# Whack it at the base - WHOLE plant drying



## HighLowGrow (Dec 17, 2012)

I've been contemplating cutting the plant at the base and hanging the whole thing for a few years now. I always did the wet trim, dry, and cure. Sometimes the finished product would smell great and sometimes it smelled like I just mowed the lawn. The grass smell usually would occured when my indoor grows were ready to harvest during the hotest parts of summer. I'm sure the reason was it was drying too fast. I wouldn't call my room the PERFECT environment, but I do what I can.

So a few months ago I stumbled on a thread by Mr. Green Thumb 01. The thread name was something like, "The dry is more important than the cure". I can no longer find it and think it got deleted, but I do remember a couple key points.

1. Cut the plant as low as possible above the soil.
2. Temps should be 65-70.
3. Humidity 50-55%

The plant can be hung right side up or upside down. I chose to hang it upside down so the leaves would protect the buds.

Here goes:

400hps
FFoF soil
Connie Chung main-lined



This is day 1. I cut the plant right above the soil and hung it up. Not one leaf was trimmed off.


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## rocpilefsj (Dec 17, 2012)

I am also thinking of trying this just for the hell of it, got 4 afghan kush coming down in the next couple weeks. It stands to reason that it will prolong the drying process which will aid in getting that long, slow dry that is important for great tasting smoke. Make sure to update us on how it goes.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 17, 2012)

It stinks really good.



These pics were taken last night at lights on. This is 5 days of hanging. I still have not cut a single leaf off the plant. The only thing I did was tape a bamboo stick to a few stems so they wouldn't be so bunched up. 

It does not smell one bit like fresh cut grass. I'll take pics everyday now until it goes into the jars. It is still wet. I'll guess total hang time to be 10-12 days.

View attachment 2445637 <<<<<< What a difference in appearance 5 days make.


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## xmax (Dec 17, 2012)

I will be doing this too, as chopping it up into little pieces right away doesn't work well for me. I think it traps all the chlorophyll by drying too fast through all those cut points. 
By accident, I found that letting the whole plant dry at once, (two weeks) made wonderful tasting smoke. By letting it transpire naturally, the curing process isn't disturbed. I will be hanging the whole thing in the dark, so it stays green (kush/skunk) at 70 days flowering (two more weeks) just snipping the 6 roots that go through the flowerpot bottom into the res were they have filled it. Have just been adding pumps and airstones. Up to 3 now, and she's heavy. -400w CMH


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## kryptoniteglo (Dec 17, 2012)

Subbing this thread! I'm going to do a full-plant hang if I can when drying -- my only problem is my plants are 5" tall AND I topped early, so I have 4 main stems, not one. But I think they'll be ready about a week apart, so the one I start drying first will have shrunk by the time I have to hang the second. 

I've never harvested before, but from everything I'm reading, low and slow is the way to go. I'll have waited since August, so what's an extra couple of weeks?

I have heard that trimming wet is easier, so I might do just a little of that to make the eventual manicure a little easier. But I'm def hanging the whole plant.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 17, 2012)

Here are a couple more close up. 5 days of hanging.



There is some beautiful purple in there. 


I'm doing my best to hold 65-70 degrees and 50% humidity. It's friggin getting cold. The dehumidifier is running and holding at 50%. The actual temps are 60-65 right now. It's hanging in the corner of my flower room with a barrier up to block the direct light. 

Like I said, I'll be throwing some pics up every day until they go into jars.

-HLG


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## Hasbroh (Dec 17, 2012)

Did five like this one.


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## stumpjumper (Dec 17, 2012)

Just did a bunch of whole branches without trimming.. The smell was great but fuck trimming that shit.. The stuff I trim and dry and cure is still great tasting and smelling, not enough of a difference to me to try to trim all those little drid up leaves that are STUCK to the buds...


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## Saitek (Dec 18, 2012)

Just dried through this method, boy you gonna need time for the trim, but you will like the final result. tip: wear latex gloves


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 18, 2012)

stumpjumper said:


> Just did a bunch of whole branches without trimming.. *The smell was great but fuck trimming that shit*.. The stuff I trim and dry and cure is still great tasting and smelling, not enough of a difference to me to try to trim all those little drid up leaves that are STUCK to the buds...



Ya I hear that is one of the cons of whole plant drying with leaves and all intact. I have three plants going at all times and all finishing at different times. Drying and trimming a plant every 3-4 weeks can't be that bad. This is my first go at whole plant hanging. We'll see. 

I've had problems dialing in my trim, dry, cure. My main problems were heat and humidity in the summer and cold and humidity in the winter. Last month I finally bought a dehumidifier which I can dial in to whatever % I want. I also have a small heater/fan blowing into the intake. Doing my best with my room waaaaayyyyy out there in the not so insulated, non powered shop, being fed with a big fat extension cord.


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## Hasbroh (Dec 18, 2012)

I have the opposite problem with drying/curing; too dry. As in 5-15% humidity. My clothing closet was a real pain keeping moist enough but I made a 50"x50"x8' closet with a pvc frame, which worked great. Very easy to regulate. 

After drying four plants in the clothing closet for a couple of weeks, they were small enouh to fit in the pvc drying closet. I had dried my biggest in the pvc closet first, then cleaned and bagged it in one gallon freezer bags. I just left them in the pvc closet on the floor with the tops open to cure while the hanging four cured. worked out great. They are still curing in their. In my case I filled a 31 qt. container with water on the pvc closet floor (I used two in the clothing closet) to maintain humidity (see second pic). I gapped the opening flap accordingly to regulate humidity.

HighLowGrow, I actually printed out, "The dry is more important than the cure". I can re-print it if you want it. 50-55% is too dry, by the way. I actually preferred 60-65% instead of his 55-60% recommendation but that's probably due to my climate.


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## vilify (Dec 18, 2012)

HighLowGrow said:


> Ya I hear that is one of the cons of whole plant drying with leaves and all intact. I have three plants going at all times and all finishing at different times. Drying and trimming a plant every 3-4 weeks can't be that bad. This is my first go at whole plant hanging. We'll see.
> 
> I've had problems dialing in my trim, dry, cure. My main problems were heat and humidity in the summer and cold and humidity in the winter. Last month I finally bought a dehumidifier which I can dial in to whatever % I want. I also have a small heater/fan blowing into the intake. Doing my best with my room waaaaayyyyy out there in the not so insulated, non powered shop, being fed with a big fat extension cord.


i dont believe that to be true. i dont slow down one bit compared to wet trimming. in fact, i think the opposite is true.
maybe not for the first few times, because it was something a bit different, and i didnt want to screw it up, but after getting used to it... its quick.

you do have to be a bit more gentle with the buds, if you are going quick and pull before fully cutting the leaves, you can remove parts of the bud.
but you should really be gentle no matter which method you go with.

this is the best way to do it. best of luck


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## Hasbroh (Dec 18, 2012)

vilify said:


> i dont believe that to be true. i dont slow down one bit compared to wet trimming. in fact, i think the opposite is true.
> maybe not for the first few times, because it was something a bit different, and i didnt want to screw it up, but after getting used to it... its quick.
> 
> you do have to be a bit more gentle with the buds, if you are going quick and pull before fully cutting the leaves, you can remove parts of the bud.
> ...


I thought it was easy, also. The humidity made a difference, too. I found about 60% to be the easiest. But I didn't trim the smallest leaves as my breeder, Mandala, said not too as their leaves were very high in thc. So, that would make a difference.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 18, 2012)

Hasbroh said:


> I have the opposite problem with drying/curing; too dry. As in 5-15% humidity. My clothing closet was a real pain keeping moist enough but I made a 50"x50"x8' closet with a pvc frame, which worked great. Very easy to regulate.
> 
> HighLowGrow, I actually printed out, "The dry is more important than the cure". I can re-print it if you want it. 50-55% is too dry, by the way. I actually preferred 60-65% instead of his 55-60% recommendation but that's probably due to my climate.


Thanks Hasbroh. No need to reprint it. If I remember correctly at harvest:


1. Cut at the base and hang either right side up or upside down
2. Temp 65-70
3. Humidity 50-55%
4. Hang for roughly 10-12 days
5. Trim and jar

You prefer 60-65%. At what temp? And how long did they hang before trimming?


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## Hasbroh (Dec 18, 2012)

HighLowGrow said:


> Thanks Hasbroh. No need to reprint it. If I remember correctly at harvest:
> 
> 
> 1. Cut at the base and hang either right side up or upside down
> ...


Temps were 68-75, so a little warmer. I started trimming after they were hanging about two or three weeks and I took a few weeks to clean, lol. Took my time as I was experimenting with it all. When I do seal the bags they will be around 58-60%. They've been curing for about 6 weeks approx. Sounds silly but I don't want to bag them up and take down the closet. It smells so good in there I like to just sit in there and hang!


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## Hasbroh (Dec 18, 2012)

HighLowGrow said:


> Thanks Hasbroh. No need to reprint it. If I remember correctly at harvest:
> 
> 
> 1. Cut at the base and hang either right side up or upside down
> ...


He said 55-60% and if lower the cure will stop.

"Below 55% RH - the RH is too low for the curing process to take place..."


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 18, 2012)

Ok. Right now I'm running 50%. Better bump that up a bit. Just trying to stay away from mold.


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## Hasbroh (Dec 18, 2012)

At first I kept bumping up to the mid 70s% but all survived. I did do a container experiment for mold but forgot to put the humidistat in at the time it molded, dohh! I smoked it anyway, in the interest of science...


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 18, 2012)

I think I'll bump it up to 55% and see what happens. I'm not going to do a long cure. Hopefully the long slow dry will be enough with maybe a 1 week cure in jars. 

If it turns out perfect great. If not, I'll adjust it for the upcoming plant either up or down. As soon as the current plant comes down, I have another ready to hang.

I end up grinding it down anyway. Da Buddha insists.....


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## stumpjumper (Dec 18, 2012)

vilify said:


> i dont believe that to be true. i dont slow down one bit compared to wet trimming. in fact, i think the opposite is true.
> maybe not for the first few times, because it was something a bit different, and i didnt want to screw it up, but after getting used to it... its quick.
> 
> you do have to be a bit more gentle with the buds, if you are going quick and pull before fully cutting the leaves, you can remove parts of the bud.
> ...


 I don't know what you're trimming, but I just let some really super frosty shit hang with all the leaves and trimming it sucked.. Because all the leaves were glued to the buds from the trichomes..


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## oftheCosmos (Dec 19, 2012)

*This is the only way I dry my plants, period.*


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## urgod (Dec 19, 2012)

lol i hate drying a whole plant. think of what happens when your leaves dry and get stuck to your buds.. more time wasted on manicuring ur nugs


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 19, 2012)

Last night I went into the room and noticed humidity was down to 35%. I needed to water a few plants anyway. So I watered the plants and added a few open containers of water on the floor. When I left the room, humidity climbed to 45%. Snapped a pic before leaving. 





Day 7 of hanging. Connie Chung.

The popcorns are getting a little crispy. Decided to grind some up and have a sit down with Da Buddha. This was a free seed with one of my orders, and didn't know much about it. 4 draws locked me down on the couch for a good while. This is going to be some good stuff.


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## thinkingreen (Dec 19, 2012)

I want to do this for this harvest, but I'm also concerned with manicuring a dried plant. I've always done a wet manicure and it's tedious, I can't even imagine going at it when they're dry. Any suggestions?


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## rocpilefsj (Dec 19, 2012)

thinkingreen said:


> I want to do this for this harvest, but I'm also concerned with manicuring a dried plant. I've always done a wet manicure and it's tedious, I can't even imagine going at it when they're dry. Any suggestions?


That is the only thing that concerns me too...


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 19, 2012)

rocpilefsj said:


> That is the only thing that concerns me too...


I would say, just by reading what I've read here in the last 3 years, that maybe 80-85% wet trim, dry, and cure. The other 15-20% whole plant dry. My %s are probably off just my observation. 

The ones that normally wet trim and then try the whole plant dry, tend to say that it sucks because the brittle leaves stick to the buds.

The ones that whole plant dry, tend to say it's the only way to do it and most of the dry leaves can be picked off by hand or just fall off.

This is my first time drying this way and I will give my honest opinion when done. Happy harvesteseseses........


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## stumpjumper (Dec 19, 2012)

I have slowly been converting to leaving leaves to dry.. I only cut off the fan leaves now. I don't mess with the sugar leaves till they are dry. I've noticed I used to trim off a lof of shit that could've actually stayed on ther bud, those crystal covered little leaves don't taste bad at all.


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## Redoctober (Dec 19, 2012)

HighLowGrow said:


> I would say, just by reading what I've read here in the last 3 years, that maybe 80-85% wet trim, dry, and cure. The other 15-20% whole plant dry. My %s are probably off just my observation.
> 
> The ones that normally wet trim and then try the whole plant dry, tend to say that it sucks because the brittle leaves stick to the buds.
> 
> ...


My first time doing it this way too thanks to this thread. Hung a plant right side up the other day. The few attempts I've made at dry trimming in the past have not been pleasant. If the bud is really sticky, it's a mess. The fact that many people say that dry trimming is easier almost leads me to believe that they are doing a different technique or something that I am missing. Either they are just pulling the leaves off by hand or ....who knows. I don't think Fiskers are the best thing for dry trimming. I'm going to look into some surgical tools and see if there are any promising options there. Constant alcohol dips and switching scissors is a must. Obviously you want to try not to get alcohol on the buds because it will dissolve the THC.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 19, 2012)

stumpjumper said:


> I have slowly been converting to leaving leaves to dry.. I only cut off the fan leaves now. I don't mess with the sugar leaves till they are dry. *I've noticed I used to trim off a lof of shit that could've actually stayed on ther bud*, those crystal covered little leaves don't taste bad at all.




Very good point!!


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 19, 2012)

Redoctober said:


> My first time doing it this way too thanks to this thread. Hung a plant right side up the other day. The few attempts I've made at dry trimming in the past have not been pleasant. If the bud is really sticky, it's a mess. *The fact that many people say that dry trimming is easier almost leads me to believe that they are doing a different technique or something that I am missing*. Either they are just pulling the leaves off by hand or ....who knows. I don't think Fiskers are the best thing for dry trimming. I'm going to look into some surgical tools and see if there are any promising options there. Constant alcohol dips and switching scissors is a must. Obviously you want to try not to get alcohol on the buds because it will dissolve the THC.


Some people cut the plant at the base and hang right side up as if it were still in the pot. I suppose the equivalent would be to just stop watering. They say the leaves fall away from the buds and is easier to trim.

I chose to hang upside down so the leaves would "cup" and protect the buds. I don't think it matters much, BUT I have not tried right side up yet.


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## HowysMowy (Dec 19, 2012)

came I slowly starved my plant and let it dry up. the smell was amazing. Smoke? What smoke? Was like a party in Ur mouth, smooth like ur sipping a glass of cold water after baking in 100deg. F all day.

My first harvest I had nine plants and did everymethod. 

Whole plant drying got the temp and all that perfect. Trimming was a bitch. Smoke was real smooth and aroma was awsome. Up to two months later opening the jar was something to look foward too.

I fully manicured one plant and put it into paper bags. Note*be sure its the brown UNBLEACHED ONES* with whole branches. Made sure to lay them out twice a day and if you put to much into anyone bag you'll have mold issues real quick. Learned that the hard way. was tedious laying it all out. Smoke was desiriable, aroma dissapeared quickly. Stores like crap. Browned after a month and a half of proper storage. it dried out in 2-4 days,l.

One plant I left all leaves on and hung up the individual nodes, trimming sucked. Smoke was real smoth. Stores rather well.3months no brittleness or browning.

Food dehydrator was real harsh and aroma didnt last at all. Was to brittle on the outwide and really moist in the middle. If ur hurting for something quick while WAITING for the rest of the harvest this method is the best preffered for me.

The other methods arent wprth itka microwave etc so its not even worth writing about. Was really crappy all around for each of them


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## reverof (Dec 20, 2012)

I almost always dry my plants this way, the only difference is... once I hang the entire plant I spend an hour trimming off ALL large leafs, easily gotten to smaller leaves. I then do a final trim before the plants go to jarring. I found doing this saved a TON of time and also still gave a epic ending.

I did one plant one time where I just hung it for 2 weeks, sadly 1/2 of the plant ended up being given away, after 2 days of trimming to jar it I was only half done and had other plants in line, so... it had to go.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 20, 2012)

I believe today is day 8 of hanging. So I'm looking over this plant feeling slightly disappointed. Buds are feeling pretty dry and somewhat brittle. There is no way this can hang any longer. The main stems bend without snapping and I noticed a couple of the fan leaf stems are still rubbery. I've been having humidity issues lately in the 35-45% range. 

So I decided it's time. The buds are a little too dry for me but are nice and rock hard. Trimming was nice and easy. The leaves in the buds were nice and brittle and pretty much brushed off. Shaping the buds was a snap. Nothing stuck to my scissors.


This pic shows what one of the stems looked like before trimming.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 20, 2012)

This is everything. I have not weighed it and probably won't. Why? Because I don't care.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 20, 2012)

And here is a close up of Connie Chung. Ain't she purdy.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 20, 2012)

And a couple more.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 20, 2012)

The buds smell really nice. Would I whole plant dry again? Hell yes, but I gotta get a hold of the humidity first. Now that I think about it, I have a humidifier. Kinda weird running a humidifier and a dehumidifier together. Whatever works. 


I'm very pleased with the outcome and will never wet trim again.

Hope this thread helped somebody out there. If your harvests smell like grass/hay, give the whole plant dry a shot. I'm sure glad I did.

I have another plant ready to come down. Probably hang it up tomorrow. I will document that one here as well.

Happy trimming...


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## stumpjumper (Dec 20, 2012)

Nice buds man.. I never hang till the branches snap, that is too long.. Crispy on the outside, damp on the inside, time to jar that shit up and either use a hygrometer in your jars or pay very close attention to whats going on. Burp a few times a day until you know for sure that the outside of the bud hasntr rehydrated too much and is too wet. When I burp my jars I hold them over the dehumidifier and fill them up with dry air.. Just a little thing I do..

If the buds are wet again after being in the jar for a day, paper bag them bitches for a night or 2.. Jar up again and start over.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 20, 2012)

Thanks Stump. I like the idea of burping the jars with dry air from the dehum. Never crossed my mind.


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## rocpilefsj (Dec 20, 2012)

Great thread with great info! I tried to rep you again but need to spread it around some more first. I will indeed be trying this on my upcoming harvest. Thread 5 starred!


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 20, 2012)

rocpilefsj said:


> Great thread with great info! I tried to rep you again but need to spread it around some more first. *I will indeed be trying this on my upcoming harvest*. Thread 5 starred!


Awesome - When you do, come back and throw some pics up with some info. I haven't seen many whole plant dry threads around.


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## thinkingreen (Dec 21, 2012)

I just cut 3 from the base, removed all large fan leaves by hand and hung them. Will let you all know how it goes.


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## kryptoniteglo (Dec 21, 2012)

I'm subbed on this thread and will return with my own experiment in a few weeks. I have two Jillybean plants about 3 and 4 weeks away from harvest. One will probably be ready about a week before the other, so I do have the option of trying two ways. 

But I'm such a newbie I'm happily following most of the advice in the Cannabis Grow Bible and it hasn't steered me wrong yet. I've needed supplemental help from the experts here, but in general that book has been 90% right on. It's suggestion is whole-plant dry, but cut off fan leaves and the sugar leaves that extend beyond the bud. Then dry. Then manicure more precisely before jarring. 

Will let you know how it goes! I'll take pics, too.


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## moppy84 (Dec 21, 2012)

im about 3 weeks from harvest and from what ive read ill be trying this way sounds like a good idea


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 21, 2012)

thinkingreen said:


> I just cut 3 from the base, removed all large fan leaves by hand and hung them. Will let you all know how it goes.


Don't forget to snap some pics as it's drying before it's too late. Maybe even document temps, humidity, hang time, and whatever problems you encounter. When I was looking up whole plant drying, I found a good thread by "Mr Green thumb 01" that had some pics with great info that I was going to go back and reference. Unfortunately, it has been deleted. I know it's simple to tell someone to just cut at the base and hang. For myself, I learn a lot by pics and I know I'm not the only one. For example, you can tell someone that a male has balls and the females show hairs. But a pic of both helps tremendously.

It can be intiminating trying out a different dry method.


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## thinkingreen (Dec 21, 2012)

These are conditions I have had success with in the past. 20c, 40-50RH, closer to 40. One fan at the bottom is on low. Exhaust on. No big fan leaves, but I kept all small ones and sugar leaves.
Nothing is touching. No light.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 21, 2012)

thinkingreen said:


> These are conditions I have had success with in the past. 20c, 40-50RH, closer to 40. One fan at the bottom is on low. Exhaust on. No big fan leaves, but I kept all small ones and sugar leaves.
> Nothing is touching. No light.
> 
> View attachment 2450894




1. Under those conditions, what was the hang time?
2. When you do a final trim, do you have any problems with dry leaves sticking to the buds?


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## Gmz (Dec 21, 2012)

I'm gonna try this with my blue cheese, i really want her to keep that amazing smell she's giving off. The only thing that concerns me is the thing that seems to be concerning everyone else, the leaves sticking to the bud trying to dry trim it. But i'll give it a shot in about 2 weeks .


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## yesum (Dec 21, 2012)

I have allowed the plant to dry in the pot and gotten good results. This would be if you have rather low humidity as higher humidity would be a mold problem I am guessing.

Either way, you want to leave all the leaves and stem together till the plant is dry. Cure in jars is minimal after that, not much improvement.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 21, 2012)

yesum said:


> I have allowed the plant to dry in the pot and gotten good results. This would be if you have rather low humidity as higher humidity would be a mold problem I am guessing.
> 
> Either way, you want to leave all the leaves and stem together till the plant is dry. *Cure in jars is minimal after that, not much improvement*.


I trimmed my plant up yesterday on the 8th day of hanging. The BUD stems were NOT totally dry (maybe 85%), but the buds were dry and rock hard. Jarred everything up and went to burb them today. The buds texture and smell were the same as yesterday with no sponginess or moisture seen. I blame that on the low humidity (35-45%) on the 6th and 7th day. Was shooting for 55-60% but it didn't happen. I'm still very happy with the final product.

I am armed now.

Got the heater, humidifier, and dehumidifier ready.

Will be hanging another plant up tonight and shooting for 55% humidity and temp right around 65 degrees. More pics to come.


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## Redoctober (Dec 22, 2012)

HighLowGrow said:


> I trimmed my plant up yesterday on the 8th day of hanging. The BUD stems were NOT totally dry (maybe 85%), but the buds were dry and rock hard. Jarred everything up and went to burb them today. The buds texture and smell were the same as yesterday with no sponginess or moisture seen. I blame that on the low humidity (35-45%) on the 6th and 7th day. Was shooting for 55-60% but it didn't happen. I'm still very happy with the final product. I am armed now. Got the heater, humidifier, and dehumidifier ready. Will be hanging another plant up tonight and shooting for 55% humidity and temp right around 65 degrees. More pics to come.


 Wait, why are you running a humidifier and a dehumidifier simultaneously? Shouldn't it be one or the other?


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## k0ijn (Dec 22, 2012)

HighLowGrow said:


> I trimmed my plant up yesterday on the 8th day of hanging. The BUD stems were NOT totally dry (maybe 85%), but the buds were dry and rock hard. Jarred everything up and went to burb them today. The buds texture and smell were the same as yesterday with no sponginess or moisture seen. I blame that on the low humidity (35-45%) on the 6th and 7th day. Was shooting for 55-60% but it didn't happen. I'm still very happy with the final product.
> 
> I am armed now.
> 
> ...


Sounds like the weed got overdried.
Do you have a hygrometer? 
If the moisture inside the buds falls below 55% RH then curing effectively stops and there's no point in leaving the weed in the jars any longer.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 22, 2012)

Redoctober said:


> Wait, why are you running a humidifier and a dehumidifier simultaneously? Shouldn't it be one or the other?




I guess the answer is yes and no.

We are getting rain on and off. Couple days rain then 3-4 days of sun.

When I cut the plant to hang, it rained for 3-4 days and all I needed was the dehum. Everything was fine and holding at 55%. Then it stopped raining for a few days and RH went down to 35-45% despite my effort of adding bowls of water with a fan blowing over them. I never got it back up. The result was dry bud that is uncurable in the jars. I actually like the bud the way it turned out, but that was not what I was after.

So now I will sometimes need the humidifier to bring rh from 35% up to 65% or so. In return, I need the dehum to keep the rh at 55-60%. I can't set the humidifier to a certain number, but I can with the dehum. It's a balancing act.


My room is inside my uninsulated shop so I have to watch the room environment a little closer than you guys growing in the house.

Hope that makes sense.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 22, 2012)

k0ijn said:


> Sounds like the weed got overdried.
> Do you have a hygrometer?
> If the moisture inside the buds falls below 55% RH then curing effectively stops and there's no point in leaving the weed in the jars any longer.


^^^^ Yes, this is exactly what happened. At least I know the cause and it has been corrected. I really need a hygrometer.


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## Redoctober (Dec 22, 2012)

HighLowGrow said:


> I guess the answer is yes and no. We are getting rain on and off. Couple days rain then 3-4 days of sun. When I cut the plant to hang, it rained for 3-4 days and all I needed was the dehum. Everything was fine and holding at 55%. Then it stopped raining for a few days and RH went down to 35-45% despite my effort of adding bowls of water with a fan blowing over them. I never got it back up. The result was dry bud that is uncurable in the jars. I actually like the bud the way it turned out, but that was not what I was after. So now I will sometimes need the humidifier to bring rh from 35% up to 65% or so. In return, I need the dehum to keep the rh at 55-60%. I can't set the humidifier to a certain number, but I can with the dehum. It's a balancing act. My room is inside my uninsulated shop so I have to watch the room environment a little closer than you guys growing in the house. Hope that makes sense.


 I gotcha! This is the humidifier that I have: http://www.amazon.com/Air-O-Swiss-AOS-Ultrasonic-Humidifier-7135/dp/B000J4LCS6/ref=pd_sbs_hg_1 

I realize that it's not cheap, but it does have that feature where you can set the Rh and it will turn itself on and off to maintain a certain humidity. That alone is worth the price. I'm sure there are probably cheaper models out there that do the same thing but it's worth considering. Then you wouldn't have to run your dehumidifier at the same time and you'd save some $$ on your power bill. I don't own a dehumidifier but I hear they use a decent amount of juice. In the long run it might even out the price of the humidifier.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 23, 2012)

Here's the humidifier I will be using in the meantime. It's an old one left over from when the kids were young. It only has low, medium, or high. Seems to be doing the job for now.


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## oftheCosmos (Dec 23, 2012)

*I am thoroughly surprised at the amount of people who don't dry this way *


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## Nizza (Dec 23, 2012)

a quick light application of heat midway through dry you can crumble the leaves off, saving mucho's time. after this i chop everything and put them into paper bags paper into plastic. The Plastic bag stays on until i have time to trim the leaves off and while the bag is on, moisture transfers out of the main stem back into those dry buds. most of the time though i dont apply heat i just remove fan leaves and ugly leaves prior to hang drying, leaving all sugar leaves intact till dry trim time.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 27, 2012)

*Here is the second plant just cut and hung last night. Another freebie seed. Cut at the base and hung. NO leaves trimmed off.

Sour Cream - My mistake - This is not the Sour Cream. I lost the label on this plant. This is the UNKNOWN plant.
FFOF soil
400 hps





Unknown day 1


I let the humidity get down to 35% on the last whole plant dry which caused the bud to over dry and were uncurable in the jars.

This time I'm going to stay on top of the humidity as I feel humidity is more important than the temp during drying. 

RH 60%
Temp 60 
*


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 27, 2012)

*And a few pics right before the cut.




UNKNOWN Day 1*


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## stumpjumper (Dec 27, 2012)

So this harvest I have cut 7 plants and left the leaves all intact.. What a fucking pain in the ass to trim, but I have to agree, the smell is tenfold compared to buds that were trimmed prior to drying. 

Still a pain in the ass, but I'll probably quit trimming before drying from now on.


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## ru4r34l (Dec 27, 2012)

stumpjumper said:


> So this harvest I have cut 7 plants and left the leaves all intact.. What a fucking pain in the ass to trim, but I have to agree, the smell is tenfold compared to buds that were trimmed prior to drying.
> 
> Still a pain in the ass, but I'll probably quit trimming before drying from now on.


I find limp trimming to be the worst, rather have loss of smell early on an ease of trimming; the smell eventually will return, the time wasted trying to neatly trim limp fan and sugar leaves cannot be regained.

regards,


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 27, 2012)

stumpjumper said:


> So this harvest I have cut 7 plants and left the leaves all intact.. *What a fucking pain in the ass to trim*, but I have to agree, the smell is tenfold compared to buds that were trimmed prior to drying.
> 
> Still a pain in the ass, but I'll probably quit trimming before drying from now on.



What was the RH during the hang/dry? Are you saying the dry leaves stuck to the buds too much?


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## Redoctober (Dec 28, 2012)

So are you supposed to trim while the leaves are limp?... because I waited until they were a but more dry and crisp before the trim. Is that too dry?


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## zubey91 (Dec 28, 2012)

where are you located? i live in COlorado a really dry state.. i often have problems with low humidity.. i'm abotu to chop a bluedream and do a full plant dry.. thanks for starting this thread!


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 28, 2012)

Redoctober said:


> So are you supposed to trim while the leaves are limp?... because I waited until they were a but more dry and crisp before the trim. Is that too dry?


I didn't quite get that either. If the leaves are limp, the plant isn't dry. Although, on my first plant, everything was pretty dry and brittle but I did notice a FEW fan leaves that were limp.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 28, 2012)

Below is UNKNOWN plant day 2 of hanging with a couple random bud shots.

RH 60%
temp 55

Need to get that temp up a bit.


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## unknown1231 (Dec 28, 2012)

This is a great post!

I just followed this method myself and after 7 days trimmed and jarred. Literally 5 minutes after jarring I have nothing but piney citrus smell and its amazing, I can already tell this is going to be really great. The ONLY downside to this is trimming becomes a bit more difficult, you get a little more sticky in the process 

My last harvest I had chopped the girls, trimmed all buds, cut branches/buds off into smaller portions and hung them all to dry. After about 3-5 days I migrated the buds to jars for curing. The result was terribly green smelling bud that only gradually got better with curing. It was no where near what it could have been had I just hung the whole plant without removing any foliage.

A+ METHOD. THANK YOU!

EDIT: My temps for the recent whole plant dry were 60-70, RH at 45-55% for 7 days.


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## Redoctober (Dec 29, 2012)

That's awesome Unknown1231! Thanks for posting your results along with temp and RH! This will be useful to many. 

HighLowGrow, I am going to do the same as you, keep the RH around 55-60. It may seem on the high side but the buds I have are not coke bottles, the are on the small and airy side and will dry out quick if RH isn't at or above 55%, even on the vine. I'm looking to time it so I get a 7-10 day dry. 

I am guessing from what people are saying that if you dry to the point that the leaves are rigid and somewhat crisp, you've gone too far, even if it does take 10 days to get there; is that the consensus?


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## unknown1231 (Dec 29, 2012)

Redoctober said:


> That's awesome Unknown1231! Thanks for posting your results along with temp and RH! This will be useful to many.
> 
> HighLowGrow, I am going to do the same as you, keep the RH around 55-60. It may seem on the high side but the buds I have are not coke bottles, the are on the small and airy side and will dry out quick if RH isn't at or above 55%, even on the vine. I'm looking to time it so I get a 7-10 day dry.
> 
> I am guessing from what people are saying that if you dry to the point that the leaves are rigid and somewhat crisp, you've gone too far, even if it does take 10 days to get there; is that the consensus?


My leaves were crisp at 5-6 days, by 7 I could feel a lot less moisture in the buds when squeezing them. This particular harvest is all small buds, had I decided not to top the girls and get big buds I would leave them to hang for longer. I believe the science behind this method is that while the plant dries the cells begin to transfer sugars and other things into the stem. If you were to trim everything wet and cut the buds off this would lock in all of the sugars and chlorophyll.

My buds are still not fully dried. At this point I plan on jarring and burping for the next week or so.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 29, 2012)

Redoctober said:


> That's awesome Unknown1231! Thanks for posting your results along with temp and RH! This will be useful to many.
> 
> HighLowGrow, I am going to do the same as you, keep the RH around 55-60. It may seem on the high side but the buds I have are not coke bottles, the are on the small and airy side and will dry out quick if RH isn't at or above 55%, even on the vine. I'm looking to time it so I get a 7-10 day dry.
> 
> I am guessing from what people are saying that *if you dry to the point that the leaves are rigid and somewhat crisp, you've gone too far*, even if it does take 10 days to get there; is that the consensus?





^^^^^
1. This is what I experienced on the first plant with temps at 60-65 and humidity running between 40%-55%. 8 days hanging.

2. So I'm guessing on the current plant, if I keep temps around 60-70 and maintain humidity at 55-60%, 8-10 days would be perfect. <<< This is what I'm currently shooting for.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 29, 2012)

unknown1231 said:


> This is a great post!
> 
> I just followed this method myself and after 7 days trimmed and jarred. Literally 5 minutes after jarring I have nothing but piney citrus smell and its amazing, I can already tell this is going to be really great. The ONLY downside to this is trimming becomes a bit more difficult, you get a little more sticky in the process
> 
> ...



NICE....Glad the thread helped.

I really liked how my first plant turned out with roughly the same temp and hum as you had. Just a tad crispy. Smell was great.

On the next harvest, will you duplicate what you did above, or up the hum some?


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## unknown1231 (Dec 29, 2012)

HighLowGrow said:


> NICE....Glad the thread helped.
> 
> I really liked how my first plant turned out with roughly the same temp and hum as you had. Just a tad crispy. Smell was great.
> 
> On the next harvest, will you duplicate what you did above, or up the hum some?


I have an update on my experience. Since jarring overnight I'm sad to say that the dreaded green smell has arrived. I'm thinking maybe I jarred too quickly. Thankfully this is only one plant and since they all seem to be finishing at different times I'll have the opportunity to try again and again and again 

I just took down another girl last night, she will hang for at least 10 days, probably closer to 14. This time around I'm going to let the buds get DRY instead of somewhat dry. I'll update you guys in a couple weeks and we'll see how she is!


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 29, 2012)

Sounds good. Thanks alot for the update!

Also update on what you're doing about the "green smell" and how it turns out.


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## cannabiscultivation (Dec 29, 2012)

unknown1231 said:


> My leaves were crisp at 5-6 days, by 7 I could feel a lot less moisture in the buds when squeezing them. This particular harvest is all small buds, had I decided not to top the girls and get big buds I would leave them to hang for longer. I believe the science behind this method is that while the plant dries the cells begin to transfer sugars and other things into the stem. If you were to trim everything wet and cut the buds off this would lock in all of the sugars and chlorophyll.
> 
> My buds are still not fully dried. At this point I plan on jarring and burping for the next week or so.


My understanding is ....it USES the sugars and they transpirate into energy to keep it alive while off the bush.{IF CERTAIN TOLERANCES ARE MAINTAINED!!!!}
Try smoking sugar and you will find out what bad taste is.
the dark is so it can't replenish it's sugar supply and the temp and humidity allow a SLOW bleed out of said plant.


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## unknown1231 (Dec 29, 2012)

HighLowGrow said:


> Sounds good. Thanks alot for the update!
> 
> Also update on what you're doing about the "green smell" and how it turns out.


For the green smell I'm leaving my buds out for maybe an hour every 12 hours, ensuring they're crispy before I re-jar. I'm slowly noticing a nice smell return. More to follow.


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## xmax (Dec 29, 2012)

If most leaves start to get dry before 9 days, I'll drape a hefty-bag over it. That'll 'skunk it up' overnight, and bring up the humidity again in order to prolong the drying process.


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## cannabiscultivation (Dec 29, 2012)

Good thinking...i'm using a humidifier.


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## HighLowGrow (Dec 29, 2012)

xmax said:


> If most leaves start to get dry before 9 days, *I'll drape a hefty-bag over it. That'll 'skunk it up' overnight*, and bring up the humidity again in order to prolong the drying process.
> View attachment 2459596


Nice tip. I like it.


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## Redoctober (Dec 29, 2012)

unknown1231 said:


> I have an update on my experience. Since jarring overnight I'm sad to say that the dreaded green smell has arrived. I'm thinking maybe I jarred too quickly. Thankfully this is only one plant and since they all seem to be finishing at different times I'll have the opportunity to try again and again and again  I just took down another girl last night, she will hang for at least 10 days, probably closer to 14. This time around I'm going to let the buds get DRY instead of somewhat dry. I'll update you guys in a couple weeks and we'll see how she is!


 Yup, this is exactly what happened to me. I think a longer dry with a humidifier will help. That's what I'm doing now, in addition to finishing the plant with 48 hours of darkness to hopefully consume some of the excess sugar.


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## kushgrwr (Jan 1, 2013)

this technique is great if you're drying 5-10 plants... what about 200-300 plants? Do you guys just do a wet trim and dry? or trim on on the plant then hang the whole plant to dry? I've just been doing wet trims then laying the buds out on drying screens. dry for 4-5 days at 75F, 55-60 humidity. then bag it all for 24 hours to sweat, then bag it and weigh it... does anyone have a better way to process 10-15 pounds in a single day? 
I may try drying at a lower temp as recommended, this time I'll try drying it at 70F and see how it goes.


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## rocpilefsj (Jan 2, 2013)

I was very impressed at the results with this method. I chopped 4 afghan kush at the base and hung up with zero trimming. Temps were in the 15-20 degree C mark, humidity fluctuated between 45-60%. It took a good 8 days for the plants to dry to the point where I thought they were ready to get jarred, I could have waited an extra day or two because I ended up dumping them back out as they were still pretty wet (the larger buds anyways). The smell is pretty good already, after the cure it will be even better. Trimming was a lot easier than I thought it would be, the fan leaves which didn't fall to the floor were easily plucked off, the smaller sugar leaves were dry and brittle and came off pretty easily by either pulling them off or rubbing my fingers gently over them so they fell off the bud. I thought the trim would turn to dust and be useless for hash but it wasn't. I think if you trimmed too early while the sugar leaves were still wet would be a pain in the ass, but I think if they are still wet then your buds are WAY to wet still. I think I would definitely use this method again. No pictures of them hanging but here is a pic of some smaller buds I sampled: (I am horrible when it comes to pictures, same reason I don't ever start a grow journal because it will never get updated)


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## moppy84 (Jan 2, 2013)

im on day 2 of my whole plant dry and dont make fun of the others growing lol been awhile since last grow


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## GratefulJoe (Jan 3, 2013)

HighLowGrow said:


> Some people cut the plant at the base and hang right side up as if it were still in the pot. I suppose the equivalent would be to just stop watering. They say the leaves fall away from the buds and is easier to trim.
> 
> I chose to hang upside down so the leaves would "cup" and protect the buds. I don't think it matters much, BUT I have not tried right side up yet.


I have tried trimming both ways and prefer a whole plant hanging upside down. I'm not sure if it matters but after a few days after the leaves have fallen around the bud, cupped like you mentioned, I take the leaves and twist them around the bud so the bud is wrapped by the leaf. I have found it protects the bud and helps it dry a little slower. Just a random tidbit


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## HighLowGrow (Jan 3, 2013)

*Unknown plant has been hanging now 8 days*. I decided to keep the temp where it is. 55 degrees. Humidity is holding at 60%.

Comparing the two plants so far.

1. Connie Chung hung for 8 days and trimmed. Temp ~ 65 humidity ~45%. Buds were very solid but the outside was a little dry and brittle.

2. UNKOWN plant currently on day 8 of hanging. Temp ~55 humidity 60%. Leaves are getting brittle but the buds are solid and sticky. Very nice feel to them.

I'm shooting for a hang time of 10-12 days.


I'll take some pics tonight.


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## HighLowGrow (Jan 4, 2013)

*Unknown Plant*. Temp 55 Hum 60% Today is day 9 of hanging. I decided to cut a couple branches off and started trimming.




Trimming was a little sticky. Not too bad though. The buds felt a little wet to me so I stopped after a branch and a half. I'm going to let this hang another 2 days.

Here are a couple bud shots.


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## ExtremeMetal43 (Jan 5, 2013)

I see it got cold where your at il be dryin here in a week or 2 and my temps are about 55-60 hows that effecting them


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## ClosetChronic420 (Jan 5, 2013)

I cut mine at the base, but first I completely trim the plant of every single leaf and let them dry separate. Then I just hang the plant by the a low node on the plant and let it sit until the stems are dry enough to crack. I can't see leaving all of the leaves on when they would just drape down over your buds. But this method would be too time consuming on a large grow. Never really tested temps or humidity just left them in a ventilated and dark closet.


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## intenseneal (Jan 6, 2013)

I cut the whole plant at the base and dry it hanging upside down before I do any trimming. After it is dry I trim, jar and cure. I can normally start smoking some good tasting buds after 2-3 weeks of curing.


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## Chezia67 (Jan 6, 2013)

Just wanted to compliment you on the babies . Beautiful . 

There is some beautiful purple in there. 


I'm doing my best to hold 65-70 degrees and 50% humidity. It's friggin getting cold. The dehumidifier is running and holding at 50%. The actual temps are 60-65 right now. It's hanging in the corner of my flower room with a barrier up to block the direct light. 

Like I said, I'll be throwing some pics up every day until they go into jars.

-HLG[/QUOTE]


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## HighLowGrow (Jan 8, 2013)

*Unknown plant day 12. *Temp 55 60% hum. Time to come down. I gotta say, the texture of the bud is perfect. On the other hand, the smell isn't as strong as I would have liked at this point. 

Here is what I did. After I trimmed everything up, it all went into paper bags and is currently hanging where the plant was drying. I increased the temp to 65 degrees and dropped hum to 50-55%. Most likely, I'll jar these up today.


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## unknown1231 (Jan 8, 2013)

Hey Guys,

Last time I checked in I had just cut down my second girl. It has been hanging for 11 days and I've gone ahead and cut it up and jarred it for the cure. On the 9th day of hanging the buds felt a bit too crisp so, as someone else in this thread suggested, I hung a trash bag over her for 24 hours which made the buds a little softer to the touch and brought a bit of the nice smell out. 

**Note: I decided to trim the sugar leaves I left on around day 7, they were just too dry and getting to the 'crumble' stage. Going forward I will be trimming all sugar leaves the day I cut the plant down. Its just too tedious to trim the buds when all the leaves are dry and curled- too many mishaps with chopping into buds! I will leave all the buds on the plant, fully trimmed, to dry for 10-21 days (whenever it feels right- this is totally contingent on the size of the buds- My plants are 2-3 feet tall and all topped so the buds aren't huge. If I were to aim for big buds the dry is obviously longer).

*Temp: 60-65 degrees
RH: 60%* (on some days I aired out the room which brought RH down to 50/55 temporarily)
***Hung in the dark, only light received is from a CFL in the ceiling when I would walk in to check on her.

After 11 days of hanging my plant has these characteristics:

Buds dry to the touch
Buds don't have much of a smell, there is a very very subtle 'green' smell but it is nothing compared to what it was for the 10 days prior to jarring. 
Stems have shrunk probably by 80%
Stems bend and ALMOST break, essentially on the precipice of being too dry.


At this point I've jarred the buds and will burp for 20 minutes every day or every other day depending on how much moisture I deem to be in the buds- I doubt there is much so planning on burping every other day for 2/3 weeks.

I will follow up with you guys on this thread once the cure is complete and will let you know the results of the smoke!


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## unknown1231 (Jan 12, 2013)

unknown1231 said:


> I have an update on my experience. Since jarring overnight I'm sad to say that the dreaded green smell has arrived. I'm thinking maybe I jarred too quickly. Thankfully this is only one plant and since they all seem to be finishing at different times I'll have the opportunity to try again and again and again
> 
> I just took down another girl last night, she will hang for at least 10 days, probably closer to 14. This time around I'm going to let the buds get DRY instead of somewhat dry. I'll update you guys in a couple weeks and we'll see how she is!


Here we are roughly two weeks later and curing the first harvest in the jar has really brought out a strong sour smell, very please with the aroma. I didn't think the cure would do much but it does. Not only the aroma has changed but also the texture of the buds, more pliable, sticky, what you'd expect in some good bud.


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## HighLowGrow (Feb 27, 2014)

I'm just throwing these up because I can. 2 AKRs LST'd, Cut at the base last night. Temp is 65-70, H is at about 55-60. Cali is getting some rain finally. Hoping for a good slow dry. Nature is finally working with me.

View attachment 3008274View attachment 3008277View attachment 3008278View attachment 3008280


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## HighLowGrow (Mar 25, 2014)

Another AKR. I cleaned this one up a little better and chopped it at the base about an hour ago. Perfect timing. We are suppose to get some rain for the next 2-3 days or so. On and off.


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