neosapien
Well-Known Member
So I figured now that I've got acouple grows under the proverbial belt it was my turn to give the regs a break and give the noobs some advice. I had a partner the last couple grows but we decided to go separate ways before this last grow as there was just too many things we each wanted to try differently. Drying and curing being one of them. He was kind of lazy and never fully cured, which to me is a waste of the previous 4 months! So before we begin, everything in this post is an opinion, it is what has worked for me. The scope of this post is not to tell you when they are done, but what to do once the ax has fallen.
Chop Chop
So now that you've flushed your plants, or not flushed your plants, you are ready to harvest your babies. I start by taking my spring-loaded fiskars and cutting the selected branch about 3 bud sites down leaving enough stem so I can clip a clothespin on alittle later down the road. Once I am holding the branch in my hand I proceed to cut off the big fan leaves. I try to snip as close to the stem as possible. I have a trash can directly under me to catch said fan leaves. Once all the fan leaves are gone I move the trash can out of the way and place a cardboard box under me. I now start to cut off the smaller leaves which will fall into the box and be used for butter. I hold the branch in my hand and turn it while I'm cutting to have a nice even trim job that stops just about where the hairs protrude from the bud, you will now start to notice that familiar cone shape starting to appear. When I'm done trimming one of the branches I place a wire clothes hanger on my door knob and attach the branch by using a clothes pin. I do this so that it maintains its uniform shape, the buds are impressionable while they're still so wet. I now go and repeat these steps for any other branches I feel are ready. I always do a staggered harvest because I've never had all the buds done at the same time.
Hang Ten Bro
Once said branches are manicured and hanging from the clothes hanger I transfer them to my drying area. My drying area is a regular sized closet in my 2nd spare bedroom. In said closet I have a wire shelf I purchased at Target some years back for bout $50. I also have 9" fan I purchased from Lowes for $10 running constantly. The fan is on the middle shelf about a foot away from the wall blowing against it. I place clothes pins on the wire racks and hang the branches from the clothes pins. The clothes pins fit like a glove on the wires. By using the clothes pins it is incredibly easy to take the branches down and inspect them for dryness, mold, etc. I close the door, them bitches stink, and wait. I check on them everyday. After a couple days you can inspect how fast they are drying and adjust if they are drying to slow by separating the buds from the branches and dismissing the stems if need be. I keep the buds attached to the stems at first so that they will not dry too fast.
The Cure...no not the gothic rock band
So after bout 5-7 days the smaller nugs are usually dry enough to go into the glass canning jars, or smoke alittle
The bigger nugs and huge colas usually take me 10-14 days before they are ready to cure. I use Ball canning jars because that's all I can find. A dozen quart sized jars are bout $10. Ball makes many sizes of jars. I buy them as I need them. You can only make so much Elderberry Jelly before that old lady at the register asks you for some! Well now that them tasty looking nugs are ready to come down I put them in the jars filling about half the space with nugs, not too crowded. i put painter's tape on the lid of the jar and mark the strain if there is more than 1 and the date I put them in. It's easy to get confused if you are working with multiple jars and strains. I now relocate the jars to my office. I want them bitches close to have complete time and control to monitor them. This is the critical stage in which mold is a real threat. When I get them up in my office I put the jars in a suitcase and put the suitcase in the office closet. Nice and dark and concealable. I now will open the jars once a day and take the nugs out and place them on white contrasting printer paper for half an hour. In this half an hour I eye fuck them for any signs of mold and also because I love them and can't stop staring at them!! The bigger colas I might even open the jar twice daily. I do this for ATLEAST 2 weeks. After 2 weeks I open the jar and take them out maybe twice a week. After a month I do it whenever I think of it. I keep them all in the suitcase besides the jar I am smoking on. After 2-4 weeks I think they are well enough to smoke on the regular. At any point after a month I think is when I notice they start to be primo.
Well I think that's about it. I am high so it's not totally beyond doubt that I forgot something
. I hope this helps someone. Feel free to comment/critique and exchange methods and ideas. Your brother Neosapien.
Chop Chop
So now that you've flushed your plants, or not flushed your plants, you are ready to harvest your babies. I start by taking my spring-loaded fiskars and cutting the selected branch about 3 bud sites down leaving enough stem so I can clip a clothespin on alittle later down the road. Once I am holding the branch in my hand I proceed to cut off the big fan leaves. I try to snip as close to the stem as possible. I have a trash can directly under me to catch said fan leaves. Once all the fan leaves are gone I move the trash can out of the way and place a cardboard box under me. I now start to cut off the smaller leaves which will fall into the box and be used for butter. I hold the branch in my hand and turn it while I'm cutting to have a nice even trim job that stops just about where the hairs protrude from the bud, you will now start to notice that familiar cone shape starting to appear. When I'm done trimming one of the branches I place a wire clothes hanger on my door knob and attach the branch by using a clothes pin. I do this so that it maintains its uniform shape, the buds are impressionable while they're still so wet. I now go and repeat these steps for any other branches I feel are ready. I always do a staggered harvest because I've never had all the buds done at the same time.
Hang Ten Bro
Once said branches are manicured and hanging from the clothes hanger I transfer them to my drying area. My drying area is a regular sized closet in my 2nd spare bedroom. In said closet I have a wire shelf I purchased at Target some years back for bout $50. I also have 9" fan I purchased from Lowes for $10 running constantly. The fan is on the middle shelf about a foot away from the wall blowing against it. I place clothes pins on the wire racks and hang the branches from the clothes pins. The clothes pins fit like a glove on the wires. By using the clothes pins it is incredibly easy to take the branches down and inspect them for dryness, mold, etc. I close the door, them bitches stink, and wait. I check on them everyday. After a couple days you can inspect how fast they are drying and adjust if they are drying to slow by separating the buds from the branches and dismissing the stems if need be. I keep the buds attached to the stems at first so that they will not dry too fast.
The Cure...no not the gothic rock band
So after bout 5-7 days the smaller nugs are usually dry enough to go into the glass canning jars, or smoke alittle
The bigger nugs and huge colas usually take me 10-14 days before they are ready to cure. I use Ball canning jars because that's all I can find. A dozen quart sized jars are bout $10. Ball makes many sizes of jars. I buy them as I need them. You can only make so much Elderberry Jelly before that old lady at the register asks you for some! Well now that them tasty looking nugs are ready to come down I put them in the jars filling about half the space with nugs, not too crowded. i put painter's tape on the lid of the jar and mark the strain if there is more than 1 and the date I put them in. It's easy to get confused if you are working with multiple jars and strains. I now relocate the jars to my office. I want them bitches close to have complete time and control to monitor them. This is the critical stage in which mold is a real threat. When I get them up in my office I put the jars in a suitcase and put the suitcase in the office closet. Nice and dark and concealable. I now will open the jars once a day and take the nugs out and place them on white contrasting printer paper for half an hour. In this half an hour I eye fuck them for any signs of mold and also because I love them and can't stop staring at them!! The bigger colas I might even open the jar twice daily. I do this for ATLEAST 2 weeks. After 2 weeks I open the jar and take them out maybe twice a week. After a month I do it whenever I think of it. I keep them all in the suitcase besides the jar I am smoking on. After 2-4 weeks I think they are well enough to smoke on the regular. At any point after a month I think is when I notice they start to be primo.
Well I think that's about it. I am high so it's not totally beyond doubt that I forgot something
. I hope this helps someone. Feel free to comment/critique and exchange methods and ideas. Your brother Neosapien.
+rep for being helpful.....
Priceless! Thanks for the info.