Dry or wet trim?

[Orlando Scout]

I'm slowly approaching my very first harvest and have some people tell me it's best and easiest to trim wet, but I also have people saying you get a better product dry trimming. I just want the best meds I can with what I've got. Thanks in advance

 

[Chris Scorpio]

Potato potato

Tomatoe tomatoe

I do both, depends on my motivation
Just did 4 plants, ugggggg, did em after they hung 2 days

It's easier to trim when first cut, even when still in the pot

The most important aspect is drying, not over drying, then a good cure for a month or more

 

[Orlando Scout]

Potato potato

Tomatoe tomatoe

I do both, depends on my motivation
Just did 4 plants, ugggggg, did em after they hung 2 days

It's easier to trim when first cut, even when still in the pot

The most important aspect is drying, not over drying, then a good cure for a month or more

Thanks Chris! I guess I'll try both trim half while wet and trim other half after dried see which I prefer. I'm guessing it's one of those personal preference things.

 

[Chris Scorpio]

Thanks Chris! I guess I'll try both trim half while wet and trim other half after dried see which I prefer. I'm guessing it's one of those personal preference things.

How long you hanging it for?

What's your planned harvest dry and cure process

 

[Weaselcracker]

People with advanced tastes (pretty sure I’m not one of them) say that they can definitely tell the difference between dry trim and wet trim bud, with dry trim being a bit superior.
Myself I prefer trimming it wet because it’s so much easier - and the job is already hard enough IMO. Dry trimming is an art I haven’t mastered. Involves going over the crispy dry buds and sort of breaking/flicking off the sugar leaf. Not my cup of tea and it’s more time consuming.
Good idea to try it both ways.

 

[Orlando Scout]

How long you hanging it for?

What's your planned harvest dry and cure process

I was reading up on the low and slow process referred to me by another 420 member,but not exactly sure it's my first harvest so doing as much research as I can from real growers such as yourself. Not what Google says I should do like some people I know lol

 

[MrIcculus]

I think local conditions can effect this more than we give credit for. In higher humidity i like to trim wet, it will still take the 6-7 days to dry and is much easier and less time consuming. If it's dry though i trim dry so it has more of the plant to pull from to keep from drying out too quickly, those are usually full plant chop and hang.

Good idea to try it both ways.

Indeed.

 

[MidnightMann]

IMO biggest factor on Potency is genetics. Taste is curing. Only affect trimming has on taste is if they don't trim sugar leaves which will be harsher smoke. Wet or dry is just personal preference and I roll my eyes at the "I can tell wet/dry trim by smoking and wet/dry is superior", BS.

 

[Weaselcracker]

Perhaps. Not really for me to judge since I haven’t done a lot of dry trimming, but I tend to believe there’s a difference if done right. We had quite a bit of discussion about it a couple years back and the guy who told me that info was no fool- many years working in the industry and he knows what he’s talking about. I could dig up some links to that conversation when/if I got time.
But yeah, for potency and taste I’d put a lot of other factors ahead of the trimming method.

 

[Kriaze]

Do whatever you feel is best for you as trust me a few years down the line you will be so pissed at the days of trimming that you'll want the easiest option. As for differences in potency then it's a different matter, I hate seeing trichomes flicking off everywhere when trimming dry, but on the other note you're giving the plant a few more days of drawing goodness from those leaves left on. Personally I think if the harvest window is perfect you can't go wrong with a bit of wet trimming.

 

[MidnightMann]

Perhaps. Not really for me to judge since I haven’t done a lot of dry trimming, but I tend to believe there’s a difference if done right. We had quite a bit of discussion about it a couple years back and the guy who told me that info was no fool- many years working in the industry and he knows what he’s talking about. I could dig up some links to that conversation when/if I got time.
But yeah, for potency and taste I’d put a lot of other factors ahead of the trimming method.

If that person is speaking about a visual difference then I would generally agree. If you plan on selling to dispensary or as top shelf bud, you want the closest trim possible then that is easier achieved wet trimming because you can get right to the sugar leaves stem . With dry that is more difficult so the trim isn't usually as clean.

 

[GrizzWald]

Nevil speaks about it somewhere.. he would hang plants in controlled environment, either 6 weeks or 12 (id have to look for correct) without taking leaf off.. dry trim cured flowers.. said left cleaner and better product... How I've always done it, as that was just accepted way of drying where I'm from. 10 day not 6weeks plus, lol... I've done wet a few times since seeing it here..wet trimming taking off all trichs, shit sticking everywhere, flowers less potent than they otherwise could be.. dry takes four times the ammount of time.. and really sucks.. I hate trimming..

 

[Weaselcracker]

Not sure we are improving much on Chris Scorpio’s original reply but here’s part of that conversation I mentioned from iwltfum’s journal ( Iwltfum's Recirculating Coco GH Journal - Harlequin - Blackwater OG - China Jack )- with a bit of a dry trimming lesson. The subject was an ongoing conversation for a while - scattered over a few journals.

Some of the nuances of the art of dry trimming (as opposed to the industry of wet trimming):

1. Conditions have to be perfect in your drying AND trimming area. (makes it easier just to say that you should dry and trim in the same room) That means 55-65% humidity 65-70f constantly. If the humidity is lower than that, then the buds will dry more on the outside than the inside and it won't trim up right. You want conditions perfect in your trimming area because a few hours at the wrong humidity or temperature can really throw things off, esp when they are closer to being dry.


2. All fan leaves (any leaf without resin on it) must be taken off before the branches are hung to dry. These leaves turn brown and crumble when they dry on the branch and I know nobody wants their bud to look like it was rolled in a pile of dry leaves in the yard before they smoke it. (But I NEVER take any leaf off that has resin on it at this point, no sugar leaf comes off until the final trim)

3. Basically no scissor hash. The scissor hash you get when dry trimming is much different than the scissor hash you get when wet trimming. The dry trim hash is very dry and crumbly and doesn't want to stick the scissors as much as the wet kind.


4. No scissors needed. Although they help, you don't need scissors to dry trim properly dried herb because you can just peel the leaves off. with a hard, thin, object. The leaves want to come off when you're dry trimming so the only time you need scissors is when you want to cut trimmed buds off the bigger stems into the finished pile.

5. Less weight, more trim. Some people find this part really unappealing, but there is a reason for it. And that is, that when you dry trim, your actually able to get more leaf off of the bud (I'm going to say 25-50% more by weight) making the buds taste better and less harsh. (Now I know others claim that leaf doesn't taste bad when it's cured, but it does, I have participated in the taste tests) Out of any experiment that is performed by my fellow growers around here, the wet trim/dry trim question has been debated the most and I have to say that alot of growers I know switched over to dry trimming once I asked them to do some experimentation and testing of their own.

6. As for whether it's faster or slower. It probably depends on the person you're talking to. I'm lighting fast at dry trimming because that's the kind of trimming that I've done the most. But I know people that are faster at wet trimming because they do that the most. I can get a dry lb done in 8-9 hours. A full wet lb usually takes me around 12 hours. So it's close, but it's really your preference based on what you want to be practicing. It's a totally different hand motion to dry trim than wet trim. There is no closing of the scissors when dry trimming, it's more like shaving with one blade of the scissors (that's how we trimmed with only stems over xmas time, the shaving motion is all you need to pop those leaves off the buds)


7. Buds HAVE to be trimmed when they are ready. You get about 24 hours from the moment when they are ready to be trimmed until they are too dry. Even in a room where the humidity is 60%. This can be a big issue for some people too, because you generally have about a 3 day window where you know you will have to trim on one of those three days, but you still have to be ready to trim any of those three days just in case they are ready a day early or a day late, which can be really common. The three day window is generally 5-7 days from chopping the plant down


8. Personal preference is key, if you'd rather wet trim, then go for it. I've only met 2 or 3 non-growers that can even tell the difference between the two once it's in the jar.

Like I said, it's a bit more of a hassle, but any weed snob out there that I know, will tell you they prefer dry trimmed herb over wet trimmed. Some of them go as far as refusing to buy herb that looks like it was wet trimmed (not even kidding).

 

[natureman]

I always trim wet.
I find the drying time is shorter when you trim wet.
It makes sense since you're not drying leaves,only bud.

 

[MidnightMann]

Not sure we are improving much on Chris Scorpio’s original reply but here’s part of that conversation I mentioned from iwltfum’s journal ( Iwltfum's Recirculating Coco GH Journal - Harlequin - Blackwater OG - China Jack )- with a bit of a dry trimming lesson. The subject was an ongoing conversation for a while - scattered over a few journals.

The first line is "the Art of dry trimming vs the industry of wet trimming" unbiased just went out the door. Most things said are opinion and personal preference so can't disagree but the statement about dry tastes less harsh because you can get more of the sugar leaves off is just not true.once the bud drys and shrinks up you are only removing the surface sugar leaf. Being able to cut closer to bud is a big proponent of wet trimming, poll multiple growers and I'm sure a majority would agree on that point.

 

[Weaselcracker]

Yeah I think preference is the subject at hand. The bias that he mentions comes from experience. A lot of it. But this conversation is getting a little circular and I think I’ll wander off.
Since you’re already sure, based on...? I’ll skip scurrying out to run a poll.

 

[GrizzWald]

Don't wander off weasel. No preference or opinions, these are straight facts

 

[FISHGUY]

I'm also a new grower and have a question for the pro's to answer how and what am I trimming off the bud and why

Newbie

 

[vyserage]

I'm also a new grower and have a question for the pro's to answer how and what am I trimming off the bud and why

Newbie

You are trimming off the big fan leafs and sugar leafs. The sugar leafs are the smaller leafs that are coming out of the buds. You trim them because leaf matter is harsher to smoke and is less potent than the bud itself. Also because trimmed buds are much more pleasing to look at. You can save the trim from sugar leafs and harvest the trichomes from trim via cannabutter or whatever else

 

[Ganjagrandaddy]

I have tri3d lots of different ones to dry over the years and i now feel that the best is..
Pull the plant with roots intact
Hang straight away upside down and dont touch her until she has snappable stems. You havre to watch RH anf keep air circulating, off the plants.
My researched and tried choice is due to the way our girls use the available sugars, carbs , chlorophyll etc.. until total mortality of live cells.
When hung/chopped/split into smaller sections , they are alive and experience the action. If allowed to slowly and naturally use up their remaining nutes , they will convert most usable ones to thc ( through active movement as they very slowly dry out. )
Trimming can be a bit more effort but if you use defoliation of the fan leaves as you grow , then the smaller sugar leaves are not too bad to remove. This is my own opinion and probably too much waiting time for some ( 10 days ish) but i swear by it now. Worth researching this method to see it put a lot better by knowledgable people on plant biology. Good luck .