A perfect cure every time

[redbudduckfoot]

65% is way, way too high, in my experience. 59-61% works real well for me.

RBDF

 

[St3ve]

You don't want to KEEP them at 65%, thats just where you don't have to stress about burping them and mold.

The goal is to get them to 65%, and then sloooowly get them to 58-60%. It burns better and is more smooth as it lowers, but the slowness to get there dictates HOW smooth and tasty it will be once you're there.

 

[redbudduckfoot]

exactly. i dry them in 60% humidity until stem almost snaps, take the buds off the stems, put the buds in a shoebox(s), another two days @ 60%, then i bring the shoeboxes into another room, which is about 50% humidity. as soon as the humidity breaks 59% inside the box i put the buds in jars for proper cure.

the cardboard box is great for equalizing the RH% before putting them in their final cure container.

RBDF

 

[Finagleabud]

Ah ok thanks for clearing that up for me guys. Now I'm excited to see how things are smelling when it gets down below 60% Can't wait.

There is still one thing I'm not sure I understand about this curing method: You're supposed to dry the buds until they feel brittle on the outside, because during the curing process the moisture in the stems re-hydrates the crispy outside layer as it slowly migrates out. The thing is, when the outside of the bud feels dry, it's no doubt in a state where if the entire bud were that dry, the product would be considered way too far gone to cure. So, how does the outside layer of the bud ever end up curing if you can't re-hydrate overly dry bud to cure it?

Obviously curing works, and this method has worked very well for a lot of people, I'm just kind of curious about that one detail.

 

[igrowone]

Ah ok thanks for clearing that up for me guys. Now I'm excited to see how things are smelling when it gets down below 60% Can't wait.

There is still one thing I'm not sure I understand about this curing method: You're supposed to dry the buds until they feel brittle on the outside, because during the curing process the moisture in the stems re-hydrates the crispy outside layer as it slowly migrates out. The thing is, when the outside of the bud feels dry, it's no doubt in a state where if the entire bud were that dry, the product would be considered way too far gone to cure. So, how does the outside layer of the bud ever end up curing if you can't re-hydrate overly dry bud to cure it?

Obviously curing works, and this method has worked very well for a lot of people, I'm just kind of curious about that one detail.

you may have a good point here, perhaps the outer bud isn't the best part of the cured bud
i think this goes to the major point, slower drying/curing is better, probably to being just shy of the 'mold' point

 

[Finagleabud]

you may have a good point here, perhaps the outer bud isn't the best part of the cured bud
i think this goes to the major point, slower drying/curing is better, probably to being just shy of the 'mold' point

Well, any nicely cured dispensary meds I've ever gotten have always been consistently nice throughout, the outside is never any different than the rest of the bud. I think maybe if the moisture is naturally travelling from within the stems through the, I guess "vascular" system of the bud, to get back to the outside, it has a different effect than simply re-absorbing moisture from the outside air.

 

[igrowone]

Well, any nicely cured dispensary meds I've ever gotten have always been consistently nice throughout, the outside is never any different than the rest of the bud. I think maybe if the moisture is naturally travelling from within the stems through the, I guess "vascular" system of the bud, to get back to the outside, it has a different effect than simply re-absorbing moisture from the outside air.

i think it may be hard to tell, i mean who has 'skinned' a bud of its outer layer then compared it to the inside?
i don't plan on trying, just that your post made me wonder a little if there is difference in a bud from outside to inside

 

[peazo]

I've been using the Caliber III for a few years now and wouldn't cure my flowers any other way. I never realized how important the curing process was until I got bud mold from high humidity in my jars during my first curing process. If your looking for the Hydrometers, check out these guys from Michigan that have them for the cheapest price around!
The only way to make sure you achieve that perfect cure your looking for is by making sure your buds are in ideal conditions at all times. These hydrometers will definitely help you achieve what your looking for!

 

[Finagleabud]

Wow, so yeah over the last few days I let my jar slowly dip down to 59% humidity, and it's already made a HUGE difference. Finally has that skunky\fruity aroma that I recognize, and no more grass smell!

 

[mattkilla420]

This post I'm quoting is really old, but has anyone else found this to be true? I harvested a VERY strong smelling skunk X haze cross a few weeks ago, and have been following this cure method perfectly, but the smell just seems completely gone.

Within the first 48 hours of drying after harvest the grassy\hay smell set in, but my humidity and temps were both pretty ideal at 55% and 70f. Airflow was indirect the whole time, and after about 7 days of hang drying I snipped the major fans and jarred the buds. Read 70% after 24 hours on my calibur III, so I slowly brought the humidity down via burping, in that same room, over the next ~2 weeks until it was stable at 65%.

So now, my jars have been at 65% for a few weeks, and when I open the jar the bud (which was stinking up the room in flower) just seems to have almost no smell. It still has a lingering grass smell, or not even grass really, it's more that generic bland "green tea" kind of smell. If I actually take a bud and break it apart, THEN it smells nice, and in fact it smells exactly like stuff I've gotten from dispensaries, except only when you break the bud apart; if you just pick one up and smell it directly without breaking any trichs, it smells almost like nothing.

HOWEVER, the reason I quoted that post is because earlier today I accidentally left a little nug out on a table for a few hours, in that same room which is currently sitting at 53% humidity, and when I came back it was quite a bit drier but it actually smelled the way it does when you break it up, WITHOUT having to break it up. I could actually smell it from about a foot away. The buds straight out of the jars smell like basically nothing. How do you get that "broken up" smell to always be present? I know it's "in there" somewhere, but the buds just smell so damn bland until you break into them. Getting it dryer seemed to help but I don't want to risk doing that to my whole harvest if it's not actually the solution.

I just started growing and am curing my first batch right now and I am running into this same exact problem, word for word. I think mine has alot to do with the exceedingly high temperatures the plants were exposed to this HOT summer. It got up in 90s multiple days in the closet. And i read somewhere else it has something to do with taste smell and trichs. But anyways, I will try taking a bud out for couple hours and see if that works. I've noticed the middle of the buds still holding that moisture is the only part that is actually sticky.Im currently at 59% after 2 weeks in jars now. Its lost that Dank Skunky smell it had at the beginning . BTW the sticky moist insides of the buds seemed to be the best buzz!

 

[tenthirty]

Even with practice, this is a bit of art and skill.

What has worked for me is to let the bud dry to the point that it is just between soft and crunchy. It will take a few tries to find this exact time, like I can ;-)

If you get it just right, when you jar, the RH will go to 65 or 70%. (don't pack the jar too tight, leave some air space.

Now I position the hygrometer at the middle of the bud. If the reading is below 70% and above 65%, I consider that as good as I can get.

At this point I just leave the lid off of the jar until it reads about 60% and put the top back on. If everything went well, it will be stable there.

This whole process should take between 8 and 12 days.

I'd say this took about 20 tries to get it right for me, but your mileage may vary.

 

[east_side]

I kinda browsed this thread over the last few weeks, im doing my first run now. I get the jar RH seems like i dont get when to trim tho

But lets see if i get the big picture

1 - Hang the buds with stems till branch can snap

2 - trim to desired look

3 - jar and watch RH is under 70, and slowly bring to 55-60

1-2 weeks process?

Hope thats right?

 

[SirTOKESalot]

I don't try and slowly bring my jars to 65 over a week or two....

I stop hanging when stems start snapping, toss in jars and try to get to 60-55% as fast as possible "Via burping and paper bagging for a few hours if necessary" then, keep at that humidity for the duration of the cure. Maybe I am mis understanding you folks, but it sounds like you should try to take the jars to that mid-low 60's as fast as possible. I have been using this for 2 years now, and my shit smelllls dank.

 

[mattkilla420]

Well I took a few of my non smelling buds and sat them outside the jar for 24 he's and sure enough the smell came back. They been curing for 3 weeks now. So what did I do wrong? Or do I just have to air the bud out b4 I smoke or dispense it? I kno this is a method that takes time to perfect. I was told by someone who tried my product that's been in the biz for years that I had great stuff but with a better cure I could double profits. I followed everything to the T my stuff just lacks smell right out the jar. I'm harvesting some snowcap and sour diesel in a few weeks. The plants are way more funky than last grow so I really need to nail this cure..

Sent from my C771 using Tapatalk 2

 

[St3ve]

Well I took a few of my non smelling buds and sat them outside the jar for 24 he's and sure enough the smell came back. They been curing for 3 weeks now. So what did I do wrong? Or do I just have to air the bud out b4 I smoke or dispense it? I kno this is a method that takes time to perfect. I was told by someone who tried my product that's been in the biz for years that I had great stuff but with a better cure I could double profits. I followed everything to the T my stuff just lacks smell right out the jar. I'm harvesting some snowcap and sour diesel in a few weeks. The plants are way more funky than last grow so I really need to nail this cure..

Sent from my C771 using Tapatalk 2

The trick is, to slowly get your bud down to around 56-60% or so when you go to smoke it. With this method, you dry it until it gets to 65%, then you burp it once a week with lower RH air to bring the humidity to the target zone over a long period. How long? Depends.. so I would say just take a bud or two out of the curing jar when you burp once a week and let it sit out like you did. Then see how you like it. Keep testing it this way until you find your sweet spot for the strain. Then you know how long to cure for. If its say.. two months, then just burp the jars accordingly until the last week of the two months, it finally reaches the target RH.

However, just FYI as you get lower it does burn smooth and smell nice but you will also lose some bag appeal without that humid sticky bud.

 

[Dave Coulier]

Well I took a few of my non smelling buds and sat them outside the jar for 24 he's and sure enough the smell came back. They been curing for 3 weeks now. So what did I do wrong? Or do I just have to air the bud out b4 I smoke or dispense it? I kno this is a method that takes time to perfect. I was told by someone who tried my product that's been in the biz for years that I had great stuff but with a better cure I could double profits. I followed everything to the T my stuff just lacks smell right out the jar. I'm harvesting some snowcap and sour diesel in a few weeks. The plants are way more funky than last grow so I really need to nail this cure..

Sent from my C771 using Tapatalk 2

Matt, the trick for me to keep the smell without it ever going away is to have a nice slow dry. 7 days works great at close to 70% RH. Sometimes, they'll not be ready to jar at this point, so I stick them in a brown paper lunch bag, throw in my hygrometer and close it up, and monitor the RH every X hours depending on how moist the buds were to begin with. Im shooting for low to 60's, as I expect it to raise again once in the jars.

Sometimes it doesn't require very long in the bags, other times overnight.

Its when the buds dry out too quickly is when I get the dreaded hay smell, and then we play the waiting game in the jars to get the stink back if it even does.

 

[fearofsailing]

seems i have the same problem as everyone else that has problems. i have been growing for a year now and im yet to get really nice smelling/tasty bud.

i normally dry for about 6 days and then put them into brown bags for a few days. i then put in jars and burp till the rh is around 60%. the weed is dry and the stems snap, but still no taste or real dank smell.

there was this one time that i pre cut some of my bubblegum and it tasted nice, but the rest of the it that i left on the tree just tasted the same as all my other bud. it didnt go crispy or anything, just nice and dry but i have no idea how this happened as it was drying in my normal dry space.

 

[Finagleabud]

So I have my last harvest for a while curing in a couple quart jars, it's some Mosca c99bx1. Very pretty buds but not much smell yet, however I noticed I am now getting kind of a nice baking bread\vanilla-ish odor when I open the jar. I've read elsewhere online that this is a good sign? It's currently at 61% humidity in the jar after an 8 day hang dry in 50% humidity, so I'm not very far along yet.

 

[St3ve]

try to only burp the jar in 65% RH or so to slow the process a little. You're a little dry for 8 days.

 

[Finagleabud]

Well all 8 of the days were air drying in a room, which was probably too long. Probably could have jarred them after five or six, but I'm still above 60% so I'm happy, and honestly so far it's smelling better than any of my previous cure attempts.