Drying and Curing Cannabis

When talking about plants in general we can associate back to some general principals and then go from there. Lets talk about the structure of a cannabis plant.

It has 3 main parts: branches, Leaves, and buds (flower).

The branches give structure for growing and drying.

The Leaves photosynthesis during growth and then act as little moisture barriers during drying.

The buds are what we are truly after.

When I harvest my plants:

1. Do I want to keep these genetics if its a photo strain? If so I will leave a small portion remaining to put back into vegetative state.

2. Is there any bug damage or dirt (aka outside) I like to cut my plant down into branches and then do a dip into multiple 5 gallon buckets in a row in which each one is filled with room temp water and one tablespoon of hydrogen peroxide. I do this because bugs no matter what size do leave behind droppings and dead material. The hydrogen peroxide makes for quick work of any fungal material that might be creeping up. This also cleans and removes any dirt or unwanted debris like pet hair. Ideally lining up 5+ buckets and dipping in order is the best method.

3. If no bug problems are evident and the plants are clean. Then I like to cut the plants off at the base and hang them as one full plant.

4. Which leaves and how many do you pluck? I pluck all the main fan leaves. Which most generally I picked in week 4-6 of flower already so when I normally harvest there are no leaves to pick off. That's it, I then let it hang for 1-2 weeks upside down in a dark room ideally at 50% humidity.

5. When I grab a branch and it wont bend but just snaps. It is time to take it down from hanging and remove all of the buds from the branches / stems.

6. In the current state of being removed from the stem. The buds can be stored in a bulk container for instance bins if you need time to trim.

7. You must "burp" or open the container and get fresh air in at least 1x per day for the first month. After that its good to go and will be good for many months to come.

8. I prefer to have it in sealed jars, everyone has a preference. The Mylar bags are a great option. I have just sat on too many of them and prefer jars.

Oh no I waited too long in one of the steps and now my buds are too dry!

What now? Not to worry a simple flower tortilla or a piece of a flower tortilla in the container you have your buds in for 4-8 hours will hydrate back your product without costing yah too much. I check every 8 hours on my tortillas, I mix up the Nugs and get fresh air and replace or remove the tortillas I have in the container. There are also great products like Boveda packs that will do a fantastic job helping you in the curing process.

Thank you for taking the time to read my little drying guide. If you have any questions comment below!

All the information in this article is for educational purposes.