WET VS DRY Trimming

[St3ve]

i had same time for dry.. i took them off the stem put into a container that let air in and out slower then just lettin them dry outside on a screen.. iunno i really saw a hugeeeeee difference so im stuck to it....... and dude ya i just pulled down like a 7 pound harvest.. that i will trim . 6 pounds myself

not exactly scientific my man.. I mean, how can you compare the results of the two methods when you aren't even sure of the environmental conditions for both?

The more plant matter that has to dry, the longer it takes. I would challenge you to control the environment of the wet trimmed product to have it dry in the same amount of days its taking you to dry the plant as a whole. If that's a pain for you and you don't want to do it, I understand.
I'm just suggesting that possibly your wet trimmed product dried much faster than the dry trimmed and THAT is the difference you are perceiving... instead of just saying "dry trimming > wet trimming" without really qualifying why. I'm just saying that, because if you read my post on the last page, I went through the same problems for a few harvests till I finally figured it out.

 

[St3ve]

If you take a wet fan leaf and stick it in a quart canning jar, you will not get that hay smell.
If you cut the leaf in half before sticking it in you will get that hay smell almost immediately.

I'm not sure I understand your point. I mean, what does it matter how it smells until its ready?

 

[festerous]

My point is would be, if you can keep your plant from going into defensive mode you can avoid the fresh cut grass smell all together. When you start cutting into leaves the plant think's it's being eaten by bugs. In defense it creates VOC's that attract friendly predatory insects. That overpowering grassy smell is the plant calling out for help.

 

[mowood3479]

anecdotal evidence while worth something isnt exactly conclusive... its a pet peeve of mine when people take anecdotal evidence and start boasting about the "proof" they have.
if it works it works... but as dhf says lots ways to skin a mule..
sorry grumpy this morning

 

[Jellyfish]

My point is would be, if you can keep your plant from going into defensive mode you can avoid the fresh cut grass smell all together. When you start cutting into leaves the plant think's it's being eaten by bugs. In defense it creates VOC's that attract friendly predatory insects. That overpowering grassy smell is the plant calling out for help.

hmmm... thinking about this, it sounds right. Anybody back this up or refute it?

 

[deacon1503]

hmmm... thinking about this, it sounds right. Anybody back this up or refute it?

+1

 

[St3ve]

hmmm... thinking about this, it sounds right. Anybody back this up or refute it?

It could be correct, and I do know that I smell more of the hay smell after wet trimming versus dry trimming.

but my point to him was, if I can eliminate the smell completely by proper drying and curing then it really doesn't matter. All I care about is the final product... and for me, its way easier to wet trim. If I can get comparable results then I will pick the easier road every time.

 

[GIVE LOVE]

My point is would be, if you can keep your plant from going into defensive mode you can avoid the fresh cut grass smell all together. When you start cutting into leaves the plant think's it's being eaten by bugs. In defense it creates VOC's that attract friendly predatory insects. That overpowering grassy smell is the plant calling out for help.

+2 would love to see some kind of reference for this, please enlighten us!

 

[GIVE LOVE]

Well I should have searched before posting...

Interesting stuff:

http://www.plantphysiol.org/content/121/2/325.full
http://www.pnas.org/content/104/13/5467.full
http://www.pnas.org/content/104/13/5257.full

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

hammerhead is right on.. i pull my fan leaves off the last day of lights on... every fan leaf with no trichomes gets yanked.. then 24-48 hours of dark time.. and Cut in the Dark.. under agreen light.. then. put right onto strings to hang dry.. depending on situation.. it takes 5-14 days .. i been getting my dry to take 10-14 days.. and still cure them for 2-4 weeks before selling..

but ya i did the test with horrible wet trimming results.. i am pissed.. the stuff thats in jars that was wet trimmed sucked in the smell department.. and taste was horrible. compared to the dry trimmed. i was very impressed with the results.. and the stuff has been curing for 2 weeks.. the wet trim i cant give away.. the dry trim is gone.. even when i tell them its the same strain.. they think im lieing.

but ya.. i like to pull off all my fans.. before the darktime.. i took some day of the harvest shots.. but i still got another 20-30 ish. to go.. they just started the flush.. so another 2 weeks or so.

im also.. going to say this.. i did a full grow. MH vs HPS. and only am i going to say this.. its all strain dependent.. honestly. i had some do horrible under mh. some did better. but all of the HPS plants did way better then the MH room. so thats enough for me to say no to going full MH.. but next is a mixed spectrum test to see what does beter mixed or just straight hps.

Trim in the dark? That's pointless.

 

[stihgnobevoli]

i am not a large commercial grower and i am a scientist but self proclaimed.

my observations.

when you harm plants they emit a strong "green" cut grass smell. i hear its a warning to all the other plants that danger is near and to prepare.

i have tried trimming both wet and dry. wet is far easier as far as mess is concerned, and i seem to be losing a lot of trichomes when i poke at my dry buds with scissors.

smells and flavors are lost if you don't dry your weed right.

fast dry = lost smells and flavors and your weed smells like grass/hay. even with a long cure it still smells like hay.

slow dry = the smells and flavors POP!!

curing + slow dry = smells gonna get you popped if you don't have that weed in a jar.

those are my observations on the matter, take it or leave it.

 

[greekgardner]

good stuff...........

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

It is true. Drying the bud with sugar leaves on it will get you a more pungent smelling product. I've done it both ways many times. I still wet trim the colas and hang the remaining plant though.

 

[RonSmooth]

Plants contain chlorophyl. When you cut them, the chlorophyl escapes. I dont think this is a defense mechanism any more than bleeding is a warning/defense mechanism in humans.

Why would plants want to "warn" other plants? If they were even capable of it, how would this benefit them?

Im asking, not just trying to be argumentative.

 

[stihgnobevoli]

this isn't just something i'm making up, this is science that has been proven.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-16916474

 

[festerous]

Plants contain chlorophyl. When you cut them, the chlorophyl escapes. I dont think this is a defense mechanism any more than bleeding is a warning/defense mechanism in humans.

Why would plants want to "warn" other plants? If they were even capable of it, how would this benefit them?

Im asking, not just trying to be argumentative.

It is not a call to warn other plants but "a bit of honey" to attract the beneficial's.

 

[mean mr.mustard]

Dry.

And trim over a screen

 

[Moppel]

There is no question about it, i have tried it with many strains , the buds have more smell and taste when dried on the stem with leafs.

 

[Hammerhead]

I trim dry myself

When I started to follow this my end results where notably much better in all aspects plus the smoke was much smoother. My 2 penny's

If you harvest your plants when there in full senescence the plants wont smell like hay when wet. Most Cannabis strains are suppose to die off ea year leave seeds to regrow the next year. There are some long flowering strains like Thai these still have a lifespan IMO must be harvested the same way.

http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/Senescence.topicArticleId-23791,articleId-23719.html
Senescence is the orderly, age-induced breakdown of cells and their components, leading to the decline and ultimate death of a plant or plant part. The timing of senescence is species-specific and varies among the organs of individual plants. Some species of plants produce short-lived flowers whose petals last for only a few hours before shriveling and dropping off, while the leaves of deciduous plants last through long growing seasons before senescing.



Senescence is a metabolic process; therefore, it requires energy. It is not simply the ending of growth. Leaves, for example, move the products of photosynthesis—and their own structural substances—out of leaf tissue into stem and root tissue during senescence and before their vascular connections are severed at abscission. One of the first materials to degrade is the energy-converting pigment chlorophyll. As the bright green color of chlorophyll fades, the yellow-orange colors of the carotenoids become prominent and combine with the red-blue anthocyanins to produce the vivid colors of autumn in the trees and shrubs of the northern deciduous forest.(This is when I harvest my plants)

The role of hormones in senescence is not clear. Not only the kinds, but the proportions of each are important. Ethylene promotes abscission of leaves, flowers, and fruits, while IAA retards senescence and abscission. When days shorten in autumn, IAA production decreases, and ethylene production increases, hastening changes in the cells of the abscission zone. When the degradation of the cell wall materials is complete, nothing remains to hold the leaf to the stem, and with any slight disturbance the leaf falls. Some evidence indicates that a senescence factor, presumably an unknown hormone, exists in some plants (like soybeans), but it has yet to be isolated or synthesized.

 

[Biosynthesis]

Dry trim, heres why. The leaves on the plant protect the buds when they are hung upside down and make the buds dry more slowly. Chlorophyl leaves a plant slowly. The slower the cure the smoother the smoke. Also wet trimming smears the trichomes because they havent hardened. I prefer a twenty day drying process with low temps and plenty of fresh air. I only do this on indoor. Outdoor doesnt get this treatment because quite frankly its not worth it. We have TONS of outdoor pot around here. I dont think some of these hillbillys know what chronic is. Went to the closest dispensary several times and thats all there is is outdoor schwagg.