Drying marijuana is a critical post-harvest element. Growing and harvesting weed takes a lot of time and effort but drying and curing cannabis is an even more crucial step for ensuring the good quality of your buds.
Once you smell the fragrance of a weed flower, you’ll know that it is time to harvest your marijuana buds. Curating cannabis flowers has a significant impact on your weed.As a cannabis cultivator, you must be familiar with the process of drying weed. But if you want to smoke your newly grown stash of weed, you must cure it to increase the potency. Cannabis curing also affects the general quality of your weed crop.
You must consider some critical factors such as temperature, airflow, humidity, and lighting, as even slight deviations from optimal conditions are detrimental to your cannabis quality.
Drying and Curing Marijuana
Drying and curing are critical to plant quality. These two processes are necessary to preserve the weed. Curing weed accentuates the flavor as it retains the cannabinoids and terpenes.
Also, curing buds for the best taste diminishes chlorophyll, making the vegetable flavor very mild.
The initial drying process of the weed flowers is when cultivators dry buds in the open air. A stash of freshly harvested cannabis flowers loses up to 75% of its weight due to moisture loss. Moreover, harvesters trim the buds by removing leaves, branches, stems, and sticks.
During dry trimming, marijuana cultivators dry the buds and then trim them, while in wet trimming, they trim the buds and let them dry. After drying the buds, harvesters store them in airtight jars to cure them.
This minimizes the loss of moisture and preserves the aroma and flavor of the buds. There are many ways to dry buds, so if you’re wondering how to dry marijuana, you can read our comprehensive guide to learn the best methods for dry trimming and wet trimming of weed.
How to Dry Weed?
Before you learn how to dry weed, you must ensure that you have the necessary equipment to run the process smoothly. Drying cannabis requires the following.
- A drying rack
- A hygrometer
- Humidipacks
- Mason jars
This equipment makes it easier to measure humidity levels and ensure that your weed doesn’t get too dry. You can begin drying cannabis after harvesting your crop as the buds are sticky and wet. You can decide whether you want to use dry trimming or wet trimming methods.
Best Way to Dry Marijuana
Start with the drying process right after harvesting your crop. Every strain requires a different drying approach, but you must make the crop stable within 24 hours by removing moisture. After 24 hours, you can let the crop dry slowly before you cure cannabis buds.
You can use the two types of drying processes. For example, you can hang them from a hanger if you trim plants after drying them. This means that you’re employing the dry-trimming method.
Before you trim them, you can snap a branch or try to bend it. If it bends, then you need to let it dry more. But if the branch snaps, it is ready for you to trim and cure. This is called dry trimming.
If you trim the buds before drying them, you’ll have to use a rack. Next, squeeze the buds to check humidity. If they’re moist or wet, you need to let them properly dry before starting the curing process.
What Is the Best Way to Dry Weed?
The best way to dry weed is to cut out the branches from the plant and hang them with a string. Hang drying the whole plant helps evaporate maximum moisture. You can also dry your crops on a food-grade drying rack or use industrial drying chambers to dry large weed buds stashes.
Cutting and Trimming Buds
When you harvest your cannabis crop, you can cut 12-inch branches from the marijuana plants. Then, you can use trimming scissors or a trimming machine to remove unwanted twigs and leaves. Besides this, cultivators also use drying racks instead of hanging lines.
Using drying racks is more convenient because you won’t require a hanging line. You can also directly trim the leaves and manicure the buds. Most growers cut the leaves first. This saves you time as you won’t manually trim them later.
Move the Buds Into the Dark
After manicuring the buds, you should keep them in the darkroom. The trimmed buds do not need any grow lights or sunlight. In addition, the darkroom should meet optimal humidity and temperature conditions.
You can use a dehumidifier to keep humidity levels low. Adjust the temperature between 60° F and 70° F. Using an air conditioner for meeting the optimal temperature range is suitable.
Besides this, you can use fans for air circulation for your initial drying process.
Check Dryness
The drying process typically takes about 10 to 15 days. You must occasionally check the dryness levels. Try bending a branch; if it snaps, then your buds are ready for you to cure.
How to Cure Marijuana?
When you complete the drying process, you need to cure weed buds. Before you begin curing marijuana buds, you need to make sure that the buds are completely dry.
Once you cut branches from the marijuana plants and trim them, you need to use drying methods that suit your cannabis strain.
After the drying process, most growers store dry buds in airtight containers such as glass mason jars. However, too much moisture can ruin the quality of your weed. You must cure cannabis by using the best methods.
You must meet optimal conditions for humidity and temperature to successfully preserve aroma and flavor. Let us learn how to cure dried buds.
Firstly, place the buds in wide-mouth mason jars. You can also use ceramic, wood, or metal vessels. Never use plastic bags for the curing process as they aren’t impervious to oxygen.
You must seal the containers and ensure that you do not crush the cannabis flower. Next, store the containers in a cool and dry place. If your cured cannabis ends up being too dry, you can add a humidity pack to rehydrate them.
Sometimes the buds are too wet, and you can leave the lid of the containers open for a day before you reseal them. Make sure to check humidity levels. Also, shake the jar if the buds stick together. If your buds are sticky, you didn’t dry them properly.
Always use an airtight container or glass jar as it prevents the growth of mold. You must avoid using plastic bags, and plastic containers if you don’t want your weed to taste like plastic.
Buds Humidity | Steps | |
WET >70% HR | => | Place buds outside of the jar for 2 hours |
MOIST 65-70% RH | => | Buds in the jar with the lid open for 2-4 hours |
DRY 60-65% HR | => | WELL DONE!!! ENJOY!!! |
BRITTLE < 55%HR | => | Too dry, re-hydrate with humidipack |
Proper Humidity for Curing Cannabis
The curing process takes about two to four weeks as the humidity level for curing cannabis must be around 55% to 65% inside the curing containers. You can buy a digital hygrometer that measures moisture.
You must open the jars a couple of times during the curing process to allow moisture to escape. It will also help provide more oxygen.
If you store weed buds that have not dried properly, you’ll smell ammonia when you open the jars. This foul ammonia smell is pungent, and it indicates the growth of anaerobic bacteria.
If you have a hygrometer, you should use it at regular intervals to ensure that humidity levels are ideal. If the humidity levels are outside the range, you can do the following.
Over 70%: Place your cannabis buds outside the jar for 12 to 24 hours.
Over 65% to 70%: Take off the lid of the container for about 2 to 4 hours but keep the weed buds inside it.
55% or less: Rehydrate buds by using humidity packs for a few hours.
For the curing process, you can check the jars every two days. If your marijuana buds are too dry, you can keep them in wide-mouth mason jars to trap more moisture. Using organic matter such as orange peel also helps dehydrate the buds, increasing the risk of mold growth.
Curing Buds for the Best Taste
A proper curing method is critical in curing dried buds for the best taste. Many growers employ a slow curing process to ensure high-quality weed that does not produce harsh smoke. Here are some benefits of drying and curing cannabis buds properly.
Curing Process Affects the Flavor and Quality of Smoke
Appropriate curing methods can help optimize the flavor and quality of smoke as chlorophyll decomposition removes the vegetable flavor of weed buds. In addition, the terpene content makes your dried buds pleasant to smoke.
Using the best drying and curing process can alleviate the flavor and aroma. Many growers use a slow curing process for dried cannabis as it helps maintain terpene content and creates ideal conditions for removing toxins.
Curing Cannabis Increases Potency
If you want to produce high-quality weed from your cannabis flower, you need to employ slow drying and curing methods for increased potency. High-quality marijuana has an increased THC concentration.
The biosynthesis of the cannabis plant produces tetrahydrocannabinol along with other cannabinoids. Therefore, if you do not follow the appropriate curing process for cannabis plants, your product will have reduced THC content.
Curing Bud in Tupperware Preserves Your Cannabis
Curing and storing cannabis is essential to preserve your product. You can store cannabis in airtight containers for up to two years after using a curing method.
Storing cannabis in airtight Tupperware helps complete the drying process. Growers prefer wide-mouth mason jars as they are better than plastic or tin. They also prevent mold from growing, and your dried cannabis does not lose THC content. Thus, for long-term storage, glass jars are the most suitable.
4 Herb Dryer Boxes
Using a bud dryer is one of the fastest and most convenient methods for drying cannabis buds. Whether you wish to preserve cannabis flowers for personal use or for commercial purposes, proper drying will ensure that they last long and do not lose their THC content.
A herb dryer can help you achieve the right level of herbal sophistication for your cannabis crop. Moreover, these boxes do not occupy a lot of space and are also highly efficient. If you’re looking for the best weed drying box, we have extensive reviews of them.
SuperRoom Dryer Tent Kit
SuperRoom 4 x 4 cannabis drying tent is an all-in-one marijuana drying box that is a perfect addition to your cannabis drying room. It occupies minimum space and professionally dries cannabis buds for you.
With an easy-to-use system, this cannabis drying box makes it convenient for cannabis growers to dry their products. You don’t have to worry about the drying and curing process because of this drying box.
This cannabis drying tent has additional accessories such as hangers, a carbon scrubber, and a filter. In addition, it features a futuristic internal fan with a speedster controller.
Pros
- Compact
- Efficient herb drying system
- Comes with additional accessories
Con
- Not suitable for larger batches
Magic Herb Dryer
The magic herb dryer is a top-quality marijuana drying box that helps dry your cannabis buds. You can simply leave them in the Magic Herb Dryer to dry them when you harvest your crop.
This herb drying box has a controlled environment that provides your cannabis with optimal conditions. It comes with various features and is compact, so you can easily place it anywhere.
You can dry your crops within ten days by using this magic herb dryer. Then, all you have to do is hang the plants once you harvest them. This weed drying machine features an odor elimination system and fans that keep the insects out. Moreover, it is spacious, so it can hold multiple herbs.
Due to the powerful fans, your marijuana buds will dry within 7 to 10 days. The plant-hanging racks are spinnable. Also, this weed drying machine has a lifetime warranty.
Pros
- Odor elimination system
- Fans to keep insects out
- Spacious
- Short herb drying time
Con
- Users complain that it does not sit properly on the ground.
Harvest Right Freeze Dryer
The Harvest Right Freeze Dryer lets you freeze-dry your cannabis buds. Water spoils the weed, and drying is detrimental to cannabis buds’ quality. If you want to prevent the growth of mold and mildew, you must freeze and dry them.
This dryer is ideal as it uses freeze-drying technology instead of fans and heat. It gets rid of moisture within 24 hours.
Moreover, it preserves enzymes and terpenes present in your cannabis plants. Thus it helps increase the potency of the product. It doesn’t crush your buds, so the appearance remains fine.
This weed drying machine makes use of vacuum pressure and temperature to dry herbs. If you want a trouble-free experience in drying your cannabis buds, then this easy-to-maintain cannabis dryer is suitable for you.
The Harvest Right Freeze Dryer has five stainless steel trays and a detailed owner’s manual. The five-tier shelves provide sufficient space for you to dry a large batch of marijuana buds. Thus it is perfect for commercial-grade harvesters.
Pros
- Preserves bud potency as it doesn’t use heat
- Easy to maintain
- Upgradeable pump
Con
- Noisy pump
Deluxe Supherb Plant Matter Herb Dryer
The SuperCloset Deluxe Supherb Plant Matter Herb Dryer has a vertical design that lets you dry and cure buds. This drying box is compact, allowing you to place it anywhere you find convenient. It is also transportable.
If you want to dry a large batch of buds, it will take about five to eight days to completely dry them in this weed dryer. Moreover, it preserves flavor and aroma.
You can dry up to 24 plants in this but remember to leave enough space for ventilation. It has a maximum weight capacity of 100 pounds. Besides this, it comes with a hygrometer and a thermometer that you can use to regulate the temperature and moisture, preventing the growth of mold and mildew.
This 16 gauge steel lockable cannabis drying box has internal fans, screens, hangers, and an activated carbon filter for odor control.
Providing your cannabis plant with a controlled environment is crucial. Therefore, using this cannabis dryer will help you prepare a batch of top-quality weed.
Pros
- Provides herbs in a controlled environment
- Can dry up to 24 cannabis plants
- Saves energy
Con
- Takes up considerable space
How to Set Up a Cannabis Drying Room?
Investing in a cannabis drying box is vital if you wish to produce commercial-grade weed. Having the right drying and cutting equipment makes it convenient for weed cultivators to store weeds efficiently.
Learning about drying and curing cannabis isn’t challenging, but how do you set up a cannabis drying room?
You must keep the cannabis in a dark and dry room with a temperature of about 60-70 degrees F. Set up your drying room with the best cannabis drying box, a hydrometer, a digital thermometer, and hanging lines. Add some air fans for better ventilation.
Also, if you think that the room is too humid, you can get a dehumidifier. This will help you meet optimum conditions for drying and curing weed.
Make sure to get plenty of glass mason jars to store buds. Cured cannabis must be appropriately stored if you wish to have increased potency and aroma. Thus, setting up a drying room with appropriate equipment will help you produce commercial-grade weed.
Wrapping Up with Drying Marijuana
Cannabis enthusiasts have found the best methods to dry and cure cannabis. Unfortunately, when cannabis was illegal in most parts of the world, there was poor focus on these essential processes.
But with time, people are producing commercial-grade marijuana by employing new and more efficient methods to ensure high-quality products.
Spending more time and money on curing cannabis has become the new norm. But you don’t need to spend much on heavy weed growing supplies if you can harvest your crop.
Remember that drying and curing cannabis buds is simple if you begin the processes right after harvesting your crop, as it helps produce high-quality weed that doesn’t produce harsh smoke.
