Flushing with Concentrates to flavor your Herb?

[Hender420]

I was reading an article on the 420 forum, and I came across something unusual. Apparently you can use concentrates to slightly flavor your herb. I assume you dilute the concentrate flavoring...

What's your take on this?

Adding Flavors
People pay a lot of money to get seeds they think will grow pot that smells like blueberries or chocolate or something else.

Often these strains are hard to grow or may not be as potent or high yielding as other less expensive varieties.

People want to know if orange bud smells and tastes like an orange. With the proper techniques you can make your favorite variety smell and often times taste like anything you want.

You want to do this without ruining the cure. It's no point having blueberry pot that burns your throat or doesn't get you high. Do not pour any syrup or similar flavorings on your pot. The sugar will make it very harsh and you are inviting mold. There are better ways.

The best flavor enhancing starts while the plant is still growing. You can do a certain amount while it's curing and you can even affect the smell/flavor somewhat after it's been cured.

There are two main approaches, inside out and outside in. You can apply flavors inside the plant while it's still growing and you can try to add flavors after it's been harvested but this is from the outside.

Anything you put in your plants water will affect the taste of the finished product particularly if you harvest it right afterwards.

I learned this about 20 years ago the hard way. I fertilized using fish emulsion right before I topped the plant. Bad move! The resulting top smelled like fish and had a foul taste.

What you want to do is select a flavoring that is very concentrated. Lets take orange for an example. You could use orange juice but if you could find concentrated orange extract you would have less pulp etc to deal with. You will find some concentrated flavor extracts in the grocery store.

Want your pot to smell like vanilla? Vanilla extract is cheap and readily available, so is lemon extract (cooking variety). Other extracts can be found in stores that specialize in baking supplies.

Lets say you can't find any of that and you want to use what you have on hand. I took the example of orange flavoring. If all you have is orange juice you could use that.

I would suggest filtering it first to get out as much of the pulp as possible. A coffee filter works well but it'll take a while to filter it all.

You may have to change filters a few times. Those with hydroponic units will shudder at the thought of a lot of goop going through their system. That's why I suggested the concentrated extracts if you can find them.

It's important to do this shortly before harvest. For one thing, most extracts including the ones you make up yourself have a lot of sugar in them. This sugar will ferment and decay rapidly, even more so in a hydro unit.

With hydro I recommend putting the flavoring in the water between 1 and 3 hours before harvest. This rule isn't set in stone but I heard from one grower who used a sugar based clearing solution on his crop and less than 24 hours later the water was foaming from bacteria growth.

Plants draw up solution fairly quickly so one hour should be enough for some of the flavoring to reach the top.

Three hours should not be enough time for bacteria to grow but you will want to dump out the solution right afterwards and clean out your unit.

Remember to use plain water for a few days before harvesting your hydro crop so all that will be in the water will be the flavoring.

If you are a soil grower it's even easier. You might think it would take longer for the flavor to work it's way through the plant but this is not the case.

All you have to do is let the plant dry out a little before your apply the solution. In other words schedule a watering just before harvest.

Naturally you were giving your plants plain water for several days to a week or two before harvest weren't you? Give the plant the water with the flavor when it's a little bit thirsty and it will draw it right up. One hour is more than enough time for this to happen.

After harvest it's important to give it a good cure as I described last week. Resist the temptation to fast dry some of the weed to try it out. You will find it's even more harsh than it would be normally because you have added some sugar to the plant by way of the flavoring.

The curing process will take care of the extra sugar and give you nice mild smoke. It will also have the flavor and aroma you are looking for.

I'm sure I will get a deluge of email asking me what the exact formula is for the flavoring. I can hear it now "how many drops of Bosco per gallon?" First of all, I don't know what you want.

You may want something that smells exactly like an orange or a blueberry and doesn't smell at all like pot.

As far as I know that's not possible. You would probably ruin the pot if you succeeded. What some people think is a nice hint of strawberry may be way too strong to the next person.

What one grower thinks is very blueberry may not smell or taste like blueberry to his friend. I suggest that you don't treat your whole crop this way while you are experimenting. Dirt growers will find this easy because they could use something different in each pot.

Hydro people may want to isolate a plant or two with the solution. This wouldn't be very hard because you wouldn't need circulation for the short period of time it would be soaking in it.

Other things you could try are guava, pineapple, grapefruit, passion fruit, cherry, mint or even pina colada. Stronger and more concentrated flavorings will have a more pronounced effect than more dilute products.

You may need gallons of orange juice to get what you want but a half ounce of concentrated strawberry essence might do the job nicely.

I may start collecting recipes and have an issue of the SU devoted to peoples favorite recipes sometime in the future. In short, experiment and see what works for you.

Much like a rose or other flower in a vase of water, cannabis can uptake fluids and actually remain “alive” if the freshly-cut stem is placed in an aqueous solution. The plant root system filters out large molecules, especially if the molecule is highly charged. If a flavoring-agent is placed in the soil, it will remain there, and not be taken up by the plant roots. This is because flavoring agents (flavanoids) are large, highly charged molecules. This results in the flavanoid remaining in the soil. The end result is that the flavoring agents act like a salt in the soil, and thus having osmotic properties, actually draws water from the plant back into the soil. This is a simplification but the end result is to dehydrate the plant and result in its death. Or so I'm told

 

[Herb & Suds]

Much like a rose or other flower in a vase of water, cannabis can uptake fluids and actually remain “alive” if the freshly-cut stem is placed in an aqueous solution. The plant root system filters out large molecules, especially if the molecule is highly charged. If a flavoring-agent is placed in the soil, it will remain there, and not be taken up by the plant roots. This is because flavoring agents (flavanoids) are large, highly charged molecules. This results in the flavanoid remaining in the soil. The end result is that the flavoring agents act like a salt in the soil, and thus having osmotic properties, actually draws water from the plant back into the soil. This is a simplification but the end result is to dehydrate the plant and result in its death. Or so I'm told

I heard isn’t really factual and your boy was last here in 2017
WELCOME TO RIU

 

[hotrodharley]

“Cannabinoids are not water soluble, and formulation strategies differ for edible and topical products compared with those intended for inhalation. In aqueous products like beverages, cannabinoids are often encapsulated in micelles and microemulsions using proprietary methods developed by pharmaceutical companies.”

Save your money on “flavoring agents” and spend it on good lighting instead.

 

[xtsho]

Last time I grew Oldtimers Haze I cut a large bud off at harvest and stuck the stem in a glass of single malt scotch. I left it there for a couple days and then dried it normally. When it was done drying I smoked some and could actually pick up a hint of peat. I started the cure in a box made from used American Oak bourbon barrels then finished it off in a similar box made of used Spanish Oak sherry casks. The final result was just spectacular. I could taste both the American and Spanish Oak. I only let it age a year but can only imagine what it would be like after a good 12 year aging process.

I call it Scotch Haze.

 

[amneziaHaze]

i put mollases last 2 or 5 days i cant remember it raised ph like crazy cant say it did much to the smell and flavor of the smoke but i couldnt compare to anything soo maybe it did something. molasses has a weak taste anyways soo if it was in the plant it was subtle

 

[amneziaHaze]

Hey there hat,

Me and my bro were once discussing this in theory and we ruled out the experiment, we didn't even try. My reason is this,

When the plant takes up nutrients, it has to be in small chunks (ions) and the individual chunk wont have the property of the big chunk (compound) which gives the flavor. Am not good in chemistry(or maths) but if AB is the orangey/fruity concentrated flavoring agent, the plant gets A & B individually.

But if the plant can combine these two and produce the same flavoring compound AB, your theory wins and I'll be puffing on Grape Hindu Kush But citrus plants differ in production of their flavors with that of cannabis. Hence the flavor has to be in the genes, that is where your hunt for phenotypes matter.


If the stuff I give my plant contributes to the flavor I'll be smoking cowdung , so by organics we can enhance- only enhance the flavor already present in the strain.

Please do let me know if any experiment is a success in hydro/soil/aero. Glad to be a part of the conversation; I maybe wrong after that 420.

Toker.

if you use chelated nutes and simple food coloring or esential oils you can get any fruit smell and taste. it will bind to the nutes and go in your plant

 

[meangreengrowinmachine]

Much like a rose or other flower in a vase of water, cannabis can uptake fluids and actually remain “alive” if the freshly-cut stem is placed in an aqueous solution. The plant root system filters out large molecules, especially if the molecule is highly charged. If a flavoring-agent is placed in the soil, it will remain there, and not be taken up by the plant roots. This is because flavoring agents (flavanoids) are large, highly charged molecules. This results in the flavanoid remaining in the soil. The end result is that the flavoring agents act like a salt in the soil, and thus having osmotic properties, actually draws water from the plant back into the soil. This is a simplification but the end result is to dehydrate the plant and result in its death. Or so I'm told

I mean there is SOMETHING to this... I have made blue roses for my wife before you blue dye In the water and white roses... so there is something. But I zero idea the science or anything else behind it.

 

[amneziaHaze]

can mycelium or some bacteria in the medium break those large molecules in to something acceptably sized?

 

[xtsho]

I blend bacon, eggs, and toast with some coffee and then strain it. I use that to water my plants for the last week. I end up with a good morning smoke. You can change it up and use different jams or even honey on your toast. You can also use different types of bacon like apple wood smoked, pepper, or maple. Eggs can be scrambled, sunny side up, soft or hard boiled etc... I won't even bother getting into all the various possibilities with different coffee, cappuccinos, latte's, mocha's, too many options to list.

You'll really have a full breakfast strain for your morning smoke. Now for the evening smoke you'll want to put together a full course meal. Steak, baked potato, green vegetable, salad, bread, etc... Blend that with a nice Cabernet and strain it like I've already explained. Water your plants with that a week before harvest and enjoy the result. You can make a desert weed as well using the same technique. If you're a fast food fanatic just get a super sized meal and toss it in the blender. Get a milkshake instead of soda. Chocolate is my favorite. It puts the chocolate into a chocolate kush.

 

[hotrodharley]

While living in Lubbock TX I rented a house from 2 guys from Spain working for Bayer. Crop science. One of the things I learned from one is terpene science is a science. Further nobody has found a way to alter terpenes in a plant. Any plant. There’s no making a corpse flower smell like a rose and vice versa.

 

[LeastExpectedGrower]

i put mollases last 2 or 5 days i cant remember it raised ph like crazy cant say it did much to the smell and flavor of the smoke but i couldnt compare to anything soo maybe it did something. molasses has a weak taste anyways soo if it was in the plant it was subtle

I use blackstrap molasses in my water/feed to help support any microbial life in the soil. I haven't found that it raises my pH. My water starts just north of 7pH (right around 7.2). Once there's Molasses in the water (about a teaspoon or so) I end up around 6.8pH, which I end up dropping down to 6.3-6.5 with GH pH Down.

 

[mudballs]

can mycelium or some bacteria in the medium break those large molecules in to something acceptably sized?

Yes it's called depolymerization but think about the amounts you would need to 'color' the overwhelming amount of other flavanoids and cannabinoids...it's basically mathematically impossible without killing the plant.

 

[VincenzioVonHook]

People over here in Aus just spray there plant with whatever terpenes they want. Pretty much adds whatever flavour/smell profile they want instead of growing actual decent weed.

 

[amneziaHaze]

Mine went from 6.4 to 8.2 i did a res change every day and every day the same. Even used ph down 24h later allways 8.2
Allsoo used tnc bactor it has some life in it

I do hydro and it was normal mollases for eating i think unsulfored

I use blackstrap molasses in my water/feed to help support any microbial life in the soil. I haven't found that it raises my pH. My water starts just north of 7pH (right around 7.2). Once there's Molasses in the water (about a teaspoon or so) I end up around 6.8pH, which I end up dropping down to 6.3-6.5 with GH pH Down.

 

[amneziaHaze]

I would go for taste.nobody wants that parfume smell of vanilla but if you can get that tiny amount where 2 people will say they taste it and 2 dont thats the perfect spot.
Dont know if molasses gave mine anything but all the people that smoked it said it was the tastiest weed they tried.maybe street weed is just shit but still...

 

[xtsho]

People over here in Aus just spray there plant with whatever terpenes they want. Pretty much adds whatever flavour/smell profile they want instead of growing actual decent weed.

I've heard of some of the stuff they do there. No thanks. I would rather smoke some old seeded brick weed than anything sprayed with terpenes.

I want only naturally occurring terpenes in my weed. Others want something else. That's all fine but unless it's regulated and tested like it is here you don't really know what you're consuming. Even with the regulation and testing where I'm at I doubt that everything is on the up and up. The testing is done by third parties and those are the results submitted to the state. Plenty of room for entities to play fast and lose to bypass any consumer protections. I'm referring to product sold at legal dispensaries. Flower, vape cartridges, etc...

 

[Hender420]

Yes it's called depolymerization but think about the amounts you would need to 'color' the overwhelming amount of other flavanoids and cannabinoids...it's basically mathematically impossible without killing the plant.

Enter mycelium. Mycelium is kind of like yeast (both are fungi), but unlike most yeast cells, which grow as a single cell, mycelium is multicellular and can grow into macro-size structures—which we most often recognize as mushrooms. Not only does mycelium produce small molecules, but it gently and with supreme precision assembles them into complex structures so small that they are invisible to the human eye.
Working much like single-celled yeast, mycelium takes in small molecules of food—typically sugar but often from sources such as wood or plant waste—by excreting enzymes that break these materials down into digestible morsels. As the mycelium grows it assembles a dense network of long, microscopic fibers that grow through the substrate like a superhighway system.

 

[blueberrymilkshake]

Enter mycelium. Mycelium is kind of like yeast (both are fungi), but unlike most yeast cells, which grow as a single cell, mycelium is multicellular and can grow into macro-size structures—which we most often recognize as mushrooms. Not only does mycelium produce small molecules, but it gently and with supreme precision assembles them into complex structures so small that they are invisible to the human eye.
Working much like single-celled yeast, mycelium takes in small molecules of food—typically sugar but often from sources such as wood or plant waste—by excreting enzymes that break these materials down into digestible morsels. As the mycelium grows it assembles a dense network of long, microscopic fibers that grow through the substrate like a superhighway system.

Go on...

 

[hotrodharley]

Go on...

Hang on. He’s still watching the YouTube about it.

 

[blueberrymilkshake]

Hang on. He’s still watching the YouTube about it.

Enter my last brain cell