Drying the whole plant vs. drying individual branches...help!

[culdaria]

I hear ya Grimlox, Slowwwww cure is where it at for boutique and smoothness lol :)

 

[Seamaiden]

I've always thought and been told not to have air directly on the buds,
air movement on them will dry them out faster, which is bad ,, slower drying time is what is key,
at least for me,
thats what i see,
how bout some tea
now i have to pee
h

Absolutely, but it's really a balancing act. If you have higher RH levels, then you had better have some movement going on. If it's too low, adding air movement will only make evaporation worse.

But air hitting the buds/colas directly in and of itself doesn't hurt things, and it definitely helps things if you're trying to get them dried in a high RH situation.

 

[culdaria]

For me its been 24 hrs since the chop, checked on em when I got home from work a bit ago and they still look like they did when I cut em, all bright and perky lol. I'm keeping a close eye on em, their staying put for now, I expect in a few days I will be trimming and bagging...I'll keep ya posted :hi

 

[GrimloxK]

when drying the whole plant...is the stems hollowing out a sign that it's dry?

 

[culdaria]

Well ya know I cut one pretty good size nug off a bit ago and yes...the stem is starting to be a little hollow inside, the buds seem to be drawing up a little, still have a long way to go :) I stopped this eve on the way home from work and got five of the large grocery paper bags...I expect to be stuffing them in the next few days...will keep you informed :cool0041:

 

[Seamaiden]

Hollow stems are a sign of hollow stems. A live plant can have hollow stems, which will carry over once it's chopped. Snapping of smaller stems, instead of bending, and other signs are better signs of dryness, IMO.

 

[GrimloxK]

okay so for experienced growers like yourselves...what is a good sign that drying has ended and it's time to cure?

would it be the snapping of the stems...like clean off snap where its in two pieces?

or
is it a point before its dried so much that it breaks into 2 pieces when bent...like a snap that still has the stem(s) still attached by the stringy tissue of the stem?


I really want to pick your brains because in 4 days i'm gonna start drying.

Also heres another thing I wanted to ask:

Would I need to brown paper bag my cut up buds after i've hung to dry and the stems snap the right way? Or should I just move to curing after hanging to dry?

 

[driftin]

i listen for the snap in the stem .. not dry enough to snap in half ... just the inner tissues .... can't help ya with the bag questions .. don't use them myself

happy growin

 

[Seamaiden]

okay so for experienced growers like yourselves...what is a good sign that drying has ended and it's time to cure?

I'll bend some stems, also check the overall relative humidity in the area. See, I have a large basement under the house that's always cool and more humid than other areas. Sometimes far too humid, and then I have to move everything up into the house (you wouldn't believe what a chore this can be). I might pull a few buds in different places on different plants back/open, see how moist they seem to be inside, do this gently, don't tear at them.

would it be the snapping of the stems...like clean off snap where its in two pieces?

Clean snap happens below 60%RH, and is too dry IMO, the bud tends to be quite crumbly if it's that dry.

or
is it a point before its dried so much that it breaks into 2 pieces when bent...like a snap that still has the stem(s) still attached by the stringy tissue of the stem?

Just listen for a snap. Pay attention to the relative humidity in the drying area, that's a great indicator of what's going on assuming the area itself isn't too far off of that 60%-65% sweet spot (my own personal preference) that's best for curing. Drying may need a lower RH than that, but I find it also depends in large part on the plants themselves, as some girls tend to just shed water more slowly than others.

If you dry in the 50%RH range, you should be good for drying, but watch that it doesn't happen too quickly.

I really want to pick your brains because in 4 days i'm gonna start drying.

Also heres another thing I wanted to ask:

Would I need to brown paper bag my cut up buds after i've hung to dry and the stems snap the right way? Or should I just move to curing after hanging to dry?

The bags are for the curing. Curing takes time. Did you know that sweet potatoes have to be cured or they taste like shit and won't store well? Yup. Get this, THEY need to be cured at 70F-90F @ 70%-90%RH. How the hell does anyone who doesn't live in the deep South accomplish that??? If you don't cure them, the sugars don't develop properly in the root and they don't become sweet.

So, curing is important. I can't tell you exactly what's happening with cannabis when it cures, I just know that it's important and has a significant effect on the product. Try testing your cured bud at one month, two months, three months, and note the differences in how it smells and smokes at those points. If you have large quantities you can store the buds, on the bone please, in food-safe plastic bins, but take care of storage RH. Or, vacuum seal them once they reach the sweet spot and the curing point you like. Jars do not compare in terms of sealing and keeping the product in the same condition. Remember that light might cause some damage, so I think it's important to store in a cool, dry, dark place with little temperature variation.

Your mileage, of course, may vary.

Happy curing!

Oh yes... something to give you an idea of the area I work with and how (no, the insulation has yet to cause a problem, I've gone ahead and been scoping, as in w/microscope, my buds, nothing is in there... ok, I do find weed seeds, but those are easily picked out when they get trimmed).

 

[GrimloxK]

Sea thanks for the info man.

Your def experienced to say the least lol.

Let's say my RH is 40% or even below...would it help if I kept the room locked up to raise RH...and maybe put a few glasses of water inside the room to raise RH?

How would you raise RH if the room you were growing in was say a 12' x 12' x 8'?

sorry about busting your ass with questions but I don't get alot of responses on the forums. lol

 

[Seamaiden]

I'm working on the experience end of things, there is still a long way to go.

For drying that RH isn't too bad as long as the plants don't dry in under a week, then you risk getting that hay smell, which can be pretty strong and discouraging. But, if you want to raise it, a few glasses of water won't do it. What you want to think in terms of is 'surface area' which allows the most evaporation. A wet towel hung up, some cookie sheets filled with water, or easiest is a humidifier. I know a humidifier will bring up RH in a relatively well-sealed room in a few hours, so you should watch it if you're going to go that route.

Put the plants in the room first, before you worry about changing the relative humidity, see how their presence changes conditions (this is likely in the beginning of the process). Monitor RH and drying of the plants and work from there.

 

[GrimloxK]

Well I trimmed and chopped today. Man trimming messed up my fingers...never new it was that intense.

I just wanna state that I did 72 hrs of dark time and I didn't notice any difference.

I really hate that wet hay smell but I know that a good cure is what the doctor ordered for that.

Right now I have my plant hanging upside down inside my grow cab, with my 4 inch inline fan running and my 6 inch circulating fan on the lowest speed aimed away from my plant. The airflow inside the cab gently sways my plant...anyone could tell me if i'm doing it wrong?

I plan on slow drying for a week or more...but idk because I let my plant go 6 days without watering and when I plucked her today she was showing very pronounced signs of drooping.

I plan on using simons technique that was posted over at ICMAG for the curing stage.

Right now my RH is teetering around 50%...I tried to get it up by placing a wet towel but so far that as high as i'm getting. Something that's really pissing me off is that I can't keep my ambient temps under 80F...how bad is this?

 

[organikn8]

i personally would trim the branches individually or 2 together in a V shape , this way you cut alot of unwanted stems and branches out of the way along with some of the humidity , plus your buds will dry a bit quicker becausethe branches attached will be holding less water

 

[Seamaiden]

O8, if you've gotten your girls trimmed up right beforehand you won't have that sort of stuff to mess with now that it's harvest.

Well I trimmed and chopped today. Man trimming messed up my fingers...never new it was that intense.

I just wanna state that I did 72 hrs of dark time and I didn't notice any difference.

I really hate that wet hay smell but I know that a good cure is what the doctor ordered for that.

Right now I have my plant hanging upside down inside my grow cab, with my 4 inch inline fan running and my 6 inch circulating fan on the lowest speed aimed away from my plant. The airflow inside the cab gently sways my plant...anyone could tell me if i'm doing it wrong?

I plan on slow drying for a week or more...but idk because I let my plant go 6 days without watering and when I plucked her today she was showing very pronounced signs of drooping.

I plan on using simons technique that was posted over at ICMAG for the curing stage.

Right now my RH is teetering around 50%...I tried to get it up by placing a wet towel but so far that as high as i'm getting. Something that's really pissing me off is that I can't keep my ambient temps under 80F...how bad is this?

You're good, don't sweat these numbers, they're fine. Sounds like you've got the plant set up just fine, too. Since you didn't water the plant prior to harvest, it very well may take less time to dry, but it shouldn't be too bad. If it does go too quickly, then yes, a wet towel if you can't get a small humidifier in the space, should work just fine.

 

[GrimloxK]

thanxs sea, and all those who gave me advice thus far.

It's been a long 4+ months on my first grow...towards the end I got really sketched out because I was seeing police choppers flying overhead multiple times...but so far so clear.

I gained a bunch of exp. this grow which I was looking for...my next grow later this year will be much better planned...Barney's farm sweet tooth...why am I always picking the most temperamental strains, lmfao.

When switch over to curing i'll def come in here and post pics.

Also is it really that important to keep your hung plant in complete darkness for the dry? I find myself opening the door to get some fresh air inside my grow room and some dim light does get in there... I tried researching it and some say it's not even a concern and some say don't do it because the plant is in a fragile state and any light will diminish THC content.

 

[Seamaiden]

I'm able to use dark areas, so I do because I figure if exposure to light degrades other materials, it's a good likelihood it will do so with my buds, even if it's just making them change color.

 

[freegrow]

thanks seamaiden

Why can't air be hitting the buds directly? When I have to I put a fan on those bitches because a small chance of a few broken trichs is nothing compared to the whole cola going moldy.

I was allways taught to not blow air on them

if you remove all sunleaves and hang plants up the bud shrinks when it drys if the trim is cut with the green bud diameter when dry the trim will be sticking out past the body of the bud but either way works but for bag appeal triming after dry is best:hi

 

[GrimloxK]

So I just checked my plant and the outsides are getting very dry...the stems are no where near snapping yet...when I bend them though...they feel slightly hollow (side branches), main branch is still thick like a mother.

The outsides of my buds feel very crispy/crumbly but yet don't really crumble if you get what I mean. Is this a sign that my buds are drying too fast?

 

[Seamaiden]

If they're not crumbling, you should be ok. Are you monitoring the RH in the drying area? Is it going much below 50%?

 

[GrimloxK]

Sea I put my caliber III hygrometer inside my grow cab and right now it fluctuates between 51-55% RH.

I inspected my buds yesterday and I grasped them and they do feel a bit crunchy but that could also be because of the dried small leaves that are dying that I would remove when cutting the buds up for curing.

The stems are bending but not snapping as of yet...today will make day 4 since chopped and started to dry.

How should the buds feel when squeezed right now? moist and fluffy?