The How and Why of Curing Your Cannabis

You’ve spent months caring for your plants, now you’re that much closer to tasting that sweet herb you’ve worked so hard to create. Unfortunately, you can’t just snip your buds and smoke away. There’s one more vital step to take – to cure that flower! Curing cannabis is an unappreciated step in the process but it is just as important as the ones you’ve taken this far.

Drying and curing your bud plays a massive role in the quality of your nugs. These can take weeks to complete, but it is well worth being patient to ensure the best result from your harvest. Drying is the process of removing most of the water from your buds. This makes them more resilient, easier to handle, prevents mould forming – and most importantly it makes the buds more enjoyable to smoke.

Why You Should Cure Your Buds

• Increased Potency
• Quality Smoke – the terpenes found in cannabis, providing the bud’s flavour and aroma, can degrade at certain temperatures. A slow cure will preserve these compounds. Also, curing breaks down leftover minerals and unwanted sugars which are the reason buds can be quite harsh and burn the throat.
• Preservation – curing allows you to store your cannabis for longer, without worrying about mould or the loss of your cannabinoids.

There are a few things to keep in mind when curing cannabis. You should avoid exposure to direct light during this phase. Store your bud in an airtight jar and in a dark location, as light can damage your kush and degrade the cannabinoids.
Heat will harm your harvest! In a climate such as South Africa’s, the heat is another factor that can degrade the compounds in your bud. Minimise damage and mould by keeping your buds cool. 21°C is the ideal temperature.
Humidity is key. Once you’ve dried your buds sufficiently, they must be kept with an ideal humidity level. Products such as Boveda humidity packs help control the humidity in your jar – with the ideal being around 62%.

How to Cure Your Buds

Step 1: If you haven’t already removed your buds from the branch, now is the time to do so. Ensure that you’ve trimmed them and removed all those sugar leaves.

Step 2: Grab a couple of airtight containers and stash the bud inside. Glass jars are what we would recommend, allowing you to keep an eye on them easily – and admire your work. Fill the jars about ¾ of the way. Give the jar a shake. If the buds move around freely, they’re sufficiently dried. If they clump together, they need to be dried a little more.

Step 3: Tighten up those containers and place them in a cool, dark spot. In a couple of days, you’ll notice that the buds aren’t all that dry on the outside, as they are rehydrated from the core of the bud. We would also recommend adding a humidity pack to your jar before you close it up. Boveda provides 62% humidity packs to ensure the optimal environment for your bud.

Step 4: During your first week of curing, you’ll want to ‘burp’ your jars a couple of times a day – letting them breathe. The moisture will escape and bring in fresh oxygen. Keep an eye out for mould while you’re at it.
After the first week, you’ll only need to let the bud breathe every few days.

Step 5: Keep burping your jars over the next few weeks. After 3 weeks, your bud will be ready to give you the high you’ve been craving. However, 4 to 8 weeks will improve them even more. Your patience will be rewarded! Quality can increase for up to 6 months of curing.

Curing cannabis may be the most unappreciated and overlooked step in growing your own marijuana. However, it’s clear to see why it is one of the most important steps. Be patient and reap the rewards just a few extra weeks later. You’ve put so much time and effort into your grow, don’t throw it out the window because you were too impatient to cure your bud the right way.