Tips and tools for harvest

[KarlJay]

I'm prepping for my 1st harvest and I want to get a head's up on the processes.

I got:
- spring loaded curved scissors
- drying rack
- canning jars
- gloves

My understanding of the process:

Drying:
- cut the stems and trim the leaves so you end up with a rounded bud.
- lay out / hang for drying in a dark place with indirect air flow
- wait until the stems snap

Curing:
- Move into canning jars
- store in dark place
- open the jars a few times each day for 10 min or so
Continue for about 2 weeks or so.

Non-bud product:
- Gather trimmings for making oil/hash...
- cure same as bud
- once cured, process into oil/hash/wax, or whatever

Option:
- add 62% Humid packs to the canning jars

Q. when do you add the humid packs, near the end of curing?
Where do you get the humid packs?

If I forgot anything or any tips would be great, thanks!

 

[JJ Bones]

Re: Tips and tools for harvest.

We have the humidipaks on our website.

You look like you have a great gameplan. I would add the paks when you go to the jars.

 

[CA215]

Re: Tips and tools for harvest.

Good question KJ, I was wondering about that to.. just did some more reading on the bovedas and I guess once you put the pack in your jar and let them go to work, if you have say you canned your meds and the jar is sitting at 68%, the pack will actually absorb the excess humidity and bring it to set % on the pack.. Very cool little things. Figure we should still burp the masons for a good couple weeks. Good layout on harvesting. The only thing I've noticed when I dried my bud, is you don't want to let the stem dry until its brittle, byt that point the buds are way to dry and just break up into dust.. Figuring i'm going to experiment this harvest with different jarring times to find a good medium , CA

 

[KarlJay]

Re: Tips and tools for harvest.

Good question KJ, I was wondering about that to.. just did some more reading on the bovedas and I guess once you put the pack in your jar and let them go to work, if you have say you canned your meds and the jar is sitting at 68%, the pack will actually absorb the excess humidity and bring it to set % on the pack.. Very cool little things. Figure we should still burp the masons for a good couple weeks. Good layout on harvesting. The only thing I've noticed when I dried my bud, is you don't want to let the stem dry until its brittle, byt that point the buds are way to dry and just break up into dust.. Figuring i'm going to experiment this harvest with different jarring times to find a good medium , CA

So how long did you let them sit out? I've got a drying rack and was figuring about 3 to 5 days.

You do the same thing with the trimmings? You treat trimmings just like bud? I guess it depends on what you're going to make with the trimmings, I'm probably going for honey oil or ear wax.

 

[Chester001]

A good rule of thumb is to let your bud dry one day for each 10% humidity in your drying space plus one extra day ...

You should also have a quality hygrometer to get the best out of your cure ... there are many websites that will tell you exactly how to cure

 

[CA215]

I have the hanging "herb" drying rack, Smaller nugs were getting dry in about 2-3 days, bigger nugs i'm thinking are going to need to sit out for 5-7, I want to make sure all my big nugs get dried thoroughly to avoid mold in my masons, man that would be horrible.. Yes I will trest timmings and clippings same as my buds. I've heard that when you use fresh trimmings for whatever concoction you are going to want to make, they tend to carry on a lot more of the "skunky bud" flavor into your edibles, dried buds/trim is easier on the stomach If you are going to be making honey oil or ear wax... just dry all your stuff, makes the guessing game abit easier

 

[CA215]

@ Chester, any specific model of hygrometers? I'm seeing they can get pretty dang spendy.. Im liking these non digital ones for ten bucks... Set right in the mason jar with your buds and it gives you a constant reading.. Might have to look into picking up a couple of these bad boys..!

 

[Chester001]

These work well ... Caliber IV New Version of Caliber III Electronic Digital Humidor Hygrometer | eBay

 

[Chester001]

You only need one good Hygrometer to handle a harvest ... It just has to be accurate and fit into a jar ...

 

[CA215]

Thanks for the speedy response Chester! hey that wont hurt my wallet too bad..

 

[GreatLife4All]

A good rule of thumb is to let your bud dry one day for each 10% humidity in your drying space plus one extra day ...

I have never heard of using this metric - but I have to admit that it seems to match my experience very well.

Sounds like a great rule-of-thumb to me

 

[GreatLife4All]

I got:
- spring loaded curved scissors
- drying rack
- canning jars
- gloves

Nylon or nitrile gloves is a nice addition if you are handling lots of sticky bud. When finished, turn them inside-out, place in the freezer overnight, and then knock the resin off and form a ball. When you smoke this, you will understand why it is worth using the gloves.

Plus, some people claim you can get a nasty contact high thru your skin by handling weed over a long period of time. I am typically smoking during the trimming phase.... so I wouldn't actually be able to say on this point.

Drying:
- cut the stems and trim the leaves so you end up with a rounded bud.
- lay out / hang for drying in a dark place with indirect air flow
- wait until the stems snap

I do this step slightly different...

My first step is to cut the "tree" into manageable chunks for hanging. To use my method, you will need loppers big enough to cut thru the main stem. The first cut on the main stem is right below the first node with shoots growing out of it (the plant is now free from the pot). My second cut - I count up three nodes and cut right below that one. I now have a piece of plant that has four shoots (two nodes) - each going in a different direction. This also gives me something to hang the bud by... simply wrap a twist tie around the stem below the first node and hang from a pole.

Not the best picture, but you can see how the buds are held apart from each other - which results in quicker and more thorough drying. I trim all the large and small fan leaves, but not the leaves that are "inside" of the buds. When you hang this upside down, these leaves will curl around the bud forming nicely shaped nugs and provide protection against knocking the trichs off during subsequent handling. Continue cutting hangers until you have just the main cola left - and hang that too.

If you want to avoid having flat spots on your bud, you should let it hang for a couple of days to dry before placing in a drying rack. I typically leave it like this for a week (and my relative humidity is 60%).

I then trim all the bud off these hangers, manicure, and place on a drying rack until the stem breaks easily - typically takes another two to three days. And finally into mason jars.

This type of slow cure will produce very high quality smoke, in my experience.

Remember, the faster the initial cure, the harsher the final smoke is going to be. This is not a race where the first guy to get bud in jars is the winner.

I have never used the humid packs... but have never needed to either. So no experience with them. But if they claim to dry bud quickly... I would never use them as that is the wrong goal, IMO. If they claim to prevent mold, you can accomplish this by properly drying before placing in a jar. If you have no choice but to get things jarred as quickly as possible, I might consider this.

If I forgot anything or any tips would be great, thanks!

Everything else looks good to me.

 

[KarlJay]

Ok, the problem I might have is getting to 60% RH for the drying. I could use the clone closet but I think I'd still have to up the RH a bit. I might have to get a cool mist humidifier. I bought a drying rack that should fit in there, but I'm scared to use the clone closet.

The clone closet might be where the PM got started. It's made of wood and 60% RH could make it a mold machine!

The other option is that I could hang the drying rack and use a thick trash bag as a cover.

Q. How close to 60% is ok? With the size of this harvest, I don't know how I'll be able to keep the RH at 60.

 

[Chester001]

rh at 60% refers to your bud not the air in your drying space ... I use the hang in an open box method ... if the rh in my room is low and I know that the bud will dry fast I partially cover the top of the box ... this will work at very low humidity and if the rh is high (60%+) I open the box and set it in a room w/ moving air ... I'd rather work w/ low rh than high because high causes mold .... when the bud feels right to me I jar up a sample and close a hygrometer in the jar. In a couple hours it tells me what the rh of the bud is ... this is the figure you do not want to drop below 55% .... the Boveda packs come into play when you're all done burping regularly and want to leave it closed for weeks on end ... we cured for years w/o Boveda packs but they are a nice addition for long term storage.

 

[Chester001]

Not sure if this is posted anywhere on this site ... This was posted by an old friend Thai Buddha Man and is a very popular tutorial on curing ...

*********************

You've had a good grow, and it's time for harvest.
You've flushed like you're supposed too (depending on your system anywhere from 4-12 days maybe longer). Trim the way you prefer. I trim all the fan leaves. I like to leave the sweet leaf on (sweet leaves are the small leaves that look like they have been sprinkled with sugar) as I don't want to handle the buds too much or too long plus the sweetleaf will curl as it dries & protect those precious trichromes. Chop those ladies down. I chop the whole plant at it's base.

I recommend getting assistance in trimming.

I hang/line dry until the stem is dry but still flexs/bends a bit. Now there's lots of debate as far as how long to dry for. For the most part, this rule of thumb seems to work: for every 10% in Relative Humidity (RH%) in your drying area add 1 day then add 1 more day to that total. For example, my drying area's RH% is usually about 30% so according to the "formula", dry for 3 full days (1 day for each 10%) plus 1 additional day for a total of 4 full days. Now if your RH% fluctuates high, you might need to add an additional day. This formula has worked well for me just about everywhere in the world except in those places where it's very humid (talking like 90%+ RH), such as South Pacific islands and the Northwestern United States (Seattle, etc...). Preferably you have a drying closet or box where you can regulate the humidity. The preferred RH% for drying is around 50% so according to the formula, 6 days of drying.

Now some prefer to snip off one branch at a time, trim & hang-dry each branch individually. I have to track actual number of plants so it's easier to keep the whole plant together as one for me.

Drop those lovely buds into a jar.
My preference is half-gallon Ball mason canning jars, easily found at Ace Hardware (can be ordered online with free shipping to your local Ace in the States - they run out a lot but be patient & try again in a week or two).



Fill each jar up evenly but don't over-stuff. If you hold the jar horizontal, there should be a gap roughly an inch or so - enough room to slide the hygrometer in.

What's a hygrometer?
It's used to measure relative humidity percentage. There are analog & digital ones. I prefer & recommend digital. The two I like are: the Chaney Indoor Thermometer w/Humidity and the Caliber 3 Hygrometer. Both fairly inexpensive (should be less than $20 each), both are pretty accurate.

So now you just slide the hygrometer in (make sure it's facing out so you can view it, dumbass LOL ). Tighten that lid down and put it where you normally cure your stuff. I recommend placing in a cool dark place.

NOTE: Not every jar needs a hygrometer in it. I use just one per harvest per strain.

After a couple of hours has passed (takes a bit to get an accurate reading, give it at least 2-4 hrs). Take a look at the RH% reading.

If more than +70% - buds need to dry longer out of the jar. For me, for about every 5% over 70, equals about 10-12 hours outside of jar - but that's different depending on time of year, outside weather, etc... Typically about 12-36 hours more drying time is needed.

65-70% - getting really close to that sweet spot for curing. Keep it in the jars but burp them for a couple of hours, roughly 2-4 hours (meaning - take the lid off). Burp 'em, then close the lid, wait 4-6 hours, check RH%, burp again if needed, repeat as needed until you reach the next level. The closer you get to the next level the longer it takes to get an accurate reading, maybe even 12-24 hours. Basically, after every burp I add about 4-6 hours to the wait time between burps until I check again. Getting it down to the next level might take a week or more, and that's ok. The slower the better. Luckily here in Colorado we have low humidity. If in a higher humidity area, say along the coasts, I would want to speed it up just a bit to get to the next level as mold may become a factor

60-65% - this is the Curing stage range. Once we hit this range, keep things sealed unless we want to prepare it for long-term storage, then we'll need to SLOWLY lower down to the next stage. But if you just want to cure it, leave here in this range for a week and longer to cure. Buds should be slightly sticky. Stems should snap. The RH% may fluctuate a bit as moisture releases from the bud but it will dissipate/be reabsorbed. If this is for retail, I wait about 10-14 days into cure then bring samples to my dispensary buyers. Most dispensaries tend to like it closer to the 65% as it'll cure while it's on the shelf, plus it'll be stickier, look more appealing & that's what most people are looking for - bag appeal. Closer to 60% is better for smoking/vaping. If it's for myself or my patients, I let it cure for at least 2 weeks to a month or more. I do take a bit out to try about once a week. Some of my patients like it a little moister than others as it takes a little longer to smoke. Others don't really care too much one way or the other but no one likes it if too moist or too dry/brittle. Now I also have been implementing those Boveda 65% packets to help keep things where I like it. After about a week of 65% or lower, I slip one of those Boveda 65% packets into the jar, at this point if you want to take the hygrometer out you can. I still burp about once a week or so for about an hour when using those packets, basically just to air out the released chlorophyll gases. I recommend dispensaries use these packets at night in their jars to keep things looking nice & sticky-icky for the next day.

For long term storage - once in this range (60-65), check weekly. If on the higher end, closer to 65, I still burp about every week just for an hour or so. As it slowly drops to 60%, I wait longer & longer between these short burps - we're talking days/weeks here folks not hours between these burps. Once it falls below 60, you have reached the next level. Takes me about 4-6 sometimes 8 weeks.

55-60% - Long term storage stage. I still leave the hygrometer in for about a couple of days/week, just to make sure it's leveled off (unless I have placed a Boveda 65% packet in, then I take the hygrometer out). Once it has leveled off, then I take the hygrometer out & seal the jar. I don't usually storage too much for long term usually just 1 jar per strain per harvest, unless it's just some incredible stuff and I want to be able to share it with long distance friends & family when they visit throughout the year.

If for some reason it reads under 55% - either you left it hanging to dry for too long with a fan blowing on it directly or too close to a heat source/vent or you might need to have a humidifier on a timer in the area you dry in (make sure it's not blowing the moisture directly on plants) OR maybe you just need to wait a little longer for your next reading. Wait 12-24 hours, and check again if still under 55 well you just learn a valuable lesson on how not to dry so quickly next time. It'll be shitty to smoke, guess you could grind it or tumble the heck out of it or maybe make tincture/butter/oil, vaping will probably be ok but smoking it is going to suck. But hey it takes experience, just learn from it....dumbass! LOL! You can re-hydrate a bit with either a Boveda pack (my recommendation) or with things like a bit of orange peel tossed into the jar. The smoke may mellow out & be smoke-able but it won't cure like it's supposed too. If you have never had properly cured cannabis - you're missing out!

Kinda hard to screw up as long as you don't over-dry to begin with. Have patience young jedi...

Enjoy that lovely properly cured dank!

I should note that some strains like a longer cure.
For example, I harvested some Sweet Tooth a few months back. Dried, Cured for several weeks. Tried it out. Didn't like it, and neither did my patients. Wasn't bad just a bit of a let down. I took what I had, tossed in a Boveda 65% pack, and sealed it. I placed it in the back of my long-term storage bin and basically forgot about it. I was putting some new jars in the bin the other day & noticed the Sweet Tooth jar. It had been in there now getting close to 6 months. I took a bit out to try. First of all, as soon as I opened the jar, a beautiful aroma filled my nostrils. Things were different now! I rolled a spliff and tried it out. Wow it went from being a disappointment to being incredible tasting!