The Weed Drying Bible. The Correct Way To Curing and Drying Weed

Drying weed is easy. Your cannabis plants have been growing patiently under the full spectrum glow of your LED grow lights and bursting your grow tent at its seems.

Guess what…?

It is time to dry your weed!

You still have some work to do before your cannabis is ready for consumption. The time for curing your weed is now.

Drying weed is all about quality and preserving the hard work that you started. Speaking of preserving, we will walk you through the weed drying process and how to control the optimal environment for curing from humidity to temperature.

Reasons For Drying Your Weed Harvest:

• Curing/Drying weed increases plant potency
• Improves the flavor of your crop
• Removes “harshness” when smoked
• Curtails the spread of mold and bacteria
• Lessens the “hay” smell and increases the quality of the scent of the bud
• Eliminates bitter flavor in tinctures and edibles
• Removes the risk of mold in cannabis buds

Whatever the case may be, drying weed is one of the most important steps in the cannabis cultivation process. If you have ever smoked a freshly trimmed bud before the drying steps, then you know what I am talking about. How to dry and cure cannabis is a fairly straightforward curing process, but there are many ways to cure cannabis. Below are some techniques for proper drying and curing cannabis plants.

Always cure your marijuana buds or else risk spoiling your entire cannabis crop. Some methods for the curing process can get tricky but with the right techniques and equipment, your buds can easily be properly cured and dried making your buds perfect for smoking.

Traditional Marijuana Drying Techniques

Slow controlled drying here is the key. Don’t add heat to the mix. This will surely make your weed inedible by sheer virtue of flavor. The same goes for smoking it.

The curing process begins the second you trim the buds away from the plant.

Weed Drying Supplies. What you will need to be successful.

• An area to dry bud or a rack made for drying (If you have a huge harvest)
• String, Hangers (I prefer Cedar for the smell)
• Clips such as bobby pins for suspending marijuana plants upside down
• Hygrometer to check humidity
• Humidipaks for weed storage.
• Wide mouth Mason Jars with large rims for easy access
• Gloves to reduce cannabis resin “stickiness”
• Humidity Control such as a dehumidifier or humidifier depending on where you live
• Temperature Control such as AC or Space Heater again depending on where you live
• A dry room or dry tent for curing and drying with low humidity

Now that you have all your supplies, it is time to dry your weed the right way!

Drying Marijuana

1. Time to Cut Down Your Plant

There are quite a few theories on the best way to prep for curing in the “trimming” stage. Some growers will cut from the base and flip the entire plant upside down. Others trim off just the buds and then there are the cutters that trim buds as they go and remove branches.

I am a fan of the latter. I have tried most methods and this seems to give it more of an even cure since I am a small batch farmer and reduces the chances of mold.

2. Trim excessive loose leaves.

These fanned out leaves need to be removed for proper curing. It is really a matter of preference on how much you trim and remove, but the goal here is to get it looking (and tasting) like those “High Times Centerfold Pictures“. Feel free to save your trim for Cannabutter or edibles.

3. Slow Drying Your Weed

The most important part here is to take your time! I can’t stress that you pay close attention to this.

The best temperature for drying buds is 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21C) and 50 percent Humidity. Hang your stems upside down carefully if you live in a low humidity area otherwise, I prefer drying racks with “stemless” buds dispersed evenly. T

his second method drys the bud more quickly due to the moisture-rich stems being removed. Remember, in either case, the more trimming you do, the faster the dry time. For bonus points purchase a marijuana drying rack for even better control over drying marijuana.

They are cheap and give you the ability to monitor the drying bud process better than hanging them up with items around the grow tent.

4. Check Dryness

After about 2 days to a week, you want to check for the optimum dryness of the buds. If your weed has dried at around 3 days you have dried them at a pace that is to quick. This is how you learn to dry weed. Trial and error and using some smart weed drying guides like this one.

You will know when the marijuana buds are ready for the final step when the petite buds break away from the stem without residual string-pulling away from the stem. If there is a bit of this “pull”, your bud needs more time. These little buds may seem dry when ready but keep in mind the “meat” of the fat sticky buds will be perfect. Time to place buds in those mason jars.

5. “Jarring” your bud.

Your end purpose is to keep your dried weed in an atmosphere that is controlled as much as possible. When drying weed, you want to equalize the humidity to around sixty to seventy percent when the buds are in the mason jar. The perfect environment to treat your cannabis buds to.

If you’ve taken down your buds if the smallest stems snap, but the ones that are bigger bend, then odds are the buds will produce the humidity when they’re from the jars.Best Curing

Atmosphere In Mason Jars:

– Room Temp – Roughly 70 degrees (21°C)

– 60-70% in Air Humidity Levels.

Glass quart-sized jars have shown to me that they are a perfect fit for drying out cannabis after a big harvest. Bigger jars are more likely to encourage mold. Before placing your drying cannabis into a wide mouth mason jar, be sure to dry your cannabis prior by using a good drying rack so the buds don’t stick together.

You can also use a hanger and some bobby pins, but a drying rack for weed is much more efficient and manageable and they are inexpensive.

There are many different drying racks for weed on the market. One of our favorites is the HYDGOOHO Herb Drying Rack. It has 8 layers with 2-foot large green zippers for each layer. This allows for easy access to rotate your buds during the first drying stage before you place them into your mason jars.

Once the initial cannabis drying is complete, it is time to cure buds in a mason jar or a dozen mason jars for larger crops.

Curing Cannabis In Mason Jars

Layer with buds about 3 quarters full of weed, so there’s still a space towards the top. If you move the jars around, the bud can move with it and release any build-up of moisture. The bud likes to stick and sticking means they’re still moist for smoking. Remove the lids in this case and let them air out more.

Mold is bad and the buds need the ability to be shaken lightly around in order to eliminate moisture causing mold issues. Should You Ever smell a bit of a tangy muster like gas it means the bud has too much humidity and mold causing bacteria is in the beginning stages of ruining your crop grow.

Upon this happening be sure to take out of jars and let air dry until stickiness is removed and they are able to go back into the jar! Remember, have the weed dry slow and once dry to the touch, place back into the jars.

Best Way To Cure Weed

Weekly Jar Opening. In the beginning, you want to, in the weeks starting off, to take the lids of the quart mason jars to not only inspect but to “air out” the buds inside. The first week I recommend opening the jars once a day to let out excess moisture and eliminate bacterial growth.

Plus fresh air is important to the curing stages. When you open these jars, this is the best time to use your humidity measuring tools for weed drying we spoke of earlier. As the buds sweat out excess moisture they will begin to dry at different rates. Remeber keep buds in the 60 – 70 percent range.

We highly recommend buying some Humidipaks to add into your mason jars and to store your weed. It will keep the buds at a perfect humidity which means that your buds will stay fresh and not dry out. They come in a variety of humidity choices, but for curing and drying weed you should purchase the Boveda Humidpaks at 62%. Boveda lasts longer than other brands we have tried and does the job perfectly.

I keep my Boveda packs in my jars even after the curing is done. Keeps the buds fresh and my cannabis tasting great. Boveda packs also do a good job of re-hydrating marijuana that has dried out previously. Fresh smoke every time!

6. Testing your buds. (My favorite part) After a few weeks, you can begin to test your bud. This is a great way for beginner farmers to understand the curing process and plus you can get fairly high. Take notes and understand before you get there though.

7. Storage for your harvest. Once humidity levels are perfected over time, you can simply leave them in the jars and use them when ready. All bud does degenerate over time so enjoy it much like any crop, before it spoils and becomes harsh and nasty.

How To Build A Budget Dry room

The spoils of drying weed are in your capabilities. The drying process of weed is a pretty simple and straightforward curing process. Like any job, having the right tools is key to successfully harvesting your cannabis.

FAQs

1. Is drying weed the same as curing?

No, they are not the same. Drying removes moisture from freshly-grown buds, allowing them to be smoked or vaporized. Curing cannabis follows after the plant has been dried and trimmed, then stored in an airtight container (and burped) for a minimum of two weeks.

2. What is a good humidity level for drying weed?

Cannabis should be dried in a bright environment that is between 65 and 75°F (18 and 23°C). Humidity between 40 and 50% should be maintained during the initial few days of the drying process. As the humidity is reduced, the flowers will dry more quickly.

3. How do you dry big buds?

The most recommended procedure to accomplish this is to place the buds within an airtight container for a brief amount of time (between 2 and 24 hours, depending on the quantity) while replacing the container air periodically. The buds will eventually return to their desired uniformity in moisture consistency or dryness.

4. Can you dry weed in grow room?

The key to success when drying out your herb is ensuring that the storage room is at the correct temperature level as well as the appropriate humidity level in between 60 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Place a fan in one end of the room to humidify the air. Don’t point it straight at the pot.

5. Will my weed taste better after curing?

Yes, curing cannabis can enhance its flavor compared to if this is not done. This is because of the sugars and chlorophyll present in the cannabis plant. These compounds do not contribute to the taste of the flower, as opposed to terpenes.