outdoor and dense buds

I just chopped my lemon kush and she was looking pretty fat. Well for my learning curve standard. They are on the 4th day of hang dry and they probably will go in jars tonight. The stems on the smaller branches are snapping. Bigger stems don't quite snap off but are not soft and easy to bend. Its all crispy.

That's not my concern. First off I HATE SHRINKAGE ! Man the buds look so nice when filled with water. Then blamed all dry, shrunk and leafy.

Is it hard to produce nice solid dense buds outdoors not so leafy? And my weed doesn't smell like weed after they dry. It smells like .... Dry leafs .

I don't even know what I expect from this post. Venting I guess]

Yea man it's hard to get the densness that's where strain and patience come in a lot sorry about that mabey if you have more just let them go a extra week or two if you can, also lots of direct sunlight is good for dense buds.

From want I've experienced, it's got a lot to do with genectics. I don't get more than 6 hrs of direct sunlight and most of my strains are very dense, some of them not as much as others. I'm not sure if any of the so-called "bud builders" do anything or not. I've noticed it mostly depends on the strains. Could be wrong but this is what I have experienced.

From what I've noticed {this my 2nd yr growing, so not an expert}, that the buds with "plump" up during the curing phase. How much depends on a lot of different things, the amount of water left in them before curing begins, RH factor and as mention before the strain. The smell will change with curing time also.

I've noticed lots of sun seems to help. I've got some clones of the same plant in locations that get different amounts of sun and the one that gets the most sun has significantly larger denser buds.

Hmmm, so the majority factor is genetics. I had 8+ hours of direct sun. Big HOWEVER I di not PH my water. I did let it stand out in the patio over periods of time. But that's it.

That probably also would improve denseness ?

The potency is there but not the smell. I have a GDP that has been curing for a couple months now. No smell still. But it doesn't smell like hay anymore. It smells like air.

I have one more girl still gathering light. I'm going to let her go as long as I can. See if it makes a difference

TripleMindedGee5150 said:

Hmmm, so the majority factor is genetics. I had 8+ hours of direct sun. Big HOWEVER I di not PH my water. I did let it stand out in the patio over periods of time. But that's it.

That probably also would improve denseness ?

The potency is there but not the smell. I have a GDP that has been curing for a couple months now. No smell still. But it doesn't smell like hay anymore. It smells like air.

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There seems to be so many different factors at play when growing that to point to just one or two would probably be a wrong assumption. I think it's a combination of things all working together, strain genetics, location, weather etc. They can either be beneficial or a detriment to the plants.

You said you hung it up for 4 days and now the branches are snapping and its ready to jar.... so I think your drying room is too dry. I have a nice cool room and it takes 8-10 days for the branches to snap. One year, I dried in my utility room which has a water heater in it. The fire that the water heater used to heat the water made the air too dry and made the branches snap in 4-5 days. It dried too fast, became crispy and lost quality. Find a better dry room. Get the air flow stopped unless if is from a small fan, not directly on the buds. Get the light blacked out 100%. If it is drying in 4 days, it is simply not an appropriate place to be drying.

I am a huge fan of density in buds and was crushed when I couldn't get them to tighten up like I thought they would, Curing the right way is key. Find a nice cool room and dial it in. After 4-5 months of work it sucks to lose anything due to a quick dry. slow it down and you will see those airy buds get tight like little rocks. Hope this helps. If you have questions, let me know!

dense buds outdoors are largely a result of genetics and maturity. it's not uncommon for weather to shut down outdoor grows before they are fully ripe. assuming perfect weather, well lit and fed plants with the disposition to do so should produce big chunky colas. it does often take longer for the same strain to finish properly outside compared to inside and the extra weeks can be maddening... I also think cold temperatures can make a denser nugget, whereas the same strain grown in a warmer climate might mature with the flowers a tad looser.

KemosabeMcGee said:

If it is drying in 4 days, it is simply not an appropriate place to be drying.

I am a huge fan of density in buds and was crushed when I couldn't get them to tighten up ....snip....you will see those airy buds get tight like little rocks. Hope this helps. If you have questions, let me know!

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Hmmm. Ya I see your point. All the tutorials I've read have stated 7- 10 days to dry. Mine feel way too crispy to soon. I'm just using my garage . the water heater is in there but its a big room. The larger branches don't snap but they take lots of effort to bend and they bend right in half. Not like a "soft fresh branch bend" To the touch they feel crispy. I also noticed that all my popcorn nuggets I threw in a box and covered with tissue paper(the kind for presents) and they seem to be more on the slow drying side. I will have to adjust my caveman method. I figured they were drying way to fast.

Genetics help but all so they will look and feel nice and dense on the plant but when dry not so much. As mentioned though, proper curing if not gone into jars to dry will tighten them up and bring in the good smell. They may feel dry to the touch but if you haven't dried to long there will be enough moisture in the stems to moisten up. If not you can throw a wet leaf or two in the jars.Happy curing.

TWS said:

Genetics help but all so they will look and feel nice and dense on the plant but when dry not so much. As mentioned though, proper curing if not gone into jars to dry will tighten them up and bring in the good smell. They may feel dry to the touch but if you haven't dried to long there will be enough moisture in the stems to moisten up. If not you can throw a wet leaf or two in the jars.Happy curing.

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I've done the banana peel back in the day. Left it in my jar of dried dispenserie weed. 2 hours and it was way way moist. I like the wet leaf idea much better though.

TripleMindedGee5150 said:

I just chopped my lemon kush and she was looking pretty fat. Well for my learning curve standard. They are on the 4th day of hang dry and they probably will go in jars tonight. The stems on the smaller branches are snapping. Bigger stems don't quite snap off but are not soft and easy to bend. Its all crispy.

That's not my concern. First off I HATE SHRINKAGE ! Man the buds look so nice when filled with water. Then blamed all dry, shrunk and leafy.

Is it hard to produce nice solid dense buds outdoors not so leafy? And my weed doesn't smell like weed after they dry. It smells like .... Dry leafs .

I don't even know what I expect from this post. Venting I guessView attachment 2845813]

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Dry leaf smell is normal, chlorophyll I believe causes it. As mentioned, proper curing will resolve the issue.

Nice bud!

Thanks. You know I have much more super mad respect for that nicely grown MJ now. Growing has been such an eye opener for me. All the dedication and care that goes into it. Not just the beginning but every step to the end. All the detail. Good stuff

everything need to fall inplace to get primo smoke from the outdoors.. Sun, weather, genetics, maturity, nutrients, pruning, harvest technique. The quick dry was a definite no no, that can make a beautiful nug a harsh brittle bland thing to smoke. A slow dry and good cure are one of the most important thing to a connoisseurs palate...

So I went to burp the 'popcorn' nuggets jar and it was moist. Way moist. I could smell and fell the moist as I opened it. Left it burp for 2.5-3 hours.

Did the other jar as well. But that one wasn't as moist. Forgot to mention that I still have another coat hanger of branches to finish a manicure and jarring.

Good beer , home with the fam now. I say it was a very good day. No hog, some smog and didn't use the 'HK. Hold on gotta a beep from Kim....

You left a lot of foliage on the plant. You gotta get all the green leaf crap off the nugs. Makes the smoke harsh and less enjoyable IMO

sativaguy said:

You left a lot of foliage on the plant. You gotta get all the green leaf crap off the nugs. Makes the smoke harsh and less enjoyable IMO

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Yea I kinda knew that. Bit the leaves started getting real deep. I tried to spread the buds and snip right on the stem. Then it was just getting to airy looking. So I was going to wait till they dried a bit more and trim more. Plus I thought "more resin balls " neway. I can hang with a little harsh. I guess. For now.

Looks to me like you harvested a couple weeks too soon. Last few weeks are crucial for nice dense buds as the calyxs will swell. What factored in your decision to harvest? Trich color?

lumbo said:

Looks to me like you harvested a couple weeks too soon. Last few weeks are crucial for nice dense buds as the calyxs will swell. What factored in your decision to harvest? Trich color?

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Yup trich color. They were all cloudy. But then I read that trichs on leaves may not necessarily be the same colors as the 'buds trichs" I used a 60-100x led microscope. I have elaborate photos too. When I cut her I was literally thinking "I know its too soon. But I like the uppity high.