Many growers drain the tank and fill it with plain water, two days before I harvest. (I quit doing that)
I cut the longest branches, put them on a tin-foiled covered tray, and go to my kitchen table.
I have three boxes, one for the big FAN leaves. (for oil)
One box for the TRIM leaves, the leaves with trichomes on them, that I manicured odd the buds, FOR HASH. I've manicured much more since I learned how to make HASH. I want some naked STEM at the end of the buds to fasten my tape to, so I can hang it in the drying box.
One Box for the popcorn buds. (small buds with no stems)
I manicure them, and cut the leaves off around the buds, saving them for HASH..
I string masking tape across the box, making rows about 3 or 4 inches a part. I wrap a piece of masking tape, about 4 inches long, around the tip end of the stem, and hang it from the masking tape, in rows, not letting the buds touch each other. VERY IMPORTANT.
I separate the bigger buds from the smaller ones IN DIFFERENT BOXES.
I put the boxes in a dark room, NO DIRECT LIGHT, and blow a gentle oscillating fan across the top, but not on them.
The big buds take 7 days, the smaller ones 5 days.
If you dry them too much, you can add back moisture. If you do not dry them enough, you get wrotten buds.
Dry them til the end of the stem will SNAP when you break it, but not crispy dry.
The big buds take 7 days,the smaller ones 5 days.
Keep them in the dark with little light to see and inspect.
I never smoke them then, NEVER.
I then CURE them 30 days in wide mouth jars, opening the jar for ten seconds EVERYDAY , for 30 days.
Every day, I sniff them, smell them, for any funky moldy smell. If they do not smell right, then dry them outside the jar another day or two.
I've lost one jar, out of hundreds, the 30th day, it went bad. Bud MOLD.
I can not emphasis the importance and difference if you properly manicure, Dry AND Cure them. CURING MAKES A BIG MAJOR DIFFERENCE.
Cure 30 days?
Definitely, I do know for sure, I tried smoking buds cured for a only a week, for two weeks, three weeks and 4 weeks. You should try it too, and you will find what I found. Buds cure 4 weeks not only taste better, they burn better and get you higher too. It has something to do with some scientific complicated SUGAR PROCESSING. or the sugars change . I am 100% sure, you will agree, if you test it like I did. CURE FOR 30 DAYS!
DRYING? They say dry them til the stem will snap. Well, I get stems the thickness of fishing line and I get stems the thickness of a pencil, even bigger. That tells me that you can not DRY them ALL the same amount of time. So I sort mine, fatter stems from skinny stems. The skinny ones, I DRY for 6 or 7 days. The fat ones, I DRY for 7 to 8 days. IF YOU OVER DRY, YOU CAN REMOISTEN THEM. IF YOU DO NOT DRY THEM ENOUGH, THEY WILL WROT ! I dry mine in the open air, moving air, moved with an oscillating fan. A gentle breeze, in temps of what central air or central heat gives me, which is around 75 to 78 degrees and humidity of 30% to 40%.
AND YOU MUST DRY AND CURE THEM IN DARKNESS. LIGHT IS THE ENEMY WHEN DRYING AND CURING. I do DRY mine in a room with the shades pulled down, it is not very dARK, but it is not any direct LIGHT, just some leaking light. I read up on Drying and Curing in 4 books I bought, and the above is what they say.
Save the trim leaves for HASH, and the FAN leaves for OIL, you'll be so glad you did.
