Got Mold???

My first grow. Lots of challenges but I finally harvested last week. I put all the bud into a dryer box I built. Opened it a couple days ago (4 days drying) and found some bud was kinda crispy, I was able to break the stem. In addition, it smelled like hay (which I THOUGHT was a symptom of overdrying- Can you guys please correct me here or clarify why we get the hay smell please).

So, thinking that everything was ok, I put the buds into jars. I opened and checked them a bunch at first, then thought I was overchecking so I left them alone for just 18 hours (I should have realized how damp they felt, but since the smell was still hay I thought they were still to dry- I feel like a dumbass newb again). So, against my judgement, I crack opne one of the jars and smell the bud... still hay but maybe improving a bit.. THEN I notice white fuzz!!!! Damn... mold. I kinda pinched it off and put all the buds back in the dryer (on different levels but in the same box- bad buds nearest exit). I know I am probably just blowing around the spores right now, but that's what I did. I don't have another place ready to keep drying the buds but i am pretty sure they should be quaratined. It sucks that I lost almost all the smoke from one strain, but I guess I can try and make honey oil out of it.

I'd love feedback on the hay smell and what to do about the molded buds..... Thanks

yea, think i got a tiny bit of mold too. but i know about it. it smells "off", like hay. as you said.

i too didn't realize there was still a lot of moisture within the bud.

hope you get it sorted.

The hay smell goes away, and about the mold, your pretty much on the right track, make sure they are almost dry before going into the jars. The jars bring the internal stem and bud moistur to the outside to evaporate, but you want this to happen SLOWLY , not all at once. With the right conditions you shouldnt have a problem with mold, You need a COOL DARK place for them to sit in the jars. and they need to be burped, a couple times a day at first, then slowly week by week decrease the amount of time they are open . I usually leave em open for 10-15 minutes the first week a few times a day, then 5-7 minutes a couple times a day, then every other day, and so on. Untill week 3 then its smoke time. At least thats as far as I take it. I have had no improvements from week 3 to week 4 so to each his own.

Thanks y'all, specially atom. Burlingo, my mold smelled kinda acrid, not like hay. he hay smell I thought was from drying too fast, but I'm not sure. I used alot of ventilation during my grow and drying, just not when I cured. I also didn't rely on feeling the buds. Had I done so instead of smelling... I would have left the jars open longer or put the bud back in my drying box as they were still damp.

I hope I learned my lesson, but I wouldn't be surprised to run into more speed bumps. I will use everything I've learned to try and make my second go smoother though (even though I got massssssive nute burn just now at the end of 2 months vegging and lost a plant- I guess that counts as my first nute burn though!!). I'm sure I'll get it down by my third time around!!!

Ya that hay smell is normal.

After a month of curing the hay smell should be gone, and dankness should be coming.

yeah, I'm gonna let em dry a bit more then.