drying time

[dangerdan]

i know this has probably been asked a million times but im on the gold coast in lovely queensland and have had my lovely ladies hanging up in the garage for a week or so they still seem a bit moisy and sticky

how much longer do u reckon thanks......

[Indycar]

In the past, i've found around 10-14 days about right. Slower the better, without allowin' mold to get a foot hold. Maybe set up a desktop fan to gently move the air around inside the garage. The theory behind this is so it keeps moving the air around the buds so mold doesn't get a chance to establish in anywhere. Stale 'n damp areas of the plant is where you'll usually see it start forming.

 

Also i've noticed the humidity has been around the 60 to 80% range on the central east coast lately, generated by the odd showers we're gettin'. High humidity can be your enemy during the curing process. It might pay to keep a close eye out for any mold forming. If it does, cut that section out and remove from the garage asap. If that occurs, it'd prolly pay to speed up the curing process by introducing one of those foot heater fans to the garage. Dry warmer air will help speed up this process. But if this path is taken, it may pay to keep an eye on it hourly. Because in the later stages of curing it can become too crispy dry in a very short period of time.

 

Mold can be a real bastard and can spread at a rapid rate if the conditions are right.

 

But yeah, no doubt there's heaps of other theories. Those are just a couple things i've learnt over the years. Some say it's done when you can snap a branch cleanly 'n so on...

 

[loylty gets u nothing]

i manicure as i take the plant down

atm on the coast its takin me about 5-7 days

usually going into jars at day 5

i ccant help ya with hangin as mine lay out on raised flyscreens

with a soft fan moving the air from above

all the best,any pics??

bil

[Al Fish]

Danger Dan,

 

For what it's worth I only ever dried and cured in Sydney. However, after hanging for approx. 2 weeks in a well aired, no direct sunlight environment buds appear and may feel dry to the touch but probably aren’t. Obtain and sterilize sealed containers – glass jars, plastic containers, etc and seal the buds inside overnight (or thereabouts). Remove from containers and hang to dry. Repeat process everyday until strong aroma upon opening sealed containers is noticeably weaker. In Sydney it took approximately 2-3 weeks in an outhouse with good natural ventilation. Then 1-2 weeks in an inside bathroom – open window 24/7. Then about 4 weeks in jars overnight and airing in bathroom during the day.

 

Eventually you’ll open the containers to a mellow sweetness. You can now start to rest easier: as you can leave the buds sealed up for longer periods, always checking for mould. After you’re confident enough to packaged your stuff for storage it doesn’t hurt to check every so often for mould. If you keep your hands and everything else clean at all times you probably won’t have any problems.

 

A proper curing - aided as it must be by constant sampling - can give you a beautifully creamy, softer smoke with the kick of a mule.

 

A long story – short. Older friend and compatriot gets married in the Registry Office and organizes a luncheon Reception at Fox Studios, in what used to be the Sydney Showground. He tells me that he’ll introduce a very good friend of his and asks me to see if I can sort it out. Now this guy and I are so close that I don’t know if I owe him or he owes me, anymore.

 

So after all the dog-eared jokes and snide sexual innuendo of tired, rehashed wedding speeches by clichéd pantomime squires and jaded women stale to the world and a couple of minor media celebrities, the Groom introduces me to his good friend and disappears. We exchange civilized pleasantries and with beers in hand adjourn to a balcony area. I handed him what appears to be a cigarette butt. I’d purchased some pre-rolled cigarette tubes with filter for the explicit purpose of ascertaining their use as joints. In the end I through most of these pre-filtered cigarette tubes away.

 

Nonetheless, at the time I finely cut some of the bud and packaged this tightly up against the trimmed-down filter, twisting off the end you light. I let these sit for a few days; the juices permeating the paper and the tastes blending.

 

So we’re outside in the middle of an autumn afternoon just after final toasts and he looks at the tiny, squat cigarette butt object. Before he can say a word I proffer a match. A mate of his has also been seen by my friend the Groom and directed to us. I give him another short cigarette. By this time and after about 2 draws my newest best friend says, ‘Very nice smoke…I just wish you hadn’t left the filter on there because I find that it lowers the effect…And I wish I’d never said that because I can feel it coming on now.’ I don’t recall much coughing. And the thing was that both of these people whom I’d never met and whom I haven’t met since, commented on the flavour and aroma we experienced in the heart of a relaxed and genteel afternoon in the centre of a year some time ago.

 

Al Fish