I see your long post and raise.
I'll start at the beginning, just read it, I know kinda long and may encompass info you know. but I don't know of any accurate threads on curing
i use the "worst" nutes you can buy, meaning chemicals like miracle grow
but I know how nutes effect the plant and burn qualities, so I only look at types of nutes and ratios.no crackling here and black ash is a bad cure. I know your thinking it changes the flavor for the better..
When wood is heated anaerobically, it turns black as the water is driven off, leaving charcoal, or carbon, behind. When charcoal burns in air, the carbon combines with oxygen, producing carbon dioxide gas. But if you have ever used a charcoal grill,you will noticed that charcoal turns white as it burns. This white ash is what remains of the non-flammable minerals which were present in the wood to begin with. You don't really notice them until the carbon has burned away. These ashes have a composition which varies according to the kind of wood and the soil in which it grew, and it is this variable composition which marks ash as a mixture rather than apure substance.
Ash is literally the nutes. and once in the bud it's not going anywhere till it's broken down or used up within the plant.
that anaerobic burning is what causes butane lighters to produce soot or that black stuff if you put the flame under something, propane burns wonderfully clean but as you add carbon(butane pentane etc) it needs more oxygen, as you go up it won't burn properly unless you add an oxidizer.. this is also why BIC lighters are only about 500 degrees instead of 3500 or whatever butane likes to burn at..(bics design limits oxygen,if you have a torch for dabbing with an adjuster you know what I'm talking about)
...flushing is debated alot around here but its proven that it doesn't lower nutes in your bud, it causes the plant to form an abscission layer in the fan leaves(Google it) to preserve nutes in the bud, you'll notice the bud is last to yellow...
The white ash is literally the nutes and nutes are actually good and improve the burn qualities,yes my ash burns to white..potassium for example expands when hot and helps it burn much more efficiently.. calcium adds weight and mass to the ash while making it whiter but too much makes it flakey.. sulphur ,ammonical n and chlorinated nutes negatively impact burn qualities etc etc I mean the tobacco industry laid it all out for us already, we just have to modify how we cure as we are dealing with volatile compounds and understanding what we are after isn't a nitrate but phosphate(terpenes come from phosphates). No other crop is flushed wether grapes or tobacco so that you get the best burn, yield, quality and flavor..the cure is very important But fresh herb barely dry enough to smoke with no cure doesn't crackle much except for the moisture and resin but leaves it black. flushing is counterproductive imo and only serves to foxtail my landrace Sativas. nutrients are used and converted in the plant, it ends up the same thing
now about the flavor
the cure is important and the fowl taste associated with not flushing is simply a poor cure..a harsh hot acrid taste is from burning starches and chlorophyll....also associated with newbs overfeeding making the cure that much harder, flushing will help to lower n if you overfed..keeping the plant moist enough to stay alive and still maintain gas transfer..through this natural process of hydrolysis and respiration the components are broken down and becomes smooth..this process is known as the cure
Night and day difference in curing ..
Reduction in Chlorophyll content, doesn't taste like smoking veggies
Reduction in plant starch content,and sugars, creating a smooth smoke that will just expand nicely in your lungs, won't even feel it go down
Reduction in nitrate levels,less carcinogenic, always good right and cleaner tasting/cleaner feeling high
polycyclic aromatization and oxidation of terpenoids altering the flavor profile more robust with a higher ppm sensory threshold , less perfumey even soapy or "green" from corresponding aldehydes and ketones
Reduction of and consistent moisture content, even slow burn and no smoldering or black ash unwilling to burn
