I'm a chop the big ripe colas off when they are good and milky then let the lower section ripen for another 10 - 14 days kind of grower. That borderline popcorn turns in to decent buds if left for a bit and the still clear trichs get nice and cloudy too.
I trim fresh off the plant then slo-dry for up to 5 weeks in doubled paper bags before putting the still moist buds in jars for another few weeks of burping before dry enough to smoke.
Try it sometime with bud off the same plant you hang to dry then compare. The slo-dried ones will be a nice tan/orange colour and you'll swear it's off a different and much nicer plant. lol
With my arthritic hands trimming is a hated chore so 90% of everything is getting a quick snip of anything without sugar on it then processed into oil or cocobudder fresh off the plant or stored fresh in the freezer until I can get around to processing it. Drying it first loses to many terps etc so I don't want that.
I did my last batch of CBD cocobudder with bud that's been in the freezer for a few months and was very pleased with the results. Made 500ml of budder and gave #1 son a 250ml mason jar full when I went out to BC the end of last Nov.
Coconut oil in a pan on a hotplate that has a 4x4" piece of 1/2" mesh metal screen on it to dissipate the heat. A hand blender to grind up the bud once the oil melts and warms up and raise the heat using the variac to get it just right so it decarbs in the oil. I used a mercury lab thermometer and the laser one too to monitor the heat. The laser one was pretty much right on with the lab one so I can just use it to keep track of the temps. Can cook it up right beside my chair in the mancave so I don't miss any TV stirring it.
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Before grinding.
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After grinding.
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Checking temps.
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Ready for straining into a jar.
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With the variac I have more precise control of the heat. I just leave the 1000W hotplate on Max and start the power at 65% until around 150F then grind it up ggod. Then raise the temp to a little over 212F/100C to boil off the water that was in the buds. After the bubbles stop raise the temp to 235F - 250F where it bubbles again as the pot decarbs. Once that stops lower the heat to below 212 and add a Tbsp or so of liquid sunflower lecithin then let it cool more so I don't burn myself then just pour it thru a fine mesh kitchen strainer into mason jars. I press down on the pot in the strainer to squeeze out some but save that used pot for smoothies or baking so nothing goes to waste. It's soaked with the oil so just as potent. Tip: Squish it all flat after putting in a ziplock so it's easy to break off chunks after freezing. Hard as hell to cut with a butcher knife when in a ball.
Once in jars it should be frozen overnight then thawed and frozen again to bond the lecithin to the cannabinoids for better absorption in the gut. Snacking on something containing fats/oils a half hour or so before taking your dose keeps the liver busy working on the first stuff so the cannabinoids can circulate unmolested for longer before the liver enzymes get at them.
Good medicine and barely any trimming required!
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