DrZiggy's Low And Slow Drying: Maximizing Your Harvest

The first time I chopped up an ounce I started using one of those hand grinders- All I can say is I gave up on that idea real quick. I saw that mini-food processor on a YouTube video on making Tincture and bought one immediately.
 
The first time I chopped up an ounce I started using one of those hand grinders- All I can say is I gave up on that idea real quick. I saw that mini-food processor on a YouTube video on making Tincture and bought one immediately.

Mine will be in tomorrow, prime is nice.

Thanks again Troy01
 
Very interesting reading. I really do not have time to read the entire thread. So hoping for a simple answer (simple mind).

If a person has only their food fridge for it and no humidity gauge equipment, etc. Would it be better to not try putting in the fridge and trying another drying method? If ok to use the food fridge (allowances for odor foods removed) on normal fridge temp setting for food preservation? Would simply laying them out in a layer benefit? Or in a paper bag placed inside the fridge?

I read hang for 4 to 24 hrs and then fridge. How long in the fridge? Until fully dried? Until the stem snaps like hang drying and then jarring? I have an Auto Bubblegum a few days over 2 weeks flowered and interested in trying it for that. If it works well? Want to try it on my Golden Tiger and Cafe Racer (Girl Scout Cookies x Grand Daddy Purple) for next grow.

In case you may be curious why I would be growing an Auto Bubblegum and not what I consider the superior Golden Tiger? I would have Golden Tiger going, but something happened and removed the seedlings out of paranoia. Wont go into the details, but it sure freaked me out and nearly did not try growing at all, but not having is a little stronger than the paranoia.
:)

GT is now the Lady-In-Waiting. Space in very limited also and I also wanted to try my first Autoflower amd the Bubblegum were cheap.

Thanks
 
As I recall it's just buds (no stems) paper bag for a week (turn the bag over once a day but don't open). Then into a jar with a hygrometer for an hour. If higher than 68%, back in the bag in the fridge for another week and repeat. If 68% or lower (under the assumption that your ambient RH is lower than 62%) then begin the standard burping/airing process to get it down to 62%. Then standard cure.

If your ambient RH is higher than 62%, go with rice balls as described in this process:
Using Rice Balls to Quickly Lower the Relative Humidity in Jars
 
Thanks In The Shed. That help clear the thinking and appreciate the simplicity of it. I was wondering about the stems. I saw some pix in the thread of whole colas being layed in trays ans was wondering.
 
Thanks In The Shed. That help clear the thinking and appreciate the simplicity of it. I was wondering about the stems. I saw some pix in the thread of whole colas being layed in trays ans was wondering.

SweetSue was using the stems to support the buds and slow the drying process when using the dehydrator method. No need to slow the process when you are already doing the fridge low and slow!
 
That's so true InTheShed. When drying low and slo you want the buds small. Cut them down for faster drying.

I'm finding that by doing so and drying in paper bags I can get the harvest jarred up after two weeks. Jarred up my Dark Slide last night at day 14 in the bags. They were already down to 60% RH.

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Love this method. Let the cure begin. :slide:
 
This is a great thread! So much awesome info in here and it looks like you guys have had some great results too.

A mini fridge with a freezer certainly looks like the best cheap option, propping the freezer door open with a piece of card works perfectly and collects all the humidity, along with not peeking too much and keeping the door shut eh!!?

I have found a couple of rice cakes in the jar with the almost ready to cure (RH ~70%) buds brings the RH down to around 60% in around an hour and holds firm there. Rice cakes are easy to find and super cheap, they dont work quiet as well as the baked dry rice but no prep is needed and they can be replaced easily.
 
That's so true InTheShed. When drying low and slo you want the buds small. Cut them down for faster drying.

I'm finding that by doing so and drying in paper bags I can get the harvest jarred up after two weeks. Jarred up my Dark Slide last night at day 14 in the bags. They were already down to 60% RH.

IMG_55067.JPG




Love this method. Let the cure begin. :slide:


OK Sooooo. I came here to post this. {{{Sue we are duplicating our timing again.}}}:cheer:

So on with the piccy..... not as big a harvest as Sue, but sticky to be sure.

Here it is after one week in the fridge still on the stem, as Sue said not really drying, almost super slo. mo. for 7 days.
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Lighter for size reference
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closer look
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So what is a pollen chucker like me to do?
chop it off the stem and back into the bag.

Piccy...
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It has another 5 or six days I would say before jar. Still great color, aroma and dense. stinking the whole kitchen.
 
So I have been trying to read up through this thread, but hoping someone could just answer for me, what's the verdict on the whole "frost free" refrigerator thing? Can I do this with just a normal fridge? Or does it have to be one with the freezer rack at the top contained in the same area?
 
Yeah that's where I read about the frost-free but it seems like people are doing it with normal fridges...

The rice bags make it possible in a normal fridge. Make up and store 6-8 bags of the baked rice bags and swap them as and when they no longer drop the humidity. There’s a link somewhere in this thread about how to make them.
Also make sure the fridges free space has some dense objects in, a case of beer is ideal :) that will Work like the ice blocks you put in a picnic.
Try not to open the door too much and get a RH meter that has a cable and probe so you can keep an eye on the RH and temp without opening the door.
With all the buds in a brown paper bag you’ll have a great result. If the fridge shelves are glass then sit the bags on an opened up egg box to keep them off the glass where it could get damp.
 
Yeah that's where I read about the frost-free but it seems like people are doing it with normal fridges...

I will be honest, I am not sure what a frost free fridge is to compare to... Mine come with the apartment and is well over 20 years old. But it looks similar to the one in the picture in that post by Furcifer.

get a RH meter that has a cable and probe so you can keep an eye on the RH and temp without opening the door.
. . . .

That is excellent! I have one of the one with a cable, I didnt think to use it for 'that keepin the door closed' -- I like much-ly!
I checked mine with the one without the cable before I put any buds in the crisper draw.
:ciao:
 
Perfect :thumb:
Make lots of them, all stored in the zip lock bags in the fridge and aim to knock around 3% humidity off each day. That's a very rough guide as there's lots of variables but also you don't want to dry the buds too fast either, a steady drop of 3% allows moisture time to move through the plant without over drying and frazzling the outside.
Using rice as a dessicant is a good idea, but a couple of words of caution here:

First, check the rice after each use to see if any is damp or soft. If it is, discard it; rice is too cheap to take any chances. My wife and I make a fermented Thai sausage where rice is the inoculant. The rice contains the bacteria that sours the sausage. The surface of rice is extremely porous. And this bacteria (more likely, family of bacteria) appears to be endemic and thankfully benign. But that porous surface could collect others, as well as molds. Not all of these would be killed off at 200 degrees in your oven. So it necessary to make sure the rice has not become too damp.

Second, many are putting the rice in sachets, or rice balls. This makes sense and I'll probably do the same. But using pantyhose, thigh-highs? After all the effort to make the best medicine you can? What might be leaching into it? Wouldn't it make more sense to use cheesecloth, tied with cotton (or hemp) string? You could still put these in the oven reuse them, after checking for damp or soft spots.

Back to the darkside
 
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