There have been a few threads recently about getting the best out of your buds post harvest (e.g. to retain flavours and smell). This is the article that I follow and from my experiences it gives excellent results. It does vary quite significantly from a few of the other methods on here, so it's probably worth trying out a few different ones to see how the results compare for you.

GN

Cure Your Medicine by DJ Short

Proper curing can exponentially increase the quality and desirability of your harvest. The key word to remember is "slow".

Dark & Dry
After cutting the plant or branch, hang it upside down in a cool, dry, and most importantly dark place. Light must be avoided from this point on. Leave the larger shade leaves on and they will gently droop and wrap around the plant, protecting the buds.

The time to the next step depends on how dry your hanging area is. This requires regular checking to determine when to proceed. When the larger shade leaves become dry and brittle to the touch it is time to gently clip them off.

Re-hang the branches in the drying room and regularly check them until the smaller leaves and bud tips become dry and brittle to the touch. It is then time to remove the buds from the branch and remove the rest of the leaf material as best as possible. This is what is referred to as "manicuring".

Now you have a few choices as to what to do with your manicured buds. The buds should still be a little wet at this point, especially on the inside, but the outer part of the buds should be starting to feel dry. Some of the buds, the smaller ones in particular, might even be smokable at this point.

If you are in a more humid area, or if the buds are still feeling heavy with moisture, you may want to try placing them on a suspended screen for a little while. This will help to hasten the drying process. Once again, regular checking to decide when they are ready for the next stage is crucial. This is also a skill that is developed more with time and experience, so practice!

Brown Bagging It
Once the buds are crisp on the outside but still moist on the inside it is time for the next step in the process: the paper bag. I like to use brown paper shopping bags due to their not being bleached, an unwanted chemical.

Simply fill a paper bag a few inches deep with the manicured buds. Don't pack the buds down and do not fold the bag too tight. A few small folds at the top of the bag, like a lunch bag, should suffice.

If the buds are a tad wet or if humid conditions dominate, you might want to consider cutting a few small holes in the bag, above the level of the buds, for ventilation.

As with proper manicuring, regular checking is key. The bags should be gently shaken, ever-so-carefully turning the buds, at least once a day. As the buds dry they will naturally compact into the self-preserving state that we all know and love. It is at this time that the buds can be more compacted together and the bag folded down tighter. They should now be fully smokable, though perhaps still slightly damp at the core.

The entire process, from harvest to these first smokable products, should take anywhere from two to four weeks, depending on your climate. Extremes in climate, such as very arid deserts or tropical humid areas, may take more or less time. There is no substitute for consistent, hands-on checking.


The Final Stage
A final curing stage, preferred by most connoisseurs, involves sealable jars. The nearly ready buds are transferred from the bag to the jar, packed in very loosely, and the jar is sealed. It is very important in the early jar-stage to check the buds at least once a day.

I like to dump them all out of the jar and gently fluff them up at least once a day at first, then less often as time progresses, usually for a week to ten days. It is important to be as gentle as possible so as not to damage too many of the resin glands. After a week or so all I do is simply open the jar and check the buds on a daily basis.

Watch for Mold
The main thing to watch (and smell) for throughout all of the curing process is mold. Whenever mold is found it must be dealt with immediately. The moldy bud needs to be removed, and the rest of the product needs to be exposed to a drier environment for a while.

The simplest solution is to go back one step. For example, if the mold was detected in the jar stage simply put the rest of the product back to the bag stage for awhile (after removing the contaminated product from the batch). If the mold is detected in the bag stage, go back to the screen. The screen is the driest process that I know of. If problems with the mold occur prior to this, a dehumidifier in the drying room may be the answer.

Aside from watching and smelling for mold, always remember to keep the product in the dark.

Ready to go!
A bud is completely dry, cured, and ready for consumption when the stem in the middle of the bud snaps when the bud is cracked with the fingers. The snap is easy to detect with practice. It is at this stage that the product can safely be sealed and stored for an indefinite period of time.

The longer you can stretch out this process, while also avoiding mold, the better. I like when it takes six to eight weeks from harvest to the finished product. You will be able to detect the fragrance of the product becoming more and more desirable as time progresses.

I like my method better.

Or they could have checked the top of the forum


You've pretty much ripped it from the book pages 42, 43, and 44

- Kafka

Blimey guys, I was just sharing something that I thought would help some folks - won't bother in future.

GN

Please do.
Ignore the haters, it's all about sharing.

Interesting read, many thanks.

AGREED!!!

I've never dried my buds in total darkness... anyone attest to this? Not that they're out in the broad light or anything.. but they do get a little bit of indirect light just from where they are placed.
I'd be curious to know scientifically what is happening to the buds that are left in straight darkness to dry.

Anyone know?

Light degrades THC however at what rate I couldn't tell you.

Nice one GN!

would'nt the bit where the larger shade leaves drooping down and wrapping, protecting the buds lead to less air flow and tend to be a causeial effect to budrot?

Also it takes longer for the chlorophyl to be eaten up by the enzyme that does that, when canna is exposed to light. Takes longer to cure then.

No I don't have a source, sorry.

GN, my apologies if you feel put upon by my statement. But it's true and was posted not to poke fun at you but to, once again, show that there are many differing ways of working with canna.

It's nice of you to want to share information and I am deeply regretful if you feel I have inhibited you in any way from doing that.

Haters?
What a curious word to use, I do hope you aren't just trying to stir things up. Thing is, I see not hatred anywhere here, so what are you commenting upon?
I did note the pointer from Kafka, which I thought was as helpful as the original post, directing folks to the whole book was surely a positive thing? And whilst I disagree with Randalizer and his method, why cannot he be allowed to comment without you using a word like "hate", which is actually wholly out of place?

Good article, by the way, and very useful. Its the method I've been using for a while now, and works very well. But with strong smelling genetics, it does make for a real smelly stash! None of that aroma will be lost, it just intensifies all the while in the jars. Oh yum!

aslans private stash

^ curious!

hantshaze.......

Stir things up? Not at all mate.
Haters merely a slang term used to mean people who are telling him to pipe down when they shouldn't be.
Doesn't have any connotations of hate in it at all.
Sorry i used anything out of context .

e2a: It was aimed at Kafka, and not Rand's tongue in cheek response. It's DJ Shorts version, not the book iirc. Why not post it? Why shoot someone down for doing so? Why not say there is more info here?
IMO Kafka was the one stirring, and you too .

Afternoon



If you're not stirring what are you doing exactly ? You don't appear to be adding anything productive to this thread so far information wise.




My point was that the post is :

1: Plagiarised from a published book

2: Already accepted as a default method

3: Nothing new

4: Incomplete




You've lost me DJ short wrote the book which is pretty much word for word with Green Ninjas post.




See the 4 points above




Unless you have anything productive to add please keep your opinions off the thread

- Kafka

What was good about your post mate?
Jesus, what was "productive" about your post?

Your mum not say if you've got nothing nice to say don't say it all?
So what if DJ Short wrote that book, i'd never read it in that form before even though i've read it.
And what with the discussion going on i didn't see a problem with this being posted given the discussion thats occuring about leaving plants in the dark.
But you do, oh no if information is duplicated!

I posted something, not attacking anyone, that in my opinion had a point, i was encouraging the sharing of information, that's all.
And you two turn round and try and tell me i'm using strong words for no reason?
You two seem perfectly able to stir.
Maybe you need to read your own posts a little better.

e2a: this is the first post that seems argumentative, but you two have sectioned in on my post for no reason. i'll not post anything after this, no need to, i don't need to fan your fire anymore.

Nice one dude.

It's the smell that I find the hardest to keep.

Johna

Like most things in the cannabis world, it depends. For outdoor growers (here in california anyway) with a LOT of pot to harvest, having the shade leaves left on helps as it extends the cure (by keeping the plant moist) while it is hanging in some dusty shed in the middle of the northern california woods. It also helps protect the bud from light. Keep in mind that folks like this are dealing with anywhere from 10 to several hundred pounds of cannabis bud.

One of the first things I do when harvesting is rip off all of the sun leaves. I live in a very moist area with humidity spikes from coastal fog that blows in unpredictably. My method works really well for me, but may not work for another. By sharing our stories, we learn more and can apply the methodology that works best for our own situations.

fuck ok bit was good weedio.

Should of left that

hantssturuphaze.......

hence the title- cure you medicine BY DJ SHORT

Exactly bud. Poor show guys ( kafka, randalizer)

This place has changed, and not for the better.

Oh? Care to elaborate why my posts were so bad?

Or is this another snide remark without much backing it up? If this site has gone down hill (which I doubt, examples please?) it's probably due to people making unsubstantiated remarks.

haah i love reading seemingly pointless elongated Uk420 arguments

here we go again, take it thats the conversation on curing finished.

Can we all smoke a nice bowl and chill out a bit?!?!
Please!!!!

We are just a big familly...plenty of arguments and ego talk but in the end we all want the same...

...The PERFECT bowl!!!

Peace to us all

Just because i´ve never read DJ Short book, i will in a couple of moments, i´ve found this thread quite useful.
Thx GN

bringing this back slightly more on topic .
I've been drying some of my produce slowly over the last 2 weeks or so .
This method has always done me okay .
However this time I left one branch for an extra 2 whole weeks , and cut it down just on Sunday morning.

It went to dry in a cardbox hanging up with the other (nearly dried, and trimmed) rest.
Yesterday eve , i went to check and ALL the older buds had a little'bloom' of what i guess was the beginning of rot.
AAAARRRRGGGHHHH
So of course , all was cut into smaller bits , brown bagged , and quick dried at the end..

Do you think this will be okay to blaze??
It is all now bone dry , except the newly chopped branch . This will be dried in another place .

All of this because my dehumidifier tablet thing had run out , and i hadn't noticed , and because this time i dcided not to have a fan blowing at the buds as they dry.

So , is quick drying going to have saved my buds ??
none had gone at all mushy etc , but on some there wasa distinct 'bloom ' of mould .
Will the quick drying have killed it , or do i need to use all this for something other than smoking??
cheers folkses

geeeeep

every one has there methods and i can not see anything really wrong with any of the above methods

dont blaze moldy buds ice hash them bho what ever its only really the safest way

Hey geeepwr, as long as you removed any mould before quick drying and you can't see any now, it will be fine. You may have lost some of the taste but it'll still get you high!

Peace, Reb

cheers rebel .
I hope you're right .
It'd be a proper **** if it all is f***ed,
and it was my most successful grow so far as well. in fact i think cos all was 'fatter' its taken longer to dry , and maybe this was my big mistake???

geeeep

I'm starting to notice more and more people diggin at each other on here recently, its like ghostbusters 2 with the ooze
I liked it GN and probably wouldn't have come across the book any time soon as there is so much interesting reading to be done here.

Peace and love people...peace and love.

EDIT:

I think people in general (clear that up b4 i get shot down ) get to a certain exp level and find reading the "newbie" guides and info a bit annoying, boring or just repetitive to their own knowledge. They kind of lose sight of the fact that everyone here was a newbie at a point so info like this will always be helpful IMO.

Remember peace and love

I've had problems with mould but during my grows, towards the end...heartbreaking!

I know what you mean about the fatter buds, i'm ganna top the shit out of my next grow and have lots of smaller colas!!

It's not a mistake if you've got the right environment but fatter buds are definately a worry!

Peace, Reb

Skipped through a lot of this thread but i would like to share how i do it.. I like to trim my plants as much as possible before hanging to dry.The main reason is that when you move a plant about to remove leaves and trim when it's dry the resin glands can be knocked off everywhere.If you knock a wet bud the glands stay on the plant but if you tap a dry bud the best bits all fall off.. It dries the buds slightly quicker too instead of drying large leaf and stalk that you don't want anyway,reducing chances of mould..Also i always dry in the dark as green plant material can continue to metabolize and effect taste..I always leave for at least 10 days too..I also think bubble hash is better quality using fresh trim..
I only do it this way as it's the way i was taught to do it and my buds always taste fab..Always up for new improved ways to do things tho..

PP...