the entire plant in one sitting. If you cut one branch at a time, you can leave the others alive on the plant and trim them later if you don’ t have enough time or, like me, if your back hurts from sitting for long periods. Also, if your canopy isn’ t very even— that is, if you’ ve allowed your plant to grow more naturally, developing main colas, secondary buds, and auxiliary buds— those colas can sometimes mature a bit sooner than the other buds. You can cut the top bud sites first, leaving the others alive on the plant to ripen a bit longer. 1. Wear gloves; you don’ t want your hands to be sticky and fragrant for hours after. 2. Pre-defoliation: Pluck all large leaves with a stem; don’ t forget, this will make life easier. 3. Trim so it easily hangs when finished. I like to make small hooks where the stem meets the stalk. 4. Cut one branch off at a time. This allows you to come back to the rest later if necessary. 5. Trim off anything with a tip. Since you have already plucked any larger leaves, the ones that are left will be part of the bud. Their tips will be pointy. Hold the branch by the stem and slowly turn the bud while using
3. I like to make little hooks where the stem meets the stalk. your pruning shears to cut off all those leaf tips. 6. Save ALL sugar leaves –( leaves heavily coated in trichomes) and bud trim for hash making.
7. Hang to dry.
8. Pruning: If you prune your plant to create a canopy of colas, the trimming process becomes much quicker and easier. It’ s terrible to trim hundreds of tiny popcorn buds rather than simply cleaning up several colas. Remember, a properly pruned plant will produce as much, if not more, weight in fat buds compared to a natural plant that has a plethora of tiny buds.
9. Pre-defoliation“ makes life easier.” This term refers to the removal of all leaves with a stem just before harvest while the plant is still alive on the stalk. This process allows you only to handle your clean buds and trim them instead of plucking and trimming. I find this makes the final trimming process much smoother and easier.
Remember, after several harvests, you will be able to determine when you prefer to cut your plants— earlier or later— and how tightly to trim them. You are in complete control of the final product. Experiment with different methods and let your personal preferences guide your approach.
Dry
This is the final step before you can smoke a dry bud. The idea and process are quite simple: Hang dry until the stems snap. The buds are attached to the branches by small stems. If you grab a bud and move it, and you hear a“ snap,” then you can remove the buds from the branches. If the bud and branch just bend limply, allow a day or two longer. Depending on where you dry and the humidity in the atmosphere, this process takes anywhere from three to six days.
CAUTION: Do not dry near an indoor vented dryer or anywhere that the cannabis will absorb odors. Your cannabis will taste like the odors that were present where you dried it. If persistent mustiness or other unpleasant odors are present, they will permeate the buds and ruin the taste.
Fully Wet-Trimmed buds hanging from a wire clothes hanger. Notice, it is the complete plant. There are no small bud sites whatsoever!
Hanging your buds up is not difficult. A few methods include:
● A Drying Box has thin wires strung side to side across a box.
● Bud Drying Baskets are available from your local grow store in various sizes and configurations, and are essentially mesh baskets. The only drawback is that buds will tend to flatten a bit on one side.
● Purpose-built Metal Hangers with bud clips are also available at your local grow store and are awesome!
● Old-School Simple Wire Clothes Hangers work very well, are readily available for purchase almost anywhere, and are costeffective.
Cure and Storage
Light and air are not your friends. There is no single correct way to do this process, either, so I will jump right to the method I’ ve developed and prefer to use.
Gerry’ s Best Practices
● Pop or cut buds from stems, once you can snap or crack the stems.
● Place in a non-air-tight container until the desired aroma and consistency are achieved.
● Once you are happy with the outcome, seal the cannabis in a light and air-tight container, preferably of food-grade standards.
● Finally, enjoy!
Tweak this process as you desire. It’ s your harvest, and you are in complete control of the final product. Whether you do a quick, loose trim or are really meticulous and do a super tight trim, or whether you let it cure for one week or seven weeks before you enjoy your cannabis, it is entirely up to you!
I like to enjoy my cannabis at any and every stage after the stem-snap!
Scan the QR code to see Gerry’ s harvest videos. Gerry is also available at Emerald Garden Grow Supply for Free personal grow consultations. He’ s happy to help walk you through your grow from seed to harvest!
Gerry Donovan, the owner of Emerald Garden Grow Supply, Raytown, MO, says,“ I am not a plant Biologist nor a Chemist. I do not have any formal cannabis plant education, as that was a non-existent thing before today’ s world. I do, however, have a passion for cannabis, which words fail to describe. I’ ve traveled throughout Europe, including Amsterdam, Spain, and Canada, where I not only ventured into the world of seeds and genetics but also continued my quest to learn as much as I could about Growing the Plant. I continue to expand my knowledge via grow seminars and cultivators’ conferences and, most importantly, through simple discussions with other growers. Over the last 22 years, I’ ve developed my own Grow Methodology through trial and error with love and passion. I hope to guide you on the pathway to enjoying the best cannabis you have ever consumed— your own homegrown!” Cannabis – Education – Wellness.
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