harvest, drying and curing questions,

hello, getting ready to harvest my first grow, ended up with three budding plants. I've got a couple of questions if any can help me out, much appreciated. #1) First, I'd like some clearity on the trichomes, you generally want to harvest when the trics have all turned milky white and are barely(10-33%) turning amber if you want a "head" high, if you want that couch lock you want to harvest when the trics are about 50-65% amber??? #2) What is the most effective curing process, I live in a hot and dry place so drying may be about 7-10 days, is jaring it the next best step or should bag it then jar it or is there another process that is better to for curing? I am not worried about speed but I'd like to smoke the stuff with in a 4-5 weeks. #3) Water Curing? please explain? I understand this to be the best especially if your not growing high quality stuff. The process goes something like submerge plant matter after harvest in water, stir a few times a day for a bit and then once a day after until 7-10 days is up, then pull out and dry by hanging and fans in dark room as you would normally, but does this really help out and remove the water soluable toxins??? #4) My dad is an old school hippy growing and he was telling me that they used to pull the whole plant for harvest and dip the roots in boiling water to "shock" it for some reason... sound familiar or anyone know why someone would do this? Thank you for your input and replies

Your pretty much right on in your post.65% amber might be a bit to much. I wouldn't pass 50%. You can cure in a bag or jar. If you grow alot of weight Jars become a pain in the ass,as in to many. Roasting bags work great. Water curing is a trip but I've smoked some and the taste and smell is really mellow. Be sure to read up on it a bit. I believe you are to change the water once a day. Theres a harvest and curing sub forum for more info on either. As for the boiling water method,I'd leave that up to the old hippies. lol

CANNABINOL (CBN)



Cannabinol is the primary degradation product of THC and increases in concentration with plant age. The concentration of this product in the bud is heavily dependent on the time of harvest. Harvesting the bud at a late stage also means that the concentration of CBN in relation to THC will be higher when compared to the peak of THC production. CBN is only mildly psychoactive and can cause "fuzzy head", drowsiness, disorientation and sleepiness in the smoker, properties that can be considered unpleasant in nature.

Brick covered the tri question so I'll tackle drying and curing.

For optimum results you will have to address your aridity problem. If the environment is dry and warm your
bud will dry too fast. Dry, crispy bud is harsh, burns too fast and allows the THC to degrade unnecessarily.
Go to WalMart and get a combination thermometer and relative humidity meter. Run you about $6. Best conditions
for drying/curing are 45-55% RH with a temperature from 65-75 or so. If your drying area is too dry you will have to
pick up a cheap humidifier. I think I paid $20 for mine. Get the type you pour water into so you can increase the RH.

I find most batches are near-dry after 3-4 days on the furnace filters I use for drying. When the bud gets to that point
I call the rest of the job curing. After a few days drying on the filters I put my product into glass jars with a rubber seal.
Seal up the near-dry and put the jar in the 'fridge for a couple days. That allows whatever moisture is still present to
spread evenly among the buds in the jar. Then open the top of the jar and let sit (continue curing) for 24 hours. Check
every day until you have the dryness you are looking for. The key is sealing the jar and letting the moisture spread out
evenly. Sometimes it is necessary to "burp" the jar with 2 or 3 trips to the 'fridge while sealed. When the product is where I want it
I seal it in plastic baggies. It's a good idea to go back and check on them occassionally as having to toss out moldy bud sucks!

Good luck, BigSteve.