What exactly does 'curing' do?

[powerflower]

Hey guys,

Im trying to understand why exactly one must cure their buds? Rather than just 'snap' drying.

I keep reading conflicting information thats confusing to me.

Anyone? Much appreciated...

 

[Texas Kid]

Here is from Marijuana Botany by Robert Clarke

As floral clusters dry, and even after they are sealed and packaged, they continue to cure. Curing removes the unpleasant green taste and allows the resins and cannabinoids to finish ripening. Drying is merely the removal of water from the floral clusters so they will be dry enough to burn. Curing takes this process one step farther to produce tasty and psychoactive marijuana. If drying occurs too rapidly, the green taste will be sealed into the tissues and may remain there indefinitely. A floral cluster is not dead after harvest any more than an apple is. Certain metabolic activities take place for some time, much like the ripening and eventual spoiling of an apple after it is picked. During this period, cannabinoid acids decarboxylate into the psychoactive cannabinoids and terpenes isomerize to create new polyterpenes with tastes and aromas different from fresh floral clusters. It is suspected that cannabinoid biosynthesis may also continue for a short time after harvest. Taste and aroma also improve as chlorophylls and other pigments begin to break down. When floral clusters are dried slowly they are kept at a humidity very near that of the inside of the stomata. Alternatively, sealing and opening bags or jars or clusters is a procedure that keeps the humidity high within the container and allows the periodic venting of gases given off during curing. It also exposes the clusters to fresh air needed for proper curing.

 

[DirtMatrix]

Here is from Marijuana Botany by Robert Clarke

As floral clusters dry, and even after they are sealed and packaged, they continue to cure. Curing removes the unpleasant green taste and allows the resins and cannabinoids to finish ripening. Drying is merely the removal of water from the floral clusters so they will be dry enough to burn. Curing takes this process one step farther to produce tasty and psychoactive marijuana. If drying occurs too rapidly, the green taste will be sealed into the tissues and may remain there indefinitely. A floral cluster is not dead after harvest any more than an apple is. Certain metabolic activities take place for some time, much like the ripening and eventual spoiling of an apple after it is picked. During this period, cannabinoid acids decarboxylate into the psychoactive cannabinoids and terpenes isomerize to create new polyterpenes with tastes and aromas different from fresh floral clusters. It is suspected that cannabinoid biosynthesis may also continue for a short time after harvest. Taste and aroma also improve as chlorophylls and other pigments begin to break down. When floral clusters are dried slowly they are kept at a humidity very near that of the inside of the stomata. Alternatively, sealing and opening bags or jars or clusters is a procedure that keeps the humidity high within the container and allows the periodic venting of gases given off during curing. It also exposes the clusters to fresh air needed for proper curing.

Hi Texas Kid, thanks for the info.Im going to look up Robert Clarke.

This is the bit i don't get here, how these "processes" cease during fast evaporation of water. I'm assuming plants must require water for this activity.

Thanks again

 

[powerflower]

Thanks for the post Texas Kid.

That helps things make more sense to me now.

 

[caveman4.20]

When curing adobe its real important for it to never get too dry and if it does you spray the house down till its wet and cured... This could take weeks or longer and that clay is lifeless, plants are alive. Ive never looked up websters for curing but my own definition is a process including controlled temps, humidity, air exchange, light and porosity recognition... Curing is a fourth stage of growth or more accurrately death most importantly what happens right before death... And i believe that pre-curing "for lack of a better term" begins during the stage when most people flush ....this idea has evolved and continues to evolve with the ThcFarm peace

 

[squiggly]

Basically, you're keeping the material wet enough for some of the biological processes to continue after death.

The metabolism of the plant (and all plants) is such that there is a high turnover rate for given chemicals, like chlorophyll and sugars. These chemicals are constantly broken down and re-formed during regular biological activity.

Post death they continue to be broken down, but they are no longer replenished.

Many plant cells live on for quite some time through the cure. This is why it's important not to over-dessicate the plant matter as if all the water is removed all metabolism and all reactions stop.

In a sense you are making sure that *inside* of the cells chemicals are still in solution and able to react further. Once all of the water has been removed all of the reactions will stop.

This is an oversimplified version of what's going on but you get the point I'm sure.

 

[surrealife]

hi, just cut my first of this season....ohh yea,
i was down for a bit.
i am finding that my laptops exhaust fan is helping me.

my question. i get scrared at the strength of veg smell in jars.
how long of a time period sealed?
and about what for total cure time?

i'm not proud. i just leave it out for 4-5 days.
and smoke IT!

so, i started smoking some today, 6 days drying. is a little better than the stuff i bought from a vendor
at the hemp fest last week, for $125 1/2oz..!!

grow well, smoke better

 

[caveman4.20]

Basically the smell should stick from week seven until you smoke it....that veg smell your talking about might just be the smell that plant puts out, especially if thats the smell you were getting a week or two before harvest... Hope that helps, oh yah if its a sourtrash or skunk smell it may get alot better but most other smells usually are banging from the begining and the cure preserves it, the rest IMO is personal preferance

 

[surrealife]

ahh, i see.
thanks bro

 

[justhydronow]

Give time to your buds so they are perfectly dry, place them in a cool, dry place; a tightly sealed jar works well.

 

[woodsmaneh]

For me there are a number of reasons, the first and foremost is weed gets better as it ages YES gets better. This process goes on for about 9 months then stops. It improves the taste by a magnitude or about 10 when done right.

Drying and curing (when done right) have proved (In many studies) to have a major impact on taste and flavour, by breaking down chlorophylls and converting starches into sugars. Most bad attributes blamed on buds may be the result of improper drying/curing and or fert issues..

 

[FruitOfTheLabor]

basicly curing helps with taste .. smell.. potency.. and how it smokes.. a good cured bud will have a great smell .. taste shall match up. and should be very potent.. then wen u smoke it in a joint.. the ash should burn extremely clean and whitish grey.. if ur seeing dark ash.. either not cured and dryed properly.. orrr it sometimes is from the excess nutes stuck in the bud.. and even sometimes a super fast dry will make it burn at a higher temp and make the smoke a little harsher..

I like to hang dry until the stems almost snap.. then a cut the buds off the bigger stems.. and place onto a area to dry the rest of the way. then depending on harvest.. fill plastic bags.. and start trimming.. then into jars for atleast 2 weeks before sold.. a DRY TRIM will help with smell and shit... also.. before I harvest. I take off every single fan leaf that doesn't have crystals on it.. and hang the plant whole. for 7-14 days works very well...

 

[caveman4.20]

Is ther a point of no return if youwill ? Like hypethetically if grow is well and cure is well but still doesnt stay lit or is a bit harsh can grower b take grower a's flower and continue or re-cure it ?


Turning it from mediocre to AAA
or a to A you know what i mean

 

[FruitOfTheLabor]

umm it really depends.. if it dries to fast the curing process slows down and stops and then u lock in chlorophyll ..

but the thing I haven't been able to figure out is.. if u Over Dry buds.. if u could use a few wet buds or leaves or stems off a live wet plant to add enough moisture to then re Slow DRY and cure it the right way? this is something I have yet to try.. or find out if anyone has done it and it actually worked.. so try it and let us know please lol

it really depends on how u got the bud.. and what the grower did.. bud only can be so good wen its grown.. so ifs its amazingly grown bud.. but grower sucks at curing and drying .. there's a chance.

id say once its over dry the curing process stops and cant be redone.. but if u get it wet theres a chance at redrying and curing it the right way. but the thing is .. would u wana be buying buds .. just to have to wait to smoke it? lol .. id just look for a connection who knows how to dry and cure there buds.. lol .. I figure growing is 30 percent of getting sick bud.. genetics are 30 percent .. with 20 percent being Drying and 20 percent being Curing.. so instead of noobs thinking just growing weed is what u need to LEARN.. its really a lot harder then it seems to produce an inferior product on a market that is flooded with garbage nooby nugs.