How could I store my harvested buds before drying?

Hi all,

I’m growing organically 3 Original Amnesia from Dinafem indoor. I have switched to flowering light schedule since 4 days, So I should being harvesting at the beginning of August. The problem is that I have to travel just after the estimated harvesting time and will stay abroad for 37 days. I was thinking to just cut the entire plants and hang them upside down in a dark cool bathroom (It will be late winter period in August here in the south hemisphere) without manicuring them to ensure that the buds will not dry too much when I come back, also the bathroom has no windows but only a small exhaust fan, I don’t know if its better to turn on the exhaust fan before leaving the house or not, or may I could connect it to a programmable electric switch. I’m afraid to leave them that long time without any control of mould. Or may it be better to store the harvested buds in refrigerator or freezer without drying, and then when I come back I could start drying and curing?

Please advice me if you have any ideas.

Many thanks

So no one has any idea or advice?

I think freezing them is your best option but I've never done it. You should be able to find some pointers w/ a search, or maybe this will bump up an experienced answer. Personally, I'd be uncomfortable just leaving them out to dry being gone so long. And it's an important time in your project, harvesting and curing make or break it. Best to not leave it to chance, imo.

TLdr; freeze it, process upon return

breeder says 65 days on that but its genetics are haze-are you sure you'll be finished by then? that would be the biggest concern with her, IMO. a SSDD that just went to flower yesterday won't be done until +/- August 24 with nine weeks (63 days) scheduled.

you should use liquid nitrogen and flash freeze them into deep cryostorage - do you have a -18C deep chill freezer? that should do.

undercovergrow said:

breeder says 65 days on that but its genetics are haze-are you sure you'll be finished by then? that would be the biggest concern with her, IMO. a SSDD that just went to flower yesterday won't be done until +/- August 24 with nine weeks (63 days) scheduled.

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Well, I started flowering on the 6th of june, and I will travel the 9th of august, it makes exactly 9 weeks

Chester da Horse said:

you should use liquid nitrogen and flash freeze them into deep cryostorage - do you have a -18C deep chill freezer? that should do.

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could you explain more about this method please? I have a normal refrigerator/freezer but in the specifications it says -18C

Your timing is interesting to say the least. Seems like your grow will be overly dried. Is there someone who could possibly help you dry your cannabis? Someone you trust?

hang em, turn on the exhaust, order some broveda packs and have em in the mailbox when you return, trim it up and jar it with the brovedas

Diabolical666 said:

hang em, turn on the exhaust, order some broveda packs and have em in the mailbox when you return, trim it up and jar it with the brovedas

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Thanks you gave me a new idea
In their website they said that they recommend to dry by hanging then when it is close to 62% to fine tune drying and curing with boveda packs, but in their defenition to tha packs they said that it is a 2 way humidity controller, I ve already sent them am email asking if it is safe to dry from start with their boveda packs in an air tight container, all depend in their dehumidifying capacity, if it is that enough to prevent mold, I mean, If I put the fresh harvest in an air tight container, the water start to get out of the flower/stem and make the inside of the container humid and the container surface sweat and this is a high mold risk factor, but if the boveda packs can really keep the RH at 62% all the time by absorbing the vaporized water, it should be ok. I am right in this?

GreenStick85 said:

Your timing is interesting to say the least. Seems like your grow will be overly dried. Is there someone who could possibly help you dry your cannabis? Someone you trust?

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Lol, my friends are either anti marijuana or heavy smokers that they will smoke all the harvest before i come back

Or maybe put some of those chemical crystals that are a huge humidity absorber in an air tight container, but still i have to know the right exact amount that i should use otherwise my harvest will be over dried, beside putting these chemicals along side my organic marijuana, mmmmm i dont know

Elchacal said:

Thanks you gave me a new idea
In their website they said that they recommend to dry by hanging then when it is close to 62% to fine tune drying and curing with boveda packs, but in their defenition to tha packs they said that it is a 2 way humidity controller, I ve already sent them am email asking if it is safe to dry from start with their boveda packs in an air tight container, all depend in their dehumidifying capacity, if it is that enough to prevent mold, I mean, If I put the fresh harvest in an air tight container, the water start to get out of the flower/stem and make the inside of the container humid and the container surface sweat and this is a high mold risk factor, but if the boveda packs can really keep the RH at 62% all the time by absorbing the vaporized water, it should be ok. I am right in this?


Lol, my friends are either anti marijuana or heavy smokers that they will smoke all the harvest before i come back

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no, wont work wet and adding the packs...you will have mold definitly ..Id let it dry to a crisp(mostly bc you dont have a choice)..then the brovedas will bring it back to life. get the 62's

Elchacal said:

Thanks you gave me a new idea
In their website they said that they recommend to dry by hanging then when it is close to 62% to fine tune drying and curing with boveda packs, but in their defenition to tha packs they said that it is a 2 way humidity controller, I ve already sent them am email asking if it is safe to dry from start with their boveda packs in an air tight container, all depend in their dehumidifying capacity, if it is that enough to prevent mold, I mean, If I put the fresh harvest in an air tight container, the water start to get out of the flower/stem and make the inside of the container humid and the container surface sweat and this is a high mold risk factor, but if the boveda packs can really keep the RH at 62% all the time by absorbing the vaporized water, it should be ok. I am right in this?


Lol, my friends are either anti marijuana or heavy smokers that they will smoke all the harvest before i come back

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Sounds like my problem as well. Although Id break a deal with them if they didnt smoke any until you got back but I am not aware of how much of a grow you finished with. Have you grown enough to judge wet to dry weights?

If I was in that scenario... Make sure bathroom is cleaned an no mold. Hang there, set exhaust fan to run twice a day for 15 min. They make switches available at hardware store that have a built in timer :~}

If it is organic and your house is kept relatively warm, air is moving, you can hang them to dry in a dark closet the darker the better. I can't say the curing will come easy if at all but you can try. The way by hanging them is to keep them from molding is less likely rather than in a bag that won't be shaken daily. The fan can be minimal but no point in saying your harvest is ruined by just drying your plant out then putting it in a jar when you get back home. Hell smoke it when you get back! Be a nice welcome home treat wouldn't you say?

This is what Boveda Inc replied:

Is it possible? Yes. Can I recommend it? I can't.

There are a couple reasons we suggest only letting the Boveda do the fine tuning.

1. You can't tell just by touch whether the Boveda have absorbed all they can, because they're still soft.
2. It takes a lot of them to do what dry air can do.

Boveda are effective at removing humidity, but they can only absorb about 15% of their starting weight. They'd then need to be exposed to something dryer than 62% to give up moisture in order to give them capacity to absorb again.

You're correct that they won't over-humidify, but if they've absorbed all they can and there's still excess moisture in the plant, it'll stay that way. A 60gram Boveda can absorb about 13 grams of water. That means to take your plants from 900g to 300g, you'd need at least 46 of them.

I'd still have some serious concern over all the wet flowers in a sealed container, not knowing what could spawn/grow as the Boveda are doing their work.

I wish I could magically change the calendar for you. Boveda is amazing for curing once the plants are dry most/all the way, I'm sorry I don't have a magical suggestion for you, either.

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I think that i have 2 options

Either to harvest 2 days before my travel whatever they will be ready to or not, dry them in sun, then put them in air tight container with Boveda to fine tune

Or to harvest the same day i travel, hang them in the dark bathroom for a week, then call my anti marijuana ex girlfriend who still has my department key, lie to her that I have cancer, and I need that she put the hanged flower into the prepared Boveda jar, but still I dont know if she will be able to do it correctly, I mean, it is pretty simple, just open the jar put the flowers and close, but even no one can do your work better than you

Ah, about the wet to dry weights, I really don’t know, my numbers to Boveda Inc was all speculations

There is the other option mentioned by Diabolical666, to let it dry to a crisp, they bring it back to life by the Boveda,

If I have to choose between: quick dry in sun for 1-2 days then Boveda, or dry in bathroom to a crisp for 37 days then Boveda, what would be worse for the bud quality? I know that quick drying is not that perfect neither re wetting, but if I have to choose....

Re thinking about the ex girlfriend solution, I think she will just close the phone on my nose

The option to re-humidify your weed is not advised by many who consider curing an art. Again this is not a loss but rather you'll be trying to cure something that did not stay in that cure balance. When mmj is cured, the equilibrium in the humidity becomes stable. So rather than having this dried plant, you have a stable herb that is of a different color, no longer green. Rehumidifying it may bring your chances of mold back up.

Ixnay on the ex-ay partner.... Shes liable to throw that all in the garbage!!! Not a risk.

GreenStick85 said:

The option to re-humidify your weed is not advised by many who consider curing an art. Again this is not a loss but rather you'll be trying to cure something that did not stay in that cure balance. When mmj is cured, the equilibrium in the humidity becomes stable. So rather than having this dried plant, you have a stable herb that is of a different color, no longer green. Rehumidifying it may bring your chances of mold back up.

Ixnay on the ex-ay partner.... Shes liable to throw that all in the garbage!!! Not a risk.

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So what about 1 to 2 days quick dry under sun then continue drying and curing by Boveda 62%? what is the side effect that could happen by sun quick dry?

The sun actually degrades THC, they do this to dry large stalks of cannabis in the East then make hash from them but the quality of the plant itself is not much to be smoked. Far different than what is grown for smoking cured and whatnot. You could try one cola in the sun and see your results but mark it so you know you tried it there. Ive never used the Boveda packs but heard good things about them in efforts to keep bud from drying too much. Luckily the RH where i live can be ups and downs but doesn't soak a room and make it look like it is sweating.

I want to produce my 3 ladies that we are talking about to you, other way, they would be angry,
They are 21 days in flowering
Thay are in 15L tissue pot each, with All Mix BioBizz, under full program BioBizz nut, in 2x2x4.5 too small for them I guess, The Led light is a GrowSun320 with a real consumption of 316W