# Best way to trim your buds be for drying



## sickbiker (Mar 8, 2011)

I know this my be a dumb question but i am new to this. I was wandering the best way to trim your buds be for u dry them i worry about triming to much off. How did everyone fair on there first time. Hell till about 6 weeks ago all i new how to do was smoke the buds lol:joint:


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## Jericho (Mar 8, 2011)

I cut off as much stem as possible and all bigger leaves, I tend to leave parts of the sugar leaves there if its hard to get, Plus if its got trichs on it then it will get you high so why bother removing it if its a hassle. 

Hang onto the trim with any trichs on it like sugar leaves or small airy buds, Can use them for hash. 

to do this stage i leave them standing in the pots put them on a chair and turn the pot as i go around the plant, also helpful if you put something to catch the trim around the bottom of the plant like cardboard or plastic. Makes it much easier to handle. 

After you hang them to dry for a while the buds will tighten up some, Then you can give another once over. 

This is my way of doing it, Many will have there own.


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## sickbiker (Mar 8, 2011)

thanks man. I have been worrying about that for a bit. I just dont want to mess them up. I always worry about the small stuff


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## Jericho (Mar 8, 2011)

Hehe, after you trim a plant you wont think its small stuff. I suggest you invest in a couple pairs of scissors as you will need them to be nice and sharp, Take a break when your tired or you will hurt your wrist (Mine hurt for a couple days after i trimmed last as i didn't stop. Also its good to have some thing to wash the scissors with as they will get very sticky, something like alcohol will clean it up nice. Dry the scissors before you use it after though.


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## SensiStarFan (Mar 8, 2011)

Jericho said:
			
		

> Hehe, after you trim a plant you wont think its small stuff. I suggest you invest in a couple pairs of scissors as you will need them to be nice and sharp, Take a break when your tired or you will hurt your wrist (Mine hurt for a couple days after i trimmed last as i didn't stop. Also its good to have some thing to wash the scissors with as they will get very sticky, something like alcohol will clean it up nice. Dry the scissors before you use it after though.


 
  Yea I do the same thing with the scissors.  I like to sit cross legged in front of the TV with a baking sheet in front of me, a bottle of rubbing alcohol and a dry towel to get all the gunk off the scissors,  I like thin bladed scissors that come to a point.  
  I'm different on the harvesting though.  When I go to harvest I just take my plant and cut off branches and hang them on coat hangers, ususally 5 or 6 branches a hanger.  I do not trim off any leaves at all though.  I let the buds hang like that until completely dry before trimming anything off.

-SSF-


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## sickbiker (Mar 8, 2011)

Yeah i have heard it can be a daunting task. I will be putting my girl to work to lol. Jericho Are u mainly growing autos


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## sickbiker (Mar 8, 2011)

SensiStarFan said:
			
		

> Yea I do the same thing with the scissors.  I like to sit cross legged in front of the TV with a baking sheet in front of me, a bottle of rubbing alcohol and a dry towel to get all the gunk off the scissors,  I like thin bladed scissors that come to a point.
> I'm different on the harvesting though.  When I go to harvest I just take my plant and cut off branches and hang them on coat hangers, ususally 5 or 6 branches a hanger.  I do not trim off any leaves at all though.  I let the buds hang like that until completely dry before trimming anything off.
> 
> -SSF-


If u dont mind me asking what your reason is for waiting until they are dry.


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## The Hemp Goddess (Mar 8, 2011)

I trim absolutely every bit of leaf material off that I can.  I believe that it smokes harsh.  The small sugar leaves are saved for hash.

I find it quite hard to trim a plant after it is dry.


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## sickbiker (Mar 8, 2011)

The Hemp Goddess said:
			
		

> I trim absolutely every bit of leaf material off that I can.  I believe that it smokes harsh.  The small sugar leaves are saved for hash.
> 
> I find it quite hard to trim a plant after it is dry.



Thanks. I planed on trimming as soon as i harvested


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## SensiStarFan (Mar 8, 2011)

sickbiker said:
			
		

> If u dont mind me asking what your reason is for waiting until they are dry.


 
I just find it much easier to trim the buds when they are dry.  The leaves get almost crispy and to the point where they are breaking off.  The buds are not totally dry at this point though, they will still sit out in open air for another day or two once trimmed curing.  But really it is more a matter of preference and there is not really a "correct" way of doing it in my opinion.  
-SSF-


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## sickbiker (Mar 8, 2011)

SensiStarFan said:
			
		

> I just find it much easier to trim the buds when they are dry.  The leaves get almost crispy and to the point where they are breaking off.  The buds are not totally dry at this point though, they will still sit out in open air for another day or two once trimmed curing.  But really it is more a matter of preference and there is not really a "correct" way of doing it in my opinion.
> -SSF-


I guess i will just have to try it both ways to see witch one i like. thanks


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## Jericho (Mar 9, 2011)

Yeh i grow autos at the moment, Well until this grow ends then switching up to 12/12.

Another tip, Try keep the room your in cool, the warmer the plant the stickier the it becomes.


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## sickbiker (Mar 9, 2011)

Jericho said:
			
		

> Yeh i grow autos at the moment, Well until this grow ends then switching up to 12/12.
> 
> Another tip, Try keep the room your in cool, the warmer the plant the stickier the it becomes.


whats your Favorite auto


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## Jericho (Mar 9, 2011)

My favorite would be MI5, give you a buzzy head high, makes you want to do things and cures really smooth. Easy to grow as well but hits about 2ft, Good yield as well.


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## dman1234 (Mar 9, 2011)

You gotta trim fresh, trimming dried buds is easily 10 times more annoying, and did i read correct that someone trims on the plant? i remove 1 branch at a time and trim it like that, JMO


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## MJ Child (Mar 9, 2011)

I have trimmed both when harvesting the plant and have also trimmed when the plants were dry and I feel as though it is much more of a problem to trim when the plants are dry.  Just my opinion.


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## Hick (Mar 10, 2011)

I trim probably 80% of the fan leaves while the plant is still standing. 
It is "much" easier to trim fresh plants with the leaves still in tact, and standing up/out away from the buds, stems, stalk, than it is to trim crispy dry plants with the leaves pressed/dried against the buds...."IMO/ yrs of experience".  
Besides, they make great compost! 

THEN.... the sugar leaves and wispy buds are trimmed and saved for the hash buckets..


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## 4u2sm0ke (Mar 10, 2011)

I learned from *Hick *when it comes to this subject...I dont have any helpers so I do all mine by self...I start trimming as soon as Trichs turn Amber..I start with all the Fan leafs  then trim all un needed leaf material...then after thats all done..I cut and hang the entire plant for a few days....Happy Harvesting


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## bud.uncle (Mar 11, 2011)

I also like to begin plucking fan leafs during the last five days, or so, of growth.
I now do all my detail trimming standing up, lower back pain make trimming while sitting a royal pain in the ...
I utilise a couple of trestles a couple of gravel trays as a, quick to relocate, trimming station. 
Fiskars micro tip spring loaded scissors are awesome.
Trash material is collected over a trash can and all sugar trim is collected over cardboard fruit and vegetable trays, for hash or bho runs.
I like to remove as much leaf material much the same as thg
I hang trimmed stock in a well ventilated dark area before the cure begins


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## OGKushman (Mar 16, 2011)

I am lazy. I dry trim.


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## Roddy (Mar 17, 2011)

Hick said:
			
		

> I trim probably 80% of the fan leaves while the plant is still standing.
> It is "much" easier to trim fresh plants with the leaves still in tact, and standing up/out away from the buds, stems, stalk, than it is to trim crispy dry plants with the leaves pressed/dried against the buds...."IMO/ yrs of experience".
> Besides, they make great compost!
> 
> THEN.... the sugar leaves and wispy buds are trimmed and saved for the hash buckets..



Removing fan leaves???


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## woodydude (Mar 18, 2011)

Hahahaha, good spot Roddy.

Not much I can add to this thread except, allow yourself plenty of time when trimming and make yerself comfortable, my first time I ended up speed drying a bud for some pain relief for an aching back.

Cant stress how important good scissors are too, fine points to get into the buds and as Bud Uncle said, spring loaded are perfect. Not cheap but worth the investment IMO.

Oh, I always scrape the resin from the scissors before cleaning with alcohol, it all adds to the hash oil.
Happy harvesting fella. W


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## johnnybuds (Mar 18, 2011)

Jericho said:
			
		

> to do this stage i leave them standing in the pots put them on a chair and turn the pot as i go around the plant
> .




Great tip! thanks:hubba:


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## ftw2012 (Mar 19, 2011)

Fine point spring loaded scissors are very much worth the investment...and dont forget to scrape a bit of the sticky goo off those scissors and put it on top of your next bowl!  

P.S. am i the only one that likes to make butter with the sugar leaves instead of hash?


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## woodydude (Mar 19, 2011)

Since I was taking pics for another post and cutting down a couple, I thought it would be a good idea to share this with you SB.
This is how I trim, a personal thing and others will do things differently, this is just how I like to work.
I take off a branch



trim it by removing the bigger fan leaves but leave most of the small bud leaves on, just a clip of the longer ones like this.



I find by leaving the leaves on around the bud they curl round the bud protecting the crystals.
Then I hang them on a coat hanger
[/ATTACH]

Then they go into a cupboard (closet) for a week or so to dry.
Peace W


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## The Hemp Goddess (Mar 19, 2011)

Woody, do you do a final trim to get some of that leaf material off?


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## dirtyolsouth (Mar 19, 2011)

It's all a matter of bud preference, bud... 

I don't like my buds to look like they've been thru the dispensary ZIRP-O-MATIC   trimmer and look like goofy little naked  budz...   I don't mind at all if I 'leaf' :doh: a bit of the base of trimmed sugar leaf on the buds...  they have more character to their look and personally I don't think it makes anything the least bit harsh...  imho it rounds out the flavor of the smoke VERY nicely...:joint: but that's just me!

I like to cut up my plant so that there is enuf of a stem to hang onto to trim an individual cola or bud and after I trim it to my satisfaction I cut the freshly trimmed bud off of the stem and put it in a paper bag or cardboard box to dry.  I do my drying in the top of my veg closet so the odor is filtered and pulled out by my ventilation...  I put all my buds in a single layer in paper bags and it's a nice relatively slow drying method.  

Peace~!


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## woodydude (Mar 19, 2011)

The Hemp Goddess said:
			
		

> Woody, do you do a final trim to get some of that leaf material off?



Yes!
Those girls are now haging to dry in a closet with a temp of around 23c with a small computer fan blowing on them
After a week, any leaf that hasnt curled around the bud will get trimmed off along with the stem/stalk. 
It then goes into jars/plastic tubs for a couple of weeks to cure but I have never been patient enough to leave any longer than 3 weeks from harvest!

All my trim, branches, stem, stalk etc everything goes into making hash, ice or iso but not butane any more, I almost blew my head off last time when the top of the tube blew off due to the pressure caused by a blockage I hadnt spotted. Almost shat myself with the bang it made! (Sorry for the profanity but I thought it would add some humour)

I really should stop waffling as much! Yes would have been so much easier!
lmao


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## woodydude (Mar 19, 2011)

The Hemp Goddess said:
			
		

> Woody, do you do a final trim to get some of that leaf material off?



Yes!
Those girls are now haging to dry in a closet with a temp of around 23c with a small computer fan blowing on them
After a week, any leaf that hasnt curled around the bud will get trimmed off along with the stem/stalk. 
It then goes into a paper bag for a week and finally jars/plastic tubs for a couple of weeks to cure but I have never been patient enough to leave any longer than 4 weeks from harvest!

All my trim, branches, stem, stalk etc everything goes into making hash, ice or iso but not butane any more, I almost blew my head off last time when the top of the tube blew off due to the pressure caused by a blockage I hadnt spotted. Almost shat myself with the bang it made! (Sorry for the profanity but I thought it would add some humour)

I really should stop waffling as much! Yes would have been so much easier!
lmao


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## Rosebud (Mar 19, 2011)

I did this this morning. I use an old pair of hair cutting scissors. I love them for this job. 
Here is a pic. This was a small plant and took about a half hour to do. Now that I mostly vape, i left a lot  more sugar leaves then I used to when I smoked. Here you are:


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## johnnybuds (Mar 19, 2011)

Rosebud said:
			
		

> I did this this morning. I use an old pair of hair cutting scissors. I love them for this job.
> Here is a pic. This was a small plant and took about a half hour to do. Now that I mostly vape, i left a lot more sugar leaves then I used to when I smoked. Here you are:
> 
> View attachment 162940




Thats Sweet!!!!


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## Rosebud (Mar 19, 2011)

(thanks)


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## niteshft (Apr 12, 2011)

I could hear the "oooo-awww" around the globe when I saw that pic Rose.


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## Gartner (Apr 13, 2011)

Whats the main purpose of trimming, will it affect the plant health, Why we do trimming after the flowering stage.,....















thanks....


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## The Hemp Goddess (Apr 13, 2011)

Gartner said:
			
		

> Whats the main purpose of trimming, will it affect the plant health, Why we do trimming after the flowering stage.,....thanks....



Leaf material smokes harsh and tastes nasty--I trim every bit of leaf  material I can from my buds (at harvest).  I save all the small sugar  leaves for hash.


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