Marijuana Business Magazine - May-June 2018

¬ n an ideal world, cultivators would have the luxury of time when it comes to drying and curing their cannabis.They’d take 30-60 days – waiting, sniffing, eyeing and “burping” – to achieve the ideal cannabinoid and terpene profile for each lovingly grown flower. But in the real business world, larger cultivators need to get product out the door.They don’t have one or two months to spend on curing. Does that mean cultivators need to sacrifice quality for large-scale commercial production? Not necessarily, according to Mojave Morelli, director of agriculture at Grow Op Farms, a producer-processor that grows about 2,000 pounds of marijuana per month in an indoor facility near Spokane, in Washington state. “We’re moving product so fast that we really don’t have time to do a 30- or a 60-day cure,”Morelli said. And frankly, Morelli noted, cannabis isn’t necessarily that much better – if any better at all – after a 30- or 60-day cure. “Ultimately, what everybody should be looking for is flower that’s good 10 days after harvest,” he said. “If it’s dry, put it in your pipe and smoke it. If it’s smooth and flavorful and it’s not harsh, that’s what we want to grow: something where you don’t have to send it through this whole process to get good flower. At the end of the day, when we produce as much as we can, that’s what we’re left to work with.” Two veteran growers explain why you can cure newly harvested marijuana in a matter of days, not weeks or months By Omar Sacirbey Morelli and other growers believe that with a simple, properly executed strategy, well-grown flower needs only a couple of weeks (give or take) to reach top-shelf quality. “What we’re trying to do is achieve the kind of terpene and cannabinoid profile that we want,” said Corey EXECUTIVE SUMMARY While many growers would like a month or more to cure their cannabis, that is a circumstance only boutique cultivators enjoy. Larger growers, however, can dry and cure flower in short time periods and still achieve boutique-quality flower. Below are tips and insights: • In a drying room, air movement generated by fans is helpful, but it should not be too powerful. • Large growers typically set their drying room thermostats at about 70 degrees and the humidity at 60%, then slightly lower the humidity toward the end of the drying process. • Growers typically aim to bring their flowers’ moisture content down to 12%-13%. Instruments are available to measure moisture content, but many growers still prefer eyeballing the plant. • Light can damage flower, so both drying and curing environments should be dark. • “Burping” is a simple way to release gases that build up in a curing bin. At the same time, fresh air is introduced and staffers have a chance to inspect the flower’s moisture. May-June 2018 • Marijuana Business Magazine • 97