would be well worth it.

Has been informative seeing how you guys individually do things.

 

[Sugar Sweet]

I think im in the curing stage right now. Buds feel dry and compact. Little squish to them. At this point when i open the jar i smell more buds and very little mositure. Opening once every other day at this point.

 

[katsu]

Buy some Boveda brand humidity packs. They contain a gel that can increase or decrease humidity (in a jar) until it reaches a predetermined humidity percentage.

10-15$ spent for a 10 pack of these and you may never look back.
Let us know if you try them.
Freeheeler

Freeheeler has it right. Boveda packs are awewsome. Once your buds are dry enough to trim off the branches, put them in a container with a Boveda bag and you're all good. I use the 62%. It's a no-brainer and the cure is perfect IMO.