So, you’re days away from cutting down those gorgeous weed plants you have poured your heart, soul, energy, time, and money into?
You’re probably feeling pretty proud of yourself right now (as you should be). Getting marijuana plants all the way from seed to harvest is never 100% straightforward, and if you are new to the game, then you’re about to feel a sense of accomplishment that tops most. But hold up a second.
The work is not over, not even close.
Correctly harvesting cannabis, trimming it up, properly drying, and then curing your bag of buds all takes almost as much care and finesse as growing the stuff, and getting these steps right is crucial if you want an end product worthy of all that effort.
Introduction
Novice growers, especially those among us on their very first outing, too often overlook the importance of harvesting weed correctly and the post-harvest process. Drying weed, curing weed, and storing weed the right way all come with a certain level of intricacy that might seem like overkill but is, in fact, necessary if you want the best tasting and most potent buds possible.
It’s all about letting the harvested buds release moisture slowly and in a controlled environment in such a way that ensures the delicate terpenes (and cannabinoids) – responsible for taste, aroma, and some of the effects – are preserved.
Enough chit chat, let’s get into it!
Step 1: How Do You Harvest Cannabis Plants the Right Way?
Easy! Just take a close look at the trichomes and let them be your guide…
Timing your harvest to perfection isn’t that complicated, but it requires some precision and a gadget or two. Gone are the days when we’d harvest weed based on a set timeframe. Sure, all weed strains come with a ‘flowering period time’, but this is purely a guide and cannot be taken as gospel.
Say your plants should finish flowering in 8 to 10 weeks – how do you know the actual day that the weed is ready for harvest?
You don’t, but your plants (actually, the trichomes) will show you. But you can’t eyeball it. To really see what’s going on, you’re going to have to grab a jeweller’s loupe (mini magnifying glass) – or even better, a USB microscope.
Trichomes go through three stages of development:
Clear
Cloudy or ‘milky’
Amber
Clear trichomes mean ‘not ready’. The weed will be immature and lack THC potency. You want to see the shift to the ‘milky’ stage, as this is when THC has reached its peak and then some. This is where the high potency lies. Amber trichomes mean that you’ve left it too long to harvest, with the THC converting into CBN, which has more sedative effects.
Most growers like to aim for about a 70/30 split between cloudy and amber trichomes as the signal to pull the plants down, but anywhere in this ballpark is fine.
How do you cut down weed plants?
There are two options, but to make the choice between the two, you need to consider the climate. The drier and warmer the air is, the faster the plants will dry. We want the harvested cannabis plants to dry slowly and in a controlled way.
Using a clean, sharp set of scissors or shears, you can either:
Cut the whole plant down at the base of the main stem – Slower drying, needs a little more room, but the best option if the dry room climate allows for it.
Cut branches off the plant – Faster drying, takes up less room, and what most growers go for. But going branch by branch may result in the plant drying too quickly, which will mean the terpenes degrade somewhat.
Step 2: How Do You Trim Cannabis Plants the Right Way?
Again, we have two options to choose from – Wet or dry trimming.
Wet trimming — As soon as the plant or branches are harvested, you want to remove as much of the unwanted plant material (fan leaves, sugar leaves) as possible. It’s a sticky affair, but it’s a great option if you are struggling to control high humidity in your dry room. Wet-trimmed buds will dry much faster than dry-trimmed buds.
Dry trimming — With dry trimming, we leave the plant to dry without removing any of the unwanted plant material. This takes a little longer, but it’s probably the way to go as long as long as you have good control over the drying room environment. Remember, we want a slow, controlled dry.
The correct weed-trimming technique
If you don’t yet own a set of dedicated trimming scissors, now is the time to grab some.
When trimming weed buds, we want to be careful not to ‘shave’ them. Instead, use the tips of the scissors to get inside the bud and snip the sugar leaves as close to the base as possible. The more leaf material we remove while also leaving the buds as intact as you can, the better the final product.
Step 3: What Is the Perfect Cannabis Drying Room Environment?
To get the best out of your buds, your drying room should be at temperatures around 65 – 70°F with 50-60% humidity, so think air conditioning plus cold mist from a humidifier. It’s okay if the temperatures are a little above or below this, but you really need to try to get the relative humidity as close as possible to the 50% mark.
It’s also important to make sure that:
The air circulation within the drying room and the air exchange in and out of the drying room are sufficient. This will help regulate the relative humidity and reduce the chance of mold or bacteria growth taking hold.
The drying room isn’t overcrowded. You want some space between the drying whole plants or branches.
The dry room is totally dark. Sunlight degrades cannabinoids and terpenes, and does so quickly.
If you are trying to be discreet, make sure you have a carbon filter positioned to stop weed aromas from escaping.
Make sure that no fans in the drying room are pointed at the buds. That will speed up the drying process too much.
How long does it take to dry cannabis plants?
Drying can take anywhere from four days to two weeks, but we recommend that you aim for the 7 to 10 day mark if possible. If you get the drying room temps and humidity in the correct range, and all the other points above dialed in, then that’s about how long drying cannabis correctly should take.
Can you use a microwave to dry cannabis?
You can, but don’t!
Using a microwave (or oven, hair dryer, heater, etc.) or anything else to quickly dry the buds will pull the moisture out of drying buds quickly, but it will also destroy most of the THC, CBD, and other cannabinoids. The terpenes will also be oxidized and vaporized. Microwaving weed is an absolute last resort, but it’s not recommended
Step 4: How to Dry Weed – The Drying Process Explained
So, you have checked the state of the trichomes and are happy with where they are at. You have cut your plants down and have already got your drying room conditions tuned to perfection.
What’s next?
It’s time to hang the plants up on drying racks and let the cannabis drying process begin.
If you cut your marijuana plants down whole, then all you have to do is hang them upside down in the drying room. This can be done in a bunch of ways, but as long as it is hanging upside down and not touching anything else, you’re all good.
If you cut branches from the plants and are drying them separately, then the same applies. Just make sure that there is air flow between the branches and that they are not bunched up on top of each other. You can also use a drying rack, like the WeDryer Herb Dryer, or any number of DIY options.
During the next 7 to 10 days, you need to monitor the drying room temperature and humidity closely. If the humidity shoots up, try increasing air circulation. If it drops too low, you might need to put a humidifier in the drying room on a timer. The same goes for temperature—if it’s too low, consider a small heater in the drying room on a timer or a portable AC if the temperature skyrockets.
Why do you need to dry your harvested cannabis plants for 7 to 10 days, and not quicker?
Fast drying will degrade the terps and cannabinoids, while leaving more chlorophyll behind, making the smoke super harsh.
The number one goal during the drying process is to remove as much of the chlorophyll from the plant material as possible, while also preserving all the tasty cannabinoids and terpenes. Chlorophyll is the main culprit for the harsh, acrid smoke that comes from poorly dried cannabis buds.
How will you know when the cannabis buds are dry enough and ready for the curing process?
The easiest way is to feel the (hopefully) dried cannabis buds. The smaller stems inside the buds should snap in half cleanly and easily, rather than bending.
Can you smoke your dried buds at this point?
Yep, for sure. To be honest, if you live in a spot where recreational or medical weed isn’t legal yet, and you are yet to grow your own, there’s a good chance you have mostly smoked uncured weed. Feel free to dip in and give it a try, but for best results, cure the majority of it.
Step 5: How Do You Properly Cure Cannabis?
Not curing cannabis correctly or for long enough is the number one mistake we see from new home growers.
Use airtight jars (glass mason jars are best here) – don’t use cheap plastic, as plastic might leach into the buds and ruin them,
Don’t overfill the jars (no more than 75% full)
Burp them daily for the first two weeks, and then once a week for the remaining curing period.
Keep them protected from sunlight, and in a consistent temperature (around 65°F is ideal again).
Curing cannabis buds is all about slowly removing all the excess moisture from your buds, while also letting chlorophyll break down further.
The potency will also creep up slowly if you properly cure.
Try Grovebags a newer type of curing process using special bags.
Why do we cure cannabis?
You can think of curing weed like aging whiskey in the barrel, or wine in the cellar. Thank the lord, it doesn’t take nearly as long!
We properly cure cannabis to remove any of the excess moisture that still resides in the buds, to remove any of that remaining chlorophyll, and to give some final touches to the overall bouquet. As we let the weed cure, the terpenes mature, and the chlorophyll continues to break down.
The general rule is – the longer the cure, the more complex and enjoyable the flavor and aroma profile will be.
How long does proper cannabis curing take?
Anywhere from around 2 weeks to six months, depending on the strain and your patience levels! The longer the better, but 4 weeks is a good compromise that should give you some fantastic tasting, well cured weed.
Step 6: How to Store Your Dried and Cured Weed
You can think of long-term storage as the same as an extended curing process. As long as you have the buds in airtight jars, protected from the light, and in a cool spot, they will continue to slowly age and the potency of the buds will continue to gradually increase.
You can fill the jars a little more than during the curing stage, but there really isn’t any need to. The more room the dried and cured cannabis buds have to breathe a little, the better.
There are long term storage options like Cvaluts (or the cheaper Grove Bags), and you can look to add a Boveda humidity control pack to the storage jars to keep the humidity stable.
How long can you store cannabis for?
As we said, the longer, the better!
But seriously, you can store weed for years if it is kept properly. The flavor and aroma profile will change over time, but the cannabinoids and terpenes will also continue to mature. Some growers like to freeze their weed once it has properly cured, but this isn’t necessary, especially if you have a good storage set up.
Conclusion
They say patience is a virtue and all that, but when it comes to drying and curing your prize weed plants, it really holds true.
As long as you have the drying room conditions worked out, a keen eye for any issues that might pop up, and the right tools to hand – your final product is going to be worth the wait, and then some.
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