Drying and Curing in Dry Climates

[HOPS5K]

The area I live in is pretty arid, high desert. Temps. can get up to 100 degrees in summer. Humidity is low which speeds up the drying process and can really mess with the harvest.

The latest harvest of Blue Hawaiian that I cut down two weeks ago was dried in 6 days (humidity in the room was at or above 50% the whole time with a small fan faced away from buds). The buds have been curing for about a week now, but the humidity in the jar is down to 45%.

The smell hasn't came back yet and I hope it will. I have had trouble with that in the past.

Not really sure what to do next to help improve the small harvest, any tips on what to do now and the next go around would be very appreciated.

 

[EShred]

6 day dry before jarring sounds fine. Once in the jar, make sure to open it at least once a day for a couple hours, for about a week. This allows your nugs to breathe. If it is already starting to smell like hay, it may be too late.

 

[Jhhnn]

It's often very dry here in Denver, too, particularly in the winter. I tried Simon's Caliber 3 cure with large 62% boveda packs in the jar to hold humidity up, and it worked great. I think that the biggest issue is to jar it before the moisture content gets too low. When it first went in the jar in a cool dark place, the humidity was 74 % the next day, so I pulled it back out onto a cookie sheet for several hours, tried it again. A couple of rounds of that brought the humidity to 65%, where I left it. As material has been taken out over 2 months, the overnight humidity has settled to 62%, and stayed there.

Simon offers that if it gets too dry, the curing process ceases & can't be restored. I believe him.

 

[highsteppa]

It's often arid where I live and have had issues with drying too fast. I moved intoa small grow tent w/a humidifier set around 65. This is the only way I've been able to prolong they drying process and get them into jars at too low a humidity.

 

[HOPS5K]

hey Jhhnn, what are boveda packs and where do I get them?

I agree with jarring them before the moisture goes too low as well.

this is the one part of growing that has got me every time. Even though this last bit of blue hawaiian I shared with family was very well received.

So, when drying, if the humidity is in the 50 to 60 range, that's good, right? for a slower dry..but when curing, should the humidity be the same as well?

 

[Jhhnn]

hey Jhhnn, what are boveda packs and where do I get them?

I agree with jarring them before the moisture goes too low as well.

this is the one part of growing that has got me every time. Even though this last bit of blue hawaiian I shared with family was very well received.

So, when drying, if the humidity is in the 50 to 60 range, that's good, right? for a slower dry..but when curing, should the humidity be the same as well?

Boveda packs are available through Amazon & others, I'm sure, in various humidity ratings. You want the large 62% units. They're a water based gel inside a tough semi-permeable membrane wrapper. Just toss a couple in the jar with the buds. Amazon has the Caliber humidity meters, as well.

Read simon's thread, "A perfect cure every time". I don't think that the humidity during drying is terribly important, but it's important to get the buds in jars before the moisture content goes too low. It's easier to catch them at the right point in a higher humidity/ cooler environment- you have more time, it takes longer to get it where you want it. It takes some patience once the buds are in jars. I wait overnight before doing anything, to make sure that everything is equalized in the jar. If they're too wet, take 'em out to dry for awhile, put 'em back, check again the next day. Ease the moisture content down into the cure zone, then stash the jar in a cool dark place for at least a couple of weeks. The Boveda packs will hold the humidity where you want it even if the jar seal is less than perfect. I store used packs in a tightly sealed jar, where they seem to keep well.

I'm new at this, so I can't speak to long term results, but a couple of months' cure provides excellent smoke- smooth & tasty.

 

[HOPS5K]

hey all....it's been a few months since I've checked back in...the Blue Hawiian buds dried and cured very nice thanks to Simon's thread ..I gave most of it to family and they loved it..said it smelled great, smoked smooth and tasted really good. A big thanks to you guys who helped me out on this one and of course Simon.

Now, I'm going to be harvesting again this fall....some outdoor and some indoor, hopefully around the same time.. I'm going to pick up those Boveda silica packets for humidity once in the jars (thanks Jhhnn).

It just really is paying attention to the details and being prepared that leads to success.

Again, thanks all of you for the help.

 

[Donald Mallard]

do you leave much stalk on the harvested buds??

i found that helps when its hot and dry ,
hang up the whole plant ,
the stems will retain moisture for a while ,
the buds will re absorb each night ,
slows down the drying enough to get a good product ..

 

[Team Microbe]

It's often very dry here in Denver, too, particularly in the winter. I tried Simon's Caliber 3 cure with large 62% boveda packs in the jar to hold humidity up, and it worked great. I think that the biggest issue is to jar it before the moisture content gets too low. When it first went in the jar in a cool dark place, the humidity was 74 % the next day, so I pulled it back out onto a cookie sheet for several hours, tried it again. A couple of rounds of that brought the humidity to 65%, where I left it. As material has been taken out over 2 months, the overnight humidity has settled to 62%, and stayed there.

Simon offers that if it gets too dry, the curing process ceases & can't be restored. I believe him.

I just ordered these packs! So glad I saw this thread. How many days did you dry before popping them into jars at 74%? I feel like that's before the stems get dry enough to snap... I'm on day 3 right now of drying.

and who is this Simon you speak of? it sounds like he has a how-to on curing..

 

[Jhhnn]

I just ordered these packs! So glad I saw this thread. How many days did you dry before popping them into jars at 74%? I feel like that's before the stems get dry enough to snap... I'm on day 3 right now of drying.

and who is this Simon you speak of? it sounds like he has a how-to on curing..

See the thread "A perfect cure every time". The process requires some attention but is fairly forgiving if you don't over dry. Otoh, an environment that's too humid encourages mold. The stuff I jarred at 74% had to come back out, dry some more, then try again until I got it into the cure zone around 62%. Once that stabilizes, it's time for a boveda pack & some patience. Dunno that it's the best way, it's just a good way that works for me. So far, it seems that the cure is complete in about 2 months, maybe less. The stuff will continue to evolve after that, if at a very slow rate. A sample cured for 7 months has lost some aroma, but it brightens right up when crushed. Taste is only maybe a hair smoother, more complex & the potency seems the same. Bud might be degraded by a very long cure, dunno, but that's not much of an issue for most tokers.

 

[TheCleanGame]

---snip---

 

[nachoconqueso]

I can only hang dry a max of 3 days depending on leaf amount and bud density. To be safe I hang dry for 2 days, then do a quick break down into smaller section, remove the fan leaves and place all of this into big brown paper bags. I'll keep about a pound together per bag. As far as dry climate goes, any way you can slow down the drying process it's almost always a good thing. Not so true in humid environments.