hey guys. 1st timer so i jus wanted to make sure i know how to properly care for it after its chopped. i know there are many variations of dying, curing, etc, but i jus want to be sure that this specific way is defintely alright 1.jus simply cut the buds from stems using clean sissors and putting them into a zip lock bag to transport (Im going to only chop the top half so that the bottom bulks up in a few weeks). 2.then i cut the leaves around the buds off. 3. i then dry them by putting them in a paper bag in a dark, ventilated closet (does this seem alright). or i can make a drying container using big totes and string. which one? i check on them until the stem can be snapped, not just bent. 4. take dry buds and cure them by putting in a glass mayo jar with an orange peel. take top off once a day for a few hours to let them breathe, flip buds over then i recap them...im not to sure about curing process, do i let them breathe for a few hours a day? let them cure for 2-3 weeks and then smokeee. how does this process seem? is there anything being done wrong? i think everything seems good, but i want to be sure. i really appreciate the help fellas.
Harvesting, drying and cureing are part of the processing phase, there is a whole forum dedicated to Marijuana Processing at the bottom of the sub-forum menu. If you had looked there you would have seen that Rangerdanger has already given a very detailed account of this whole process. You should have posted this question in that section as well. 1. Wether your scissors are clean or not doesn't really matter much at this point. Plastic zip-lock bags can condense moisture from the freshly cut buds in a matter of minutes - that is exactly what you are trying to avoid!!! It ain't rocket science it's just common sense, think it through - condensed moisture = wet bag = wet buds = potential for mold. 2. That's called manicureing. You got this part right! 3. Cammo don't know nuthin 'bout no big totes and string!!! Paper bags are both absorbant and breathable. Plastic totes are - well, they're hermetically sealed - which do you think will work better? It is important at this stage to redistribute the buds for even drying - eveyday at first, then maybe every other day once they are mostly dry. 4. Orange peels are used to add moisture to overly dried buds, not to remove excess moisture. If you're going for the flavor enhancement just use the "orange zest" part of the peel (remove the pulpy white part) but don't grate it up, like you would for cooking. I would only try this on part of your cureing buds so you can determine how well it really works. If you leave the top off of the jar for a few hours each day you are still drying, not cureing. Only leave the lid off for a few minutes to release the moist air and gently roll the jar around one revolution, the slight tumbleing action will aid in the air transfer. You can start smoking after two weeks of cureing, but let the rest of your harvest keep cureing - some people cure up to four monthes.
