Storing Wet Hemp Flower

tguess · Mar 16, 2019

Hello,

I am a 1st-year hemp farmer and will be planting 5 acres of a high CBD strain this upcoming May. I have entered into a purchasing agreement with a local processor who has agreed to buy my hemp flower once harvested and has also agreed to buy this product wet, as he has his own processing facility to dry the product and extract the CBD.

My question is, what is the best way to store this product after it has been harvested and bucked? There is a lot of information on how to properly store dried flower (temperate of storage room, relative humidity levels, types of storage containers, etc.) however, I haven't been able to find anything talking about storing wet flower. This product would be harvested, bucked, and then stored indoors at my facility for up to a week before it is picked up by the processor. I need to store this wet flower properly so the product does not start to develop mold or mildew before the processor picks up.

Any thoughts or feedback would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you,
Tommy

Dirtbag · Mar 16, 2019

I think the "best" way would be to nitrogen purge, vacuum seal and freeze it. But youd need a pretty big walk in freezer. You could probably skip the nitrogen if it's not being stored for long.
You could maybe even store it in 5 gallon buckets with tight sealing lids in a freezer too.

But full disclosure I've never tried to do anything like this. Just spitballing here.

Having done my fair share of processing, I know that's how I'd prefer to receive the flower for sure.

tguess · Mar 16, 2019

Thank you, I appreciate your feedback.

Vacuum sealing is a great idea. My original thought was to create a no light, sealable indoor storage room that was kept at a constant temperature of 40 degrees with a relative humidity of 50% with all product vacuum sealed and stored in heavy duty plastic storage bins. I am expecting to yield 7,500 pounds at a minimum. I am also expecting the processor to pick up the product no longer than one week after the flower has been harvested & bucked.

For a walk-in freezer, maybe converting shipping containers would work? I have a family friend who creates walk-in freezers and refrigeration rooms for grocery stores and has access to a lot of used parts/components that would probably allow for a container to be converted cheaply. Not sure how much product I could fit into a converted shipping container though.

Mr Bee · Mar 17, 2019

You would need to be very carefully as storing weed that isn't dry can end up mouldy or rotten.

Dunge · Mar 17, 2019

I have frozen freshly harvested flower for later processing.
It seemed to work well.
It you don't freeze it, it will mold.

DTG · Mar 17, 2019

I say harvest it a day or 2 before pick up & let your buyer dry it & extract it. If that is not an option, then I agree with the freezing method.

DTG.

Mr Bee · Mar 17, 2019

If you just chop and leave out in a cool dry place with decent air flow u could just leave it out until it's picked up.u would lose weight if your going by weight but it's better to exclude risk of loss for a little less money

tguess · Mar 18, 2019

Thanks everyone for the feedback! Really appreciate all of the insight. I will probably go the vacuum sealed/freezer route to minimize weight loss and risk.

Mr Bee · Mar 18, 2019

Dunge said:
I have frozen freshly harvested flower for later processing.
It seemed to work well.
It you don't freeze it, it will mold.

What are the resin heads like after they defrost?the cold doesn't rupture em?I,v frozen trim n bud plenty o times for hash and extracts but I was using it while it was still froze so could never get to see how they were once defrosted.

oldskol4evr · Mar 19, 2019

Mr Bee said:
You would need to be very carefully as storing weed that isn't dry can end up mouldy or rotten.

or catch fire,you never put wet fresh cut hay in a barn,it will explode

oldskol4evr · Mar 19, 2019

got my interest,so your growing 5 acres right,how the hell you gonna frezze that much flower?do you realize how much that is?the way i seen it done is,combine come in and chop the plant and load the flower into waiting trucks,soon as truck is full right to feed processer it goes,then pressed into feed pellets,stalks are then processed for clothing and human comsumption.
i dont know about frezzing and storing that much flower,if you do it wrong ,bottom line your screwed,those processors have gov guidlines for feeds too

tguess · Mar 19, 2019

Hi OldSkol,

Yes, I am expecting at least 7,500lbs of flower. I believe that I could probably fit all of this product into a 1,000sqft walk-in freezer after the hemp has been bucked. I will not be freezing the entire plant, only the flower of the plant. I am growing only female plants in order to extract CBD oil. I will be grinding all of the left over stalks and trim to be used as a compost for future planting.

oldskol4evr · Mar 19, 2019

tguess said:
Hi OldSkol,

Yes, I am expecting at least 7,500lbs of flower. I believe that I could probably fit all of this product into a 1,000sqft walk-in freezer after the hemp has been bucked. I will not be freezing the entire plant, only the flower of the plant. I am growing only female plants in order to extract CBD oil. I will be grinding all of the left over stalks and trim to be used as a compost for future planting.

i cant remember what site or the ladies name,but that girl made all kinds of things from the stalks,flowers were for edible and extracts,made some the finest sandal

Dunge · Mar 21, 2019

Mr Bee said:
What are the resin heads like after they defrost?the cold doesn't rupture em?I,v frozen trim n bud plenty o times for hash and extracts but I was using it while it was still froze so could never get to see how they were once defrosted.

I did not notice any change in the product due to freezing.
I then extracted frozen while maintaining cold through the entire process to keep the water bound.

This entire endeavor will require extensive planning.
First off, freezing a thousand pounds of flowers is probably more complicated than just piling it in a freezer van and turning down the temp.

Then the purchaser will need to keep it frozen until processed.

Complicated.

grassmania22 · Jul 3, 2019

tguess said:
Hello,

I am a 1st-year hemp farmer and will be planting 5 acres of a high CBD strain this upcoming May. I have entered into a purchasing agreement with a local processor who has agreed to buy my hemp flower once harvested and has also agreed to buy this product wet, as he has his own processing facility to dry the product and extract the CBD.

My question is, what is the best way to store this product after it has been harvested and bucked? There is a lot of information on how to properly store dried flower (temperate of storage room, relative humidity levels, types of storage containers, etc.) however, I haven't been able to find anything talking about storing wet flower. This product would be harvested, bucked, and then stored indoors at my facility for up to a week before it is picked up by the processor. I need to store this wet flower properly so the product does not start to develop mold or mildew before the processor picks up.

Any thoughts or feedback would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you,
Tommy

Hey man, there are a lot of sources in the web you can check ,though storing the weed in glass may be a good option. anyway an expert opinion would be better

Storing Wet Hemp Flower

Storing Wet Hemp Flower

tguess

Dirtbag

tguess

Mr Bee

Dunge

DTG

Mr Bee

tguess

Mr Bee

oldskol4evr

oldskol4evr

tguess

oldskol4evr

Dunge

grassmania22

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